symphony of meditations
Aaron Jay Kernis
east coast premiere
Aaron Jay Kernis, conductor 路 Amanda Hall, soprano 路 Joseph Mikolaj, tenor 路 David Pershall, baritone
the yale philharmonia Shinik Hahm, conductor the yale camerata Marguerite L. Brooks, conductor the yale glee club Jeffery Douma, conductor the yale schola cantorum Masaaki Suzuki, conductor
yale university institute of sacred music
yale glee club
Yale Glee Club
Jeffrey Douma, director
Institute of Sacred Music
Yale School of Music
Martin Jean, director
Robert Blocker, dean
Symphony of Meditations Symphony No. 3
Aaron Jay Kernis
Composer and Conductor Text by Solomon Ibn Gabirol Translation by Peter Cole
Yale Camerata
Marguerite L. Brooks, director
Yale Glee Club
Jeffrey Douma, director
Yale Schola Cantorum Masaaki Suzuki, director
Philharmonia Orchestra of Yale Shinik Hahm, director
Amanda Hall Soprano
Joseph Mikolaj Tenor
David Pershall Baritone
Friday, November 6, 2009 • 8PM • Woolsey Hall
Symphony No. 3 Symphony of Meditations Text by Solomon Ibn Gabirol ( b. circa 1021-d. 1058) Translated by Peter Cole
All is a single mystery …
The lyrics contained in Symphony of Meditations (Symphony No. 3) are quoted from poems of Solomon Ibn Gabirol, translated from the Hebrew by Peter Cole in the book Selected Poems of Solomon Ibn Gabirol (Princeton University Press, 2001), © Princeton University Press.
Movement 1: Invocation Baritone Solo I look for you early, my rock and my refuge, offering you worship morning and night; before your vastness I come confused and afraid for you to see the thoughts of my heart. What could the heart and tongue compose, or spirit’s strength within me to suit you? But song soothes you and so I’ll give praise to your being as long as your breath-in-me moves. Chorus I look for you early, I seek you every evening and dawn, my face and palms turned up to you: The heavens can’t contain you, and yet my thoughts somehow do: haven’t I hidden your name in my heart until my love for you crossed my lips? You are the God of gods and the Lord of lords, the ruler of all that’s above and below. and there is no distinction between your being divine and one; between your past and the real, between what you were and will be.
You are One…. Baritone and so I’ll give praise to your being as long as your breath-in-me moves. Chorus Therefore I’ll praise the name of the Lord so long as his breath in me lives.
Movement 2: Meditation on Oneness Soprano Solo Three things meet in my eyes and keep the thought of you always before me: the skies, which make me think of your Name, as they bear faithful witness for me; the place where I stand, which brings my mind back to the land you extend beneath me; and bless, my soul, my Lord at all times for heart’s reflection within me. Chorus All the creatures of earth and heaven together as one bear witness in saying: the Lord is One and One is his name. Your path has thirty-two courses and all who fathom your mystery see them, and know in the mystery that all is yours – that you alone, O Lord, are king. All the creatures of earth and heaven together as one bear witness in saying: the Lord is One and One is his name. From limit to limit your signs exist – north through south, east into west – earth and sky for you bear witness, each in a way of its own – …
All flows from you in extension; you endure through others’ exhaustion; therefore all being honors your splendor from beginning to end, there’s one father alone, and all the creatures of earth and heaven together as one bear witness in saying: the Lord is One and One is his name. Soprano with Chorus The skies, which make me think of your Name, as they bear faithful witness for me; the place where I stand, which brings my mind back to the land you extend beneath me: and bless, my soul, my Lord at all times for heart’s reflection within me. The Lord is One. The Lord is One. One….
a spider’s poison; a lying heart uncut for my Lord, Baritone a man of rages; a craftsman of scheming, and haughty, corrupt and impatient speech, perverse in his ways and impetuous. What am I or my life? What is my might and my righteousness? Throughout the days of my being I’m nothing and what then after I die? I come from nothing and nothing pursue; I come here before you with insolence and impure notion – and impulse that strays to its idols
Movement 3: Supplication
and greed as it calls –
Baritone I’m ashamed, my God; ashamed to be standing before you, for I know that as great as your might has been, such is my utter weakness and failing:
and a soul that hasn’t been cleansed – and a heart that’s lost and alone.
as exalted as your power has been and will be, such is the depth of my poverty; as perfect as your wholeness is, so is my knowledge flawed. For you are one and alive; almighty, abiding, strong and wise; You are the Lord my God – the Lord my God – and I am dust of the ground and a vessel of shame; Chorus dust... vessel... shame... a speechless stone; a passing shadow;
Aria Let it be your will, my God, not to take me away in the midst of my days until I’ve prepared my provision for the way, and my repentance for the day of my passing; for if I depart from the world as I entered, and naked and empty return as I came, why was I made – or called to bear witness to struggle and pain? Chorus You didn’t need to create me – it was only Magnanimity – not an act of Necessity – but an act of Love and Will.
a wind blown by that won’t return;
Please turn page slowly and silently
Before my being you established your Mercy and gave me life with your Spirit-sent-through-me; and after I entered the air of the world you did not leave me; with a father’s compassion you raised me; like a child in its nursery you taught me; on my mother’s breast in me you put trust; When I stood in my place you gave me courage, in your arms you took me and taught me to walk; and you gave me instruction and wisdom; from distress and trouble you saved me, and when anger came on you concealed me behind the shadow of your right hand. How much trouble my eyes have overlooked as you helped me… I was ill with continual sickness – and you healed me. When your harsh judgment came into the world, from the path of the sword you removed me; from plague you spared me; in famine you fed me; and I flourished in all that I did… When I made you angry, as a man rebukes his son you rebuked me, and in my sorrow I called: Baritone If my life in your eyes is of value, do not turn me empty away. Chorus Judge me not, Lord, not in your anger, unless you’d bring me to nothing. For what is man that you judge him, but haunted vanity and breath pursued. Waken your mercies, my Lord, and do not pour out your wrath, do not repay me for all I’ve done, but say enough, enough.
