UNCG Focus on Piano
Literature 2012
Gabriel Fauré
(1845-1921)
Opening Recital
John Salmon, piano
Joseph Di Piazza, piano
Andrew Willis, piano
assisted by
Marjorie Bagley, violin
Thursday, May 31, 2012
8:00 pm
Recital Hall, Music Building
Program
Nocturne #1 in E-flat minor, Op. 33, No. 1 (c. 1875)
Nocturne #4 in E-flat, Op. 36 (1884)
Nocturne #10 in E minor, Op. 99 (1908)
Impromptu #4 in D-flat major, Op. 91 (1905-06)
Impromptu #6 in D-flat major, Op. 86b (1904)
John Salmon, piano
Barcarolle #4 in A flat, Op. 44 (1886)
Barcarolle # 3 in G flat, Op. 42 (1885)
“Sanctus” and “Libera Me” from Requiem, Op. 48 (1887-94),
transcription by Émile Naoumoff
Joseph Di Piazza, piano
Intermission
Sonata in E minor for violin and piano, Op. 108 (1916-17)
Allegro non troppo
Andante
Final (Allegro non troppo)
Marjorie Bagley, violin
Andrew Willis, piano
Program notes
Gabriel Fauré’s piano music embodies several paradoxes: How can the pleasant
diversion and supposed superficiality suggested by the titles of his small piano
pieces, “nocturne” and “impromptu,” actually nudge us toward complex emotions
and profound thoughts? Under the guise of salon music, who could have expected
the emergence of such weighty issues as ambiguity and doubt, piercing sadness, and
an exploration of the deepest philosophical issues? How can Fauré affect a sans souci
demeanor yet be deeply passionate? Part of the answer lies in the fact that he was
French. But there is also a chronological explanation, given the span of his lifetime,
1845-1924, which bridges the two deeply connected yet wildly incongruent styles of
Romanticism and Modernism.
Spiritually and thematically, Fauré belongs to a group of authors and artists that
includes Fyodor Dostoyevsky (1821-1881), Rainer Maria Rilke (1875-1926), and
Edvard Munch (1863-1944). Through music, Fauré captures the loneliness and
emptiness of Dostoyevsky’s underground man (Notes from the Underground, 1864),
“the trembling image of happiness and doubt” (la tremblante image de bonheur et de
doute) in Rilke’s poetic depiction of a swan (Un cygne,1907), and the anxiety of
Munch’s famous non-gender-specific screamer (Der Schrei, 1893-1910). Existential
dread and fin de siècle cynicism, yet couched in beautiful melodies and lush
harmonies, always seem to be at the heart of Fauré’s music.
The five pieces I will play tonight constitute a kind of dramatic arc, starting with the
frankly Romantic and intensely sad Nocturne #1 in E-flat Minor (c. 1875), a stylistic
descendant of Chopin’s nocturnes. Nocturne #4 in E-flat Major (1884), with its
singable melodies and rich seventh chords (that could fill a compendium of jazz
harmonies), connotes a pleasant world of longing.
But Nocturne #10 in E Minor (1908) thrusts us into both epistemological polyvalence
and sadness, hallmarks of the modern era. By 1908, even before WWI, most
Europeans had had ample opportunity to experience both. Fauré’s tonal wanderings
and melodic non-destinations—we often don’t know what key we’re in or where the
melodies are headed—are signals of a new age. The piece ends without hope, one of
the most desolate works I’ve ever encountered.
Thank goodness Impromptu #4 (1905-6) offers a bit of lighthearted relief, albeit in
Fauré’s nuanced way, with tonal complexity. True to form, in the B section Fauré
tests the limits of tonality’s coherence while creating some of piano literature’s most
piquant dissonances. And, while this impromptu ends with a clear tonic chord, a
good deal of searching happened along the way. We know that some big worries
were really underneath the veneer of carefree abandon.
