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On Tonight’s Program R. ESMAIL Khirkiyaan for Brass Quintet III. Tuttarana: Vibrant and energetic F. PRICE String Quartet No. 2 in A minor I. Moderato II. Andante cantabile III. Juba: Allegro IV. Finale: Allegro E. SMYTH Songs for Mezzo-soprano with Instrumental Accompaniment 1. Odelette: Andante agitato 2. The Dance: Andante 3. Chrysilla: Andante tranquillo 4. Anacreontic Ode: Allegro energico
ABOUT THE MUSIC
R. ESMAIL K H I R K I YA A N F O R B R A S S Q U I N T E T I I I . T U T TA R A N A
REENA ESMAIL COMPOSER (b. 1983)
• Indian-American composer Reena Esmail is known for blending Indian and Western classical music in her compositions. Currently, she is the Artist-in-Residence for the Los Angeles Master Chorale and has also had works commissioned from several major American orchestras and chamber ensembles. • Khirkiyaan means “windows” in Hindi, and this three-movement brass quintet is made up of three windows into the composer’s work. The third movement, “Tuttarana,” will be performed on this program. • “Tuttarana” is a conglomeration of two words: the Italian word tutti, meaning “all” and the term tarana, a specific Hindustani (North Indian) musical form similar to the jazz scat technique in which a vocalist improvises with nonsense syllables. • A tarana is comprised of rhythmic syllables sung by a vocalist. Notice the virtuosity in this brass quintet and imagine how the dexterity required to play this piece might parallel that of a vocalist singing complex rhythmic syllables.
ABOUT THE MUSIC
R. ESMAIL K H I R K I YA A N F O R B R A S S Q U I N T E T I I I . T U T TA R A N A
P A R T I C I P AT I N G M U S I C I A N S
WILLIAM VERMEULEN
MARK HUGHES
RICHARD HARRIS
ALLEN BARNHILL
PRINCIPAL HORN
TRUMPET
DAVID KIRK
PRINCIPAL TUBA
PRINCIPAL TRUMPET
PRINCIPAL TROMBONE
ABOUT THE MUSIC
F. P R I C E STRING QUARTET NO. 2
FLORENCE PRICE
COMPOSER (1887–1953) • Florence Price (1887–1953) wrote several hundred compositions throughout her lifetime, including songs and piano pieces, as well as choral, chamber, and orchestral works. She often incorporated African American spirituals in her works. • Price’s String Quartet No. 2 in A minor combines her African American heritage with mid-twentieth century harmonies. Listen for the blues harmonies in the first movement and the inspiration of the Juba, a lively African dance, in the third movement. • Price’s music has been performed by many major orchestras. She was the first African American woman to have a piece performed by a major American orchestra—the Chicago Symphony gave the world premiere of her Symphony No. 1 in 1933.
ABOUT THE MUSIC
F. P R I C E STRING QUARTET NO. 2
P A R T I C I P AT I N G M U S I C I A N S
AMY SEMES
SERGEI GALPERIN
WEI JIANG
LOUIS-MARIE FARDET
ASSOCIATE PRINCIPAL SECOND VIOLIN
ACTING ASSOCIATE PRINCIPAL VIOLA
FIRST VIOLIN
CELLO
ABOUT THE MUSIC
E. SMYTH SONGS FOR MEZZO-SOPRANO WITH I N S T R U M E N TA L A C C O M PA N I M E N T
ETHEL SMYTH COMPOSER (1858–1944)
• Ethel Smyth (1853–1944) was born in London, studied at the Leipzig Conservatory, and was encouraged by both Johannes Brahms ˇ and Antonín Dvorák. In 1903, she became the first woman to have a work performed by the Metropolitan Opera. • Smyth was an activist in the women’s suffrage movement of the early 1900s and was once imprisoned for three weeks for throwing rocks at a politician’s house. When Thomas Beecham, conductor and founder of the London Philharmonic and Royal Philharmonic orchestras, visited her at the prison, he found inmates singing her anthem “March of the Women” while she conducted them with a toothbrush. • Debussy described the Songs for Mezzo-soprano with Instrumental Accompaniment as “quite remarkable.” The title of the last song, “Ode anacreontique,” is a nod to her love of the written word— it is named after the ancient Greek poet Anacreon, known for his celebrations of love and wine.
