Mondavi Center Playbill ISSUE 9: AprIl/MAy 2013 by Mondavi Center

ANNIVERSARY Issue 7: 9: MAR AprIl/MAy ISSUE 2013 2013 • Thomas Hampson, baritone with Jupiter String • Young Artists Competition Winners Concert p. 5 Quartet p. 5 • Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater p. 17 • Julian Lage Group p. 8 • Sarah Sacramento Ballet p. 26 • Chang, violin; Ashley Wass, piano p. 11 • Christopher Taylor, piano p. 31 • The Improvised Shakespeare Company p. 16 • Elena Urioste, violin p. 36 • Cashore Marionettes Simple Gifts p. 19 Gabriela Martinez, piano • St. Louis Symphony p. 23 • Curtis on Tour p.Center 41 • Jazz at Lincoln Orchestra • with In Conversation with Ira Moderated by Daniel Handler p. 45 Wynton Marsalis p. Glass, 29 • Lara Downes Family Concert p. 47 • Lara Downes, Piano; Build p. 34

2012—13 Season Sponsors

PROGRAM

Anniversary

2012—13

A message from the chancellor

t is my pleasure to welcome you to the Robert and Margrit Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts, a genuine jewel of our UC Davis campus. In its 10 years of existence, the Center has truly transformed our university and the Sacramento region.

Linda P.B. Katehi UC Davis Chancellor

Arts and culture are at the heart of any university campus, both as a source of learning and pleasure and of creative and intellectual stimulation. I have been fortunate to be a part of several campuses with major performing arts centers, but no program I have experienced exceeds the quality of the Mondavi Center. The variety, quality and impact of Mondavi Center presentations enhance the worldwide reputation of our great research university. Of course, this great Center serves many purposes. It is a place for our students to develop their cultural literacy, as well as a venue where so many of our wonderful faculty can share ideas and expertise. It is a world-class facility that our music, theater and dance students use as a learning laboratory. As a land grant university, UC Davis values community service and engagement, an area in which the Mondavi Center also excels. Through school matinees, nearly 100,000 K–12 students have had what is often their first exposure to the arts. And through the Center’s many artist residency activities, we provide up close and personal, lifetransforming experiences with great artists and thinkers for our region. Thank you for being a part of the Mondavi Center’s 10th anniversary season.

Season Sponsors

MondaviArts.org

10th Anniversary Season sponsors

mondavi center Staff DON ROTH, Ph.D. Executive Director Jeremy Ganter Associate Executive Director

Corporate Partners Platinum

Becky Cale Executive Assistant Programming Jeremy Ganter Director of Programming Erin Palmer Programming Manager

Gold

Ruth Rosenberg Artist Engagement Coordinator Lara Downes Curator: Young Artists Program

Silver Office of Campus Community Relations

Bronze

MONDAVI CENTER GRANTORS AND ARTS EDUCATION SPONSORS

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation

ARTS EDUCATION Joyce Donaldson Associate to the Executive Director for Arts Education and Strategic Projects

Elliott Fouts Gallery Fiore Event Design Hot Italian Hyatt Place Osteria Fasulo Seasons Sherman Clay Watermelon Music

For more information about how you can support the Mondavi Center, please contact: Mondavi Center Development Department 530.754.5438 2

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

Amanda Turpin Donor Relations Manager Casey Schell Development/Support Services Assistant operations Herb Garman Director of Operations Greg Bailey Building Engineer INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Darren Marks Web Specialist/ Graphic Artist Mark J. Johnston Lead Application Developer MARKETING Rob Tocalino Director of Marketing

AUDIENCE SERVICES Yuri Rodriguez House/Events Manager

Will Crockett Marketing Manager

Natalia Deardorff Assistant House/Events Manager

Anderson Family Catering & BBQ Atria Senior Living Boeger Winery Buckhorn Catering Caffé Italia Ciocolat El Macero Country Club

Elisha Findley Corporate & Annual Fund Officer

Jennifer Mast Arts Education Coordinator

Nancy Temple Assistant House/Events Manager

special thanks

Alison Morr Kolozsi Director of Major Gifts & Planned Giving

BUSINESS SERVICES Debbie Armstrong Senior Director of Support Services

Erin Kelley Senior Graphic Artist Amanda Caraway Public Relations Coordinator TICKET OFFICE Sarah Herrera Ticket Office Manager Steve David Ticket Office Supervisor

Mandy Jarvis Financial Analyst

Susie Evon Ticket Agent

Russ Postlethwaite Billing System & Rental Coordinator

Russell St. Clair Ticket Agent

DEVELOPMENT Debbie Armstrong Senior Director of Development

production Donna J. Flor Production Manager

Daniel J. Goldin Assistant Production Manager/Master Electrician Zak Stelly-Riggs Assistant Production Manager/Master Carpenter Christi-Anne Sokolewicz Senior Stage Manager, Jackson Hall Christopher Oca Senior Stage Manager, Vanderhoef Studio Theatre Jenna Bell Artist Services Coordinator Daniel B. Thompson Campus Events Coordinator, Theatre and Dance Department Liaison/Scene Technician Kathy Glaubach Music Department Liaison/Scene Technician Adrian Galindo Audio Engineer— Vanderhoef Studio Theatre/Scene Technician Gene Nelson Registered Piano Technician Head Ushers Huguette Albrecht Eric Davis George Edwards Linda Gregory Donna Horgan Paul Kastner Mike Tracy Susie Valentin Janellyn Whittier Terry Whittier

Photo: Lynn Goldsmith

Robert and Margrit

Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts • UC Davis

A Message From Don Roth

Mondavi Center Executive Director

e have heard from you, our remarkable audience, that the Mondavi Center’s 10th anniversary season has been one of our most successful and fulfilling ever. You responded in record numbers to events like the MC debuts of the blues greats B.B. King and Bonnie Raitt; a thoughtprovoking talk from Harry Belafonte; unique theater from Scotland, London and from Shakespeare (improvised); a once-in-a-life time, upto-date psychedelic light show; a youthful Russian piano virtuoso Daniil Trifonov playing Tchaikovsky; and, I hope, many more memories that you will treasure for years to come. Yes, it has been a wonderful season and a privilege to share it with you. Frankly, for me, it is even more exciting to look ahead at what Associate Executive Director Jeremy Ganter and I have been able to put together for a brand new Mondavi Center season. Even after a decade of great performances, there are so many amazing artists who have not yet been to the Mondavi Center—next season will see MC debuts of iconic artists Emmylou Harris, Ahmad Jamal and Murray Perahia; by the best-selling classical ensemble of our time, the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields (with their brand new music director, our old friend Joshua Bell). And we get to welcome back favorite artists like violinists Gil Shaham and Pinchas Zukerman; the mandolin god Chris Thile (playing Bach and Bluegrass!); the Brazilian dance masters Grupo Corpo; and the still-going-strong Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club. You will have the chance to experience some events unlike any others in our history: the all-day Beethoven Marathon on October 5, when pianist Stewart Goodyear tackles the complete (32!) Beethoven piano sonatas. The Salzburg Marionettes come to town to perform three opera programs (including the Wagner Ring Cycle in 75 minutes!) and Salzburg-sited The Sound of Music. There are 70 presentations in all, so there is much much more to explore in our new brochure. Subscriptions are on sale now. Visit our subscription table before any of our remaining shows, or get acquainted with the new season at mondaviarts.org. If you haven’t received a brochure, please email us at mcfeedback@ucdavis.edu, and we will drop one in the mail to you. Of special note in this playbill is the world premiere of a new piece for baritone Thomas Hampson and the Jupiter String Quartet composed by Mark Adamo. This is the kind of work you will find only at the Mondavi Center. Our membership in the Music Accord commissioning consortium gives us access to rare opportunities to present significant new works, and I am thrilled at the opportunity to be among the first to hear this setting of a lovely poem by former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins. You will hear more about the good work Music Accord is doing next season, as we present Gil Shaham performing solo violin pieces by William Bolcom—another commission made possible by this robust partnership. Thank you, again, for celebrating this milestone season with us. I look forward to welcoming you all back in 2013–14.

Program Issue 9: april–may 2013

in this issue: • T homas Hampson, baritone with Jupiter String Quartet p. 5 • Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater p. 17 • Sacramento Ballet p. 26 • Christopher Taylor, piano p. 31 • Elena Urioste, violin p. 36 Gabriela Martinez, piano • Curtis on Tour p. 41 • I n Conversation with Ira Glass Moderated by Daniel Handler p. 45 • Lara Downes Family Concert p. 47 • Mondavi Center Policies and Information p. 61

before the show

O AH • As a courtesy to others, please turn off all electronic devices. • If you have any hard candy, please unwrap it before the lights dim. • Please remember that the taking of photographs or the use of any tpe of audio or video recording equipment is strictly prohibited. • Please look around and locate the exit nearest

you. That exit may be behind, to the side or in front of you. In the unlikely event of a fire alarm or other emergency please leave the building through that exit.

• As a courtesy to all our patrons and for your safety, anyone leaving his or her seat during the performance may not be re-admitted to his/her ticketed seat while the performance is in progress.

Don Roth, Ph.D. Executive Director Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts, UC Davis

MondaviArts.org

an exclusive wine tasting experience of featured wineries for inner circle donors

2012—13 Complimentary wine pours in the Bartholomew Room for Inner Circle Donors: 7–8 p.m. and during intermission if scheduled.

september 18 Bonnie Raitt Justin Vineyards & Winery 27 San Francisco Symphony Chimney Rock Winery october 6 Rising Stars of Opera Le Casque Wines 25 From The Top with Christopher O'Riley Oakville Station november 7 Philharmonia Baroque Carol Shelton Wines 16 David Sedaris Senders Wines December 5 Danú Boeger Winery january 18 Monterey Jazz Festival Pine Ridge Vineyards 29 Yo-Yo Ma Robert Mondavi Winery february 7 Kodo ZD Wines 16 Itzhak Perlman Valley of the Moon Winery march 7 Sarah Chang Michael David Winery 19 Jazz at Lincoln Center Ramey Wine Cellars April 5 Bobby McFerrin Groth Vineyards & Winery 19 Arlo Guthrie Trefethen Family Vineyards may 3 Christopher Taylor Flowers Winery 23 David Lomelí Francis Ford Coppola Winery Featured wineries

For information about becoming a donor, please call 530.754.5438 or visit us online: www.mondaviarts.org.

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

PPT Pre-Performance Talk Speaker: Carol A. Hess Carol A. Hess teaches in the Music Department at the University of California, Davis. The first Ph.D. in musicology to graduate from UC Davis, she began her university career in Ohio and then taught in Michigan. In fall 2012, she returned to California and is delighted to be back. She has received the ASCAP-Deems Taylor Award and the American Musicological Society’s Robert M. Stevenson Award for Outstanding Scholarship in Iberian Music, among other prizes. Her books include Manuel de Falla and Modernism in Spain, 1898–1936 (University of Chicago Press, 2001), Sacred Passions: The Life and Music of Manuel de Falla (Oxford University Press, 2005) and Representing the Good Neighbor: Music, Difference and the Pan American Dream (2013). Her articles have appeared in the Journal of the Society for American Music, Brahms Studies, Journal of the American Musicological Society (forthcoming) and various Spanish-language publications. She is also active in the American Musicological Society and the Society for American Music. Twice a Fulbright Lecturer, Hess has taught in Spain and Argentina.

Photo by Dario Acosta

Thomas Hampson, baritone with Jupiter String Quartet

Schubert

A Director’s Choice Series Event

String Quartet in Eb, D. 87

Wednesday, April 24, 2013 • 8PM

Jackson Hall

Langsamer Satz for String Quartet

Webern

Individual support provided by Barbara K. Jackson.

Aristotle for Voice and String Quartet

Adamo

Intermission

Supported by a generous grant from

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation

Italian Serenade for String Quartet

Aristotle by Mark Adamo commissioned for baritone Thomas Hampson and Jupiter String Quartet by Music Accord.

Selected Lieder for Voice and String Quartet

Pre-Performance Talk

Thomas Hampson, baritone with Jupiter String Quartet

Wolf

Wednesday, April 24, 2013 • 7PM Jackson Hall

Nelson Lee, Violin

Speakers: Members of Jupiter String Quartet

Meg Freivogel, Violin

in conversation with Carol Hess, Professor of

Liz Freivogel, Viola

Musicology, Department of Music, UC Davis

Daniel McDonough, Cello

The artists and your fellow audience members appreciate silence during the performance. Please be sure that you have switched off all electronic devices. Videotaping, photographing and audio recording are strictly forbidden. Violators are subject to removal.

MondaviArts.org

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APRâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;may 2013

Program Notes String Quartet in E-flat Major, D. 87 (Op. 125, No. 1) (1813) Franz Schubert (Born January 31, 1797, in Vienna; died November 19, 1828, in Vienna) “Although Schubert had already reached great artistic heights, he was very modest, and the last to recognize the important position he occupied. Simple and unpretentious, good-natured, somewhat neglectful of his outward appearance and the enemy of affectation, he was happiest in the company of his friends. Apparently phlegmatic, he had nevertheless an enthusiastic temperament, and was not lacking in wit and humor.” Thus was the young musician described by his friend Albert Stadler in 1813, Schubert’s last term at the School of the Court Chapel in Vienna, where he had begun his studies in 1808 at the age of 11. In the autumn of 1813, Schubert had to face a decision about his future. He had been tendered a scholarship to continue as a senior chorister at the Chapel School after his voice broke (“Franz Schubert crowed for the last time on July 26, 1812,” he scribbled into his stillpreserved part of a Mass by Peter Winter), but his schoolmaster-father, Franz, coerced him into matriculating at the St. Anna Normal School to undertake training as a teacher beginning in December, not least because teachers were exempt from military conscription. Among Schubert’s projects during the brief hiatus in his education that fall was the composition of the String Quartet in E-flat major in November for one of the informal amateur musical soirées in which he participated to maintain his school friendships after leaving the Royal Chapel. Like the other works of his teenage years, the E-flat Quartet shows clearly the influence of the Classical models that formed the basis of Schubert’s musical education, while at the same time looking forward to some of the qualities of the encroaching Romantic era. While it lacks the insight and profundity of his subsequent realizations of the genre, there is nothing immature or ill-considered about this endearing quartet. It is bright, melodious and ingratiating, and almost too easy to love. The quartet’s first movement follows a crystalline sonata form indebted to the musical structures of Schubert’s most revered predecessor, Wolfgang Mozart. (“O Mozart, immortal Mozart, what countless images of a brighter and better world thou hast stamped upon our souls!” he wrote in his diary in 1816.) The main theme is initiated by two measures of quiet chordal harmony and acquires only a modest rhythmic and emotional animation as it unfolds. The subsidiary theme is a flowing melody entrusted to the first violin. The development section is perfunctory and leads quickly to the recapitulation of the earlier themes. The middle movements comprise a teasing Scherzo and an effulgently lyrical Adagio in three-part form (A–B–A). The sonataform finale is one of those vibrant, ceaselessly moving creations that Schubert favored throughout his life for closing his large instrumental compositions. —Dr. Richard E. Rodda Aristotle (World Premiere, April 2013 Mondavi Center) Mark Adamo (Born in 1962, in Philadelphia) A piece for baritone and string quartet can, legitimately, be nothing more—or nothing less—than a song group, or cycle, with the strings standing in for the more usual piano. But if you’re awarded the

privilege of making music for a singing actor the caliber of Thomas Hampson, and for young musicians of the caliber of the Jupiters, you want—well, I wanted—to compose a piece that is both a substantial monologue and a structurally rewarding string quartet at the same time. Billy Collins’s pellucid “Aristotle” made that possible. His poem is built in three long but continuous sections, each spinning numerous, surprising variations on some necessary (to the philosopher) element of drama—beginning, middle, end. The range of Collins’s images nudged the string writing into new (for me) colors and registers while demanding each movement retain its own character. However, while Collins’s language was minutely expressive of his narrator’s observations, it remained reticent about his emotions. How does the singer experience, rather than merely list, “the letter A … the song of betrayal, salted with revenge … the hat on a peg, and, outside the cabin, falling leaves?” The poem doesn’t tell you, so the vocal line must: which made the baritone’s music needful, urgent, dramatic rather than merely decorative. “Aristotle” the poem is about drama. As well as a tribute to the artistry of its performers, I intend Aristotle the score as a drama itself. —Mark Adamo Langsamer Satz (“Slow Movement”) for String Quartet (1905) Anton Webern (Born December 3, 1883, in Vienna; died September 15, 1945, in Mittersill, Austria) The genesis of the Langsamer Satz is revelatory of the state of Webern’s creative and personal thinking in 1905, when he was 22 years old. Three years earlier, on Easter 1902, he set eyes on his cousin Wilhelmine Mörtl, then 16, for the first time. They immediately became friends, and, during the following years, very much more. In the spring of 1905, he and Wilhelmine went on a five-day walking excursion in the Waldwinkel, a picturesque region in Lower Austria. Webern reveled in the beauty of the springtime countryside and the companionship of the woman who would become his wife six years later. “The sky is brilliantly blue,” he confided to his diary. “To walk forever like this among flowers, with my dearest one beside me, to feel oneself so entirely at one with the universe, without care, free as the lark in the sky above—O what splendor! We wandered through forests. It was a fairyland!” In June, still suffused with the glory of the Austrian countryside and the soaring emotions of his young love, he composed his Langsamer Satz. Webern’s Langsamer Satz occupies the same emotionally charged expressive and stylistic sphere as Schoenberg’s programmatic string sextet of 1899, Verklärte Nacht. Though firmly tonal (E-flat major) in its harmonic idiom, the Langsamer Satz shows the sort of sophisticated thematic manipulation (especially in the inversion of its theme) that became an integral component of Webern’s later atonal and serial music, though its lyricism and overt emotionalism find little equivalent in his precise and pristine later works. The Langsamer Satz is in traditional three-part form. The first (and last) section utilizes two themes: a melody of broad arching phrases that broaches an almost Brahmsian mixture of duple and triple rhythmic figurations; and a complementary motive of greater chromaticism, begun by the second violin, that climbs a step higher to begin each of its subsequent phrases. The central portion of the work is based on a rhapsodic theme in flowing triplet figurations that works itself up to a climax of aggressive unisons to mark the mid-point of the movement. An epilogue of quiet, floating harmonies (zögernd, “lingeringly,” Webern wrote repeatedly in the score above these measures) closes this touching souvenir of Webern’s youth, which Hans and Rosaleen —continued on page 8

