Composer Rene Orth Graduation Recital

Rene Orth

Musical America, the oldest American magazine on classical music describes Rene Orth as “whimsical, spikey, sometimes show-bizy, always dramatic, reflective, rarely predictable, and often electronic”. While at Curtis she held the Edward B. Garrigues Fellowship and is currently a Composer in Residence at Opera Philadelphia.

Rene Orth: Dream Sequence: The Nightmare
(Electronics)

Rene Orth’s Dream Sequence is a set of electronic compositions that tells a story without or minimal words and without any visuals. The Nightmare is about being chase.

Rene Orth: Miniatures from the Mountain
Abigail Fayette, violin

Miniatures from the Mountain a commission piece inspired by the book Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier.

Luciano Berio: Sequenza IX, with electronics by Rene Orth
Stanislav Chernyshev, clarinet

This is an electronic companion to Berio: Sequenza IX. Clarinetist Stanislav Chernyshev commissioned Rene Orth to compose something electronic that would be played during the long pitches that would hold for up to ten seconds.

Orth: “Candlesticks,” from Empty the House
Shir Rozzen, mezzo-soprano; Michael Davidman, piano

Orth: “The Basement,” from Empty the House
Kendra Broom, mezzo-soprano; Shir Rozzen, mezzo-soprano; Michael Davidman, piano and Rene Orth, electronics

Rene Orth composed the chamber opera Empty the House with a libretto by Mark Campbell, which premiere, with the Curtis Opera Theatre in 2016. The story is about family secrets, regrets and the nature of forgiveness. Empty the House is about a mother who invites her daughter to help her move out of the family home after ten years of not speaking. “The Basement” is scene five and “Candlesticks” is scene seven.

Orth: Stripped
Abigail Fayette, violin; Shannon Lee, violin; Julian Tello Jr., viola and Zachary Mowitz, cello

The piece was commissioned by the Barnes Foundation to premiered alongside the exhibit: Strength and Splendor, Wrought Iron from the Musée Le Secq des Tournelles, Rouen. The exhibit looks at the work how the metal objects were stripped from bigger structures. Rene wrote this piece during the time she was dealing with a personal lost of a friend who was suddenly stripped from her life. She hopes the audience will be “moved and find the beauty out of the ugliness and incoherence” of the piece.

Jacques Ibert: Entr’acte For Flute and Harp
Emma Resmini, flute; Xiaobo Pu, guitar

This piece is one of Ibert’s most well recognized works and shows his love for Spanish music.

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