The state of the SSO

Symphony No 2 in D Major, Opus 43 – 45 mins Jean Sibelius

Allegretto Tempo Andante, ma rubato Vivacissimo Finale: Allegro moderato Dedicated to Baron Axel Carpelan In 1900, Baron Axel Carpelan wrote to Sibelius and, citing Italy’s positive effects on Tchaikovsky and Strauss, recommended that Sibelius travel there. Depressed by the death of his youngest daughter, Sibelius was helped immensely by his Italian journey. During his stay in Rapallo from February to May 1901, he was able to sketch what would become the second of his seven symphonies. Originally conceived as a four-movement orchestral fantasy, Symphony #2 was assigned a program by Sibelius’s friend, conductor Robert Kajanus. Sibelius rejected any specific nationalistic or patriotic program assigned to his Symphony #2, although the Finnish character of the work is unquestionable. An ardent Finnish nationalist, Sibelius was a very individual composer. Although he lived well into the twentieth century, his music is not like that of Bartok or Hindemith; Sibelius was a Romanticist who composed in a late nineteenth-century style. However, following a concert of his music in Germany, Sibelius became an international figure and began to respond to currents in contemporary music. The five symphonies after Symphony #2 are marked by thinner orchestration and increased use of dissonance. However, despite his symphonic masterworks, Sibelius did not and could not speak the language of musical modernism. He published no music during the last 30 years of his life and none survives that period. His musical aesthetic favors the sense-impressions of Symbolism and integration of thematic material, rather than tending to modernist abstraction. The Symbolist idea of tone-painting-–representing the physical world in music-–is apparently one that appealed to Sibelius. In Symphony #2, fjords, icy lakes, and cold wind are images that the listener can’t help experiencing. Kalevala, a Finnish folk-epic, had attracted Sibelius from his youth onwards. His translation of the Kalevala into music via tone-painting is, more than overt nationalism, what gives Symphony #2 its sense of local flavor. It accounts for the mystical and organic character of the music. Premiered March 8, 1902, the symphony was an instant success. By 1940, Sibelius’s music was all the rage in America. By the time of his death in 1957, his music had all but disappeared. It was “rediscovered” in the 1970s and has remained in the repertoire until the present day.

 

Credit J Sundram

 

For our closing performance of the 2014-2015 season we have decided to ask our wonderful patrons to select the symphony they would like to hear. We have narrowed the field to four:  Mendelssohn’s Mediterranean-inspired “Italian” Symphony, Mozart’s tragic and emotional Symphony No. 40, the 14 year travail that was Brahms’s First Symphony and Beethoven’s revolutionary Symphony No. 3.

Below you can vote on which great symphonic work you would most like to hear.

On January 24th, the SSO will bring the Northern Lights to the concert hall – John Estacio discusses his work Borealis.

The first time ever I experienced the glorious spectacle of the Aurora Borealis was a few short years ago when I arrived in Edmonton. Up until that moment I had to settle for textbook explanations and a geography teacher’s descriptions.

I had no idea what I was seeing when I first noticed the majestic curtains of swirling green light
in the sky one crisp October evening until a friend confirmed that it was indeed the Northern Lights. I was completely captivated and awestruck by the magical sight of dancing light; how could I not be inspired to compose a piece of music?! Having recently completed two serious compositions, it was the right time to revisit a style for unabashed lyrical melodies and joyous bright orchestral colours that Borealis would require.

The composition is written in two movements. The first movement is meant to be awe-invoking and attempts to capture the ethereal atmosphere of the lights of the northern skies; wide streams of bending, curving light that abruptly disappear and reappear. The ephemeral nature of these celestial happenings is represented by the sudden colourful outbursts followed by movements of near silence. The movement begins with the strings playing a major chord and then gradually glissing (bending the pitch) until they all arrive at a different chord; for me, this musical gesture captures the essence of bending curtains of light and serves as a recurring motive throughout this movement. A solo flute introduces fragments of a melody; this melody is not heard in its entirety until later in the piece when it is performed by a solo bassoon and then an English horn. The strings perform the melody and the composition swells to its climax featuring the brass and the sound splashes provided by the percussion. The movement concludes with a unique auditory effect in the percussion section that again attempts to convey the enchanting and magical quality of the borealis.

