UTRGV SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA Second Program ~ 2023 • 2024 Concert Season
& UTRGV Performing Arts Complex, Edinburg Saturday, November 18, 2023 at 7:00 pm Norman Gamboa, Conductor Edinburg Dance Theatre Trista Castillo, Narrator
The Firebird Suite (1919 version). . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) Introduction – The Firebird and its Dance – Variation of the Firebird The Princesses' Khorovod (Rondo) Infernal Dance of King Kashchei Lullaby Finale
INTERMISSION
Peter and the Wolf. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953)
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2023 - 2024 Concert Season
PROGRAM NOTES by William E. Runyan The Firebird Suite (1919 version) Igor Stravinsky
casting a spell over Kashchei’s followers, compelling them to dance frenetically until ultimately falling sleep to a lullaby. Soon, Kashchei awakens them and In the early XX century, Ballets Russes under the direction of Sergei Diaghilev, another dance ignites. The Firebird tells the Prince how to slay Kashchei by was responsible for the creation of destroying a giant egg where his wicked artistic works of unabated influence to this day. Diaghilev’s ballets attracted the soul resides. He does so and the whole evil spell disappear. The sun breaks best among the European artistic forth and a general celebratory community, including dancers such as apotheosis triumphs. Pavlova, Balanchine, and Nijinsky; conductors like Pierre Monteux and In 1911, 1919, and 1945, Stravinsky Ernest Ansermet; and for designs extracted three very distinct suites Diagilev had Picasso, Bakst, Braque, Matisse, Coco Chanel, Miró, and Dalí at featuring sections from the entire ballet score. Of them, the one from 1919 is his disposal. Strangely, for the first the most commonly performed. It season, he entrusted the young and contains five major excerpts, beginning rather unknown composer Igor with the eerie low strings that depict Stravinsky to write the music. Kashchei’s evil, magical realm. The Firebird soon appears, after a flashy Just like his former teacher Rimskyoutburst in the strings. Virtuoso Korsakov, Stravinsky became a master at depicting Russian picturesque images figurations in the woodwinds and harp glissandi paint the dancing Firebird and through challenging and imaginative his glowing feathers which ends the first orchestral scoring; his dazzling section. A solo flute leads to the round treatment of the orchestra served as dance of the Princesses, with elegant perfect vehicle for an exotic story that combined various Russian folktales into solos in the woodwinds and simple melodies and harmonies in the strings. one; always featuring the mythical Firebird and the evil magician Kashchei The third section is Infernal Dance, as the main characters: the Firebird with where snarling brass, with angular, jagged motifs, punctuate the whole its magical powers and feathers that orchestra’s pounding, insistent flow with shimmering luminosity, and rhythms—which constantly confuse with the magician Kashchei, irredeemably their metric displacements. It all evil, who can only be defeated by accelerates to a total, dramatic collapse. possessing his soul. The ensorcelled evil ones then sleep to The story itself is rather conventional: a the lullaby of the Berceuse, opening with the famous languid bassoon solo. beautiful princess is kidnapped by an A lush, romantic texture gradually ends evil villain and later rescued by a brave prince with help of the magical Firebird. with sinking string tremolos that lead to the inevitable Finale. The solo horn The ballet opens in Kashchei the dramatically intones an evocation of the Immortal’s magical realm; Prince Ivan arrival of the sun and the triumph of enters and soon spots the luminous good over evil. The whole orchestra Firebird. He sees thirteen captured takes up its tune, accompanied by slow, princesses who are dancing a round dance and immediately falls in love with rising scales, and finally pounding brass chords lead to a grand declamation. one of them. The evil Kashchei rebuffs the Prince’s request for his chosen one’s The ending is immortal, of course, and the world now was put on notice of the release, and a fight ensues, with Kashchei’s grotesque minions attacking spectacular debut and genius of the young Stravinsky. the Prince. The Firebird intervenes, 3 - UTRGV Symphony Orchestra
2023 - 2024 Concert Season
Peter and the Wolf Sergei Prokofiev Prokofiev and Dmitri Shostakovich are the two composers who stood above the rest of those who labored during the years of the Soviet Union. A virtuoso pianist and skilled composer from an early age, he graduated from the St. Petersburg Conservatory shortly before World War I. His musical style was based in the Russian romantic tradition and his initial personal idiom was full of pungent dissonance, soaring lyrical melodies, a facile manipulation of vivid rhythms, and kaleidoscopic harmonic changes. Part and parcel of his musical personality was an acerbic appreciation of satire, parody, and even the grotesque.