Impromptu #6 (1904), originally written for harp, is a startling pronouncement of
confidence and joy. Vigor, hope, and theatricality (notice the crossing of hands!)
define this piece. By the end, despite the flamboyant arpeggios (or because of them?),
we feel that some dragon has been slayed, some obstacle overcome. It is pompous yet
sincere (in other words, French) and uncharacteristically virtuosic. There is nothing
distant or abstract. By the end, it is pure joie de vivre.
John Salmon
Fauré’s art is an extremely refined one, embodying the finest French qualities of
clarity, grace and elegance. As a composer he is outstanding for his melodic and
harmonic invention. These traits are clearly identified in the 13 Barcarolles. Fauré,
snubbing superstition, also wrote 13 Nocturnes. Dover’s edition of the Nocturnes and
Barcarolles include only 12 of each. The 13th Barcarolle and the 13th Nocturne (his last
two piano works) were under copyright at the time of Dover’s publication.
A barcarolle is a boat song in 6/8 meter characterized by a buoyant feel to the rhythm.
Fauré’s 4th Barcarolle in A-flat major has a simple form of ABA. The A section
contains a persistent ascending and descending A-flat arpeggio reminiscent of water
lapping at the side of the boat. Many augmented chords and chromatic breezes gently
propel the vessel on what I imagine a serene lake in the French countryside. The B
section has a beautiful cello solo divided between the hands with rippling
accompaniment. A return of the A section takes the boat ashore.
The 3rd Barcarolle in G-flat major takes us on quite a different voyage, much more
unpredictable, in the wake of the A-flat one. The form is more fantasia-like, whimsical
and improvisatory. The rapidity of the harmonic rhythm (changing harmonies)
creates waves during the boat ride, while the “mode” of transportation is wavering
between major and minor. All contribute to a fantastic ride.
It would be negligent to pay homage to Fauré and exclude what many, including
Nadia Boulanger, believe is his best work, the Requiem. Although he said it was
written “for the pleasure of it,” the death of his parents is often mentioned as the
impetus to it. The transcription for piano by Emile Naoumoff is published by Schott
in their Virtuosic Piano Transcription Series (ED9473).
The Sanctus transcribes as a lovely duet with treble (women) and bass (men)
antiphonal canonic exchanges under a solo violin descant. All come together at the
climax and exclaim “Hosanna in excelsis.” The Libera me also transcribes well for the
piano with the long strings of the bass pulsating the rhythmic ostinato under the
vocal parts. Both these movements are a challenge to the voicing skills of the pianist.
Joe Di Piazza
Sonata in E minor for Violin and Piano, Op. 108 (1916-17)
Despite his early success with a sonata for violin and piano – the one in A major that
you will hear tomorrow night – it was to take forty years before Fauré again tried his
hand at this form. Émile Vuillermoz saw a “close relationship” between these two
works that demonstrate “the same strength of thematic invention, the same youthful
ardor in the stride of the conquering allegros, the same variety of melodic mood....”
Fauré’s signature traits are indeed fully in evidence, among them an unbroken and
cumulative stream of energy, a fondness for trochaic short-long rhythms, and a
penchant for long melodic spans that flirt with one key only to take up dalliance with
another.
Fauré composed most of this work in the tranquil lakeside setting of Évian even as
war raged across the north of Europe. His response to the anxieties of the hour was
the redoubling of musical creation, a testament perhaps to the eternal value of art and
beauty. As such, the dedication to Queen Elisabeth of Belgium (herself an
accomplished violinist) bespeaks a solidarity more artistic than political. It was ever
Fauré’s aim to “reach as high as possible above that which is.”
The opening of the first movement encapsulates much of its emotional content. In
just seven bars Fauré presents three distinct elements: anxiety (the piano’s angular
opening gesture), passionate hope (the violin’s soaring entrance), and doubtful
ambiguity (the violin’s stepwise descent that avoids meeting the piano’s steady
chords head on). Waves of energy rise and subside across the triple meter, evoking
the restlessness of Fauré’s barcarolle idiom. The calmer second subject is easily
recognized by its initial soothing scale descent (sol-fa-mi-re-do). Although an
underlying sonata form is definitely present, Fauré repeats nothing literally; rather, he
continually unfolds new developments from his material. At the climax, the violin
and the piano bass line join in the full-throated singing of the second subject in strict
canon. Dry academicism? Far from it – every note comes from the heart, and the
contrapuntal device serves to redouble the beauty.
