CENTRAL VALLEY YOUTH SYMPHONY AND PREPARATORY ORCHESTRA
Sunday I May 5, 2019 I 3:00 pm Faye Spanos Concert Hall
SOPHIA JIN piano OWEN YANG piano Thomas Derthick I Music Director Shane Kalbach I Preparatory Orchestra Conductor Jessica Luna I Graduate Assistant Conductor
140th Performance I 2018-2019 Academic Year I Conservatory of Music I University of the Pacific
CONCERT PROGRAM I MAY 5, 2019 I 3:00 PM Central Valley Symphony Orchestra Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)
In the Hall of the Mountain King from Peer Gynt, Op. 46
Jessica Luna, conductor Piano Concerto No.1 in C Major, Op. 15 Allegro con brio
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Sophia Jin, piano Piano Concerto in A Minor, Op. 54 Allegro affetuoso
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
Owen Yang, piano Intermission Ralph Ford
Uptown Hoedown Summertime from Porgy and Bess
Gershwin/Heyward Arr. Bob Cerulli Max Freedman and Jimmy DeKnight Arr. Bob Cerulli
Rock Around the Clock
Preparatory Orchestra Polka, Furiant and Dance of the Comedians from The Bartered Bride
Bedrich Smetana (1824-1884)
WINNERS OF THE 19TH ANNUAL CONCERTO COMPETITION Sophia Jin is an 8th grader attending Sutter Middle School in Folsom, CA. She began learning piano at the age of five with Ms. Carol Chuang and currently studies with Steinway Artist Dr. Natsuki Fukasawa. When she was seven and nine years old, she advanced to the California Association of Professional Music Teachers’ Honors Competition State Finals held in Los Angeles, CA, and achieved first place both times. At ten, she passed the Certificate of Merit Evaluation Advanced Level, the highest level in the program, with honors. Sophia won the first prize award in the Music Teachers’ Association of California’s Memorial Scholarship competition. In addition, she achieved first place titles in the competitive
WINNERS OF THE 19TH ANNUAL CONCERTO COMPETITION Showcase Piano Solo and Open Solo categories at the United States Open Music Competition in Oakland, CA, in 2018; she also won a scholarship for the Best Outstanding Gold Medalist. Her recent accomplishments include first place in the International Music Festival in Sacramento, CA. She was also the first place winner in the Steinway and Sons Junior Piano Competition in Reno, NV, and won first prize in the international The Art of Piano Competition based in London, England. Sophia has also participated in and won first places in numerous local competitions. Besides the piano, Sophia also enjoys playing the violin. She is the concertmaster of her school’s advanced orchestra and a member of the Folsom Lake College Youth Chamber Orchestra. Fo u r t e e n - y e a r- o l d Owen Yang is currently a Folsom High School freshman and lives in Folsom. At age five, he was inspired by his older brother to start his musical journey. He developed an early appreciation for music and began his piano lessons in kindergarten. As his passion for music kept growing, he started to compose music at age nine, and picked up cello lessons in middle school. He won first place in the state level for CAPMT Contemporary Music Competition and Classical Masters Music Festival at age seven. Since then, he has started participating in and winning many different piano competitions and auditions. He is a past winner of the Merced Symphony Youth Auditions. In
2018, Owen won a full scholarship from the Auburn Symphony Young Artists Competition to attend piano camp at University of Pacific’s Conservatory of Music. Playing piano gave him lots of fun and happiness, so he ventured into composition in 4th grade. He has entered and won four times in school PTA Reflections composition category since and also won 3rd place in New American Composers Music Festival at CSUS with his own compositions. In 2016, his composition piece Oasis was premiered by Sierra Mountain Music Camp, conducted by Mr. Leo Gravin. He was so inspired by the elementary school music program that he started cello lessons in middle school. After barely a year of cello lessons, he auditioned into Folsom Lake College Youth Chamber Orchestra. Two years of FLCYCO chamber music experience enriched his love of orchestra, so he went on to audition for Folsom Lake Symphony and got accepted in the fall of 2018. Playing with the FLS conductor Peter Jaffe is opening his musical journey to a very different world. Owen loves to share his music with people and since 2018, he occasionally holds solo concerts of both piano and cello at the Empire Ranch Alzheimer’s Special Care Center. It was an amazing experience for him to see how strongly the seniors reacted to his music! He currently studies piano with Ms. Tien Hsieh and cello with Mr. Leo Gravin. Besides music and a very busy high school life, one of Owen’s hobbies is doing math. His goal is to qualify for the International Math Olympiad.
