Song for Stephanie was composed in 2000 as a tribute to Stephanie van Sice,
the eldest daughter of American marimbist Robert van Sice who has long been a
proponent of Klatzow’s music. The piece was originally conceived as one of a
set of six etudes for marimba, of which only this one was completed. It is a
study in the legato playing of chordal textures in which the player has to
assimilate decorative elements, such as arpeggios and grace notes, without
losing the thread of the melody. The primary theme of the piece always
commences with a major triad, but quickly departs from that in incorporate mild
dissonances and quartal harmony. As an essentially reflective composition, it
begins very tranquil in nature. When the embellishments appear, it builds to a
powerful climax before returning to the solemn mood of the beginning.
According to the composer, this is the première performance of “Song for
Stephanie.”
Eric Ewazen, born in 1954 in Cleveland, Ohio, studied under Samuel Adler,
Milton Babbitt, Warren Benson, Gunther Schuller, and Joseph Schwantner at the
Eastman School of Music (BM 1976), Tanglewood, and the Julliard School
(MM 1978, DMA 1980) where he has been a member of the faculty since 1980.
A recipient of numerous composition awards and prizes, his works have been
commissioned and performed by many chamber ensembles and orchestras in the
United States and overseas. Other works for percussion include “Northern
Lights” for solo marimba and “The Palace of Nine Perfections” for large
percussion ensemble.
Of his Concerto, the composer writes:
Concerto for Marimba and String Orchestra was written in 1999 for She-e Wu and
the Moment Musical Orchestra of Taiwan, with Paul Chiang as the conductor. Prior to
writing the concerto, I had not written a solo for marimba since 1989, when I wrote a
work called “Northern Lights.” During that time, the marimba grew with extra low
notes not commonly available when I was writing previously for the instrument. I
consequently wanted to take advantage of this beautiful extra range, and I also wanted
to construct a piece which had a variety of colors and emotional expressions -
excitement, poignancy, joy, wistfulness.
The first movement opens with a chorale which reappears both at the end of the
movement, and once more towards the end of the last movement. Set in C Major, this
chorale represents absolute peace and joy and ties the work together. Following this
opening, the first movement takes a sudden shift, with rapid, spinning sixteenths and
arpeggiated figures. The second movement is really a song without words - it is
intimate, lyrical, and expressive. The middle section is quite intense, but there is a
return to the quiet lyricism of the opening song. The final movement is a rousing
rondo, actually inspired by Brahms and his Hungarian-inspired music. My background
is Ukranian and Polish, and there are Eastern European harmonies threading their way
through this movement, along with a middle section which has a quirky syncopated
rhythm.
The work was premièred in Taiwan in November 1999 and has been recorded by She-e
Wu with the International Sejong Soloists for a CD devoted to my percussion music
which will be released during the 2002-2003 season.
Nathan Daughtrey
marimba
Sooyoung Smeltz
piano
Graduate Recital
Sunday, April 7, 2002
7:30 pm
Organ Recital Hall, School of Music
Program
Concerto in One Movement Emma Lou Diemer
for Marimba and Orchestra (1991) (b. 1927)
Song for Stephanie (2000) Peter Klatzow
world première (b. 1945)
Concerto for Marimba and String Orchestra (1999) Eric Ewazen
I. Andante ~ Allegro vivace (b. 1954)
II. Andante cantabile
III. Allegro con fuoco
In partial fulfillment of the degree requirements for the
Doctor of Musical Arts
* * * * * * * * * *
The hall is equipped with a listening assistance system.
Patrons needing such assistance should please see one of the ushers in the lobby.
Emma Lou Diemer, born in 1927 in Kansas City, Missouri, began her music
career with the composition of several piano concertos by the age of 13. In
addition to her marimba concerto, she has also written concertos for harpsichord,
organ, and for flute, as well as many works for orchestra, chamber and choral
ensembles, and electronics. Her composition degrees are from Yale University
(BM 1949, MM 1950) and the Eastman School of Music (PhD 1960), with
additional study in composition in Brussels on a Fulbright Scholarship and
Tanglewood. She has received an ASCAP award annually since 1962 for
publications and performances, as well as awards from the National Endowment
for the Arts, Meet the Composer, the National Music Council, and commissions
from various professional school and church organizations. She served as
professor of theory and composition at the University of California at Santa
Barbara from 1971 to 1991. She is still composing and is currently organist at
First Presbyterian Church in Santa Barbara where she resides.
Concerto in One Movement for Marimba and Orchestra was written for the
10th Anniversary season of the Bay Area Women’s Philharmonic for première in
its March 1991 concerts in San Francisco with JoAnn Falletta conducting and
Deborah Schwartz as marimba soloist. The orchestration and general style of
the entire concerto are imbued with the individuality of the tone color and
technique of the marimba, reflected in the orchestral textures used throughout:
the tremolos and glissandos, as well as rhythms and melodic motives that echo
or reinforce the ideas expressed by the solo instrument. Although the work is
set in one continuous movement, there are three distinct sections arranged in the
typical fashion of fast-slow-fast. There are two solo cadenzas throughout the
piece as well as an extended solo passage in the slow middle section. The spirit
and form of the work are related to Vivaldi in its use of slow moving harmonies,
and bears some harmonic relation to the music of Ravel.
Mr. Daughtrey will be recording the concerto in June of 2002 with the Slovak
Radio Symphony Orchestra in Bratislava, Slovakia.
Peter Klatzow, born in 1945 in Springs, Transvaal (South Africa) attended the
Royal College of Music in London in 1964, where he studied composition with
Bernard Stevens, piano with Kathleen Long, and orchestration with Gordon
Jacob. He spent the following years in Italy and Paris, where he studied with
Nadia Boulanger. Since returning to South Africa in 1966, he has worked at the
South African Broadcasting Corporation in Johannesburg as a music producer,
and in 1973 was appointed to the University of Cape Town, where he is
presently Associate Professor of Composition. One of the few South African
composers to achieve international recognition, Peter Klatzow has won prizes in
Spain and Toronto, and his works have been performed in various European
countries and the United States. Other works for marimba include “Dances of
Earth and Fire” and “Inyanga” for solo marimba, and “Concerto for Marimba
and Orchestra.”
Nathan Daughtrey
marimba
Sooyoung Smeltz
piano
Graduate Recital
Sunday, April 7, 2002
7:30 pm
Organ Recital Hall, School of Music
Program
Concerto in One Movement Emma Lou Diemer
for Marimba and Orchestra (1991) (b. 1927)
Song for Stephanie (2000) Peter Klatzow
world première (b. 1945)
Concerto for Marimba and String Orchestra (1999) Eric Ewazen
I. Andante ~ Allegro vivace (b. 1954)
II. Andante cantabile
III. Allegro con fuoco
In partial fulfillment of the degree requirements for the
Doctor of Musical Arts
* * * * * * * * * *
The hall is equipped with a listening assistance system.
Patrons needing such assistance should please see one of the ushers in the lobby.
