Some advice from some well-meaning students: The best musicians in the world are coming to play in your very own backyard! (Well, for you poor Forbesians it’s a bit farther away, but still closer than Lincoln Center, amirite?…) DON’T MISS (Look what these Student Ambassadors OUT! You know how oldhave done to poor Schubert…) timers remember exactly what they were doing when Neil Armstrong landed on the moon? Well, you don’t want to have to say that when Julien Labro, THE musician to make accordion music cool, came to Princeton, you were hiding under a blanket eating late-meal cookies (the free cookies at the intermission student meet-ups are much better anyway). Let’s be real: we’re Princeton students, with negative time on our paws. But getting unheard of access to some of the most exciting musicians alive (you literally SIT ON STAGE WITH THEM AND THEY TALK TO YOU) during the new, only one-hour-long PUC125: Performances Up Close concerts … or relaxing in a plush chair in one of the most celebrated concert halls in the world for a couple of hours every once in a while as SUPER FAMOUS ARTISTS introduce you to an incredible range of music … is something that you should allow yourself at least once during your Princeton experience. So flip through this book and pick just one concert you’d like to attend. Bring a friend, bring a date, bring a plush tiger. To help you through the dizzying amount of options, students have written about which events they find most exciting — and NEETA PATEL ’16 designed the awesome cover — as part of Princeton University Concert’s new Creative Reactions Program (check out the PUC website for info about the program’s writing contest being run this fall!). Even if you don’t think these concerts are your thing, just give it a shot … hey, isn’t college about new experiences?
princetonuniversityconcerts.org/for-students 2 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
STUDENT TICKET INFO Take advantag e: It ’ll never be this wallet-fr iendly post-g r aduation!
3 FREE tickets*
All Princeton University Students have preloaded on their prox for Passport to the Arts eligible events — these
include all events presented by Princeton University Concerts (PUC)! Simply reserve online or bring your prox to the box office. It’s hard for students to schedule things in advance, but keep in mind that the concerts are open to the public and given how awesome the performers are,
tickets tend to sell out far ahead of time:
BE SURE TO BUY EARLY for concerts you’d like to attend. Did your Passport to the Arts run out? Student ticket prices for all
Princeton University Concert Events are only
$10!
BOX OFFICE INFORMATION Get your tickets to all PUC events at: • the Frist Campus Center Box Office, Mon-Sat 11AM-5PM • online at princetonuniversityconcerts.org • at the concert venue two hours prior to the event. If a concert you wanted to attend has sold out, you can probably get tickets released at the last minute when the venue’s box office opens.
WHAT THE HECK… Because you’ve flipped through this guide, you’re awesome and we’ll let you in on a secret: the PRINCE-10 (hehe, get it? Prince-ten? J) We’re giving you one $10 ticket FOR FREE to any available PUC125 event! Simply contact the Princeton University Concert Office at pucmail@princeton.edu, and mention PRINCE-10.
*This is in addition to the two tickets for Student-Eligible Events included on the prox. (In other words, you can still go to that BodyHype show…)
princetonuniversityconcerts.org THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 3
The Spar kNotes ver sion
Emerson String Quartet
“ I’ll summarize. The Emerson Quartet is very, very good. They’re also really famous. They’re playing some extremely good pieces of music.
You should definitely go see them. ”
with guest artists CALIDORE STRING QUARTET
Noah Beattie-Moss ’19
The complete edition I was first introduced to the Emerson String Quartet “ sitting one night in my dorm with nothing for company but a cup
Thursday, September 24, 2015 8PM Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall
of cold tea, heaps of homework, and the rancorous aftertaste of a fallen friendship. I was lost in tides of insecurity, and wasn’t yet a believer in the power of classical music therapy. It didn’t take more than three minutes to realize how fortunate I was to have crossed paths on YouTube with what began as a college chamber ensemble. For as the quartet itself has tweeted, music begins where language ends. Every stroke of the four bows washed away my unsettling thoughts and churned up happier memories; the , the vibrant dr o ps of ricochet and pizzicato only musicians of the modern would mix in, bid me to look forward. The quartet has healed me in unquiet times ever since, as I continue to shuffle and reshuffle their recordings. Without question, learning that the Emersons will perform in the Orange Bubble has filled me with anticipation. The start of sophomore year will come with its surprises and shocks, but my muses’ arrival a week later will surely set me free.
