Yale School of Music New Music New Haven May 25, 2016
the greene space at wxqr 7 pm
Co-hosted by
robert blocker, dean
&
WQXR’s Q2 Music helga davis, host
NY PHIL BIENNIAL Yale School of Music New Music New Haven helga davis, host Charles Ives a 1874–1954
Ives
Disclosure (1921) Mists (1910)
Harmony Twichell
West London (1921)
Matthew Arnold
The World’s Wanderers (1895)
Percy B. Shelley
Memories (1897) a. Very Pleasant b. Rather Sad Jessica Pray, soprano s Douglas Dickson, piano a , f Christopher Theofanidis a , f b. 1967
Kaoru (1994) I. darting, restless II. bitter, sharp III. joyous Andrew Robson, flute a Felice Doynov, flute s
Aaron Jay Kernis f b. 1960
Toward the Setting Sun (Vers le soleil couchant) (2014) World premiere Robert Blocker, piano f
As a courtesy to the performers and audience, please silence all electronic devices. Please do not leave the hall during selections. Photography or recording of any kind is prohibited.
Ives
Hannah Lash a , f b. 1981
Leaves, Space (2014) New York premiere Hannah Lash, harp a , f Samuel Suggs, double bass a , s
David Lang a , f b. 1957
where you go (2015) New York premiere
Book of Ruth adapt. Lang
Yale Choral Artists Jeffrey Douma, conductor f Martin Bresnick f b. 1946
And I Always Thought (2015) North American premiere Ani Kavafian, violin f David Shifrin, clarinet f Lisa Moore, piano g
Hilary Purrington s b. 1990
For your judicious and pious consideration (2015) World premiere Adele Grabowski, mezzo-soprano s Julia Clancy, viola a , s Yevgeny Yontov, piano a , s s
Yale School of Music student Yale School of Music alumni f Yale School of Music faculty g Guest artist a
Join us in the lobby post-concert for a NY PHIL BIENNIAL Play Date. Mix and mingle with the performers and composers over a glass of wine.
Mary Eastey adapt. Purrington
Notes on the Program
program note Ives songs Charles Ives (1898 ba) wrote hundreds of pieces for nearly every combination of instruments imaginable, until his prolific output came to a halt in 1927. (His wife supposedly recalled him saying one morning with tears in his eyes, “Nothing sounds right.”) Despite the heaps of manuscript paper filled to their edge, Ives only selfpublished once: a collection of 114 Songs that he composed between the ages of sixteen and forty-seven. The songs range as much in style as they do in age, cataloguing Ives’ multi-faceted sonic interests. Disclosure, listed as song no. 7, was written in 1921 and sets text by the composer. Like many of his songs, Disclosure deals with themes of nostalgia and remembrance. A falling melody lulls the singer into his memories, which evoke playful, youthful rapture. Mists, written in 1910 and listed as no. 57, floats in a dreamy, impressionistic landscape of rich chromatic harmonies that sway in parallel motion. A solemn song of parting, the music ends with the uplifting and resolute expectation of reunion. West London, written in 1921 and listed as no. 105, sets a sonnet by the 19th century British poet Matthew Arnold. Having played as a church organist since the age of fourteen, Ives often quotes hymns and American traditional songs in his music. An example of this occurs at the end of West London, where Ives quotes the American hymn “There is a Fountain.” Song no. 110, The World’s Wanderers, was written in 1895 and sets a text by Percy Shelley with absolute sweetness and delicacy. No. 102, Memories, written in 1897, is actually two very short songs: the first, titled “Very Pleasant,” boisterously
recalls a night at the opera house just before the curtain rises. The second, “Rather Sad,” is a sentimental recollection of an old tune and the loved one who sang it. In Memories, the listener is transported from a world of frivolity to a world of utter tenderness at the metaphorical flip of a switch. Such is the drama of the music of Ives: abundant in variety and affect, exclaiming an enthusiastic “yes” to all emotions at once. – Katherine Balch a text Disclosure (1921) Thoughts, which deeply rest at evening, at sunrise gayly thrilled the mind; Songs whose beauty now only lies in memory Youth would sing with rapture, sing from joyous bouyant impulse Knowing naught but he was singing, Thus would God reveal the range of Soul! Text by Charles Ives text Mists (1910) Low lie the mists; they hide each hill and dell; The grey skies weep with us who bid farewell. But happier days through memory weaves a spell, And brings new hope to hearts who bid farewell. Text by Harmony Twichell text West London (1921) Crouch’d on the pavement, close by Belgrave Square, A tramp I saw, ill, moody, and tongue-tied. A babe was in her arms, and at her side
Notes on the Program
A girl; their clothes were rags, their feet were bare. Some labouring men, whose work lay somewhere there, Pass’d opposite; She touch’d her girl, who hied Across, and begg’d and came back satisfied. The rich she had let pass with a frozen stare. Thought I: Above her state this spirit towers; She will not ask of Aliens, but of friends, Of sharers in a common human fate. She turns from the cold succour, which attends The unknown little from the unknowing great, And points us to a better time than ours’. Text by Matthew Arnold text The World’s Wanderers (1895) Tell me, thou Star, whose wings of light Speed thee in thy fiery flight, In what cavern of the night Will thy pinions close now? Tell me, Moon, thou pale and grey Pilgrim, of Heav’ns homeless way, In what depth of night or day, Seekest thou repose now?
