TS · YALE · U EN M
of the Yale University Collection of Musical Instruments
· INSTR CAL U SI U
N EW S L ETT E R
Number 35
v Forty-fifth Annual Concert Series
ION · OF · M CT LE
ITY · C OL ERS IV N
Fall 2012
photograph by Cylla von Tiedemann
Philharmonic, along with the Juilliard, Guarneri, Brentano, American String Quartets. Known as a leading exponent of period instrument perThe Forty-fifth annual concert series offered by the Collection will bring formance practice, he has performed his restoration of the Mozart Conto New Haven an impressive roster of performers of international stature certo throughout the world both on modern and period instruments. whose specialty is the performance of music in a historical context. The One of America’s leading keyboard artists, Robert Levin is equally regular series of five concerts will be expanded this season to include an at home at the harpsichord, the fortepiano, and the modern piano as a additional special concert performed in Morse Recital Hall in Sprague solo performer and chamber musician. An authoritative scholar of the Hall by Tafelmusik, the renowned chamber orchestra from Toronto. vThe series will open on 23 September with a performance by a trio Classical and Baroque periods, Robert Levin is best known as a Mozart pianist and scholar. He has written cadenzas for many of the master’s consisting of Eva Legêne, recorder; Wieland Kuijken, viola da gamba; concertos (including the piano, violin, flute and horn concertos), has and Arthur Haas, harpsichord. The program, entitled “Crossing the published embellishments of Mozart solo parts, and has written several Rhine” will present 18th-century music from France and Germany, inreconstructions and completions of Mozart’s works. His completion of cluding works by Marais, Couperin, Rameau, Bach and others. Mozart’s Requiem won wide critical acclaim after its premiere by Helmuth A student of Frans Brüggen in The Hague, Eva Legêne has served on Rilling at the European Music the faculties of the Sweelinck Festival in Stuttgart in 1991. Conservatory in Amsterdam, He has published many scholthe Royal Academy of Music in arly studies, with a concentraCopenhagen, and Indiana Unition on performance practice. versity. She performs widely as vThe fourth concert on Jana soloist and in collaboration uary 27 will feature the newly with Frans Brüggen, Wieland established baroque ensemble and Bart Kuijken, John GibQuicksilver. Led by violinbons, and the Rosenborg Trio. ists Robert Mealy and Julie Wieland Kuijken is known Andrijeski, this group of six throughout the world as one musicians explores the range of the premier performers on of the baroque chamber repboth the viola da gamba and ertory from the strange and the baroque cello. He has extravagant trio sonatas of the been on the faculties of both seventeenth century to the glothe Brussels and The Hague ries of the High Baroque. The conservatories, and a leading performers of Quicksilver are member of the Petite Bande, old friends, and have played tothe Alarius Ensemble, and the gether in some of America’s Ensemble Musique Nouvelle. A top prize winner in the The Collection and the Vincent Oneppo Chamber Music Series of the Yale School of Music most distinguished early muwill jointly present T afelmusik, the acclaimed chamber orchestra from Montreal, in a gala sic ensembles, including the 1975 Paris harpsichord compe- concert performed in Morse Recital Hall at Sprague Hall on March 5. King’s Noyse, Musica Pacifica, tition, Arthur Haas lived in Piffaro, and the Boston Early Music Festival Orchestra: between them Paris from 1975 to 1983, performing in most major French early music they have appeared on well over one hundred recordings. The ensemble’s festivals. Praised by Le Monde for his interpretation of French keyboard program is entitled “Fantasticus: The Extravagant and Virtuosic Chammusic, Haas has recorded the duo-harpsichord music of Gaspard LeRoux ber Music of 17th-century Germany.” It will highlight the stylus fantastiwith William Christie and solo music by D’Anglebert and Forqueray. vFrench pianist Yves Henry will make his New Haven debut at the cus, a hallmark of the 17th-century German avant-garde that emphasizes the genius of the composer and virtuosity of the performer. The program Collection on October 28. Following studies in Paris with Pierre Sanwill include works of Bertali, Rosenmüller, Schmelzer, and Biber. can and Aldo Ciccolini, he was awarded first prize at the International vA special highlight of the series will be the New Haven debut perSchumann Competition in Zwickau in 1981. Since then Mr. Henry has formance by the acclaimed baroque chamber orchestra Tafelmusik performed as a soloist with orchestra and in recital throughout Europe, on Tuesday evening, March 5, at 8:00 pm. This gala concert will be Asia, and the USA. He is noted for his performance on historical instrupresented jointly by the Collection and the Vincent Oneppo Chamber ments and will play music by Chopin and Schumann on the two French Music Series of the Yale School of Music in Morse Recital Hall (Sprague pianos in the Collection: grands by Pleyel (1842) and Erard (1881). vThe Collection will present clarinetist Charles Neidich and pianist Hall). Under the