MondaviArts.org

Moldenhauer, in their biography of Webern, called “pure and exalted love music.” —Dr. Richard E. Rodda Italian Serenade for String Quartet (1887) Hugo Wolf (Born March 13, 1860, in Windischgraz, Styria, Austria [now Slovenj Gradec, Slovenia]; died February 22, 1903, in Vienna) The inspiration for the Italian Serenade seems to have come to Wolf from the novella Aus dem Leben eines Taugenichts (From the Life of a Ne’er-Do-Well) by the German Romantic writer Joseph Eichendorff. The Serenade was composed for string quartet in the space of only three days (May 2-4, 1887), during a time when Wolf was immersed in setting a number of Eichendorff’s verses for voice and piano and bears a thematic resemblance to the first of the songs, “Der Soldat I,” about the love of a soldier for a lady who lives in a castle. “The Eichendorff novella has that same theme,” explained Eric Sams in his study of the composer. “Central to its plot is an Italian serenade played by a small orchestra ... Its hero is a young musician, a violinist, who leaves his country home and his grumbling father to seek his fortune. He soon charms everyone with his gifts, or antagonizes them with his inconsequence. Wolf could hardly have found a more congenial or compelling self-portrait in all German literature.” Wolf originally called his work simply Serenade in G Major, but around 1890, he began referring to it as his “Italian Serenade.” In 1893, he made sketches for a slow movement in G minor, but, already suffering from the emotional turmoil brought on by his impulsive personality and by the syphilis that would send him to an asylum in 1897, could not bring it to completion. If two of his letters from 1894 are to be taken at face value, he did finish another movement early that year, but that score has never been recovered and only 45 measures of it survive in sketches. The last notations he made for this ultimately unrealized project were a few pages of a Tarantella he jotted down in 1897, shortly before he was committed. Though thoughts of the suite based on the Italian Serenade were in his mind for the last decade of his life, he died in 1903 having finished no more of this proposed work than the first movement, written some 15 years before. The work’s several sections, joined in a loose rondo structure, allow for the depiction of various moods and characters—the gossamer strains of the lilting serenade serve as the background and foil for the ardent entreaties of the suitor (in instrumental recitative) and the coquettish replies of the lady. The joining together of these contrasts representing the two stylistic poles of Wolf’s musical speech within a single piece marks the pinnacle of his success as an instrumental composer, and it is much to be regretted that his short life and his sad last years deprived him of the chance to provide the musical world with further such works as this masterful miniature. Selected Songs for Baritone and String Quartet Hugo Wolf Hugo Wolf was the greatest German composer of songs after Schubert. A seething emotional turmoil dominated his life—from his inability to subject himself to the rigors of formal training, through his vehemently zealous support of Wagner and his bouts of near-manic compositional frenzy, to his suicide attempts and his death in an insane asylum. His

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

life and his music blaze with a white-hot inflammability that speaks of the deepest feelings of an age that was just beginning to sense the end of the artistic, social, political and ideological era that culminated in the catastrophe of World War I. Wolf’s career was marked by periods of intense creativity separated by bouts of despondency. His work as a music critic and his often debilitating depression limited his output for many years, but the publication of a few of his songs in early 1888 was the catalyst for the most fecund years of his life: between February and September 1888, he set 53 verses by Eduard Mörike; a book of 20 songs to Joseph Eichendorff’s poems followed before the end of October; and Goethe’s writings provided the texts for 50 more songs by February, 1889. Wolf was then deserted by his creative muse (“Polyhymnia,” as he referred to his inspiration) for eight months, but in October 1889, he began setting 16th- and 17th-century Spanish poems that had been translated into German by Emmanuel Geibel and Paul Heyse; by April, he had completed the 44 songs of his Spanisches Liederbuch (“Spanish Songbook”). In September 1890, he took up Heyse’s translations of Italian poems and had wrapped 22 of them in music by early the next year. The remaining 24 numbers of the Italienisches Liederbuch date from 1896, after Wolf had completed his comic opera Der Corregidor, based on the 1874 novel by Pedro de Alarcon (which also served as the basis for Falla’s ballet The Three-Cornered Hat). Wolf managed a handful of songs the following year—three settings of poems by Michelangelo were the last music that he wrote—but by autumn 1897, he had lost his reason, largely as a result of an untreated case of syphilis contracted 20 years before. He had periods of lucidity during the following year, but in October 1898, after he had tried to drown himself, he was permanently confined to an asylum in Vienna, where he died on February 22, 1903, three weeks before his 43rd birthday. The 6th-century B.C.E. Greek poet Anacreon wrote on a variety of subjects, but he was especially prized for his verses in praise of love, wine and revelry. (“The Star-Spangled Banner” uses the melody of an 18thcentury English drinking song titled “To Anacreon in Heaven,” whose original text suggests the contemporary lubricious view of the ancient poet: “And long may the sons of Anacreon entwine/The myrtle of Venus with Bacchus’ vine”). Anacreon inspired an almost cult-like following among 19th-century poets, many of whom sought to incorporate into their verses the exalted as well as the very human aspects he embodied. In Anakreon’s Grab (“Anacreon’s Grave”), Goethe erected his own memorial to the poet, and Wolf captured its serenity and timelessness in the setting he made for it on November 4, 1888. Despite Goethe’s enthusiasm for the poet, the site of Anacreon’s grave is unknown, and he could not have visited it in any case, since he never traveled the Mediterranean coast beyond Italy. The legendary Pied Piper of Hamelin was said to have been hired by that Saxon town in 1284 to rid it of an infestation of rats. A mysterious piper in multi-colored (i.e., “pied”) clothing appeared in town, offered his services and lured the rats into the Weser River, where all but one drowned. When the mayor refused to pay him the agreed fee, however, the piper used the same method to lead the local children away from their homes. In some versions they are lost forever; in others, they are returned when the piper receives several times his original due. In his 1803 poem, Goethe turned the piper into a singing lutenist who makes rodents disappear, children behave and young ladies swoon. Wolf made a mini-opera around Goethe’s verse in his virtuoso Der Rattenfänger (“The Rat-Catcher”) of November 1888.

* * *

The year 1888 was one of furious composition for Wolf. He set poems by Mörike, Eichendorff and Goethe, and later wrote to his mother that “it was the most fruitful and therefore the happiest year of my life. During this year I composed ... no fewer than 92 songs and ballads, and not a single one among them miscarried. I think I can be satisfied with the year 1888.” In his biography of Wolf, Frank Walker described Eduard Mörike (1804–75) as “a Protestant pastor with leanings toward Catholicism, a man who had known both the happiness and bitterness of love, and, in his youth, in the encounter with the mysterious ‘Peregrina,’ plumbed the depths of erotic emotion, a man profoundly responsive to the moods of nature, a lover of his kind blessed with an observant eye and a sense of humor. His poetry reflects all this, sometimes with overpowering emotional intensity, sometimes with classical measure, very often with inimitable sensual grace.” Wolf’s 53 Mörike settings are marked by extraordinary sensitivity to the images and emotions of the texts, as well as by great refinement in their combining of voice and piano and in their subtle formal integration. —Dr. Richard E. Rodda

Texts and Translations

Aristotle By Billy Collins

This is the beginning. Almost anything can happen. This is where you find the creation of light, a fish wriggling onto land, the first word of Paradise Lost on an empty page. Think of an egg, the letter A, a woman ironing on a bare stage as the heavy curtain rises. This is the very beginning. The first-person narrator introduces himself, tells us about his lineage. The mezzo-soprano stands in the wings. Here the climbers are studying a map or pulling on their long woolen socks. This is early on, years before the Ark, dawn. The profile of an animal is being smeared on the wall of a cave, and you have not yet learned to crawl. This is the opening, the gambit, a pawn moving forward an inch. This is your first night with her, your first night without her. This is the first part where the wheels begin to turn, where the elevator begins its ascent, before the doors lurch apart.

This is the middle. Things have had time to get complicated, messy, really. Nothing is simple anymore. Cities have sprouted up along the rivers teeming with people at cross-purposes— a million schemes, a million wild looks. Disappointment unshoulders his knapsack here and pitches his ragged tent. This is the sticky part where the plot congeals, where the action suddenly reverses or swerves off in an outrageous direction. Here the narrator devotes a long paragraph to why Miriam does not want Edward’s child. Someone hides a letter under a pillow. Here the aria rises to a pitch, a song of betrayal, salted with revenge. And the climbing party is stuck on a ledge halfway up the mountain. This is the bridge, the painful modulation. This is the thick of things. So much is crowded into the middle— the guitars of Spain, piles of ripe avocados, Russian uniforms, noisy parties, lakeside kisses, arguments heard through a wall— too much to name, too much to think about. And this is the end, the car running out of road, the river losing its name in an ocean, the long nose of the photographed horse touching the white electronic line. This is the colophon, the last elephant in the parade, the empty wheelchair, and pigeons floating down in the evening. Here the stage is littered with bodies, the narrator leads the characters to their cells, and the climbers are in their graves. It is me hitting the period and you closing the book. It is Sylvia Plath in the kitchen and St. Clement with an anchor around his neck. This is the final bit thinning away to nothing. This is the end, according to Aristotle, what we have all been waiting for, what everything comes down to, the destination we cannot help imagining, a streak of light in the sky, a hat on a peg, and outside the cabin, falling leaves.

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Anakreon’s Grab (“Anacreon’s Grave”) Text: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Wo die Rose hier blüht, Here, where the rose blooms, wo Reben um Lorbeer sich schlingen, where vine twines round laurel, Wo das Turtelchen lockt, Where the turtle-dove calls, wo sich das Grillchen ergötzt, where the cricket sings with delight, Welch ein Grab ist hier, What grave is here that das alle Götter mit Leben all the gods have adorned Schön bepflanzt und geziert? Like a garden with the beauty of life? Es ist Anakreons Ruh. It is Anacreon’s resting place. Frühling, Sommer, und Herbst Spring, summer, autumn genoss der glückliche Dichter; that happy poet has enjoyed; Vor dem Winter hat And at the last this mound ihn endlich der Hügel geschützt. has protected him from winter.

Im Frühling (“In Spring”) Text: Eduard Mörike

Hier lieg ich auf dem Frühlingshügel; Here I lie on the hill of spring; Die Wolke wird mein Flügel, The clouds become my wings, Ein Vogel fliegt mir voraus. A bird flies ahead of me. Ach, sag mir, alleinzigeliebe, Oh tell me, one and only love, Wo du bleibst, dass ich bei dir bliebe! where you live, that I may dwell with you! Doch du und die Lüfte, ihr habt kein Haus. But you and the breezes have no home. Der Sonnenblume gleich steht mein Gemüte offen, Like a sunflower my mind stands open,  Sehnend, Yearning,  Sich dehnend   Expanding In Lieben und Hoffen. In love and hope.  Frühling, was bist du gewillt? Spring, what is it you want of me?  Wann werd ich gestillt? When shall I be stilled? Die Wolke seh ich wandeln und den Fluss, Es dringt der Sonne goldner Kuss   Mir tief bis ins Geblüt hinein; Die Augen, wunderbar berauschet, Tun, als schliefen sie ein, Nur noch das Ohr dem Ton der Biene lauschet.

I see the cloud moving, and the river;  The golden kiss of the sun Drives deep into my veins;  My eyes, wondrously enchanted,  Close as if in sleep.  Only my ears still catch the hum of the bee.

Ich denke dies und denke das,  I think of this and that, Ich sehne mich, und weiss nicht recht, nach was: I yearn without quite knowing why.  Halb ist es Lust, halb ist es Klage: It is half pleasure, half lament.  Mein Herz, o sage, Tell me, my heart,  Was webst du für Erinnerung   What memories you are weaving  In golden grüner Zweige Dämmerung? Here in the twilight shade of golden-green boughs?  Alte unnennbare Tage! Old unnameable days. 10

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

Fussreise (“Journey on Foot”) Text: Eduard Mörike

Am frischgeschnittnen Wanderstab, Wenn ich in der Frühe So durch die Wälder ziehe, Hügel auf und ab:

With my fresh-cut walking staff early in the morning I go through the woods, over the hills, and away.

Dann, wie’s Vöglein im Laube Singet und sich rührt, Oder wie die gold’ne Traube Wonnegeister spürt In der ersten Morgensonne:

Then, like the birds in the arbor that sing and stir, or like the golden grapes that trace their blissful spirits in the first morning light

So fühlt auch mein alter, lieber Adam Herbst und Frühlingsfieber, Gottbeherzte, Nie verscherzte Erstlings Paradiseswonne.

I feel in my age, too, beloved Adam’s autumn—and spring-fever— God fearing, but not discarded: the first delights of Paradise.

Also bist du nicht so schlimm, o alter You are not so bad, oh old Adam, wie die strengen Lehrer sagen; Adam, as the strict teachers say; Liebst und lobst du immer doch, you love and rejoice, Singst und preisest immer noch, sing and praise— Wie an ewig neuen Schöpfungstagen, as it is eternally the first day of creation— Deinen lieben Schöpfer und Erhalter. your beloved Creator and Preserver. Möcht’ es dieser geben Und mein ganzes Leben Wär’ im leichten Wanderschweisse Eine solche Morgenreise!

I would like to be given to this and my whole life would be in simple wandering wonder of one such morning stroll.

Auf einer Wanderung (“On a Walk”) Text: Eduard Mörike

In ein freundliches Städtchen tret’ ich ein, Into a friendly little town I stroll— in den Strassen liegt roter Abendschein. In its streets lie the red evening glow. Aus einem offnen Fenster eben, From an open window, über den reichsten Blumenflor Across the most splendid riot of flowers, hinweg, hört man Goldglockentöne schweben, One can hear the gold chimes floating past, und eine Stimme scheint ein Nachtigallenchor, And its one voice sounds like a chorus o f nightingales, dass die Blüten beben, So that the blossoms tremble, dass die Lüfte leben, So that the breezes come to life, dass in höherem Rot die Rosen. leuchten vor And so that the roses glow even redder. Lang hielt ich staunend, lustbeklommen. Long I pause, astounded and oppressed by joy. Wie ich hinaus vor’s Tor gekommen, How I finally found myself past the gate

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ich weiss es wahrlich selber nicht. I truly do not know. Ach hier, wie liegt die Welt so licht! Ah, here, where the world lies in such light! Der Himmel wogt in purpurnem Gewühle, The heavens sway in a purple crowd, rückwärts die Stadt in goldnem Rauch: wie rauscht der Erlenbach, wie rauscht im Grund die Mühle, ich bin wie trunken, irrgeführt o Muse, du hast mein Herz berührt mit einem Liebeshauch!

Back there, the town is a golden haze: How the alder brook rushes, How the mill roars on the ground; I am as if drunk and disoriented; O Muse, you have stirred my heart With a breath of love!

Verborgenheit (“Seclusion”) Text: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Lass, o Welt, o lass mich sein! Locket nicht mit Liebesgaben, Lasst dies Herz alleine haben Seine Wonne, seine Pein!

Oh, world, let me be! Entice me not with gifts of love. Let this heart in solitude have your bliss, your pain!

Was ich traure, weiss ich nicht, Es ist unbekanntes Wehe; Immerdar durch Tränen sehe Ich der Sonne liebes Licht.

What I mourn, I know not. It is an unknown pain; forever through tears shall I see the sun’s love-light.

Oft bin ich mir kaum bewusst, Und die helle Freude zücket Durch die Schwere, die mich drücket, Wonniglich in meiner Brust.

Often, I am scarcely conscious and the bright joys break through the pain, thus pressing delightfully into my breast.

Lass, o Welt, o lass mich sein! Locket nicht mit Liebesgaben, Lasst dies Herz alleine haben Seine Wonne, seine Pein!

Oh, world, let me be! Entice me not with gifts of love. Let this heart in solitude have your bliss, your pain!

Auf ein altes Bild (“An Old Painting”) Text: Eduard Mörike

In grüner Landschaft Sommerflor, Bei kühlem Wasser, Schilf und Rohr, Schau, wie das Knäblein Sündelos Frei spielet auf der Jungfrau Schoss! Und dort im Walde wonnesam, Ach, grünet schon des Kreuzes Stamm!

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

In the green landscape of a blossoming summer, Beside cool water, reeds, and canes, Behold, how the sinless Child Plays freely on the virgin’s knee. And there, in the woods, blissfully, Alas, growing already is the stem that will become the Cross.

Thomas Hampson (baritone) enjoys a singular international career as an opera singer and recording artist. The “Ambassador of Song” maintains an active interest in research, education, musical outreach and technology. An American baritone, Hampson has performed in the world’s most important concert halls and opera houses with many renowned singers, pianists, conductors and orchestras. Recently honored as a Metropolitan Opera Guild “Met Mastersinger,” he has been praised by The New York Times for his “ceaseless curiosity” and is one of the most respected, innovative and sought-after soloists performing today. Hampson’s operatic engagements this season brim with Verdi, from his company role debut as Iago in Otello at the Metropolitan Opera to singing Giorgio Germont in La traviata at the Vienna State Opera. Having wowed critics this fall in the title role of Simon Boccanegra at Chicago’s Lyric Opera, the baritone now looks forward to reprising the Doge at London’s Royal Opera House and, in concert and live recording, at Vienna’s Konzerthaus. It was as Scarpia in Puccini’s Tosca that Hampson opened the 2012–13 season at Santa Fe Opera, and he revisits the role at Zurich Opera, where he also portrays Wolfram in Wagner’s Tannhäuser this winter. He returns to Wagner in summer 2013, singing Amfortas in Parsifal at the Munich Opera Festival, before rejoining the Salzburg Festival as Rodrigo in a new Pappano/Stein production of Verdi’s Don Carlo. Hampson’s 2012–13 international concert and recital engagements include performances in New York, Munich, London, Vienna, San Francisco and more. He made a gala appearance at Baden-Baden’s Festspielhaus with Rolando Villazón on New Year’s Eve and looks forward to joining Lang Lang, Janine Jansen and Mariss Jansons in Amsterdam to celebrate the Concertgebouw Orchestra’s 125th anniversary in spring 2013. Other collaborative projects include a European tour with the Wiener Virtuosen (his partners on a 2010 recording of Mahler’s Des Knaben Wunderhorn), an appearance with the Borusan Istanbul Philharmonic Orchestra and concerts with the Jupiter String Quartet—featuring a world premiere by Mark Adamo—in New York, Boston, and Davis, California. Recent artistic partnerships include performances with the Munich and Israel philharmonic orchestras under Zubin Mehta, the National Symphony with Christoph Eschenbach and the Los Angeles Philharmonic under Gustavo Dudamel. Hampson recently sang Strauss’s orchestral songs with the Pittsburgh Symphony and looks forward to reprising them with the London Philharmonic in spring 2013. Internationally recognized for his versatility in operatic repertoire both classical and contemporary, the baritone created the role of Rick Rescorla in the San Francisco Opera’s world premiere production of Christopher Theofanidis’s Heart of a Soldier, which commemorated the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Other important firsts for Hampson in the 2011–12 season included his role debuts as Iago in Otello and in the title role of Hindemith’s Mathis der Maler, both at Zurich Opera, as well as his house role debut as Verdi’s Macbeth at the Metropolitan Opera. For more information, please visit www.thomashampson.com.

