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A student recital. The program:

Kramarchuk: Trio
Stanislav Chernyshev, clarinet; Nathan Vickery, cello; Yue Chu, piano
Katerina Kramarchuk was a student composer at the Curtis Institute of Music. Information on the Trio from her website:

"Tides of Solitude" was written as a ballet piece for The Rock School for Dance Education. The music tries to convey some of the emotions one experiences as life's waves come and go. The triple meter groove drives the piece as the bassoon melodic lines represent in a way the protagonist who undergoes his life's journey.

Brahms: Violin Sonata No.2
Zoë Martin-Doike, violin; Xiaohui Yang, piano
In 1886, Johannes Brahms spent an invigorating vacation in the Swiss Alpine town of Thun. He described the area as "so full of melodies that one has to be careful not to step on any." The result was three of his most beloved chamber works: the Opus 99 Cello Sonata, the Opus 101 Piano Trio, and the Violin Sonata No.2. This three-movement work brims with the good feelings Brahms absorbed in the happiest of all summer vacations.

Boccherini: Quartet in D major "Fandango"
Justine Lamb-Budge & Marié Rossano, violins; Ren Martin-Doike, viola; Arlen Hlusko, cello; Jordan Dodson, guitar
This is one of several pieces that Boccherini transcribed from earlier chamber works. Here, he gives a Spanish flavor to this music with a prominent role for the guitar and for castanets in the final movement.

Musical Word of the Week: Fandango
1. a lively Spanish or Spanish-American dance in triple time, performed by a man and woman playing castanets.
2. a piece of music for such a dance or one having its rhythm.
3. (especially in the southwest U.S.) a ball or dance.
(from dictionary.com)

A graduation recital by Amalia Hall, violin. Amalia, from Auckland, New Zealand, was a student of Pamela Frank and Joseph Silverstein and entered Curtis in 2008. Her program:

Gareth Farr: Wakatipu
Amalia opens the recital with a nod to her native land, performing New Zealand composer Gareth Farr's Wakatipu. This virtuoso romp for solo violin is based on the ancient Maori legend which gives Lake Wakatipu its name. The lake's water level mysteriously rises and falls constantly; legend has it that the fluctuations are caused by the beating of a giant demon's heart.

Schubert: Sonata in A major, D. 574
Schubert wrote this four-movement sonata in 1817, but it was not published until 1851. The publisher appended the word "duo" to the score, properly noting the full integration of violin and piano as equal partners in this beautiful work. This was the first time Schubert displayed such confidence in his writing for the piano.

Enesco: Sonata No. 3 in A minor, Op. 25
"dans le caractere populaire roumain"
Composed in 1926 and published seven years later, this three-movement sonata is a typical example of the composer's fascination with Romanian folk music, most familiarly represented in his "Romanian Rhapsodies."

Musical Word of the Week: Sonata
a composition for one or two instruments, typically in three or four movements in contrasted forms and keys.
Origin: 1685-95; ]]> http://whyy.org/cms/onstageatcurtis/graduation-recital-by-violinist-amalia-hall/feed/ 0 http://whyy.org/cms/onstageatcurtis/graduation-recital-by-katherine-jordan/ http://whyy.org/cms/onstageatcurtis/graduation-recital-by-katherine-jordan/#comments Sun, 12 May 2013 18:05:32 +0000 Admin http://whyy.org/cms/onstageatcurtis/?p=742

A graduation recital by Katherine Jordan, horn. Katherine hails from Charlotte, Vermont, and was a student of Jennifer Montone. She entered Curtis in 2008 and graduated in 2012. Her program:

Ketting: Intrada
The Dutch composer, conductor, teacher and trumpeter Otto Ketting was born in Amsterdam in 1935 and died in 2012. His "Intrada," dating from 1958, can be played on either trumpet or horn. Ketting's musical philosophy was summed up this way:
"Music should be about emotions and experiences, time and surroundings – besides being about music – no matter to what extent these are concealed or stylized."

