Fibonacci Chamber Orchestra
Matthew Troy, founder and music director
John Salmon, piano
Stephanie Foley, soprano
Sunday, February 5, 2006
5:30 pm
Recital Hall, UNCG School of Music
Program
Rumanian Folk Dances, S. 76 Béla Bartók
Joc Cu Bâtâ (1881-1945)
Brâul
Pe Loc
Buciumeana
Poargâ Românescâ
Mârunțel
Mârunțel
Lairs of Soundings (North Carolina premiere) Dan Locklair
Invocation (b. 1949)
Voicings text by Ursula K. Le Guin
Wordhoard
Stephanie Foley, soprano
Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat Major, Op. 19 Ludwig van Beethoven
Allegro con brio (1770-1827)
Adagio
Rondo, Molto allegro
John Salmon, piano
Intermission
Symphony No. 40 in G Minor, K. 550 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Allegro molto (1756-1791)
Andante
Menuetto, Allegretto
Allegro assai
_____
The hall is equipped with a listening assistance system.
Patrons needing such assistance should contact an usher in the lobby.
Program Notes:
Rumanian Folk Dances was written in 1915, arranged for violin and piano the next year, and for
salon orchestra in 1917. The material had been collected in 1910 and 1912 among the
Rumanians living in areas of what was then Hungary. The use of the piano by necessity required
that timbres of the original instruments be given up, however, the composer chose a register and
keyboard touch aspiring to represent the flavor of the original. He simplified the intricacies of
melody and rhythm, but compensated for this by enriching the harmonic structure in the left hand.
The subsequent orchestral transcription allowed for reintroduction of a richer palate of
instrumental timbres through strings and winds. Bartók’s folk dance arrangements typically do not
follow the original tempos, he makes the fasts faster, and the slow ones slower. The dances, fall
into three tempo groups: fast/faster; slow/moderate; and fast/faster/fastest. I. Joc cu bâtâ (Dance
with sticks) comes from Mezoszabad, Transylvania. II. Brâul (Sash dance) refers to a cloth belt
worn by men or women and is from Egres, the district of Torontal. The tune is introduced by the
clarinet, then taken up by strings. III. Pe loc (In one spot, or stamping dance) is a difficult dance
done in one place and is introduced by a drone-like pattern on strings, the haunting melody given
to the piccolo. IV. Buciumeana (Horn dance) from Butschum, Transylvania gives the beautiful
nostalgic melody first to a solo violin; the second time, strings and winds join. V. Poargă
Românească (Rumanian Polka), a children’s dance/game, and VI. & VII. Măruntel (Quick dance)
hail from the Beleyes district of Bihar on the border between Hungary and Transylvania and are
played in quick succession .
Composed between February and May of 1982, LAIRS OF SOUNDINGS is scored for soprano
and divided string orchestra. The size of the full string orchestra may vary widely and is left up to
the conductor's discretion. Movements I and III are based on poems by Ursula K. Le Guin from
her collection, Hard Words and other poems (1981, Harper & Row, Publishers) and are used
with the kind permission of the poet and copyright holder, Ursula K. Le Guin. The poems are
noted below. The strings and soprano are treated differently in each movement. In Movement I,
the strings act largely as an accompaniment to the soprano. In the textless movement II, the
soprano, singing only vowel sounds, becomes part of the string ensemble as a wordless vocal
instrument. (N.B. For movement II, the soprano may be placed centrally behind or between the
divided orchestras so as to become a more integral part of the ensembles.) In movement III,
dialogue between the divided ensembles and the soprano is an important structural element.
When the soprano is singing in the final movement, it may be necessary for the conductor to
reduce the size of the orchestras (especially in the case of a very large ensemble). Thus, when
the word "concertino" appears, the string complement should be reduced. However, at the
conductor's discretion, this direction may be ignored and balance achieved by further dynamic
reduction.
I. INVOCATION
Give me back my language
let me speak the tongue you taught me.
I will lie the great lies in you honor,
praise you without naming you,
obey the laws of darkness and of metrics.
Only let me speak my language
in your praise, silence of the valleys,
north side of the rivers,
third face averted,
emptiness!
Let me speak the mother tongue
and I will sing so loudly
newlyweds and old women
will dance to my singing
and sheep will cease from cropping and machines
will gather round to listen
in cities fallen silent
as a ring of standing stones:
O let me sing the walls down, Mother!
II. VOICINGS
No Text.
III. WORDHOARD
The dragon splays her belly on the gold,
Gross hoarder, hot-eyed miser,
Holding all the earth can give to hold,
And none the wiser.
Dumbness deadness darkness is you nest.
Brooding there, fierce booby,
No fire’s enough, not even in your breast,
To hatch a ruby!
Why keep such glory in the glowering dark,
Pent and unspent in earth?
Give me one coin, one diamond spark,
One kingdom’s worth!
I will not give a single pearl says she,
Stretching a switchblade leg.
The one I gave would prove to be
My own, my Egg.