Mark Adamo (composer) prepares for San Francisco Opera’s première of his third full-length opera, The Gospel of Mary Magdalene, amid a busy season of opera and chamber premieres. In May, Fort Worth Opera presented a new production of Adamo’s second opera Lysistrata; in September, Cincinnati’s Constella Festival opened their season with

August Music for flute duo and string quartet and in December, the New York Festival of Song introduced The Racer’s Widow, a cycle of five American poems for mezzo-soprano, cello and piano sung by Sasha Cooke, who creates the title rôle of The Gospel of Mary Magdalene. Adamo’s first opera, Little Women, has had more than 80 productions in cities in seven countries, including New York, Minneapolis, Adelaide, Mexico City, Banff and Tokyo: its telecast, by PBS/WNET in 2001, was released by Naxos on DVD and on Blu-ray in 2010. Lysistrata followed its acclaimed premieres in Houston (2005) New York, (2006) and Washington (2008) with last season’s Fort Worth revival, which was included on the best-of-2012 lists of both D Magazine and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Adamo’s first concerto, Four Angels: Concerto for Harp and Orchestra, was commissioned and introduced by the National Symphony Orchestra in 2007; the Utah Symphony and Opera under Keith Lockhart performed it in 2011. Its slow movement, Regina Coeli, is featured on Late Victorians, (2008) Eclipse Chamber Orchestra’s all-Adamo recording for Naxos, which also includes the first recordings of Late Victorians, his symphonic cantata for singing voice, speaking voice and chamber orchestra; Alcott Music, a suite from Little Women, for strings, harp, celesta and percussion and the Overture to Lysistrata. His choral work has been commissioned and performed by Chanticleer, Conspirare, The Esoterics, The Gregg Smith Singers, Choral Arts Society in Washington, Young People’s Chorus of New York City and The New York Virtuoso Singers. His music is published exclusively by G. Schirmer. www.markadamo.com.

The Jupiter String Quartet, formed in 2001, is a particularly intimate group, consisting of violinists Nelson Lee and Megan Freivogel, violist Liz Freivogel (older sister of Meg) and cellist Daniel McDonough (husband of Meg, brother-in-law of Liz). As they enter their 11th year of making music together, this tightly knit ensemble has firmly established itself as an important voice in the world of chamber music. The Jupiters are thrilled to be joining the faculty of the University of Illinois as String Quartet-in-Residence this year. In addition, they hold visiting faculty residencies at Oberlin Conservatory and Adelphi University and will continue a multi-year residency at Atlanta’s beautiful Spivey Hall. The quartet concertizes across the U.S., Canada, Europe, Asia and the Americas. They have enjoyed playing in some of the world’s finest halls, including New York’s Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, London’s Wigmore Hall, Boston’s Jordan Hall, Mexico City’s Palacio de Bellas Artes, Washington, D.C.’s Kennedy Center and Library of Congress and Seoul’s Sejong Chamber Hall. They have also been enthusiastically received at several major music festivals, including the Aspen Music Festival (where they recently performed their first complete Beethoven quartet cycle), the Caramoor International Music Festival, Music@ Menlo, the Honest Brook Festival, the Skaneateles Festival, the Yellow Barn Music Festival and the Seoul Spring Festival. In addition to its formal concert schedule, the Jupiter String Quartet places a strong emphasis on developing relationships with future classical music audiences through outreach work in school systems and other educational performances. They believe that chamber music, because of the intensity of its interplay and communication, is one of the most effective ways of spreading an enthusiasm for “classical” music to new audiences. MondaviArts.org

Indeed, it was early exposure to chamber music that brought these four musicians to found the Jupiter String Quartet. Meg and Liz grew up playing string quartets with their two brothers, Ben and J. Rehearsals were often quite raucous, but they grew to love chamber music during weekly coachings with Oliver Edel, a wonderful cellist and teacher who taught generations of students in the Washington, D.C. area. Nelson also comes from a musical family—both of his parents are pianists (his father also conducts) and his twin sisters, Alicia and Andrea, play clarinet and cello. Although Daniel originally wanted to be a violinist, he ended up on the cello because the organizers of his first strings program declared that he had “better hands for the cello.” He remains skeptical of this comment (he was, after all, only five), but is happy that he ended up where he did. The Jupiter Quartet also feels great indebtedness to the wise instruction of members of the Takacs and Cleveland quartets, who guided them through the early years of their development as an ensemble. The quartet chose its name because Jupiter was the most prominent planet in the night sky at the time of its formation and the astrological symbol for Jupiter resembles the number four. The Jupiters have been fortunate to receive several chamber music honors over the course of their career. In 2008, they received an Avery Fisher Career Grant and, in 2007, they were given the Cleveland Quartet Award from Chamber Music America. Before that, the Jupiters were awarded first prize in the Banff International String Quartet Competition (where they also received the Szekely Prize for best performance of a Beethoven quartet) and grand prize in the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition. The quartet’s career began to take off after being selected in the Young Concert Artists International auditions in 2005. From 2007– 10, the quartet was in residence at the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln

Center’s Chamber Music Two, and, in 2009, they received a grant from the Fromm Foundation to commission a new quartet from Dan Visconti for a CMSLC performance at Alice Tully Hall. While relishing the opportunity to work with living composers, the Jupiters still feel a strong and fundamental connection to the core string quartet literature, particularly the wonderful set of 16 quartets by Beethoven and the six quartets of Bela Bartók. The quartet has recorded works by Mendelssohn, Beethoven, Shostakovich and Britten for Marquis Records. American works by Barber, Seeger and Gershwin were also recorded for iTunes in conjunction with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and Deutsche Grammophon. The Jupiter Quartet is managed by Bill Capone of Arts Management Group (www.artsmg.com). www.jupiterquartet.com

Music Accord Comprised of top classical music presenting organizations throughout the United States, Music Accord is a consortium that commission new works in the chamber music, instrumental recital and song genres from American composers for American artists. The Consortium’s goal is to create a significant number of new works and to ensure presentation of these works in venues throughout this country. Members are the Celebrity Series of Boston, the Center for the Performing Arts at Penn State, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Hancher Auditorium/University of Iowa, the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts, the Library of Congress, the Robert and Margrit Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts, the Tanglewood Music Center, San Francisco Performances and the University Musical Society/University of Michigan.

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Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

Thomas Hampson

by jeff hudson

A vocalist performing with a string quartet? It may strike you as a novel idea—at least initially. But there is actually more music out there for this combination than many people realize, much of it written in the 20th century. As in: • Arnold Schoenberg’s famous String Quartet No. 2 (1908), with the soprano coming in toward the end, as the composer begins to exit conventional tonality (“I feel wind from other planets …”). • Ottorino Resphighi’s “Il Tramonto” (“The Sunset”), written in 1914. • Samuel Barber’s early piece “Dover Beach” (1931). • Alberto Ginastera’s String Quartet No. 3 (1973). • Elvis Costello’s “The Juliet Letters” (1993). There are more examples. But it does seem that while many composers try it, not so many come back to the combination repeatedly. In the last few years, Thomas Hampson has been involved in projects relating to the American poet Walt Whitman. In 2010, Hampson did several performances of John Adams’ “The Wound-Dresser,” a 19-minute piece for baritone and orchestra that incorporates an intense Whitman text describing the poet’s experience as a nurse during the Civil War, when wounded soldiers got on-the-spot amputations and many died of infections. Hampson has also recently been singing “Ethiopia Saluting the Colors,” a setting of a Whitman poem by the pioneering AfricanAmerican composer and arranger Henry Burleigh (1866–1949).

further listening You may recall that Burleigh was Antonín Dvořák’s personal assistant when Dvořák spent several years in this country during the 1890s. Burleigh also became the first black vocalist to be hired at a major Episcopal church and a Jewish synagogue in New York. Hampson’s recent disks include a reissue last year of his 1997 recording of the Schubert song cycle “Winterreise” with Wolfgang Sawallisch (who ordinarily comes to mind as a conductor) at the piano. The Jupiter String Quartet, formed in 2001, has released several albums, including a pairing of the final quartets by Mendelssohn and Beethoven; a pairing of the String Quartet No. 3 by Shostakovich and the String Quartet No. 2 of Britten (both reflecting the turmoil of World War II); and a recording of Chausson’s Concert for Violin, Piano and String Quartet with pianist Jeremy Denk (who appeared at the Mondavi Center a few years back as Joshua Bell’s recital partner). The Jupiter Quartet was scheduled to record a new album of music by Ravel in January.

Jeff Hudson contributes coverage of the performing arts to Capital Public Radio, the Davis Enterprise and Sacramento News and Review.

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As the Mondavi Center celebrates our 10th Anniversary Season, please join us in recognizing and thanking all the volunteer ushers who serve at each performance. These talented and dedicated individuals are an invaluable asset as they give their time and hospitality to provide our audiences with a memorable performance experience. We could not open our doors without them! If you are interested in becoming a volunteer usher, applications are available at our Patron Services Desk or email us at mcvolunteers@ucdavis.edu. MondaviArts.org

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APRâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;may 2013

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater ®

Alicia Graf Mack, Photo by Andrew Eccles

Robert Battle, artistic director Masazumi Chaya, associate artistic director

A Mondavi Center Special Event

Monday, April 29

Tuesday, April 30

Arden Court

Night Creature

Pause

Takademe

Strange Humors

Intermission

Home

Petite Mort

Intermission

Revelations

Monday–Tuesday, April 29–30, 2013 • 8PM Jackson Hall

Major funding is provided by the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, American Express, Bank of America, Diageo, FedEx Corporation, Ford Foundation, the Prudential Foundation, the Shubert Foundation, Target, TD Bank and Wells Fargo. Toyota Avalon is the Official Vehicle Partner of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater gratefully acknowledges the Joan & Sandy Weill Global Ambassador Fund, which provides vital support for Ailey’s national and international tours. The Ailey dancers are supported, in part, by the Judith McDonough Kaminski Dancer Endowment Fund.

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Alvin Ailey, Founder Judith Jamison, Artistic Director Emerita

Robert Battle, Artistic Director Masazumi Chaya, Associate Artistic Director

Takademe (1999) Robert Battle, Choreography Sheila Chandra, Music Missoni, Costumes Jon Taylor, Costume Recreation Bruke Wilmore, Lighting Dancer: Antonio Douthit

Company Members

Generous support for this company premiere was provided by the Pamela D. Zilly & John H. Schaefer New Works Endowment Fund and the Kansas City Friends of Alvin Ailey through the generosity of the Muriel McBrien Kauffman Foundation and individual donors.

Guillermo Asca

Daniel Harder

Belen Pereyra

Kirven James Boyd

Demetia Hopkins

Briana Reed

Hope Boykin

Michael Jackson, Jr.

Jamar Roberts

Sean A. Carmon

Megan Jakel

Samuel Lee Roberts

Sarah Daley

Yannick Lebrun

Kelly Robotham

Home (2011)

Ghrai DeVore

Alicia Graf Mack

Kanji Segawa

Antonio Douthit

Michael Francis McBride

Glenn Allen Sims

Rennie Harris, Choreography Nina Flagg, Assistant to the Choreographer Dennis Ferrer and Raphael Xavier, Music Jon Taylor, Costumes Stephen Arnold, Lighting

Renaldo Gardner Vernard J. Gilmore Jacqueline Green

Rachael McLaren Aisha Mitchell

Linda Celeste Sims Jermaine Terry Marcus Jarrell Willis

Akua Noni Parker Matthew Rushing, Rehearsal Director & Guest Artist Collin Heyward, Guest Artist

Bennett Rink, Executive Director

Monday, April 29 Arden Court (1981) Paul Taylor, Choreography Cathy McCann Buck, Restaging William Boyce, Music Gene Moore, Set and Costumes Jennifer Tipton, Lighting First performed by the Paul Taylor Dance Company Dancers: Vernard J. Gilmore, Yannick Lebrun, Megan Jakel, Demetia Hopkins, Daniel Harder, Kelly Robotham, Renaldo Gardner, Kanji Segawa, Jarmaine Terry Generous support for this company premiere was provided by Natasha I. Leibel, M.D. & Harlan B. Levine, M.D. and the Ellen Jewett & Richard L. Kauffman New Works Endowment Fund. Original production by the Paul Taylor Dance Company was made possible by contributions from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Mobil Foundation, Inc. and the New York State Council on the Arts. Excerpts from Symphonies Nos. 1, 3, 5, 7, 8 by William Boyce, edited by Max Goberman, by arrangement with Doblinger U.S.A. for the publisher and copyright owner.

“Speaking in Tongues II” performed by Sheila Chandra. Courtesy of Real World Records Ltd.

Dancers: Daniel Harder, Ghrai DeVore, Sarah Daley, Aisha Mitchell, Akua Noni Parker, Jacqueline Green, Demetia Hopkins, Belen Pereyra, Samuel Lee Roberts, Sean A. Carmon, Yannick Lebrun, Marcus Jarrell Willis, Vernard J. Gilmore, Jermaine Terry Bristol-Myers Squibb is proud to support this work which was inspired by the “Fight HIV Your Way” initiative. “Underground Is My Home” written and performed by Dennis Ferrer. Published by Sfere Music (BMI) Administered by Bug. Courtesy of BPM King’s Street Sounds/Nite Groove by arrangement with Bug. All rights reserved. Used by permission. “I See…Do You” composed by Raphael Xavier. Performed by Raphael Xavier, with D. Sabela Grimes.

Revelations (1960) Alvin Ailey, Choreography Traditional Music Ves Harper, Décor and Costumes Barbara Forbes, Costume Redesign for “Rocka My Soul” Nicola Cernovitch, Lighting Pilgrim Of Sorrow “I Been ‘Buked”................................................................. The Company Hall Johnson*, Music

“Didn’t My Lord Deliver Daniel”...................Daniel Harder, Megan Jakel, James Miller+, Music Aisha Mitchell “Fix Me, Jesus”................................ Akua Noni Parker, Collin Heyward^ Hall Johnson*, Music

Take Me To The Water “Processional/Honor, Honor”.......................Kanji Segawa, Belen Pereyra, Howard A. Roberts, Music Sean A. Carmon, Marcus Jarrell Willis

“Wade in the Water”..............................Ghrai DeVore, Vernard J. Gilmore, Howard A. Roberts, Music Briana Reed “Wade in the Water” sequence by Ella Jenkins “A Man Went Down to the River” is an original composition by Ella Jenkins

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

“I Wanna Be Ready”....................................................... Yannick Lebrun James Miller+, Music

Move, Members, Move “Sinner Man”...................................Marcus Jarrell Willis, Jermaine Terry, Howard A. Roberts, Music Samuel Lee Roberts “The Day is Past and Gone”............................................... The Company Howard A. Roberts and Brother John Sellers, Music

Strange Humors (1998) Robert Battle, Choreography John Mackey, Music Missoni, Costumes Jon Taylor, Costume Reconstruction Burke Wilmore, Lighting Dancers: Jermaine Terry, Yannick Lebrun

Howard A. Roberts and Brother John Sellers, Music

Support for this company premiere was provided by the Ellen Jewett and Richard L. Kauffman New Works Endowment Fund and Daria L. Foster.

“Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham”...................... The Company

“Strange Humors” original score by John Mackey.

“You May Run On”............................................................ The Company

Howard A. Roberts, Music ^ Guest Artist * Used by arrangement with G. Schirmer, Inc., publisher and copyright owner. + Used by special arrangement with Galaxy Music Corporation, New York City. All performances of Revelations are permanently endowed by a generous gift from Donald L. Jonas in celebration of the birthday of his wife Barbara and her deep commitment to Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

Tuesday, April 30 Night Creature (1974) Alvin Ailey, Choreography Duke Ellington, Music Jane Greenwood, Costumes Barbara Forbes, Costume Recreation Chenault Spence, Lighting

Petite Mort (1991) Jirí ˇ Kylián, Choreography, Lighting Concept and Set Design Patrick Delcroix, Restaging W. A. Mozart, Music Joke Visser, Costumes Joop Caboort, Lighting First performed by the Nederlands Dans Theater Dancers: Belen Pereyra, Jermaine Terry, Rachael McLaren, Kirven James Boyd, Jacqueline Green, Yannick Lebrun, Linda Celeste Sims, Glenn Allen Sims, Demetia Hopkins, Vernard J. Gilmore, Sarah Daley, Jamar Roberts Support for this company premiere has been provided by Denise R. Sobel and The Kansas City Friends of Alvin Ailey – Sara & Bill Morgan New Works Endowment Fund. W. A. Mozart. “Piano Concerto in A Major (KV 488), Adagio” and “Piano Concerto in C Major (KV 467), Andante” performed by the English Chamber Orchestra, Jeffrey Tate (conductor), featuring pianist Mitsuko Uchida.