We’re feeling pretty gay, And well we may, “O, Jimmy, look!” I say, “The band is tuning up And soon will start to play.” We whistle and we hum, Beat time with the drum. We’re sitting in the opera house; We’re waiting for the curtain to arise With wonders for our eyes, A feeling of expectancy, A certain kind of ecstasy, Expectancy and ecstasy... Sh’s’s’s. b. Rather Sad From the street a strain on my ear doth fall, A tune as threadbare as that “old red shawl,” It is tattered, it is torn, It shows signs of being worn, It’s the tune my Uncle hummed from early morn, ‘Twas a common little thing and kind ‘a sweet, But ‘twas sad and seemed to slow up both his feet; I can see him shuffling down To the barn or to the town, A humming.
Weary wind, who wanderest Like the world’s rejected guest Hast thou still some secret nest On the tree or billow?
Text by Charles Ives
Text by Percy Bysshe Shelley
Christopher Theofanidis (b. 1967 in Dallas, Texas) holds degrees from Yale, the Eastman School of Music, and the University of Houston, and has been the recipient of the International Masterprize, the Rome Prize, a Guggenheim fellowship, a Fulbright fellowship to France to study with Tristan Mural at IRCAM, a Tanglewood fellowship, and two fellowships from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. In 2007 he
text Memories (1897) a. Very Pleasant We’re sitting in the opera house; We’re waiting for the curtain to arise With wonders for our eyes;
biography Christopher Theofanidis
Notes on the Program
was nominated for a Grammy award for best composition for his chorus and orchestra work The Here and Now, based on the poetry of Rumi. His orchestral work Rainbow Body has been one of the most performed new orchestral works of the new millennium, having been performed by over 150 orchestras internationally. He has served as a delegate to the US-Japan Foundation’s Leadership Program, and he is a former faculty member of the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University as well as the Juilliard School. Mr. Theofanidis is currently a professor at the Yale School of Music. program note Kaoru (1994) After the flutist Kaoru Hinata asked me to write her a solo flute work, and several subsequent failed attempts on my part, I asked if I might add a second flute to the equation — an addition which would allow me to pursue ideas which were squarely on my mind at the time: heterophony and harmonic inference. No less a figure than Martin Bresnick had suggested that I go out to the New Haven town green and study the movement of flocks of birds to see how the individual worked within the collective, a metaphor which proved very helpful in writing Kaoru. The idea of motion that refers to a collective ‘mind’ but allows for flexible relationship internally was a revelation. The three short movements that make up Kaoru are all based on this kind of motion, and the harmonic implications that grow out of it. The first movement is set up around a codependent dialogue between the flutists,
each of whom at certain moments seems to take the lead and forces the other to respond and interact. The second movement was influenced by Japanese shakuhachi playing, with expressive pitch bends and a more ‘breathy’ sound world. The third movement is a perpetual motion piece, where the fast exchange of 16th notes allows for longer lines to emerge. – Christopher Theofanidis biography Aaron Jay Kernis Winner of the 2002 Grawemeyer Award, 1998 Pulitzer Prize, and 2011 Nemmers Award, Aaron Jay Kernis is one of America’s most honored composers. His music appears prominently in concerts worldwide, and he has been commissioned by America’s preeminent performing organizations and artists, including the New York Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, Los Angeles and Saint Paul Chamber Orchestras, Walt Disney Company, Renee Fleming, Dawn Upshaw, etc. Recent commissions include concertos for violinist James Ehnes, cellist Joshua Roman, violist Paul Neubauer, flautist Marina Piccinini, and a third string quartet for the Jasper Quartet. His works have been recorded on Virgin, Dorian, Arabesque, Phoenix, Argo, Signum, Cedille and others. His newest release on Naxos features pianist Andrew Russo, violinist James Ehnes, and the Albany Symphony under David Alan Miller. For ten years he was New Music Advisor to the Minnesota Orchestra and Co-Founder and Artistic Director of their Composer Institute. He now directs the Nashville
Notes on the Program
Symphony’s Composer’s Lab. Kernis is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the Classical Music Hall of Fame. Leta Miller’s book-length portrait of Kernis and his work was published in 2014 by University of Illinois Press, and he has taught at Yale School of Music since 2003. program note Toward the Setting Sun (Vers le soleil couchant) (2014) Toward the Setting Sun (Vers le soleil couchant) is the third movement of a four-piece group of piano pieces set around the movements of the sun and times of day. A vital influence in these pieces is the harmonic sensibility of 20th century French music, particularly in Messiaen, hence the nod in that direction via the French subtitles. This piece was written for Robert Blocker in 2014, and receives its world premiere tonight. The dedication reads “to Robert Blocker, with deepest admiration and gratitude for all you give to music and musicians”. – Aaron Jay Kernis biography Hannah Lash Hailed by The New York Times as “striking and resourceful…handsomely brooding,” Hannah Lash’s music has been performed worldwide with commissions from The Fromm Foundation, The Naumburg Foundation, The Boston Symphony Chamber Players, Alabama Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Carnegie Hall, Orchestra of the Swan, and Talujon Percussion, among others. Lash has received numerous honors and prizes, including a Charles Ives Scholarship and a Charles
