2022–2023
MUSIC AT EMORY
This concert is presented by the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts. 404.727.5050 | schwartz.emory.edu | boxoffice@emory.edu
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Ushers
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Design and Photography Credits
Cover Design: Lisa Baron | Cover Photo: Mark Teague
Acknowledgment
This season, the Schwartz Center is celebrating 20 years of world-class performances and wishes to gratefully acknowledge the generous ongoing support of Donna and Marvin Schwartz.
2022–2023
MUSIC AT EMORY
Emory Youth Symphony Orchestra Paul Bhasin, conductor Wednesday, November 16, 2022, 8:00 p.m. Emerson Concert Hall Schwartz Center for Performing Arts
Program “Hungarian March” from The Damnation of Faust, op. 24
The Red Pony Suite I. II. III. IV. V. VI.
Morning on the Ranch The Gift Dream March and Circus Music Walk to the Bunkhouse Grandfather’s Story Happy Ending
Symphony No. 4 in F Minor, op. 36 I. II. III. IV.
Hector Berlioz (1803-1869)
Aaron Copland (1900-1990)
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) Andante sostenuto—Moderato con anima— Moderato assai, quasi Andante—Allegro vivo Andantino in modo di canzona Scherzo. Pizzicato ostinato—Allegro Finale. Allegro con fuoco
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About Emory Youth Symphony Orchestra
The Emory Youth Symphony Orchestra (EYSO) program was founded in 2005 at Emory University. As one of the finest pre-college programs in the region, EYSO provides comprehensive orchestral performance opportunities while supporting the pedagogy of school directors and private teachers. All students and parents are offered the opportunity for pre-college counseling, assistance with college and scholarship applications, diverse masterclass and seminar offerings, and financial aid advice. Apart from serving as dedicated members of their school orchestra and band programs, EYSO students go on to study a variety of disciplines at the college level, including top conservatories (Curtis, Juilliard, NEC, Colburn) as well as nationally-ranked liberal arts colleges and universities. EYSO students are also regular participants in the country’s finest summer music festivals, including Interlochen, Tanglewood, National Youth Orchestra (NYO) and NYO2, Brevard, Eastern, Sewanee, and more. EYSO students are coached by Emory faculty, including members of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Opera Orchestra, Atlanta Ballet Orchestra, and the Vega Quartet. Learn more about the Emory Youth Symphony Orchestra online at emoryyouthsymphony.org or by emailing youthsymphony@emory.edu.
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Program Notes The Red Pony Suite (1948) In the autumn of 1947, American composer Aaron Copland was at work on a new concerto commissioned by the legendary bandleader and clarinetist Benny Goodman. However, that project was briefly interrupted by an offer to compose the score for a new movie adaptation of John Steinbeck’s The Red Pony (1937). “I admired Steinbeck, and after reading the book, I knew this was the film for me,” Copland recalled. The movie The Red Pony starred Myrna Loy, Robert Mitchum, Louis Calhern, Shepperd Strudwick, and Peter Miles. Lewis Milestone was the producer and director. Previously, Copland had worked with Milestone on the 1939 movie version of Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men. The movie was shot in the San Fernando Valley, on the same ranch where Of Mice and Men was filmed. Copland found this to be the only hurdle in the project. “Now I ask you,” remarked Copland, “if you had to look at the same landscape every day, could you think up different music?” Nevertheless, Copland was inspired by Steinbeck’s novel, “concerning a ten-year-old boy and his life on a California ranch.” Copland was grateful that Milestone’s direction of the movie allowed for more extended musical episodes than is the norm in soundtracks. “My aim was to compose music that would not obtrude and that would reflect what I saw,” Copland observed. The Red Pony was not a great critical or financial success. Copland’s score received favorable reviews, “but since the film was not widely distributed, the music was rarely heard.” Copland received an offer from Efrem Kurtz, conductor of the Houston Symphony Orchestra, to compose a new work. Copland suggested a concert suite comprising music from The Red Pony soundtrack. “In reshaping the score, I recast much of the musical material to achieve continuity for concert purposes, although all the music in the twenty-four-minute suite may be heard in the film.” Kurtz and the Houston Symphony performed the world premiere of The Red Pony Suite—comprised of six sections—on October 30, 1948.