“Night creatures, unlike stars, do not come OUT at night—they come ON, each thinking that before the night is out he or she will be the star.” —Duke Ellington Movement 1 Alicia Graf Mack, Vernard J. Gilmore and The Company Movement 2 Alicia Graf Mack, Jamar Roberts, Kelly Robotham, Megan Jakel, Sarah Daley, Belen Pereyra, Jacqueline Green, Aisha Mitchell, Renaldo Gardner, Sean A. Carmon, Kanji Segawa, Samuel Lee Roberts, Michael Francis McBride, Collin Heyward^ Movement 3 Alicia Graf Mack, Vernard J. Gilmore and The Company This production was made possible, in part, by a grant from Ford Foundation and with public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts. ^ Guest Artist Fabric dyeing of costumes by Elissa Tatigikis Iberti. “Night Creature” used by arrangement with G. Schirmer, Inc., publisher and copyright owner

Revelations (1960) Alvin Ailey, Choreography Traditional Music Ves Harper, Décor and Costumes Barbara Forbes, Costume Redesign for “Rocka My Soul” Nicola Cernovitch, Lighting Pilgrim Of Sorrow “I Been Buked” ................................................................The Company Hall Johnson*, Music

“Didn’t My Lord Deliver Daniel” ............................Samuel Lee Roberts, James Miller+, Music Kelly Robotham, Aisha Mitchell “Fix Me, Jesus”........................... Linda Celeste Sims, Glenn Allen Sims Hall Johnson*, Music

Take Me To The Water “Processional/Honor, Honor” ......................Kanji Segawa, Megan Jakel, Howard A. Roberts, Music Sean A. Carmon, Collin Heyward^ “Wade in the Water”....................Rachael McLaren, Kirven James Boyd, Howard A. Roberts, Music Alicia Graf Mack “Wade in the Water” sequence by Ella Jenkins “A Man Went Down to the River” is an original composition by Ella Jenkins

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“I Wanna Be Ready”..........................................................Jamar Roberts James Miller+, Music

Move, Members, Move “Sinner Man”...................................Sean A. Carmon, Yannick Lebrun, Howard A. Roberts, Music Michael Francis McBride “The Day is Past and Gone”............................................... The Company Howard A. Roberts and Brother John Sellers, Music

“You May Run On”............................................................ The Company Howard A. Roberts and Brother John Sellers, Music

“Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham”...................... The Company Howard A. Roberts, Music ^ Guest Artist * Used by arrangement with G. Schirmer, Inc., publisher and copyright owner. + Used by special arrangement with Galaxy Music Corporation, New York City. All performances of Revelations are permanently endowed by a generous gift from Donald L. Jonas in celebration of the birthday of his wife Barbara and her deep commitment to Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

generation of choreographers. His journey to the top of the modern dance world began in the Liberty City neighborhood of Miami, Florida. Battle showed artistic talent early and studied dance at a high school arts magnet program before moving on to Miami’s New World School of the Arts, under the direction of Daniel Lewis and Gerri Houlihan, and finally to the dance program at the Juilliard School, under the direction of Benjamin Harkarvy, where he met his mentor, Carolyn Adams. He danced with the Parsons Dance Company from 1994–2001, and also set his choreography on that company starting in 1998. Battle then founded his own Battleworks Dance Company, which made its premiere in 2002 in Düsseldorf, Germany, as the U.S. representative to the World Dance Alliance’s Global Assembly. Battleworks subsequently performed extensively at venues including the Joyce Theater, Dance Theater Workshop, American Dance Festival and Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival. Battle was honored as one of the “Masters of African-American Choreography” by the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in 2005, and he received the prestigious Statue Award from the Princess Grace Foundation-USA in 2007. He is a sought-after keynote speaker and has addressed a number of high-profile organizations including the United Nations Leaders Program and the UNICEF Senior Leadership Development Program.

Masazumi Chaya (associate artistic director) was born in Fukuoka, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater grew from a now-fabled performance in March 1958 at the 92nd Street Y in New York City. Led by Alvin Ailey and a group of young African-American modern dancers, that performance changed forever the perception of American dance. The Ailey company has gone on to perform for an estimated 23 million people at theaters in 48 states and 71 countries on six continents—as well as millions more through television broadcasts. In 2008, a U.S. Congressional resolution designated the company as “a vital American cultural ambassador to the world” that celebrates the uniqueness of the African-American cultural experience and the preservation and enrichment of the American modern dance heritage. When Ailey began creating dances, he drew upon his “blood memories” of Texas, the blues, spirituals and gospel as inspiration, which resulted in the creation of his most popular and critically acclaimed work, Revelations. Although he created 79 ballets over his lifetime, Ailey maintained that his company was not exclusively a repository for his own work. Today, the company continues Ailey’s mission by presenting important works of the past and commissioning new ones. In all, more than 200 works by more than 80 choreographers have been part of the Ailey company’s repertory. Before his untimely death in 1989, Alvin Ailey named Judith Jamison as his successor, and over the next 21 years, she brought the company to unprecedented success. Jamison, in turn, personally selected Robert Battle to succeed her in 2011, and The Washington Post declared he “has the troupe’s forward momentum well in hand.”

Robert Battle (artistic director) became artistic director of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in July 2011, after being personally selected by Judith Jamison, making him only the third person to head the company since it was founded in 1958. Battle has a long-standing association with the Ailey organization. A frequent choreographer and artist-in-residence at Ailey since 1999, he has set many of his works on Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and Ailey II and at the Ailey School. The company’s current repertory includes his ballets Strange Humors, The Hunt, In/Side and Takademe. In addition to expanding the Ailey repertory with works by artists as diverse as Paul Taylor, Rennie Harris, Jirí ˇ Kylián, Garth Fagan and Kyle Abraham, Battle has also instituted a New Directors Choreography Lab, to help develop the next 20

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

Japan, where he began his classical ballet training. Upon moving to New York in 1970, he studied modern dance and performed with the Richard Englund Repertory Company. Chaya joined Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in 1972 and performed with the company for 15 years. In 1988, he became the company’s rehearsal director after serving as assistant rehearsal director for two years. A master teacher, both on tour with the company and in his native Japan, he served as choreographic assistant to Alvin Ailey and John Butler. In 1991, Chaya was named associate artistic director of the company. He continues to provide invaluable creative assistance in all facets of its operations. In 2002, Chaya coordinated the company’s appearance at the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree-lighting ceremony, broadcast on NBC. Chaya has restaged numerous ballets, including Alvin Ailey’s Flowers for the State Ballet of Missouri (1990) and The River for the Royal Swedish Ballet (1993), Ballet Florida (1995), National Ballet of Prague (1995), Pennsylvania Ballet (1996) and Colorado Ballet (1998). He has also restaged The Mooche, The Stack-Up, Episodes, Bad Blood, Hidden Rites, Urban Folk Dance and Witness for the company. At the beginning of his tenure as associate artistic director, Chaya restaged Ailey’s For ‘Bird’—With Love for a Dance in America program entitled Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater: Steps Ahead. In 2000, he restaged Ailey’s Night Creature for the Rome Opera House and The River for La Scala Ballet. In 2003, he restaged The River for North Carolina Dance Theatre and for Julio Bocca’s Ballet Argentina. Most recently, Chaya restaged Blues Suite, Forgotten Time, Streams, Urban Folk Dance and Vespers for the company. As a performer, Chaya appeared on Japanese television in both dramatic and musical productions. He wishes to recognize the artistic contribution and spirit of his late friend and fellow artist, Michihiko Oka.

Alvin Ailey (founder) was born on January 5, 1931, in Rogers, Texas. His experiences of life in the rural South would later inspire some of his most memorable works. At age 12, he moved with his mother to Los Angeles, where he was introduced to dance by performances of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo and the Katherine Dunham Dance Company. His formal dance training began with an introduction to Lester Horton’s classes by his friend, Carmen de Lavallade. Horton, the founder of one of the first racially integrated dance companies in the United States, became a mentor for Ailey as he embarked on his

professional career. After Horton’s death in 1953, Ailey became director of the Lester Horton Dance Theater and began to choreograph his own works. In the 1950s and 1960s, Ailey performed in four Broadway shows including House of Flowers and Jamaica. Ailey studied dance with Martha Graham, Doris Humphrey, Charles Weidman, Hanya Holm and Karel Shook and also took acting classes with Stella Adler. In 1958, he founded Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater to carry out his vision of a company dedicated to enriching the American modern dance heritage and preserving the uniqueness of the African-American cultural experience. He established the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center (now the Ailey School) in 1969 and formed the Alvin Ailey Repertory Ensemble (now Ailey II) in 1974. Ailey was a pioneer of programs promoting arts in education, particularly those benefiting underserved communities. Throughout his lifetime, he was awarded numerous honorary doctoral degrees, NAACP’s Spingarn Award, the United Nations Peace Medal, the Dance Magazine Award, the Capezio Award and the Samuel H. Scripps American Dance Festival Award. In 1988, he received the Kennedy Center Honor in recognition of his extraordinary contribution to American culture. When Ailey died on December 1, 1989, The New York Times said of him, “You didn’t need to have known [him] personally to have been touched by his humanity, enthusiasm and exuberance and his courageous stand for multi-racial brotherhood.”

Judith Jamison (artistic director emerita) joined Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in 1965 and quickly became an international star. Over the next 15 years, Ailey created some of his most enduring roles for her, most notably the tour-de-force solo Cry. During the 1970s and 1980s, she appeared as a guest artist with ballet companies all over the world, starred in the hit Broadway musical Sophisticated Ladies and formed her own company, the Jamison Project. She returned to Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in 1989 when Ailey asked her to succeed him as artistic director. In the 21 years that followed, she brought the company to unprecedented heights—including two historic engagements in South Africa and a 50-city global tour to celebrate the company’s 50th anniversary. Jamison is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, among them a prime time Emmy Award, an American Choreography Award, the Kennedy Center Honor, a National Medal of Arts, a “Bessie” Award, the Phoenix Award and the Handel Medallion. She was also listed in “The TIME 100: The World’s Most Influential People” and honored by First Lady Michelle Obama at the first White House Dance Series event. As a highly regarded choreographer, Jamison has created many celebrated works, including Divining (1984), Forgotten Time (1989), Hymn (1993), HERE … NOW (commissioned for the 2002 Cultural Olympiad), Love Stories (with additional choreography by Robert Battle and Rennie Harris, 2004) and Among Us (Private Spaces: Public Places) (2009). Jamison’s autobiography, Dancing Spirit, was edited by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and published in 1993. In 2004, under Jamison’s artistic directorship, her idea of a permanent home for the Ailey company was realized and named after beloved chairman Joan Weill. Jamison continues to dedicate herself to asserting the prominence of the arts in our culture, and she remains committed to promoting the significance of the Ailey legacy—using dance as a medium for honoring the past, celebrating the present and fearlessly reaching into the future.

Matthew Rushing (rehearsal director and guest artist) was born in Los Angeles. He began his dance training with Kashmir Blake in Inglewood and later continued his training at the Los Angeles County

High School for the Arts. He is the recipient of a Spotlight Award and Dance Magazine Award and was named a Presidential Scholar in the Arts. He was a scholarship student at the Ailey School and later became a member of Ailey II, where he danced for a year. During his career, Rushing has performed as a guest artist for galas in Vail, Colorado, as well as in Austria, Canada, France, Italy and Russia. He has performed for Presidents George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, as well as at the 2010 White House Dance Series. During his time with the company, he has choreographed two ballets: Acceptance In Surrender (2005), a collaboration with Hope Boykin and Abdur-Rahim Jackson, and Uptown (2009), a tribute to the Harlem Renaissance. In 2012, he created Moan, which was set on Philadanco and premiered at the Joyce Theater. Rushing joined the company in 1992 and became rehearsal director in June 2010.

Choreographers & composer Paul Taylor (choreographer) is the last living member of the pantheon that created America’s indigenous art of modern dance. He continues to win acclaim for the vibrancy, relevance and power of his new works as well as his classics, while offering cogent observations on life’s complexities and society’s thorniest issues. His ever-growing collection of works is performed by the Paul Taylor Dance Company, Taylor 2 and dance companies throughout the world. The Paul Taylor Dance Company has performed continuously around the globe since Taylor established it in 1954.

Rennie Harris (choreographer) was born and raised in an AfricanAmerican community in North Philadelphia. In 1992, he founded Rennie Harris Puremovement, a hip-hop dance theater company dedicated to preserving and disseminating hip-hop culture. Voted one of the most influential people in the last one hundred years of Philadelphia history, Harris has received several accolades, including the Herb Alpert Award in the Arts, the Governor’s Arts Award, a United States Artist Fellowship, and an honorary doctorate from Bates College. The London Times wrote of Harris that he is “the Basquiat of the U.S. contemporary dance scene.” Most recently, Rennie Harris Puremovement was chosen by DanceMotion USA as one of four companies to serve as citizen diplomats, and the company toured Egypt, Israel, Palestinian territories and Jordan in 2012.

Duke Ellington (composer), born in Washington, D.C. in 1899, is an American composer, pianist and jazz band leader. He was one of the most influential figures in the history of music. In the early l930s his band became renowned at the legendary Cotton Club in Harlem. Later, the band toured nationally and internationally. The “Duke” wrote more than 900 compositions before his death in l974; among his classics are Mood Indigo, Solitude, Caravan, Sophisticated Lady and Black, Brown, and Beige.

John Mackey (choreographer) has received commissions from Parsons Dance Company, New York City Ballet Choreographic Institute, Dallas Wind Symphony, Zzyzx Saxophone Quartet, the U.S. Air Force Band and many others. A frequent collaborator, he has worked with artists ranging from The Blue Devils Drum to conductor Marin Alsop and from choreographer Robert Battle to the U.S. Olympic synchronized swim team. Mackey holds degrees from Juilliard and the Cleveland Institute of Music.

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Jirí ˇ Kylián (choreographer) was born in Czechoslovakia in 1947 and trained at the School of the National Ballet in Prague and the Royal Ballet School in London. Kylián then joined the Stuttgart Ballet and made his debut there as a choreographer. After having made three ballets for Nederlands Dans Theater, he became NDT’s artistic director in 1975. In 1978, he put NDT on the international map with Sinfonietta. That same year, with Carel Birnie, he founded NDT II for young talent. In 1991, Kylián initiated NDT III for dancers 40 and older. This structure was unique in the world of dance. In 1999, he handed over the artistic leadership, but remained house choreographer until 2009. Kylián has created nearly 100 works, many of which are performed by ballet companies and schools all over the world.

Dancers Guillermo Asca (Rego Park, NY) or “Moe,” as he is affectionately known, graduated from LaGuardia High School of the Performing Arts. He was a scholarship student at the Ailey School and danced with Ailey II, Ballet Metropolitano de Caracas, Ballet Hispanico, Dance Compass, Shapiro & Smith and Footprints Dance Project. In 2010, he performed at the White House Dance Series. Asca joined the company in 1999. Kirven James Boyd (Boston, MA) began his formal dance training at the Boston Arts Academy and joined Boston Youth Moves in 1999 under the direction of Jim Viera and Jeannette Neill. He also trained on scholarship at the Boston Conservatory and as a scholarship student at the Ailey School. Boyd has danced with Battleworks Dance Company, the Parsons Dance Company and Ailey II. He performed at the White House Dance Series in 2010. Boyd joined the company in 2004.

Hope Boykin (Durham, NC) is a three-time recipient of the American Dance Festival’s Young Tuition Scholarship. She attended Howard University and while in Washington, D.C., she performed with Lloyd Whitmore’s New World Dance Company. Boykin was a student and intern at the Ailey School. She was assistant to the late Talley Beatty and an original member of Complexions. Boykin was a member of Philadanco and received a New York Dance and Performance “Bessie” Award. In 2005, Boykin choreographed Acceptance In Surrender in collaboration with Abdur-Rahim Jackson and Matthew Rushing for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Most recently she choreographed Go In Grace with award-winning singing group Sweet Honey in the Rock for the company’s 50th anniversary season. Boykin joined the company in 2000. Sean A. Carmon (Beaumont, TX) began his dance training under Bonnie Cokinos with guidance from Lucia Booth and Eva LeBlanc. He is a graduate of the Ailey/Fordham B.F.A. Program in Dance and was a member of Elisa Monte Dance. Carmon was an original cast member of the 2010 revival of La Cage Aux Folles on Broadway and was also a cast member of the Broadway production of The Phantom of the Opera. As an assistant to Christopher L. Huggins, he appeared as a guest artist with the International Dance Association in Italy and with the Cape Dance company in South Africa. Carmon joined the company in 2011.

Sarah Daley (South Elgin, IL) began her training at the Faubourg School of Ballet in Illinois under the direction of Watmora Casey and Tatyana Mazur. She is a 2009 graduate of the Ailey/Fordham B.F.A. Program in Dance. Daley has trained at institutions such as

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

the Kirov Academy, National Ballet School of Canada, San Francisco Conservatory of Dance and intensives such as Ballet Camp Illinois and Ballet Adriatico in Italy. She is a recipient of a Youth America Grand Prix Award and an ARTS Foundation Award. She was a member of Ailey II and joined the company in 2011.

Ghrai Devore (Washington, DC) began her formal dance training at the Chicago Multicultural Dance Center and was a scholarship student at the Ailey School. She has completed summer programs at the Kirov Academy, Ballet Chicago, Deeply Rooted Dance Theater, American Ballet Theatre and Alonzo King LINES Ballet. DeVore was a member of Deeply Rooted Dance Theater 2, Hubbard Street 2, Dance Works Chicago and Ailey II. She is a recipient of the Danish Queen Ingrid Scholarship of Honor and the Dizzy Feet Foundation Scholarship, and she was a 2010 nominee for the first annual Clive Barnes Award. DeVore joined the company in 2010. Antonio Douthit (St. Louis, MO) began his dance training at age 16 at the Center of Contemporary Arts under the direction of Lee Nolting and at the Alexandra School of Ballet. He also trained at North Carolina School of the Arts, Joffrey Ballet School, San Francisco Ballet and the Dance Theatre of Harlem School. Douthit became a member of Dance Theatre of Harlem in 1999 and appeared in featured roles in the ballets South African Suite, Dougla, Concerto in F, Return and Dwight Rhoden’s Twist. He was promoted to soloist in 2003. He also performed with Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal. Douthit joined the company in 2004.

Renaldo Gardner (Gary, IN) began his dance training with Tony Simpson and is a graduate of Talent Unlimited High School. He attended the Emerson School for Visual and Performing Arts and studied with Larry Brewer and Michael Davis. Gardner was a scholarship student at the Ailey School, has trained on scholarship at Ballet Chicago and Deeply Rooted Dance Theater and had an internship at the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance. In 2008, he received second place in modern dance from the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts and received the Dizzy Feet Scholarship in 2009. In February 2012, Gardner was honored with the key to the city of Gary, Indiana, his hometown. He was a member of Ailey II and joined the company in 2011.

Vernard J. Gilmore (Chicago, IL) began dancing at Curie Performing and Creative Arts High School in Chicago and later studied at the Joseph Holmes Chicago Dance Theatre with Harriet Ross, Marquita Levy and Emily Stein. He attended Barat College as a dance scholarship recipient and received first place in the all-city NAACP ACT-SO Competition in Dance in 1993. He studied as a scholarship student at the Ailey School and was a member of Ailey II. In 2010, he performed at the White House Dance Series. Gilmore is an active choreographer for the Ailey Dancers Resource Fund and has choreographed for Fire Island Dance Festival 2008 and Jazz Foundation of America Gala 2010; he also produced the Dance of Light Project in 2010. Gilmore is a certified Zena Rommett Floor-Barre instructor. He continues to teach workshops and master classes around the world. Gilmore joined the company in 1997.