Men If my life in your eyes is of value, do not turn me empty away. Do not turn me empty away… Baritone: Aria My God, I know my transgressions have swelled and my sins are beyond calibration; but I bring them to mind, like a drop in the sea – confessing and hoping to quiet the noise of the waves and the breakers against their reefs, that you in the heavens will hear and forgive me. For I’ve gone against your teaching, and held your commandments in scorn; my mouth has come to detest them, and too often I’ve uttered blasphemy – and been perverse and lawless; fractious and full of violence; I’ve lied and counseled evil – deceived, scoffed and rebelled; been scornful, perverse and intransigent, stubborn, harsh and senseless; I’ve cut off your reproach and been cruel. I’ve committed abominable acts and wandered far from my path; I’ve strayed from your way and instruction, and denied the truth you instilled. My God… What am I or my life? What is my might and my righteousness? …and what then, what then after I die? Orchestral Interlude Chorus Let it be your will, my God, to respond to me with your mercy – to bring me back with perfect repentance before you. Focus my heart on its supplication – and listen with all your attention. Open my heart to your Law; plant awe for you in my thinking.
And do not lead me through temptation or into the power of scorn.
Baritone with Tenor Let it therefore be your merciful will,
Protect me from all calamity until misfortune has passed.
my God and the God of our fathers, Sovereign Lord of all worlds –
Shelter me from your shadow;
to be near and have mercy upon me;
be with my mouth and my word;
to remember me in the call of your will;
and watch over my ways, watch over my ways.
to lift the light of your face across me, and conceive for me your graciousness –
Soprano with Chorus Think of me when you think of my people and the restoration-to-come of your temple,
and not repay me for all I’ve done
and grant me the power to see the good of your chosen, the purity to enter your desolate shrine – to take delight and pleasure in its dust and stones, in its heaps of dirt and rubble, as you rebuild in its ruins. Baritone I have nothing – am hollow and shaken out – a ravaged vine, and in me is neither honor or what seems right; affection or candor of heart; not prayer and not supplication; not purity, faith, or simplicity;
or take me away in the midst of my days, or obscure your face before me; to cleanse me of all transgression – not to cast me away from your presence; to quicken my being with dignity, and lead me into honor. Baritone Solo And then, when you withdraw me from the life of the world we know, bring me to peace in the life of the world-to-come, and call me to rise; Chorus Bring me to peace Baritone Place me among the righteous, with those who among the living were summoned to life everafter; Chorus and cleanse me, cleanse me with the light of your countenance; return me to life from earth’s depths
not fairness or honest measure; neither repentance nor service.
Please turn page slowly and silently
Baritone Loving-kindness is yours in all the good you’ve done me, and until I die will do… For all this I’m bound to thank you, to glorify, laud, and extol you; Chorus May you be praised in the mouth of creation and be hallowed by words of sanctification; be known as One by those who seek to know you in oneness; be extolled by those who extol you and lifted by those who would lift you up in song; Chorus Tishtabah befi veru’ekha (May you be praised in the mouth of creation) Titqadash befi maqdishekha (and be hallowed by words of sanctification;) Tityahed befi meyahadekha (be known as One by those who seek to know you in oneness;) Titpa’ayr befi mefa’arekha (be extolled by those who extol you) Titromem befi meromemekha (and lifted by those who would lift you up in song;) Titnasei befi menasekha— (and may you be raised in the mouth of those who pray) Soprano with Chorus and may you be raised in the mouth of those who pray – for nothing is like you, and nothing, my Lord, compares with what you have done. Baritone May the words of my mouth and my heart’s meditation before you be pleasing – my rock – and my redemption. Chorus and Soloists Adonai Elohaynu Adonai Echad Adonai (The Lord is our God, The Lord is One, Lord )
Program Notes My new Third Symphony, Symphony of Meditations, takes its inspiration from texts by the eleventh-century Spanish poet Solomon Ibn Gabirol, in luminous translations by poet, translator and recent MacArthur Fellow Peter Cole. I first encountered Peter in the late 1990s. Subsequently, when my wife and I visited Jerusalem, Peter was our host and guide to the city. He had galleys of his new book of translations of poems by Ibn Gabirol, and handed me a copy of the largest section in it: Kingdom’s Crown (Keter Malkhut). It’s a magnificent text, symphonic in scope and proportion. The beauty and flowing quality of Peter’s version appealed to me immediately, and even at that time I spoke to Peter about using it for something – though I didn’t know what, and it sat on my poetry shelf for many years. After my parents both passed away, in 2004, I began to re-familiarize myself with the text (along with shorter Gabirol poems) in Peter Cole’s Selected Poems of Solomon Ibn Gabirol (Princeton, 2001). Memories of attending synagogue in my early years began to resurface for me. Though I am not religious in the sense of being consistently observant of holidays, ritual, and synagogue-going, I identify myself definitively as Jewish. I still have the sound of an unaccompanied cantor in my ear. I have repeatedly turned to spiritual issues and texts from many faiths as the basis for my vocal work, and at this point in my life the Gabirol text seemed utterly necessary for me to work with. Only a relatively modest portion of Kingdom’s Crown is used for the third movement of this work. The other texts come from shorter spiritual poems in the anthology. The complete Kingdom’s Crown is truly a work of symphonic proportions. Someday I hope to continue to set more of it. The Symphony is in three movements of dramatically different lengths and moods. Invocation (7’) opens with declamations of prayer from the baritone and choir, closing with gentle works of praise. In Meditation on Oneness, the solo soprano spins out a lyrical line on either side of the build of gradual whirling repetitions by the chorus. Supplication, the final and largest movement, is itself of symphonic proportions at over forty minutes. It ranges in intensity from the baritone’s recitatives and arias of reflection and desolation, to a searing, climactic orchestral interlude and very gradually calms toward the joyful and resolute concluding lines of prayer in Hebrew. Many of the themes in Gabirol’s work and especially in Kingdom’s Crown – praise of God, preparation for death and the whatever-follows-life, sin and asking for mercy, supplication to a Divine Being – are foreign to me, even as they connect to distant memories. And yet, since I am so moved by the poetry and this translation, it has been compelling and nurturing to embrace these words as an adult while attempting to grapple honestly with their content. In crucial ways this piece represents to me a statement of my faith and has made me ruminate and meditate a great deal – especially in light of raising my two dear children – upon how it is that we human beings and our souls are created and shaped, and what makes us into our own selves. It was written between August 2007 and May 2009 for the Seattle Symphony and music director Gerard Schwarz and was premiered in June 2009. The work is dedicated to Jeff and Lara Sanderson, in profound appreciation of their support and belief in the transformative power of music, to Gerard and Jody Schwarz in friendship and admiration, and in memory of my parents. It was commissioned by the Seattle Symphony with the generous support of Jeff and Lara Sanderson. Program notes by Aaron Jay Kernis