Ludwig: Six Haikus
David Ludwig is on the composition faculty of the Curtis Institute where he serves as the Artistic Chair of Performance and as the director of the Curtis 20/21 Contemporary Music Ensemble. In 2011, NPR Music selected him as one of the Top 100 Composers Under Forty in the world. "Six Haikus" was written for Jennifer Montone (Katherine's teacher) and Cecile Licad in 2008. David has this to say about the piece:

"Six Haikus, for solo horn and piano, is about the ephemeral passing moments and epiphanies in the haiku poetry tradition. I have used only fragments of haikus as the inspiration for each movement. The medium of horn and piano especially allows me to reflect on the poetry of the expression and color in dialogue between just these two instruments. Three of the movements are for horn with piano, while three are for unaccompanied horn, but with the pedal resonances of the piano, into which the horn projects its sound. In this way, the horn becomes its own accompaniment, building gauzy chords of sonorous harmonies in the reflection of the piano strings. I have incorporated the syllabic poetic scheme into these movements in collections of five, seven, and five notes in returning music to embrace the expression of the poetry further. Each fragment of poetry represents a poignant scene from the words of the haiku."

Poulenc: Elegie for Horn and Piano
This elegy is Francis Poulenc's expression of grief on the death of the English horn virtuoso Dennis Brain, who died in an automobile accident in 1957. Poulenc was in London when he heard the news, and wrote the Elegie the next day. On the first anniversary of Brain's death, Poulenc was at the piano for the premiere, with hornist Neill Sanders.

Brahms: Trio in E-flat major, Op.40
The circumstances of this beautiful work also suggest an elegy. In 1865, Brahms' mother died, and he drew on a theme from an earlier, unpublished work to pay tribute to her in this chamber work. In some ways, the Trio illustrates the several stages of mourning; after the somber opening movement, the work moves slowly to the light, culminating in a joyous fourth movement finale. Even after a grievous loss, Brahms affirms that life is still worth living.

Musical Word of the Week: Haiku
1. a major form of Japanese verse, written in 17 syllables divided into 3 lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables, and employing highly evocative allusions and comparisons, often on the subject of nature or one of the seasons.
2. a poem written in this form.
(from dictionary.com)

A graduation recital by violinist Yiying Julia Lee. Julia is a native of Houston, Texas, and studied at Curtis with Shmuel Ashkenasi, Pamela Frank, and Arnold Steinhardt. Her program, all of which is accompanied by Curtis staff pianist Amy Yang:

Janaceck: Sonata
Leos Janacek resolved to write a violin sonata as early as his student days in Leipzig in 1880, but never got around to completing one until 1914. Even then, the sonata's public debut was delayed further by extensive revisions and The First World War. Violinist František Kudláček and pianist Jaroslav Kvapil gave the first performance in 1922 at a concert of new Moravian music in Brno. In typical Janacek fashion, the sonata is marked by short, sharp motives and rapid changes in mood, making it one of the more interesting and unusual such works in the catalogue.

Ravel: Sonata for Violin and Piano
No, this is not the famous, jazzy Violin Sonata of the 1920's, but a youthful work from 1897. Ravel discarded the score, and it was not re-discovered until 1975. Julia Li says she cannot understand why it has not been played more often; indeed, its dreamy vagueness places it squarely within the French Impressionist style we associate with Ravel, Debussy and Faure.

Brahms: Sonata No.3 in D minor, Op. 108
This is the last of Brahms' three violin sonatas, dating from 1887 and 1888. Brahms dedicated the sonata to his longtime friend and collaborator Hans von Bulow. Brahms was at the piano for the 1888 premiere, with Jeno Hubay playing violin. This four-movement sonata is a much more dramatic work than its easy-going A major predecessor.