Ives Fellowship from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, a fellowship from Yaddo Artist Colony, the Naumburg Prize, a Copland House Residency, the Barnard Rogers Prize, and the Bernard and Rose Sernoffsky Prize in Composition. Lash obtained her Ph.D in Composition from Harvard University in 2010. She has held teaching positions at Harvard University and Alfred University, and currently serves on the composition faculty at Yale University School of Music. program note Leaves, Space (2014) Leaves, Space is a piece in two movements for harp and double bass. I was interested in finding intersections between the two instruments’ sound worlds. The first movement, “Leaves,” explores various cells of musical material, shared between the two instruments, and oftentimes juxtaposed contrapuntally. It is often about the rhythmic interplay of the idea with itself between the harp and bass, but builds to a more melodious section, and then ultimately to a rather fervent climax, before returning to an altered version of the initial idea. The title of this movement suggests the way in which the material evolves, in a rather plantlike organic growth from a single stem. The second movement, “Space,” is an even closer exploration of the blend between the two instruments, taking a harmonic progression and constantly shifting it in various ways. These harmonies are shared between the harp and bass, with the harp acting as amplification and resonance for the bass. – Hannah Lash
Notes on the Program
biography David Lang David Lang received the Pulitzer Prize in 2008 for his piece the little match girl passion, commissioned by Carnegie Hall for the vocal ensemble Theater of Voices, directed by Paul Hillier. His work is regularly performed by major music, dance, opera and theatrical organizations throughout the world. Recent works include the concerto man made for the ensemble Sō Percussion and a consortium of orchestras, including the BBC Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic; mountain for the Cincinnati Symphony; and death speaks, for Shara Worden, Bryce Dessner, Nico Muhly, and Owen Pallett, at Carnegie Hall. In 2015 Lang composed the music for Paolo Sorrentino’s film Youth, for which he received Academy Award, Golden Globe, and Critics Choice nominations, among others. Lang is co-founder and co-artistic director of New York’s legendary music festival Bang on a Can. Born in Los Angeles in 1957, Lang holds degrees from Stanford University and the University of Iowa, and received the D.M.A. from the Yale School of Music in 1989. He studied with Jacob Druckman, Hans Werner Henze, and Martin Bresnick. David Lang joined the Yale faculty in 2008. program note where you go (2015) where you go is a rewriting of what I remember as my favorite part of the biblical Book of Ruth, the famous lines where Ruth tells Naomi that she will stay with her forever. I say “what I remember” because in my
memory the book is a beautiful statement of love, friendship and devotion, from one person to another. I always forget that the book is mostly a series of legal arguments, about how someone claims land, or an inheritance, or a wife, or a family. Ruth’s simple desire to follow her heart sets in motion an examination of a complicated chain of interlocking obligations and overlapping responsibilities. That pretty much describes my piece as well. – David Lang text where you go (2015) where you go where you stay where you live where you die don’t make me leave you don’t make me turn away from you don’t make me go where you go I will go where you stay I will stay where you live I will live where you die I will die don’t make me leave you I will never leave you don’t make me turn away from you I will never turn away from you don’t make me go I will never go Text by David Lang Adapted from the Book of Ruth
Notes on the Program
biography Martin Bresnick
program note And I Always Thought (2015)
Martin Bresnick’s compositions — from opera, chamber and symphonic music to film scores and computer music — are performed throughout the world. Bresnick delights in reconciling the seemingly irreconcilable, bringing together repetitive gestures derived from minimalism with a harmonic palette that encompasses both highly chromatic sounds and more open, consonant harmonies and a raw power reminiscent of rock. At times his musical ideas spring from hardscrabble sources, often with a very real political import. But his compositions never descend into agitprop; one gains their meaning by the way the music itself unfolds, and always on its own terms.