Jacqueline Green (Baltimore, MD) began her dance training at the Baltimore School for the Arts under the direction of Norma Pera, Deborah Robinson and Anton Wilson. She is a graduate of the Ailey/

Fordham B.F.A. Program in Dance. Green has attended summer programs at Pennsylvania Regional Ballet, Chautauqua Institution, Earl Mosley’s Institute of the Arts and Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival. She has performed works by a variety of choreographers, including Elisa Monte, Helen Pickett, Francesca Harper, Aszure Barton, Earl Mosley and Michael Vernon. Green was the recipient of the Martha Hill Fund’s Young Professional Award in 2009 and the Dizzy Feet Scholarship in 2010. She was a member of Ailey II and joined the company in 2011.

Daniel Harder (Bowie, MD) began dancing at Suitland High School’s Center for the Visual and Performing Arts in Maryland. He is a recent graduate of the Ailey/Fordham B.F.A. Program in Dance where he was awarded the Jerome Robbins/Layton Foundation Scholarship and participated in the Holland Dance Festival with the school and as a member of the Francesca Harper Project. After dancing in the European tour of West Side Story, Harder became a member of Ailey II. He joined the company in 2010.

Demetia Hopkins (Orange, VA) began her dance training at the Orange School of Performing Arts under the direction of her uncle Ricardo Porter and Heather Powell. She has studied with the National Youth Ballet of Virginia, Virginia School of the Arts, the Summer Dance International Course in Burgos, Spain, the Rock School and Dance Theatre of Harlem School. Hopkins graduated with honors from the Ailey/Fordham B.F.A. Program in Dance in 2009, and she was a recipient of a Leonore Annenberg Fellowship in the Arts in 2011. Hopkins was a member of Ailey II and joined the company in 2010. Michael Jackson, Jr. (New Orleans, LA) began his dance training at age 14 at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, D.C. under the direction of Charles Augins. He became a member of Dance Theatre of Harlem’s Dancing through Barriers Ensemble in 2005. In 2006, he joined Dallas Black Dance Theatre and in 2008, joined Philadanco, where he also worked as Artistic Director of D3. He has performed works by Arthur Mitchell, Milton Myers and Gene Hill Sagan. Jackson joined the company in 2011.

Megan Jakel (Waterford, MI) trained in ballet and jazz in her hometown. As a senior in high school, she spent a year dancing with the City Ballet of San Diego. In 2005, Jakel was an apprentice and rehearsal director for the Francesca Harper Project. She graduated with honors in 2007 from the Ailey/Fordham B.F.A. Program in Dance. Jakel has performed works by choreographers David Parsons, Debbie Allen, Thaddeus Davis, Hans van Manen and Dwight Rhoden. She was a member of Ailey II and joined the company in 2009.

Yannick Lebrun (Cayenne, French Guiana) began training in his native country at the Adaclam School under the guidance of Jeanine Verin. After graduating high school in 2004, he moved to New York City to study at the Ailey School as a scholarship student. Lebrun has performed works by choreographers Troy Powell, Debbie Allen, Scott Rink, Thaddeus Davis, Nilas Martins and Dwight Rhoden and danced with the Francesca Harper Project Modo Fusion. He was named one of Dance Magazine’s “25 to Watch” in 2011. Lebrun was a member of Ailey II and joined the company in 2008. Alicia Graf Mack (Columbia, MD) trained at Ballet Royale Institute of Maryland under Donna Pidel and attended summer intensives at

the School of American Ballet and American Ballet Theatre. Prior to dancing with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater from 2005–08, Mack was a principal dancer with Dance Theatre of Harlem and a member of Complexions. In addition to several galas and festivals, she has been a guest performer with Alonzo King LINES Ballet and with André 3000 and Beyoncé at Radio City Music Hall. She is the recipient of the Columbia University Medal of Excellence and Smithsonian Magazine’s Young Innovator Award. Mack graduated magna cum laude with honors in history from Columbia University and received an M.A. in nonprofit management from Washington University in St. Louis. Most recently, she served as a visiting assistant professor of dance at Webster University in St. Louis. Mack rejoined the company in 2011.

Michael Francis McBride (Johnson City, NY) began his training at the Danek School of Performing Arts and later trained at Amber Perkins School of the Arts in Norwich, New York. McBride attended Earl Mosley’s Institute of the Arts for two consecutive summers and was also assistant to Mosley when he set the piece Saddle UP! on the Company in 2007. In 2012, McBride performed and taught as a Guest Artist with the JUNTOS Collective in Guatemala. McBride graduated magna cum laude from the Ailey/Fordham B.F.A. Program in Dance in 2010 after he joined the company in 2009.

Rachael McLaren (Manitoba, Canada) began her formal dance training at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School. After graduating high school, she joined the Toronto cast of Mamma Mia! McLaren moved to New York City to study at the Ailey School as a scholarship student and later joined Ailey II. She has performed works by Karole Armitage, Dwight Rhoden, Francesca Harper and Nilas Martins. McLaren joined the company in 2008.

Aisha Mitchell (Syracuse, NY) received her primary dance training at the Onondaga Dance Institute, Dance Centre North and with Anthony Salatino of Syracuse University. She studied at North Carolina Dance Theatre, LINES Ballet School, the Joffrey Ballet School and the Ailey School as a scholarship student. Mitchell is a graduate of the Ailey/ Fordham B.F.A. Program in Dance and was a member of Ailey II. She has performed works by choreographers Alonzo King, Dwight Rhoden, Debbie Allen, Seán Curran and Nacho Duato. She recently served as co-choreographer for the Syracuse Opera’s Les Pecheurs de Perles. Mitchell was also a medalist at the NAACP National ACT-SO competition. She joined the company in 2008. Akua Noni Parker (Kinston, NC) began her ballet training at the age of three and moved to Wilmington, Delaware, at age 12 to continue her professional training at the Academy of the Dance. In 2000, she joined Dance Theatre of Harlem, where she danced lead roles in Agon, Giselle and The Four Temperaments. Thereafter, she danced with Cincinnati Ballet and Ballet San Jose. Parker joined the company in 2008. Belen Pereyra (Lawrence, MA) began her formal dance training at the Boston Arts Academy, where she graduated as valedictorian. She was also a member of Origination Cultural Arts Center in Boston. Upon moving to New York City, Pereyra has been closely mentored by Earl Mosley and danced with Camille A. Brown & Dancers for three years, during which time she performed at the Joyce Theater, Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival and the Dancers Responding to AIDS annual events, Dance from the Heart and the Fire Island Dance Festival. Pereyra was an apprentice for Ronald K. Brown/Evidence, A Dance Company and

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has performed with Lula Washington Dance Theater, Nathan Trice and Roger C. Jeffrey. She assisted Matthew Rushing with his ballet Uptown for the Ailey company in 2009. Pereyra joined the company in 2011.

Briana Reed (St. Petersburg, FL) began her dance training at the Academy of Ballet Arts and the Pinellas County Center for Arts. She then studied at the Ailey School as a scholarship student. In 1997, Reed graduated from the Juilliard School and became a member of Ailey II. In 2010, she performed at the White House Dance Series. She is a licensed Gyrotonic trainer. Reed joined the company in 1998. Jamar Roberts (Miami, FL) graduated from the New World School of the Arts. He trained at the Dance Empire of Miami and as a fellowship student at the Ailey School. Roberts was a member of Ailey II and Complexions. He joined the company in 2002. Samuel Lee Roberts (Quakertown, PA) began his dance training under the direction of Kathleen Johnston and attended the Juilliard School. He performed in the first international show of Radio City Christmas Spectacular in Mexico City and danced with the New York cast from 1999-2004. Roberts performed during the awards ceremony at the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics, worked with Corbin Dances and Keigwin + Company and was a founding member of Battleworks Dance Company. In 2006, Roberts was named Dance Magazine’s “On the Rise” Dancer. He performed several roles in Julie Taymor’s film Across the Universe and the original opera Grendel. Roberts joined the company in 2009.

You Can Dance. In 2010, Sims taught as a master teacher in Ravenna, Italy, for “Dance Up Ravenna,” sponsored by the International Dance Association, and performed in the White House Dance Series. He has performed for the King of Morocco and is a certified Zena Rommett Floor-Barre instructor. In 2011, Sims wrote a featured guest blog for Dance Magazine. Sims joined the company in 1997.

Linda Celeste Sims (Bronx, NY) began her dance training at Ballet Hispanico School of Dance and is a graduate of LaGuardia High School of the Performing Arts. In 1994, Sims was granted an award by the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts. She was highlighted in the “Best of 2009” list in Dance Magazine and has performed as a guest star on So You Think You Can Dance, Dancing with the Stars and The Today Show. She has also made guest appearances at the White House Dance Series, Youth America Grand Prix, Vail International Dance Festival and galas in Budapest and Vienna. Sims joined the company in 1996. Jermaine Terry (Washington, DC) began his dance training in Kissimmee, Florida at James Dance Center. He graduated cum laude with a B.F.A. in Dance Performance from the University of South Florida, where he received scholarships for excellence in performance and choreography. Terry was a scholarship student at the Ailey School and a member of Ailey II, and he has performed with Buglisi Dance Theatre, Arch Dance, Dance Iquail and Philadanco. Terry joined the company in 2010. Marcus Jarrell Willis (Houston, TX) began his formal training at

Kelly Robotham (New York, NY) is a graduate of New World School of the Arts and trained as a scholarship student at the Ailey School and the Dance Theatre of Harlem School. She is also a graduate of the Juilliard School, where she studied under the direction of Lawrence Rhodes and worked with Robert Battle. Robotham has performed works by José Limón, Martha Graham, Mark Morris and Jerome Robbins. In 2009, she was selected from the Juilliard Dance Division to participate in a cultural exchange tour to Costa Rica and soon after became an apprentice with River North Chicago Dance Company. Robotham was a member of Ailey II and joined the company in 2011.

the Johnston Performing Arts Middle School, the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and Discovery Dance Group in Houston. At age 16, he moved to New York City and studied at the Ailey School as a scholarship student. Willis is a recipient of a Level 1 ARTS award given by the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts and has received scholarships to many schools, including the Juilliard School. He was a member of Ailey II and also worked with Pascal Rioult Dance Theater, Dominic Walsh Dance Theater and Tania Pérez-Salas Compañía de Danza. Willis joined the company in 2008.

Guest Artist Kanji Segawa (Kanagawa, Japan) began his modern dance training with his mother, Erika Akoh, and studied ballet with Kan and Ju Horiuchi at Unique Ballet Theatre in Tokyo. In 1997, Segawa came to the U.S. under the Japanese Government Artist Fellowship to train at the Ailey School. Segawa was a member of Ailey II from 2000–02 and Battleworks Dance Company from 2002–10. He worked extensively with choreographer Mark Morris from 2004–11, repeatedly appearing in Morris’s various productions, including as a principal dancer in John Adams’s Nixon in China at Metropolitan Opera. He has also worked with Jennifer Muller/The Works, Aszure Barton’s Aszure and Artists and Jessica Lang Dance. Segawa joined the company in 2011.

Glenn Allen Sims (Long Branch, NJ) began his classical dance training at the Academy of Dance Arts in Red Bank, New Jersey. He attended the Juilliard School under the artistic guidance of Benjamin Harkarvy. In 2004, Sims was the youngest person to be inducted into the Long Branch High School’s Distinguished Alumni Hall of Fame. He has been seen in several network television programs including BET Honors, Dancing with the Stars, The Today Show and So You Think

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

Collin Heyward (Newport News, VA) began his training at The Academy of Dance and Gymnastics in Newport News, under the direction of Linda Haas and Denise Wall’s Dance Energy in Virginia Beach. Heyward also attended several dance intensives, including Earl Mosley’s Institute for the Arts, and has performed works by a variety of choreographers including Robert Battle, Sidra Bell, Francisco Martinez, Elisa Monte and Scott Rink. He dances in the upcoming Fox Searchlight film Black Nativity, directed by Kasi Lemmons and choreographed by Otis Sallid. Heyward is an honors graduate of the Ailey/Fordham B.F.A. Program in Dance and was a member of Ailey II from 2010–12.

BALLET DIRECTOR

RON CUNNINGHAM ISSUE #6

PLAYWRIGHT

GREGG COFFIN ISSUE #7

TONY WINNER

FAITH PRINCE ISSUE #8 ACTOR

COLIN HANKS ISSUE #15

PERFORMANCE ARTIST

DAVID GARIBALDI ISSUE #16

BROADWAY STAR

MARA DAVI ISSUE #19

Available at Raley's, Nugget Markets and Barnes & Noble.

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SACRAMENTO BALLET

Photo by Jackie Pinto

AN EVENING OF SOLOS, DUETS AND TRIOS

A Studio Dance Series Event Thursday–Saturday, May 2–4, 2013 • 8PM Vanderhoef Studio Theatre

Tarantella Music by Louis Moreau Gottschalk, orchestrated by Hershey Kay Choreography by George Balanchine Second Before The Ground (Excerpt) Music by Foday Musa Suso, performed by Kronos Quartet Choreography by Trey McIntyre

Each performance will be preceeded by a screening of The Dancer Films.

The Dancer Films

The Dancer Films are a collection of very short films based on legendary cartoonist Jules Feiffer’s beloved character, the modern Dancer—with a live dancer. Audiences may remember The Dancer (she hasn’t aged) or may be meeting her for the first time. Cool men, bad weather and stultifying past Presidents sometimes foil her efforts to dance; she springs back with an irrepressible desire to express herself as she navigates the complicated, bracing and rapturous world in which we all reside.

Scars Already Seen Music by Civil Wars Choreography by Nicole Haskins (Created for the Sacramento Ballet, May 11, 2012) Wunderland (Excerpts) Music by Philip Glass Choreography by Edwaard Liang Jazzin’ (Excerpts) Original music by Duke Ellington, Andy Razaf, Count Basie, Wynton Marsalis Choreography by Darrell Grand Moultrie (Created for the Sacramento Ballet March 29, 2012) —continued on page 27

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

Spring in My Step

Ron Cunningham and Carinne Binda (artistic directors)

Takin’ No Mess Wild Sweet Love (Excerpts) Music by the Partridge Family, Lou Reed, Jose Alfredo Jimenez Choreography by Trey McIntyre (Created for the Sacramento Ballet, March 22, 2007) I Think I Love You A Perfect Day Mexican Trio

Intermission

Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux Music by Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky Choreography by George Balanchine La Sonnambula Pas de Deux Music by Vittorio Rieti Choreography by George Balanchine Who Cares? (Excerpt) Music by George Gershwin, arranged by Hershey Kay Choreography by George Balanchine Figures F + L Music by Michael Nyman Choreography by Stefan Calka (Created for the Sacramento Ballet, May 11, 2012)

Ron Cunningham and Carinne Binda, Artistic Directors Caitlin Sapunor-Davis, Production Manager Kyle Lemoi, Lighting Design Theresa Kimbrough, Wardrobe Supervision Lynlee Towne, Ballet Mistress Dancers Lauren Breen Ava Chatterson Alexandra Cunningham Kaori Higashiyama Isha Lloyd Katie Miller Amanda Peet Evelyn Turner Lauryn Winterhalder

Oliver-Paul Adams Alexander Biber Stefan Calka Chris Nachtrab Richard Porter Richard Smith Alex Stewart Mate Szentes Rex Wheeler

Under the artistic vision and creative leadership of this husband-andwife team, the Sacramento Ballet has risen to national prominence for its artistic excellence and outstanding work in the community. Serving with distinction for 25 years, they have transitioned the company from a small, regional ballet to an integral centerpiece in the rich cultural tapestry of northern California. Having enjoyed extensive international careers as performing artists, Cunningham and Binda have brought a wealth of experience, knowledge and creativity to the Sacramento Ballet. They have added more than 50 world premieres and 50 Sacramento premieres to the repertory, including 18 masterpieces by the great George Balanchine. Cunningham has created or staged more than 75 of his original ballets to define the company’s aesthetic with signature works such as: Romeo & Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Alice in Wonderland, Hamlet, Carmina Burana, Dracula, A Streetcar Named Desire, Etosha and many others. Cunningham’s The Nutcracker incorporates almost 500 children each year, making it the largest cast of children in a professional production anywhere in the world. Together, they have invented dozens of initiatives designed to deepen, broaden and diversify audiences with innovative programs such as Modern Masters, Beer & Ballet, Inside The Director’s Studio, Living Sculptures, Red Hot Valentine Nights and the Capital Choreography Competition. In 2007, the company made its first international tour to the People’s Republic of China receiving accolades and praise in both Shanghai and Beijing. Cunningham and Binda have been in the vanguard of forging creative partnerships with their fellow arts organizations for many years. They have fostered outreach programs to more than 40 different social service agencies and full immersion education programs for children at risk in elementary, middle and high schools. Together as a team, Cunningham and Binda embody the Sacramento Ballet’s mission statement to engage, inspire and educate through the powerful vehicle of dance. In recognition of their 25 years of service to the community, Cunningham and Binda are the recipients of the 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Sacramento Arts & Business Council. They are the first artists to be recognized in this category.

George Balanchine (choreographer), born in St. Petersburg, Russia, in 1904, was a product of the Imperial Russian Ballet and the founder of the New York City Ballet. His early ballets presaged a revolution in choreography and he went on to become the last brilliant choreographer of the legendary Ballet Russes. Widely considered to be the greatest choreographer of the 20th century, his genius and influence is often compared to that of Picasso and Stravinsky. He changed forever how we look at dance and created a prolific pantheon of masterpieces that defined the “American Style.” His Serenade, created to the music of Tchaikovsky in 1934, was the first masterpiece created on American soil and continues to hold a place of honor in repertories of companies all over the world. Balanchine passed away on April 30, 1983, leaving a legacy of more than 400 ballets created during his lifetime. The performance of Tarantella, Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux, La Sonnambula Pas de Deux and Who Cares? (excerpt), all Balanchine ballets, is presented by arrangement with the George Balanchine Trust and has been —continued on page 28 MondaviArts.org

campus community relations is a proud sponsor of the robert and margrit mondavi Center for the performing arts

produced in accordance with the Balanchine Style and Balanchine Technique Service standards established and provided by the Trust. The George Balanchine ballet presented in this program is protected by copyright. Any unauthorized recording is prohibited without the express written consent of the George Balanchine Trust and the Sacramento Ballet.

