Little City Concerts: Next Show Features Composer/Pianist Vastek, 2 Teenage Phenoms

What better way to recover from all those Valentine’s chocolates than to luxuriate to the piano “sound landscapes” of “In Our Softening” – Little City Concerts’ next show, Feb. 15, 7:30 p.m., at The Falls Church – featuring renowned area composer/pianist Sophia Subbayya Vastek as well as two guest pianists from the 1st Little City Concerts Young Pianists Masterclass?

Your heart might be further softened to know 50 percent of the proceeds of each Little City Concert goes to a select charity (more below).

"Vastek will play a program of her original compositions," Little City Concerts announced. And, "as a bonus perk with this concert, Sophia has selected two outstanding local high school piano students to open for her: Amir Nikbakht, from South County High School, and Aayan Deshpande, from Oakton High School."

Sophia Subbayya Vastek 

“Born and raised throughout the DMV area,” Vastek will be presenting “an immersive solo piano program that draws from her acclaimed genre-bending album In Our Softening (“demands to be heard...” -The Crack),” Little City Concerts wrote in a press release. “In each of her performances, Sophia creates experiential spaces for listening through intentional, carefully-crafted sound design in partnership with audio engineer Sam Torres.”

“The result is a spacious piano performance that feels equal parts communal and intimate, grounded in emotional storytelling and care,” Little City Concerts said. “The music is an invitation to listen quietly, deepening our relationship with ourselves, our communities, and with the world around us. Her music has been described as “heaven on earth” (Sun 13), "ghostly, delicate, elegant..." (Independent Clauses), and “vulnerable, exquisitely performed, and sensitive…” (I CARE IF YOU LISTEN).”

“As a second-generation pianist and third-generation musician, the piano has always been home,” Vastek writes on her artist website. “With a reverence for her collective history, coupled with a boundless, exploratory spirit, she moves quietly between musical worlds. Her intuitive playing style — rooted in tenderness, improvisation, and classical training — has evolved into a dynamic, cinematic sound.” 

“In 2022, Sophia was recognized as a composer by the New York State Council on the Arts and New York Foundation For the Arts (NYSCA/NYFA) as a Music/Sound Fellow, a statewide program focused on the evolution of contemporary art. Her music has been featured on NPR, BBC, and KEXP, and she has performed across three continents.”

Fundraising for Select Charities

When Founder and Director of Little City Concerts Stephen Gorbos – Chair of the Department of Music Theory, History and Composition at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. – moved to the City of Falls Church in 2022, he was inspired to launch a local concert series with a social justice mission. 

“Many of you know that we relocated to Falls Church City in 2022,” Gorbos posted on his composer’s website. “We love this progressive community so much, and our family is positively thriving. Little City Concerts grew out of an idea of finding some way to build something here that contributes to this awesome community…."

Local Nonprofit: OAR

“Our nonprofit partner for this event [the Feb. 15 "In Our Softening" performances] will be OAR of Arlington, Alexandria and Falls Church. OAR is a community-based nonprofit organization that envisions a safe and thriving community where those impacted by the legal system enjoy equal civil and human rights. Through their Upstream work, they're confronting and dismantling individual racism and racism in the legal system and across all systems,” Little City Concerts said. “Their Downstream work allows them to be on the journey with individuals returning from incarceration and their families. They also offer alternative sentencing options (including community service) and diversion programs so people can avoid the trauma of incarceration and instead help the community thrive.”

About Little City Concerts

Here’s Little City Concerts’ backstory from their website. 

Founded by composer Stephen Gorbos in the summer of 2023, Little City Concerts seeks to present musical performances of depth and distinction in Falls Church City. Rooted in a contemporary/experimental aesthetic, concerts will focus on newly composed music, alongside refreshing takes on older repertoire. Each event will be connected with a social justice theme, and a portion of ticket sales will be donated to a specific charity connected with that theme. Little City Concerts is committed to presenting artists and repertoire that reflect the diversity present in Falls Church City: artists presented will have some connection to the larger Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. 

2023-2024 was our first season of pairing music and social justice in Falls Church City. Our three concerts were generously funded by grants from the Falls Church City Arts and Humanities Council and the Randy Hostetler Living Room Foundation, local businesses in our community, and a host of individual supporters, and we were able to give free tickets to students and youth to attend concerts two and three. Our programming featured: Balance Campaign presenting Texture, Terrain, Transformation, an environmentally-inspired program that was paired with EcoAction Arlington; soprano Celine Mogielnicki and pianist Tatiana Loisha presenting SPEAK, a program devoted to voices connected with the LGBTQ+ community that was paired with SMYAL; and David Kim and Friends presenting The Artistry of Clara Schumann: Composer and Performer, which was paired with Doorways. 

In 2024-2025, we are expanding our offerings to include a fourth concert; we are putting on our first chamber opera; and we are also presenting our first Little City Concerts Commission. Please join us for one of our performances! 

Little City Concerts presents composer/pianist Sophia Vastek: ‘In Our Softening,’ Saturday, Feb. 15, 7:30 p.m. at The Falls Church, 166 E. Broad Street. (Use this address for parking at the closest entrance to the sanctuary.) General Admission: $25. FREE for students/youth. Purchase/register for either option here.

By Christopher Jones