“Hungarian March” from The Damnation of Faust, op. 24 (1846) The French composer and conductor Hector Berlioz originally wrote his “Hungarian March” for a concert appearance in Pest. At the advice of a Viennese friend, Berlioz composed a brief orchestral work based upon a popular Hungarian song, celebrating the Rákóczy family—leaders in the ongoing struggle for independence from the Habsburgs. 6
Berlioz conducted the premiere of his “Hungarian March” (or “Rákóczy March”) in Pest on February 15, 1846. In his Memoirs, Berlioz provided this unforgettable description of the music, as well as the audience’s reaction: After a trumpet phrase based on the rhythm of the first bars of the melody, the theme appears, you will remember, performed piano by the flutes and clarinets, and accompanied pizzicato by the stringed instruments. To this unexpected exposition, the public listened in silence; but when, after a long crescendo, fugued fragments of the theme reappeared, interrupted by dull beats of the big drum, simulating the effect of distant cannon, the room began to seethe with an indescribable sound, and when at length the orchestra burst out in a furious mêlée and hurled forth the long delayed fortisssimo, it was shaken by the most unheard-of cries and stampings; the concentrated fury of all this burning audience exploded in accents that made me shiver with terror. I felt as if my hair were standing on end, and from the moment of that fatal bar I had to bid farewell to the peroration of my piece, the orchestral tempest being quite incapable of contending with the eruption of this irresistible volcano. We had to recommence, as you may imagine. . . . Berlioz immediately realized he had a true “hit” on his hands. The composer returned to Paris and completed his The Damnation of Faust, based upon Goethe’s epic work, Faust. In order to include the “Rákóczy March” in the opening portion of his new “dramatic legend,” Berlioz relocated Dr. Faust to the plains of Hungary! Berlioz encountered some criticism for taking liberties with Goethe’s plot, but as Berlioz explained, “I should not have hesitated in the least to take him anywhere else if it would have benefited my score.”
Symphony No. 4 in F Minor, op. 36 (1878) On July 18, 1877, Tchaikovsky wed Antonina Milyukova. Tchaikovsky realized from the outset that the marriage was a mistake. He lapsed into a profound depression and later attempted suicide. Finally, on October 6—less than three months after the wedding—Tchaikovsky left his wife forever, rushing to St. Petersburg to meet his brother, Anatoly. Tchaikovsky suffered a nervous breakdown, and doctors stated that a resumption of the marital relationship was out of the question. Tchaikovsky, under doctor’s orders, journeyed to Switzerland for recuperation. Tchaikovsky completed his Fourth Symphony on January 7, 1878. The premiere took place in Moscow on February 22, 1878, under Nikolai Rubinstein’s direction. Tchaikovsky dedicated the Symphony to his patroness, Nadezhda von Meck, whom the composer described as “my best friend.”
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In a letter to von Meck, Tchaikovsky divulged the meaning of his Fourth Symphony (the composer’s comments are indented below): I. Andante sostenuto—Moderato con anima—Moderato assai, quasi Andante— Allegro vivo The introduction is the germ of the whole symphony, unarguably the main idea. This is Fate, that inexorable force that prevents our aspirations to happiness from reaching their goal, that jealously ensures our well-being and peace are not unclouded, that hangs over our heads like the sword of Damocles, that with steadfast persistence poisons our souls. It is invincible, you will never master it. One can only resign oneself to fruitless sorrow. Tchaikovsky depicts the inexorable power of Fate with stunning fanfares by the brass and winds. It is one of the most arresting and dramatic openings in all of symphonic literature. The joyless, hopeless feeling becomes more powerful and fierce. Would it not be better to turn away from reality and submerge oneself in dreams? Oh joy! There is at least a sweet and tender dream appearing! A bright and gracious human form flits by and lures us on somewhere. How lovely! And how remote the obsessive first allegro theme now sounds! The dreams have gradually taken full possession of the soul. All that was gloomy and joyless is forgotten. Here it is, here is happiness! No! They were dreams and Fate rouses us from them. So life is a constant alternation between grim reality and evanescent visions and dreams of happiness. . . . There is no haven. Sail upon that ocean