'Tis the Season for Beethoven Piano Sonatas and Holiday Jazz from DACAMERA

'Tis the Season for Beethoven Piano Sonatas and Holiday Jazz from DACAMERA

Brooke Wyatt Trio

AS TOY-PIANO VIRTUOSO Schroeder hollers in Merry Christmas Charlie Brown, “Whaddya mean Beethoven wasn’t so great?!!” Real recognizes real, and Dec. 4-16, DACAMERA presents Beethoven For All, a free, six-concert series of 20 of Ludwig Van Beethoven’s piano sonatas performed by some of the city’s leading classical pianists.


While each concert is currently at capacity, walk-up seating may be available the day of the performances on a first-come, first-served basis. While not as intense as Taylor Swift’s swifties, Beethoven has a formidable fanbase, and we hear he’s doing pretty well on Spotify.

Yvonne Chen

The first three concerts take place at the Menil Collection with performances by six different pianists, including CityBook faves Mei Rui and Yvonne Chen, who founded the new music ensemble Loop38 and was featured in our 2019 Music Issue. The series culminates with a marathon performance on Dec. 16 (Beethoven’s birthday!) at the Rothko Chapel.

First up, at 1pm, is Timothy Hester, who will tackle two of Beethoven’s most popular and technically challenging sonatas: Piano Sonata No. 8 in C minor, popularly known as “Sonata Pathetique,” and Sonata No. 21 in C major, nicknamed “Waldstein.” At 2:15pm, Tali Morgulis will play the always-popular Sonata No. 14 in C-Sharp Minor, better known as the “Moonlight” sonata. And at 3pm, DACAMERA artistic director Sarah Rothenberg closes the series with what will no doubt be a breathtaking performance of Beethoven’s final three sonatas, including his two-movement, almost avant-garde Sonata No. 32 in C Minor. In a 2022 interview for Houston CityBook, Rothenberg said, “In a way, there’s nothing more modern than some of the compositional things Beethoven does in his late works.”

For Houston jazz fans, DACAMERA has two free concerts on tap featuring pianist and rising star Brooke Wyatt performing several holiday jazz favorites, first on Dec. 6 at noon in the Grand Foyer of the Wortham Theater Center, and again on Dec. 15 from 5-7pm in the new Lynn Wyatt Square for the Performing Arts.

Art + Entertainment
The Latest in Anti-Aging Tech Now Available in River Oaks

Dr. Edward Lee and Nuveau

DR. EDWARD LEE believes in bringing the most advance treatment options to his patients at Nuveau. At the River Oaks practice, he performs the latest nonsurgical rejuvenation procedures, such as BOTOX and fillers, various laser treatments, and other nonsurgical treatmetns such as CoolSculpting and EmSculpt. He also does facelifts, upper and lower blepharoplasty, brow lift, and rhinoplasty for facial rejuvenation. Plus, he can achieve natural results with breast augmentation and breast lift surgery, as well as body contouring, such as liposuction, abdominoplasty, Brazilian butt lift and mommy makeovers.

Keep ReadingShow less

Ally Shell and Martijn van Koolwijk

BLAME IT ON the Moon! Mercury Chamber Orchestra’s 2025 gala at the Thompson hotel — themed “Moonlight Serenade and chaired by Ally Shell and Martijn Van Koolwijk — was a night of glamour and big band vibes, raising more than $350,000 for the company.

Keep ReadingShow less
Art+Culture

Phoebe and Bobby Tudor

ONE OF THE most elegant and anticipated galas of the year — Asia Society Texas’ Tiger Ball — drew some of the society set’s heaviest hitters. And it scored a new personal best in terms of dollars, raking in a whopping $1.73 million.

Keep ReadingShow less
Art + Entertainment