And I Always Thought is a musical trope based on two poems of Bertolt Brecht: “And I Always Thought” and “Legend of the Unknown Soldier Beneath the Triumphal Arch.” Though this composition consists only of “poems without words,” it is the hope of the composer that an attentive listener might sense and follow its lyric trajectory.
Besides having received many prizes and commissions — including the first Charles Ives Living Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, The Rome Prize, The Berlin Prize, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and a Koussevitzky Commission, among many others — Martin Bresnick is also recognized as an influential teacher of composition. Students from every part of the globe and of virtually every musical inclination have been inspired by his critical encouragement. Martin Bresnick’s compositions are published by Carl Fischer Music Publishers, New York; Bote & Bock, Berlin; CommonMuse Music Publishers, New Haven; and have been recorded by Cantaloupe Records, New World Records, Albany Records, Bridge Records, Composers Recordings Incorporated, Centaur, Starkland Records, and Artifact Music.
And I Always Thought was commissioned by, and is dedicated to, Plexus — Philip Arkinstall, clarinet; Monica Curro, violin; and Stefan Cassemenos, piano. – Martin Bresnick biography Hilary Purrington Hilary Purrington is a New England-based composer of contemporary classical music. Her work has received recognition from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), the National Federation of Music Clubs (NFMC), the Massachusetts Music Educators’ Association (MMEA), Houston Grand Opera’s Home and Place, and Voices of Change/Dallas Symphony Orchestra, among others. In the summer of 2012, Purrington received funding through a Wagoner Foreign Study Grant to study Music Composition and German Language at the Freie Universität Berlin, and in the summer of 2013, she participated as a Fellow at the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival’s New Music Workshop. Her music has been performed by many notable ensembles, including
Notes on the Program
Voices of Change, the NOVUS Trombone Quartet, and the Musical Chairs Chamber Ensemble. Recent projects include commissions from the Chicago Harp Quartet and the Melodia Women’s Choir of NYC. Purrington holds degrees from The Juilliard School and the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University. She is currently pursuing a Master of Musical Arts at the Yale School of Music. » www.hilarypurrington.com program note For your judicious and pious consideration (2015) I composed For your judicious and pious consideration for the 2016 NY Phil Biennial. I wanted to use a text connected with New England history, and the subject of the Salem Witch Trials struck me as particularly compelling and relevant to contemporary events. I drew the song’s text from a 1692 petition written by Mary Eastey, a condemned witch. In her petition, Eastey begs not for her own life, but appeals for the lives of the others accused. She implores the judges to conduct their investigations with greater discernment and rationality. I selected excerpts from Eastey’s petition, which I then adapted into modern English. While composing the music, I was in the process of learning and performing several choral works by Bach and Handel. These textures and forms were very much on my mind throughout the writing process, and I sought to incorporate these elements into a contemporary harmonic landscape. – Hilary Purrington
text For your judicious and pious consideration (2015) Your poor and humble petitioner, being condemned to die, knowing her own innocence, do humbly beg of you to take this petition into your Judicious and pious considerations. I petition to your honors not for my own life, for I know my appointed time is set. The Lord above, who is the Searcher of all hearts, knows I know not of witchcraft, as will be revealed in the world to come, whither I now go. I petition that no more innocent blood may be shed, which cannot be avoided in the way and course you go. Seeing plainly the wiles and subtleties of my accusers, I humbly beg of you to examine these afflicted persons, these confessing witches. Several of them have belied themselves and others. I know and the Lord knows that they belie me, and so I question not that they belie others. I beg your honors not to deny this humble petition from a poor innocent person, and I question not that the Lord will bless your endeavors. Text by Hilary Purrington Adapted from Mary Eastey (1634–1692)
Artist Profiles