Aaron Jay Kernis Composer and Conductor
Winner of the coveted 2002 Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition and one of the youngest composers ever to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize, Aaron Jay Kernis is among the most esteemed musical figures of his generation. With his “fearless originality [and] powerful voice” (The New York Times), he is one of today’s most frequently performed composers. His music, full of variety and dynamic energy, is rich in lyric beauty, poetic imagery, and brilliant instrumental color. His works figure prominently on orchestral, chamber, choral and recital programs around the world. He has been commissioned by leading performers including Renée Fleming, Dawn Upshaw, Joshua Bell, Pamela Frank, Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, James Ehnes, Christopher O’Riley, and Sharon Isbin, and from such musical institutions as the New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, Walt Disney Company, Rose Center for Earth and Space at New York’s American Museum of Natural History, San Francisco and Singapore Symphonies, Minnesota Orchestra, Lincoln Center Great Performers Series, American Public Radio, Los Angeles and Saint Paul Chamber Orchestras, and Aspen Music Festival. Upcoming and recent commissions include a concerto for trumpet soloist Philip Smith with the New York Philharmonic and a consortium of American’s “top 10” college wind ensembles, the Seattle Symphony, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, and Astral Artists. One of America’s most honored young composers, Mr. Kernis received the 2002 Grawemeyer Award for the cello and orchestra version of Colored Field, the 1998 Pulitzer Prize for his String Quartet No. 2 (“musica instrumentalis”), and Grammy Award nominations for both Air and the Second Symphony. He has also been awarded the Stoeger Prize from the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Rome Prize, an NEA grant, a Bearns Prize, a New York Foundation for the Arts Award, and three BMI Student Composer Awards. His choral cycle Ecstatic Meditations was named an American Masterpiece of Choral Music by the National Endowment for the Arts. From 1998 to 2009 he held the position of New Music Advisor to the Minnesota Orchestra. As an educator, he is Director of the Minnesota Orchestra’s Composer Institute and teaches composition at the Yale School of Music. His works have been recorded on Nonesuch, New Albion, and Argo, the esteemed British label with which Mr. Kernis had an exclusive recording contract. Previous issues include a widely acclaimed CD with Hugh Wolff conducting the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra in Mr. Kernis’s Symphony No. 2 and “Invisible Mosaic III.” His “musica celestis” was nominated for a Grammy and won France’s Diapason d’or Palmares for Best Contemporary Music Disc of the Year. Other recordings include a disc of his Pulitzer-Prize winning String Quartet No. 2 and Musica Celestis for String Orchestra, both on Arabesque with the Lark Quartet. Other releases on Argo feature works for violinists Pamela Frank and Joshua Bell with David Zinman and the Minnesota Orchestra, and his Double Concerto with guitarist Sharon Isbin, violinist Cho-Liang Lin, and Hugh Wolff leading the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. Originally released on Virgin/EMI was his cello version of Colored Field and Air, created for the Norwegian virtuoso Truls Mork and the Minnesota Orchestra with Eiji Oue. Several important works recorded on Argo have been re-released by Phoenix, including his Second Symphony, Musica Celestis, Invisible Mosaic III, and Symphony in Waves, with Gerard Schwarz and the New York Chamber Symphony. Recent critically-acclaimed recordings include a disc of his song cycles by soprano Susan Narucki on Koch, and the release of orchestral works by the Grant Park Festival Orchestra on Cedille Records. Aaron Jay Kernis was born in Philadelphia on January 15, 1960. He began his musical studies on the violin; at age 12 he began teaching himself piano and, the following year, composition. He continued his studies at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and the Manhattan and Yale Schools of Music, working with composers as diverse as John Adams, Charles Wuorinen, and Jacob Druckman. Kernis first came to national attention in 1982 with the acclaimed premiere of his first orchestral work, dream of the morning sky, by the New York Philharmonic at its Horizons Festival. Mr. Kernis’s music is published by AJK Music, administered by Associated Music Publishers.
Amanda Hall Soprano
Amanda Hall is currently in her second year in the Master of Music program at the Yale School of Music, where she studies with Doris Yarick Cross. Her roles with Yale Opera include the Queen of the Night in Die Zauberflöte and the title roles in Rusalka, Lucia di Lammermoor, and Iolanta in scenes productions. A 2009 New England Regional Finalist for the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, Ms. Hall has also appeared as Belinda in Dido and Aeneas and in the title role in Susannah for family performances with Central City Opera. A native of Lincoln, NE, Amanda holds degrees from La Sierra University and the University of Southern California.
Joseph Mikolaj Tenor
Joseph Mikolaj is a Master of Music degree candidate at the Yale School of Music and Yale Institute of Sacred Music, where he studies with James Taylor. A native of Houston, Texas, he received his Bachelor of Arts in vocal performance from the University of St. Thomas where he studied with Brady Knapp and graduated summa cum laude. Recent awards include winning first place in the Houston Regional NATS Junior Men competition and first place in the Texoma NATS Senior Men competition. His most recent concert appearances include Beethoven’s An die ferne Geliebte, Britten’s Abraham and Isaac, and Handel’s Messiah with the Woodlands Symphony Orchestra. His stage performances include Nanki-poo in The Mikado at the Brevard Music Center and Frederick in Pirates of Penzance at UST.
