Presents a

Graduate Clarinet Recital

Brendon Lucas, clarinet

Assisted by:
Michelle Fegeas, soprano
Katherine Plympton, piano
Brian Hargrove, piano
Melody Rueger, clarinet
John Divine, basset horn
Jeremiah Adriano, bass clarinet

Tuesday, November 13th 2012
7:30 pm
Music Building, 101


school music
university of florida + college of fine arts






PROGRAM


"Der Hirt auf dem Felsen," D. 956

Michelle Fegeas, soprano
Katherine Plympton. piano


Premiere Rhapsodie


Franz Schubert
(1797-1828)




Claude Debussy
(1862-1918)


Intermission


Concerto for Clarinet, Strings and Harp


Slowly and Expressively
Rather Fast


Aaron Copland
(1900-1990)


Brian Hargrove, piano


Histoire du Tango

I. Bordel
IV. Concert d'aujourd'hui
Brendon Lucas, piccolo clarinet, Melody Rueger, clarinet
John Divine, basset horn, Jeremiah Adriano, bass clarinet


Astor Piazzolla
(1921-1992)


SMr. Lucas is from the studios of Professors Jackie Glazier and Mitchell Estrin ,
This recital is presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Music






PROGRAM NOTES


Der Hirt auf dem Felsen, D. 965
(text after Wilhelm Muller's poem
"The Mountain Shepherd")

Wenn auf dem h6chsten Fels ich steh,
ins tiefe Thai herneider seh,
und singe, und singe,
fern aus dem tiefen, dunkeln Thai
schwingt sich empor der Wiederhall,
derWiederhall der KlOfte.

Je welter meine Stimme dringt,
Je heller sie mir wiederklingt,
von unten, vonrunten. .
Mein Liebchen wohnt so weit von mir,
drum sehn ich mich so heip nach ih
hinrber, hinuber.

In teifem Gram verher' ich mich,
mrir ist die Freude hin,
auf Erden mir die Hoffnung which,
ich heir so einsam bin,
ich heir so einsam bin.

So sehnend klang im Wald das Lied,
so sehnend klang es durch die Nacht,
die Herzen es zum Himmel zieht
mit wunderbarer Macht..

Der Fruhling will kommen,
der FrOhling meine Freud,
nun mach ich mich fertif zum Wandern bereit.


The Shepherd on the Rock, D. 965
(Translation: Lionel Salter)


When on the highest cliff I stand,
gaze down into the deep valley
and sing,
and echo from the ravines
floats upwards from the dark valley
far away.

The further my voice travels,
the clearer it returns to me
from below.
So far from me does my love dwell
that I yearn for her more ardently
over there.

With deep grief I am consumed,
my joy is at an end;
all hope on earth has left me;
I am so lonely here,
I am so lonely here.

So longingly sounded the song in the wood,
so longingly it sounded through the night,
drawing hearts heavenwards
with wondrous power.

Spring is coming,
Spring, my joy;
Now I will make ready to go journeying.





Composed during the final months of Franz Schubert's life, Der Hirt auf dem Felsen is
foremost in the selection of literature for clarinet and soprano, and is believed to be the last
work the composer ever put to paper. Known in English as The Shepherd on the Rock, this 19th
Century lied was requested of Shubert by Pauline Ann Milder-Hauptmann, an operatic soprano
who frequently performed with the Berlin Court Opera. Though the work was completed in 1828,
it was not premiered or published until early in 1830, more than a year after the composer's
death. The multi-sectional lied provides beautiful melodies for both the clarinet and soprano,
and represents a wide variety of emotions accessible by a diverse audience, which was the
request of Milder-Hauptmann. The Shepherd on the Rock is more like an operatic aria in
comparison with Schubert's other lieder, as the vocal and clarinet lines weave closely together,
creating a homogenous yet playful sound.
Broken down into three sections, the song opens with solo clarinet, setting the stage as
the lonely shepherd high on the mountaintop, yearning for his lost love. The soprano enters
enforcing this theme, while the clarinet begins to echo her melody lines, embodying the sounds
rising from far below the mountains. The middle section turns darker, bringing to the listener a
tale of grief and sadness accented by a few telltale minor mode phrases. Moving into the final
section, the clarinet and soprano interweave the melody lines quite playfully as the shepherd
begins to sing of the coming of spring, and ultimately seeks a sign of hope and rebirth with the
new season. The final lines of this concertante aria are delivered by the clarinet, in the form of a
robust and fast moving melody, delivering an exciting push towards the concluding cadence.