direction of virtuoso baroque violinist Jeanne Lamon, Tafelmusik has delighted audiences worldwide for over three decades, Robert Levin in two performances of the same program (December appearing in over 50 concerts annually in its home city of Toronto and 2 at 3:00 pm and December 3, at 8:00 pm). The program will feature performing up to twelve weeks each year on tour. The group has perworks by Schumann and Brahms. Hailed by the New Yorker as “ a master formed a vast repertory of music from the 17th and 18th centuries in all of his instrument and beyond a clarinetist,” Charles Neidich regularly genres, from small chamber ensembles to concertos, operas, and oratoappears as soloist and in chamber music with leading ensembles includrios. Tafelmusik has produced an impressive list of recordings on an array ing the Saint Louis Symphony, Royal Philharmonic, and Deutsches
photograph by Christopher Gardner
of labels and this season has launched its own label, Tafelmusik Media. vFrom the Director’s Desk The group recently embarked on an ambitious project dubbed “Watch I would like to draw your attention to just a few of the exciting new and Listen.” Accessed through its website this project will bring to worldprojects initiated at the Collection in recent months. First, you will wide virtual audience a range of digital media to include audio and video read below about the new keyboard exhibit and audio tour which is recordings and presentations of live concerts. As nearing completion. This project represents the part of its 2013 US tour, Tafelmusik will present at first part of a more extensive audio, and evenYale “House of Dreams,” a program taking the auditually video tour of the entire Collection. We ence on a magical journey to the meeting places of plan to make this material available on the webbaroque art and music—five European homes where site. Our goal is to engage the general public, exquisite works by Bach, Handel, Vivaldi and Marais but also to serve as an academic resource to the were played against a backdrop of paintings by VerYale community and beyond. The Yale School meer, Canaletto, and Watteau. The performance of Music website is undergoing a major overhaul will include stage direction, narration, and stunning to be finished at the beginning of 2013; you can projected images. Associate Members of the Collecexpect to see a more dynamic website for the tion who subscribe to the regular series will receive Collection around the same time. complimentary tickets to this concert. This fall Richard Seraphinoff, esteemed makvThe season will conclude on 7 April with the er of natural horns and also Horn Professor at New Haven debut performance by Les Delices, Indiana University, will bring two new replica an ensemble specializing in music of the French Baroque horns for the replica collection, and Baroque. Founded in Cleveland in 2006, Les Déhe will also give classes on Baroque and Claslices brings together musicians who share a special sical performance practice. He also has agreed interest in this repertory of music from the period to make an assessment of the brass holdings from during which France took the cultural lead of the Collection during his visit. among the nations of Europe. Under the direction We anticipate an upgrade to the building at15 of oboist Deborah Nagy, the group will include Julie Hillhouse that will be apparent to you when you Andrijeski and Scott Metcalfe, violins; Emily Walcome to visit the Collection this fall: the interior hout, viola da gamba; and Michael Sponseller, harplighting of the entire building is being redone. sichord. Les Délices’ program, “Age of Indulgence,” The result will be better lighting throughout the presents music written on the eve of an aesthetic This unusual bass clarion was displayed in a special exhibit areas, particularly in the second floor revolution. A selection of works by François-André exhibition of 19th-century American wind instru- space, where there will be more flexibility in Philidor, Jean-Joseph Cassanea de Mondonville, An- ments on display from January through July. lighting for concerts. New LED lamps will draw toine Dauvergne, Jean-Philippe Rameau, and others reflects the humor much less power and last far longer, resulting in substantial savings. and wit of early Haydn and Gluck, a little of Emanuel Bach’s Sturm und I want to express my deepest thanks to curators Susan Thompson and Drang, and characteristically lush French harmonies, all evocative of a Nicholas Renouf for their tireless efforts for the Collection. I continue to pivotal period in European musical history. be educated and inspired by the depth of their knowledge and commitment. The ongoing projects would not be possible without the efforts of vSpecial Free Concerts our growing staff of interns. Ian O’Sullivan did fine work last year, and The Yale Baroque Ensemble will be presented in three special free will be deeply missed; in his place this year will be three new interns– concerts this season. Under the direction of Professor Robert Mealy, Colin Meinecke, violist; Wai Lau, clarinetist; and Ian Petruzzi, hornist. this performing group resident in the Collection is comprised of postEach of them brings special knowledge and also commitment, and will, I