whiskers of rock-and-roll
© Lisa-Marie Mazzucco
”
HAYDN Quartet in B-flat Major, Op. 76, No. 4 “Sunrise” SHOSTAKOVICH Quartet No. 10, Op. 118 MENDELSSOHN Octet in E-flat Major, Op. 20
4 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
Jessica Li ’18
The alumna after wor d
“ When I heard Mendelssohn’s Octet for the first time, it was
the rush of adrenaline in the finale that I fell in love with and that kept me repeatedly coming back to the dizzying passages in
oller the r coaster-
rid eM
ende
lssohn created whe
n
as he w
only 16.”
Stephanie Liu ’15
THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 5
S IT’
E AN LIK
NG. BUT IN R ARCH SI ICHA RDS ON
.
Sung by one of the best vocal ensembles in the world. Directed by the Glee Club’s own Gabriel Crouch. What more do you need to know? Oh, maybe that this is one of the new PUC125: Performances Up Close concerts! Super casual and only one-hour-long, PLUS you’ll get to and hear them talk about the music.
sit on stage
with the performers
Katie Buzard ’14 experienced Gallicantus really up close, singing with them during their last PUC appearance! Even as she’s off singing in Europe, she wrote in to say:
“ If I wer e still a student and could only © Susan Porter-Thomas
g o to one Pr inceton Univer sit y C oncer t this season, it would be G allicantus .
e th e ’s o H ! h !! e ew on t s t h c e b!!! d ir e C l u e Gl
Gallicantus Renaissance Vocal Ensemble Gabriel Crouch, Director
Sunday, October 11, 2015 2PM & 4:30PM Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall
Songs of the Sibyl: works by LASSUS, HILDEGARD VON BINGEN, and Princeton professors DAN TRUEMAN and DMITRI TYMOCZKO. 6 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
Having heard them perform in the 2013-14 season and having had the privilege of singing with them, I can say they offer a masterclass in ensemble singing. The way each individual voice feeds into the others to create ONE COHESIVE YET INTRICATE SOUND is S T U N N I N G . Even if you don’t know much about choral music, this concert promises to be a feast for the ears and the soul. So take a break from studying for an hour, and let the sound wash over you.
”
“ Gallicantus is one of the world’s finest musical
ensembles — they make music come to life in such a way. The experience of astounding singers and musicians — such as Princeton’s own, the group’s director Gabriel Crouch — performing together without any distraction is truly unique. Whatever your musical tastes are, this will be an experience you will not regret.
HAUNTING
”
Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen ’15 THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 7
What ’s exciting about the Pavel Haas Quar tet? Ellen Zhou ’16 answers:
“ It really doesn’t get better than Czech people playing
Thursday, October 15, 2015 8PM Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall
Life
Czech music; they bring a sort of and v i t a l i t y into the sweeping melodies and grandiose phrases. This quartet’s recordings of Dvořák have been considered the best performances on disc, and they’re called
one of the most exciting quartets in existence… ” Which piece ar e you most excited about?
“ Beethoven’s Razumovsky Quartet. I have to say
© Marco Borggreve
that this quartet has a special place in my heart. I never really listened to Beethoven’s string quartets until I was forced to listen to this one for a music class. What really amazed me were the stark contrasts in the piece; one minute I would be listening to
MARTINŮ DVOŘÁK BEETHOVEN
Quartet No. 3, H. 183 Quartet No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 34 Quartet No. 8 in E Minor, Op. 59, No. 2 “Razumovsky”
8 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
forceful and rambunctious chords STRUCK with frenzy, and the next, a gentle melody floating on a soft breeze. So buckle up tight … you’re in for quite an exhilarating ride!