until it seizes you and engulfs you in its depths. That is roughly the program of the first movement. II. Andantino in modo di canzona The second movement of the symphony expresses another phase of depression: that melancholy feeling that comes on in the evening, when you are sitting on your own, tired with work, and you take up a book but it falls out of your hands. Memories come flooding in. It is sad that so much has been and gone; it is pleasant to recollect one’s youth. One regrets the passing of time yet there is no wish to begin life anew. Life wears one out. It is pleasant to rest and reflect. There are so many memories! There have been happy moments when young blood coursed through the veins and life was good. There have also been difficult times, irreplaceable losses. But now that is all somewhere in the past. There is a sweet sadness in burying oneself in the past. 8
III. Scherzo. Pizzicato ostinato—Allegro The third movement does not express any precise feelings. These are whimsical arabesques, the elusive images that flash across one’s imagination when one has had a little wine to drink and is in the first stage of intoxication. One’s spirits are not happy, but neither are they sad. One does not think about anything: one gives free reign to one’s imagination that, for some reason, sets about painting strange pictures. Amongst them, one recalls a picture of some roistering peasants and a street song. Then, somewhere in the distance, a military parade goes by. There is no connection between these images that are like those which flash through your mind as you are going to sleep. They have nothing to do with reality: they are strange, wild, and incoherent. IV. Finale. Allegro con fuoco The fourth movement. If you find no cause for joy in yourself, look to others. Go amongst the common people and see now they know how to enjoy themselves, abandoning themselves completely to feelings of joy. Picture a peasant celebration on a holiday. But scarcely have you managed to forget yourself and be distracted by the sight of other people’s pleasures than inexorable Fate appears once more and reminds you of its existence. Tchaikovsky portrays the “peasant celebration” by quoting a popular Russian folk song, The Little Birch Tree, sung by the winds after the Finale’s brief, raucous introduction. Later, the celebration is interrupted by the return of the Fate motif that launched the Symphony’s first movement. Tchaikovsky continues: But you are no concern of anyone else. They do not even turn round, they do not glance at you, and they have not noticed that you are lonely and sad. Oh! What fun it is for them! They are so lucky that all their feelings are simple and direct. Blame yourself and do not say that all the world is sad. There are simple but potent pleasures. Enjoy other people’s happiness. One can live despite everything. —Program notes by Ken Meltzer
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Paul Bhasin, conductor Paul Bhasin serves as director of orchestral studies and director of undergraduate research in the Department of Music at Emory University where he holds the inaugural Donna & Marvin Schwartz Professorship in Music. In this capacity, he conducts the Emory University Symphony Orchestra, Emory Youth Symphony Orchestra, oversees music research programs, and teaches conducting. Praised for his crisp, clear conducting and highly expressive interpretations, Bhasin’s career began when he won the Yamaha Young Performing Artist Competition in 1998. Bhasin serves as music director and conductor of the DeKalb Symphony Orchestra and has recently led the Virginia Symphony Orchestra (including live radio broadcasts of subscription concerts), “the President’s Own” United States Marine Band, American Youth Philharmonic, Williamsburg Symphony, and performances at Interlochen, the Kennedy Center, and throughout the People’s Republic of China. He has also led performances as a guest conductor with members of the Richmond Symphony, National Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, and Kennedy Center Opera Orchestra, and with honor orchestras and bands (including at the All-State level). Bhasin has presented at national conferences, including the Midwest Orchestra Clinic and the National Music Teachers Association Conference. An avid proponent of chamber music, Bhasin serves as music director of the Atlanta Chamber Music Festival, has performed as a chamber musician on WFMT in Chicago, Detroit PBS-TV, and developed residencies with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s Musicorps program and the Grammy Award–winning sextet Eighth