Trey McIntyre (choreographer) is one of the most sought-after choreographers working today. Indeed, The Denver Post said of him, “Trey McIntyre could hardly have come along at a better time.” Born in Wichita, Kansas, McIntyre studied at North Carolina School of the Arts and the Houston Ballet Academy. In 1989, he was named choreographic apprentice to Houston Ballet, a position created especially for him by artistic director Ben Stevenson, and in 1995, elevated to choreographic associate. Since then, McIntyre has created a canon of more than 80 works for companies including Stuttgart Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, New York City Ballet, Ballet de Santiago (Chile) and Trey McIntyre Project. McIntyre has served as Resident Choreographer for Oregon Ballet Theatre, Ballet Memphis and the Washington Ballet. He has received many grants and awards, including two choreographic fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and a Choo-San Goh Award for Choreography. He was named one of Dance Magazine’s “25 to Watch” in 2001, one of People Magazine’s “25 Hottest Bachelors” 2003 and one of Out Magazine’s 2008 “Tastemakers.” McIntyre established his critically acclaimed Trey McIntyre Project as a dance company that allows him to continue his artistic and creative relationships with a select group of high-caliber dancers. In 2008, Trey McIntyre Project launched as a full-

time company operating out of Boise, Idaho. The Trey McIntyre Project tours extensively across the nation and the world. McIntyre has created two world premiere works for Sacramento Ballet, both of which were wildly popular.

Edwaard Liang (choreographer) was born in Taiwan and raised and trained in Marin. He joined New York City Ballet (NYCB) in 1993—the same year he was a medal winner at the Prix de Lausanne International Ballet Competition. He was a lead in the Broadway cast of Fosse and danced, choreographed and staged ballets for the acclaimed Nederlands Dans Theater in Holland. Liang has received rave reviews for his numerous choreographic works. He now has ballets in the repertoires of such prestigious companies as NYCB, Kirov Ballet (Russia), Pacific Northwest Ballet and Shanghai Ballet (China), to name only a few. In the last season alone, he completed new ballets for San Francisco Ballet, Joffrey Ballet and Washington Ballet, and his full-length version of Romeo & Juliet for the Tulsa Ballet will premiere this season. He is the recipient of numerous choreographic awards, and his television appearances include the PBS Great Performances broadcast Dance in America: From Broadway: Fosse.

Darrell Grand Moultrie (choreographer) is emerging as one of America’s very diverse and much sought-after choreographers and master teachers. Born and raised in Harlem, New York City, Moultrie’s work has been commissioned by the Juilliard School, Atlanta Ballet, Colorado Ballet, Ailey 2, Milwaukee Ballet, North Carolina Dance Theatre, Cleo Parker Robinson and BalletMet Columbus. Upcoming creations include Tulsa Ballet and Ballet X. He is the recipient of a Princess Grace Choreography Fellowship Award. As a performer, he was a part of the —continued on page 29

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

| mondaviarts.org

Ron Cunningham

by jeff hudson

A quarter century at the helm, through sometimes turbulent times. That’s the thumbnail description of artistic director Ron Cunningham’s tenure with the Sacramento Ballet. He came onboard in 1988—a heady year. Right around the same time Cunningham began laying out his plans to grow his company, actor/producer Tim Busfield was setting up the B Street Theatre; the long-established Music Circus series of locally-produced summer musicals sprouted Broadway Sacramento (hosting touring shows) and a certain basketball team moved into a hastily constructed ARCO Arena. Cunningham is now the longest serving artistic director with any of Sacramento’s arts organizations— and early on, he started sharing those duties with his spouse Carinne Binda. (If you visit Sac Ballet’s studios, you will quickly observe that they really do function as a team—but Ron generally takes the lead with the public.) One thing for sure: Cunningham appreciates Shakespeare (ordinarily thought of as a “word guy”). Cunningham’s choreographed Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Hamlet and The Tempest (which premiered at the Mondavi Center in fall 2002). He’s also likes American material, like A Streetcar Named Desire (also performed at the Mondavi Center), and his big project this year—an original ballet based on The Great Gatsby. I fondly recall Cunningham’s ballet in 2007 based on Tamsen Donner, a member of the ill-fated Donner Party. (Cunningham told me that he got the idea when he drove past Donner Lake on his way from Boston to Sacramento in 1988; he researched

original cast of Billy Elliot the Musical and performed on Broadway in Hairspray and Aida. The New York Times wrote “Moultrie moves his dancers around the stage with remarkable authority[and]… is obviously someone to watch.” Darrellgrandmoultrie.com.

Nicole Haskins (choreographer), a former company dancer with the Sacramento Ballet, has danced in George Balanchine’s Four Temperments (Melancholic), Scotch Symphony (Scotch Girl), Concerto Barocco, Allego Brilliante, Serenade and Donizetti Variations, Ron Cunningham’s Alice in Wonderland, Etosha, Carmina Burana and The Nutcracker (Rose, Lead Marzipan, Solo Candy Cane), Petipa’s The Sleeping Beauty (Fairy of Happiness, Pas de Cinq), Septime Webre’s Fluctuating Hemlines, David Lichine’s Graduation Ball (Fouette Competition) and Amy Seiwart’s end quote. She has danced in premieres by John Selya, Sidra Bell and Ron de Jesus. Haskins received her training from the Westside School of Ballet under the direction of Yvonne Mounsey, where she was a recipient of the Rosemary Valaire Scholarship and was a 2004 Los Angeles Music Center Spotlight Award winner. Haskin’s choreography has been chosen three times for the McCallum Theater’s Dancing Under the Stars Choreographic Competition, and this year she has been selected for the prestigious New York Choreographic Institute. She is currently in her first season dancing with the Washington Ballet.

further listening the idea and considered for years before bringing the piece to fruition.) All the while, Sacramento Ballet has staged classics by the likes of Balanchine, and newer works by contemporary choreographers. Cunningham also added sparkle Sac Ballet’s Nutcracker, with lovely scrims and backdrops commissioned from Russian artists in St. Petersburg. Directing 25 years of Nutcracker productions—including, over the years, literally thousands of Sacramento area youngsters— have made Cunningham into an expert on child psychology. He’s learned that it’s best when he introduces the big mouse costumes (worn by adult male dancers) g-r-a-d-u-a-l-l-y, so that the younger kids aren’t shocked to find themselves standing next to a seven-foot-tall dancing rodent. Along the way, Sac Ballet has kindled a love of dance in the hearts of countless youngsters (and their parents, too), even as the company survived two sharp downturns in regional company, among other adversities. It’s really quite a record of artistic leadership and community connectivity— no small accomplishment. Jeff Hudson contributes coverage of the performing arts to Capital Public Radio, the Davis Enterprise and Sacramento News and Review.

Stefan Calka (choreographer) is a graduate of Indiana University, where he trained with the legendary Violette Verdy. There he performed the roles of the Cavalier in The Nutcracker and Siegfried in Swan Lake. In his eighth season with the Sacramento Ballet, he has danced numerous principal roles including Romeo and Juliet (Romeo), The Sleeping Beauty (Prince Desire), Ron Cunningham’s Bolero, Carmina Burana (Beige Couple), and he created the role of Jonathan Harker in Dracula as well as dancing the title role. Calka has also danced principal roles in the works of George Balanchine, Twyla Tharp, Trey McIntyre, Lila York, Septime Webre, Amy Seiwert, Mathew Neenan, Darrell Grand Moultrie and Edwaard Liang to name a few. He has toured China with John Clifford’s production of Casablanca and assisted him in staging Balanchine ballets for the Kirov and Bolshoi Ballets.

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Thank you to our Faculty

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Our name has become synonymous with great food, service and attention to detail. Contact us today at andersonfamilycatering.com for a quote. It is our privilege at the Mondavi Center to draw on the expertise of our great UC Davis faculty. Through engagement activities, such as Pre-Performance Talks and post-performance Q&A’s, faculty members help audiences achieve a richer understanding of Mondavi Center performances. We gratefully acknowledge the work of the following faculty who graciously participated in audience engagement activities during the 2012–13 season: • Elizabeth Constable

• Enrique Lavernia

• Jaimey Fisher

• Katherine In-Young Lee

Associate Professor, Women and Gender Studies, UC Davis Associate Professor of German and Cinema and Technocultural Studies Program Director, Cinema and Technocultural Studies, UC Davis

• Sarah Geller

Ph.D. Candidate in Ethnomusicology, UC Davis Department of Music

• Milmon F. Harrison

Associate Professor, African American & African Studies, UC Davis

• David A. Hawkins

Professor of Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior, College of Biological Science, UC Davis

• Carol Hess

UC Davis Dean of the College of Engineering Assistant Professor, Ethnomusicology, UC Davis Department of Music

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• Lorena Oropeza

Associate Professor, Department of History, UC Davis

• Sudipta Sen

Professor, Department of History, UC Davis

• Henry Spiller, Chair,

UC Davis Department of Music

Professor of Musicology, Department of Music, UC Davis

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

PPT Pre-Performance Talk Speaker: Jeremy Ganter Jeremy Ganter became the associate executive director & director of programming at the Mondavi Center, UC Davis in September 2006, after serving as the artistic administrator and then director of programming for five years. Ganter oversees the programming and implementation of each Mondavi Center season and recently directed the development of the Mondavi Center’s 10th anniversary celebration for its 2012–13 season. He has also recently led Mondavi Center staff in the development and implementation of several programs focused on developing young talent, including the expansion of the Mondavi Center’s Young Artists Competition, the Mondavi Center SFJAZZ High School All-Stars and an arts administration internship for UC Davis students (“Aggie Arts”). Ganter is on the Board of Directors of the Western Arts Alliance (WAA), serves as the chair of the WAA Professional Development and Membership Committees and served several terms on the board of California Presenters, both as a director and as treasurer. Prior to coming to UC Davis, Ganter worked as a professional guitarist and as a campaign and legislative staffer for the New York State Assembly. He lives in Davis with his wife Allison and their two sons.

Christopher Taylor, piano The Goldberg Variations On the Steinway-Moór Concert Grand

A Director’s Choice Series Event

Bach

Friday, May 3, 2013 • 8PM

Aria mit 30 Veränderungen (Clavierübung, Part IV)

Jackson Hall

BWV 988 (Goldberg Variations)

Pre-Performance Talk

Aria Variation 1. a 1 Clav. Variation 2. a 1 Clav. Variation 3. Canone all’Unisono a 1 Clav. Variation 4. a 1 Clav. Variation 5. a 1 ovvero 2 Clav. Variation 6. Canone alla Seconda a 1 Clav. Variation 7. a ovvero 2 Clav. al tempo di Giga Variation 8. a 2 Clav. Variation 9. Canone alla Terza a 1 Clav. Variation 10. Fughetta. a 1 Clav. Variation 11. a 2 Clav. Variation 12. Canone alla Quarta a 1 Clav. Variation 13. a 2 Clav. Variation 14. a 2 Clav. Variation 15. Canone alla Quinta in moto contrario a 1 Clav.

Friday, May 3, 2013 • 7PM Jackson Hall Speakers: Christopher Taylor in conversation with Jeremy Ganter, Associate Executive Director and Director of Programing, Mondavi Center, UC Davis

Intermission The artists and your fellow audience members appreciate silence during the performance. Please be sure that you have switched off all electronic devices. Videotaping, photographing and audio recording are strictly forbidden. Violators are subject to removal.

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Variation 16. Ouverture a 1 Clav. Variation 17. a 2 Clav. Variation 18. Canone alla Sesta a 1 Clav. Variation 19. a 1 Clav. Variation 20. a 2 Clav. Variation 21. Canone alla Settima a 1 Clav. Variation 22. a 1 Clav. Variation 23. a 2 Clav. Variation 24. Canone all’Ottava a 1 Clav. Variation 25. a 2 Clav. Variation 26. a 2 Clav. Variation 27. Canone alla Nona a 2 Clav. Variation 28. a 2 Clav. Variation 29. a 1 ovvero 2 Clav. Variation 30. Quodlibet a 1 Clav.

Aria da capo e fine

Aria mit 30 Veränderungen (Clavierübung, Part IV) BWV 988 (Goldberg Variations) (1741) Johann Sebastian Bach (Born March 21, 1685, in Eisenach, Germany; died July 28, 1750, in Leipzig, Germany) A famous story, probably apocryphal, underlies the nickname by which this greatest of variation sets is known. To quote from Forkel’s 1802 Bach biography: “We are indebted to Count Keyserlingk, formerly Russian envoy to the Elector of Saxony, who frequently resided in Leipzig, and brought with him Goldberg [Johann Gottlieb Goldberg, 1727–56] ... to have him instructed by Bach in music. The Count was often sickly, and then had sleepless nights. At these times Goldberg, who lived in the house with him, had to pass the night in an adjoining room to play something to him .... The Count once said to Bach that he should like to have some clavier pieces for his Goldberg, which should be of such a soft and somewhat lively character that he might be a little cheered up by them in his sleepless nights. Bach thought he could best fulfill this wish by variations, which, on account of the constant sameness of the fundamental harmony, he had hitherto considered as an ungrateful task. But as at this time all his works were models of art, these variations also became such under his hand ... The Count thereafter ... was never weary of hearing them; and for a long time, when the sleepless nights came, he used to say: ‘Dear Goldberg, do play me one of my variations.’ Bach was, perhaps, never so well rewarded for any work as for this: the Count made him a present of a golden goblet, filled with a hundred Louis d’ors. But their worth as a work of art would not have been paid if the present had been a thousand times greater.” Despite many inconsistencies and implausibilities in the account, the tale has become attached to the work as part of its incomparable charm. Concerning the work’s origins only a handful of incontrovertible facts remain: the set was composed late in Bach’s life, around 1741, and was one of the few works published before his death. The theme is

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

first found in the Notebook for Anna Magdalena Bach, dating back to 1725: an elegant and gently tuneful sarabande, a slow dance in 3/4 that provides the fundamental bass line upon which all the following variations are built. The massive compendium that follows has a logical architecture whose rigorous ingenuity and scale were unprecedented in 1741. After the first two preliminary variations (one a vigorous wake-up call, the other a gentler evocation of a trio sonata), we enter a cycle that recurs every third variation. Variations 3, 6, 9, 12 and so forth up to 27, are all canons, number 3 having its two imitative voices separated by the interval of the unison, number 6 having a separation of a second, variation 9 being at the third, and so on. Their moods vary from boisterous (#12) to sorrowful (#21), but the cleverness and beauty of Bach’s contrapuntal writing atop a constant bass background in all cases boggle the mind. The variations preceding the canons (5, 8, 11 and onward to 26) are all virtuoso toccatas intended originally for the double keyboards available on the larger harpsichords of Bach’s day; to perform them on a single modern keyboard involves many technical complications, with hands crossing and tangling in ways that are as entertaining to see as to hear. Finally, the remaining variations in the scheme (4, 7, 10 ... 25) are a varied and individually distinctive group, many of them illustrating popular forms from Bach’s time: the fanfare, the gigue, the fugue and the French overture, among others. Despite the seeming abstractness of this almost mathematical arrangement, the variations share an extraordinary lyricism, serene and touching, and at the same time an astonishing diversity and liveliness that belies their supposed origins as lullabies for an insomniac. Towards the end Bach approaches the depths of tragic despair in the excruciatingly chromatic variation 25; but after this the mood gently returns to normal in 26, becoming thereafter increasingly energized and triumphant right up to the finale, variation 30. The triune scheme, which would have predicted a canon at the 10th in this position, has by now dissolved; instead, Bach provides a Quodlibet (a term from the Latin “what you will”), a subtly witty combination of two rough popular tunes into a contrapuntally impeccable mix, exuberant and exquisite. Following this the theme makes a final reappearance, seeming, in the words of Ralph Kirkpatrick, “transfigured in the light of the traversed spiritual journey” and leaving the listener “cleansed, renewed and matured.” —Christopher Taylor Christopher Taylor is represented by Jonathan Wentworth Associates, Ltd. www.jwentworth.com

Steinway–Moór Concert Grand The piano used in today’s recital is a model D concert grand by Steinway & Sons and is the only Steinway equipped with a double keyboard developed by Emanuel Moór (1863–1931). It was built by Steinway for Werner von Siemens of Berlin and sold to him in 1929. The piano was purchased by the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1961 for the use of Gunnar Johansen, artist-in-residence at the university at the time. After Johansen’s death in 1991, it remained unused for many years until John Schaffer, director of the School of Music and Christopher Taylor, professor of piano at the school, began discuss-

ing the prospect of restoring it to optimum playing capacity several years ago. The 2007 completion of the rebuilding project by Steinway marked the beginning of a new stage in the instrument’s life; it is now used for selected tour dates by Taylor, and heard in concert at its home at the university.

modified for extra height. The overstrung scale design is standard, first made 1884 in its earliest form with subsequent modifications. The Hamburg factory (Steinway’s Pianofabrik) received unfinished Ds from New York from 1884–88. Since 1888, Model D has been in regular production in Hamburg.

The lower keyboard of 88 keys resembles that of a typical piano. The upper keyboard of 76 keys is one octave shorter in the treble, but sounds one octave higher than the corresponding key on the lower keyboard. Each keyboard can be played independently, but both can be coupled together as well, by depressing a pedal located between the una corda (far left) and sostenuto (second-from-right) pedals. A catch mechanism allows the pedal to be retained in its depressed position. When the keyboards are coupled, each note played on the lower keyboard sounds both its own pitch and that of the key directly behind it on the upper keyboard, one octave higher. As a result, polyphonic textures available to the player are greatly expanded, volume levels may be increased and chords which extend over two octaves may be played with one hand.

In 1961, the Steinway-Moór Concert Grand was purchased by biochemist Harry Steenbock for the use of Gunnar Johansen. Johansen passed away in 1991. On October 4, 1998 the piano was reported to be in the Johansen residence studio approximately 30 miles west of Madison, Wisconsin, under the care of Mrs. Johansen.