David Pershall Baritone
David Pershall is currently in his second year in the Master of Music program at the Yale School of Music, where he studies with Richard Cross. His roles with Yale Opera include Papageno in Die Zauberflöte and Smirnov in The Bear, as well as Enrico in Lucia di Lammermoor and Lescaut in Manon in scenes productions. Mr. Pershall was a 2008 National Semifinalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. He has also appeared as Enrico in Lucia di Lammermoor with Virginia Opera; as a member of San Francisco Opera’s Merola Opera Program; and as a featured artist in the 2008 “Classic Night: Nuit Blanche” in Zürich, Switzerland. A native of Temple, TX, Mr. Pershall received his Bachelor of Music degree from Baylor University.
Yale Camerata
Marguerite L. Brooks, director
Founded in 1985 by its conductor, Marguerite L. Brooks, the Yale Camerata is a vocal ensemble sponsored by the Yale Institute of Sacred Music. The group’s singers are Yale graduate and undergraduate students, faculty, staff, and experienced singers from the New Haven community. The Camerata performs a widely varied spectrum of choral literature, with a specific commitment to recently composed choral music. The Camerata has collaborated with the Yale Glee Club, Yale Philharmonia, Yale Symphony, Yale Band, Yale Chamber Players, Yale Collegium Musicum, the New Haven Chorale, and the symphony orchestras of Hartford, New Haven, and Norwalk. The ensemble has also performed for Yale Music Spectrum and New Music New Haven. The chamber chorus of the Yale Camerata has performed at the Yale Center for British Art and at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall. They have traveled to Germany to perform the Berlioz Requiem with choruses from Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Israel, Great Britain, and the Ukraine, and, in 2001, spent a week in residence at Saint Paul’s Cathedral in London, England. The Camerata has been heard on Connecticut Public Radio and on national broadcasts of National Public Radio’s program “Performance Today.” Guest conductors have included Robert Shaw, Jaap Schröder, Sir David Willcocks, Krzysztof Penderecki, Sir Neville Marriner, Helmuth Rilling, and Nicholas McGegan. With the Institute of Sacred Music, the Camerata has commissioned and premiered works of Martin Bresnick, Daniel Kellogg, Stephen Paulus, Daniel Pinkham, and Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, among others. The chorus has sung first performances of works by many composers, including Kathryn Alexander, Tawnie Olson, and Francine Trester. This season the Camerata will perform music of Haydn, Bach, and others at their annual Advent concert; complete a residency with Dale Warland, renowned for his championship of U.S. composers; and sing the Verdi Requiem with the Yale Glee Club and Yale Symphony Orchestra. Marguerite L. Brooks holds degrees from Mount Holyoke College and Temple University. She has served on the faculties of Smith and Amherst Colleges, and was also director of choral music at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Ms. Brooks joined the Yale faculty in 1985 as chair of the choral conducting program at the School of Music and the Institute of Sacred Music. She is also director of music at the Church of the Redeemer in New Haven.
Yale Glee Club Jeffrey Douma, director
From its earliest days as a group of thirteen men from the Class of 1863 to its current incarnation as Yale’s principal undergraduate mixed chorus, the Yale Glee Club has represented the best in collegiate singing for nearly a century and a half. The students who sing in the Yale Glee Club might be majors in music or English, forestry or engineering, mathematics or philosophy. They are drawn together by a love of singing and a common understanding that raising one’s voice with others to create something beautiful is one of the noblest human pursuits. The Glee Club’s repertoire embraces a broad spectrum of choral music from the sixteenth century to the present. Committed to the creation of new music, the Glee Club presents frequent premieres of newly commissioned works and sponsors an annual competition for young composers. The great choral masterworks are also an important part of the Glee Club’s repertoire; recent performances have included Orff Carmina Burana, Mozart Requiem, Britten War Requiem, Rossini Stabat Mater, Fauré Requiem, Haydn Missa in Tempore Belli and Creation, Brahms Nänie, Mendelssohn Elijah, Penderecki Credo, and choral symphonies of Mahler and Beethoven. Highlights in 2009-2010 include Verdi Requiem, the East Coast premiere of Aaron Jay Kernis Symphony of Meditations, and a concert of new music with Dale Warland.
One of the most traveled choruses in the world, the Yale Glee Club has performed in every major city in the United States and embarked on its first overseas tour in 1928. It has since appeared before enthusiastic audiences throughout North and South America, Europe, Asia, and Africa. In the summer of 2005, the Glee Club made its first trip to Australia and New Zealand, and in 2009 made its first trip to South America in more than thirty years. Historically a leading advocate of international choral exchange, the Glee Club has hosted countless guest ensembles at Yale and at New York’s Lincoln Center in conjunction with its own International Choral Festivals. Jeffrey Douma became Director of the Yale Glee Club, Yale’s principal undergraduate mixed chorus, in 2003, and also serves as Associate Professor at the Yale School of Music, where he teaches graduate conducting and choral literature. Douma has appeared as guest conductor with ensembles on six continents, including the Royal Melbourne Philharmonic Orchestra, Buenos Aires Philharmonic Orchestra, Daejeon Philharmonic Choir, Moscow Chamber Orchestra, Windsor Symphony Orchestra, and the Johannesburg Festival Orchestra and Symphony Choir of Johannesburg. He also currently serves as Musical Director of the Yale Alumni Chorus, which he has lead on five tours, and as Choirmaster at the Cathedral of St. Joseph in Hartford, CT, where recent and upcoming performances include Duruflé Requiem, Handel Messiah, Finzi In terra pax, Bach St. John Passion with period instruments, and Robert Levin’s completion of Mozart Requiem. Choirs under his direction have performed in Leipzig’s Neue Gewandhaus, Dvorak Hall in Prague, Argentina’s Teatro Colon, Sydney Town Hall, Avery Fischer Hall and Carnegie Hall, and he has prepared choruses for performances under such eminent conductors as Valery Gergiev, Sir Neville Marriner, Sir David Willcocks, Constantine Orbellian, Krzysztof Penderecki, Nicholas McGegan, and Helmuth Rilling. Active with musicians of all ages, Douma served for four years on the conducting faculty at the Interlochen Center for the Arts, America’s premier training ground for high school age musicians, and frequently serves as clinician for festivals and honor choirs. An advocate of new music, Douma recently established the Yale Glee Club Emerging Composers Competition and Fenno Heath Award, and has premiered new works by such composers as Dominick Argento, Ned Rorem, Jan Sandström, Lee Hoiby, and James Macmillan. He also serves as editor of the Yale Glee Club New Classics Choral Series, published by Boosey & Hawkes. A tenor, Douma has appeared as an ensemble member and frequent soloist with the nation’s leading professional choirs, including the Dale Warland Singers, Bella Voce of Chicago, the Arcadia Players, the Oregon Bach Festival Chorus under Helmuth Rilling, and the Robert Shaw Festival Singers. In the spring of 2003, Douma was one of only two North American conductors invited to compete for the first Eric Ericson Award, a new international competition for choral conductors. Prior to his appointment at Yale he taught at Carroll College, where he was Director of Choral Activities, and also served on the conducting faculties of Smith College and St. Cloud State University. Jeffrey Douma earned a Bachelor of Music Degree from Concordia College, and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Choral Conducting from the University of Michigan.