”
The (too) well-kept Princeton secret: Martinů taught at our university!
THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 9
Calidore String Quartet
These international prize-winning youngsters will be playing Mozart and Mendelssohn’s last string quartets in a setting similar to the one in which these works were first premiered:
Tuesday, October 27, 2015 6PM & 9PM Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall
R ya
n
Jeff
Est e ll
you get to sit together with the performers and interact with them
Jer e my
e
on the Richardson stage in these only one-hour-long, casual new PUC125: Performances Up Close events!
“ When I saw that the Calidore Quartet was coming to perform not once, but twice during this PUC season, I was absolutely thrilled. I have known the quartet since the summer after I graduated, when I started taking lessons with Ryan, the second violinist. After hearing the group perform for the first time in January, I was HOOKED, and have only missed one concert they've had in the New York area since then. The Calidores are individually and collectively outstanding musicians, and the
energy in their playing captures
the f they have for
what they do more than any other group I have ever seen.
© Jeff Fasano
I have left ever y concer t of their s with
10 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
a r enewed love and appr eciation not only for music , but for life. ”
Kate Dreyfuss ’14
THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 11
Arcanto String Quartet
“ The
4
best fr iends that mak e up
ARCANTO STRING QUARTET ar e living
the pr omises that all Pr inceton senior s mak e to their fr iends . Despite each one being individually successful and highly in demand by various orchestras and as soloists across Europe, the four made a pact to get together and continue to play music as a quartet. That was back in 2004, and the group shows no signs of stopping, 11 years and 5 albums later. Obviously going to a concert in Richardson is easier for the average Princeton student than going to see them play in Carnegie Hall three days later, but for the four who actually put on the show, this is just as much about their friendship as it is about the music. Get your group of pals together and watch another tight-knit gang honor their promises to “keep in touch!” after graduation.
Thursday, November 12, 2015 8PM Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall
”
Stephanie Cook ’18
e
r ie
n ds f o
r
L
“
© Marco Borggreve
F
if
One of the most enlightening, personal, and deep conversations I’ve ever had occurred after a Princeton University Concert. My friend and I finally built connections on things other than classes and extracurriculars; our conversation flowed seamlessly as we momentarily transcended the daily Princeton experience.
”
Ming Wilson ’18 BACH SCHUMANN SMETANA
Selections from “The Art of the Fugue,” BWV 1080 Quartet in A Minor, Op. 41, No. 1 Quartet No. 1 in E Minor “From My Life”
12 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 13
ISABELLE FAUST, violin
“ Interpreting Bach’s Partitas and
Monday, November 16, 2015 7PM Princeton University Chapel
“
Why should you care Sonatas was a rite of passage for me, about these works? as it is for every violinist. Yet these six Because there’s a pieces written in the 1700s still remain reason that the book of mysterious and open to re-invention by the complete Sonatas each new set of hands and experiences. and Partitas of J.S. Some claim we can only do Bach justice Bach stays perpetually with the Baroque violins of that time, not on the music stand modern instruments. Cue Isabelle Faust, of any violinist from who performs on the 1704 “ SLeePiNG the time she’s 14: the BeauTY” Stradivarius violin. She’s the pieces are genius. Bach perfect enchanted wake-up call to essentially writes organ your Monday after-class nap, or hundredmusic with several year sleep. Combinations of sounds that melodies playing at otherwise might sound like a cacophony once—except the meld in her hands and taste like an violinist only has . The gusto in one hand to play her bow strokes can slay dragons; them with. It’s like her electric clarity can pierce through watching a BATTLEM A L E F I C E N T . But can she awaken TO-THE-DEATH Bach’s complete Partitas and Sonatas from SWORDFIGHT its three-century-long slumber, and or bring it to new life? Can she wield a dramatic horsehair bow and make nymphs love (Btdubs, Lulu is a member of the dance nimbly atop glistening strings s cene Ellipses Slam and a deep resonating wood? Yes, played by a Poetry team, who opened for I do think so. single actor. the Australian If that’s not Chamber Lulu Chen ’17 Orchestra’s enough to hook concert last you, Isabelle season. The group and Faust is playing their poetry a (severalis amazing— Hearing BACH performed definitely check million-$$) them out!) live in a chapel is like listening Stradivarius to THE BEACH BOYS singing violin…