No chasm separates Fauré’s earlier, supposedly more accessible, style from that of his
“late period.” Thus, the second movement is based upon an Andante from his
Symphony in D minor, Op. 40, a work that had not satisfied the composer and that he
had suppressed. Over a serenely steady accompaniment of repeated chords the violin
spins out a mostly stepwise melody. A second melody, with a gently rocking
accompaniment (another form of barcarolle?), explores the identity politics between
G# in E major and A flat in F minor, oscillating repeatedly from one to the other.
Once again, long, aspiring lines and contrapuntal dialogue animate a sustained
current, achieving a powerful climactic resolution.
The finale at first exudes a certain boulevardier cheerfulness in accord with our
expectations of a classical rondo. Duple meter simplifies the texture, while active
accompaniments supply an energetic undercurrent to several long-lined melodies.
Vuillermoz expresses it nicely: “the mood is gathered into a sort of smiling euphoria.”
Then, just when we least expect anything out of the ordinary, the opening gesture of
the first movement interjects itself, and before long the canonic song of the first
movement soars again. After this there is no going back: when the movement’s own
themes are heard for the last time, they are transfigured by the touch of ecstasy.
Andrew Willis
Performer bios
John Salmon, piano, has distinguished himself on four continents, as both a classical
and jazz artist. Critics have praised his “mesmerizing boldness and confidence”
(Tallahassee Democrat, Tallahassee, Florida) and called him “a tremendous pianist” (El
País, Madrid, Spain) and “dashing performer” (Journal de Genève, Geneva,
Switzerland). His broad repertoire covers the classics—Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert,
Schumann, Brahms—though his involvement with contemporary music is equally
strong. Salmon has been at the forefront of performing new works by such celebrated
composers as Dave Brubeck (who dedicated two compositions to Salmon), Nikolai
Kapustin, and Lalo Schifrin. His performances and recordings (on the Phoenix,
Naxos, and Albany labels) have been heard on radio stations throughout the U.S.,
including National Public Radio, WNYC in New York, and WFMT in Chicago; and on
the national radio stations of Australia, Brazil, Canada, England, Finland, France,
Germany, Holland, Hungary, Italy, Moldova, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden,
Switzerland, and Ukraine. Salmon is a frequent guest performer at festivals in the U.S.
and Europe, having appeared at the Piccolo Spoleto Festival (Charleston, South
Carolina), Piano Festival Northwest (Portland, Oregon), Festival for Creative Pianists
(Grand Junction, Colorado), Festival Internacional de Música del Mediterráneo
(Cartagena, Spain), and the International Bartók Festival (Szombathely, Hungary).
Other special appearances include an all-Liszt recital in Mexico City for the American
Liszt Society and an all-Brubeck recital in Washington, DC for the Music Teachers
National Association. John Salmon has been a member of the faculty of The
University of North Carolina at Greensboro School of Music since 1989. He holds the
Doctor of Musical Arts degree from The University of Texas at Austin; the Master of
Music degree from The Juilliard School; the Solistendiplom from the Hochschule für
Musik, Freiburg, Germany; and the Bachelor of Music and Bachelor of Arts
(philosophy) degrees from Texas Christian University.
Joseph Di Piazza has performed extensively in this country and in Europe as a
recitalist, chamber player, and soloist with symphony orchestras. He has been the
recipient of numerous honors and awards, and concert venues include Chicago’s
Orchestra Hall, the Chicago Art Institute, the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for the
Performing Arts, and concert Series at the Art Museums of Washington DC,
Cincinnati, and North Carolina. He has participated as a performer, clinician and
adjudicator in festivals at Interlochen, Eastern Music Festival, Chicago Spring Arts,
Beethoven Festival on Long Island, NYC, and Music for a Great Space. Concerto
performances include the canon of Russian Romantic Concertos: including the
Tchaikovsky 1st and Rachmaninoff 2nd and 3rd with numerous Symphony Orchestras.
