THE
CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY
of AMERICA
Center for Global Education
Office of the Provost
Benjamin T. Rome School of Music
PRESENT
VILLA LOBOS AND
FRIENDS
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2014
7:30 PM
WARD RECITAL HALL
Please join us for upcoming performances of The Catholic University of
America’s Benjamin T. Rome School of Music:
THE WASHINGTON INTERNATIONAL
PIANO SERIES AT CUA
www.washingtonpianofest.com
COMPOSITION PROGRAM RECITAL
November 14, 2014 7:30 PM
John Paul Hall
CUA Opera Theater presents
SUSANNAH
November 20-22, 7:30 PM
November 23, 2:00 PM
Ward Recital Hall
ANNUAL CHRISTMAS CONCERT FOR
CHARITY
CUA Chamber Choir
CUA University Singers
CUA University Chorus
CUA Symphony Orchestra
December 5th, 2014 7:30 pm
Basilica of the Shrine of the Immaculate
Conception
WOMEN'S CHORUS CONCERT
December 6, 2014 7:30 PM
St. Vincent de Paul Chapel
CUA WIND ENSEMBLE CONCERT
December 3, 2014, 7:30PM
Hartke Theatre
For more information, visit http://music.cua.edu/, find us on Facebook, or call 202-319-5416
For more information regarding the 50th anniversary of the School
of Music, visit our website, http://music.cua.edu.
Rodrigo Vasco is having fun playing new music for new people. Born in
Medellin, Colombia, Rodrigo is a Fullbright second year graduate student in the
Doctor of Musical Arts program at the Benjamin T. Rome School of Music,
Catholic University of America. A student of José Ramos Santana, he has a
Bachelor in Piano Performance from the Universidad de Antioquia and
a Masters degree in Music Performance from the Universidad EAFIT. Rodrigo
is also pursuing a Latin American Music minor and doing research in Piano
Performance from a Pan American perspective.
Dr. Ortiz Welcome page
Welcome from the Dean
Welcome to all our guests for this performance of music from Brazil. The
Benjamin T. Rome School of Music has been dedicated for over three decades
to honoring the rich traditions of Latin American music. Our Latin American
Center for the Graduate Study of Music was founded by the late Dr. Emma
Garmendia and the eminent late Dr. Robert Stevenson, perhaps the greatest
expert of the last fifty years in the study of Latin American music. Our students
have come from throughout the Americas; including a number of former
students from Brazil who now teach and perform internationally.
In 2015, the School of Music will celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of our
creation as a distinct school of Catholic University, a celebration that will
include a major US premier of works written and performed in the missions of
Bolivia. As part of this anniversary, we continue this dedication to the
remarkable music of Latin America. Being one of the most important centers
for such study in the US, our school takes pride in our contributions to the
performance, preservation, and research on music from the Caribbean, Mexico,
Central and South America.
G. Grayson Wagstaff, Ph.D
Dean and Professor of Musicology
The Benjamin T. Rome School of Music
Madama Butterfly. She has also reprised the role of Juliette in the Bel Cantanti
production of Romeo and Juliette.
João Paulo Figueirôa is recognized today as one of the most influential
classical guitar players from Brazil. He has performed throughout the United
States and South America, including appearances at the Kennedy Center and Sal
do Coro do Teatro Castro Alves. An enthusiast of contemporary music, he has
premiered new works by composers such as Paulo Costa Lima and Leonardo
Boccia. Among his many awards are first prize at the Fourth Annual Musicalis
National Competition in 2000, winner of the 2nd Orquestra Sinfonica da Bahia
Young Soloists Competition in 2003 and first prize winner at the Columbus
State Guitar Symposium in 2007. In addition to his performing career, João
Paulo is in demand as a teacher. Currently he serves as a professor of guitar
studies at Catholic University of America. He also contributes to many cultural
projects with the Embassy of Brazil and serves as Education and Outreach
Coordinator for the Marlow Guitar Series. João Paulo earned his master and
doctoral degrees in music from The Florida State University. Prior to his studies
in the United States, João Paulo studied at the Universidade Federal da Bahia
where he earned a bachelor degree and pre-college artist diploma in music. João
Paulo performs on guitars made by Brazilian guitar maker Samuel Carvalho.
José Ramos Santana, a native of Puerto Rico, is one of the most acclaimed
pianists of his generation. He performs a wide and diverse repertoire while
being an acknowledged master of Spanish Music. Mr. Ramos Santana has
appeared as a guest soloist with such major orchestras as the New York
Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of London, Detroit Symphony,
Saint Louis Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, 92nd Street Y Orchestra, Casals
Festival Orchestra, and Puerto Rico Symphony among others. He has
collaborated with distinguished musicians and conductors such as Krsztoff
Penderecki, John Adams, Dennis Russell Davies, cellist Arto Noras, violinist
Gregory Zhislin, and pianist Vladimir Viardo. He has also performed at
Carnegie Hall with the American Composers Orchestra during the Sonidos de
las Americas Festival. In addition, José Ramos Santana has also performed at
Zankel and the Weill Recital Hall under the auspices of La Gesse Foundation.