Helga Davis, host Helga Davis is a principle actor in the 25th anniversary re-staging of Robert Wilson and Philip Glass’s seminal work Einstein on the Beach. In 2012, Ms. Davis appeared twice in the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Next Wave Festival, in both Glass’s Einstein on the Beach and Maya Beiser’s Elsewhere with music by Missy Mazzoli. She made her second appearance at the Barbican Centre in May 2012 starring in an opera written for her by Paola Prestini, Oceanic Verses, with libretto by Donna DiNovelli and video by Ali Hossaini (Voom Portraits, Robert Wilson). In the summer of 2013 she traveled to Antwerp and Hamburg to work on a new opera by Shara Worden of My Brightest Diamond, with libretto by Andrew Ondrejcak. Ms. Davis’s past work has included The Blue Planet (2008), a multimedia theater piece written by Peter Greenaway and directed by Saskia Boddeke, and co-starring in The Temptation of St. Anthony, directed by Robert Wilson, with libretto and score by Bernice Johnson Reagon of Sweet Honey in the Rock. In February 2008, Ms. Davis conducted a special feature interview with artist Kara Walker for the WNYC program Morning Edition on the eve of Ms. Walker’s Whitney Museum of American Art retrospective. Jessica Pray, soprano Soprano Jessica Pray, from Johnston, Iowa, is currently pursuing a Master of Music degree in Vocal Performance at the Yale School of Music, studying with Doris Yarick-Cross. Recently, Jessica performed the roles of Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Pedro in Don Quichotte (Yale Opera); Gabriel in The Creation
(Yale Glee Club); Zerlina in Don Giovanni and Pitti-Sing in The Mikado (Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre); Lydia Larkspur in The Rivals, Adele in Die Fledermaus, and Servilia in La Clemenza di Tito (University of Iowa Opera Theatre). In June, Jessica will perform in the premiere of The Beginning of Things, a collaborative project with Minneapolisbased company Dance & Other Behaviors. Douglas Dickson, piano Douglas Dickson holds degrees from Princeton (magna cum laude) and Yale Universities. The Washington Post has called him an “intelligent, sensitive” pianist with “super technique,” and has praised him for the “finely integrated oneness” he achieves as an accompanist. He has been music director for productions at many Connecticut theaters, including Yale Opera, Yale School of Drama, CT Experimental Theater, and Quinnipiac University, where he taught for 20 years. In 1998 he joined the Yale School of Music faculty. For Naxos, he recorded 80 Charles Ives songs. The collection received the BBC Music Magazine’s highest rating. An all-Ives program also served as his Carnegie Hall debut. Andrew Robson, flute St. Louis native Andrew Robson is a flutist and music teacher. Andrew just graduated from the Yale School of Music, having studied with Ransom Wilson. Recently, Andrew completed a recording of Christopher Theofanidis’s flute duet Kaoru, which will be released on an album by Mr. Theofanidis this summer. Andrew is an advocate for new music, and has worked with composers such as John Adams, David Lang, Katherine Hoover, Hannah Lash, Bryce Dessner, and
Artist Profiles
Jesse Limbacher. An enthusiastic teacher, Andrew was a Teaching Artist for Yale’s Music in the Schools Initiative and taught lessons to undergraduate students at Yale University. Andrew has also published with the National Flute Association’s publication, The Flutist Quarterly. Felice Doynov, flute Felice Doynov is a dynamic flutist pursuing a master’s degree at the Yale School of Music. She completed her undergraduate studies at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music, receiving the Barbara and David Jacobs Scholarship and a Performer’s Certificate. Felice has been a scholarship recipient at multiple music festivals, including the Sarasota Music Festival in 2013, the Aspen Music Festival in 2014, and the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival in 2016. In 2016, as a chamber musician, Felice was a semi-finalist at the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, performed a recital at the Kennedy Center, and was a winner of the Yale Chamber Music Society Competition. Her instructors include Ransom Wilson, Thomas Robertello, and Michael Gordon.
Richard Cass and Jorge Bolet. Recently he has performed with the Beijing, Shanghai, Korean, and Daejon Symphony Orchestras, the Prague and Moscow Chamber Orchestras, the Monterrey Philharmonic, and the Houston Symphony. He tours internationally in recital and chamber music, and his most recent recording is a disc of three Mozart concerti with the Biava Quartet for NAXOS. A member of the American Music Center Board of Directors, Robert Blocker has served on advisory boards for the Avery Fisher Artist Program and the Stoeger Prize at Lincoln Center. He appears regularly on national radio and television as an artist and commentator and is a consultant to educational institutions and government agencies. He edited The Robert Shaw Reader, published by the Yale University Press in 2004, now in its third printing. Samuel Suggs, double bass
Robert Blocker, piano
An omnivorous musician, Sam Suggs was recently named New Artist of the Month by Musical America and earned the grand prize at the 2015 International Society of Bassists Solo Competition, for which he performed many of his own compositions.
