Bach to the Future Program Notes

PROGRAM NOTES

Simple Gifts, a traditional Shaker Tune arr. for strings by Robert S. Frost

Simple Gifts, written and composed in 1848 by Elder Joseph Brackett, was made popular almost 100 years later in 1944 with Aaron Copland’s composition Appalachian Spring. The sweet melody is still often performed and reinterpreted by many musicians today. I chose this arrangement by Robert S. Frost for my wedding ceremony as my bridal processional. My husband and I have always loved this piece and we felt the lightness of the melody and lyrics reflected our feelings for one another, a simple joy.

- Klenda Martinez, violin

Trauermusik [1936] by Paul Hindemith (1895-1963)

Hindemith was in London in late January of 1936 preparing to perform the British premiere of his viola concerto, Der Schwanendreher, when King George V died. So he wrote and performed a new piece for the occasion: Trauermusik, also known as Music of Mourning, for solo viola and string orchestra. The doleful mood of the work is set by the string ensemble in the first movement, Langsam (Slowly) after which the soloist utters a series of lamentations, beginning quietly, growing to a wail and finally becoming quiet again. The second and third movements, Ruhig bewegt (Quietly moving) and Lebhaft (Lively), are both in 12/8 meter, though they have completely different characters; while the second movement is as gentle as a lullaby, the third is more angry and turbulent. In the last movement, Sehr langsam (Very slowly), the ensemble plays through the chorale (known in English as "All People That on Earth Do Dwell" or "Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow") and after each phrase the viola soloist interrupts with a response, each one longer and more intense than the last. I last performed Trauermusik as part of my master's recital this past spring at the Boston Conservatory and it's been a great honor presenting it with Fusion String Ensemble.

- Ken Allen, viola

Brandenburg Concerto No.4 in G major, BWV 1049 by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750) 

Johann Sebastian Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 4 is considered a triple concerto for violin and two flutes. For the violin, it is the most virtuosic of all Bach's concerti. The two flutes have often caused discussions among musicologists. Bach designated the term 'flauto' for the recorders. The term 'd'echo' (printed in the original manuscript) actually meant that the two recorder players were to leave their seats in the orchestra in the slow movement (built around an echo effect) and play from another spot in the room from a distance. The evidence supporting this idea is in the beginning of the last movement, where the entire orchestra is playing for a while without the recorders, to give them enough time to make it back to their seats. M. Patrick and I will be remaining in our places for the slow movement, as we are fearful of tripping over cellists and wires on our journey back to the orchestra!

Bach's Brandenburg Concerti (six total) are a collection of works presented to Christian Ludwig, margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt, in 1721. They are regarded as some of the finest musical compositions of the Baroque Era.

- Allison T. Lacasse, flute

Violin Sonata No.1 in G minor, BWV 1001 by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750), arr. for string ensemble by Jeff Bezanson

J.S. Bach's sonatas and partitas for solo violin are among the most beloved and remarkable works for the instrument. Chief among the surprises in these works are the fugue movements in each of the three sonatas. Fugues, with their multiple overlapping melodic lines, are usually associated with keyboard instruments or ensembles, and it seems scarcely possible to perform or even to write one for a solo 4-stringed instrument. Composers have taken up this challenge quite rarely (Bartok is notably present on this short list).

In order to make multiple voices heard from a single violin, Bach pushed the instrument to limits that were arguably not tested again until the 19th century.  In fact the great ingenuity and richness of Bach's fugues strain against these limits, and I believe we are justified in wishing to hear more of the possible melodic interactions and harmonies that can only be implied on one violin.

These musical possibilities caught the attention of the formidable 20th century piano virtuoso Leopold Godowsky, who penned an almost absurdly difficult transcription (for solo piano) of Bach's G minor violin sonata. Godowsky's Bach has a wild, contemporary feel that supplies just what I was looking for from the music, and inspired and lent some material to the arrangement of the fugue movement you will hear.

The fugue theme is stunningly simple, beginning with just a "D" repeated four times. This repeated-note figure has an insistent presence as the piece proceeds through many variations and moods. To my ear, this quality of simplicity and inevitability gives the piece an unusually modern sound for baroque music, bringing to mind later works --- perhaps Beethoven's fifth symphony. My arrangement is intended to encourage such allusions.

- Jeff Bezanson, violin

Concerto for 2 Violins in D minor, BWV 1043 [1723] by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750)

My first memories of the Bach Double Violin Concerto are vivid ones:  I remember feeling incredibly grown up getting to play the first movement as a duet with my teacher in my recital the year I was twelve.  I played the first violin part, she played second.  I had to play standing up and from memory, she sat down and used the music.  I remember jokingly commenting that that seemed SO unfair, to which she pointed out that it was my recital and not hers.  As it happens, the video of this very recital is the earliest video evidence of me as a child, not to mention the first video of a recital of mine, so the piece evokes very fond memories for me.  I've played the piece many times since, sometimes playing one of the solo parts and sometimes accompanying, and it always makes me think of my first teacher, the experience of performing it that first time, and even the skirt I wore that day.  I'm excited to be a part of Fusion String Ensemble this season and to have the opportunity to work with these fantastic soloists!

- Sarah Izen, viola/violin