© Detlev Schneider
exotic chocolate
J.S. BACH
The Complete Solo Violin Sonatas and Partitas, BWV 1001–1006
”
“
their splendid choruses a capella on the beach. ”
”
Maggie Collum ’18
Kristin Qian ’18 14 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 15
The two star s will play selections fr om “Ar ound the Wor ld,” an eclectic mix of music fr om the duo’s acclaimed CD linking Asia , Eur ope and the Amer icas
“ You mean THE Pahud, the principal flutist of the Berlin Philharmonic freaked out Alexia Kim ’17.
”
Yup, we do indeed.
She proceeded to explain her excitement:
“ For those not very familiar with the classical flute world, Pahud
can be considered the Beyoncé of our generation in terms of how highly we regard his musical artistry, including his stage presence, brilliant technique, COLORFUL and vibrant tone, and his elegant musical phrasing. We aspire to be him. We meticulously watch his performances, and listen to his recordings over and over, studying the ways in which he never fails to captivate us with his sound. My point is, it is A BIG DEAL that we
*
*
© Lutz Voigtländer
CHARMING
EMMANUEL PAHUD, flute CHRISTIAN RIVET, guitar Thursday, November 19, 2015 8PM Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall
16 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
have the opportunity to watch this internationally renowned flutist perform in such an intimate concert venue. And even
for those who have never really experienced live classical music, I can assure you that this concert will be just as enjoyable for classical amateurs and aficionados alike.
”
Alexia recommends that you listen to the duo’s track Piazzolla’s History of the Tango: III. Nightclub 1960 on Spotify to see why this will be one concert that you do NOT want to miss.
THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 17
DAVID GREILSAMMER, piano/prepared piano
What ’s a pr epar ed piano??? Marcus Spiegel ’17, president of Princeton Pianist Ensemble, explains:
“ My earliest memories of grandpianos consist of watching them
FALL FROM THE SKY in cartoons. When I first came across one sitting stationary, I just wanted to watch the hammers hit the strings inside. Years later, I experimented with laying objects — a piece of paper, a bouncy ball, a fork — over the strings, watching them and FLY as the hammers met the strings and listening to the new percussive sounds I was creating. A few years ago, I learned that I wasn’t the only one who thought it was cool to put stuff inside the piano. Placing objects on the piano’s strings — screws, bolts, nuts, rubber, plastic, erasers — renders it a prepared piano, an instrument for which a few composers, notably John Cage, have written pieces.
Tuesday, December 1, 2015 6PM & 9PM Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall
For a unique, exciting take on such music, David Greilsammer is an ideal performer. A Juilliard-trained pianist, he is notorious for innovative programs that redefine our expectations. Previously, he has performed marathons of Mozart sonatas, whipping through them all in a single day, and now he combines the sonatas of Scarlatti and Cage to show us that despite the different worlds of music that spawned their composition, common threads persist through both sets of works. The juxtaposition will surely be exhilarating for both the avid concert-goer and anyone who just wants to hear the new world of sounds that come out of a piano after it’s had (parts of) the kitchen sink thrown into it . © Julien Mignot
”
“Journey Between Two Worlds” — sonatas by 18th-century composer Domenico Scarlatti and 20th-century composer John Cage played back to back. And as this is a PUC125 concert in-the-round, you’ll actually get to sit on stage back to back (well, front to back – shoulder to shoulder – face to face, just go with it) with the pianist in this only one-hour-long casual concert! 18 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
“ It’s a sort of BizzA ro PIANO SOUND grounded in the usual clear tones of the keyboard but filled with metallic percussion, muffled thumps, and jagged edges.