Musical Word of the Week: Sonata
A composition for one or two instruments, typically in three or four movements in contrasted forms and keys.
Origin: 1685-95; < Italian < Latin sonta (past participle of sonre, "to sound").
from dictionary.com

A student/faculty recital with faculty guitarist David Starobin & faculty harpist Elizabeth Hainen. The program:

Hindemith: Rondo for Three Guitars
Jordan Dodson, Jiyeon Kim, David Starobin, guitars
Hindemith, the master violist, wrote only one work for guitar, and this is it, dating from 1925. Hindemith makes up for his paucity of material for this instrument by putting three guitarists to work in one piece. Tonight, Curtis faculty member David Starobin is joined by Jordan Dodson and Jiyeon Kim, the first students enrolled in the school's new classical guitar program.

Paul Lansky: Partita: Suite for Guitar and Percussion
David Starobin, guitar; Mari Yoshinaga, percussion
David Starobin and Jason Vieaux inaugurated the Curtis Institute's classical guitar program in the 2011/2012 school year. Mr. Starobin is a passionate promoter of new music, and Paul Lansky was in the Field Concert Hall audience for the world premiere of this work. The four movements are marked: Preambulum, Allemande, Pavane and Gigue. Student percussionist Mari Yoshinaga joins Mr. Starobin for the performance.

Pierne: Concertstuck for Harp and Orchestra, Op.39
JiHyun Wu, harp; Chang-Yong Shin, piano
At this point, we turn the proceedings over to the students of Elizabeth Hainen, principal harp of the Philadelphia Orchestra. Gabriel Pierne, the French organist and composer, lived from 1863 to 1937. This concert piece for harp dates from 1903.

Scarlatti: Two Sonatas
Elizabeth White Clark, harp
These transcriptions of two harpsichord sonatas by Domenico Scarlatti are by Judy Loman, a Curtis graduate and current faculty member. Ms. Loman was the principal harp of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra for over 40 years.

Galais: Paysages
Curtis Harp Studio Ensemble
The French harpist and composer Bernard Galais lived from 1921 to 2009. His Paysages is a colorful musical travelogue, evoking Brazil, Argentina and Mexico. Elizabeth Hainen joins her harp students for this entertaining suite; listen as she gives the downbeats in two languages!

Musical Word of the Week: Partita
1. an instrumental suite common chiefly in the 18th century.
2. a set of variations
Origin: 
1875–80; < Italian, feminine of partito  (divided)
from Dictionary.com

A recital of Mozart chamber music, featuring Curtis students and the members of the Johannes Quartet, all of whom are Curtis graduates. The Johannes Quartet was in residency at Curtis in February, 2012 for a week of coaching and teaching, culminating in two recitals at the Field Concert Hall. Tonight's program:

Mozart: Quartet in B-flat major, K. 589
Johannes Quartet: Soovin Kim & Jessica Lee, violins; Choong-Jin Chang, viola; Peter Stumpf, cello
Dating from 1790, this is the second of Mozart's "Prussian Quartets," written for the King of Prussia, Friedrich Wilhelm II, an amateur cellist. These three Prussian Quartets are the last of Mozart's 23 compositions in that form.

Mozart: Quintet in E-flat major, K. 614
Jessica Lee & Katya Poplyansky, violins; Choong-Jin Chang & En-Chi Cheng, violas; Summer Hu, cello
Completing our program of late Mozart works, this quintet is Mozart's last major chamber work, completed in 1791, the year of his death. This is one of the composer's "viola" quintets, scored for the standard string quartet, plus an extra viola.

Musical Word of the Week: Larghetto
Adjective or adverb
1. to be performed slowly
2. a piece or passage to be performed in this way.
[Italian: diminutive of largo]
(from Dictionary.com)

A graduation recital by violist Ayane Kozasa. Ayane, a native of Chicago, came to Curtis in 2009 for studies with Misha Amory and Roberto Diaz. Her program:

Pärt: Fratres
The Estonian composer Arvo Pärt was born in 1935, and is one of the most prominent living composers of sacred music. In recent decades, Pärt has worked in a minimalist style that employs his self-invented technique, tintinnabuli. (see below) His music also takes inspiration from Gregorian chant. Tonight's version for viola and piano is one of several arrangements of this meditative music.