His world premiere recording of "Glosas" by Roberto Sierra with the Royal
PhilharmonicOrchestra on the Fleur de Son Label received critical acclaim.
Other works included on this CD are Ravel's Piano Concerto in G and SaintSaens Piano Concerto in g minor, op. 22. Mr. Ramos Santana has recently
recorded the complete works for piano and violin by the Catalonian composer
Xavier Montsalvatge with violinist Eva León on the Naxos Label.
Mr. Ramos Santana is a graduate of the Juilliard School where he
studied with Adele Marcus, William Masselos and Sylvia Rabinoff. He has also
coached with Leon Fleisher and Alicia de Larrocha. He is a member of the
Piano faculty at The Benjamin T. Rome School of Music, Catholic University of
America.
Heitor Villa Lobos (1887-1959) was the leader of the nationalistic movement in
Brazil. He did not copy the style of other composers but preferred to blend
Brazil's native music with European influences and his own imagination.
Primarily self taught, after a short period of musical study, he traveled
throughout Brazil learning the indigenous music and folklore of his native
country. In 1920 he visited Paris where he absorbed the music of Debussy and
D'Indy. His music covers a wide variety of styles from the European music
traditions to the folk and popular music of Brazil. He mastered both the guitar
and the cello and both instruments figure prominently in his music. Villa Lobos
was the first Latin American composer to achieve international fame as a
modernist. His music is characterized by vitality and color, integrating the
diverse variety of Brazil's geographical areas and cultures into a distinct musical
language that captures the country's essence. He said: "It is only nature and
humanity that can lead an artist to the truth. I study the history, the country, the
speech, the customs, the background of the people. I have always done this, and
it is from these sources, spiritual as well as practical that I have drawn my art."
Ernani Braga (1868-1945) went to Paris in 1890 on a fellowship and studied
for a time with the French composer Massenet. He later traveled to Germany
where he was influenced by Richard Wagner. While in Europe he also traveled
to Italy where he composed an opera. He returned to Brazil in 1900 where he
was influential in the musical life of both Rio de Janeiro and São Paolo as
composer, conductor and professor of composition. Braga was the teacher of
Villa Lobos and together their style of composition integrated the European
music tradition with the rhythms of Brazil. His skill in combining speech
rhythms into his essentially lyric style makes his songs fascinating and
appealing.
Jayme Ovalle (1994-1955) was a friend of Heitor Villa Lobos. Ovalle drew
upon his native musical traditions, writing artful folk song arrangements as well
as original songs.
Performers
Chun-Ting Chao originally from Taiwan, is a graduate vocal performance
student in the Doctor of Musical Arts program at the Benjamin T. Rome School
of Music at the Catholic University of America. Chun-Ting realized at age
eleven that singing made her special and at age fifteen decided to become a
professional singer. She worked very hard and dedicated herself to becoming the
best vocal student in Taiwan. In 2007, she competed against singers from all
over Taiwan and emerged as the winner in the Association of Vocal Arts in
Taiwan's Young Artist competition. She continued her studies in the United
States, receiving the Peabody Institute's Graduate Performance Diploma in
Voice. Ms. Chao has performed the role of Orlinde in Wagner's Die Walkiire
produced by the National Symphony Orchestra of Taiwan. At the Catholic
University of America she has performed Donna Anna in Mozart's Don
Giovanni, Juliette in Gounod's Romeo et Juliette and Cio Cio San in Puccini's
VILLA LOBOS AND FRIENDS
PROGRAM
Água e Vinho
Loro
Egberto Gismonti (1947 -)
Aquarelle
Divertimento
Valsena
Preludio e Toccatina
Sérgio Assad (1952 -)
João Paulo Figueirôa, Guitar
Impressões Seresteiras
Heitor Villa Lobos (1887-1959)
José Ramos Santana, Piano
Veleiro
Melodia Sentimental
Heitor Villa Lobos (1887-1959)
Capim di pranta
Ernani Braga (1868-1945)
Azulao
Jayme Ovalle (1894-1955)
Chun-Ting Chao, Soprano
José Ramos Santana, Piano
Bachiana Brasileira No. 4
Prelúdio (lntrodução - 1941)
Coral (Canto do Sertão - 1941)
Aria (Cantiga - 1935)
Dança (Miudinho - 1930)
Heitor Villa Lobos
Rodrigo Vasco, Piano
Program Notes
Água e Vinho by Egberto Gismondi translates as Water and Wine and features a
very contemplative melody.
Loro means Parrot and is a very lively and outgoing piece based on the
Brazilian rhythm called Baiäo.
