Philharmonic Concert with guests, The Carthage President's String Quartet

2020-2021 Carthage Music Department Presents

Philharmonic Concert

With Guests: The Carthage President’s String Quartet

Sunday, Nov. 8 | 1 p.m. | A. F. Siebert Chapel

program There will be no intermission String Quartet No. 5: Parks Daniel Bernard Roumain (b. 1970) “I made up my mind not to move.”

The Carthage President’s String Quartet Azniv Khaligian, violin Ashlynne Edwards, violin Samuel Gomberg, viola William Dowell, cello Divertimento in F Major for String Orchestra, K. 138

I. Allegro II. Andante

III. Presto Entr’acte

Mozart (1765-1791)

Caroline Shaw (b. 1982)

personnel Dr. Etsushi Edward Kawakami, conductor Violin 1 Azniv Khaligian** Sophia Tajnai Lee Fulkerson Violin 2 Ashlynne Edwards* Edelmar Morales-Rivera Matthew Pakkebier Viola Genevieve Zauhar* Molly Fraser Bailey Wellen Samuel Gomberg Megan Baumeister Elena Cordoba Meghan Keiffer-Zagar Jacob Mayer

Cello William Dowell* Grace Hill Rheanna Weaver Davison Krajcik Brian Dean Halla Swindle Emily Carr Bass McKenzie Wallace*

*principal **concertmaster

program notes Quartet No. 5 Parks Dedicated to Rosa Parks, Daniel Bernard Roumain’s (DBR) fifth quartet recreates the power and intensity behind Park’s defiance against systemic racism. Roumain’s Parks serves as the final quartet in a set of works dedicated to civil rights leaders, including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. Roumain has used music as a tool for social change for decades. As a composer, DBR has blended multiple musical genres to create works that highlight social injustice. His music for the opera We Shall Not Be Moved highlights the struggles of racial injustice and the role law enforcement play in it. The opera itself blends both the present day racial struggles in the U.S. with echoes of the horrific 1985 MOVE standoff that ended with police bombing a Philadelphian neighborhood. As an educator, DBR holds a Doctorate in Music Composition from the University of Michigan and is a Professor of Practice at Arizona State University. DBR has also empowered people in schools, corporate team development meetings, and other organizations through the power of music.

The Carthage President’s String Quartet will perform the movement “I Made Up My Mind Not to Move.” Inspired by Rosa Parks’ decision to protest the racial inequality by refusing to give up her bus seat, this movement recreates the intense persistence and conflict seen in the civil rights movement. It’s opening repetitive motives show this declaration right at the beginning, with metallic solos that leave the listener on edge.

As the piece goes on, flurries of icy notes run throughout the piece like an onslaught of conflicting thoughts. Powerful accents highlight flashes of anger while the quiet moments maintain a biting edge. Like the woman this quartet is dedicated to, Parks is dedicated, stubborn, and inspiring.

Mozart Divertimento in F Major The third of a set of stringed works, Divertimento in F Major showcases Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s youthful energy and highlights how Mozart was shaped by his musical experiences in Italy. Only 15 years old, Mozart’s previous Italian tours had him develop multiple operas, symphonies, and other works. In the winter of 1771, Mozart composed this set of divertimentos which highlights Mozart’s compositional ability with chamber music.

This divertimento is a three-movement work that begins with an energetic first movement that showcases the first violins. Small flurries of sixteenth notes fly through the first violins as they maintain the melodic line. Second violins and violas chime in with their own flurries, creating a bustling city of instruments. Even as the harmony starts shifting through a darker tone, the musicians still maintain a lightness that keeps the piece free.

The middle Andante creates a more peaceful mood that passes melodic material between the instrumental sections. The violins sing with each other with the violas and bassi following with their own melodies. Even in the peaceful C major key, small hints of minor melodies create a tinge of uncertainty among the instruments. Those small hints end up being cleanly resolved, creating a middle movement that becomes a peaceful rest between outer movements. Finally, the piece is rounded out with a lively third movement. The orchestra becomes mischievous as the flurries of notes bounce within the instrumental sections. Impish entrances from the low strings create a playful back and forth between various instrumental sections. Even in minor sections, the music does not become imposing, instead becoming a more playful trouble as the instruments fly through the music. The piece ends energetically, with a return to the opening theme that started this

program notes playful movement. Mozart’s Divertimento in F Major is lively and full of youthful energy that is fitting for a 15-year-old composer.

Entr’acte Originally for string quartet, Entr’acte takes inspiration from the Brentano Quartet’s performance of Haydn’s String Quartet Op. 77 No. 2 in F Major. After listening to the Minuet and Trio of the Haydn quartet, Caroline Shaw created a piece that took dance form and the Brentano Quartet’s smooth transitions and turned them into a transitory experience. Like Through the Looking Glass, Entr’acte takes the audience on a surreal journey that blends both classical and modern styles.

As the youngest winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Music, Shaw has blended both the past and the present in her music. At age 30, her Partita for 8 Voices, which uses the names of baroque dances to identify her unique movements, won the Pulitzer Prize. Like Entr’acte, Shaw uses a plethora of extended techniques to create a beautiful aural journey. From the wispy false harmonics in Entr’acte, to the murmurs and sub-harmonic registers of her Partita, Shaw’s music uses the full musical abilities of the performers to create a blend of the traditional and the modern.

Shaw’s career matches her compositions’ blend of tradition and innovation. Starting violin at two years old, Shaw earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Violin Performance at Rice University and her Master’s Degree in Violin Performance and Yale University. She has performed in both traditional ensembles such as Robert Mealy’s Yale Baroque Ensemble and innovative ensembles such as performing as a vocalist in ensemble Roomful of Teeth.

Roomful of Teeth performed at Carthage as a part of the college’s Chamber Music Series a few years ago. Shaw has also delved into the pop scene, co-producing a remix of Kanye West’s “Say You Will.” Her work and career is a blend of not just the traditional and the modern words, but also the instrumental and vocal worlds.

Entr’acte is a clear example of Shaw’s ability to create new journeys from old inspirations.

It begins by recalling an old minuet reminiscent of a Haydn string quartet. Shaw then takes us through a wispy reimagining of the old theme as it slowly becomes more ethereal through the light articulations in the strings. The string orchestra returns together after the transition through a series of plucked notes that create a sense of grounding amid the transitory journey. However, just as the piece starts to settle, Shaw pushes the music to another transition, coalescing into a dance between the sections. The parts blend with each other in one moment and clash in the next. This dance leads into a series of transitions. From the flurries of arpeggiated notes to an uncomfortable wandering of drooping notes, the orchestra finally returns to the opening theme. Like the repeat seen in those old minuets, the piece invokes its central theme, but this time continues on its journey to invoke the past. As the violins push forward, they eventually dissipate as a cello solo contemplatively returns to the past. Like recalling a memory, the cello slowly turns each thought into a new chord. In the end, the cello plays its final chord, but leaves the audience in the middle of this journey between the past and the present. Entr’acte, like Shaw, is a blend between the traditional and the avant-garde.

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