Schumann: Marchenbilder, Op.113
These four "Fairy Tale Pictures" date from March, 1851. Although Schumann was cryptic in his descriptions of each section, entries from his journal give more details. Apparently, the first two sections depict scenes from Rapunzel. The third section conveys a scene from Rumpelstiltskin, and The Sleeping Beauty is the inspiration for part four. You may have to use your imagination as you listen.

Paganini: Sonate per la Grant Viola
Paganini displayed equal virtuosic dexterity on the violin and the viola, and he wrote a number of compositions for each instrument. This sonata was composed in London in 1834, and consists of three sections:
Introduzione: Larghetto; Recitativo a piacere
Cantabile Andante Sostenuto
Tema con Variazioni

Brahms: Two Songs, Op.91
For these two songs, Ayane is joined by mezzo-soprano J'Nai Bridges. You'll note that Brahms gives equal weight to voice and viola, emphasizing the instrument's songful capabilities. The songs are titled Gestillte Sehnsucht ("Nursing Longing") and Geistliches Wiegenlied ("Spiritual Lullaby").

Musical Word of the Week: Tintinnabuli
(from the Latin tintinnabulum, a bell) is a compositional style created by Arvo Pärt. This simple style was influenced by the composer's mystical experiences with chant music. Musically, Pärt's tintinnabular music is characterized by two types of voices, the first of which (dubbed the "tintinnabular voice") arpeggiates the tonic triad, and the second of which moves diatonically in stepwise motion. The works often have a slow and meditative tempo, and a minimalist approach to both notation and performance.
(from Wikipedia)

A graduation recital by pianist Haochen Zhang. Haochen, a native of Shanghai, studied at Curtis with Gary Graffman. He was the Gold Medalist / First Prize winner of the Thirteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 2009. His program:

Beethoven: Sonata No.32 in C minor
Dating from 1821 and 1822, this is Beethoven's final piano sonata, and among the last of his many compositions for his instrument. As usual, Beethoven was breaking the rules, distilling the sonata structure into two highly focused movements. Quoting pianist Jeremy Denk: "Beethoven…whittles away everything down to the absolute difference of the two movements…an Allegro and an Adagio, two opposed poles…as with the greatest Beethoven pieces, the structure itself becomes a message."

Debussy: Preludes, Book 1 (Selections)
Debussy created two collections, or books, of preludes for the piano, each book containing twelve preludes. From this first collection of 1909 and 1910, Haochen has chosen three preludes, each a paragon of smoky impressionism:
Les Sons et les parfums tournent dans l'air du soir ("The sounds and fragrances swirl through the evening air")
Les Collines d'Anacapri ("The Hills of Anacapri")
La cathedrale engloutie ("The Sunken Cathedral")

Balakirev: Islamey: fantaisie orientale
Haochen concludes his program with a classic, finger-flying showpiece by this Russian composer, based on a Tatar dance tune he heard during a trip to the Caucusus.

Musical Word of the Week: Prelude
A relatively short, independent instrumental composition, free in form and resembling an improvisation. (via dictionary.com)

A Faculty/Student Recital – For Strings Only:

Haydn: String Quartet in C minor, Hob. III:32
Benjamin Beilman & Nigel Armstrong, violins;
Jessica T. Chang, viola; Arlen Hlusko, cello
Franz Josef Haydn is known to history as "the father of the symphony." But he was no slouch in the chamber realm either, having written 67 string quartets over a 37 year span, from 1762 to 1799. This one checks in at No.25, dating from 1772. And it is considered to be his first great effort in this form, particularly for its revolutionary liberation of the cello from its traditional ground-bass role as accompaniment, into a more prominent role with the violins and viola.

