In short
Wendy Sutter is a cellist appearing as soloist with the Northbrook Symphony Orchestra, performing Philip Glass's Double Concerto for Violin, Cello and Orchestra alongside Mozart's Symphony No. 40. She has been noted in the classical world for her work with contemporary composers, particularly Glass, whose music she has premiered and recorded.
What to listen for
In this program, Sutter takes on the cello part of Glass's Double Concerto, a work built from the composer's signature repeating patterns, where short melodic cells shift and layer between the violin and cello over a steady pulse. Listeners can expect the cello line to weave in and out of the violin's phrases, sometimes echoing it, sometimes pulling against it, all riding on the orchestra's rhythmic churn. The second half of the evening turns to Mozart's Symphony No. 40, a work driven by a restless, urgent opening melody in a minor key, offering a sharp contrast in scale and temperament to the Glass concerto's hypnotic build.
Written by OrchestraFinder, reviewed September 2026.