graduate students in the Yale School of music concentrating on 17th- and am sure, make many important contributions during the coming busy year. 18-century performance practice. Two joint recitals, each featuring two I look forward to meeting you when you visit the Collection and members of the ensemble, will be performed at the Collection, one in welcome your thoughts about the museum and its activities. the fall and another in the spring. The full ensemble will perform in the spring in Sprague Hall. vIn the fall, Duo Maccari-Pulgiese will present a Lecture-Recital at the Collection. Italian guitarists Claudio Maccari and Paolo Pugliese have received acclaim worldwide for their brillian perWilliam Purvis, Director formances on period guitars by Guadagnini, Lacote, Panormo, Vinaccia and Garganese. The dates and times of these performances will be anvKeyboard Exhibit with Audio Tour nounced on the Collection’s website and in email messages to Associates. Yale’s famed collection of keyboard instruments will be featured in a renewed permanent exhibit to open this season. Twenty-seven of the vRestorations finest examples from among the over 100 keyboard instruments in the Andrew Dipper, the museum’s Conservator of String Instruments, Collection will be on display. New labels with extensive descriptive inforcompleted restoration work on two 19th-century violins last season. mation will be provided for each instrument. A highlight of the exhibit An anonymous mid-19th-century German violin was thoroughly reconwill be an audio tour featuring spoken narrative about each instrument structed and set up to the specifications proper to violins from 1800-1830 along with a brief recorded musical example for each of the instruments period. A Belgian or Dutch violin, dated 1808, which was badly cracked, that has been restored to playing condition. The audio files may be acwas completely refurbished and set up as a gut-strung instrument from cessed either through mp3 players available in the museum’s lobby, or on the late Classical period. Both of these instruments will be available for visitors’ own “smart phones”. Organized by curator Nicholas Renouf, the use by students. Mr. Dipper also completely restored three antique violin presentation is designed so that museum visitors will be free either to folcases: a mid-18th-century Italian painted wood case; a late-18th-century low the numbered order as if on a personal guided tour or to view the indouble violin case of European make; and a wooden violin case covered struments in a sequence of their own choosing. Associate Members will in leather dating from Rome or Naples dating from the end of the 18th receive invitations to the opening and following reception. It is planned or very early 19th century. These painstaking restoration projects were that in the future the exhibit label information and the audio presentadocumented in Mr. Dipper’s accustomed detailed reports with copious tion will be available as a “virtual tour” on the Collection’s website. photographic records.
vRecent Acquisitions
photograph by Timothy Collins
Heading the list of accessions made by the Collection in the past season is a group of four harpsichords by mid-twentieth-century keyboard instrument maker John Challis that were given by Dr. William Frayer. They range in size from a diminutive, four-octave “petite model” instrument just over three feet in length to a grand five-octave “concert model” with four choirs of strings and seven pedals. After an apprenticeship with Arnold Dolmetsch in England, Challis set up shop in his native Michigan as the only harpsichord maker in the country. In the 1960s he moved to New York City. His many innovations and use of modern materials and technology resulted in a highly original approach to the design and production of harpsichord and clavichords. The early instruments were woodenframed, but in search of greater stability he used a cast aluminum frame, and later, a frame, wrestplank and bridges of aluminum; and he used bakelite and A two-manual concert model harpsichord was one of nylon for other parts. As four instruments by American maker John Challis Challis himself put it, “I was given to the Collection by Dr. William Frayer. am not an antiquarian; my idea is simply to carry on the manufacturing of harpsichords where it left off when the instrument went out of popularity at the end of the 18th Century.” His instruments are noted for their durability and reliability. vMr. David G. Powrie presented to the Collection a late-19th- or early 20th-century French metronome by Pacquet (Paris) and a practice Scottish bagpipe chanter. The metronome’s pyramidal case of acajou wood houses the standard mechanism developed by Johann Nepomuk Maelzel (1772-1838), inventor of musical automatons. The chanter is the pipe upon which the bagpipe player executes the melody line above the drone accompaniment supplied by the other pipes. This practice chanter is of light-colored hardwood in two sections with ivory rings. It was used for study and rehersal by students and accomplished players alike. vMrs. Heidi Knudsen of The String Academy of Wisconsin (Milwaukee) donated a four-keyed, rosewood flute by the 19th-century New York maker Firth, Hall and Pond.