Schoenberg: Verklaerte Nacht, Op.4
Luosha Fang & Ye-Rang Kim, violins;
Daniel Hanul Lee & Sung Jin Lee, violas;
Sarah Rommel & Peter Wiley, cellos
This is the original chamber version of Verklärte Nacht ("Transfigured Night").
In 1917, Schoenberg produced an arrangement for string orchestra, with a revision in 1943. That version is the one most often recorded and performed. There is also an arrangement for piano trio. The work has also served as the basis for several ballets. Of course, this moving work is based on the poem by Richard Dehmel, a classic tale of love and forgiveness, given heightened meaning by the expressive music by Schoenberg. The verses:

Two people walk through a bare, cold grove;
The moon races along with them, they look into it.
The moon races over tall oaks,
No cloud obscures the light from the sky,
Into which the black points of the boughs reach.
A woman’s voice speaks:

I’m carrying a child, and not yours,
I walk in sin beside you.
I have committed a great offense against myself.
I no longer believed I could be happy
And yet I had a strong yearning
For something to fill my life, for the joys of
Motherhood
And for duty; so I committed an effrontery,
So, shuddering, I allowed my sex
To be embraced by a strange man,
And, on top of that, I blessed myself for it.
Now life has taken its revenge:
Now I have met you, oh, you.

She walks with a clumsy gait,
She looks up; the moon is racing along.
Her dark gaze is drowned in light.
A man’s voice speaks:

May the child you conceived
Be no burden to your soul;
Just see how brightly the universe is gleaming!
There’s a glow around everything;
You are floating with me on a cold ocean,
But a special warmth flickers
From you into me, from me into you.
It will transfigure the strange man’s child.
You will bear the child for me, as if it were mine;
You have brought the glow into me,
You have made me like a child myself.

He grasps her around her ample hips.
Their breath kisses in the breeze.
Two people walk through the lofty, bright night.

Musical Word of the Week: Hoboken Listing
"Haydn's works are listed in a comprehensive catalogue prepared by Anthony van Hoboken. This Hoboken catalogue provides each work with an identifying number, called its Hoboken number (abbreviation: H. or Hob.). The string quartets also have Hoboken numbers, but are usually identified instead by their opus numbers, which have the advantage of indicating the groups of six quartets that Haydn published together; thus for example the string quartet Opus 76, No.3 is the third of the six quartets published in 1799 as Opus 76."
(from Wikipedia)

A graduation recital by violinist Rebecca Anderson. Rebecca is a native of Portland, Oregon, and studied at Curtis with Ida Kavafian.

Her program, accompanied by Curtis staff pianist Amy J. Yang:

Schumann: Sonata No. 1 in A minor, Op. 105
Schumann got around to the violin sonata form rather late with this 1851 work, completed over the space of five days. He is said to have been displeased with the way it turned out. Nonetheless, Schumann entrusted the premiere to his pianist wife Clara in March of 1852, with Ferdinand David playing violin.

Eugène Ysaÿe: Sonata in E minor, Op. 27, No. 4
Speaking of alacrity, Ysaÿe composed six sonatas for solo violin in one month—September of 1924. Each sonata is dedicated to one of the composer's contemporaries, in this case, Fritz Kreisler. Ysaÿe revered Johann Sebastian Bach, particularly the sonatas and partitas for violin, and these suites are constructed with the same dance movements that Bach utilized in his versions.

Sibelius: Five Pieces, Op. 81
After a break for the Ysaÿe solo sonata, Amy Yang goes back to work with Rebecca here. Sibelius worked on these charming miniatures from 1915 to 1918. The five movements are marked: Mazurka, Rondino, Valse, Aubade and Menuetto.

Messiaen: Fantaisie
This early work by Messiaen, dating from 1933, is one of only two chamber pieces he wrote featuring the violin. Its dedication is to "Mi," Messaien's nickname for his wife, the violinist Claire Delbos. Already, we can notice the seeds of the religious mysticism which would mark Messiaen's music throughout his career. Interestingly, the Fantaisie was published only recently, in 2007.

Musical Word of the Week: Aubade
(One of the Five Pieces by Sibelius is marked "aubade.")
A piece sung or played outdoors at dawn, usually as a compliment to someone.
(from dictionary.com)