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It’s a good thing Portola Valley resident Livia Sohn likes to learn new things and work hard, because her “passion (to) bring more music into the community” has become almost a full-time job on top of being a single mother of two, a professional violinist, and a violin and chamber music teacher at Stanford University.
She recently founded and serves as artistic director for the nonprofit Coast Live Music, which is putting on its second public concert, Baroque Sunset at Thomas Fogarty Winery, on May 9 in Woodside. Â
The evening program features Vivaldi’s Concerto for Strings in C Major, Albinoni’s Concerto for Oboe and Strings, Walker’s Lyric for Strings, CPE Bach’s Sinfonia in B-flat Major, Price’s Adoration for Oboes and Strings, and J.S. Bach’s Concerto for Oboe and Violin.
“The incredible venue was the starting point, with a pavilion overlooking the Santa Clara Valley and a stage that’s large enough for an ensemble,” Sohn said of how the beautiful setting inspired the concert. Â
The ensemble is made up of Sohn, who plays both a J.B. Guadagnini violin crafted in 1770 and a 2006 Samuel Zygmuntowicz model, Coast Live Music Artistic Advisor James Austin Smith on oboe, San Francisco Symphony principal viola player Jonathan Vinocour, Meesun Hong Coleman (traveling from Salzburg, Austria) on violin, Arlen Hlusko on cello, James Thompson on violin, Anthony Manzo on bass and Paolo Bordignon on harpsichord.
Back in January, Coast Live Music staged its first public concert with the Ehnes Quartet playing at Portola Valley Town Center.
Sohn said she was thrilled with the “feeling of togetherness … the immediate vibe of everyone seeing each other and catching up; I felt a real sense of pride, this is what we were hoping for.”
The name, Coast Live Music, derives from coast live oaks, “the thing that thrives in this community,” Sohn said.
Her son Jack designed the logo that’s half coast live oak and half violin.
The organization’s origin story goes back to Sohn and her late husband, Geoff Nuttall, violinist and co-founder of the St. Lawrence String Quartet. They traveled around the world to perform and found “the best experience was the most intimate for both the performer and the audience,” Sohn said.
They decided they wanted “to bring music to those who love music and those who don’t.”
At first, they targeted school audiences. But when Nuttall became sick and then passed away from pancreatic cancer a year and a half ago, Sohn recognized the need to expand the mission and outreach “to places where music can really help and heal and offer a distraction.” Â
Her focus is now on booking performances in the health care industry, cancer wards, homeless shelters and rehab centers, as well as playing for children with disabilities and their families.
Sohn said “music is like an equalizer, it’s very democratic in a way… a universal language” she’s eager to share.
Sohn continued, “I know music, I know great people, and I know how to create community; this is my offering.”Â
And she’s busy making good on that promise. The same week as the concert at Fogarty, Sohn has smaller groups performing at homeless shelters in Redwood City and Sunnyvale, and at the Palo Alto VA Medical Center.
Coast Live Music also plans to return for a performance at Ronald McDonald House soon.
The next formal public concert is scheduled for the fall, on Oct. 5 at a private home where Metropolitan Opera House star Anthony Roth Costanza will command center stage.
The ticketed events help cover the costs of the free concerts Coast Live Music presents at hospitals and shelters. Donations are welcome, too.
The concert takes place May 9. Tickets are $125 and include roundtrip shuttle service departing from Portola Valley Town Center at 5:30 p.m. to Thomas Fogarty Winery at 19501 Skyline Blvd. Light bites and a cash bar will be available. For tickets and more information, visit coastlivemusic.com.
