Conservatorium of Music
Thursday Concert Class
Thursday Concert Class
| Maid of the Mist | Herbert L.Clarke (1867 - 1945) |
| Bailey Lake, Trumpet | |
| Rhodri Clarke, piano | |
| 'The Maid of the Mist’ is one of about 50 pieces Clarke wrote to display his virtuosity in concerts. 'Maid of the Mist' is the name of a tourist boat that visitors to Niagara Falls can ride to view the falls up-close. | |
| Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Wind Ensemble | Ingolf Dahl (1912 - 1970) |
| Edited by Harvey Pittel | |
| I - Recitative II - Passacaglia | |
| Mitchell Flynn, Alto Saxophone | |
| Rhodri Clarke, piano | |
| Dahl's saxophone concerto was written for saxophonist Sigurd Rascher in 1949 and was revised four years later. It is both a large-scale and an important work, but, because of the difficulty of the solo and accompaniment, is one of the lesser played standards of classical saxophone repertoire. The concerto is tonally somewhat traditional, but the treatment of rhythm is not, revealing much inspiration from jazz and the works of Igor Stravinsky, with whom Dahl sometimes worked during this period. Despite this, Dahl proves his melancholic and passionate writing within the first two movements which are well suited the saxophone's unique colour. | |
| Piano sonata Op.27 | Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827) |
| I. Allegro-Andante-Allegro II. Allegro molto e vivace III. Adagio con espressione IIII. Allegro vivace | |
| Lefei Chang, piano | |
| Beethoven was about 30 years old when he wrote the sonata. He had already made a name for himself in Vienna as pianist and composer and was beginning to explore alternatives to the classical-era compositional procedures that he had largely adhered to during the 18th century. The most famous works of his "middle period", often emphasizing heroism, were yet to come. | |
| Bruyères, Prelude No. 5, Book II | Claude Debussy (1862 - 1918) |
| Xiao-Xiao Kingham, Piano | |
| Today Debussy is renowned for being the composer who freed Western music from the claustrophobic confines of “functional†harmony. What mattered to Debussy was the colour of each chord and the fleeting impressions that harmonic hues and shading could evoke in the mind of the imaginative listener. Few works sum up Debussy’s practice in this regard more than his two sets of preludes composed between 1909 and 1913. Bruyères (Heather) evokes images of the Scottish countryside. Light touches of the pentatonic scale give this prelude its rustic feel, along with the evocative calls of a distant shepherd’s flute. | |
| Concert Etude, No. 8, Opus 40 | Nikolai Kapustin (1937 - ) |
| Xiao-Xiao Kingham, Piano | |
| Kapustin's Eight Concert Etudes encompass a range of styles while highlighting technical virtuosity. They balance established piano repertoire tradition with heightened excitement, highlighting Kapustin at the fore of jazz/classical crossover music. Concert Etude No. 8 is a compact work which makes for a fast-paced finale to Kapustin's etude collection. | |
| Horn Concerto No.1 in Eb Major, Op.11 | Richard Strauss (1864 - 1949) |
| I. Allegro II. Andante III. Rondo-Allegro | |
| Rosemarry Yang, French horn | |
| Rhodri Clarke, piano | |
| In 1882 to 1883, Richard Strauss wrote his Horn Concerto No. 1 in E-flat major, Op. 11, in two versions, one for piano accompaniment and one with an orchestra. Since then, this horn concerto has become one of the most popular concertos of the 19th century. The version with orchestral accompaniment is entitled "Waldhornkonzert", indicating that the concerto was to be played on the natural valveless horn (Waldhorn), which was the horn of preference played by his father. The concerto is in three movements, and is typical of Strauss' music at this time in being Romantic in style, showing the influence of Mendelssohn. | |
| Piano Sonata No. 5 in C minor, Op. 10, No. 1 | Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827) |
| First movement | |
| Hye Jin Park, piano | |
| The first movement, in sonata form, opens energetically with contrasting loud and soft phrases. The theme is angular in shape, both in its rising arpeggios and its dotted rhythm. | |
| Cantabile Opus.17 | Niccolò Paganini (1782 - 1840) |
| Glen Nguyen, Violin | |
| Rhodri Clarke, piano | |
| Niccolo Paganini was an Italian violinist, violist, guitarist and composer during the Romantic Period. The Cantabile is played in the key signature of D Major while expressing the style of an italian voice. | |
| Thus Sings My Soul | Bethany Clarkson (1998 - 3264) |
| Bethany Clarkson, Piano | |
| Chelsea Jones (oboe), Matthew Castle (clarinet), Bethany Clarkson (piano), Michael Stokol (claves) | |
| This piece was written for the Composition Studies elective quartet assessment, and was originally scored for flute, violin, piano, and claves, with the requirement that it be sightreadable. The title of this piece was taken from the chorus of a classic hymn: "Thus sings my soul, my Saviour God to Thee, how great Thou art!" Aside from the title, my composition bears no musical connection with the hymn. Compared to my other compositions, this piece is far more lighthearted, probably inspired by anime music, and took inspiration from its instrumentation rather than any extramusical source. Thank you for listening; I hope you like it! | |
| The Locomotion Hills | Matthew Castle (1997 - ) |
| Bethany Clarkson, Piano | |
| Matthew Castle (clarinet), Timothy O'Malley (trumpet), Anji Dang and Bethany Clarkson (piano) | |
| This piece explores the depressed note technique on piano, which enables the harmonics of the held notes to ring through. The 4-hand piano allowed me to have both an active piano part as well as a passive one (depressed notes) which provides a haunting whisper of the previous harmonies. The piece somewhat represents what I imagine a train that runs through a village in the hills would sound like, and how one would hear it as the train got closer and then further away. The driving 5/4 section is juxtaposed at the end, as we are left with cheeky fragments of the melodic material as the train steams into the distance. | |
| Prelude and Fugue in D# minor BWV 877 | Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750) |
| Tim Kan, Piano | |
| The prelude propels itself by a constant stream of semiquavers whilst being complemented by an occasional quaver theme in the opposite hand. The subject of the fugue is rather long and expansive so throughout the piece, many instances of stretto can be observed and Bach explores these effects amongst the 4 voices. | |
| Fantasia in C minor K475 | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 - 1791) |
| Tim Kan, Piano | |
| The Fantasia was published together with the Sonata in C minor, K. 457, being one of the only works to be published together with a sonata. The opening begins with soft octaves that sets up the ominous and brooding C minor atmosphere. It then continues to develop into many independent themes and wander off in to many different keys which reflects the contemplative nature of a fantasia. | |