Steinway-Moór Concert Grand Serial Number 268675 Steinway & Sons piano of Hamburg manufacture Case Number: 706 CC Model: D (Orchestral Concert Grand; custom case height, custom action) Length: 9'2½" Width: 4'113∕8" Rim Height: 1'6¾" Overall Height from Floor: 3'7¼" Approximate Weight: 1000 lbs. Finish: ebonized Sold to: Werner von Siemens, Berlin-Lankwitz, December 14, 1929 Plate Casting Number: 1517 (standard Hamburg cupola plate) Modifiers: Una Corda, Coupler, Sostenuto, and Damper pedals. Except for the latter, a catch mechanism is available for retaining the pedals in their depressed positions. Lower Keyboard Compass: 7¼ octaves - AAA–c5 - 88 notes Upper Keyboard Compass: 6¼ octaves - AAA–c4 - 76 notes Action: Double Keyboard developed by Emanuel Moór (1863–1931). Upper keys are relatively short, are in a slightly slanted position, and are retained by a key stop rail. This keyboard, directly above the lower, plays the piano one octave higher than normal. The ivories of the lower keys are elevated at their backs between the sharps. All of the lower keys are on the same level at their backs. The sides of the lower sharps are hollowed out. Capstans from the lower keys consist of long rods with one or two adjusting nuts. The let-off buttons are fairly large wooden cylinders felted on their bottoms. Both keyblocks are single pieces of custom design held in place by one screw each. The keyslip has four screws. History: This piano is the only known instrument from Steinway & Sons with the Moór Double Keyboard. A few of these actions have been built into pianos by Bechstein, Bösendorfer and Weber (Aeolian Co.). The bent-rim case design with round arms is standard for the period,

Jahrgang Steinway & Sons Mitteilungen Number 14, page 1011, Signed [F. Wo.]: Upon the order of Werner von Siemens we recently built a SteinwayMoór Concert Grand for use in his private music salon, accommodating 450 persons, in Berlin. The peculiarities of this grand, for which is responsible the creative genius of the Hungarian pianist and composer Emanuel Moór, consist of two keyboards, or manuals and the octavecoupling system. Of the two keyboards, which are placed one above the other, the lower and foremost is the same as that of an ordinary piano. With the aid of a special pedal the action can be “coupled,” so that every key on the ordinary keyboard, when struck, will play simultaneously the normal note with the higher octave. The upper keyboard, in its function, is quite independent of the coupling device and only operates the upper octaves. The ivories of the lower keyboard are provided with an elevation at the back of the key between the sharps so that all the keys are on the same level at this particular place. In order to facilitate the playing of the ivories the sides of the sharps are hollowed out. Owing to the position of the two manuals, magnificent possibilities for polyphonic play have been achieved. For instance, it is possible to strike chords which extend over two octaves with one hand. With the assistance of the coupling device, tonal effects of unsuspected volume are produced. The four pedals of the Steinway & Sons–Moór (Flügel) Concert Grand as counted from the left, are as follows: 1) Piano [soft]; 2) Coupling; 3) Sustaining [sostenuto]; 4) Forte [damper]. The first three pedals are equipped with a device for retaining the pedals in their depressed positions when necessary. Acknowledgements Many individuals have played a part in the restoration of the Steinway double-manual piano and in providing the means for it to be heard on tour. John Wiley, Chancellor, University of Wisconsin-Madison John Schaffer, Director, School of Music, UW-Madison Baoli Liu and Mark Ultsch, piano technicians, School of Music

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Christopher Taylor, Associate Professor of Piano, School of Music Chris Arena, Bonnie Barrett, Ljubomir Begonja, Ed Carrasco, Peter Goodrich and Michael Megaloudis, Steinway & Sons Kenneth Wentworth, Jonathan Wentworth Associates, Ltd. Christopher Taylor (piano) is known for his passionate advocacy of music written in the past 100 years, but his repertoire spans four centuries. Whatever the genre or era of the composition, Taylor brings to it imagination, intellect, intensity and grace. Taylor has concertized around the globe: Korea, China, Russia, Singapore, Italy and Venezuela. He has appeared with major U.S. orchestras: the New York and Los Angeles philharmonics, the Detroit, St. Louis, Atlanta and Houston symphonies and the Boston Pops. He gave the world premiere of Sir Peter Maxwell Davies’s Sea Orpheus at Carnegie Hall with Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and has appeared as soloist at Tully Hall, the Kennedy Center and the Ravinia and Aspen festivals. This season includes his debut at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (Messiaen’s Vingt regards sur l’enfant-Jésus) and a debut at the Sarajevo Chamber Music Festival.

Taylor has collaborated with many of today’s eminent musicians, including Robert McDuffie, Robert Mann and the Borromeo, Shanghai, Pro Arte and Ying quartets. His recordings have featured works by Liszt, Messiaen and American composers William Bolcom and Derek Bermel. Apart from concertizing, recording and teaching, Taylor has undertaken various unusual projects: the series of performances on the unique Moór double-manual Steinway (He has actively promoted the rediscovery and refurbishment of this unique Steinway and is in the process of developing a modernized version of it.), the development of topographic mapping software, development of a novel system of text entry for Android phones and endeavors in mathematics (summa cum laude, Harvard, 1992); philosophy (a coauthored article appears in the Oxford Free Will Handbook) and linguistics. Taylor lives in Middleton, Wisconsin, with his wife and two daughters and biking is his primary means of commuting. His newest project is a concert tour via bicycle with composer, clarinetist and friend Derek Bermel. Taylor is the Paul Collins Associate Professor of Piano Performance at University of Wisconsin, Madison, and he is a Steinway artist.

Numerous awards have confirmed Taylor’s high standing in the musical world. He received an Avery Fisher Career Grant in 1996 and the Bronze Medal in the 1993 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. In 1990, he took first prize in the William Kapell International Piano Competition and also became one of the first recipients of the Irving Gilmore Young Artists’ Award. He was named an American Pianists’ Association Fellow in 2000.

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Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

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Debut Elena Urioste, violin Gabriela Martinez, piano

A Debut Series Event Sunday, May 5, 2013 • 2PM Vanderhoef Studio Theatre

Individual support for the Debut Series artist residency program provided by Oren and Eunice Adair-Christensen.

Sonata for Violin and Piano Con moto Ballada: Con moto Allegretto Adagio

Janácek ˇ

Sonata for Violin and Piano Allegro vivo Intermède: Fantasque et léger Finale: Très animé

Debussy

Intermission Sonata for Violin and Piano in F Major, Op. 24, “Spring” Allegro Adagio molto espressivo Scherzo: Allegro molto Rondo: Allegro ma non troppo

Beethoven

Additional selections to be announced from the stage.

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

Program Notes Sonata for Violin and Piano (1914–21) Leos Janácek ˇ (Born July 3, 1854, in Hukvaldy, Moravia; died August 12, 1928, in Ostrava) Leoš Janácek was among those many Czechs at the turn of the 20th century who longed for freedom for their native land from the Habsburgs. Janácek believed that this end could best be achieved by an alliance of all the Slavic peoples led by Russia since, as he wrote in a letter to his friend Richard Vesely, “In the whole world there are to be found neither fires nor tortures strong enough to destroy the vitality of the Russian nation.” It was therefore with mingled feelings that Janácek observed his 60 birthday, on July 3, 1914—apprehensive on one hand over the war that threatened to erupt in Europe, hopeful on the other as rumors of advancing Russian armies flashed through the Czech lands. It was during those crucial, unsettling summer months of 1914—“when we were expecting the Russian armies to enter Moravia,” he recalled—that Janácek composed his Sonata for Violin and Piano. The Sonata’s first movement, a compact and quirky sonata form, is built from two thematic elements: a broad, arching violin melody and a sharp, stabbing rhythmic motive of two, or sometimes three or four, quick notes. The violin alone introduces the stabbing motive at the outset, which is then taken over by the piano and extended to become an anxious accompaniment to the violin’s broad theme. While the piano whispers the broad melody, the stabbing motive is reinforced by the pizzicato violin to serve as a transition to the lyrical transformation of the main theme that provides a sort of formal second subject. The development juxtaposes the piano’s obsessive repetitions of the stabbing motive (while the violin trills) and the violin’s fragmented recollections of the broad melody (while the piano trills). The Ballada tells a peaceable story, quiet, nocturnal and almost completely unruffled. The third movement fills its three-part form (A–B–A) with a folkish dance melody in the outer sections and a melancholy strain at its center The elegiac finale describes an unusual formal arch. At first, the piano tries to give out the movement’s main theme, a hymnal melody, only to be interrupted by stuttering interjections from the violin. The piano continues, however, and the violin is gradually won over to the hymn tune, which it states in its full form as the climax of the movement. Doubt is here not to be held long at bay, however, and the Sonata ends with the broken statements and stuttering interruptions of the movement’s opening. Sonata for Violin and Piano (1916–17) Claude Debussy (Born August 2, 1862, in St. Germain-en-Laye, France; died March 25, 1918, in Paris) When the Guns of August thundered across the European continent in 1914 to plunge the world into “the war to end all wars,” Claude Debussy was already showing signs of the colon cancer that was to end his life four years later. Apprehensive about his health and tormented by the military conflict, his creative production came to a virtual halt. Except for a Berceuse Héroïque written “as a tribute of homage to His Majesty King Albert I of Belgium and his soldiers,” Debussy wrote no new music in 1914. At the end of the year, he undertook (with little enthusiasm) the preparation of a new edition of Chopin’s works to

help compensate Durand for the regular advances the publisher had been sending. The death of Debussy’s mother in March 1915 further deepened his depression. That same month, however, he appeared in a recital in the Salle Gaveau with the soprano Ninon Vallin, and his mood brightened somewhat during the following months. “I have a few ideas at the moment,” he wrote to Durand in June, “and, although they are not worth making a fuss about, I should like to cultivate them.” That summer he completed En blanc et noir for Two Pianos and the Études for Piano, and projected a series of six sonatas for various instrumental combinations inspired by the old Baroque school of French clavecinists. The first of the Sonatas, for Cello and Piano, was completed quickly in July and August 1915 during a holiday at Pourville, near Dieppe; the second one, for Flute, Viola (originally oboe) and Harp, was also written at Pourville before Debussy returned to Paris on October 12. Surgery in December prevented him from further work until October 1916, when he began the Sonata for Violin and Piano. A sonata for oboe, horn and harpsichord never went beyond the planning stage; the remainder of the projected set did not get that far. The Violin Sonata, completed in 1917, was his last important work; he premiered the piece on May 5, 1917 in Paris with violinist Gaston Poulet, and played it again in September at St.-Jean-de-Luz, where he was summering. It was his final public appearance. For the Violin Sonata’s inspiration, style and temperament, Debussy looked back far beyond the Impressionism of his earlier works to the elegance, emotional reserve and textural clarity of the music of the French Baroque. The form of the first movement is tied together by the iterations of the simple falling triadic motive given by the violin at its initial entrance. Various episodes separate the motive’s returns, some passionate, some exotically evocative in their sliding intervals, some deliberately archaic in their open-interval harmonies. Debussy said that he had tried to evoke the spirit of the Italian commedia dell’arte in his earlier Cello Sonata, and much of the wit and insouciance of that old satirical stage genre carried over into the central Intermède of the Violin Sonata, which is instructed to be played “with fantasy and lightness.” The finale begins with a ghost of the first movement’s opening theme before proceeding to a modern mutation of the traditional rondo form, which takes as its subject a violin melody in flying triplets that Debussy borrowed from his Ibéria. The composer noted that this theme “is subjected to the most curious deformations, and ultimately leaves the impression of an idea turning back upon itself, like a snake biting its own tail.” The music exudes energy bordering on enervation and seems almost to have expended its strength as the final measures approach, but finds sufficient reserve to mount a quick but brilliant close. Sonata for Violin and Piano in F Major, Op. 24, “Spring” (1800–01) Ludwig van Beethoven (Born December 16, 1770, in Bonn; died March 26, 1827, in Vienna) Among Beethoven’s early patrons in Vienna was Count Moritz von Fries, proprietor of the prosperous Viennese banking firm of Fries & Co. and treasurer to the imperial court. Fries, seven years Beethoven’s ˇ junior, was a man of excellent breeding and culture. A true disciple of the Enlightenment, Fries traveled widely (Goethe mentioned meetˇ ing him in Italy) and lived for a period in Paris, where he had himself painted by Élisabeth Vigée-Lebrun (remembered for her famous portraits of Marie Antoinette and Mme. de Staël) and, with his wife and baby, by François Gérard (court painter to Louis XVIII). Fries’s palace in the Josefplatz was designed by one of the architects of Schönbrunn, ˇ the Emperor’s suburban summer residence, and it housed an elegant —continued on page 38

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private theater that was the site of frequent musical presentations. In April 1800, Fries hosted what developed into a vicious piano-playing competition between Beethoven and the visiting German virtuoso and composer Daniel Steibelt (1765–1823), which Beethoven won in a unanimous decision. Following that victory, Beethoven composed for ˇ Fries two Sonatas for Violin and Piano (Op. 23 and 24) and the String Quintet, Op. 29, whose dedications the Count eagerly accepted. Fries remained among Beethoven’s most devoted patrons, providing him with a regular stipend until he tumbled into bankruptcy in 1825 following the Napoleonic upheavals; the Seventh Symphony of 1813 was dedicated to Fries. The F Major Sonata, “Spring,” one of Beethoven’s most limpidly beautiful creations, is well characterized by its vernal sobriquet. The opening movement’s sonata form is initiated by a gently meandering melody first chanted by the violin. The grace-note-embellished subsidiary subject is somewhat more vigorous in rhythm and chromatic in harmony, but maintains the music’s bucolic atmosphere. Wave-form scales derived from the main theme close the exposition. The development section attempts to achieve a balance between a downward striding arpeggio drawn from the second theme and flutters of rising triplet figures. A full recapitulation and an extended coda based on the flowing main theme round out the movement. The Adagio is a quiet flight of wordless song, undulant in its accompanimental figuration and delicately etched in its melodic arabesques. The tiny gossamer Scherzo is the first such movement that Beethoven included in one of his Violin Sonatas. The finale, a rondo that makes some unexpected digressions into distant harmonic territories, is richly lyrical and sunny of disposition. —Dr. Richard E. Rodda

Gabriela Martinez (piano), lauded by the New York Times as “compelling, elegant and incisive,” Venezuelan pianist, is quickly establishing a reputation and earning praise as a versatile artist who combines “panache and poetry” (Dallas Morning News) with a “sense of grace and clarity” (The Star Ledger). Martinez has performed as orchestral soloist, chamber musician and recitalist at such venues as Carnegie, Avery Fisher and Alice Tully Hall, Grosses Festspielhaus in Salzburg; Semperoper in Dresden, Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen, Palace of Versailles (Paris); Snow and Symphony Festival in St. Moritz; Festival de Radio France et Montpellier, Festival dei Due Mondi and the Mostly Mozart, Ravinia, Rockport, Verbier and Tokyo International Music Festivals. She has appeared as soloist with the Chicago, New Jersey, Fort Worth, Pacific and San Francisco symphonies; Stuttgarter Philharmoniker; MDR Rundfunkorchester, Symphonisches Staatsorchester Halle; Tivoli Philharmonic and regularly performs with the Simón Bolívar Youth Symphony Orchestra with Gustavo Dudamel. An avid chamber musician, she has collaborated with numerous musicians and ensembles including Itzhak Perlman and the Takacs quartet. Martinez has won numerous national and international prizes and awards. Her most recent accomplishments include first prize and audience award at the Anton Rubinstein International Piano Competition in Dresden. She was a semifinalist at the 12th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, where she also received a Jury Discretionary Award. She earned her Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from The Juilliard School as a full scholarship student of Yoheved Kaplinsky, and her doctorate in Germany with Marco Antonio de Almeida. Since 2008, Martinez was appointed Concert Artist Faculty at Kean University.

Elena Urioste (violin), recently selected as a BBC New Generation Artist and featured on the cover of Symphony magazine, has been hailed by critics and audiences for her rich tone, nuanced lyricism and commanding stage presence. Since making her debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra at age 13, she has appeared with major orchestras in the U.S. and abroad including the London and New York Philharmonics, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Boston Pops and the Chicago, Atlanta, Detroit, Pittsburgh and National Symphony Orchestras. Urioste has collaborated with acclaimed conductors Sir Mark Elder, Keith Lockhart and Robert Spano; pianists Mitsuko Uchida and Christopher O’Riley; cellists Carter Brey and Zuill Bailey and violinists Shlomo Mintz and Cho-Liang Lin. She has been a featured artist at the Marlboro, Ravini, and La Jolla music festivals, among others. Winner of Switzerland’s Sion International Violin Competition, recipient of London Music Masters and Salon di Virtuosi career grants and a Sphinx Medal of Excellence, Urioste has appeared on NBC’s Today Show, Telemundo, Performance Today, From the Top and the Emmy award-winning documentary Breaking the Sound Barrier. Chosen by Latina Magazine as one of the “Future Fifteen,” she was featured in the magazine’s 15th anniversary issue. Urioste performs with an Alessandro Gagliano violin, Naples c. 1706, and a Pierre Simon bow, both on generous extended loan from the private collection of Dr. Charles E. King through the Stradivari Society of Chicago. 10529-78289 License #577000881

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

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Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

Pre-Performance Talk Speakers: David Ludwig and Roberto Díaz David Ludwig’s music has been performed internationally by leading musicians in some of the world’s most prestigious locations. His music has been described as “arresting, dramatically hued” (The New York Times), “supercharged with electrical energy and raw emotion” (Fanfare) and that it “promises to speak for the sorrows of this generation” (Philadelphia Inquirer). NPR Music listed him as one of the Top 100 Composers Under 40 in the world in 2011. Commissions for prominent artists and ensembles include soloists Jonathan Biss and Jaime Laredo, ensembles like eighth blackbird and the PRISM quartet, and orchestras including the Philadelphia, Minnesota and National symphonies. He has held residencies with the Marlboro Music School, the Isabella Gardner Museum and the MacDowell and Yaddo artist colonies to name a few. Ludwig directs composition programs at the Atlantic and Lake Champlain festivals and is guest faculty at Yellow Barn. Born in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, he holds degrees from Oberlin, the Manhattan School of Music, Curtis and Juilliard, as well as a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. Ludwig is on the composition faculty of the Curtis Institute, where he serves as the artistic chair of performance studies and as the director of the Curtis 20/21 Contemporary Music Ensemble.