vReplica Instruments
As noted in previous issues of this newsletter, the museum has been acquiring a collection of replicas of antique instruments for use by students engaged in the various early music activities on the campus. This past season four wind instruments were added to the collection: a pair of baroque period oboes and a pair of classical period clarinets—all the work of New York wind instrument maker Joel Robinson. Eleven baroque bows This Newsletter is published annually by the YALE UNIVERSITY COLLECTION OF MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS 15 Hillhouse Avenue, P.O. Box 208278 New Haven, CT 06520-8278 Telephone (203) 432-0822; FAX (203) 432-8342 e-mail: musinst@pantheon.yale.edu On the Internet: www.yale.edu/musicalinstruments
Public Visiting Hours: Sept.-June, Tues—Fri., 1-4 pm; Sun., 1-5 pm Closed during University Recesses and during August.
were purchased, for use by the Yale Baroque Ensemble as well as string students in the School of Music and Yale College who are studying 18thcentury performance practice. As the early music program at the Yale School of Music continues to evolve, these replica instruments will be an invaluable resource for an increasing number of participants.
vExhibit of Early American Wind Instruments A special exhibit entitled “Whirring Lathes, Dulcet Tones: Woodwind Making in Early 19th-Century Connecticut and New York” was presented at the Collection from the end of January through July. Drawn from the the Collection’s holdings along with objects lent by other museums and private collectors, the exhibit featured twenty-six woodwind instruments from the workshops of Edward Riley (New York City), George Catlin (Hartford), Uzal Miner (Hartford), John Meacham, Jr. (Hartford and Albany), Asa Hopkins (Litchfield), Benjamin & Munger (New Haven), and Firth, Hall, and Pond (New York City and Litchfield). Displayed were flageolets, fifes, a piccolo, flutes, clarinets, and a bassoon. The most unusual instrument exhibited was a bass clarion (a bass clarinet in the shape of a bassoon) made by Uzal Miner after a design that his mentor George Catlin patented in the early 1800s. The displays of instruments were supplemented with period graphic art (portraiture and genre scenes), newspaper advertisements, instrument tutors, and instruction books. Also included were facsimiles of engravings showing the lathes that were used in the turning of woodwinds at this time. Wood samples representing the different species of woods that were favored—boxwood, satinwood, rosewood, cocuswood, ebony, and maple were displayed as well. The exhibit was organized by curator Susan E. Thompson, with assistance from three museum interns, all of whom are recent graduates of the School of Music Bethany Wiese (M.Mus., 2010), Scott Holben (M.Mus., 2010), and Ian Petruzzi (M.Mus, 2012).
vStudent Intern Program
In the 2010-2011 season Director William Purvis initiated a student intern program at the Collection to assist the curatorial staff. This past season Ian O’Sullivan, a guitarist who graduated from the Yale School of Music in May of 2011, served as a half-time postgraduate intern. In addition to managing the circulating collection, Ian supervised the work of four part-time student interns pursuing graduate programs at the School of Music. Their projects included work on the museum’s database, documentary photography, archival organization, and assistance in the management of the concert series, to mention only a few of the contributions they made to the running of the Collection. In the spring Ian was successful in obtaining funds through a Kickstarter initiative on the Internet to produce a CD recording of music by classical composers from his native Hawaii. In July, he Post-graduate intern for the 2011-2012 season, Ian returned to Honolulu to O’Sullivan has accepted an appointment on the music faculty of the University of Hawaii. assume a professorial position on the faculty of the University of Hawaii. We wish him success in all his endeavors. For the coming academic year three half-time interns and several student assistants have been appointed to offer even more help to the staff as it copes with the day-to-day running of the museum with its recently expanded activities.
v Membership and Concert Tickets Membership enrollments and orders for SERIES SUBSCRIPTION TICKETS should be mailed to the Collection in the enclosed envelope. The membership will be acknowledged and the tickets sent out in the mail. SINGLE TICKETS may be ordered by telephone at: 203-432-0825, or online from the Yale School of Music box office at: www.yale.edu/music. Associates are entitled to a substantial discount on the price of tickets (regular price $20 each, Associate’s price $15; special Associate’s series ticket for six concerts $50). As noted on the membership form, the IRS requires that the amount of the contribution that is tax-deductible must be reduced by the amount of the discount taken on ticket prices. Associates are also given preference as to seating for a series subscription. Seats held in previous years will be reserved for the holder until September 15. For further information, please call 203-432-0825. Associate Members will be given upon request complimentary tickets to the special concert by Tafelmusik in Sprague Hall on March 5. Please note your request on the membership form or call 203-432-0825. Those who are not members should direct their requests for Tafelmusik tickets to the Yale School of Music box office at 203-432-4158 or www.yale.edu/music. Seats will be limited for what promises to be a sell-out performance, so make your reservation today.