The Doctor of Musical Arts and the Master of Music degrees were earned at the
University of Wisconsin-Madison where he received a prestigious NDEA Fellowship.
The Bachelor of Music degree was received at De Paul University in Chicago.
Additional studies were at Aspen, Peabody Conservatory, and the University of
Illinois. Major teachers include Herman Shapiro, Paul Badura-Skoda, and Howard
Karp.
His students have collected numerous awards and distinctions, and are members of
university faculties across the country. He has presented Master Classes throughout
the United States, and in Canada and Europe.
Noted for his mastery of early keyboard instruments, Andrew Willis performs in the
United States and abroad on pianos of every period. His recording of Op. 106 for the
first complete Beethoven sonata cycle on period instruments was hailed by The New
York Times as “a ‘Hammerklavier’ of rare stature.” He has also recorded Schubert
lieder and Rossini songs with soprano Julianne Baird and early Romantic song cycles
with soprano Georgine Resick. At UNCG, where he joined the keyboard faculty in
1994, Willis directs the biennial Focus on Piano Literature, for which he
commissioned, premiered, and recorded Martin Amlin’s Sonata No. 7 (2000). Willis
has appeared at the Boston Early Music Festival, the Bloomington Early Music
Festival, and the Magnolia Baroque Festival and has performed with the Atlanta
Baroque Orchestra, the Apollo Ensemble, and the Philadelphia Classical Symphony.
A past president of the Southeastern Historical Keyboard Society, he extends his
investigation of historical performance practice into the Romantic era with
performances on an 1848 Pleyel and an 1841 Bösendorfer, and into the Baroque with
performances of J. S. Bach and Italian masters on a replica of a 1735 Florentine piano.
Andrew Willis is a graduate of Curtis, Temple, and Cornell, where his mentors
included Mieczyslaw Horszowski, Lambert Orkis, and Malcolm Bilson.
Violinist Marjorie Bagley made her Lincoln Center concerto debut in 1997 with the
Little Orchestra Society after beginning her performing career at the age of nine in her
home state of North Carolina with the Asheville, Winston-Salem, and North Carolina
Symphonies. Having graduated from the Manhattan School of Music in the first class
of Pinchas Zukerman, she is active as a recitalist, chamber musician, and teacher.
Marjorie has also performed as soloist with the Utah Symphony, Idaho Falls
Symphony, Ann Arbor Symphony, the University of Michigan Symphony, and the
Washington Square Music Series. As first violinist and founding member of the
Arcata String Quartet, Marjorie performed in the Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie,
London’s Wigmore Hall, and across Western Europe and the United States. She is
also an active proponent for new music and has premiered works by Paul Chihara,
David Noon, Nils Vigeland, and Judith Shatin. Through her travels to music festivals,
Marjorie has had the opportunity to play with some of the great artists of our time
including Pinchas Zukerman, Itzhak Perlman, Joseph Kalichstein, members of the
Guarneri, Emerson, American, Tokyo, and Borromeo String Quartets. Ms. Bagley can
be heard on recordings for the VOX, New World and Summit labels, and a recording
of music for violin and percussion on the Equilibrium label featuring a concerto by
Lou Harrison. Marjorie is the Co-Director of the Juniper Chamber Music Festival in
Logan, Utah, which is becoming one of the most elite chamber music festivals in the
nation. Ms. Bagley has been on the faculty of Ohio University, Utah State University,
and the International Music Academy in Pilsen, Ms. Bagley has also taught at the
Brevard Music Center, the Perlman Music Program, the Kinhaven Music School, and
the Manhattan School of Music Preparatory Program.