So, filch you treasures frightened and alone,
Pickpocket, miserable thief,
The anger opal and the honor stone,
The gold of grief,
The joy star and the emerald despair:
Take them up to glitter in the sun,
Bright and worthless: earthfast in my lair,
I keep that one.
Dan Locklair
Apart from the music cognoscenti, very few people knew the name of Beethoven when he arrived
in Vienna in 1792. Matters changed dramatically three years later, when he introduced his Piano
Concerto in B-flat.
The concerto, most likely the first orchestral work of Beethoven’s to be performed, is listed as his
second piano concerto, but it is second in name only. It was composed first, published second,
and is actually his third essay in the genre. He wrote a concerto in E-flat at age 14, of which only
the solo part and piano reductions of the preludes and interludes survives, and he also composed
a concerto in D minor, of which the first movement survives.
Beethoven postponed publication of the concerto until 1801 to reserve the work for personal use.
He even delayed writing out the solo part until the engraver needed it.
In structure, the work shares many commonalities with Mozart’s piano concertos. Even the
purpose of the work (a showcase for pianist and composer) recall Mozart. In style, however, the
"daring deviations" are unquestionably Beethoven.
The work begins in Mozartean form, an orchestral exposition with a full cadence leading to the
solo entry. The soloist enters with a variation on a subordinate theme, however, before the
orchestra comes back in its totality and the soloist launches into the principal theme. After much
virtuosic display, we again witness the shadow of Mozart as the orchestra leads to a pause
before the cadenza. The movement is vibrant with contrasts–loud and soft, forceful and pliant,
staccato and legato–but all in a spirit of elegance and sophistication. The adagio offers a pensive,
broad theme, elaborated and embellished throughout the movement, before returning towards the
close in pianissimo. Finally, the concerto concludes with a bouncing, light, optimistic, witty rondo.
The syncopated leaps that form the theme begin the work with emphasis on one beat, and
conclude with the emphasis on another beat. We hear the same theme with new ears, before the
work’s rollicking close.
Mozart’s Symphony in G minor (no. 40) was one of the few Mozart symphonies to remain in
the repertory throughout the Romantic era, thanks largely to its “Romantic” use of the minor
mode, though no less perceptive a critic than Robert Schumann failed to find in it the pathos that
seems so striking to us. Schumann regarded the symphony merely as a work of grace and
charm. Only through the perspective offered by distance and fuller understanding of the way
music functioned in Mozart’s own time, can we appreciate the expressive variety, ambiguity, and
power in a musical language that is so polished and precise.
The opening is nearly unique among classical symphonies—a hushed rustling, growing out of
silence, a gambit almost unheard of at the time. The theme emphasizes an expressive falling
semitone, an age old expression of yearning. The continued power of the minor mode over the
expressive forces of the symphony becomes clear in the recapitulation when the second theme,
instead of returning in the major, now arrives in the minor, further darkening the mood.
The slow movement is in the related major key of E-flat, but filled with passing chromatic figures
and melodic sighs, linking it to the expressive world of the first movement. The menuetto,
ostensibly a dance genre, is much too severe to suggest dancing at all; only the contrasting trio,
in the major mode, offers a brief respite from the prevailing chromatic character.
The last movement is in G minor throughout, without closing in the major, making it very rare for
the 18th-century. Mozart builds the development almost entirely out of the opening figure (based
on the minor triad), leading through daring harmonic realms before whirling home to the
recapitulation. From here to the end, there is no respite from the somber darkness of the minor.
Grace and charm (as Schumann noted) are indeed present, but Mozart offers obsessive energy
and passion, too.
Steven Ledbetter, 2005
Matthew Thomas Troy, founder and music director of the Fibonacci
Chamber Orchestra, received his Bachelor of Music from the
University of North Carolina at Greensboro School of Music, studying
viola under Dr. Scott Rawls. Upon graduating, Troy began playing
principal viola in The Philharmonia of Greensboro. Since then he has
been featured regularly as a Guest Conductor of the Philharmonia and
has conducted concerts as part of the Opus Concert Series and Music
for a Sunday Evening in the Park. Other guest conducting
engagements have been with the Greensboro Symphony Youth
Chamber Orchestra among others. Recently Troy earned the Master of
Music degree in conducting at UNCG as a student of Robert Gutter.
However, before completing his degree he was selected to join the
faculty at Wake Forest University as Interim Conductor of the
University Orchestra in 2004. Also, during his time at UNCG, Troy was
the Assistant Conductor for the UNCG Symphony Orchestra. Other professional experience
includes currently serving as Assistant Conductor of the Salisbury Symphony Orchestra, as well
as Conductor of the Salisbury Youth Orchestra and Assistant Conductor of the Winston-Salem
Youth Symphony. Remaining active as a teacher, Troy is in his third year on the string faculty of
the Music Academy of North Carolina with a thriving studio where his students have won local
and state awards. In 2005 Troy was awarded the Mary Elizabeth King Brown Award for Teaching
Excellence. Not limiting himself to instrumental music, Troy is also an experienced vocalist in
classical and popular genres. He has sung with the Greensboro Opera Company, and has been
featured as a clinician for high school choral students at Salisbury State University in Salisbury,
MD. From 2001-2003 Troy was the Music Director/Conductor for Triad Harmony Express, a
men’s a cappella chorus, and has written arrangements for their repertoire. In the summer of
2005 he attended the Medomak Conductors Retreat, in Maine, where he studied with renowned
conductor Kenneth Kiesler and pedagogue Marianne Ploger. It was also here that he
collaborated and studied with legendary pianist, Lorin Hollander.