For the second movement, I wanted something that would be a formidable contrast to the subtle nature of the first movement, a celebrated dance of celestial light. The music for Scherzo (meaning “playful”) has more of a fervent and animated energy to it being inspired by the notion of dancing celestial lights (title changed to Wondrous Light, 2004). This movement is perhaps less of a literal musical representation of the borealis and is, instead, inspired by their energy and the speed at which the lights seem to zip through the evening skies. A nimble melody introduced by the oboe is developed intervallically and rhythmically throughout the composition. Sudden swells in volume accompanied by quick glissandos were inspired by the swirling curtains of green light which twist and turn and vanish suddenly in the night sky. Towards the conclusion of this movement the nimble theme is transformed into a noble melody performed as a traditional chorale by the trombones, and then repeated by the full orchestra. The conclusion of this piece attempts to capture the majesty of the borealis — they have graced our northern skies since time began and will continue to dance evermore.

John Estacio

PROGRAM NOTES FOR “VARIATIONS ON A SOUTHERN GOSPEL TUNE”

 

by Monte K. Pishny-Floyd

 

What’s in a title? Variations on a Southern Gospel Tune: what is the genesis (pardon the pun) of this title? So what’s a Jewish guy like me doing writing a piece based on an old Christian Gospel tune? Partly it has to do with my culture. I am from Oklahoma originally, although I’ve lived in Canada more than forty years, long enough to have become almost civilized. My home “town,” Oklahoma City (OKC), used to be described as “two skyscrapers surrounded by Baptists.” It has long since outgrown that ancient joke, but it harbours a truth: Oklahoma has a far larger percentage of Evangelicals among its population than any other state. Being Jewish, or even, for example, Catholic, put one in a minority. Being from a transplanted Czech culture (“Pishny”) put one in another minority. However, the minorities from which my own roots emanate were also quite assimilated and intertwined with the more dominant culture, which was in those days as now distinctly “Gospel”-based.

 

Further, I am by no means the only Jewish composer to write a work on a Christian subject: one has only to think of, for example, Bernstein’s enormously great Mass, much of the music of such as Mahler and Mendelssohn, and of course those marvelous holiday songs “White Christmas” and “Easter Parade” by Irving Berlin, which I would put right up there with any of Schubert’s songs for artistic quality—beautiful stuff! Such works transcend specific cultures, and belong to everyone’s cultural inheritance—I hope this is true of my own work which you will hear on tonight’s SSO concert. (This will be the first performance of Variations on a Southern Gospel Tune by a professional orchestra.)

 

My Variations on a Southern Gospel Tune (VSGT) has a long history. It was more than a half-century ago that I first heard the beautiful and powerful tune upon which I based my variations sung. I will have more to say about that, below. When, in about 1963, a fellow music student asked me to write a short set of variations for her to perform on a recital, I immediately thought of this tune, because it is so easy to recognize but so rich in potential. I wrote a short set of variations for piano—these were not performed publicly at the time (only for a piano class). However, I later—much later—expanded them into an extended set of variations for the piano, some of them very difficult, and dedicated it to my wife, Annette, a well-known Canadian pianist. She performed it in many venues, including recording it for a CBC broadcast.

 

I had long envisioned orchestrating it, and two factors combined in the early part of this century to bring that about. In 2004, our oldest daughter, Amy, became President of the Fort Bend Symphony Orchestra (as well as a member of the cello section) in the Houston, Texas metro area. Shortly thereafter, the conductor, Dr. John Ricarte, asked me to become Composer-in-Residence. I agreed, and there ensued nearly a decade-long happy relationship between myself and this fine community orchestra. During this time Dr. Ricarte left to focus more on other musical duties, including a school string program that has now long been highly successful. His successor, Dr. Héctor Agüero. not only wished to continue the relationship I had with FBSO, but in the fall of 2008 commissioned me to write a work for the orchestra. I readily agreed, and began planning the project.

