Tear Down These Walls Program by AT&T Performing Arts Center

Celebrating local dance, theatre and art in the Dallas Arts District.

EMERGE Coalition Presents Tear Down These Walls featuring The Julius Quartet

February 2 – 4, 2023

EMERGE Coalition Presents Tear Down These Walls

String Quartet No. 2, “White Wall”………………………………Scott Wollschleger

I. Part I

Leyendas: An Andean Walkabout………… Gabriela Lena Frank

I. Toyo

II. Tarqueada

III. Himno de Zampoñas

IV. Chasqui

V. Canto De Velorio

VI. Coqueteos

The Monarch Migration (World Premiere)…….…………….……… Jesus J. Martinez

String Quartet in G Minor, Op.10…….………Claude Debussy

I. Animé et très décidé

II. Assez vif et bien rythmé

III. Andantino, doucement expressif

IV. Très modéré

INTERMISSION

NOTES

Scott Wollschleger: String Quartet No. 2, “White Wall” (Part I)

White Wall is an austere yet playful sound world which is based around white noise and fragments of sound. The central image of combing through a cultural landscape-turned-desert occupied my mind as I wrote the work. It is music written at the end of the world, i.e., today. White Wall also invokes a sense of touching and breathing. In shaping the white noise, I tried to turn the quartet into a breathing apparatus that would always imply (concurrently and somewhat paradoxically) both a moving pattern and a simultaneous erasure of that pattern. For a long time, there is no pitched music, just shimmering whispers from the strings, rising and falling like the breath of sleepers in the dark. Gradually, pitches appear and disappear briefly, with a bow stroke or a sharp pluck, like particles bubbling into reality out of the quantum haze of interstellar space.

“[White Wall] definitely represented a break in my own work, or in myself, or in my approach to art, where I wanted to see how you could start from nothing, and pull from within itself something. . . . If you were to drain music from itself, what would be left over?”

−Scott Wollschleger

Gabriela L. Frank: Leyendas: An Andean Walkabout

Leyendas: An Andean Walkabout (2001) mixes elements from the western classical and Andean folk music traditions, drawing inspiration from the idea of mestizaje as envisioned by the Peruvian writer Jose María Arguedas, wherein cultures co-exist without the

subjugation of one by the other. “Toyos” depicts one of the most recognizable instruments of the Andes, the panpipe. The largest kind is the breathy toyo, which requires great stamina and lungpower and is typically played in parallel fourths. “Tarqueada” is a forceful and fast number suggestive of the tarka, a heavy wooden duct flute that is blown harshly in order to split the tone. Tarka ensembles typically play in casually tuned fourths, fifths, and octaves. “Himno de Zampoñas” takes its cue from a particular type of panpipe ensemble that divides up melodies through a technique known as hocketing. The characteristic sound of the zampoña panpipe is that of a fundamental tone blown flatly so that overtones ring out on top. “Chasqui” depicts the chasqui, a legendary runner from the Inca times who sprinted great distances to deliver messages between towns separated from one another by the Andean peaks. The chasqui needed to travel light, so I imagine his choice of instruments to be the charango, a high-pitched cousin of the guitar, and the lightweight bamboo quena flute, both of which influence this movement. “Canto de Velorio” portrays another wellknown Andean personality, a professional crying woman known as llorona. Hired to render funeral rituals (known as velorio) even sadder, the llorona is accompanied here by a second llorona and an additional chorus of mourning women (coro de mujeres). The chant Dies Irae is quoted as a reflection of the llorona’s penchant for blending verses from Quechua Indian folklore and western religious rites. “Coqueteos” is a flirtatious love song sung by men known as romanceros and is direct in its harmonic expression, bold, and festive. The romanceros sang in harmony with one another against a backdrop of guitars, which I think of as a vendaval de guitarras (storm of guitars).

� Gabriela L. Frank

Jesus J. Martinez: The Monarch Migration

Taking Flight

My wings are fragile. My goal in sight. Many will no longer take flight. I fearfully and fearlessly plummet across the deep unknown. Like a monarch, I spiral through nature’s fury Leaving behind a home I used to know. My wings endure divergent winds. Fresh air. Free air. Life anew.

-Mother -

The Monarch Migration utilizes eight tuned desk bells with string quartet. Growing up in South Texas, in walking distance from the US-Mexico border, my grandfather was a rancher and used to take me on routes that were connected to Mexico. The only indication of the two countries meeting were several small boulders with a metal inscription on top that read “United States-Mexico Border.” There were no walls or rivers spreading the two countries apart. I used to climb on the boulder, trying to see as far as I could. In the distance, I saw three very small silhouettes of what looked to be standing churches. All three were distant from each other, but visible to me. I could hear the faint sounds of the bells ringing after mass. The desk bells represent the distant bells that were heard as people crossed these border lines. This piece is dedicated to the immigrant people at the center of US Border crisis in South

Texas, and inspired by the poem Taking Flight, composed by Rosy Martinez. Like many minority artists in the United States, my heart breaks for the immigrant people and their detained children as their life is at a standstill at the South Texas border. The Monarch Migration details the heartbreak, as well as the power of the human spirit and its fight for a better life.

−Jesus J. Martinez

Claude

Debussy’s String Quartet has become one of the most beloved pieces in the repertoire because of its stunning beauty, textural variety and harmonic expression. Tearing away from the academic tradition and decrees of conservatory training, the young composer decided to live and write “solely for pleasure”, focusing on the sole purpose of beauty. The Paris Universal Exhibition of 1889 provided an eye opening experience for the Frenchman where he spent days absorbed by the music of non-Western performers, composers, artists and improvisers. To that end, Debussy’s masterpiece exists as an example of the finest fusion cuisine - blending the foreign sounds and textures with the finesse of French style.