ABOUT THE MUSIC
E. SMYTH SONGS FOR MEZZO-SOPRANO WITH I N S T R U M E N TA L A C C O M PA N I M E N T
P A R T I C I P AT I N G M U S I C I A N S
YUE BAO
CONDUCTOR
KELLEY O’CONNOR MEZZO-SOPRANO
BRIAN DEL SIGNORE MATTHEW STRAUSS PRINCIPAL PERCUSSION
YOONSHIN SONG CONCERTMASTER
ASSOCIATE PRINCIPAL TIMPANI AND PERCUSSION
JOAN DERHOVSEPIAN ACTING PRINCIPAL VIOLA
JUDY DINES FLUTE
MEGAN CONLEY PRINCIPAL HARP
JEFFREY BUTLER CELLO
ARTIST BIOS YUE BAO
TING TSUNG AND WEI FONG CHAO FOUNDATION CONDUCTING FELLOW Conductor Yue Bao serves as conducting fellow of the Houston Symphony. In May 2019, she completed a two-year tenure as the Rita E. Hauser Conducting Fellow at the Curtis Institute of Music, closely working with Maestro Nézet-Séguin during her studies in Philadelphia. At Curtis, she was active as both a conductor and assistant, working with Michael Tilson Thomas, Osmo Vänskä, Gilbert Varga, Giancarlo Guerrero, and Miguel Harth-Bedoya. Yue was the Bruno Walter Memorial Foundation Conducting Fellow at the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music in 2019. In 2018, she served as the David Effron Conducting Fellow at the Chautauqua Music Festival, where her concerts with the Festival Orchestra received major accolades from audiences and musicians. Prior to her time at Curtis, in 2015, she served as a conducting fellow at the Eastern Music Festival under Gerard Schwarz. She has worked extensively in the United States and abroad. She served as an assistant for the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra under JoAnn Falletta and David Lockington (2015–17), making her conducting debut with Buffalo in 2016. Yue has also assisted Vänskä at the Minnesota Orchestra and Varga at the St. Louis Symphony. Recent appearances include the Shanghai Opera Symphony Orchestra, the Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra, and the New Symphony Orchestra. Equally at home with both symphonic and operatic repertoire, her credits include Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin, Bizet’s Carmen, Kurt Weill’s Mahagonny: Ein Songspiel, and Gian Carlo Menotti’s The Medium. She is also active as a pianist, recently playing for a production of Les contes d’Hoffmann by Jacques Offenbach at the National Centre for the Performing Arts. Along with her Artist Diploma from The Curtis Institute of Music, she holds Bachelor of Music degrees in orchestral conducting and collaborative piano from the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, and a Master of Music degree in orchestral conducting from the Mannes School of Music.
ARTIST BIOS KELLEY O’CONNOR MEZZO-SOPRANO
Possessing a voice of uncommon allure, the Grammy® Award-winning mezzosoprano Kelley O’Connor is one of the most compelling performers of her generation. She is internationally acclaimed equally in the pillars of the classical music canon– from Beethoven and Mahler to Brahms and Ravel–as she is in new works of modern masters–from Adams and Dessner to Lieberson and Talbot. In the 2020–21 season Kelley O’Connor was engaged to perform with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, California Symphony, Houston Symphony, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Memphis Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, and Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra among many others. Highlights of last season featured Mozart’s Requiem with Iván Fischer and the Budapest Festival Orchestra, Lieberson’s Neruda Songs with the Philadelphia Orchestra under the baton of Stéphane Denève, a program of Berio and Crumb with the New York Philharmonic, and Korngold’s Abschiedslieder with Donald Runnicles and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. She was engaged for performances with the symphonies of Atlanta, Cincinnati, Dallas, Houston, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Saint Louis, San Diego, as well as with the Philadelphia Orchestra, NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchester, and with the San Francisco Symphony for Michael Tilson Thomas’ final concerts as Music Director. John Adams wrote the title role of The Gospel According to the Other Mary for Kelley O’Connor and she has performed the work, both in concert and in the Peter Sellars fully staged production, under the batons of John Adams, Gustavo Dudamel, Grant Gershon, Gianandrea Noseda, Sir Simon Rattle, and David Robertson. She has sung the composer’s El Niño with Vladimir Jurowski and the London Philharmonic Orchestra and continues to be the eminent living interpreter of Peter Lieberson’s Neruda Songs having given this moving set of songs with Christoph Eschenbach and the National Symphony Orchestra, with Bernard Haitink and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, with Robert Spano and the Minnesota Orchestra, and with David Zinman and the Berliner Philharmoniker and the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich among many others.