Blackbird. Bhasin has performed and recorded as a trumpeter with the Virginia Symphony and Opera, Columbus (OH) Symphony, New World Symphony, the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, and at the music festivals of Aspen, Tanglewood, and Ravinia, and as a soloist on National Public Radio, Detroit PBS-TV, the International Computer Music Conference, and at the International Dvořák Festival (Prague, CZ). He has performed under the batons of Michael Tilson Thomas, James Conlon, James DePriest, Leonard Slatkin, Andreas Delfs, and Gustav Meier; participated in the Aspen Conducting Academy orchestral program under David Zinman; and his trumpet students have won first prize at major competitions including the National Trumpet Competition. Bhasin has recorded as trumpeter and conductor for both the Centaur and Interscope record labels. 10
Bhasin’s compositions, transcriptions, and arrangements are published by Carl Fischer Music and have been performed and commissioned in the US and abroad by the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, St. Louis Opera Theater, and Grand Tetons Festival Orchestra. In 2015, he composed and conducted the orchestral score to 9:23 Films’ motion picture, Hogtown (award winner at the Berlin, Los Angeles and Nashville International Black Film Festivals), which was named a “Critic’s Pick” and one of the “Top 10 Films of 2016” by the New York Times. He received his musical education from Northwestern University, the University of Michigan, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Emory Youth Symphony Orchestra Samantha Frischling, orchestra manager All musicians are listed alphabetically within instrument section. Flute and Piccolo Eunice Kim (North Gwinnett High School) Chloe Park (Walton High School) Alexandra Tarassenko (Paul Duke STEM High School)
Oboe and English Horn Alysia Guo (Parkview High School) Benjamin Lee (Johns Creek High School) Ashley Na (Lambert High School)
Clarinet Kevin Jin (Mill Creek High School) Kyunghwan Lim (Chattahoochee High School) Nicholas Wandrick (Cambridge High School)
Bassoon Owen Quick (Whitewater High School) Andrew Tang (Cherokee High School) Ethan Thompson (North Forsyth High School)
Saxophone Raymond Liu (Brookwood High School)
Horn Cathleen Bolger (Lambert High School) Eric Chastain (North Cobb High School) Kylin Manly Liske (Chamblee High School) Lyle Foley (Lakeside High School) 11
Emory Youth Symphony Orchestra All musicians are listed alphabetically within instrument section. Trumpet Nick Harrison (Chamblee High School) Henry Kim (Lambert High School) Justin Oh (North Gwinnett High School) Zhong Zhang (The Westminster Schools)
Trombone and Bass Trombone Joshua Antony (North Gwinnett High School) William Brown (Walton High School) Gabriel Silva (Buford High School)
Tuba Kushal Maganti (Lambert High School)
Timpani and Percussion Alonzo Marshall (Kennesaw Mountain High School) Issac Jung (North Gwinnett High School) Grayson Pruitt (Kell High School) Nicholas Stone (Chattahoochee High School) Ezekiel Werner (Decatur High School)
Piano and Celeste Dahyun Yang (Innovation Academy)
Harp Emma Burnsworth (Homeschool)
Violin Ajay Balasubramaniam * (Lambert High School) Isaac Bryan (Johnson Ferry Christian Academy) Ashley Chang (Duluth High School) James Chen (Alpharetta High School) Maria Victoria Correa (North Gwinnett High School) Samuel Crespino (Decatur High School Elizabeth Domashchenko (GSMST) Xiaojun Ge (Northview High School) Mary Gilbert (Pope High School) Adelmo Gimenez (North Gwinnett High School) Irene Ha (Johns Creek High School) Samantha Hamilton (Homeschool) Michael Hou (Johns Creek High School) Nyneishia Janarthanan (FCS Innovation Academy) Revin Jun (Northview High School) 12
Abigail Kim ** (Johns Creek High School) Lee Kim (Johns Creek High School) Nathan Kim (North Gwinnett High School) Sunyoung Kim (Northview High School) Sarah Kwon (Seckinger High School) Alicia Li (Northview High School) Carol Li (Chamblee High School) Isabella Lin (Johns Creek High School) Abigail Lee (Hebron Christian Academy) Geonhee Lee (Johns Creek High School) Violet Lorish (Capstone Academy) Ella Grace Malcom (Milton High School) Ellie Millette (Artios Academy) Lucas Nyman (Starrs Mill High School) Aeden O’Shields (Allatoona High School) David Park (Lambert High School) Ryan Shin (GSMST) Eric Sun (Alpharetta High School) Ranjani Vasudevan (Fulton Science Academy) Luca Veni (North Gwinnett High School) Aaron Wang (Alpharetta High School) Ezekiel (Zeke) Werner (Decatur High School) Hayden Yi (North Gwinnett High School) Eric Yu (Fulton Science Academy) Aniston Zhang (Chattahoochee High School) Steven Zhou (GSMST)
