4/30/13 Concert Program

7/30/2019 4/30/13 Concert Program

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BRAHMS, Johannes(1833 1897)

SCHUMANN, Robert (1810 1856)

CHOPIN, Frdric(1810 1849)

DVORK, Antonn(1841 1905)

Variationen ber ein Thema vonJos. Haydn fr zwei Pianoforte, op. 56b(Variations on a Theme by Haydn for two pianos)

Thema (Chorale St. Antoni) Andante con moto Vivace Con moto Andante Poco presto Vivace Grazioso Poco presto Finale

Fantasiestcke, op. 12

Des Abends Aufschwung Warum? Grillen In der Nacht Fabel Traumes Wirren Ende vom Lied

Scherzo No. 2 in B-flat Minor, op. 31Nocturne in D-flat Major, op. 27, no. 2

Slovansk tance (Slavonic Dances)for four hands, op. 46, B. 78

No. 1 in C major (Furiant)No. 6 in D major (Sousedsk)No. 8 in G minor (Furiant)

Sarah Liu, pianoAllen Wong Yu, piano

Allen Wong Yu, piano

Sarah Liu, piano

Allen Wong Yu, pianoSarah Liu, piano


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Variations on a Theme by Joseph Haydn

Johannes Brahms

In the summer of 1873, Brahms went on vacation in southern Germany, renting rooms

in an inn called the Water Lily and playing a derelict piano owned by the inn. He appeared

to have immensely enjoyed himself, writing that the view was more beautiful the other day

than we could imagine The lake was almost black, splendidly green on the shore, but usually

the lake is blue, a more beautiful, deeper blue than the sky. And besides there was the chain

of snowcapped mountains you never get tired of looking at it.

It was likely a welcome relief for Brahms, who had recently been involved indisagreements with two of his closest friends, the violinist Joseph Joachim, with whom he

collaborated frequently, and Clara Wieck Schumann, the wife of his mentor, Robert

Schumann. The retreat from the problems of his everyday life allowed Brahms an immensely

productive summer. Brahms had not written a theme-and-variation work in ten years, but he

decided to finally return to that musical genre, using a theme attributed to Franz Joseph

Haydn called Chorale St. Antoni (Chorale of Saint Anthony), which had been discovered by

Brahms friend and Haydns biographer, C. F. Pohl.

The work consists of the theme, eight variations, and a finale, which itself is a

collection of the theme in various iterations. When writing variations, composers in the

nineteenth century considered several factors. First, the variations could not move to distant

keys, but could only be either in the tonic key of the theme, which here is B-flat major, or its

minor mode, B-flat minor. Additionally, one must conserve some aspect of the theme

throughout the variations. This posed a challenge because composers often present musical

interest, drama, and tension through modulations to different keys and the incorporation of

new thematic material. Yet, in this work, the theme-and-variation form constrained Brahmsto one key and one essential theme and structure.

To overcome these challenges, Brahms used several approaches. First, the theme itself

is memorable and structurally interesting. It contains two melodies, the first in two five-bar

phrases, and the second in two four-bar phrases. The somewhat off-balance, uneven

structure of the theme thus gave Brahms room with which to experiment in the following

variations. Furthermore, the later variations draw on material from the earlier ones, so that


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motivic material from one variation will be heard in the next, giving the work a sense of

development.

The theme never really returns in its original form until the finale. However, when it

returns, it has undergone its own transformation. That transformation, according to

conductor Leon Botstein, is like a phoenix emerging out of its own ashes, but with a

difference: the charming little theme from the opening has vanished and though almostexactly the same, it now carries with it a sense of triumph and grandeur.

Fantasiestcke, op. 12Robert Schumann

In 1828, Robert Schumann arrived in Leipzig to attend university as a law student, yet

he found his calling not in academia but in improvising at the piano. With the reluctant

blessing of his parents, Schumann began taking lessons with Friedrich Wieck. It was not long

before Schumann had fallen in love with Clara, Wiecks prodigiously talented daughter.

