Work for string orchestra by Ljova performed by A Far Cry on December 8, 2013 and work for clarinet trio by Brahms performed by Musicians from Marlboro on March 25, 2012.Ljova: Vjola SuiteBrahms: Clarinet Trio in A Minor, Op. 114On our podcast today, we have a pair of musical melting pots: pieces that combine diverse musical influences.We’ll begin with a performance by A Far Cry of Vjola Suite, a fun contemporary dance suite by a young Brooklyn-based composer and performer who goes by the pen name “Ljova”. This suite was inspired by Lev “Ljova” Zhurbin’s experiences living and playing in New York City, with its myriad cultures. The piece draws on the folk music of Eastern Europe, West Africa, Cuba, and the Middle East. It is – as the composer puts it – “a collection of lively dances, for which the steps have not yet been choreographed.”After the suite, we’ll hear some more dances, in Johannes Brahms’ clarinet trio in A Minor, Op. 114. Brahms’s dances aren’t quite so geographically diverse, but they are, in their own way, a melting pot of then-contemporary influences as well. There is a flavor of the gypsy tunes, the refined Viennese waltz, and the more raucous Austrian Ländler, which features a spirited solo for the clarinetist. Performing the Brahms we’ll hear a trio of musicians from the Ravinia Festival’s Steans Institute.First, the chamber orchestra A Far Cry performing the Vjola Suite.