French Suite No.5 in G major, BWV 816
Johann Sebastian Bach(16851750)
Allemande
Courante Sarabande
Gavotte Bourée Loure
Gigue
First Arabesque
Toccata For Piano
Claude Debussy(1862-1918)
Emma Lou Diemer(1979-)
Intermission
Sonata No. 11 in B flat major, Op.22
Ludwig van Beethoven(17701827)
Allegro con brio
Adagio con molta espressione
Minuetto
Rondo: Allegretto
BIOGRAPHIES
The first time I saw a piano was when I was very young, watching my relative’s son playing in a recording. I thought sitting on a piano stool and playing was so cool. But because my family could not afford piano lessons for me, I had no chance to learn piano. At that time, in my hometown, people didn’t know what a piano was. It was not until the age of 15 that I had the opportunity to play piano at a technical college. At that time, piano was just one of the general courses among many courses I took. We took the group piano lessons once a week, and the students learned to play four pieces over four semesters. After graduation, I took an internship in a piano studio where I helped teach students piano. I soon realized I had learned too little to teach my students. The desire to become a better teacher drove me to devote more time to learning piano while working. At that time, my salary was 700 yuan a month, and my tuition cost 500 yuan a month. From this job, I found my love for playing and teaching the piano. Since then, I have looked for professional teachers to teach me the piano while working. Due to the cost of private classes, I once had to work part-time in five studios and give private lessons. At the peak of my workload, I gave eighteen 45-minute classes daily. I studied hard and passed all the music exams at the piano society in China. When I was 21, I realized I should go to a more professional place to improve my craft, and was admitted to the Xinghai Conservatory of Music Education at 22. I have been engaged in piano education for 17 years now and have won many outstanding teaching awards. I have instructed many students in master classes, which has resulted in many concerts and even competitions in Australia and Los Angeles. As I have grown up in this field, I have met many professionals and have learned much from them, leading to the opportunity to come to Carthage College and study piano with Dr. Masloski, which I feel deeply honored to do. This was a very special year for me because I could focus on my passion, music. I didn’t need to worry about making a living or dealing with household chores. This opportunity to focus solely on my music and studies has led to much growth and change. I would therefore like to take this opportunity to share my growth from this year with you. My program today represents music from four different periods: the baroque, classical, impressionistic, and 20th century. My recital will pay tribute to this rewarding time, which has allowed me to immerse myself in the study of different periods of music and the performance practices of each. This time has also fueled my passion for music and has become a point of departure for what lies ahead.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I have always insisted on doing what I love to do and am pleased to have met many wonderful people and experiences through music. I would like to thank everyone I have met in my life and especially thank my family for supporting me in pursuing my dream, my teachers for their help and approbation, and my friends for their love and encouragement. At the same time, on this particular day, I would like to thank my professor, Dr. Masloski, who taught me many skills to
play easier and produce beautiful sounds. She has imparted lots of knowledge, experience, and opinions about piano teaching, which has given me a new understanding of the craft. I thank her for giving me many opportunities to interact with society, train, and develop myself. I am grateful for this year's growth and look forward to the unknown future.
JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH
Born 31 March 1685; Eisenach, Germany
Died July 28, 1750; Leipzig, Germany
French Suite No.5 in G major, BWV 816
COMPOSED 1722
The French Suites are six suites for keyboard instruments composed by Johann Sebastian Bach between 1722-1725. Bach composed the fifth suite for his wife, Anna Magdalena. He began writing the French Suite No. 5 in 1722 and completed it in 1723. Each suite includes a collection of dances, but there are four core dances that are included in all of the French suites: the allemande from Germany, the courante from France, the Sarabande from Spain, and the Gigue from Scotland and Ireland. Although the musical characteristics of each dance are different, they are all in the same key. The entire suite is written in the key of G major. Each dance is in two parts, and each part is marked with a repetition. Performers in the Baroque period had very good improvisational abilities. It was common practice at the time for the performer to embellish a work with ornaments. The harpsichord of the Baroque period did not sustain notes well, and ornaments were often added as a way to sustain the sound.
ABOVE: 1748 portrait of Bach, showing him holding a copy of the six-part canon BWV 1076
CLAUDE DEBUSSY
Born 22 August 1862; Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Seine-et-Oise, French
Died 25 March 1918; Avenue du Bois de Boulogne (now Avenue Foch), Paris
Arabesque No. 1
COMPOSED
1888 ~1891
The arabesque is a kind of music that uses melody to create the atmosphere of Arabic architecture. It is a highly decorative style. This piece is one of the first of two Arabesques written for piano by Debussy when he was in his twenties.