CENTRAL VALLEY SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA Thomas Derthick I Music Director
Now under the leadership of University of the Pacific’s Conservatory of Music, the Central Valley Youth Symphony and Preparatory Orchestra have provided young people in San Joaquin and surrounding counties with the opportunity to play great symphonic music since 1965. The Youth Symphony features two orchestras where students receive expert coaching from Music Director Thomas Derthick and Preparatory Orchestra Conductor Shane Kalbach. Faculty and students from Pacific Conservatory of Music also assist throughout the season. 1st Violin Clare Deng, Concertmaster AJ Delgado, Assistant Kimberly Bongo Jenny Chang Alana Holdaway Joyce Lu Grace Lu Luke Valdez Leilani Vargas 2nd Violin Caroline Schwarzenberg, Principal Amelia Morrison, Assistant Sohyun Ahn Ian Clark Arriana Duarte Remalyn Flores Izellah Korth Andrea Larson Zachary Liel, Coach Elizabeth Narvaez Joshua Narvaez Gillian VerSteeg Viola Juan Barragan, Principal Saanvi Rajeev, Assistant Thomas Park Cello Connor Huang, Principal Sadie Fisher, Assistant Caleb Dingle Donovin Rutland
Bass Amaan Sidhu, Principal Noah Gonzales, Assistant Makayla Sousa Flute/Piccolo Albert Chern, Principal Oboe Valeria Rosseau Nunez, Principal Clarinet Jordan Wells, Principal Bassoon Ronin Tsang, Principal Paul Barron French Horn Jason Thompson, Coach Trombone Benjamin Migliori Timpani/Percussion Craig Robinson, Coach Harp Aden Eva Barbuta Orchestra Manager/Librarian Ayocuan Pacheco
Jessica Luna is an assistant graduate conductor for the Central Vally Youth Symphony at University of the Pacific. She was raised in a family of musicians who exposed her to music at a very young age. At age three Jessica began playing violin with a heavy emphasis in the Suzuki Method. At age twelve, she began playing the bass with her middle school jazz band. She has since continued her studies in both instruments. Throughout her professional career, she has had opportunities to record, play, and learn from some of the best musicians across the country and in the local area. She has a Bachelor’s in Music Education from CSU Sacramento and is currently pursuing a Master’s of Music Education degree from University of the Pacific. Tom Derthick celebrates his nineteenth season as Music Director of the Central Valley Youth Symphony. Under his leadership the orchestra has performed twice in Carnegie Hall, and instituted their annual Concerto Competition featuring the area’s best young musicians. Derthick joined University of the Pacific’s Conservatory of Music in 1988, where he is also a lecturer of bass. As a bass player Derthick is currently Principal Bassist of the Sacramento Philharmonic, Opera and Choral Society, and recently completed 25 years as Principal of the Cabrillo Festival, America’s foremost Contemporary Music Festival. He frequently performs with the Chamber Music Society of Sacramento, and recently conducted them both in performance and a recording of Roberto Sierra’s Pequeno Concierto with guitarist David Tanenbaum. Other performances include the San Francisco Symphony, San Francisco Opera, San Diego Symphony, Oregon Symphony, and the Empyrean Ensemble, as well as recording work and Broadway shows. Thirty five years of service to his fellow professional musicians include four terms as Vice President of the Professional Musicians of Central California, AFM Local 12. His solo bass appearances include the Bottesini Grand Duo Concertante on multiple occasions; Bottesini’s Concerto No. 2 with the orchestras at Pacific and Sacramento State; and the Koussevitzky Concerto with the Solano Community Symphony and with the UC Davis Symphony at Mondavi Center. A frequent recitalist, Tom performed recitals in Sacramento, Stockton and Davis in the fall of 2017. Tom joined the faculty at Sacramento State University and the UC Davis in 1982. He served as Interim Orchestra Director at Sacramento State University in the fall of 2017. Many of his former students have found placement in major graduate conservatories and in major and regional professional orchestras. Derthick’s guest conducting appearances include leading his Sacramento Philharmonic colleagues in Link Up Performances in 2015; the San Joaquin County High School Honor Orchestra; the CMEA Capital Section Junior High School Honor Orchestra; and the Tracy Unified Schools Honor Orchestra. He served as Interim Music Director for the Modesto Symphony Youth Orchestra for the 2007-08 season. In 2014, he was honored as Outstanding Arts Educator in Music by the Stockton Arts Commission.
CENTRAL VALLEY PREPARATORY ORCHESTRA Shane Kalbach I Conductor
1st Violin Jason Jiang Andrea Larsen Zack Lew Kian Manshadi Sammy Morrison 2nd Violin Hana Alhamadsheh Maya Alhamadsheh Callia Chau Kaevan Manshadi Clara Plath Isabella Rios Viola Zachary Liel, Coach
Cello Rachel Lim Justice Lu Oona Wong Oboe Sarah Rios Clarinet Arsh Muhib French Horn Philip Barron Trombone Zac Shi Percussion/Piano John Matthews Craig Robinson, Coach
Shane Kalbach graduated from California State University, Sacramento in spring of 2004 in Viola performance (under Anna Kruger) and theory/composition (under Stephen Blumberg). He began working for CVYSA in fall 2004 as a coach and then in fall 2005 as the Preparatory Orchestra Conductor. He has taught both privately and in schools in both Sacramento and Stockton and joined the staff teaching strings at Main Street Music in Tracy in the fall of 2011. Shane also enjoys teaching at summer music camps such as Pacific Music Camp, at which he began working in 2005, and Hayward - La Honda Music Camp, where he began attending as a camper in 1997, and then joined on as a staff member after graduating high school. He enjoys an active freelance performance career on both violin and viola, playing jazz, classical and country style music for all kinds of different events, for bands and orchestras throughout the Central Valley. Recently, Shane can most often be found playing fiddle and mandolin for the Stockton based bluegrass band Snap Jackson & The Knock on Wood Players.