 

Unfortunately, in May of 2008, my beloved cousin, Mike Farrow (November 4, 1932-May 30, 2008) had died of Mesothelioma. Then on November 22 of 2008, shortly after Hector asked me to write a work, my next-door neighbour and one of my best friends, Mike Wilson (b. 1940), died, also of cancer. This combination of circumstances led me to conclude that my long-planned orchestral version of VSGT would be the appropriate work to memorialize these two people so dear to me, and several others as well.

 

Initially VSGT was to be for orchestra with harp, and I created a version with harp. However, less than a week before the first performance, the harpist resigned, and so I created a different version (two measures longer, by the way) for orchestra with piano. Annette, my wife, got into the act, learned the piano part literally overnight, played it the next day at the dress rehearsal, and the work was given its world-premiere on June 7, 2009, by the FBSO with Dr. Agüero conducting as scheduled. It was, I am happy to say, a real crowd-pleaser. I will say that I intended it to be one of my more accessible works (because of the more community-oriented orchestra and its constituency) without compromising my own principles and standards. I believe I have achieved that balance with this work. It has since been performed in Saskatoon by the Saskatoon Philharmonic Orchestra, George Charpentier conducting, and given a very special performance by the Brazosport Symphony Orchestra (BSO) in Lake Jackson, Texas, with Dr. John Ricarte conducting on February 23, 2013.

 

There was a standing ovation at all three concerts, which of course pleases any composer or performer, but at the Lake Jackson BSO concert of February 23, 2013 things got even better. This was special, because Annette and I were the featured guests of honour at a BSO weekend in Lake Jackson. The theme was “Young at Heart,” and Annette was the guest pianist. Indeed, Annette has been the pianist in all the performances of my work to now and is looking forward to sitting in the audience and hearing the whole thing for the first time when the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra (SSO) plays it. For me the nicest thing about the BSO concert was that, since it happened to be Annette’s 71^st birthday, as soon as the applause had died away the orchestra launched into “Happy Birthday” with Dr. Ricarte conducting the audience who stood and sang “Happy Birthday” to Annette. At intermission, the BSO served birthday cupcakes—all of this surprised both of us, especially Annette. It also made us happy several of our children and grandchildren were present at the Lake Jackson concert.

 

