Harmony Program

Piano trio in C Major                                                                                      W.A. Mozart
III.  Allegro

Sonata for violin No. 1 in G Major                                                                J.S. Bach
I. Adagio

Sonata for solo cello, Opus 25 No. 3                                                            Paul Hindemith

Sonata for violin and cello                                                                             Maurice Ravel
I. Allegro

Contrasts                                                                                                           Bela Bartok
I. Verbunkos (Recruiting Dance)

Piano trio No. 1 in D minor Opus 32                                                           Anton Arensky
III. Elegie – Adagio

INTERMISSION

Piano Trio in B-flat major, Op. 97                                                               Ludwig van Beethoven
I.  Allegro moderato
II. Scherzo (Allegro)
III. Andante cantabile ma però con moto – Poco piu adagio
IV. Allegro moderato – Presto

 

Previous Concert Programs

Melody Program

He It Is from Tryptich for High Soprano and String Quartet                Arthur Shepherd

Suite for Voice and Violin                                                                              Heitor Villa-Lobos
I. A Menina e a Cançâo
II. Sertaneja

If Music be the Food of Love; Sonnet 128                                                  Lee Hoiby

Light, my Light from Tryptich for High Soprano and Str. Quartet      Arthur Shepherd

INTERMISSION

Death and the Maiden                                                                                   Franz Schubert

String Quartet No. 14 in D Minor “Death and the Maiden”                   Franz Schubert
I. Allegro
II. Andante con moto
III. Scherzo Allegro molto
IV. Presto

Rhythm

Pacific Rims Percussion Quartet

Gunnar Folsom, Paul Hansen, Matthew Kocmieroski, and Robert Tucker

In a concert of percussion music from the Pacific Rim and beyond

PROGRAM

Spring fromThe Four Seasons (1723) – Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)

Gentle Latitudes (1982/1985) – Jeff Morris (b. 1957)

Audience engagement using music by Ligeti, Reich and others demonstrating rhythmic forms, devises, and games such as palindrome, hocket, phasing,

Third Construction1941 – John Cage (1912-1992)

I N T E R M I S S I O N

selections fromCoyote Builds North America (1989) - John Luther Adams (b. 1953)

I. Invocation
Across the canyon, you, Coyote.
Across the canyon, you Coyote.
What are you doing?
When I call you, come.

III. Giving Birth To Thunder
Coyote, my power, come
Through the wind I call you,
Through the rain, in the storm,
I, a young man, am calling you.
Answer what’s in my heart.

IV. Playing With Fire
I am old, twisted, dry. I am cold.
Build the fire.Heh!
Heeh-heh . . . he-he-he . . . feel good.
Let the chief call the dancers.

Marimba Spiritual (1983-1984) Minoru Miki (b. 1930)

PROGRAM NOTES

Gentle Latitudes, Parts I, II, and III was originally written for solo marimba in 1982 and was premiered by Matthew Kocmieroski who has since performed it numerous times.The four part version was written in 1985 at the request of a Bay Area ensemble but unfortunately was never performed.Since Matthew has taken such an enthusiastic interest in the original solo it seems appropriate and I am very pleased that his group will premiere the quartet version tonight.It was well worth the wait.(note by Seattle composer Jeff Morris for the 1997 premiere of the quartet version)

John Cage came to Seattle’s Cornish School as an accompanist for the Dance Department in the fall of 1938.Finding a large collection of percussion instruments left by a previous accompanist, he began adding from Exotic, Folk, Asian, Latin American, and Vaudeville sources and ‘found’ instruments such as metal cans and auto brake drums.He found sympathetic ears and minds in Cornish’s and the community’s Dancer’s, Eurhythmics teachers, and Visual Artists.Thus John formed the Cage Percussion Players, who gave three concerts at Cornish in 1938 and 1939 and also toured Colleges and Universities in Washington, Montana, Idaho, and Oregon early in 1940.This spearheaded a brief but notable movement of percussion ensembles and compositions up and down the Pacific Coast which was coined “Drums Along the Pacific” by Composer Henry Cowell in a 1940 article in the publication Modern Music.