Curtis on Tour Featuring Curtis 20/21 Ensemble With Roberto Díaz, President & Viola

Roberto Díaz

David Ludwig

Stanislav Chernyshev

Dana Cullen

Anna Davidson

Arlen Hlusko

Zoë Martin-Doike

Patrick Williams

Xiaohui Yang

A Mondavi Center Add-On Event Sunday, May 12, 2013 • 2PM Vanderhoef Studio Theatre

Pre-Performance Talk Sunday, May 12, 2013 • 1PM Speakers: Curtis Institute of Music President Roberto Díaz with David Ludwig, Curtis 20/21 Director

Sextet for Clarinet, Horn, Violin, Viola, Cello and Piano Allegro moderato Larghetto

Penderecki

Stanislav Chernyshev, Clarinet Dana Cullen, Horn Zoë Martin-Doike, Violin Roberto Díaz, Viola Arlen Hlusko, Cello Xiaohui Yang, Piano Intermission

Pierrot Lunaire, Op.21

Schoenberg

Part I: Mondestrunken (“Moon Drunk”) Columbine Der Dandy (“The Dandy”) Eine blasse Wäscherin (“An Ethereal Washerwoman”) Valse de Chopin (“Chopin Waltz”) —continued on page 42

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Madonna Der kranke Mond (“The Sick Moon”)

Part II: Nacht (Passacaglia) (“Night”) Gebet an Pierrot (“Prayer to Pierrot”) Raub (“Theft”) Rote Messe (“Red Mass”) Galgenlied (“Gallows Song”) Enthauptung (“Beheading”) Die Kreuze (“The Crosses”)

Part III: Heimweh (“Homesickness”) Gemeinheit! (“Vulgarity”) Parodie (“Parody”) Der Mondfleck (“The Moonspot”) Serenade Heimfahrt (Barcarole) (“Homeward Bound”) O Alter Duft (“O Ancient Fragrance”)

Anna Davidson, Soprano Patrick Williams, Flute Stanislav Chernyshev, Clarinet Zoë Martin-Doike, Violin Arlen Hlusko, Cello Xiaohui Yang, Piano

Program Notes Sextet for Clarinet, Horn, Violin, Viola, Cello and Piano (2000) Krzysztof Penderecki (Born November 23, 1933, in Debica, Poland) Krzysztof Penderecki (pen-de-RET-skee), born in 1933 in Debica, 70 miles east of Cracow, is the most significant Polish composer of his generation and one of the most inspired and influential musicians to emerge from Eastern Europe after World War II. His music first drew attention at the 1959 competition sponsored by the Youth Circle of the Association of Polish Composers when three of his works—entered anonymously—each won first prize in its class. He gained international fame only a year later with his Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima, winner of UNESCO’s “Tribune Internationale des Compositeurs.” His stunning St. Luke Passion of 1966 enjoyed enormous success in Europe and America, and led to a steady stream of commissions and performances. During the mid-1960s, Penderecki began incorporating more traditional techniques into his works without fully abandoning the powerfully dramatic avant-garde style that energized his early music. Utrenia (a choral setting of texts treating Christ’s Entombment and Resurrection), the oratorio Dies Irae (dedicated to the memory of those murdered at Auschwitz), the opera Paradise Lost, the Violin Concerto and other important scores showed an increasing reliance on orthodox Romanticism in their lyricism and introspection filtered through his

modern creative sensibility. Even though his compositions are filled with fascinating aural events, Penderecki insists that these soundscapes are not ends in themselves, but the necessary means to communicate his vision. “I am not interested in sound for its own sake and never have been,” wrote Penderecki. “Anyone can make a sound: a composer, if he be a composer at all, must fashion it into an aesthetically satisfying experience.” Penderecki showed some interest in music during his early years by taking lessons on piano and violin and writing a few pieces in traditional style, but he enrolled at the University of Cracow when he was 17 with the intention of studying humanities. Cracow’s musical life excited his creative inclinations, however, and he began studying composition privately with Franciszek Skołyszewski; a year later he transferred to the Cracow Academy of Music as a composition student of Artur Malewski and Stanislas Wiechowicz. Upon graduating from the Academy in 1958, Penderecki was appointed to the school’s faculty and soon began establishing an international reputation for his compositions. In 1966, he went to Münster for the premiere of his St. Luke Passion, and his presence and music made such a strong impression in West Germany that he was asked to join the faculty of the Volkwäng Hochschule für Musik in Essen. He returned to Cracow in 1972 to become director of the Academy of Music; while guiding the school during the next 15 years, he also held an extended residency at Yale University (1973–78). Penderecki has been active as a conductor since 1972, appearing with leading orchestras worldwide, recording many of his own works and serving as artistic director of the Cracow Philharmonic (1987–90), music director of the Casals Festival in Puerto Rico (1992–2002) and artistic advisor for the North German Radio Symphony Orchestra in Hamburg (1988–92) and the Beijing Music Festival (1998); he has been artistic advisor and a frequent conductor of Warsaw’s Sinfonia Varsovia since 1997. Among Penderecki’s many distinctions are the prestigious Grawemeyer Award from the University of Louisville, Order of the White Eagle (Poland’s highest honor), Three Star Order of Latvia, Prince of Asturias Award, Sibelius Gold Medal, Fellowship in the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, honorary doctorates from several European and American universities and honorary memberships in many learned academies. Penderecki’s Sextet, composed in 2000 for that year’s Vienna Festwochen (“Festival Weeks”), is in two expansive movements, the first fast and energetic, the second slow and dramatic. The writing is virtuosic, the sense of momentum inexorable and the instrumental interplay complex and kaleidoscopic. The opening movement recalls traditional sonata form in the broad unfolding of its expressive plan if not in its details. An introduction in moderate tempo presents some thematic seeds that are developed in the movement, most notably a heart-beat pulse sounded low in the piano and a step-wise staccato motive with leaping insertions begun by the clarinet and taken up by horn and then violin. A sudden quickening of the tempo and chattering repeated-note figures mark the arrival at the “first theme.” The pace slows for the cello to present an idea with dotted rhythms, a sort of “second theme” in its contrasting nature if not in its brief duration, which is given much prominence as the movement progresses. The center of the movement deals with the earlier motives and culminates in an episode in the style of a bolero that is driven by a transformation of the piano’s heartbeat figure from the opening measures. The large closing section (the “recapitulation”) begins with the return of the quickened tempo and the chattering figures. The movement concludes with a fiery coda that suggests a demonic mutation of the bolero. The second movement is a —continued on page 43

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study in half-steps, with much of its melodic motion based on neighboring tones and chromatic scales, thus allowing the use of larger intervals to help define its frequent moments of expressive intensity. Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21 (1912) Arnold Schoenberg (Born September 13, 1874, in Vienna; died July 13, 1951, in Brentwood, California) By 1912, Arnold Schoenberg, having succeeded in “emancipating the dissonance” and abandoning traditional tonality in order to create a more richly expressive musical art with his compositions following the Piano Pieces, Op. 11 of 1908, had already established himself as a high priest of modernity when the actress Albertine Zehme asked him to write a new work for her. Frau Zehme was a specialist in melodrama, the venerable German theatrical form in which a monologue is spoken above a musical background, and she specified that the solo part be for a speaker rather than for a singer. To fulfill the commission, Schoenberg chose to set 21 of the 50 poems from the 1884 cycle Pierrot Lunaire by the Belgian critic and dramatist Albert Giraud (1860– 1929). Schoenberg knew the poems not in their original French, however, but in an 1892 translation, actually a thorough reworking into German, by the playwright Erich Hartleben (1864–1905). (Schoenberg, an avid numerologist, chose 21 poems to match the opus number of the work.) To evoke the strong images of Giraud’s verses and to meet Frau Zehme’s requirement, Schoenberg developed a startlingly innovative style of vocal delivery that he called Sprechstimme—“SpeakingVoice”—which required a delivery that is partly spoken and partly sung (He had already experimented with Sprechstimme in his Gurrelieder of 1900–01). The songs were composed quickly between March and June 1912, some in a single day, and the actress began experimenting with Sprechstimme as soon as Schoenberg had started work. She had perfected the difficult new style by the time of the premiere (October 16, 1912, in Berlin, with Schoenberg conducting), and Pierrot Lunaire was enthusiastically received by the public, though the critical response was rather cool. Schoenberg toured Germany and Austria with Pierrot during the winter, and it created a sensation at every performance (The United States premiere occurred in New York in 1923). Except for the Three Songs of Op. 22, it was the last music he was to write for the next decade, the crucial time when he withdrew from active composition to formulate his 12-tone theory. Pierrot is the painted-face clown of French pantomime, descended from the Italian commedia dell’ arte, who is “moon-struck” (“luna”— “loony”—“Lunaire”) for love. By the late 19th century, Pierrot had become an artistic vehicle for the depiction of deep emotions masked by a carefree appearance, symbolizing the sufferings of a sensitive person showing a happy face to the world (Frau Zehme dressed as Columbine for the premiere; Schoenberg and the instrumentalists were hidden behind screens). Schoenberg grouped the poems into three parts comprising seven numbers each. In Part I, Pierrot, drunk, is subject to a whirlpool of feelings and fantasies about love, sexual longing, religious hysteria and neurasthenia. Part II finds him plunged into a nightmare world of pillage, violence and blasphemy. He climbs slowly from this murky depth in Part III, journeying toward his home in sunny Bergamo and returning, at last, to the daylight world and thoughts of a fabled, contented yesteryear. Though Schoenberg claimed to have conceived the work in a “light, ironical, satirical tone” (Pierre Boulez went so far as to call it “un ‘cabaret’ supérieur”), the words of

Pierrot Lunaire and their musical realizations form one of the most difficult and challenging of all listening experiences. “In their intense and morbid expressivity they seem to breath the stuffy atmosphere of that enclosed nightmare world of expressionist German art in the decade before 1914,” wrote the late Charles Rosen in his perceptive study of the composer. “Even the wit and gaiety are macabre; against a background of controlled hysteria, the moments of repose take on an air of death ... To approach this work, we need a sympathy for the period in which it was written (or at least a suspension of distaste).” Each of Giraud’s poems was disposed in the form of a rondeau, an ancient French 13-line genre in which lines one and two are repeated as lines seven and eight and line one as line 13. Schoenberg virtually ignored the rigor of the verses’ construction in his musical settings, however, investing the work with an enormous formal and sonorous variety. The ensemble of eight instruments played by five musicians (piano, flute/piccolo, clarinet/bass clarinet, violin/viola and cello) is disposed differently in each of the 21 numbers, with all of the instruments heard only in the last song. The formal types range from a free, non-repetitive stream of counterpoint (Enthauptung—“Decapitation”) to one of the most tightly controlled and elaborate canons written since the end of the Renaissance (Mondfleck—“Moonspot”). —Dr. Richard E. Rodda

The Curtis Institute of Music educates and trains exceptionally gifted young musicians for careers as performing artists on the highest professional level. One of the world’s leading conservatories, Curtis is highly selective, with an enrollment of about 165. In this intimate environment, students receive personalized attention from a celebrated faculty. A busy schedule of performances is at the heart of Curtis’s distinctive “learn by doing” approach, which has produced an impressive number of notable artists since the school’s founding in Philadelphia in 1924. Grounded in this rich heritage, Curtis is looking to the future in a flexible and forward-thinking way, evolving strategically to serve its time-honored mission.

Curtis 20/21, directed by David Ludwig, is flexible in size and scope and performs a wide range of music from the 20th and 21st centuries, including works by Curtis students and alumni. The ensemble performs regularly at Curtis and has represented the school at major U.S. venues and abroad. Curtis 20/21 has collaborated with some of the most prominent artists of today, including eighth blackbird, Matthias Pintscher and Charles Dutoit; and has presented portrait concerts of iconic resident composers John Corigliano, George Crumb and Joan Tower. (The New York Times wrote: “Ms. Tower could hardly have hoped for more passionate performances.”) This season’s composer-in-residence is 2005 Pulitzer Prize-winner Steven Stucky.

Stanislav Chernyshev (clarinet), from St. Petersburg, Russia, entered the Curtis Institute of Music in 2009 and studies with Donald Montanaro, former associate principal clarinet of the Philadelphia Orchestra. All students at Curtis receive merit-based full-tuition scholarships, and Chernyshev is the Stanley and Bertha Rogasner Fellow.

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Dana Cullen (horn), from Reading, Pennsylvania, entered the Curtis Institute of Music in 2010 and studies with Jennifer Montone, principal horn of the Philadelphia Orchestra. All students at Curtis receive meritbased full-tuition scholarships, and Cullen is the Schroder Investment Management Annual Fellow. Anna Davidson (soprano), from Los Angeles, entered the Curtis Institute of Music in 2009 and studies in the opera program with Marlena Kleinman Malas. All students at Curtis receive merit-based full-tuition scholarships, and Davidson is the Lee Shlifer Annual Fellow. Roberto Díaz (viola) is president and CEO of the Curtis Institute of Music. As president of Curtis and a member of its viola faculty, and as former principal viola of the Philadelphia Orchestra, Díaz has had a significant impact on American musical life and will continue to do so in his dual roles as performer and educator. He was principal viola of the National Symphony under Mstislav Rostropovich, a member of the Boston Symphony under Seiji Ozawa and a member of the Minnesota Orchestra under Sir Neville Marriner.

Arlen Hlusko (cello) from Lowville, Ontario, entered the Curtis Institute of Music in 2011 and studies with Carter Brey, principal cello of the New York Philharmonic, and Peter Wiley, cello of the Guarneri String Quartet. All students at Curtis receive merit-based full-tuition scholarships, and Hlusko is the Jacqueline du Pré Memorial Fellow. David Ludwig’s (director, Curtis 20/21) music has been performed internationally by leading musicians in some of the world’s most prestigious locations. Commissions for prominent artists and ensembles include soloists Jonathan Biss and Jaime Laredo; ensembles like eighth blackbird and the PRISM quartet; and orchestras including the Philadelphia, Minnesota and National Symphony orchestras. Born in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, he holds degrees from Oberlin, the Manhattan School of Music, Curtis and Juilliard, as well as a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. Ludwig is on the composition faculty of Curtis, where he serves as the Gie and Lisa Liem artistic chair of performance studies and artistic director of the Curtis 20/21 contemporary music ensemble.

Zoë Martin-Doike (violin), from Honolulu, entered the Curtis Institute of Music in 2008 and studies with renowned violinist Pamela Frank. All students at Curtis receive merit-based full-tuition scholarships, and Martin-Doike is the Mitchell Family Annual Fellow.

Xiaohui Yang (piano), from Chaoyang, China, entered the Curtis Institute of Music in 2008 and studies with renowned pianist Ignat Solzhenitsyn. All students at Curtis receive merit-based full-tuition scholarships, and Yang is the Michael and Cecilia Iacovella Capuzzi Memorial Fellow. 44

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

HOT ITALIAN MIDTOWN

. N ET

Patrick Williams (flute) entered the Curtis Institute of Music in 2010 and studies with Jeffrey Khaner, principal flute of the Philadelphia Orchestra. All students at Curtis receive merit-based full-tuition scholarships, and Williams is the Gerry and Marguerite Lenfest Fellow.

PUBLIC MARKET

Debut In Conversation with Ira Glass Moderated by Daniel Handler

A Distinguished Speakers Series Event

Ira Glass is the host and creator of the public radio program This

Saturday, May 18, 2013 • 8PM

American Life. The show premiered on Chicago’s public radio station WBEZ in 1995 and is now heard on more than 500 public radio stations each week by more than 1.7 million listeners. Most weeks, the podcast of the program is the most popular podcast in America. The show also airs each week on the CBC in Canada and on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s radio network.

Jackson Hall Individual support provided by Lor and Nancy Shepard.

Question & Answer Session Moderated by Daniel Handler Questions & Answer Sessions take place in the theater following the event.

Glass began his career as an intern at National Public Radio’s network headquarters in Washington, D.C. in 1978, when he was 19 years old. Over the years, he worked on nearly every NPR network news program and held virtually every production job in NPR’s Washington headquarters. He has been a tape cutter, newscast writer, desk assistant, editor and producer. He has filled in as host of Talk of the Nation and Weekend All Things Considered. Under Glass’s editorial direction, This American Life has won the highest honors for broadcasting and journalistic excellence, including several Peabody and DuPont-Columbia awards. The American Journalism Review declared that the show is “at the vanguard of a journalistic revolution.”

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A television adaptation of This American Life ran on the Showtime network for two seasons, in 2007 and 2008, winning three Emmy awards, including Outstanding Nonfiction Series. The show has put out its own comic book, three greatest hits compilations, DVDs of live shows and other events, a “radio decoder” toy, temporary tattoos and a paint-bynumbers set. Half a dozen stories are in development to become feature films. Glass is married and owns a disturbingly allergic dog.

Daniel Handler is the author of the literary novels The Basic Eight, Watch Your Mouth and, most recently, Adverbs. Under the name Lemony Snicket he has also written a sequence of books for children, known collectively as A Series of Unfortunate Events, which have sold more than 60 million copies and were the basis of a feature film. His intricate and witty writing style has won him numerous fans for his critically acclaimed literary work and his wildly successful children’s books. Born and raised in San Francisco, Handler attended Wesleyan University and returned to his hometown after graduating. He cofounded the magazine American Chickens! with illustrator Lisa Brown (with whom he soon became smitten) and they moved to New York City, where Handler eventually sold his first novel after working as a book and film critic for several newspapers. He continued to write and he and his wife returned to San Francisco, where they now live. Handler has worked intermittently in film and music, most recently in collaboration with composer Nathaniel Stookey on a piece commissioned by the San Francisco Symphony, entitled The Composer Is Dead, which has been performed all over the world and is now a book with CD. An adjunct accordionist for the music group the Magnetic Fields, he is also the author of Lemony Snicket: The Unauthorized Autobiography, The Beatrice Letters, Horseradish: Bitter Truths You Can’t Avoid and two books for Christmas: The Lump of Coal and The Latke Who Couldn’t Stop Screaming: a Christmas Story. He is the screenwriter of the film Rick, a revamp of the Verdi opera Rigoletto and the film adaptation of Joel Rose’s novel Kill the Poor, and has written for The New York Times, Newsday, San Francisco Chronicle, The Believer, Chickfactor and various anthologies and was the chair of the Judging Panel for the National Book Awards in Young People’s Literature, 2008. Most recently he has collaborated with illustrator Maira Kalman on two books—a picture book titled 13 Words, and a novel for young adults called Why We Broke Up. Writing as Lemony Snicket he recently contributed a commentary in the New American Haggadah. As Lemony Snicket he is also working on a new series for children, the first book of which, Who Could That Be at This Hour?, was released in October 2012. A picture book, The Dark, is to be published in spring 2013. He is also working on a fourth novel for adults.

Innovative Make Over Coming Fall 2012

www.hallmarkinn.com (800)753-0035 46

Mondavi Center Presents Program Issue 9: APR–may 2013

Lara Downes Family Concert

Photo by Rik Keller

Gertrude McFuzz, Carnival of the Animals and more!

A Hallmark Inn, Davis Children’s Stage Event Sunday, May 19, 2013 • 3PM Jackson Hall