For VSGT I took a cue from Sir Edward Elgar’s Enigma Variations, and put the initials of beloved family members and friends on each of VSGT’s sections. The entire work is dedicated to the memory of “the two Mikes,” Mike Farrow and Mike Wilson. The Introduction bears the initials “D. M.,” for Daniel M. Rahm, my late father-in-law, a solid, salt-of-the-earth highly-respected refinery foreman and rock of his Southern Baptist Church; the Theme is “for H. & L.,” known to us as “Uncle Hank & Aunt Lela Rahm,” staunch Methodists, successful farmers/investors, and generous benefactors of charities throughout the Garfield County region of northern Oklahoma including the city of Enid. Variation I is “for B.H.,” namely, our own Bob Hinitt, a dear friend of mine, a Sorbonne-educated gardener and theatrical set-builder whose annual Christmas displays on Wiggins thrilled so many Saskatonians for so many years—and always benefited his favourite charity, the SPCA; Variation II is “a musical sketch of Mike Farrow,” and is in the lively “Black Gospel” style; Variation III is “a musical sketch of Mike Wilson,” and is in an “Appalachian-Southern White Gospel” style; Variation IV bears the indication, “J. J., Magister Musicae De Facto,” implying that one of my closest friends in Saskatoon, the late Jack Johnson, more than proved he deserved the master’s degree that fate and departmental politics denied him; Variation V. has the indication, “for G. H. F.,” which is for my Uncle George Hunter Floyd, a “Wounded Warrior” of WWII, and in this short variation which is nothing but marching drums. I envisioned the phantom that had been Uncle George (nicknamed “Tag”) marching across a silent battlefield still smoking from the struggle; Variation VI is marked “for E. S.,” for my first best friend, Eddie Strickland, whom I met in the summer of 1944 when we were both still two years old. We were friends until his death about a quarter-century ago. Eddie was haunted by “demons” from a tragic childhood accident in which his younger brother died—but after Eddie married into a very Catholic family (which caused idle chatter in our old mostly-Protestant neighbourhood) he seemed quite happy until his untimely death in a late-night motorcycle accident. I believe to the end he was “haunted” by those “demons”—the “Dies Irae” setting expresses my own deepest feelings about him and his end; Variation VII is labeled “M. C.,” for Irish-born Dr. Mary Cronin, also Catholic, a brilliant educator, and one of our dearest friends. I could not help but think of her name, “Mary,” and the symbolism of her calming spiritual effect on the wrath of the “Dies Irae,” which calm leads into the “N’awlins” style Gospel Blues funeral march of Variations VIII-X: Variation VIII is “for V. and R.P.,” for my Aunt Vivian and Uncle Roger Pishny, wonderful people, Roger being also a gifted musician who, when I was young, introduced me to many great organists and their playing when they came to OKC; Variation IX is “for C.O.,” which stands for “Cousin Otto.” Otto Norman was a businessman, but also a musician who played his last New Year’s dance in 2004 with his group “The Pacemakers” at age 90 and died in 2008; Variation X is “for E. & A.P.,” which is in memory of my Aunt Ernesteen and Uncle Anton Pishny—Anton, with Ernesteen’s help, for many years did something in OKC similar to what Bob Hinitt did here: an annual Christmas display. Anton played Santa Claus to many people over the years with the help of the lady we knew at Christmas as “Mrs. Claus”—my Aunt Ernesteen, the fantastic Earth-mother cook who tried her best to make me permanently overweight. Without pause, Variation XI, the Coda, concludes the work. It bears the note, “for G. M.,” referring to Annette’s Mother Rosalie Rahm, whom we all knew as “Grandmother” or simply, “G. M,” the wife of “D.M.” She lived to be 91, and was the one to whom we all turned for both wise counsel AND her incredible sense of humour. She was a deeply-committed Southern Baptist (and as she said, “a lonely Democrat in a nest of Republicans”) who was open and welcoming to people of all faiths and ethnicities.

 

All of these good people, and with them many, many stories, are imbedded in this work of mine, part and parcel of its fabric. It occurred to me that this is, in a very real sense my musical equivalent of Thornton Wilder’s deservedly-famous play, “Our Town.”

 

I first heard the tune, “I will arise and go to Jesus” sung by people from rural southern Oklahoma, not in a Black Gospel style but in an Appalachian style as upbeat and fervent as the Black Gospel style. I was captivated then and since with the simple strength and emotional power of that tune, which I refer to in my music’s title as a “Southern Gospel Tune.” “Gospel Music” per se has more to do with the style of performance than the tune actually being sung. Some of the variations in my work are—for me—like musical snapshots of these two (among many) Gospel styles. For example, Variations II and III allude to, respectively, the Black Gospel style with built-in “hand-clappin’” and “foot-stompin’,” and the Appalachian/”Southr’in Okie” Gospel style with various vocal “swoops ‘n’ catches” in the singing (here, left to the strings).

 

My Variations on a Southern Gospel Tune, more than any other work I have ever written, grows out of my Oklahoma cultural roots. Oklahoma is a state where cultures were and are in conflict. For example, part of the state prior to the Civil War had been the Cherokee Nation, the Creek-Seminole Nation, and the Choctaw-Chickasaw Nation. After the war, it was Indian Territory until statehood in 1907. More than 30 Native American tribes live in Oklahoma, nearly twenty percent of the population is of Native American ancestry, and state license plates for decades now have proclaimed Oklahoma to be “Native America.” Not only that, when I was growing up our state was as rigidly segregated (until post-1954) vis-à-vis Black/White as South Africa’s Apartheid. On top of that, another form of almost-equally-stringent de facto segregation was Protestant/Catholic. Many Protestants/Catholics did not mix socially, and quite often parents of one faith would not even allow their children to play with children of the other faith.

 

All of this is interwoven in my mind and in my work. I have subtly slipped in a symbolic musical reference to the Protestant/Catholic conflict beginning with Variation I, in which the main tune, “I will arise and go to Jesus” is combined with the “Dies Irae” (“Day of Wrath”) from the old Latin Catholic Mass. Here “Dies Irae” is quiet; it reaches its full wrathfulness and terror in Variation VI, where its immense inner energy and musical force is unleashed.