John’s early works were largely short chromatic ones resulting from his study with Arnold Schoenberg.With the Constructions he found a new form capable of housing his percussive ideas and harkening back to his earlier studies with Henry Cowell.The pieces, all in 4/4 time, use rhythmic structures as formative devises, in what I term square root formula.The First Construction (in metal) and the Second Construction were written in Seattle in 1939 and 1940 respectively, and are both built of sixteen 16 bar phrases.The Third Construction, written in San Francisco for his and Xenia’s anniversary, he described as follows

“Third Construction(percussion quartet, 1941) has a rhythmic structure of 24 times 24.This is differently expressed in each part.An attempt was made to compose rhythmic “cadences.”The instruments used are rattles, drums, tin cans, claves, cowbells, lion’s roar, cymbal, ratchet, teponaxtle, quijadas, cricket caller and conch shell.”

John was never one to stand still; his two years in Seattle and at Cornish represent an astonishing amount of creative activity and had a formative lifelong influence on his work and the work of many other musicians, artists, dancers, and writers.Besides the percussion ensemble, he developed the prepared piano to accompany dancer Syvilla Fort’s recital, and with his interest in Cornish’s radio school, composed in 1939 what could be described as one the first pieces of electronic music, his Imaginary Landscape No.1. At Cornish John met a young dancer from Centralia, Merce Cunningham, who played in the ensemble, with whom John would later form a lifelong creative partnership.He was introduced to Buddhism through his friendship with Mark Toby and bought his first copy of James Joyce’s Finnegan’s Wake in Seattle.John also began what would become his other (some would argue most) significant creative endeavor, that as a writer and philosopher.He wrote and gave numerous talks and lectures to many Seattle arts groups, such as his The Future of Music: Credo, which opens his first book, Silence, and Listening to Music.

The five percussion quartets from Coyote Builds North America by Alaskan composer John Luther Adams are drawn from a full length theater work based on Native American coyote stories adapted by Barry Lopez, author of Arctic Dreams and Of Wolves and Men.I had the honor of being part of the original production that toured Alaska in the late fall of 1987, along with three other musicians, including the composer, two dancers and a Native American story teller.This current version is from an expanded production that was done a few years later.The composer told me that the music draws from three major influences, traditional Native American drumming and dancing, the ‘Drums Along The Pacifc” movement of the late 1930’s and early 1940’s here in Seattle and elsewhere, and rock and roll.The poems are from “Coyote Bones” and “Indian Tales”, by Jaime de Angulo and are used by permission of Gui de Angulo.

Marimba Spiritual by Japanese composer Minoru Miki is a prime example of the wonderful music for marimba that composers there have taken the lead in writing over the last 50 years.The instrumentation of the percussion parts is broadly defined and left to the players for final selection.Miki has also been in the forefront of the revival of traditional Japanese instruments and music.The composer says of Marimba Spiritual “This piece was composed from 1983 to the beginning of 1984, keeping in mind the acute period of starvation and famine in Africa which was occurring at that time.The piece is composed in an organic fashion, with the first half of the piece as a static requiem and the last part a lively resurrection.The title is an expression of the total process.The rhythm patterns for the second part are taken from the festival drummingof the Chichibu area Northwest of Tokyo.”

Notes by Matthew Kocmieroski

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PREVIOUS SEASONS PROGRAM INFORMATION

2011-2012 Concert Season

 

Local Vocals

For its final concert of the season, Simple Measures is joined by the Seattle Girls’ Choir top choir, Prime Voci, and SGC’s Artistic Director, Jacob Winkler. The beautiful, clear sound of the choir will be interspersed with and sometimes accompanied by Simple Measures musicians – Arthur Girsky and Michael Jinsoo Lim, violins; Arie Schachter, viola; and Rajan Krishnaswami, cello with SGC’s Ruth Draper on piano. The first half will include lighthearted American music (Gershwin, Copland, Randall Thompson), some of Dvorak’s “American” string quartet and Barber’s Adadio for Strings. The second half will feature movements from Stabat Mater by Italian Baroque composer G.B. Pergolesi.