Wieck strongly opposed a match between Schumann and Clara, however, and forced the

young couple (who had been secretly engaged) to separate for four years until they were

finally married in 1840. It was in 1837, during the time of their estrangement, that he wrote

the set of eight pieces of the Fantasiestcke, op. 12.

During this time, Friedrich Wieck had instructed her daughter to return all ofSchumanns letters, and he prevented any meeting between the two. Despaired in his

courting of his beloved Clara, Schumann turned to drinking and attempted to find interest in

other women. In August of 1837, he wrote to the attractive, eighteen-year-old, Yorkshire-

born pianist Robena Laidlaw, the period of your stay [in Leipzig] will always remain a really

beautiful memory for me, and you will find the truth of what I write all the more clearly in

eight Fantasy Pieces. Originally published in two volumes, Schumann dedicated the

Fantasiestcke to Laidlaw, with whom he had grown quite close.

In many of his critical writings, Schumann wrote with the pseudonyms Eusebius and

Florestan, which represented the active and passive aspects of his dual personality. It is clear

that Schumann composed these eight pieces with both Eusebius and Florestan in mind, with

Eusebius playing the contemplative dreamer and Florestan the flamboyant and passionate

lover.


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In Des Abends (At Evening), Schumann presents a gentle and peaceful evening scene,a fitting introduction to the dreamer Eusebius. In the early morning, Aufschwung (Soaring)introduces Florestan indulging in his desires, where the main themes powerful, unstable

dotted rhythm is answered by a more lyrical, vocal line. In Warum? (Why?), Schumannreturns to Eusebius, possibly questioning the excesses of Florestan in the previous piece. It is

contemplative, with a syncopated rhythm and inconclusive cadences. Schumann ends the

first volume with the capricious Gril l en (Whims), which represents Florestan in a strangeyet whimsical dance in triple meter.

In der Nacht (In the Night), which opens the second volume, is really the centerpieceof the cycle. Not only is this the longest of the eight pieces, but its ABA scheme is

complicated by a long transitional section and a return to A that is substantially recomposed.

This is the first time where both Eusebius and Florestan truly interact, with the dichotomy of

passion and serenity. After Schumann composed this piece, he likened it to the touching

story of Hero and Leander.Fabel (Fable), like In der Nacht, contrasts the tranquil Eusebius to the anxious Florestanand varies in mood as the narrative unfolds. The rhythmically intense and rapid TraumesWirren (Troubled Dreams) explores Schumanns struggle between his two characters andhis own dreams and passions. Finally, Schumann ends this volume with Ende vom Lied (Endof the Song). The instruction Mit gutem Humor does not mean to play in a humorous

manner, but to evoke the idea of changing moods. Although the piece was dedicated to

Laidlaw, Schumann made reference to it in a letter to Clara years after its completion:toward the end, my sorrow over you returned, and so it sounds like a combination of

wedding bells and death knells. The piece begins with full chords, but ends with a solemn,

slow, and quiet coda, reminiscent of bells tolling deep into the night.


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Scherzo No. 2Frdric Chopin

By 1836, Chopin had moved from his Polish homeland of Warsaw and established

himself in Paris, befriending people such as Robert & Clara Schumann, Franz Liszt, and

Felix Mendelssohn. He had already written his monumental Ballade No. 1 and ConcertoNo. 1, but one of the most important, life-changing events in his life has yet to come.

On 24 October 1836, Chopin was invited to perform at a reception at the Htel de

France given by Franz Liszt and his mistress, the Countess Marie dAgoult. One of the guests

in attendance was the infamous Parisian writer Aurore Dudevant, better known by her

pseudonym, George Sand. Despite their relative fame, the two had never met and Sand had

never heard Chopin perform. The pair parted with differing impressions of one another.

Chopin reportedly remarked, What a repulsive woman Sand is! But is she really a woman? Iam inclined to doubt it. On the other hand, Sand wrote that there was something so noble,

so indefinably aristocratic [about Chopin].