ARTIST BIOS Sought after by many of the most heralded composers of the modern day, Kelley O’Connor has given the world premieres of Joby Talbot’s A Sheen of Dew on Flowers with the Britten Sinfonia at the Victoria & Albert Museum to celebrate the opening of the institution’s new jewellery wing, and Bryce Dessner’s Voy a Dormir with Robert Spano leading the Orchestra of St. Luke’s at Carnegie Hall with further performances accompanied by the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra led by Jaime Martín. Operatic highlights include the title role of Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia presented by Boston Lyric Opera in a new production by Broadway theater director Sarna Lapine conducted by David Angus, Carmen with Los Angeles Opera conducted by James Conlon, Donizetti’s Anna Bolena at the Lyric Opera of Chicago conducted by Patrick Summers and directed by Kevin Newbury, Madama Butterfly in a new production by Lillian Groag at the Boston Lyric Opera and at the Cincinnati Opera under the baton of Ramón Tebar, Berlioz’s Béatrice et Bénédict at Opera Boston, Falstaff with the Santa Fe Opera, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Lyric Opera of Chicago and the Canadian Opera Company. For her debut with the Atlanta Symphony in Ainadamar, Kelley O’Connor joined Robert Spano for performances and a Grammy® Award-winning Deutsche Grammophon recording. Her discography also includes Mahler’s Third Symphony with Jaap van Zweden and the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Lieberson’s Neruda Songs and Michael Kurth’s Everything Lasts Forever with Robert Spano and the Atlanta Symphony, Adams’ The Gospel According to the Other Mary with Gustavo Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with Franz Welser-Möst and the Cleveland Orchestra.
ARTIST BIOS MARK HUGHES
PRINCIPAL TRUMPET GEORGE P. AND CYNTHIA WOODS MITCHELL CHAIR Musician Sponsored by Mrs. Sybil F. Roos
Principal Trumpet Mark Hughes joined the Houston Symphony in 2006. Hughes developed his abilities at Northwestern University where he studied with the late Vincent Cichowicz of the Chicago Symphony. After graduation, he joined the Civic Orchestra of Chicago as a scholarship student of Adolph Herseth, the legendary Principal Trumpet of the Chicago Symphony. Hughes toured with Richard Morris as the popular organ and trumpet duo, “Toccatas and Flourishes,” performing throughout the United States and Canada. His appointment as Associate Principal Trumpet with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra followed, which he held for 12 years. During his time with the ASO, he appeared as soloist with the orchestra on numerous occasions, performed on dozens of recordings, and was an active studio musician. Since his arrival in Houston, Hughes has performed and recorded with the Boston and Chicago Symphony Orchestras and continues to be in demand as a soloist and recitalist.
RICHARD HARRIS TRUMPET
Richard Harris joined the Houston Symphony as second trumpet in 2018. Previously, he was a member of the Charlotte Symphony, where he performed for 8 years. A Yamaha Performing Artist, he has performed in orchestras all over the world including the Seoul Philharmonic and the Jalisco Philharmonic in Guadalajara, Mexico. He has also performed with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and Kansas City Symphony, among many others. An avid educator, Harris has given masterclasses at universities and high schools across the country. He served on the faculty at Winthrop University from 2013–18 and at UNC Charlotte from 2007– 09.
ARTIST BIOS WILLIAM VERMEULEN
PRINCIPAL HORN MR. & MRS. ALEXANDER K. MCLANAHAN ENDOWED CHAIR Musician Sponsored by Muffy and Mike McLanahan
Hailed as “one of today’s superstars of the international brass scene,” William VerMeulen leads a varied musical life of soloist, orchestral principal, chamber musician, master teacher, and music publisher. VerMeulen has been principal horn of the Houston Symphony since 1990 and has performed as a guest principal horn with the Chicago Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Cincinnati Symphony, St. Louis Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, and St. Paul Chamber Orchestra. Prior to joining the Houston Symphony, he performed with the orchestras of Columbus, Honolulu, and Kansas City. Regarded as one of the most influential horn teachers of all time, VerMeulen is a professor of horn at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University and brass artist-in-residence at the Royal Conservatory of Music’s Glenn Gould School.
ALLEN BARNHILL
PRINCIPAL TROMBONE Musician Sponsored by Stephen and Kristine Wallace
Principal Trombonist Allen Barnhill joined the Houston Symphony in 1977 and has appeared with the orchestra as a soloist on numerous occasions. Winner of the Swiss Prize at the 1979 Geneva International Solo Competition, he was also featured in the 2008 world premiere of Cindy McTee’s Solstice for Trombone and Orchestra. Barnhill has appeared in concert and on recordings with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Houston and San Antonio Symphonies, Chicago’s Music of the Baroque, and the Houston Symphony Chamber Players. Currently Associate Professor of Trombone at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, he has also held faculty positions at The University of Texas, University of Houston, Sam Houston State University, and the University of St. Thomas. A native of Elizabethtown, N.C., Barnhill graduated from the Eastman School of Music.