It also has a rubato tempo that speeds up and slows back down. The soothing rhythm and the use of pedal give us a rich listening experience. The first part of the piece is in the key of E major; in the second part, it changes to the key of A major. Towards the end of the second part, it briefly switches to the key of C major; then, it returns to the key of E major again. The keystrokes require deeper depth and a more legato sound than that of Bach. Unlike baroque music, there are many changes in volume through the use of crescendos and decrescendos. Unlike the harpsichord used during Bach’s time, the piano can sustain sounds for a long time, produce many changes in dynamics, and use many pedals. This piece of music allows us to feel the complexity of music, which further enhances the possibilities of music and challenges the
performers' performance skills.
EMMA LOU DIEMER
Born November 24, 1927; Kansas City, Missouri; USA
Toccata For Piano
COMPOSED 1979
In an interview with Bruce Duffie, who is a broadcaster, Emma Lou Diemer said that she wrote this piece for a Japanese student giving a recital. This piece's rhythm changes freely, and it is difficult for the performer to find a fixed beat and key. There is an extreme contrast in dynamics; the range used is wide, with notes played from both ends of the piano. In addition to playing on the keyboard, Diemer also used new ways of playing the instrument. For example, to sustain the sound of certain notes, rather than using the pedal, the performer holds down a group of keys with the whole arm. The performer seems to transcend the boundaries of the piano, and their body becomes part of the instrument.
When choosing this piece, my professor introduced me to this work, which uses extended techniques. For example, the performer is asked to reach inside the piano and pluck or strum the
ABOVE: Debussy c. 1900 by Atelier Nadarstrings. I found this technique particularly interesting. I had never tried this before and was pleasantly surprised by the new way of playing the piano. Every time I play this piece, I feel a lot of motivation, like I'm going through an adventure. The piece has a driving rhythm and injects a real musical personality.
ABOVE: picture by https://www.emmaloudiemermusic.com/page/page/6385943.htm
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN
Born 17 December 1770; Bonn, Germany
Died 26 March 1827; Vienna, Austria
Sonata No. 11 in B flat major, Op.22
COMPOSED
1799/1800 Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 11 in B flat major is the last of his early works and is dedicated to Count von Braun, an enthusiastic supporter of his music. The whole work is full of an atmosphere of youthful sunshine. It is bright, full of energy and without any
darkness. This sonata was composed in 1799 when the French Bourgeois Revolution swept across Europe. Beethoven was often filled with the spirit and feelings of patriotism; thus, bright colors and emotions appeared in his works.
Although Piano Sonata No. 11 still retains the very balanced structural form of the early stage work, it also has obvious symphonic characteristics. The work is in four movements:
The first movement, Vibrant Allegro con brio in B flat major, is in 4/4 time and in sonata form
The first theme of the movement is very lively and energetic. It enters with the dynamic of pianissimo (very softly) to a series of bright and flowing glorious melodies, and the momentum gradually increases to something grand and powerful. In this movement, you can hear the bass performance of the left hand, like a cello singing. In the second theme, there is a melody played with hands placed octaves apart, and the syncopated rhythm puts emphasis on the off-beats, making it sound a bit like a happy jumping puppy. When reappearing, the two themes are lively, enthusiastic, energetic, resolute, and courageous, and they are full of young and heroic temperaments.
The second movement: Adagio con molto with great expression, in E flat major, time 9/8, sonata form.
This slow movement has an extremely delicate expression. The aria-like opening melody has a soothing and romantic nocturne atmosphere. The second theme incorporates more decorative colors. In the development, the emotions become more intense and mysterious as the harmonies change and become more unstable. It becomes slightly sad and turns into a continuous staccato, perhaps depicting the worries of a young man. In the final recapitulation, the reappearance of
both themes has variations, as if a new look is sweetly presented again, full of gentle and quiet poetry.
Third movement: Menuetto in B flat major, time 3/4.
The third movement is in a traditional minuet form. The melody is simple, pure, and beautiful, and some playful accents express a child-like expression. The contrasting middle section, however, is in a minor key and is passionate, tenacious, and driven.
The fourth movement: Rondo: Allegretto in B flat major, 2/4 time, rondo form. The fourth movement begins with a simple and soft melody. The beautiful and moving long-line melody is like a long kite floating in the sky or like the ripples in water created by a boat crossing a lake. The changes in the harmony in the opening themes are beautiful and moving. It has a sense of improvisation, and the tone is gorgeous and free. After entering the next theme, the emotions start to get excited. The legato after the accent is like falling pearls, and the following staccato is sonorous and powerful, showing a kind of positive willpower. After reproducing the first and second themes, the variation adds decorative sounds that are particularly gorgeous and seem to contain endless power and vitality. The ending provides great impact with rapidly running notes.
ABOVE: Beethoven depicted in an 1815 portrait by Joseph Willibrord Mähler