Conservatorium of Music
Thursday Concert Class
Thursday Concert Class
| Concert Piece No. 2 In E-Flat Major Op. 12 | Willi Brandt (1869 - 1923) |
| Oscar Mason, Trumpet | |
| Amir Farid, piano | |
| Willi Brandt was one of the late 19th century's greatest virtuosos. Like Jean-Baptiste Arban, he also taught at music conservatories in addition to performing in public. He wrote methods and textbooks which are still in use today. His Concert Piece No. 2, just like his other works, still represents a challenge to every trumpet player today. | |
| Casa Mia | Giacomo Puccini (1858 - 1924) |
| Transcribed by Liam Bellman-Sharpe | |
| Nathan Camilleri, Voice | |
| Amir Farid, piano | |
| Mine home, mine home; However small you may be, You seem like an abbey to me. Mine home. | |
| Marechiare | Francesco Paolo Tosti (1846 - 1916) |
| Arranged by Liam Bellman-Sharpe & Nathan Camilleri | |
| Nathan Camilleri, Voice | |
| Amir Farid, piano | |
| With the opening translated text "When the moon rises in Marechiare, Even the fish are making love!" it is clear what our protagonist in mind. Neapolitan Text by Salvatore Di Giacomo, our protagonist sings of frustrated love; "When has [he] ever had to wait for such time?!" Through some passionate melisma and persuasive language, "Come down... while the air is sweet!", perhaps Carulì will finally return to the arms of her lover. | |
| Islamey (Oriental Fantasy), Op. 18 | Mily Balakirev (1837 - 1910) |
| Ann Anh-Thu Nguyen, Piano | |
| Islamey was written in September 1869. This piece was written in the course of one month, unlike Balakirev's usual habit of composing for several years. It is a large-scale fantasy incorporating three themes from Islamic regions of the Caucasus area, decked out with rich harmonies and developed into one of the most flashy virtuoso pieces for the instrument. In 1909, one year before Balakirev's death, the Italian Alfredo Casella introduced his orchestration of the piece, which is suitably dazzling and colorful. | |
| La Ferrand | Antoine Forqueray (1671 - 1745) |
| Arranged by Jean-Baptiste Forqueray | |
| Adam Bowden, Harpsichord | |
| Originally written for viola da gamba and basso continuo by one of the 18th century's finest French composers for that instrument, this work marks the opening of the third suite in D major published in 1747 by Forqueray's equally talented son. Working its way progressively through a number of virtuosic techniques (hand crossing, arpeggios, scale passages, alternation of keyboards, etc), the movement depicts Joseph-Hyacinthe Ferrand (1709-1791), son of a wealthy tax collector and also a musician who was at one time a pupil of François Couperin (1668-1733). | |
| La Ténébreuse | François Couperin (1668 - 1733) |
| Adam Bowden, Harpsichord | |
| As its title implies, this work, an austere c minor Allemande, carries with it a gloomy and shadowy atmosphere with startling outbursts and a particularly sinister second half. According to Jane Clark and Derek Conlon in their book "The Mirror of Human Life: Reflections on François Couperin's 'Pièces de Clavecin'", the work may have been written to accompany one of the masquerades held by the duchesse du Maine. This duchess, later exiled for conspiracy in the early 1700s, was a pupil of Couperin's and the fine seventeenth century harpsichord said to have been owned by her can be seen in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. | |
| Mingus Samba | Guinga (1950 - -) |
| Arranged by Diogo Carvalho | |
| Phillip Cortes, Guitar | |
| An arrangement of a popular Brazilian Standard, the piece maintains it's Samba feel amongst a flurry of fast moving notes and chords | |
| When She Loved Me | Randy Newman (1943 - -) |
| Arranged by Phillip Cortes | |
| Phillip Cortes, Guitar | |
| "When She Loved Me" is a song written by Randy Newman and sung by Sarah McLachlan for the Pixar film Toy Story 2. It was nominated for the 2000 Academy Award for Best Original Song (cry every tim). The song has been arranged for solo guitar. | |
| Piano Trio No. 1 Op. 8 | Dmitri Shostakovich (1906 - 1975) |
| Connor Taylor, Piano | |
| Zamarah Morley - violin, Katherine Fazzolari - cello, Connor Taylor - piano | |
| Shostakovich was only 17 when he wrote this Trio dedicated to Tatyana Glivenko with whom he began a long distance relationship. It shows signs of a student's work in its rambling form and Romantic sprit mixed with chromatic moments. There are also many hints of the more mature Shostakovich. His instructors did not appreciate these moments however, one such professor describing his displeasure with young composers “obsession with the Grotesque,” a comment which Shostakovich apparently took with some satisfaction. | |