Yet, only weeks after they had met, Chopins views of Sand had already rapidly

changed. He wrote in his diary, I now have seen her three times. She looked deeply into my

eyes while I played My heart was captured! ...Aurora, what a charming name! The same

year ended with the promising beginning of what would become a ten-year relationship, the

most important one in Chopins life, and it was at this time that he began work on theScherzo No. 2 .The Scherzo opens with an ominous and mysterious pair of triplets that quickly

explode in a burst of sound. However, the music moves quickly into an immensely varied

landscape of sound, through emotions and melodies of all kinds, ranging from a graceful

waltz-like section to a muted chorale. Robert Schumann is said to have compared the work

to a Byronic poem, so overflowing with tenderness, boldness, love and contempt. Though

despite the myriad directions in which the work moves, the fateful, ghostly triplets always

return, maintaining the force that drives the work to its energetic and dramatic end.


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Nocturne in D-flat Major, Op. 27, No. 2Frdric Chopin

Although the Irish composer John Field was the originator of the nocturne as a

character piece for the piano, it was Frdric Chopin who became a key proponent of this

musical genre and whom today one associates most with nocturnes. These works typicallyfeature a lush, singing melody over an arpeggiated, sonorous accompaniment.

The two nocturnes in this opus were composed in 1836 and published in 1837. In 1836,

Chopin traveled to Leipzig to visit Felix Mendelssohn, as well as to meet Robert Schumann

and his fiance, Clara Wieck. During his visit, Mendelssohn and Chopin spent an entire day

playing music for each other, and one of the pieces that Chopin performed for Mendelssohn

was his new Nocturne in D-flat Major. Mendelssohn enjoyed the work so much that he

decided to memorize it immediately.The nocturne essentially consists of two strophes, or musical stanzas, and each is

repeated in increasingly complex variations and with progressively elaborate ornamentation,

finally culminating in a highly decorative, filigreed fioritura line, or a flowery line found in

many nineteenth-century operatic arias. The elegant and extremely romantic melody is

always played by the right hand, with the left hand only playing a quiet, supporting,

arpeggiated line. While Chopin wrote twenty-one nocturnes for the piano, the Chopin

scholar Frederick Niecks wrote of this particular nocturne that, nothing can equal the finish

and delicacy of execution, the flow of gentle feeling lightly rippled by melancholy, and

spreading out here and there in smooth expansiveness.


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Slavonic DancesAntonn Dvork

A self-confessed simple Czech musician of humble origins, Antonn Dvork owed

much of his early successes to Johannes Brahms. In a letter to his Berlin publisher Fritz

Simrock in 1877, Brahms wrote, I have been receiving a lot of pleasure for several years fromthe work of Anton Dvork of Prague. He is certainly a very talented fellow. Brahms

convinced Simrock to publish Dvorks Moravian Duets in 1878, and its immense success led to

Simrocks subsequent commission that same year for Dvork to compose a set of dance

pieces similar to the popular Hungarian Dances of Brahms, but in the Czech spirit.

Originally written for a piano duet and later orchestrated by the composer himself,

Dvork completed the first book of the Slavonic Dances in less than three months. Unlike

Brahms Hungarian Dances, which were mostly variations and arrangements of existingHungarian melodies, Dvorks pieces were entirely original, composed in the dance styles of

Czech, Polish, Ukrainian, Serbian, and other Slavonic regions.

The Slavonic Dances begin with No. 1 (C Major) in the fiery and jubilant style of afuriantdance, with the typical alternation between 3/2 and 3/4 time. No. 6 (D Major) is acharmingsousedskwaltz with a beautiful and lyrical melody. The first book ends with No. 8(G minor), which is anotherfuriantdance even more exciting than the first.

On the centenary of Dvorks birth in 1941, while Prague was under the occupation ofthe Third Reich, the legendary conductor Vclav Talich of the Czech Philharmonic said this

about the Slavonic Dances:

The dances transformed into a symboldemonstrating how our people sing and how they weep, how theyrejoice and how to contemplate, how they suffer and how they have faith. No, Dvork has not given usSlavonic dances, rather the Czech people through his medium have sung out the rhythm of their lives.