Aquarelle was the first piece composed for solo guitar by Sergio Assad and was
dedicated to the Scottish guitarist, David Russell. It has become Assad's best
known work. The first movement, Divertimento, is based on the Brazilian
Marcha - Rancho Rhythm. The second movement, Valsena, composed earlier,
is a melodic and well balanced piece which provides a contrast between
movements. The third movement Preludio e Toccatina contains a brief prelude
where Assad inverts the main motif that had been presented in the first
movement. The toccatina that follows is very difficult and highly contrapuntal.
Impressões seresteiras (Impressions of a Minstrel) for piano was composed in
1936 by Heitor Villa Lobos and is part of the "Brazilian Cycle" which is made
up of four movements:
Plantio do caboclo (The Peasant's Sowing)
Impressões seresteiras (Impressions of a Minstrel)
Festa no sertao (The Fete in the Desert)
Danca do Indio Branco (Dance of the White Indian)
Song of the Amazon Forest is a song cycle of four songs from the symphonic
poem "Forest of the Amazon". The poems of the songs were written by the poet
Dora Vasconcellos, a friend of Villa Lobos. The songs in the cycle are: Veleiros
(Sails), Cair de Tarde (Twilight), Cançao de Amor (Song of Love) and Melodia
Sentimental (Sentimental Melody)
Veleiros
Sails on the sea, released by the blue twilight
Which other waves come to remove in the murmurs of a sad love,
Sweet sorrow always exists. Ah!
Waves of the sea in your coming and going,
you do not remove my sadness
After having given so much attention not to hurt your heart, Ah!
Far away in the sky comes the wave to throw away all that is mine into
the sea, all my hope.
Little white moon, crescent moon, come slowly, Ah!
Melodia Sentimental
Wake up, come see the moon that sleeps in the dark night
Shining so beautifully and white, shedding sweetness,
Clearly calling forth my dreamy silent ardor
The wings of night that flee, running off into deep space,
Oh sweet beloved awaken and come give your warmth to the
moonlight.
I wanted to know that in this serene and calm hour you are mine.
The shadow confides to the wind the limit of waiting
when within the night I reclaim your love.
Awaken, come see the moon that shines in the dark night,
desiring your beauty and tenderness.
In you, though, my love is only a dream. Ah!
Capim di pranta (The Persistand Weed) by Ernani Braga is from a song cycle
of Folk Songs from Brazil. This song is a jongo song with Afro-Brazilian
rhythm from the Alagoas region of Northern Brazil. In the colonial period,
singing farm workers are fighting against the capim, a stubborn weed that grows
again as soon as it is pulled from the ground. The Queen orders the men to stop
pulling the weed. Braga has written a rhythmic setting that is propelled by the
rhythmic ostinato of the piano and the rapid diction of the singer. Each section
of the song is delineated by a ritardando as the workers pause in their work. The
unrelenting rhythm pattern begins again as the workers begin pulling the weed.
Azulao (Bluebird) by Jayme Ovalle is an original song that conveys the feeling
of a charming folk song.
Go, Bluebird, my companion, go!
Go and see my ungrateful love,
Say that without her the forest is no longer the forest.
Alas! Fly Bluebird, go and tell her, my companion, go!
Bachiana Brasileira No. 4 From his adolescence Villa Lobos had been
fascinated by Bach, finding in his work analogies with the traditional music of
Brazil. Thus the present sequence was intended as an explicit homage to Bach, a
factor most evident in the designation of almost every movement with twin titles
alluding both to the actual movements of the Baroque suite form and also to
specific Brazilian popular styles. Bachianas Brasileiras No. 4 adopts a suite like
format. The Prelúdio is a relatively brief entree, alluding to the "Royal Theme"
from the musical offering in an elegy. The Coral consists of a plaintively
unwinding melody which is imaginatively embellished with the ever present
blacksmith bird single note call. The Aria is an intermezzo whose main theme
evolves along the lines of an implied popular song. While the Dança that
concludes the work brings a more animated mood with the addition of sonorous
harmonies in the depths of the piano, which Villa Lobos likened to the sound of
a cathedral organ.
Composers
Egberto Gismonti (1947 -) began his formal music studies at the age of six on
the piano. After studying classical music for fifteen years, he went to Paris to
study orchestration and analysis with Nadia Boulanger and the French avantgarde composer Jean Barraque. Gismonti's compositions move fluidly between
classical and jazz, improvised and composed, popular and experimental music.
Sérgio Assad (1952 -) and his brother Odair Assad, are considered to be one of
the most important guitar duos in the world today. Sérgio is a graduate of the
Escola National de Musica in Rio de Janeiro with a degree in composition and
conducting. Sérgio Assad has composed more than forty pieces for guitar and
different consorts of instruments, including guitar and clarinet, choir and two
guitars, guitar and flute, and guitar and orchestra among others. Both Egberto
Gismonti and Sérgio Assad have been influenced by the music of Heitor Villa
Lobos.