3A. Friday, April 27 at 7:30 PM, Fremont Abbey

3B. Sunday, April 29 at 2:00 PM, Town Hall (Downstairs)

Seattle Girls’ Choir, Jacob Winkler, Artistic Director

Arthur Girsky,
Natasha Bazhanov, Michael Jinsoo Lim, violins

Arie Schachter, viola

Rajan Krishnaswami, cello

www.seattlegirlschoir.org

PROGRAM INFORMATION

Dvorak American Quartet (fourth movement)

Nada te Turbe by Joan Szymko for chorus and solo cello

Choose Something Like a Star (Robert Frost) by Randall Thompson

Gershwin Lullaby

Copland Old American Folk Songs: At the River, Long Time Ago, Zion’s Walls

True Colors by Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly

Barber Adagio for Strings (second movement)

INTERMISSION

Pergolesi Stabat Mater (strings and continuo)

20^th Anniversary Concert:Krishnaswami-Salman Duo

A Simple Measures Benefit Concert

The Krishnaswami-Salman duo will present a concert celebrating their 20th Anniversary of sublime music making. Come hear this experienced duo as they present a recital of great pieces from the repertoire for cello and piano. Featured will be Cesar Franck’s beautiful Sonata in A Major, which was the main piece on their first recital 20 years ago. The depth of artistry of these two long time collaborators is not to be missed!Champagne reception to follow for those who purchase sponsor tickets.

Sunday, March 11 at 1:30 PM, Town Hall (Great Hall)

Mark Salman, piano

Rajan Krishnaswami, cello

PROGRAM INFORMATION

Requiebros by Gaspar Cassado

Pequena Suite by Heitor Villa-Lobos

Habañera by Maurice Ravel

Sonata for Cello and Piano by Samuel Zyman
(Commissioned in 1992 by Rajan Krishnaswami)

Intermission

Sonata for violin and piano in A Major (arr.)

Introduction and Polonaise Brilliante by Chopin

Unstrung Hero

In the only concert this season that is unsung, we present one of our favorite unstrung heroes, clarinetist Sean Osborn.Luxuriate to the strains of Brahms as we bring you his lush, beautiful Clarinet Quintet as well as a wide variety of other music for clarinet and strings including a piece that Sean himself composed inspired by the Beatles!

2A. Friday, February 10 at 7:30 PM, Q Cafe (Interbay between Queen Anne and Magnolia)

2B. Sunday, February 12 at 6:30 PM, Mt. Baker Community Club

Sean Osborn, Clarinet

Jennifer Caine, Cordula Merks, violins

Arie Schachter, viola

Rajan Krishnaswami, cello

PROGRAM INFORMATION

Clarinet Quartet in D Major by Bernhard Crusell (1775-1838)
I. Allegro

Clarinet Quartet by Kryzstof Penderecki (1933- )
I. Notturno. Adagio

Allegro for Clarinet and Viola by Rebecca Clarke (1886-1979)

Quintet for Clarinet and Strings by Sean Osborn (1966- )
IV. (Inspired by the Beatles)

Quintet for Clarinet and Strings by Jean Françaix (1912-1977)
I. Adagio – Allegro

INTERMISSION

Quintet for Clarinet and Strings by Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
I. Allegro
II. Adagio
III. Andantino
IV. Con moto

Cello Divas

You KNOW you love cello!! Here’s your chance to be surrounded by the dulcet tones of a choir of cellos as we explore what perhaps is the western world’s most loved instrument.Hear works by Bach, Fauré, and some cool surprises! The culminating work will be the beautiful Bachianas Brasileiras #5 by Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos, scored for EIGHT cellos and soprano and featuring Seattle Opera regular Terri Richter.Incomparable!(We won’t be too high strung. Promise.)

1A. Friday, October 7 at 7:30 PM, Town Hall (Downstairs)

1B. Sunday, October 9 at 2 PM, Mt. Baker Community Club

Terri Richter, soprano

Cellos:Rajan Krishnaswami, Terri Benshoof, Roberta Downey, Virginia Dziekonski,

Eric Gaenslen, Chuck Jacot, Page Smith, Brian Wharton

Program

• Villa-Lobos Bachianas Brasileras #1, Second Movement
• Villa-Lobos Bachianas Brasileras #5, Complete
• Vivaldi concerto for 2 Cellos in G Minor, First Movement.
• Faure Pavane (arranged for 8 cellos)

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