The
Serenade in E Major, Op. 22, by Antonín Dvorák
(1841-1904) was composed in 1875 and is one of the most popular
pieces for String Orchestra. Today our group is playing only the
very short but beautiful Moderato which is the first movement.
You will undoubtedly recognize its theme immediately.
On
The Trail from The Grand Canyon Suite by Ferde Grofé
(1892-1972) became one of the most recognizable American compositions,
partially due to the use of its theme in a popular cigarette radio
commercial as well as its depiction of the donkeys used in the
canyon. Grofé had traveled the country around the Grand
Canyon as an itinerant pianist for several years and knew the
terrain of the region, its animal and bird life, and the people
and their habits and customs. The richness of the land and the
rugged optimism of its people fired up his imagination and he
became determined to put it all to music someday. Grofé
said, "I am not alone in seeing and feeling the wonderful
music that is right here in our America. This music comes surging
forth, comes singing up from our land. This music is your music,
and mine only in the highly technical sense that a copyright has
been filed away with my name on it." The UMKC Accordion Orchestra
has included his "Mississippi Suite" on its Number 5
CD Pasticcio. It was during the time that Ferde Grofé served
as the arranger of George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue for the
Paul Whiteman band that he was encouraged to write the Mississippi
Suite.
Ballade
for Accordion Orchestra, Two Electroniums, Timpani and Percussion
(published in 1994) was composed by the famous German accordion
teacher Fritz Dobler (born 1927), one-time Coupe Mondiale Winner
and prolific writer for both accordion solo and accordion orchestra,
for one of his friend's orchestras to use as a competition piece.
The UMKC Accordion Orchestra has performed many of Professor Dobler's
compositions over a long period of time. We believe you will find
this piece one of his most interesting and very attractive compositions.
He was recently voted the prestigious Merit Award by the Confédération
Internationale des Accordéonistes during its Winter Congress
in Arrasate, Spain. Kevin Friedrich, now serving as CIA Ambassador
and the immediate Past President of the world organization, presented
this award to Professor Dobler during the recent World Music Festival
in Innsbruck, Austria.
The
UMKC Accordion Orchestra has performed several Astor Piazzolla
(1921-1992) compositions, among them are Novitango (included on
our orchestra's Number 2 CD Vivace), Libertango, Oblivion, Fuga
9, Melodia in a minor, (included on our orchestra's Number 1 CD
Allegro and for which it received impressive reviews), Five Tango
Sensations (with the extraordinary Finnish artist, Mika Väyrynen,
as soloist in a San Antonio, TX concert), Ballet Tango, and Escualo,
among others.
Today
the group will perform three Piazzolla pieces: Adiós
Nonino (1959), Close Your Eyes and Listen, and Cité Tango
(1977). All three demonstrate the elements of melancholy,
nostalgia, and sadness of their beautiful melodies as well as
the sensuality of their strong basic rhythms for which the composer
was noted. Piazzolla studied with Ginastera in Buenos Aires and
Nadia Boulanger in Paris. He won innumerable enthusiasts for both
his Nuevo Tango and for the traditional tango with his many appearances,
recordings, and hundreds of compositions as well as awards from
international music magazines, and a Grammy nomination for Oblivion.
Piazzolla realized his electrifying blend of the fire and passion
of the traditional tango with the vast expressive resources of
modern harmony, texture, and sonority in some 750 widely varied
works that explore the genre's remarkable expressive range, from
violent to sensual, from witty to melancholy, from intimate to
theatrical.
Adiós
Nonino, "Goodbye Grandfather," is the single most famous
of all the pieces written by Astor Piazzolla who performed it
thousands of times in at least 20 different arrangements. It was
written in commemoration of the death of his father, Vincente,
known as "nonino."
Close
Your Eyes and Listen (Cierra tus ojos y escucha) was recorded
in 1974 with Gerry Mulligan and became an instant favorite with
its hauntingly beautiful melodic line.
Last
year the UMKC Community Accordion Orchestra included a video prepared
by UMKC Professor Caitlin Horsmon which was shown during its performance
of Suite from Video Games Live. It was so well received that we
asked her to prepare another video, this time to project during
the performance of Cité Tango.
The
featured dancers on today's program are Louis Bar and Laura Cantu.
They are 6 times French National Champions and 5 times World Finalists
in Argentine Tango, Swing and other ballroom dances. They travel
all over the world to compete, perform, teach and learn. In addition,
Louis and Laura are the owners of Louis & Company at 10409
Marty in Overland Park, KS. Check out their website www.funwithstyle.com
They will be joined by several of their students on the final
Piazzolla piece. Louis Bar, in fact, has just one month ago become
World Champion in Chacha, Rumba, Swing, Bolero, and Mambo!
Argentine
tango is a social dance and a musical genre that originated in
Argentina and Uruguay. It consists of a variety of styles that
developed in different regions and eras, and in response to the
crowding of the venue and even the fashions in clothing. Argentine
tango is danced in an embrace that can vary from very open, in
which leader and follower connect at arms length, to very closed,
in which the connection is chest-to-chest, or anywhere in between.