A native of Charleston, South Carolina, Robert Blocker is highly regarded internationally for his artistry as a pianist, his leadership in arts advocacy, and his contributions to music education. In 1995 he was appointed the Henry and Lucy Moses Dean of Music and Professor of Piano at Yale University.
As a collaborative bassist, he has performed at Chamber Music Northwest, Yellow Barn, Carnegie Hall, and the Kennedy Center, and earned a laureate prize in the inaugural M-Prize Competition. Suggs has served as principal bass of the Oregon Bach Festival Berwick Academy and the Civic Orchestra of Chicago.
Robert Blocker’s piano studies began at age five, and continued in adulthood with
Currently Assistant Professor of Bass at James Madison University, Suggs received
Artist Profiles
a Presser Foundation Award towards his doctoral studies at Yale University and has worked with Don Palma, Peter Lloyd, DaXun Zhang, and Edgar Meyer. Yale Choral Artists Jeffrey Douma, director Soprano Megan Chartrand ‘13 mm Sara O’Bryan Sarah Yanovitch ‘15 mm Alto Eric Brenner Mindy Chu ‘15 mm Kate Maroney ‘06 mm
leading concert soloists, particularly in the area of early music. The Yale Choral Artists made their debut in an all-Handel program led by guest conductor William Christie at Yale and in Zankel Hall in February of 2012. They have since performed as a featured ensemble at the Yale International Choral Festival, the International Festival of Arts & Ideas, and the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, have appeared in two productions with the renowned Mark Morris Dance Group, and have presented premiere performances of new works by Hannah Lash, Ted Hearne, and David Lang. Jeffrey Douma, director
Tenor Colin Britt ‘10 mm Brian Giebler Gene Stenger ‘15 mm Bass Thomas McCargar Steven Hrycelak ‘02 ba Tian Hui Ng ‘10 mm The Yale Choral Artists is a professional choir recently founded by the Yale School of Music and the Yale Glee Club to enhance and enrich Yale’s strong commitment to the choral arts. The choir is a project-based ensemble comprised of leading singers from around the country and is directed by School of Music faculty member Jeffrey Douma. Current members of the Choral Artists also perform in the ranks of such acclaimed ensembles as the Trinity Wall Street Choir, Chanticleer, the Handel and Haydn Society Chorus, the Oregon Bach Festival Chorus, Voices of Ascension, Conspirare, and many others, and are also
Since the fall of 2003, Jeffrey Douma has served as Director of the Yale Glee Club, recently hailed by The New York Times as “one of the best collegiate singing ensembles, and one of the most adventurous.” He also serves as Professor of Conducting at the Yale School of Music, as founding Director of the Yale Choral Artists, and as Artistic Director of the Yale International Choral Festival. Douma has appeared as guest conductor with distinguished choruses and orchestras on six continents, and currently serves as Music Director of the Yale Alumni Chorus. He has prepared choruses for performances under such eminent conductors as William Christie, Valery Gergiev, Sir Neville Marriner, Sir David Willcocks, Krzysztof Penderecki, Nicholas McGegan, and Helmuth Rilling. Douma has presented at state, divisional, and national conventions of the ACDA and NCCO, and frequently serves as clinician
Artist Profiles
for festivals and honor choirs. An advocate of new music, he established the Yale Glee Club Emerging Composers Competition, and conducted premieres of new works by such composers as Jennifer Higdon, David Lang, Dominick Argento, Bright Sheng, Ned Rorem, Ted Hearne, Lew Spratlan, Hannah Lash, and James Macmillan. He serves as editor of the Yale Glee Club New Classics Choral Series, published by Boosey & Hawkes, and his original compositions are published by G. Schirmer and Boosey & Hawkes. A tenor, Douma has appeared as an ensemble member and soloist with many of the nation’s leading professional choirs. Prior to his appointment at Yale, Douma taught on the conducting faculties of Carroll College, Smith College and St. Cloud State University. He earned a Bachelor of Music degree from Concordia College, Moorhead, MN, and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in conducting from the University of Michigan. He lives in Hamden, CT, with his wife, pianist and conductor Erika Schroth, and their two children, Sofia and Will. Ani Kavafian, violin Violinist Ani Kavafian enjoys a prolific career as a soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician. She has performed with virtually all of America’s leading orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic, the Philadelphia, Cleveland, Detroit, and San Francisco symphony orchestras, and the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra. A renowned chamber musician, she has performed with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center since 1979. Her numerous solo recital engagements include performances at New