Yale Schola Cantorum Masaaki Suzuki, director
Yale Schola Cantorum, founded in 2003 by Simon Carrington, is a chamber choir specializing in music from before 1750 and from the last hundred years. It is supported by the Yale Institute of Sacred Music with the School of Music and open by audition to all Yale students. In addition to performing regularly in New Haven and New York Schola Cantorum records and tours nationally and internationally. Their live recording on CD with Robert Mealy and Yale Collegium Musicum of Heinrich Biber’s 1693 Vesperae longiores ac breviores received international acclaim from the early music press, as have their subsequent CDs of J.S. Bach’s rarely heard 1725 version of the St. John Passion and Antonio Bertali’s Missa Resurrectionis. 2009 marks Schola Cantorum’s first season under the direction of conductor Masaaki Suzuki. Since 2007, the choir has recorded the Bach and Mendelssohn Magnificats for commercial release, sung under the direction of internationally renowned conductors Helmuth Rilling, Krzysztof Penderecki, Sir Neville Mariner, Stephen Layton, Paul Hillier, and Nicholas McGegan, and performed the Monteverdi 1610 Vespers in New Haven and New York and the Bach Mass in B Minor in New Haven, South Korea, and China. Schola Cantorum has also made tours to England, Hungary and southwest France. This season Schola welcomes Masaaki Suzuki as its new director, who will conduct performances of Bach cantatas and Monteverdi madrigals. Guest conductors in 2009-10 are Dale Warland and Simon Carrington. The choir’s other repertoire to date includes works by Josquin, Manchicourt, Lassus, Willaert, Tallis, Byrd, Guerrero, Gibbons, Schütz, Charpentier, Purcell, Handel, Zelenka, Brahms, Bruckner, Poulenc, Stravinsky, Dallapiccola, Britten, Tippett, Feldman, Rautavaara, Gubaidulina, Berio, Stucky, MacMillan, O’Regan, and Yale faculty members Ezra Laderman, Aaron Jay Kernis, Ingram Marshall and Joan Panetti. Since founding Bach Collegium Japan in 1990, Masaaki Suzuki has established himself as a leading authority on the works of Bach. He has remained their Music Director ever since, taking them regularly to major venues and festivals in Europe and the USA, and building up an outstanding reputation for the expressive refinement and truth of his performances. He is now regularly invited to work together with renowned European soloists and groups, such as Collegium Vocale Gent and the Freiburger Barockorchester, with whom he visited several European capitals, and he recently appeared in London with the Britten Sinfonia in a program of Britten, Mozart and Stravinsky. Forthcoming engagements with other ensembles include the Hong Kong Philharmonic, the Nagoya Philharmonic and the Netherlands Radio Chamber Philharmonic Orchestras. Suzuki’s impressive discography on the BIS label, featuring Bach’s complete works for harpsichord, and his interpretations of Bach’s major choral works and sacred cantatas with Bach Collegium Japan (of which he has already completed over forty volumes of a project to record the complete series) have brought him many critical plaudits the Times has written: “it would take an iron bar not to be moved by his crispness, sobriety and spiritual vigour”. Highlights of his current season with Bach Collegium Japan include a major tour of Europe and a visit to the Canaries Festival as well as performances in Tokyo of Handel’s Judas Maccabeus and Messiah, choral works by Mendelssohn and concert performances of Monteverdi’s Poppea. He will also conduct the Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra in Mendelssohn’s Midsummer Night’s Dream and embark on a US organ recital tour. Masaaki Suzuki combines his conducting career with his work as organist and harpsichordist. Born in Kobe, he graduated from Tokyo University of Fine Arts and Music with a degree in composition and organ performance and went on to study harpsichord and organ at the Sweelinck Conservatory in Amsterdam under Ton Koopman and Piet Kee. Founder and head of the early music department, he teaches at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music. In April 2001 Suzuki was decorated with ‘Das Verdienstkreuz am Bande des Verdienstordens der Bundesrepublik’ from Germany. Masaaki Suzuki is visiting professor in choral conducting at the Yale Institute of Sacred Music and Yale School of Music.