 

The following Variation, VII, tempers “the harsh decree” with mercy and love, and the work concludes with an extended excursion into the Gospel Blues idiom, a sort of “N’awlins” type sound, coming to full fruition in Variation X. It is my take on the traditional “N’awlins” Dixieland march to the cemetery, and the work concludes with an ethereal, transcendental Coda which uses another tune associated with the words “I will arise and go to Jesus.” As IF it was actually being sung, the melody leaves the text and tune unfinished: “…no turnin’ back, no turnin’….” as the music fades—over a bass note from the depths of eternity—into silence.

When the SSO embarked on the plans to do an auditioned chorus, we called Duff Warkentin – it was clear that he was the man for the job.  He’s become Saskatchewan’s go-to guy for a Messiah chorus!  Choral rehearsals have been filled not only with Duff’s musicianship, but his wonderful stories of meeting people like Ben Heppner and the legendary Robert Shaw.

Culture builds community! A strong believer in this truism, Duff Warkentin has had a significant and varied career as a choral singer, conductor, clinician, and adjudicator. His first intensive experience as a choral singer came when he was a student at Rosthern Junior College. Here he also had the opportunity to conduct the choir in the absence of their regular conductor. His post-secondary studies include degrees from Canadian Mennonite Bible College in Winnipeg, University of Waterloo, and the University of Regina. He has served as Music Director at Rosthern Junior College, taught and conducted choirs for several years at the University of Saskatchewan, served as Choral Artist in Residence in the Battlefords and Rosthern, was the conductor of the Saskatoon Chamber Singers, conducted a number of church choirs, and is the founding conductor of the Station Singers of Rosthern. He is grateful for the opportunity to conduct Handel’s magnificent oratorio.

The SSO is thrilled to have Lisa Hornung return to our Messiah performances – always a crowd favourite, her performances of Messiah show a true dedication and commitment to Handel’s beautiful music.

Honoured as one of the University of Saskatchewan’s Arts and Science Alumni of Influence, Saskatchewan born mezzo-soprano, Lisa Hornung has been acclaimed for performances in repertoire ranging from Baroque to contemporary composers. Her voice has been called “rich and powerful” and her stage presence has “inspired audiences and musicians alike”. Most often heard in Handel’s Messiah, Ms. Hornung’s orchestral performances also include Beethoven’s Mass in C major, Mozart’s Requiem, Coronation Mass and Vesperae solennes de Confessore, Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater, the Durufle Requiem, Ruth Watson-Henderson’s From Darkness to Light, Verdi’s Requiem, Bach’s Magnificat and Christmas Oratorio, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 and Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen, Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Vaughn William’s Magnificat, The May Queen by Bennett and the Alto Rhapsody by Brahms.

In addition to her oratorio and orchestral work Ms. Hornung enjoys an active recital career with recent performances including works by Brahms, Schumann, Marx, Debussy and Handel as well as Christmas, Spiritual and Folk repertoire. She has toured the United States and Europe as a soloist and ensemble member with the American Spiritual Ensemble, a group of professional singers dedicated to the preservation and performance of Negro Spirituals. Very excited about the talents of composer Paul Suchan, Lisa was delighted to record his full nuptial mass entitled May, and to have premiered the role of May Bartram in his opera The Beast in the Jungle.

After completing a Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance at the University of Saskatchewan under the tutelage of Professor Dorothy Howard, Ms. Hornung went on to further her studies at the Institute of Vocal Arts in Chiari, Italy. This was followed by an intensive study time at the University of Illinois with Richard Best. More recently she completed a year of study with the support of the Saskatchewan Arts Board, enabling her to spend time travelling to work with Mr. Nico Castel, Dr. Everett McCorvey, Dr. Cliff Jackson, Dr. Bill Cooper, Professor Micheal McMahon, Professor Tedrin Lindsey and Mr. Richard Best.