York’s Carnegie and Alice Tully halls, as well as other major venues across the country. Ani Kavafian serves as concertmaster of the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, with whom she has performed the Mozart violin concertos. She has participated in the Heifetz International Music Institute, Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival, Norfolk (CT) Chamber Music Festival, Chamber Music Northwest Festival (Portland, OR), Great Lakes Festival, the Bridgehampton Chamber Music Festival, and Music from Angel Fire. Kavafian appears frequently with her sister, violinist and violist Ida Kavafian. With violist Barbara Westphal and cellist Gustav Rivinius, she is a member of the Triton Horn Trio, with members William Purvis, french horn; and pianist Mihae Lee. She also has teamed with David Shifrin and pianist André-Michel Schub to form the KavafianSchub-Shifrin Trio. She is co-artistic director of the New Jersey chamber music series “Mostly Music.” Kavafian has premiered and recorded a number of works written for her, including pieces by Henri Lazarof, Tod Machover, Michelle Ekizian, and Aaron Kernis. Ani Kavafian has received the Avery Fisher Career Grant and the Young Concert Artists International Auditions award, has appeared at the White House on three occasions, and has been featured on many network and PBS television specials. Her recordings can be heard on the Nonesuch, RCA, Columbia, Arabesque, and Delos labels. Ani Kavafian is Professor of Violin at the Yale School of Music. She plays the 1736 Muir McKenzie Stradivarius violin.
Artist Profiles
David Shifrin, clarinet A Yale faculty member since 1987, clarinetist David Shifrin is in demand as an orchestral soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician. Recipient of the 2000 Avery Fisher Prize, three Grammy nominations, and Stereo Review’s “Record of the Year,” he has performed in recital and with major orchestras worldwide. Orchestra principal clarinet posts include the American Symphony Orchestra (under Stokowski), the Cleveland Orchestra, and the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra. Recent awards include the Yale School of Music Cultural Leadership Citation, the International Clarinet Society’s honorary membership for lifetime achievement, and the Interlochen Center for the Arts Distinguished Alumnus award. A member of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center since 1989, Mr. Shifrin served as the Society’s artistic director from 1992 to 2004. He has held the post of artistic director of Chamber Music Northwest in Portland, Oregon since 1981, and of the Oneppo Chamber Music Series at Yale and Yale in New York since 2008. Lisa Moore, piano The New York Times writes, “Lisa Moore, an Australian pianist long based in and around New York, has always been a natural, compelling storyteller.” She has released 9 solo discs (Cantaloupe, Tall Poppies, Orange Mountain) and over 30 collaborative discs (Sony, Nonesuch, DG, BMG, New World, ABC Classics, Albany, New Albion, Starkland, Harmonia Mundi). Lisa has performed with the London Sinfonietta, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, New York City Ballet,
Steve Reich Ensemble, American Composers Orchestra, Sō Percussion, Ensemble Signal, Australian Chamber Orchestra, Grand Band, and the Paul Dresher Double Duo. Her festival performances include Lincoln Center, BAM, Graz, Tanglewood, Huddersfield, Aspen, Ojai, Paris d’Automne, Vienna, Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, BBC Proms, Southbank, Adelaide, Perth, Sydney, Melbourne Metropolis, Israel, and Warsaw, in venues such as the Royal Albert Hall, La Scala, Carnegie Hall, and the Musikverein. From 1992-2008, Lisa Moore was the founding pianist for the electro-acoustic sextet The Bang On A Can All-Stars, winning Musical America’s 2005 Ensemble of the Year Award. » www.lisamoore.org Adele Grabowski, mezzo-soprano Mezzo-soprano in the Yale Voxtet, Finalist in the Händel Aria Competition, and Semifinalist in the Cesti Competition, Adele has worked with conductors David Hill, Simon Carrington, and Masaaki Suzuki. Performances include Young Artist at Opera Theater of Pittsburgh, Festival lyrique international de Belle-Isle en Mer, Annio (La Clemenza di Tito, Undercroft Opera), Nancy (Albert Herring, CMU), Ernesto (Il mondo della luna, CMU), Hänsel (Hänsel und Gretel, CMU), Juditha (Juditha triumphans devicta Holofernes barbarie, Mittelsächsisches Theater), and new opera premieres with CMU and Pittsburgh Opera. Most recently, she performed her New York solo debut at Lincoln Center with Yale Schola Cantorum and Julliard415, and was a soloist in Les Noces with Yale Camerata.