Artist-in-Residence, The Julius Quartet

Commended for leaving audiences “ mesmerized by its resonant sound ” (The Collegiate Times), the Julius Quartet has cultivated a distinguished voice since its formation in 2012. As passionate chamber musicians,

Debussy: String Quartet in G Minor, Op. 10

the quartet strives to spread the values of chamber music to diverse communities in addition to presenting their unique expression within the music. The quartet’s expressive personality has led to performances all over North America in various venues such as Bing Concert Hall, Bargemusic, the Shalin Liu Performing Arts Center, The Moss Arts Center, the Museum of Fine Arts, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall. Since the ensemble’s formation, the group seeks to engage with community organizations and educational programs, such as “Bridging the Gap” - a program for youth at risk associated with The Salvation Army - and educational residencies with the MacPhail Center for Music (MN) and the Quad City Arts Visiting Artist Series (IA), enriching the various regions through performance workshops and interactive sessions across multiple school districts. In the Spring of 2020, the quartet and Texas composer Jesus J. Martinez founded EMERGE Coalition, Inc. (EMERGE): a performing arts nonprofit based in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex. With a mission to foster, develop and engage in the arts community, EMERGE has virtually hosted composers from around the world and premiered over 50 new works that were live-streamed to audiences across 5 continents. Furthermore, its new OFF the Beaten Path Performance Series was selected to be a part of the 22/23 season of the AT&T Performing Arts Center’s Elevator Project. Swiftly rising to critical acclaim, the group was awarded First Prize at the Chamber Music Yellow Springs Competition, First Prize at the first annual MA-ASTA String Quartet/Quintet Competition by unanimous vote, and was nominated for the Harvard Musical Association’s Arthur Foote Award. Residing in Dallas TX, the quartet served as the Peak Fellowship Ensemble-in-Residence at the Meadows School of the Arts at Southern Methodist University from 2017-2019, receiving close mentorship from violinist Aaron Boyd, Director of Chamber Music at SMU, and members of the Escher String Quartet. Prior to this appointment, the quartet served as the Graduate Quartet-in-Residence at the John J. Cali School of Music

at Montclair State University, where they worked intensely with the celebrated Shanghai Quartet.

2023 EMERGE [Edu] Artist: Hallie Martinez

Hallie Martinez is a Junior at Sharyland Pioneer High School in Mission, TX. She is a member of BPA - Business Professionals of America and HOSA - Future Health Professionals. She is a native of Mission, TX, near the US/Mexico border. Her artwork is a personification of her family history as her grandparents immigrated to the United States from Mexico in the late 1960’s. Her art work, Life Anew, American Dream, and Streets of Gold will be featured at the Tear Down These Walls concert at the AT&T Performing Arts Center, Wyly Theater in February 2023.

2023 EMERGE International Artist: Hyun Yeong Lee

Graphic designer Hyun Yeong Lee is a visual artist who resides in Daegu, South Korea. Recently, Hyun Yeong completed a degree in graphic design from Konkuk University Global Campus and her works can regularly be seen throughout the city of Daegu and other locations.

2023 EMERGE Dallas Artist: Richard Miller

Richard Miller was born in Baltimore, MD and was the first in his family to attend college, receiving a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Printmaking from the Maryland Institute College of Art. From there, Richard continued his studies, earning a Master of Fine Arts degree from Texas Christian University.

While at TCU, Miller spent two years at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, later moving on to the Amon Carter Museum where over the next 14 years he worked with their Publications Department. While at the Carter, Miller began his teaching career which now spans over 30 years in both Art History and Studio disciplines. In recent years, Richard Miller has been involved in numerous juried and group exhibitions, collaborative projects, as well as mounting two major solo exhibitions. Richard was one of 34 artists selected from over 650 entries in the prestigious Art in the Metroplex Juried Exhibition held in Fort Worth. Miller was also one of 5 finalists for the DFW Art Awards, Abstract Artist of the Year.

Richard Miller is an active participant in the DFW art community and is a member of the Texas Artist Coalition, the Texas Visual Arts Association and the Visual Arts Society of Texas.

Executive Director, Jesus J. Martinez

A Texas native with a master’s degree in Music Composition from Southern Methodist University, Jesus Martinez has served as Composer-in-Residence for both the Alabama Orchestra Association and the Irving Symphony Orchestra. He has scored award-winning films, and the Texas State Legislature issued a resolution in his name to honor his world premiere of “Threnody for 9/11 for Mixed Chamber Ensemble.” Martinez previously composed “The Sixth Floor,” which premiered at the 30th anniversary of The Sixth Floor Museum on February 18, 2019. In November 2019, Martinez was commissioned by The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza to compose a film score for the 16-minute film compilation of familiar and seldom seen footage. The score “3 Hours in Dallas,” was performed live to the film by the Sam Houston High School Percussion Ensemble on the eve of the 56th anniversary of President Kennedy’s assassination. Jesus is a three-time quarterfinalist for the GRAMMY

Music Educator Award presented by The Recording Academy/Grammy Awards. Jesus is a member of TMEA, PAS, CMA, and ASCAP and serves on the PAS Composition Committee. Jesus is the co-founder and Executive Director of EMERGE Coalition, Inc. A 501(c)(3) nonprofit performing arts organization in Dallas, TX, dedicated to the performance and expansion of contemporary music across the Dallas/Fort Worth Area. Jesus is also a Vic Firth education artist. Jesus resides in Lewisville, TX with his wife Sarah and son, Aiden.