John Salmon on the UNCG piano faculty since 1989, has
distinguished himself as both a classical and jazz artist. Critics have
cited his “mastery and virtuosity” (La Suisse, Geneva, Switzerland),
called him a “tremendous pianist” (El País, Madrid, Spain), and
praised his ability to “set his audience on fire” (News & Courier,
Charleston, South Carolina). He has appeared at the International
Bartók Festival in Hungary, the Festival Internacional de Música del
Mediterráneo in Spain, and at festivals across the U.S. His
performances have been broadcast on the national radio stations of
Australia, Canada, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Moldova, New
Zealand, Norway, Spain, Switzerland, and the Ukraine; and on
National Public Radio’s “Performance Today,” WFMT in Chicago, and
WNYC in New York. Prizes include the Premio Jaén, as well as
awards from the Busoni and Maryland competitions. He holds the Solistendiplom from the
Freiburg (Germany) Hochschule für Musik, the Master of Music degree from The Juilliard School,
and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree from The University of Texas. Salmon has championed
piano pieces by many contemporary composers, especially Dave Brubeck who dedicated two
pieces to Salmon. His two compact discs of Brubeck’s piano music (Phoenix PHCD 130; and
Naxos 8.559212) have received widespread critical acclaim.
Stephanie Foley has been said to bring, "a fine sense of line and
clear enunciation to the broad range of textures" to her performances.
A native of Babylon, New York, Ms. Foley "had a successful baptism
by fire" performing the mezzo-soprano solo in Alexander Nevsky with
the Greensboro Symphony. She made her Capital Opera Raleigh
debut as Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro and performed Ravel's Five
Greek Folk Songs with the UNCG Symphony Orchestra as a winner
of the Concerto Competition in 2005. Ms. Foley recently performed
on An Evening of Carolina Voices with Metropolitan Opera singers
Victoria Livengood and John Fowler to name a few. While completing
her masters degree in vocal performance with Robert Wells at the
University of North Carolina at Greensboro, she performed Dorabella
in Mozart's Cosí fan tutte, and Mallika in Delibes' Lakmé. Ms. Foley earned her BA in Vocal
Performance and BS in Sound Recording Technology from the State University of New York at
Fredonia. While in Fredonia, she performed roles such as, Fidalma in Cimarosa's The Secret
Marriage with the Hillman Opera and Hansel in Humperdinck's Hansel and Gretel. She is a two-time
first place winner of the North Carolina NATS competition, and a third place winner in the
Mid Atlantic NATS competition. She also received Honorable Mention at the Schlern International
Music Festival in Italy. Also an active oratorio/concert performer, Ms. Foley performed the alto
soloist in Bach's Jesu meine freude, Handel's Messiah, Vivaldi's Gloria, Mozart's Missa Brevis,
select Monteverdi Vespers, and Biebel's Alleluia. Future engagements include the understudy of
Rosina in Opera Company of North Carolina's production of il Barbiere di Siviglia and Peasant
Girl II for Greensboro Opera Company's production of Le Nozze di Figaro.
If you enjoyed the concert this evening and would
like to make a donation, please mail your contribution to:
Fibonacci Chamber Orchestra
3005 Lookout Ct.
Winston-Salem, NC 27106
The Fibonacci Chamber Orchestra
Flute and Piccolo
Leslie Marrs*
Alison Flores*
Oboe
Anna Lampidis*
Shelly Hypes*
Clarinet
Shawn Copeland*
Nathan Olawsky*
Bassoon
Rebecca Hammontree*
Molly Roberts+
Horn
Mary Boudreault*
Kate Hopper+
Violin I
Dan Skidmore*
Colleen Chenail+
Frédéric St-Pierre
Amanda Judd
Gregorio Midero
Jane York
Gretchen Heller
Violin II
LaTannia Ellerbe*
Ueli Schweizer+
Katie Costello
Will Selle
Michael Cummings
Jared Matthews
Laura Doyle
Viola
Noah Hock*
John Ward+
Susannah Plaster
Patrick Scully
Cello
Brian Hodges*
Diane Bonds+
Gina Pezzoli
Brian Carter
Meaghan Skogen
Joel Wenger
Bass
Paul L. Quast*
Michael Di Trolio+
Patrick Byrd
* indicates principal or co-principal
+ indicates asst. principal
The Fibonacci Chamber Orchestra would like to extend our thanks to:
Dr. John J. Deal and the UNCG School of Music
Holland Transportation Management Services
Dr. David L. Hagy
This concert has been sponsored by Holland Transportation Management Services.
For assistance with your truckload and LTL transportation needs
contact Lawren @ 800-400-0614