”
Doug Wallack ’16
“ My personal favorite example of prepared piano music is Henry Cowell’s p The Banshee ... for maximum effect, turn off the lights
the VOLUME at midnight! ”
and ramp
u
Min Joo Yi ’16
FUN FACT: John Cage actually performed his sonatas at Princeton way back when! THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 19
IGOR LEVIT, piano
“ I mig ht as well admit it:
Thursday, February 4, 2016 8PM Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall
I’m completely infatuated with Igor Levit. The first time I heard him play in London, I had no idea who he was … and after he played, I had no idea what just happened. You hear of those rare, oncein-a-lifetime-if-you’re-lucky concerts when the music is so mesmerizing that you absolutely lose it, but have you ever heard of a concert in which
the ENTIRE AUDIENCE is so hypnotized that they forget to C L A P between pieces, and then at the end of the concert wait an entire minute before bursting into a standing ovation because any sound other than the musician’s seems unbearable? I’m not exaggerating. So I promise that even though Levit isn’t yet well known in the U.S., the entire world is about to burst into a standing ovation for him (rumor has it he’s going to make his Carnegie Hall debut next year) … make sure to join in the celebration of this
27-YEAR-OLD UTTER PHENOMENON ! ”
© Felix Broede
Dasha Koltunyuk ’15
BACH SCHUBERT BEETHOVEN PROKOFIEV
Partita No. 4 in D Major, BWV 828 Moments musicaux, Op. 94, D. 780 Sonata No. 17 in D Minor, Op. 31, No. 2 “The Tempest” Sonata No. 7 in B-flat Major, Op. 83
20 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
If you miss this concer t, Dasha will be ver y, ver y sad. THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 21
© Giorgia Bertazzi
A tr io of student enthusiasm in r esponse to a tr io of leg ends:
“ Listen carefully to the Dvořák trio and see if you can hear the ‘bicycling past the moon’ theme from
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial! ”
Noah Beattie-Moss ’19
Lar s Vog t, piano
Tanja Tet z laff, cello/sister
Chr istian Tet z laff, violin/ br other
Tetzlaff Trio
Thursday, February 25, 2016 8PM Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall
“ The first Brahms piano trio is definitely on my
list of favorite pieces. If you’re not yet in love with the sound of the cello, the magical first few moments will make you fall for the instrument. It was actually the piece that inspired me to take cello lessons many years ago.
”
Paul von Autenried ’16
“ When the news reached me that Christian Tetzlaff was
returning to Princeton — this time with his trio — I felt a hint of the reverberations from that unforgettable night more than two years ago, when the sound of Tetzlaff’s violin S H O O K t h e c o re o f my b e i ng like thunderclap . . . that concert left me in a trance-like state for a long time afterward.
”
Mariana Olaizola ’13
SCHUMANN DVOŘÁK BRAHMS
Trio No. 2 in F Major, Op. 80 Trio No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 90, “Dumky” Trio No. 1 in B Major, Op. 8
22 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 23
ALEXANDER MELNIKOV, piano
You k now how you always hear that
Pr inceton is like one of the G R EAT EST
Univer sities of All Time? And then you come her e, exper ience it live, and r ealiz e that
they never even mentioned the endless
quantities of fr ee food and t-shir ts so
Sunday, March 6, 2016 2PM Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall
it ’s even mor e awesome? Well…
“ If Alexander Melnikov’s recording of
© Marco Borggreve
Shostakovich’s 24 Complete Preludes and Fugues earned recognition from BBC Music Magazine as one of the
how incredible must the pianist’s performance sound live? Having only experienced his music through recordings, I can hardly wait to see how the artist moves in front of our piano and hear what he has to say to a crowd of students as he plays music by a composer to whom he referred as ‘a man of passion.’ Melnikov has a gift for transporting modern audiences not only into a musical past but also into the texture of a composition.
