Conservatorium of Music
Thursday Concert Class
Thursday Concert Class
| Vocalise | Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873 - 1943) |
| Transcribed by Zoltan Kocsis | |
| Hannah Shin, Piano | |
| Rachmaninoff's Vocalise is originally a song for voice and piano containing no words, but rather sung using a single vowel of the singer’s choosing. The song, with its glorious melody and lack of text, has been transcribed for every possible combination of instruments: there are numerous arrangements for orchestra, chamber ensemble, choir, and solo instruments, including solo piano. Its yearning melodies and expressive harmonies convey the sense of melancholic longing like no other work. | |
| Fantaisie sur Francoise da Rimini | Claude-Paul Taffanel (1844 - 1908) |
| Wil Rigby, Flute | |
| Jacob Abela, piano | |
| Paul Taffanel is known as the founder of the french flute school as we know it. Through his professorship at the Paris Conservatoire he heavily promoted the revival of the music of JS Bach, which until his time had primarily been ignored by french musicians. He was also a composer of some renown, his five flute fantasies based on themes from opera's of the day being his most well known works. The Francoise da Rimini Fantasie is the second fantaisie he wrote based on Opera by Ambroise Thomas (The other being Mignon) and opens with a even paced lyrical theme concluding with dance themes from the Opera. | |
| Ramble on the last love duet | Percy Grainger (1882 - 1961) |
| Kevin Chow, Piano | |
| Work commenced on the Ramble on Love (‘Ramble on the love-duet in the opera “The Rose-Bearer” [Der Rosenkavalier] FSFM No 4’) before 1920. But it was his mother’s suicide in 1922 that drove Grainger to complete this most elaborate of all his piano paraphrases, with her name obliquely enshrined in the title. It is one of the most meticulously notated piano pieces in the repertoire, with copious use of the sostenuto (middle) pedal. | |
| Lisle Joyeuse | Claude Debussy (1862 - 1918) |
| Kevin Chow, Piano | |
| Meaning "The island of joy",the central relationship in the work is that between material based on the whole-tone scale, the lydian mode and the diatonic scale, the lydian mode functioning as an effective mediator between the other two." | |
| Deh vieni, non tardar | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 - 1791) |
| Emilia Bertolini, Voice | |
| Jacob Abela, piano | |
| This aria from Le nozze di Figaro and is sung by Susanna, the maid to Countess Almaviva. At this moment, Susanna is dressed in the countess' clothes as part of a plan to trick the countess' unfaithful husband, Count Almaviva. Susanna's fiance, Figaro, is also spying on Susanna and he fears that she intends to submit to the desires of the Count. Susanna, aware that Figaro is nearby but pretending not to see him, adopts a coquettish eloquence of language and poise that is sure to make him jealous. Susanna wants to punish Figaro for ever doubting her fidelity. But, despite her mischievousness, this aria is Susanna's love song to Figaro. | |
| Piangerò la sorte mia | George Frideric Handel (1685 - 1759) |
| Emilia Bertolini, Voice | |
| Jacob Abela, piano | |
| This aria comes from Handel's opera seria Giulio Cesare. At this moment in the drama, Cleopatra is mourning her dire fate as her beloved Cesare is presumed dead and her army has been defeated in battle. This is the first moment in the opera in which the audience observes the proud and regal Cleopatra in a state of unmitigated vulnerability and despair. | |
| Caprice No. 24 in A minor | Niccolò Paganini (1782 - 1840) |
| Emily Sun, Violin | |
| As the final caprice of Paganini's 24 Caprices, this well-known work comprises of a theme, eleven variations, and a finale. Each variation explores a different technique of the right or left hand, offering a sense of diversity and contrast from one variation to the next. The tonal simplicity of the theme, combined with the variations' satisfying capriciousness have made this caprice an eminent source of inspiration for composers like Liszt, Lutoslawski, and Rachmaninov. | |
| Toward the Sea (海へ, Umi e) | Tōru Takemitsu (1930 - 1996) |
| I: The Night III: Cape God | |
| Jackie Hu, Alto Flute and Guitar | |
| Jackie Hu, Alto Flute and Sophie Marcheff, Guitar | |
| Tōru Takemitsu was commissioned by Greenpeace for the Save the Whales campaign to produce this piece called “Toward the Sea” (海へ Umi e) for Alto Flute and Guitar. Takemitsu quotes that this “music is a homage to the sea which creates all things and a sketch for the sea of tonality.” | |
| Sonata No.8 in C minor, Op.13 (Pathétique) | Ludwig Van Beethoven (1770 - 1827) |
| 1.Grave– Allegro di molto e con brio 2.Adagio cantabile 3.Rondo: Allegro | |
| Sam Liu, Piano | |
| The Pathetique opens with a slow introduction marked Grave, an indication of solemn import as well as slow speed. The powerful chordal writing leads to a sudden plumme down a run of 128th -notes into the main body of the movement, marked Molto allegro e con brio. The Adagio cantabile is built on a gorgeous melody — it has become almost too popular — and Beethoven sets this movement in rondo form. The key of this movement — A flat major — sounds particularly warm and comforting after the C-minor furies of the opening movement, and it is to C minor that Beethoven returns for his rondo finale, marked simply Allegro. | |
| Trio for Violin, Viola and Cello | Jean Cras (1879 - 1932) |
| I. - II. Lent | |
| Jin Long, Viola | |
| Nyssa Sanguansri, Violin, Annika Cho, Cello | |
| Jean Cras (1879-1932) was a French composer and naval officer of the 20th-century. He was born into a family with a long naval history and joined the Navy himself at the age of seventeen. The String Trio, composed in 1926, displays inspirations from a range of different styles, including influences of North Africa. The opening movement begins with a searching melody over the pulsating quavers of the cello. The second movement, Lent, is a series of unrelated episodes. | |