Conservatorium of Music
Friday Performance Class
Friday Performance Class
| O! du mein holder Abendstern | Richard Wagner (1813 - 1883) |
| Nicholas Beecher, Voice | |
| Andrea Katz, piano | |
| This baritone aria 'O! du mein holder Abendstern' ('Song to the Evening Star') comes from the third act of Wagner's Tannhäuser. The opera, first performed in 1845, is based on medieval German history from the early 13th century. The character Wolfram prays to the evening star to guide Elizabeth, who has climbed the Wartburg to die, to the heavens. Wolfram plays his harp as he reflects upon his platonic love for her. | |
| Twelve Poems of Emily Dickinson | Aaron Copland (1900 - 1990) |
| 4. The World Feels Dusty 5. Heart, We Will Forget Him 6. Dear March, Come In! | |
| Lisette Bolton , Voice | |
| "The poems centre about no single theme, but they treat of subject matter particularly close to Miss Dickinson: nature, death, life, eternity... the composer hopes that, in seeking a musical counterpart for the unique personality of the poet, he has given the songs, taken together, the aspect of a song cycle. The twelve songs are dedicated to twelve composer friends." - Copland | |
| Etude No.1 Op.31 | Alexander Glazunov (1865 - 1936) |
| Gulliver Poole, Piano | |
| Glazunov's first etude is a charming piece that is rarely heard. The etude focuses on the independence of fingers through broken chords, later escalating into a grand climax of leaping jumps and octaves in both hands. | |
| Estampes, L.100 | Claude Debussy (1862 - 1918) |
| III. Jardins sous la pluie | |
| Bernie Maitri, Piano | |
| Jardins sous la pluie describes a garden in the Normandy town of Orbec during an extremely violent rainstorm. Throughout the piece, there are sections that evoke the sounds of the wind blowing, a thunderstorm raging, and raindrops dropping. It makes use of the French folk melodies "Nous n'irons plus aux bois" and "Dodo, l'enfant do." Chromatic, whole tone, major and minor scales are used in this movement. | |
| Etude in E Major Op.8 No.5 | Alexander Scriabin (1872 - 1915) |
| Nuo Chen, Piano | |
| Miroirs No. 2: Oiseaux Triste2: | Maurice Ravel (1875 - 1937) |
| Alicia Elsom, Piano | |
| Known as "Sad Birds," is the second piece from the suite "Miroirs," a suite for solo piano that exhibits Ravel's development of new pianistic territories. | |
| Ballade Op. 47 in A-flat Major | Frédéric Chopin (1810 - 1849) |
| Alicia Elsom, Piano | |
| It is the third piece of Chopin's four ballades for solo piano. The ballade is dedicated to his pupil Pauline de Noailles. The inspiration for it is usually claimed to be Adam Mickiewicz's poem Undine. Out of the four ballades, this ballade has the tightest structure. It uses development procedures that heighten the tension. | |
| Drei Romanzen, op.28 | Robert Schumann (1810 - 1856) |
| Jayjay Tian (Xiaojian Tian), Piano | |