Artist Profiles
Julia Clancy, viola As a member of Aldeburgh Strings, violist Julia Clancy performs concerts regularly in London and Snape, England, with her most recent recording released on Signum Classics. For her first season with Ipalpiti Artists International, Julia will give solo and chamber performances that will be broadcast throughout the west coast. Julia has held the solo viola chairs of the Britten-Pears Orchestra, Yale Philharmonia, Sarasota Festival Orchestra, Citymusic Cleveland, Moritzburg Festival Orchestra, and Lorin Maazel’s Castleton Orchestra. Julia began playing viola in her hometown, Shoreham, NY, and continued at Juilliard Pre-College. Equally committed to academics, Julia pursued a B.A. in Medical Anthropology from Case Western Reserve University, graduating magna cum laude, while simultaneously working toward a B.M. with honors at the Cleveland Institute of Music. Currently, she is pursuing her doctorate at Yale. Yevgeny Yontov, piano The Israeli pianist Yevgeny Yontov received his B.M. degree summa cum laude from the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music, where he studied with Prof. Arie Vardi. He then moved to the US and received his M.M. degree from the Yale School of Music, where he is currently studying with Prof. Boris Berman while pursuing the D.M.A. degree. Yevgeny’s international prizes include the gold medal at the Wideman International Piano Competition, 1st prize at the Tel-Hai International Concerto Competition, and
two prizes at the International Piano Competition in Pinerolo. As a chamber musician, Yevgeny has played chamber concerts in Israel, Europe, and the Americas, in venues that include Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts.
NY PHIL BIENNIAL
A flagship project of the New York Philharmonic, the NY PHIL BIENNIAL is a wide-ranging exploration of today’s music that brings together an international roster of composers, performers, and curatorial voices for concerts presented both on the Lincoln Center campus and with partners in venues throughout the city. The second NY PHIL BIENNIAL, taking place May 23–June 11, 2016, features diverse programs — ranging from solo works and a chamber opera to large scale symphonies — by more than 100 composers, more than half of whom are American; presents some of the country’s top music schools and youth choruses; and expands to more New York City neighborhoods. A range of events and activities has been created to engender an ongoing dialogue among artists, composers, and audience members. Partners in the 2016 NY PHIL BIENNIAL include National Sawdust; 92nd Street Y; Aspen Music Festival and School; Interlochen Center for the Arts; League of Composers/ISCM; Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts; LUCERNE FESTIVAL; MetLiveArts; New York City Electroacoustic Music Festival; Whitney Museum of American Art; WQXR’s Q2 Music; and Yale School of Music. Major support for the NY PHIL BIENNIAL is provided by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation, and The Francis Goelet Fund. Additional funding is provided by the Howard Gilman Foundation and Honey M. Kurtz.
Q2 Music
Q2 Music is WQXR’s online music channel dedicated to contemporary classical composers, innovative ensembles and musical discovery. Its programming includes immersive festivals, insightful commentary from hosts such as composer Phil Kline and vocalist Helga Davis, full-length album streams, live webcasts and exclusive concert audio from local and national venues, and special events in front of live audiences at The Greene Space at WQXR. Q2 Music produces Meet the Composer with host Nadia Sirota, the Peabody Award-winning podcast which mines the brains of today’s leading composers, as well as LPR Live, a podcast which shares dynamic new-music performances from Greenwich Village’s Le Poisson Rouge. Q2 Music is streamed live 24/7 at www.wqxr.org/q2music and is also available via the free WQXR app.
About the Yale School of Music
Established in 1894, the Yale School of Music continues a position of international leadership in the training of performers and composers. A professional graduate school and the only school of music in the Ivy League, the Yale School of Music maintains a highly selective admissions process, admitting approximately 200 students who come from the finest American and international conservatories and universities to study with a distinguished faculty. The School of Music has one of the highest international profiles at Yale: approximately forty percent of students come from countries outside the United States, and the School engages globally in partnerships with leading conservatories, festivals, and opera companies. Alumni of the Yale School of Music hold major positions throughout the music world. Yale graduates perform with and conduct preeminent American and international orchestras, and voice alumni earn renown in professional opera companies. Reflecting the School’s strong chamber music program, many graduates have founded or joined prominent chamber ensembles. Yale composition alumni enjoy noted success, with continual premieres of new music. Along with artistic accomplishment, Yale School of Music graduates provide strong leadership in guiding the course of numerous academic and cultural institutions. The Yale School of Music awards the Doctor of Musical Arts, Master of Musical Arts, and Master of Music degrees, as well as the Artist Diploma and the Certificate in Performance. There is also a five-year B.A./M.M. program for undergraduates in Yale College. » music.yale.edu
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