ARTIST BIOS
DAVID KIRK
PRINCIPAL TUBA Musician Sponsored by a Bequest from the Estate of Ed Wulfe
David Kirk is Principal Tubist of the Houston Symphony and an Associate Professor at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, holding these positions since 1982. Kirk enjoys an international reputation for effective teaching of musicianship and the physical aspects of wind playing and has presented master classes throughout North America and in Japan. Kirk was selected for his teaching and playing positions during his final year of undergraduate studies at the Juilliard School. Kirk also appears as a guest performer with ensembles throughout the United States. Locally, he is an active recitalist, chamber music collaborator, and spokesperson for the musical arts.
AMY SEMES
ASSOCIATE PRINCIPAL SECOND VIOLIN Amy Semes, born in Broomall, Pennsylvania, graduated from Rice University, Shepherd School of Music in 2019, where she received a Master of Music, studying with Kathleen Winkler. In 2017, she graduated from the Juilliard School with a Bachelor of Music, studying with Naoko Tanaka. At Juilliard, she held a Gluck Community Service fellowship for three years. She has performed with the Pittsburgh Symphony and the New World Symphony. Amy has previously attended the Tanglewood Music Center, Aspen Music Festival, Music Academy of the West, and the Spoleto Festival USA.
ARTIST BIOS SERGEI GALPERIN FIRST VIOLIN
Musician Sponsored by Rochelle & Max Levit Jay & Shirley Marks
A native of Moscow, Russia, Sergei Galperin began studying violin at the age of 5 and shortly thereafter gave his first public performance in the Concert Hall of the Moscow Conservatory. After studying at the Moscow Conservatory, Galperin received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Juilliard School, where he was a full-scholarship student in the class of Dorothy DeLay and Hyo Kang. He later earned Artist Diplomas from Indiana University and Peabody Conservatory. Galperin made his American solo orchestral debut in 1982 at the age of 16, playing the Wieniawski Violin Concerto with the New York Philharmonic at Avery Fisher Hall in Lincoln Center. As a winner of Artist International auditions, Galperin made his New York solo recital debut in March 1988 at the Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. Prior to his current position, Galperin was a member of the Pittsburgh Symphony first violin section from 1999–2002.
WEI JIANG
ACTING ASSOCIATE PRINCIPAL VIOLA Musician Sponsored by Alana R. Spiwak Sam L. Stolbun
Born in China, Wei Jiang began studying violin with his father at the age of 5 and began studying viola after being admitted to the prestigious Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing. Having graduated with the highest honor, he was subsequently offered a teaching position at the conservatory as the youngest member of the music faculty. During his five-year tenure, Jiang was actively involved in performing both solo and chamber music and toured extensively with his string quartet in Asia and Europe. He was a founding member of the Eclipse Ensemble, a unique performing group that showcases music by contemporary Chinese composers throughout China. Jiang came to the United States in 1996 to further his musical training at the Oberlin Conservatory and later at the University of Maryland. In 1999, he became a member of the Houston Symphony. Jiang is also a member of the Fidelis String Quartet which performed in recital at Carnegie Hall in 2005 and toured Puerto Rico in 2006.
ARTIST BIOS
LOUIS-MARIE FARDET CELLO
Musician Sponsored by Drs. Dennis & Susan Carlyle
Louis-Marie Fardet was appointed cellist with the Houston Symphony in January 2015. Previously, he served as assistant principal cellist for the Houston Grand Opera and Houston Ballet. Prior to moving to Houston, he was a tenured member of L’OpÊra de Paris Orchestra for five years. Born in Rochefort on the southwest coast of France, Fardet moved to Paris to pursue his cello studies at the prestigious Paris Conservatory and then came to Houston in 1999 to study with Paul Katz at Rice University. Fardet has won top prizes at several international competitions and has participated in numerous international music festivals such as the Ravinia Festival, Isaac Stern Chamber Music Workshop at Carnegie Hall, and Chamber Music Encounters in Jerusalem.
JUDY DINES FLUTE
Flutist Judy Dines is an active performer in Houston and beyond. Locally, she is a frequent performer in the Greenbriar Consortium, a diverse chamber group made up of Houston Symphony members and other musicians in the area. She was also a member and frequent soloist with the former Houston Chamber Symphony. Outside Houston, Dines is a member of the Ritz Chamber Players, a dynamic chamber ensemble which performs all around the country. She is also a member of the Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra. In the orchestral world, Dines has performed with the National Symphony Orchestra, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, and the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra. Born in Washington, D.C., Dines attended Temple University in Philadelphia and the Peabody Institute in Baltimore before coming to Houston. She joined the Houston Symphony in 1992.