the work as an allegory to Pioneer virtues such as vigilance, bravery, and resourcefulness, as well as an illustration of Soviet themes including the stubbornness of the un-Bolshevik older generation (the grandfather) and the triumph of man (Peter) taming nature (the wolf).
Composed as a commission by the Central Children’s Theatre in Moscow, Prokofiev was initially dissatisfied with the story he was presented and decided to create his own narrative which he set to music in just four days. Despite receiving a not very successful premiere, Peter and the Wolf went on to become perhaps Prokofiev’s bestknown composition. The cast of characters is represented by music appropriately suited to each of them: In order to serve a collectivist state and Peter by the endearing sound of the whole string section, the Bird by the to appeal to the masses, Prokofiev flute, the Cat by the clarinet, Grandpa gradually moved to a simpler, more by the bassoon, the Duck by the oboe, accessible style, adapting his music to the political requirement of composing the Wolf by a sinister trio of French horns, and finally, the timpani providing works that addressed the necessary the gunshots of the Hunters. The content of “socialist realism” (patriotic narration makes the brief story subjects in a traditional musical style that served political ends). One aspect perfectly clear, and the totally popular style of the attractive music suits the of the artistic demands of “socialist realism” with which Prokofiev evidently characters delightfully—what more could one ask? Children and adults was in full accord, was the emphasis placed on music for children. Upon his have always responded with warmth to this charming work. The only tragic return to the Soviet Union in 1936, he composed a series of works for young note lies in the pitiful honking of the duck trapped in the stomach of the audiences that included Peter and the Wolf at the end. Wolf. Commentators have long seen
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2023 - 2024 Concert Season
EDINBURG DANCE THEATRE CAST
Peter Rylie Rios Bird Reagan Esquierdo Duck Sophie Janssen Cat Rudy Ybañez Grandfather Alexia de la Rosa Wolf Alana Albert Hunters Isabella Carmona, Hannah Gomez, Aliah Maldonado, Julieta Martinez Trees Katherine Guajardo, Aria Ledezma, Ever Ledezma Luna Ledezma, Hannah Martinez, Evelyn Peña Molly Peña, Camila Ramos, Ella Villalobos 5 - UTRGV Symphony Orchestra
2023 - 2024 Concert Season
Dr. NORMAN GAMBOA Conductor Rica, Panama, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Honduras. Norman has led numerous joint ventures such as fully choreographed productions of Ravel's Ma mère l'Oye with Ballet Midwest, The Nutcracker Ballet with Aurora Dance Arts, Rio Grande Valley Ballet, and Santa Rosa Dance Theater, Fiesta Mexicana with Fiesta Colorado Dance Company and also several operas with the Topeka Opera Society and Opera on Tap Colorado. Festival appearances include Plzeň 2015, FOSJACasals Festival, Central American Festival of Chamber Music, International Music Festival of Medellín, Villarrica Arts Festival, Costa Rica International Festival of Arts, Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, Bregenzer Festspiele, Las Vegas Music Norman Gamboa is the Music Director Festival, OSESP Orchestra Conductors of the Sonoma County Philharmonic in Competition, the New York Brass California. He also serves as Director of Orchestral Activities at The