PROGRAM NOTES In the Hall of the Mountain King Edvard Grieg Grieg originally composed ninety minutes of incidental music for Ibsen’s play Peer Gynt in 1874. He extracted two suites (four movements each) that are among his best known works. In the Hall of the Mountain King is from Act II of the play, and is the final movement of the first suite. The complete score for the incidental music was lost for many years, and not published until 1980! CVYS performed the complete first suite in Mr. Derthick’s first concert as Music Director, in the fall of 2000. Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Op. 15 Ludwig van Beethoven Beethoven composed his C Major Piano Concerto in 1795, and gave the premiere performance that year in Vienna. Published six years later, it is actually the third piano concerto that he composed; there is an unpublished concerto in Eb, and the work known as his Piano Concerto No. 2 in Bb, published the same year as the first concerto but begun in 1788. Composed much in the style of his former teacher Haydn, the first movement starts with an orchestral exposition of 103 measures, before the soloist plays a note! This is CVYS’ third performance of this work with a Concerto Competition winner, most recently in 2011. Piano Concerto in A Minor, Op. 54 Robert Schumann Schumann started composing his only completed piano concerto in 1841. Originally, he tried to sell what we now consider the first movement as a stand-alone Fantasy for Piano, but his publishers insisted on a three-movement work. The first performance of the now-first-movement was given by his wife Clara Schumann at the Leipzig Gewandhaus in 1841; she would also give the first performance of the completed concerto (all three movements) in Dresden in 1845. CVYS last performed this movement with a Concerto Competition winner in 2002. Uptown Hoedown Ralph Ford Uptown Hoedown juxtaposes country fiddling with 1960’s R&B (or Motown). It is a lively, foot-stomping, line-dancing, barn-burning musical number that is sure to be enjoyed by both students and audiences alike. Summertime from Porgy and Bess George Gershwin Born in 1898, Gershwin dropped out of school and began playing piano professionally at age 15. A composer of jazz, opera and popular songs for stage and screen, many of his works are now standards. Summertime is the opening number of the opera Porgy and Bess which was based on the novel “Porgy” by Dubose Heyward. Gershwin called it his “folk opera,” and it is considered to be his most complex and best-known work, and among the most important American musical compositions of the 20th century. Gershwin died immediately following a brain surgery on July 11, 1937, at the age 38.
PROGRAM NOTES Piano Concerto in A Minor, op. 54 Robert Schumann On April 12, 1954, Bill Haley and the Comets recorded (We’re Gonna) Rock Around the Clock, a rock and roll song with a 12-bar blues form. The lead guitarist brought in for the recording session, Danny Cedrone, did not have time to work up a solo, so he repurposed one he had used on a Haley recording two years earlier. Cedrone was paid $31 for his work that evening, which included what is still recognized as one of the greatest guitar solos of all time. The single was almost forgotten until a 10-year-old kid in Los Angeles fell in love with it. That kid, Peter Ford, happened to be the son of actor Glenn Ford, who was to star in the upcoming teenage drama “Blackboard Jungle.” Peter turned his father on to Rock Around the Clock, and soon the song was chosen to play over the opening credits of “Blackboard Jungle,” which is how it became a pop sensation, selling a million copies in a single month in 1955. Polka, Furiant and Dance of the Comedians Bedrich Smetana Smetana was one of many composers of the 19th century to incorporate native folk idiom in their music. His Czech folk opera The Bartered Bride is infectious in its native feel, but make no mistake—Smetana’s tunes are his; only their inspiration is Czech. Notice the showy string writing; the two-against-three feel of the Furiant; indeed, the different folk dance qualities of each. CVYS performed these dances in Carnegie Hall, New York City, in June 2003. Friends of Central Valley Youth Symphony are dedicated CVYS alumni parents, joined each year by parents of our current students. These families are committed through their personal generosity to support the performances and activities of the Central Valley Youth Symphony. CVYS is grateful to the following Friends for their continued support. Ben and Susan Morrison Olympic Cleaning Service (Mike and Mary Davey) For more information on how to become a member of the Friends of CVYS, contact cvys@pacific.edu. These donations are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. Pacific.edu/YouthSymphony
Pacific.edu/Conservatory