Viola Ethan Braswell (Greater Atlanta Christian School) Lindsey Carpenter (Roswell High School) Danielle Chun (Mill Creek High School) Dylan Gutierrez (Collins Hill High School) Jaehyun Im (Northview High School) Bryan Kim (GSMST) Erin Park (Peachtree Ridge High School) Jiyu Kim (Peachtree Ridge High School) Chaeyoung Park (Wesleyan School) Jensi Perng (Northview High School) Erika Tay (Lanier High School) Raymond Xue (Johns Creek High School) Athena Yang (GSMST) George Young ** (Walton High School) Olivia Yu (Alpharetta High School) Jordan Zheng (Northview High School) 13
Emory Youth Symphony Orchestra All musicians are listed alphabetically within instrument section. Cello Chase Choi (North Gwinnett High School) Yeseo Han (North Gwinnett High School) Elly Kim (Peachtree Ridge High School) Joshua Kim (North Gwinnett High School) Alex Ko ** (Lambert High School) Katherine Lamback (Holy Innocents Episcopal School) Andrew Laughlin (McIntosh High School) Kevin Lee (Chattahoochee High School) Jiayi Lu (Northview High School) Kathy Park (Northview High School) Kelsey Queen (DeKalb School of the Arts) Dylan Song (The Westminster Schools) Mia Song (Alpharetta High School) Alex Woloschinow (Hillgrove High School)
Bass Madeline Bower (Marietta High School) Cecilia Clarke (Decatur High School) Ethan Huang (Chamblee High School) Alex Na (The Westminster Schools) Audrey Nguyen (Alpharetta High School) Connor Oneacre (Milton High School) Hazel Patty (Decatur High School) Richard Zhou ** (North Gwinnett High School) * Concertmaster, Cycle 1 ** Principal, Cycle 1
Music at Emory The Department of Music at Emory University provides an exciting and innovative environment for developing knowledge and skills as a performer, composer, and scholar. Led by a faculty of more than 60 nationally and internationally recognized artists, undergraduate and graduate students experience a rich diversity of performance and academic opportunities. Undergraduate students in the department earn a BA in music with a specialization in performance, composition, or research, many of whom simultaneously earn a second degree in another department. True to the spirit of Emory, a liberal arts college in the heart of a research university, the faculty and ensembles also welcome the participation of nonmajor students. 14
Upcoming Emory Music Concerts Many fall music events at Emory are free to attend. Visit music.emory. edu or schwartz.emory.edu to view descriptions and information for upcoming music events. If an event requires a ticket for attendance, prices are indicated in the listings below in the following order: Full price/Emory student price (unless otherwise noted as the price for all students). Thursday, November 17, 8:00 p.m., Maria Schneider Orchestra, Candler Concert Series, Schwartz Center, Emerson Concert Hall, $70/$10, tickets required Saturday, November 19, 8:00 p.m., Emory University Symphony Orchestra and Emory Wind Ensemble, featuring Concerto and Aria Competition Winner, Schwartz Center, Emerson Concert Hall, free Tuesday, November 29, 8:00 p.m., Emory Jazz Ensembles, Schwartz Center, Emerson Concert Hall, free Wednesday, November 30, 8:00 p.m., Fall Composition Showcase, Performing Arts Studio, free Friday, December 2, noon, Kyung and Michael Kim, duo pianists, ECMSA: Cooke Noontime Concert, Carlos Museum, free online registration required Friday, December 2, 8:00 pm; Saturday, December 3, 4:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols, Glenn Auditorium, $20/$10, tickets required Friday, December 9 and Saturday, December 10, 8:00 p.m., and Sunday, December 11, 4:00 p.m., Christmas with Atlanta Master Chorale, Schwartz Center, Emerson Concert Hall, $38/$10 all students, tickets required Sunday, December 11, 4:00 p.m., Santa’s Favorite Chamber Music, ECMSA: Family Series, Carlos Museum, free Become part of Music at Emory by giving to the Friends of Music. A gift provides crucial support to all of the activities. To learn more, visit music.emory.edu or call 404.727.6280.
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Music at Emory Music at Emory brings together students, faculty, and world-class artists to create an exciting and innovative season of performances, lectures, workshops, and master classes. With more than 150 events each year across multiple Emory venues, audiences experience a wide variety of musical offerings. We hope you enjoy sampling an assortment of work from our student ensembles, community youth ensembles, artists in residence, professional faculty, up-and-coming prodigies, and virtuosos from around the world.
404.727.5050 music.emory.edu