I eagerly anticipate his performance as a much-needed vacation from the cacophony of our modern day projects and deadlines.
SHOSTAKOVICH The Complete Preludes and Fugues, Op. 87
24 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
”
Joani Etskovitz ’17
THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 25
© Julien Mignot
A PUC125 concert in-the-round! Gorgeous classical quartets at 6PM and transcriptions of jazz favorites at 9PM! (Not to mention, these French-accented musicians will be talking about the music to you…)
HOTTEST
Probably the string quartet around, (like, in Mean Girls terms they’d be Regina George), the Ébène aren’t your everyday string quartet.
As Spencer Shen ’16 puts it,
“ To this day, Ébène are still the only musicians I have truly
discovered through social media. As their Fiction album was being released, YouTube videos of the group playing Misirlou and Come Together invaded Facebook. Only Ébène could play a brooding Mendelssohn, rock out on a Beatles tune, bust out Springsteen, and sing Disney songs a cappella over the
course of a single night. ”
“ My first encounter with Quatuor Ébène was in high school when
LOVE
I absolutely fell in with their performance of the Disney classic One Day My Prince Will Come. The four members combined singing and playing in a way I had never come across!
”
Nathan Wong ’18
Ébène String Quartet Wednesday, March 9, 2016 6PM & 9PM Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall 26 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
t he o ut k c e ch on e to r u id eo s v e Be om aw e s u be YouT
THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 27
Escher String Quartet Thursday, March 24, 2016 6PM & 9PM Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall
“ Paradox
is coming to Princeton. IBL
You may have seen the film Inception a hundred times, but you may not know that the I M P O S S
RC A
E S TA I
S E S featured in the film were inspired by the work of artist M.C. Escher. Escher’s paradoxical illustrations integrated geometric elements to create impossible constructions, and the Escher Quartet strives to do something similar with their approach to music. The New York City-based string quartet presently serves as a resident musical group of Lincoln Center, which is kind of a BIG deal. What’s more interesting, I think, is their program of Britten and Schubert’s final quartets. We know all about the last words of politicians and writers, but NEVER think about the ‘last words’ of composers. ”
© Laura Rose
Harrison Blackman ’17
Hear the “last words” of composers Benjamin Britten and Franz Schubert up close in this only one-hour-long, casual PUC125 concert , sitting with the quartet on the Richardson stage!
28 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 29
Date. Nig ht. Two words:
And a few more from Kevin Chien ’17 . . .
“ For me, nothing really moves the soul as directly as does classical music of the Romantic Era, and Paul Lewis presents
the most Romantic program of the 2015/16 PUC season with a selection that reflects the evolution of this music. As a pianist, though, it is the final piece of this program — Liszt’s Dante Sonata — that excites me the most. Liszt was probably the most stereotypical of the romantics: an infamous ladies’ man with unparalleled
Thursday, April 7, 2016 8PM Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall
BRAHMS SCHUBERT BRAHMS LISZT
Three Intermezzi, Op. 117 Sonata No. 9 in B Major, D. 575 Four Ballades, Op. 10 Après une lecture du Dante: Fantasia quasi Sonata (“Dante” Sonata)
30 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
© Jack Liebeck
PAUL LEWIS, piano
virtuosic
FLAIR
at the keys, he composed this piece on a tour of Italy while with a married woman six years his senior. Much like how SparkNotes can condense the substance of Dante’s behemoth, Inferno, this piece condenses the emotional journey of Dante’s character as he is guided through the depths of hell before finally seeing heaven.