A group of 75 participants in this season’s Morse Summer Music Academy at the Yale School of Music enjoyed a presentation at the Collection by the staff in August. The students were selected from grades 6-10 by teachers from the New Haven Public Schools to participate in the Academy. Sponsors of the Academy, Mr. and Mrs. Lester Morse, were also in attendance.
YALE UNIVERSITY COLLECTION OF MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS ASSOCIATE MEMBERS: 2011-2012 HONORARY LIFE MEMBER Mr. Yves Albert Feder Mr. Elias N. Kulukundis Mr. George P. O’Leary Mr. Andrew Petryn Mr. Hans H. Schambach Mr. Timothy A. Steinert Mr. Lawrence S. Wilkinson SKINNER FELLOW Ms. Victoria Keator DePalma Mr. David G. Powrie BENEFACTOR Mr. Elias N. Kulukundis Mr. Thomas G. MacCracken PATRON Dr. and Mrs. Emile L. Boulpaep Ms. Ute Brinkmann Dr. and Mrs. Robert W. Lyons George and Reba O’Leary Mr. Christopher Reuning Mr. Duane Wilder Ms. Elizabeth C. Yen SPONSOR Liesa and Milton Allen Mr. and Mrs. Robert P. Anderson, Jr. Dr. Thomas Anderson
SPONSOR (continued) Dr. James K. and Peggy F. Baird Mr. Ronald Bell Mrs. Ann Bliss Robert and Serena Blocker Ms. Claudine Britton Prof. Ki and Juliet Chon Mrs. Grace A. Clark Ms. Constance Clement Mrs. Phoebe Coleman Philip and Teri Conforti Denise Morris Curt Mr. and Mrs. R. Raleigh D’Adamo Mr. John N. Ellyson The Rev. Richard Fabian Dr. Mary Jewett Greer Joseph F. Hoffman and Eleanor Cirkowitz Mrs. Susan Howard Prof. Francesco Iachello Ms. Elizabeth Keitel Bruce Larkin and Donna Jarlenski Carleton and Barbara Loucks Elizabeth D. C. Meyer Mrs. Frances L. Miller Prof. Craig A. Monson Ms. Kathleen Moretto Spencer Peter and Kathryn Patrikis Mr. Andrew Petryn Prof. Leon Plantinga Mrs. Jean Purvis
SPONSOR (continued) Mr. and Mrs. William Purvis Marlowe and Elise Sigal Kerala and Richard Snyder Drs. Kurt and Judit Stenn Shepard and Marlene Stone Hannah and Herbert Winer Mrs. Avril Winks Earl and Constance Young Dr. Hugh H. Young FAMILY John and Rebecca Arkenberg Mr. and Mrs. Donald Baerman Francis Braunlich and Elizabeth Neuse Anne and Guido Calabresi Maria and Charles Coldwell Ms. Adela W. Collins Margaret Hood Family Dr. E. Anthony Petrelli Lynda E. Rosenfeld and Richard M. Weiss Prof. Koichi Shinohara Drs. Lorraine Siggins & Braxton McKee Pat and Damon Smith Dr. J. W. Streett and Family John and Dorothy Sutton REGULAR Mr. F. Vining Bigelow Mrs. Ann Bliss
REGULAR (continued) Mrs. Sally B. Brown Dr. Paul Cienniwa Walter Cahn & Brenda Danet Edith H. Evangeliste Grace A. Feldman Dr. and Mrs. Gerhard H. Giebisch Dr. Lee Goebel Ms. Joyce V. Goldberg Ms. Alexandra Isles Susan Rees Jones Mr. Philip Kass Mr. Kerry Keane Jeane Lind & David Berger Prof. George H. Lucktenberg Prof. Susan Marchant Ms. Suzanne Niedzielska Ms. Barbara E. Smith Mr. John R. Stieper Ms. Sally A. Taylor Mrs. Belle Skinner Kilborne Taylor Ms. Erica Warnock Mr. Robert Webster Ms. Sarah Jessica Whitson STUDENT Ms. Tiffany Ng Mr. Jason Stockmann
The Yale University Collection of Musical Instruments, one of the oldest institutions of it kind in the United States, was established in 1900, when New Haven Symphony co-founder Morris Steinert presented the core of his extensive private collection to the University. One of four museums on campus, the Collection preserves, documents, exhibits, and interprets musical instruments as works of art and artifacts of music history. Its holdings of nearly 1000 instruments, including a collection of keyboard instruments unsurpassed in the world, are particularly strong in the area of European art music between 1550 and 1950. Housed in an 1894 Romanesque revival building designed by William H. Allen, the Collection has presented an annual series of concerts since 1967 and contributes in many other ways to the Yale music curriculum and to the cultural life of the University and to the larger community.