Philharmonia Orchestra of Yale Shinik Hahm, conductor
The Philharmonia Orchestra of Yale is one of America’s foremost music school ensembles. The largest performing group at the Yale School of Music, the Philharmonia offers superb training in orchestral playing and repertoire. Performances include an annual series of concerts in Woolsey Hall, as well as Yale Opera productions in the Schubert Performing Arts Center. In addition to its New Haven appearances, the Philharmonia Orchestra of Yale has performed on numerous occasions in Carnegie Hall and Alice Tully Hall in New York City and at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. The Philharmonia undertook its first tour of Asia in 2008, with acclaimed performances in the Seoul Arts Center, the Forbidden City Concert Hall and National Center for the Performing Arts (Beijing), and the Shanghai Grand Theatre. The beginnings of the Yale Philharmonia can be traced to 1894, when an orchestra was organized under the leadership of the School’s first dean, Horatio Parker. The orchestra became known as the Philharmonia Orchestra of Yale in 1973, with the appointment of Otto-Werner Mueller as resident conductor and William Steinberg, then music director of the Pittsburgh Symphony, as Sanford Professor of Music. Brazilian conductor Eleazar di Carvalho became music director in 1987, and Gunther Herbig joined the conducting staff as guest conductor and director of the Affiliate Artists Conductors program in 1990. Lawrence Leighton Smith, music director of the Louisville Symphony Orchestra, conducted the Philharmonia for a decade, and upon his retirement in 2004, Shinik Hahm was appointed music director. Shinik Hahm was appointed Music Director of the Philharmonia Orchestra of Yale and professor of conducting at the Yale School of Music in 2004. One of the most dynamic and innovative conductors of our time, Hahm is a sought-after musician among top North American, South American, European, and Far Eastern orchestras. Hahm will conduct the 2009 European tour of Germany’s prominent Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie, including a concert at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw. Hahm’s active 2006-2007 season featured splendid debuts in Geneva, Switzerland and Besancon, France. Maestro Hahm also made his Chinese debut with the country’s most prestigious orchestras, China Philharmonic and the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra. Since 2006, he has enjoyed a remarkable collaboration with Mexican orchestras. After a successful debut with the Mexico National Symphony and Xalapa Symphony Orchestras, the maestro was immediately re-engaged for coming seasons. In June 2005, he made a triumphant debut at the Bolshoi Hall in St. Petersburg, Russia with the St. Petersburg Symphony Orchestra. His re-appearance with Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra at Disney Hall, after his 1993 debut at the Chandler Pavilion, was likewise successful. His enthusiastic and highly creative music-making has distinguished Hahm as one of the most versatile conductors of his generation. In 2006 Maestro Hahm successfully completed his tenure as the Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the Daejeon Philharmonic Orchestra in Korea, with which he toured the United States in 2004 and Japan in 2005. The DPO and Hahm performed in leading concert halls including Carnegie Hall (New York), Kimmel Center (Philadelphia), Benaroya Hall (Seattle), Meyerhoff Symphony Hall (Baltimore), Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall, and Osaka Symphony Hall. The orchestra thoroughly benefited from his artistic leadership and sold out all concerts. Hahm served as Music Director of the Abilene Philharmonic Orchestra for a decade (1993-2003). During his tenure he successfully converted the community ensemble into a professional regional orchestra. He was profiled on ABC’s World News Tonight for his central role in rejuvenating and revitalizing the Abilene community.
Yale Institute of Sacred Music Martin Jean, director
The Yale Institute of Sacred Music is an interdisciplinary graduate center dedicated to the study and practice of sacred music, worship, and the arts. Institute students receive rigorous training for careers in performance, church music, pastoral ministry, the academy, and much more. The Institute sponsors several choruses, including the Yale Camerata and the Yale Schola Cantorum, and as a major arts presenter in New Haven, it offers a full schedule of concerts, art exhibitions, literary readings, lectures, conferences, and multimedia events during the year. For more information, visit www.yale.edu/ism.
Yale School of Music Robert Blocker, Dean
The Yale School of Music, established in 1894, has a long tradition of leadership in the training of professional performers and composers. It is a graduate-professional school and the only school of music in the Ivy League. The school is highly selective, with 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, engaging in cooperative partnerships throughout the world with several leading international conservatories and schools, orchestras, and opera companies. Since its inception, the Yale School of Music has held a primary position in the training of young composers. The list of composition alumni, faculty, and guest professors is a virtual Who’s Who of the creators of new music of the past century. Their record of accomplishment is extraordinary, including nearly a third of the Pulitzer Prizes in music, numerous Rome Prizes and Guggenheim Fellowships, and countless commissions from the world’s great orchestras, soloists, and chamber ensembles. The school’s alumni are found in major positions in virtually every sphere of music making and administration. Yale graduates perform in most of the major American and numerous international symphony ochestras. Given the strength and long tradition of Yale’s programs in chamber music and in the performance of music of our time, it is no surprise that Yale graduates have founded or joined the ranks of many prominent chamber and new music ensembles. Along with artistic accomplishment, Yale School of Music graduates have demonstrated strong leadership in guiding the course of numerous academic and cultural institutions. For more information, visit music.yale.edu.