”
THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 31
© Anna Weber
JULIEN LABRO, accordion bandoneon accordina
Thursday, April 14, 2016 6PM & 9PM Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall
32 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
College is the time for new experiences … aka accordion music. Courtesy of the most virtuosic accordion player in the world, a unique PUC125 event … be serenaded while on the stage of Richardson Auditorium by accordion music from all around the world (6PM), and/or come for a jazz extravaganza at 9PM!
“ Many years ago, my dad told me that I ‘could play any instrument I want,
guilty and forbidden pleasure
as long as it isn’t accordion.’ Consequentially, that sweet reedy instrument has always been, to me, something of a . I’m not sure where the accordion’s bad rap comes from. Perhaps it’s the sound of the instrument, which immediately conjures images of folk dance from cultures more sensual than ours: the tango, a dance defined by athleticism and sexual tension, would be nothing without the accordion’s wheezy sobs. The accordion is finicky and cumbersome. Playing with volume and sensitivity demands superhuman cleverness and P R E C I S I O N. But with the right combination of discipline and abandon, the accordion can become precise and dramatic, dynamic and orchestral. It has a huge tonal range, a wide variety of available sounds and textures, and it can handle anything from Vivaldi to Metheny. We know this because of the accordion’s masters, perhaps none more prominent than Julien Labro. Called ‘brilliant’ by the Chicago Tribune, Labro has played every major jazz club and festival in the world, has taken the stage with symphony orchestras and chamber groups, and enjoys a full multifaceted career as a sideman, collaborator and solo musician. The first time I heard a recording of Labro playing the accordion, I was flabbergasted. My favorite context in which to hear the accordion is in Manoucheor gypsy jazz . Something about that music transports me to a world of candle-lit caravans, ratatouille over open fires, grease-streaked windows. Labro plays this music with resonating authenticity, yet has the uncanny ability to emote like a concertmaster and read like a session musician. Labro plays with alacrity, sensitivity, unbelievable finesse, and respect for all aspects of the instrument. So maybe my dad told me I couldn’t play the accordion. But thanks to musicians like Labro, the accordion may soon find its anticipated and revered place on the concert stage.
”
Noah Fishman ’16
THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 33
© Marco Borggreve
Beautiful music by F r anz Schuber t… lyr ic poetr y by Wilhelm Müller …
but check out G oer ne’s eyes!
“ I don’t consider myself a great connoisseur of classical
music, and before we listened to many a ‘Lied’ (German Romantic song) in my German class last year, I hadn’t even known it was possible to set lyrics to classical music. But as someone who’s studying German, I enjoy picking out the plot of the poem (Die Schöne Müllerin concerns a journeyman’s encounter with a miller’s beautiful daughter). And even if you don’t understand a word of the lyrics, it’s worth your while to DIP your toes in the tradition of German ‘Lieder’ … the dynamic emotion of the song cycle transcends the barriers of language and national tradition, and I would recommend this great baritone’s performance to seasoned aficionados and newcomers alike.
”
Whitney Sha ’17
“ Who hasn’t at some point or another felt the PANGS
MATTHIAS GOERNE, baritone
ALEXANDER SCHMALCZ, piano
Thursday, April 28, 2016 8PM Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall SCHUBERT Die Schöne Müllerin, D. 795
34 | PRINCETON UNIVERSITY CONCERTS
of unrequited love? While we don’t all necessarily descend into the same madnes s that befalls the journeyman in Schubert’s Die Schöne Müllerin, we can all surely relate to what it feels like to fall in love with an unobtainable someone from afar and entertain fantasies of her or him reciprocating. Each song in Schubert’s first song cycle so masterfully captures what it feels like to be a young person hopelessly in love. Whenever I listen to this piece, I cannot help but imagine Schubert and me commiserating over our respective romantic frustrations and him reassuring me,
I feel you, man. ”
Eddie Skolnick ’12
THE GUIDE FOR STUDENTS, BY STUDENTS | 35