In accordance with her belief that every child deserves the opportunity to sing, Lisa runs a non-audition community youth choir and often collaborates with elementary and high school musical endeavours. She also enjoys lending a hand when the local drama club, Battlefords Community Players, is in need of musical direction. Ms. Hornung has gained a deeper appreciation and love of choral arts through her continued work as vocal coach for the Cantilon and Belle Canto choral programs, directed by Heather Johnson.

Well known as a teacher, adjudicator, clinician and choral coach, Lisa lives in North Battleford, Saskatchewan with her husband John and their twins James and Larissa.

Hear Lisa live with our Messiah December 12th and 13th.

At 22, tenor Spencer McKnight has only been singing for a few years – but he’s really made use of those 5 years.

At age 17 he started singing when a friend of his at school wanted to do a musical theatre duet at festival – though his family wasn’t a musical one, he had spent a lot of time listening to recordings, so it seemed like a good idea to see how lessons would go.  As time went on he began studying with mezzo soprano Lisa Hornung, and over time he left his Political Studies degree to pursue music.

In 2013 Spencer won the Saskatoon Kinsmen Competition, and took home top awards at the Provincial Music Festival Finals.  In the summer of 2013 he traveled to Ontario to represent Saskatchewan at the National Music Finals – the only male singing in the competition, and one of the youngest, he took home the Jan Simmons Award for Art Song for a performance of a song cycle by Catalan composer Fredric Mompou.

Spencer is presently studying at the University of Toronto with vocal pedagogue Mark Daboll, and was recently featured as the soloist for the University of Toronto’s Men’s Chorus December concert.  And in the last few years he’s had the opportunity to work with the who’s who of the voice world: Tracy Dahl, Judith Forst, Mary Lou Fallis, Laurence Ewashko, Robert MacLaren, Laura Loewen, Elizabeth McDonald, Elizabeth Turnbull, Monica Whitcher, and Bonnie Cutsforth Huber.

His voice is fresh and brassy and exciting – and it is a pleasure to present him as our second debut of the season.

Canadian-American soprano Chelsea Mahan is making an impression on the independent music scene with her transparency of character in unconventional performance spaces. These intimate performances include the roles of Monica in The Medium and Laurette in Bizet’s comedy Le Docteur Miracle with Stu and Jess Productions in Montreal. Having recently completed her Masters of Music at McGill University studying with renowned Canadian soprano Joanne Kolomyjec, Ms. Mahan is currently balancing engagements in and around Montreal and her home province of Saskatchewan.

As a prize-winning competitor, her achievements include first prize in the 65th Young Artist Series Western Concert tour in conjunction with the Canadian Federation of Music Teachers’ Association. Through the CFMTA, Ms. Mahan collaborated with pianist Kathleen Lohrenz Gable, in recital, to tour the cities of Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Ms. Mahan also won first prize in the prestigious Gordon Wallis Opera Competition (2012), which included professional engagements with both the Saskatoon and Regina Symphony Orchestras. Most recently, Ms. Mahan was named a finalist in the Concorso Internazionale per Giovani Cantanti Lirici in Riva del Garda, Italy.

 On the operatic stage, Ms. Mahan has traveled throughout Canada performing various roles such as Ida (Die Fledermaus) and Soeur Constance (Dialogues des Carmelites) with Opera NUOVA, and Helena in Halifax Summer Opera Workshop’s production of Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. In Montreal, she was seen as Casilda in Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Gondoliers with the McGill Savoy Society and Erste Dame (Die Zauberflöte) and Tytania (A Midsummer Night’s Dream) with Opera McGill. Comfortable on stage, as well as in a studio setting, Ms. Mahan has just finished recording excerpts from Lucia di Lammermoore for an upcoming Canadian short film by David Uloth.

 Singing the soprano soloist of Messiah with the Saskatoon and Regina Symphony Orchestras and covering it for the McGill Chamber Orchestra marked Ms. Mahan’s professional debut in 2013. She will return to her hometown of Saskatoon this December for another Messiah.

 Ms. Mahan has recently been appointed a Laureate of Jeunes Ambassadeurs Lyriques (2014) and over the next year will be traveling to Europe for various competitions with their generous support.