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Friday evening, January 26, a lucky audience heard a number of the music faculty from the university showcase their various talents at the Faculty Grand Recital, held in the accoustically incomparable Northern Recital Hall.
A sampling of the solos and ensembles are considered in this post.
TRISARACHOPS, nominally-derived from members Sarah Beckham Turner, soprano, Sarah Rushing, piano, and Guglielmo Manfredi on French Horn (‘Cause you better have a good set of chops to play this challenging instrument), first took the stage to perform Ihr Traum from 4 Lieder, Op 27, by Franz Paul Lachner.
Lachner, one-time royal Kappelmeister at Munich, was a prolific composer, and, though well-known in his day, now rarely has works performed performed, Influenced by both Beethoven and Schubert, he set Lieder to many of the same texts used by Schubert, and contributed to the development of German Lied.
Emotive and impassioned, ending with a loosely-translated phrase in the third stanza, “O let me die in this dream, head resting on his breast,” gives a clue to the agony and extasy of a heart lost to love.
Though originally scored for cello, “Chops” proved that sometimes a French Horn plays that part as well, or perhaps better!
The Symphony Espagnole is one of Eduard Lalo’s most popular works, along with his Cello Concerto in D Minor. This work had a major influence on Tschaikowsky, who was inspired to write his own violin concerto, which he fnished in less than a month!
There is a lot of happy energy in this piece, whose main theme is an eight-note pattern with different dynamics and phrasing. And Rossitza Goza on violin, accompanied by Mila Abbasova on piano, happied up Northern Recital Hall with her own rendition of this sprightly and oft-performed work.
Pianist Choong-ha Nam reprised a work from her December 2nd recital devoted entirely to Fanny Hensel, the long-overlooked but enormously talented sister of Felix Mendelsohn. The music of Lady Fanny is enjoying a recrudescence, largely due to committed musicians like Dr. Nam, who see value in presenting her music to the public .
This piece, Allegro Molto in C minor, H. 413, is roiling and tumultuous, with a braving the storm vibe that carries the work throughout.
Imagine a trombone paired with a seismograph during a major shake, and you have some sense of the sonic scope demonstrated by John Shanks as he performed Tiffany Johns Flashbang! Lyrical treble with burps of bass, this piece just made you smile.
Nubia Jaime Donjuan composed Refletos de Victoria for a friend who had just lost her mother. Sarah Rushing on piano and Connor Bell on bassoon performed this wrenching work, which spans the stages of grief that all must process in loss of a loved one.
The composer, born in Hermosillo, Sonora, is a cellist and composer. Her work, inspired by the impact of the environment, reflects the broad c ultural landscape of the Mexican people.
This piece is short, and opens with a deliberate, somber tone, which at :45 intensifies, perhaps signalling the emotional turmoil felt at death. Sorrow gives way to emotional adjustment which, after loss, is never easy.
Around 2:15 the mood changes, becoming somewhat whimsical, as if reflecting on the funny side of the lost madre. At 2:44, the humor vanishes and painful reflections return, which intensify as the pulse gradually quickens. Another change occurs at 2:52 where the tone becmes deliberate and pensive, as if coming to terms with the fact that she is indeed gone!
This is a very emotive and complex work, demanding great teamwork and empathy on the part of hte performers. The result was a musica description of an emotional journey to which all who have lost loved ones can relate. Hopefully, this performance signals more performances of Nubia Jaime Donjuan for the future!
Evgeny Zvonnikov on violin, James Barger on sax and Sarah Rushing on piano teamed up to perform section one, entitled Thru a Stained Glass Window of Trio for Alto Sax, Violin and Piano by Nikola Resanovic. Of Servian lineage, Resanovic has lived in the US since 1966, and is Professor Emeritus of Music Composition and Theory at the University of Akron.
A trilling intro from the piano jump starts the work. The violin enters at :24 with a series of stccato doublets. AT :32 the sax joins in the same vein, giving the work a high energy message early on. AT :35 all three play in chromatic unison to transition to another section which reprises the introductory prhasing: two doublets followed by a septuple run.
At 1:44 the violin sings a different song, which persists until 2:05 when the sax asserts itself with its own melody line. At 2:30 the three instruments together punch out different tunes.
The piece has a lot of energy and variety. At 2:45 the original melody is revisited, which ramps up to a climax at 3:20.
This is a demanding work, and requires a great deal of sensitivity on the part of the musicians as the piece really has legs!
The faculty performed a number of other numbers, equally enjoyable and enlightening. For playing longtime favorites as well as introducing works by lesser known or virtually unknown composers, we thank an amazing group of music educators, who have made the Department of Music at West Texas A & M University one of the most outstanding in the state.
This makes it easy for us to say, in 2024:
Keep Amarillo Artsy!
Keep Austin Weird!
Keep Lubbock in the Rear View Mirror!