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Yale Camerata Marguerite L. Brooks, director
Douglas Dickson, accompanist Brian Bartoldus and Tian Hui Ng, principal assistant conductors Colin Britt, Beverly Shangkuan, and T. Jared Stellmacher, managers
Arianne Abela*+ Anne-Sophie Angelo Elizabeth Auld Louis Auld Jessie Barnes* Reuben Barnes Helen Barnstable* Brian Bartoldus*+ Carol Beckwith Carlos Beltran* Magdalena Beyer* Michael C. Bingham* Katherine Blossom-Mascagna* Max Blum*+ Timoti Bramley Faith F. Brill Colin Britt*+ Christian Burset Karen Clute Meghan Cook* John Corkill Brigid M. Davis Emily Eisenlohr Faith Ferry Louis Ferland William Gassman Ian Gifford Mary Gorham Janet Gurniak
Katie Hallor Bob Havery Bonnie Havery Allison Hsiang* Joyce Hsiang* Blake Johnson Breanne Johnson Kelly Lai* Matt Lane Steven Lauritano* Michel Ledizet* Shane Marcus Sue Mattero Erica Miao* Catharine Miller Elizabeth Miller Alden Rockwell Murphy Caroline Murphy Bradley Naylor Tian Hui Ng*+ Andreas Nunnenkamp Amanda Olson Tawnie Olson Babita Panigrahi Adam K. Peithmann* Katherine Postavoit
Laura Rais Sarah Reed* Jonathan Rubin* Michael Sansoni*+ William B. Sawyer Christoph Schlechter*+ Daniel Schlorff* Victoria Schussler* Beverly Shangkuan*+ Martha Kirk Swartz Mary Morgan Taylor* Lisa Tifft Elizabeth Woodhouse Sandra Yannielli
* Chamber Chorus member + assistant conductor
Yale Glee Club Jeffery Douma, director
T. Sean Maher, business manager Arianne Abela, MUS ‘10, assistant conductor Adam Begley ‘10, undergraduate assistant conductor
Soprano I Arianne Abela Abigail Droge Rachel Glodo Laura Kreidberg Helen McCreary Caroline Mezger Jessica Moore Samantha Sanders Stephanie Strauss Lianna Valdes Elizabet Vickery Mareike Zobel Soprano II Tristyn Bloom Arshia Chatterjee Sarah Evans Mary Kleshefsky Casey Klippel Lauren Morgan Mari Oye Susan Steinman Anna Swan Charlotte Thun-Hohenstein Deena Tumeh Jennifer Witthuhn Alto I Aseel Aburizik Sarah Dewey Katie Dryden Jasmine Dyba Julia Myers Claire Paulson Ingrid Rochon Micheline Soley Phyllis Thangaraj Rebecca Trupin Jenny Werner Rachel Wilf
Alto II Virginia Calkins Kate Carter Anne Donohue Emily Howell Sarah Larsson Miriam Lauter Molly Perkins Neena Satija Mary Schnoor Elaine Sullivan Cynthia Weaver
Tenor II Nicholas Clemm Edward Delman David Eisenman John Good Ryan Harper Boyd Jackson Atid Kimelman Jacob Metrick Dylan Morris Alexander Oki Daniel Olson
Tenor I Brent Barbieri John Clayton Peter Clune Eli Mitchell-Larson Brandon Levin Samuel Reinhardt Daniel Thompson Andrew Tschirhart
Bass I Jonathan Barclay Adam Begley Adam Fishman Ben Robbins Arden Rogow-Bales Joshua Schoenfield Andre Shomorony Derek Tam Bradley Travis Robert Williams
Bass II Andy Berry Spencer Cromwell Justin Jee Michael Haycock Noah Kleinberg Daniel Schechner Jeffrey Star Peter Thompson Danny Townsend Jamie van Dyck Henry Wilkin
President: Danny Townsend Manager: Mary Schnoor Stage Manager: Dan Schechner Social Chairs: Elaine Sullivan, Virginia Calkins Publicity Chair: Jenny Witthuhn Archivist: Sam Sanders Wardrobe Manager: Anna Swan Domestic Tour Managers: Emily Howell, Molly Perkins Mini-Tour Managers: Kate Carter, Claire Paulson Outreach Chair: Phyllis Thangaraj
Yale Schola Cantorum Masaaki Suzuki, director Tian Hui Ng, manager
Soprano Kathryn Aaron, MM ‘10 Katharine Arnold, MAR ‘11 Lucy Fitz Gibbon, BA ‘10 Sherezade Panthaki, AD ‘11 Tessie Prakas MA ‘10 Beverly Shangkuan, MM ‘10 Alto Casey Breves BA ‘10 Lora Chow, BA ‘11 Fabiana Gonzalez Cobos, MM ‘11 Esther Morgan-Ellis, PhD ‘12 Valerie Rogotzke, PhD ‘13 Debi Wong, MM ‘10 Tenor Brian Bartoldus, MMA ‘11 Colin Britt, MM ‘10 Dann Coakwell, AD ‘11 Joseph Mikolaj, MM ‘10 Michael Sansoni, MM ‘11 Max Blum, MM ‘11 Bass Dashon Burton, MM ‘11 Tian Hui Ng, MM ‘10 Christoph Schlechter, AD ‘11 Paul Max Tipton, MM ‘10 Stefan Weijola, BA ‘11 Shuo Zhai, M. Arch ’12
Philharmonia Orchestra of Yale Shinik Hahm, music director
Krista Johnson, managing director Renata Steve, librarian Farkhad Khudyev and Adrian Slywotzky, assistant conductors
Violin 1 Jiyun Han, concertmaster Kensho Watanabe Hyewon Kim Domenic Salerni Jae-in Shin Ka Chun Gary Ngan Yeseul Ann Jae-Won Bang Anastasia Metla Qi Cao Alexander Read Marjolaine Lambert Hanna Na Ju Hyung Shin Violin 2 Liesl Schoenberger, principal Alissa Cheung Jane Kim Edson Scheid de Andrade Sun Min Hwang Xi Chen Holly Piccoli Yu-Ting Huang Yoorhi Choi Evan Shallcross Igor Pikayzen Youngsun Kim Viola Christopher Williams, principal Eve Tang Janice Lamarre Colin Meinecke Hyun-Jung Lee Vesselin Todorov Minjung Chun Raul Garcia Kristin Chai Eren Tuncer
Cello Arnold Choi, principal Jee Eun Song Yoon Hee Ko Shannon Hayden Philo Lee Mo Mo Sifei Wen Neena Deb-Sen Ying Zhang Jacques Wood Bass Eric Fischer, principal Alexander Smith Michael Levin Nathaniel Chase Mark Wallace Brian Ellingsen Electric Bass Joseph Magar Flute Christopher Matthews, principal Itay Lantner Dariya Nikolenko, piccolo Oboe Alexandra Detyniecki, principal Steven Kramer Emily Holum, English horn Clarinet Paul Won Jin Cho, principal In Hyung Hwang, E-flat clarinet Sara Wollmacher, bass clarinet