University of Conference and Regina Music Conference. In 2015 he led the Youth Texas Rio Grande Valley and conductor Symphony Orchestra of Europe, a of the Rio Grande Youth Symphony Orchestra. Gamboa is considered one of project that gathered some of the most distinguished music students from the most prominent Central American conductors, with an active schedule that numerous music conservatories all over Europe. Previously, he served as Music includes appearances with the Kansas Director of the Powder River Symphony City Philharmonia, Bemidji Symphony Orchestra, Topeka Symphony Orchestra, in Wyoming, Director of Orchestral Idaho State Civic Symphony, Winchester Studies at Washburn University in Orchestra, Bay Area Rainbow Symphony Kansas, Cover Conductor of the Topeka Orchestra, Newton Symphony Orchestra, Symphony Orchestra, Associate Conductor of the Las Vegas Music San Francisco Civic Symphony, and Festival, Assistant Conductor of the Salina Symphony Orchestra among others. Worldwide engagements include Waco Symphony Orchestra and Music Director of the Waco Symphony Youth renowned orchestras such as Orquesta Orchestra in Texas. Sinfónica de Cuenca (Ecuador), Západočeský Symfonický (Czech Republic), Orchestra Filarmonicii Ploieşti Gamboa has served as conductor and clinician with honor student orchestras (Romania), Orquesta Filarmónica de Medellín (Colombia), Orquestra Sinfônica throughout the Midwest and western United States as well as abroad, he holds de Ribeirão Preto and Orquestra orchestral conducting degrees from the Sinfônica Estado de São Paulo (Brazil), Orquesta Sinfónica Juvenil Municipal de University of Nevada Las Vegas and Louisiana State University. Born and Guatemala, Orquesta Sinfónica del raised in Costa Rica, he currently resides Estado Mérida, Orquesta Sinfónica de in McAllen, Texas. Los Llanos and Orquesta Filarmónica Nacional (Venezuela), as well as the National Symphony Orchestras of Costa 6 - UTRGV Symphony Orchestra
2023 - 2024 Concert Season
Symphony Orchestra VIOLIN
Angela Llanes, Concertmaster Leah Loera, Assistant concertmaster
Marifer Guerrero, Principal Ruben Garcia, Jr., Assistant principal
Isaac Escalon Angela Gonzalez Lily Guerra Jazmin Gutierrez Alexandra Hernandez Astrid Herrera Vivianne Medina Rafael Ramirez* Joel Sanchez Daniel Santiago VIOLA José Salinas, Principal Melanie Cantu Katia Luna Jacob Martinez Cytlaly Coronado Harley Massey
CELLO Sebastian Garcia, Principal Jayda Garcia Jairo Garza Clarissa Martinez Judith Recio Robert Zuñiga
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DOUBLE BASS Sofia Leal de Leon, Principal Vianeth Bernardo-Pinon Alyssa Gonzalez Maximiliano Lopez Marisol Mejia FLUTE & PICCOLO Ramiro Raya Stephanie Hernandez1 Laura Barba2
TRUMPET Ryan Mowers2 Isaiah Murillo Benjamin Gonzalez1 TROMBONE Luis Viveros1 Alejandro Salinas2 Alexandro Soliz TUBA Itzhak Corona1
OBOE & ENGLISH HORN TIMPANI Lorena Coronado1,2 Slaton Meador2 Carlos Cantu* Rene Peynado1 CLARINET PERCUSSION Karolina Leal Fernando Alday Alejandro Moreno1,2 Paul Gutierrez Slaton Meador BASSOON Noemi Sosa Aracely Garcia1,2 Art Gonzalez* HARP Michelle Abbott*1 HORN David Gutierrez1 PIANO Brittany Cruz Anna Treviño1 Samuel Garcia Daniel Garza2 ASSISTANT CONDUCTOR Roberto Salas Alexandro Lucero-Quintana* 1
Principal in Stravinsky Principal in Prokofiev *Guest musician 2
2023 - 2024 Concert Season
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2023 - 2024 Concert Season