PREVIEW: Christ Trinity Church in Sheffield presents final Lich Gate Concert in Sheffield Park

Orlando Wells, Sarah Hewitt-Roth, Rachel Handman, and Jorge Ávila will appear in concert at the Sheffield Town Park, Saturday, September 16, at 4 p.m. Photo courtesy of Lich Gate Concerts,

Sheffield — The final performance of Christ Trinity Church’s 2023 Lich Gate Concerts series will take place on Saturday, September 16 at 4 p.m. under the pavilion in the Sheffield Town Park.

Christ Trinity Church explains why they chose “lich gate” for the name of their concert series:

“A lich gate is a covered gateway found at the entrance to an English-style churchyard. They say it marks the transition from the secular world into the sacred. This concert series seeks to transport us from the humdrum of ordinary life and into the realm of music, which has the power to speak directly to our souls.”

Here is the program for September 16:

• Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges — String Quartet in C minor, Op. 1, No. 4
• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart — Adagio and Fugue in C minor for String Quartet, K. 546
• Jessie Montgomery — “Strum” for String Quartet
• Johannes Brahms — String Quartet in C minor, Op. 51 No. 1

All of the players performing on September 16 are crack Broadway musicians with extensive credits in numerous big-name shows and are also current and former members of various orchestras in the U.S and abroad.

Artistic Director and violinist Jorge Ávila won the Omar del Carlo Fellowship at The Tanglewood Music Center and First Prize at the 2001 Mu Phi Epsilon International Music Competition. He is concertmaster of the Ridgefield Symphony, Distinguished Concerts International New York, and the Sacred Music in a Sacred Space series.

Violinist Rachel Handman sits next to Jorge Ávila at the Ridgefield Symphony in the role of associate concertmaster. Rachel has extensive Broadway credits, including “Dr. Zhivago,” “Something Rotten!”, “Miss Saigon,” “Carousel,” and “West Side Story.” She has toured with the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas for the shows “My Fair Lady” and “On the Town” and also knows how to play bluegrass, Irish, pop, and folk music. Rachel is Resident Visiting Artist at Music at Port Milford Chamber Music Festival in Milford, Ontario.

Violist Orlando Wells has pop music credits with such acts as Mariah Carey, John Legend, Rihanna, Harry Connick Jr., Dionne Warwick, and Elvis Costello—not to mention the Broadway shows: He served as assistant concertmaster of the Broadway revival of “Porgy and Bess” and is currently performing on Broadway in “King Kong.” He is currently principal violist of the New York Pops.

Cellist Sarah Hewitt-Roth has served as principal cello for 13 Broadway shows, including the critically acclaimed revival of “West Side Story” and is currently performing in the Lincoln Center production of “Camelot.” She is a member of the New York Pops Orchestra and performs regularly at Carnegie Hall as Assistant Principal Cellist of the New York City Chamber Orchestra.

Admission: $40 under the pavilion; $20 on the lawn; free to EBT, WIC, and ConnectorCare cardholders, as well as children under 18 accompanied by an adult. Tickets can be reserved here or by email at tickets@LichGateConcerts.org.

Hear violinists Jorge Ávila and Rachel Handman, violist Orlando Wells, and cellist Sarah Hewitt-Roth perform a program of Bologne, Mozart, Montgomery, and Brahms on Saturday, September 16 at 4 p.m. under the pavilion in the Sheffield Town Park, 53-59 Frederic Lane, Sheffield, MA 01257.