ARTIST BIOS
YOONSHIN SONG CONCERTMASTER MAX LEVINE CHAIR
Musician Sponsored in part by Gary and Marian Beauchamp and the Beauchamp Foundation
Acclaimed as “a wonderfully talented violinist…whose sound and technique go well beyond her years,” Yoonshin Song was born in South Korea, where she began her musical studies at age 5. Making her solo debut with the Seoul Philharmonic at age 11, she has since built a successful performing career throughout Korea, the United States, and Europe. In April 2019, the Houston Symphony named Yoonshin as its new concertmaster beginning in August 2019. From 2012 to 2019, she was the concertmaster of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. As a soloist, she has performed with many orchestras around the world, including the Houston Symphony, the Detroit Symphony, the Utah Symphony, the New Mexico Philharmonic Orchestra, the Bayreuth Festival Orchestra, the Paul Constantinescu Philharmonic Orchestra, the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, and the KBS Philharmonic Orchestra.
JOAN DERHOVSEPIAN
ACTING PRINCIPAL VIOLA Musician Sponsored by Cora Sue and Harry Mach
Joan DerHovsepian became a member of the Houston Symphony in 1999 after serving two seasons as Principal Viola of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra in South Carolina. She is an instructor at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music and was a member of the prizewinning Everest String Quartet, which performed throughout the United States and Canada. She performs each summer at the Grand Teton Music Festival in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and at the Peninsula Music Festival in Door County, Wisconsin.
ARTIST BIOS
JEFFREY BUTLER CELLO
Jeffrey Butler has been a cellist in the Houston Symphony since 1986. He holds degrees in music performance from Boston University and the University of Michigan School of Music, where he was recipient of that school’s highest award, the prestigious Stanley Medal. He began cello studies at an early age with his parents, both professional cellists, and continued studies with Jerome Jelinek, George Neikrug, and Claus Adam. Butler has served on the faculty of the Stetson University School of Music, where he was a founding member of the Stetson Trio. Before joining the Houston Symphony he was a member of the Detroit Symphony.
BRIAN DEL SIGNORE
PRINCIPAL PERCUSSION Musician Sponsored by Mr. and Mrs. J. Stephen Marks Linda & Jerry Rubenstein
Brian Del Signore joined the Houston Symphony as Principal Percussionist in 1986. Prior to his Houston Symphony appointment, he held a one-year position as Principal Percussionist of the Grand Rapids Symphony. He also performed in many orchestras in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, including the Pittsburgh Symphony and the Philadelphia Orchestra. Besides keeping a very busy schedule with Houston Symphony performances, Brian maintains an active education and outreach schedule, where he presents educational percussion programs in elementary schools and percussion clinics in high schools across the Houston area. Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Brian Del Signore earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Carnegie Mellon University in 1981, where he studied with the Pittsburgh Symphony percussionists. In 1984, Del Signore earned a Master of Music from Temple University, where he studied with Alan Abel of the Philadelphia Orchestra.
ARTIST BIOS
MATTHEW STRAUSS
ASSOCIATE PRINCIPAL TIMPANI AND PERCUSSION Musician Sponsored by Dave & Alie Pruner Gloria & Joe Pryzant
Matthew Strauss has been applauded throughout the United States as an energetic percussionist and timpanist with a diverse musical background. In addition to his positions as Associate Principal Timpani and Percussion with the Houston Symphony and Timpanist with the American Symphony Orchestra at the Bard Music Festival, Strauss is currently on faculty at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music and Texas Music Festival at the University of Houston. Prior to his post in Houston, he performed as a member of the percussion section in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra from 2002–04. Strauss also has performed with the Philadelphia Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Baltimore, Detroit, St. Louis, Pittsburgh, Atlanta, and National Symphony Orchestras, the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra, and the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, to name a few. Strauss received his Bachelor of Music in Percussion Performance from the Juilliard School and his Master of Music in Performance from Temple University.
MEGAN CONLEY PRINCIPAL HARP
Musician Sponsored by Mr. & Mrs. Fredric A. Weber
Megan Conley joined the Houston Symphony as Principal Harp in January 2015. Prior to joining the Houston Symphony, Conley was Principal Harpist of the Sarasota Opera Orchestra for their 2011 and 2012 seasons. She also served as Principal Harpist of the chamber orchestra CityMusic Cleveland from 2007–12. As a freelance harpist, Conley has performed with New York City Ballet, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, The Knights, American Symphony Orchestra, Irish Chamber Orchestra, and the Bang On a Can AllStars, among others. She also performed for The Fantasticks on Broadway. Conley received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Rice University, where she studied with Paula Page.