Tango is essentially walking with a partner and the music. Musicality
(i.e., dancing appropriately to the emotion and speed of a tango)
is an extremely important element of dancing tango. A good dancer
is one who makes you feel the music. Dancers generally keep their
feet close to the floor as they walk, with their ankles and knees
brushing as one leg passes the other.
Argentine
tango relies heavily on improvisation and although certain patterns
of movement have been codified over the years, there is no "basic
step." It is danced counterclockwise around the outside of
the dance floor. Ballroom tango steps have been standardized by
dance studios and the steps have been relatively fixed in style
for decades; however, Argentine tango has been an evolving dance
and musical form, with continual changes occurring every day on
the social dance floor in Argentina and in major tango centers
elsewhere in the world. The government of Argentina hosts an annual
competition of Argentine tango in Buenos Aires, attracting competitors
from around the world. There are several differences between Argentine
and Ballroom tango dancing, among them the Embrace (abrazo), Walking
(caminando), and the Music. The history of tango dancing is very
interesting and will draw the reader into wanting to know even
more about it. There are many films featuring the different styles
of Tango Nuevo, show tango or alternative tango music, as well
as Argentine or traditional tango, which will provide endless
enjoyment.
The
Star Wars Epic is a medley of three compositions by John
Williams used in the popular Star Wars movies: Princess Leia's
Theme (from Episode IV), The Imperial March - Darth Vader's Theme
and The Forest Battle (from Episodes V and VI) ; and the Star
Wars Main Title (from Episodes I - VI.) Star Wars has, as we all
know, become a favorite of many people, perhaps especially among
young people of all ages. Joan Sommers will be conducting at the
Accordionists and Teachers Guild, International Annual Festival
which will be held this July 21-25 in Santa Clara, CA. It just
so happens that her two young grandsons, now ages almost 7 and
5, live close by and they have never seen their grandmother conduct.
In addition, they know just about everything one could know about
the Star Wars movies...so what else could grandmother do but arrange
some music especially for them. And that is how these three pieces
came to be on today's program!
Tango
Fugitativo and Milonga Feliz were written by the Dutch
composer, Gerie Daanen who has composed several accordion orchestra
pieces recorded by the Dutch group, Alphen Opus 2. That group
specializes in the performance of original music for accordion
orchestra; it has commissioned several pieces and has won awards
for this activity. Joan met the conductor and the members of the
group in 2008 when she conducted the World Accordion Orchestra
in Scotland and they have continued their friendships online since
then. Gerri studied classical accordion with Mogens Ellegaard
in Copenhagen, Denmark.
The
first part of Tango Fugitativo, the allegro moderato, is characterized
by its fugue-like setting in a strong rhythmic context with an
8/8 rhythm in a structure of 3+3+2, changing sometimes, however,
to 3+2+3. In the andante misterioso, the timbre plays an important
role. Besides the choral-like 1st and 2nd accordion parts, the
work has a contrasting 3rd part, playing the rhythmic ostinato
figure on the cutting edge. Then the 4th part takes over this
figure in a somewhat springy way. The allegro con fuoco may be
approached as the culmination, containing a contemplative middle
part which refers to the 2nd part.
In
the Tango Fugitativo, restlessness and excitement mark the search
for inner rest. The Milonga Feliz is the light counterpart of
it, having a traditional musical form; it may just swing. Some
say the Milonga is essentially tango; the differences lie in the
music, which has a strongly-accented beat, and an underlying "habanera"
rhythm. Some tango dancers say that tango steps should not be
used in milonga and that milonga has its own special rhythm and
steps which are quite different from tango. Milonga is also the
name given to tango dance parties.
Since
the musical Wicked, with music by Stephen Schwartz,
opened in New York in 2003, it has been seen in many different
cities, always to sold-out audiences and breaking box office records
around the world as continuing proof of its popularity. Both the
West End production and the North American tour have been seen
by over 2 million patrons. It has earned several awards, among
them ten nominations and three winners at the 2004 Tony Awards,
winning 6 Drama Desk Awards, an Olivier Award, and a Grammy at
the 47th Annual presentation. Many proclaim it to be "the
musical of the decade." The Highlights from Wicked arrangement
includes several of the most remembered pieces from the musical.
The arrangement by Joan Sommers was prepared for the orchestra's
appearance at the 2007 Coupe Mondiale in Alexandria, VA and its
concert in the John F. Kennedy Performing Arts Center.
The
UMKC accordion groups rarely play polkas on concerts unless they
are indeed special ones. We decided to close our concert today
with The Blackbird Polka, one which has come to
us from a group of professional accordionists in St. Petersburg,
Russia. It was written for the Russian Bayan button instrument
and is rather difficult, especially when played on the piano keyboards
which are used predominantly throughout the USA, but it is happy,
fun to play, and a piece which may just have you dancing in the
aisles.
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