Bassoon Jeremy Friedland, principal Micahla Cohen Thomas Fleming, contrabassoon Horn Tianxia Wu, principal Katherine Herman Leelanee Sterrett Scott Holben Trumpet Andreas Stolzfus, principal Kyle Sherman David Wharton Ryan Olsen Trombone Ted Sonnier, principal Achilleas Liarmakopoulos Jay Roberts, bass trombone Tuba Jerome Stover, principal Timpani Ian Rosenbaum Percussion John Corkill Denis Petrunin Yun-Chiu Chu Leonardo Gorosito Harp Maura Valenti Piano Juan-Carlos Fernández Nieto
Assistants: Andrew Parker, Christopher Matthews • Music Librarians: Scott Holben, Kathryn Salfelder, Liesl Schoenberger, Elizabeth Upton, Christopher Williams, Sara Wollmacher • Stage Crew: Nathaniel Chase, Joseph Peters, Denis Petrunin, Mark Wallace, Craig Watson
Yale Institute of Sacred Music Upcoming Events Free and open to the public except where noted
Choral / Vocal Concerts Baedeker’s Germany: Munich, Leipzig, Weimar, & Berlin Yale Voxtet, James Taylor, director Art songs by Zelter, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Strauss, and Weill November 13 Friday 8 PM • Sprague Memorial Hall Dona nobis pacem – Yale Camerata Marguerite L. Brooks, conductor Music of Haydn, Martinu, and Mendelssohn December 5 Saturday 8 PM • Battell Chapel Sung Evening Prayer Simon Carrington, guest conductor An English Magnificat and other works Yale Schola Cantorum and students in Margot Fassler’s chant and liturgy seminar December 11 Friday 5 PM • St. Thomas More, 268 Park Street Trebles in Paradise – Etherea Vocal Ensemble Heavenly music for treble voices by Holst, Mendelssohn, Rheinberger, and Rossini with Grace Cloutier, harp, Alan Murchie, piano, and Leslie C. Smith, organ January 16 Saturday 8 PM • Marquand Chapel Sing, Ye Birds – Yale Schola Cantorum Simon Carrington, guest conductor with Thomas Murray, organ Music of Bennett, Gibbons, and Taverner January 23 Saturday 8 PM • Christ Church Episcopal, 84 Broadway Music of the French Baroque Yale Voxtet, James Taylor, director with Avi Stein, harpsichord February 5 Friday 8 PM • Marquand Chapel Concert of American Music Dale Warland, guest conductor Yale Schola Cantorum, Yale Camerata and Yale Glee Club February 28 Sunday 3 PM • Woolsey Hall
Cardinal Virtues: An Evening in Palazzo Bonelli Yale Voxtet, James Taylor, director with Yale Collegium Players, Robert Mealy, director April 10 Saturday 8 PM • Sprague Memorial Hall Verdi: Requiem Toshiyuki Shimada, conductor Yale Camerata, Yale Glee Club and Yale Symphony Orchestra April 24 Saturday 8 PM • Woolsey Hall Tickets available at Shubert Theater Box Office, 247 College Street, (203) 562-5666, (888) 736-2663, www.shubert.com Pre-concert talk by David Rosen (Cornell) 7 PM • Sheffield-Sterling-Strathcona Hall, Room 114, 1 Prospect Street
Monteverdiana – Yale Schola Cantorum Masaaki Suzuki, conductor Selections from Selva morale e spirituale with Yale Collegium Players, Robert Mealy, director May 1 Saturday 8 PM • St. Michael’s Church, 225 West 99th Street, NYC May 2 Sunday 3 PM • St. Mary’s Church, 5 Hillhouse Avenue
Great Organ Music at Yale Rachel Laurin Music of Ager, Bach, Cabena, Daveluy, Laurin, and an improvisation November 22 Sunday 8 PM • Woolsey Hall Hans Davidsson Music of Weckmann, Buxtehude, and Bach April 16 Friday 8 PM • Marquand Chapel Masaaki Suzuki Music of Sweelinck, Scheidemann, and Buxtehude April 18 Sunday 8 PM • Marquand Chapel
Yale Glee Club Upcoming Events
Yale Philharmonia Upcoming Events
Yale - Princeton Joint Glee Club Concert November 20 Friday 8 PM • Woolsey Hall
New Music for Orchestra December 11 Friday 8 PM • Woolsey Hall
Handel “Messiah” Audience Sing-a-long with Yale Symphony Orchestra Toshiyuki Shimada, conductor December 13 Sunday 2 PM • Battell Chapel
New Music for Orchestra, with the Philharmonia Orchestra of Yale conducted by Shinik Hahm. Featuring music by David Lang, including International Business Machine and Grind to a Halt. Program also includes works by Samuel Adams, Robert Honstein, Richard Harrold, Jordan Kuspa, Polina Nazaykinskaya, and Feinan Wang.
St. Olaf Choir February 4 Thursday 7:30 PM • Battell Chapel
Music for Chamber Orchestra February 26 and 27 Friday and Saturday 8 PM • Morse Recital Hall
$5.00 suggested donation - Scores will be sold at concert
Tickets at www.stolaftickets.com
Concert of American Music Dale Warland, guest conductor Yale Glee Club, Yale Schola Cantorum, and Yale Camerata February 28 Sunday 3 PM • Woolsey Hall 8th Annual New Haven High Schools Choral Festival Peter Bagley, clinician March 23 Tuesday 7:30 PM • Woolsey Hall Verdi: Requiem Toshiyuki Shimada, conductor Yale Glee Club, Yale Camerata, and Yale Symphony Orchestra April 24 Saturday 8 PM • Woolsey Hall Tickets available at Shubert Theater Box Office, 247 College Street, (203) 562-5666, (888) 736-2663, www.shubert.com Pre-concert talk by David Rosen (Cornell) 7 PM • Sheffield-Sterling-Strathcona Hall, Room 114, 1 Prospect Street
Yale Glee Club Commencement Concert May 22 Saturday 8 PM • Sprague Memorial Hall $12 general admission/$10 for students Call: 203.432.4136 - All seats are reserved Tickets on sale to general public on May 1, 2010.
Stravinsky: Dumbarton Oaks; Nielsen: Clarinet Concerto (with Woolsey Competition winner Paul Won Jin Cho); Stravinsky: Concerto in D; Copland: Appalachian Spring (original version). This concert is free but ticketed; please call the box office at 432-4158 for more details.
Penderecki Conducts Penderecki April 29 Thursday 8 PM • Woolsey Hall Krzysztof Penderecki, one of the most important composers of our time, conducts the Yale Philharmonia in works from across his career. Program includes the ground-breaking Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima; Capriccio for Violin and Orchestra, with soloist Syoko Aki; Concerto for Horn and Orchestra (“Winterreise”); with soloist William Purvis; and the Grawemeyer Awardwinning Symphony No. 4, “Adagio.” This program will be repeated in Stern Auditorium at Carnegie Hall on Friday, April 30, 2010 at 8:00 PM.
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