Saturday, October 10, 2026 - 7:30 PM
Birmingham United Methodist Church, Milton, GA
Mozart in Milton
Celebrate the opening of Music Milton’s second season with the Prince of all composers, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. His dramatic G Minor Piano Quartet, a String Quartet and the Clarinet Quintet, one of the Crown Jewels of the Chamber Music repertoire, demonstrate the wide range of his genius.
Jesse McCandless, brilliant young Principal Clarinet of the Atlanta Symphony joins the international award-winning Vega Quartet along with Music Milton’s Artistic Director, pianist William Ransom.
FEATURING:
The Vega Quartet
Jesse McCandless, clarinet
William Ransom, pianist
The Vega Quartet
The Vega String Quartet, Quartet-in-Residence at Emory University, is cultivating a new generation of chamber music lovers through dynamic performances and innovative community engagement. The New York Times raved that "[the Quartet’s] playing had a kind of clean intoxication to it, pulling the listener along…the musicians took real risks in their music making" and the L.A. Times praised their “triumphant L.A. debut.” Winners of four of the top six prizes at the Bordeaux String Quartet Competition, including the International Critics Prize, the Vega Quartet tours extensively throughout Europe, Asia and North America. Their live broadcast credits include NPR’s Performance Today, WABE’s City Lights, as well as Radio France, National Radio of China and the National Radio of the Czech Republic. The Vega Quartet has appeared at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Royal Academy of Music in London, Musée d’Orsay in Paris, Vienna’s Musikverein and Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, among others. The Vega Quartet performs frequently at numerous music festivals, including Amelia Island, Highlands-Cashiers, Juneau Jazz & Classics, Sitka Summer Music, Brevard and Kneisel Hall.
Jesse McCandless
Jesse McCandless is the Principal Clarinetist of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. Active in both orchestral and chamber music, Mr. McCandless has appeared in performances with the Jacksonville Symphony, New Haven Symphony, the Florida Orchestra, and the Atlanta Chamber Players. During his stint with the New World Symphony, he had the privilege of serving under the batons of such artists as Michael Tilson Thomas, Stéphane Denève, Peter Oundjian, and John Williams. Mr. McCandless has collaborated with the Viano Quartet, Peachtree Quartet, Amernet Quartet and Eighth Blackbird, and has attended the Aspen Music Festival, Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, the Norfolk Chamber Music festival, and the Kent-Blossom Chamber Music Festival.
Mr. McCandless received his Bachelor’s Degree from the Oberlin College Conservatory of Music and his Master’s degree from the Yale School of Music, where he studied with Richard Hawkins and David Shifrin, respectively. Other primary influences include Micheal Rusinek of the Pittsburgh Symphony and Michael Wayne of the Eastman School of Music.
William Ransom
Pianist, Artistic Director, master teacher, editor, and judge for international competitions, William Ransom has appeared around the world as soloist with orchestras, recitalist, and chamber musician. He regularly collaborates with leading musicians including Yo-Yo Ma, Richard Stoltzman, David Shifrin, William Preucil, Stephen Isserlis, Cho-Liang Lin, and members of the Emerson, Tokyo, Cleveland, Juilliard, American, St. Petersburg, Borromeo, Parker, Ariel, Lark, Dover, Vega, Dali, and Attacca String Quartets.
Ransom is the Mary Emerson Professor of Music at Emory University where he is founder and Artistic Director of the Emory Chamber Music Society of Atlanta. A graduate of The Juilliard School, in the summers, Ransom is Artistic Director of the Highlands-Cashiers Chamber Music Festival and for a decade was an artist-faculty member at the Kamisaibara Pianists Camp in Japan. In 2016 he was named Artistic Director of the Juneau Jazz and Classics Festival and also one of Musical America Worldwide's “30 Musical Innovators.” In 2022 he was appointed Artistic Director of the Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival, and in 2024 Chamber Music America awarded him the “Community Impact/Presenter of the Year” prize.