~ Allen Yu & Sarah LiuBrunswick, Maine

April 2013


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BOWDOIN CHORUS & MOZART MENTORS ORCHESTRA

Thursday & Friday, May 2 & 3 at 7:30pm

Studzinski Recital Hall

Bowdoin Chorus and Mozart Mentors Orchestra, conducted by Anthony Antolini, will present the world

premiere performance of Delmar Dustin SmallsAs It Began to Dawn an oratorio about the awe andmystery of the morning of the Resurrection and Jesus subsequent appearances to his disciples.

BOWDOIN CHAMBER CHOIR

Saturday & Sunday, May 4 & 5 at 3:00pm

Bowdoin Chapel

Robert K. Greenlee will lead the Chamber Choir in a program of American music,including the premiere of a work by Elliott Schwartz.

PIANO STUDENTS OF GEORGE LOPEZ

Sunday, May 5 at 7:30pmStudzinski Recital Hall

RACHEL LOPKIN 13, flute & Friends

Friday, May 10 at 7:30pm


KATARINA HOLMGREN 13, voiceSaturday, May 11 at 4:00pm



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Pianist Allen Wong Yu , 20, is an acclaimed performer, recognized for his maturemusicianship, elegant tone, and charismatic stage presence. Allen has appeared as a soloist in

major venues in Albany, Schenectady, Rochester, Oneonta, Ithaca, Binghamton, Saratoga,Springfield, Portland, and Brunswick. During his time abroad in Italy, he also presented solo

recitals in Milan and Ferrara. Highlights from his past seasons include the Schumann

Carnaval, Mendelssohns Fantasies or Caprices, and Mussorgskys Pictures at an Exhibition, as well as

the Schumann and Dvork Piano Quintets. In February 2012, Allen appeared on National

Public Radios From the Top for the second time; his first appearance on NPR was in 2008

when he performed as a Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist.

Born in California and a native of Beijing, Allen began studying piano at the age of six

and won his first major competition at ten. He delivered his solo debut at age twelve and his

critically acclaimed orchestral debut a year later. A junior at Bowdoin College in Brunswick,

Maine, he is currently pursuing his studies in political science and piano performance. At

Bowdoin, he serves as Vice President of the student body on Bowdoin Student Government.

He is also a Past Distinguished Governor of New York for Key Club International, a service

leadership program of Kiwanis International. Allen studies with pianist George Lopez,

Bowdoins Artist-in-Residence.

Pianist Sarah Liu , from Albquerque, New Mexico, began playing the piano at age six.Studying under the acclaimed New Mexican teacher and pianist Lawrence Blind, Sarah has

received numerous awards and honors, including prizes in the New Mexico Symphony

Orchestras Young Artists Concerto Competition for Piano and Strings, as well as in the

Honors Auditions held by the Professional Music Teachers of New Mexico. Composer and

pianist Dennis Alexander has described her performance as elegant and thoughtful, with

lyrical playing [which] really drew the audience in and commanded them to listen.Sarah is currently a senior at Bowdoin College, where she studies biology as well as

piano performance with George Lopez, Bowdoins Artist-in-Residence. At Bowdoin, she has

participated in numerous chamber music groups in addition to her solo performances. She

also serves as co-president of the Bowdoin Outing Club, and enjoys whitewater kayaking and

backpacking.


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We would like to thank the faculty and staff of the Bowdoin College Department of Music

for making tonights recital possible.

We are especially grateful to our teacher, George Lopez,whose enthusiasm, passion, and love for music never fail to inspire us.

A special thanks to our advisors, Professor Robert Greenlee and Professor Mary Hunter,for continuing to support us to grow as scholars and musicians.

We hope youve enjoyed this performance. Please visit www.bowdoin.edu/music for a listingof upcoming events.

In consideration of the performers and those around you, please kindly switch off your

cellular phones, pagers, and watch alarms during the recital.

Please do not take pictures during the performance. Flashes, in particular, are distracting to

the performers and other audience members.

Thank you.

Documents

4/30/13 Concert Program