In 1904, a vacancy at the Paris Conservatory of Music resulted in clarinet pedagogue
Prospere Mimart being selected as the new instructor of clarinet at this prestigious school for
musicians. Several years later in 1909, Claude Debussy was asked to join the governing
council of the same conservatory. After having sat on the jury for the conservatory's annual
woodwind concours, or exit examinations, Debussy was asked by Mimart to compose a test
piece for the examinations the following spring. This request was filled with Premi6re
Rhapsodie, a virtuosic work written in its original form for solo clarinet and piano. In July of
1910, eleven clarinet students performed the work for Debussy as part of their exit
examinations, much to the composers pleasure, and in fact he described it as "one of the most
charming [pieces] I have ever written."
The aim of a 'solo de concours' was to provide a challenge to the clarinet player by way
of both lyricism and virtuosity. As a result, most solos written for the Paris Conservatory
followed a slow-fast blueprint. Premiere Rhapsodie follows this blueprint, opening with a slow,
pensive melody marked "dreamily slow." This opening thematic material, which is presented
several times throughout the work, is followed by a "moderately animated section" filled with
moving rhythmic structures and flourishes across the range of the instrument. After a few brief
cadenzas and many shifts of tempo, the work is concluded with a fast moving and playful
scherzandoo." Debussy enjoyed the work so much that he eventually orchestrated the piece,
forming one of his very few concerto-like pieces for soloist and orchestra.






Best known for his widely performed ballet scores Appalachian Spring and Billy the Kid,
composer Aaron Copland is one of the quintessential creators of the American voice of
orchestral music. His works cover many genres, including film scores, ballets, chamber pieces,
works for band, and of course,.his prolifically performed orchestral compositions. One of his
more famous works for a solo instrument is his Concerto for Clarinet and String Orchestra with
Harp. Indeed this work has become so popular within the clarinet repertoire that world renowned
virtuoso Stanley Drucker has given more than a hundred performances of the concerto
throughout his career. The origin of the piece stems back to 20 Century Jzz clarinetist, Benny
Goodman. After hearing Copland's third symphony in 1947, Goodman commissioned him to
write a concerto for the clarinet. His requests were quite vague:

"I made no demands on what Copland should write. He had completely free rein, except
that I should have a two-year exclusivity on playing the work. I paid two thousand dollars
and that's real money. At the time there were not too many American composers to pick
from..."

Goodman, who is also responsible for the commission of Bela Bart6k's Contrasts for clarinet,
violin, and piano, had a diverse repertoire of performance style, ranging from big band and
bebop, to more classically oriented works such as those of Mozart for the clarinet.
The concerto was completed in 1948 to Copland's satisfaction. Goodman however, had
qualms about the difficulty of certain segments of the work, and repetitively postponed the
premier until Copland made adjustments. The piece was debuted in New York City on an NBC
radio broadcast with the NBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Fritz Reiner, on November 6th
1950. The first public performance was given on November 28th by Ralph McLane and the
Philadelphia Orchestra under Eugene Ormandy. Instantly popular, Copland received a request
from Serge Koussevitsky to arrange the concerto's first movement as an elegy for strings for the
Boston Symphony, and within a year, choreographer Jerome Robbins constructed a ballet
entitled The Pied Piper to the music of the concerto.
The compositional period of Copland's life from which the clarinet concerto originates is
characterized by a synthesis of both popular and serious styles of music. Including elements
from both Jazz and Classical traditions, the concerto presents a unique balance of characters
for the listener, and there are numerous unconventional elements within the pieces structure
and orchestration. In the words of the composer,

"The instrumentation being clarinet with strings, harp, and piano, I did not have a large
battery of percussion to achieve jazzy effects, so I used slapping basses and whacking
harp sounds to simulate them. The Clarinet Concerto ends with a fairly elaborate coda
in C major that finishes off with a clarinet glissando or "smear" in jazz lingo."

Though it is performed as a continuous work, the concerto is actually composed in two
movements connected by a rather lengthy solo cadenza. The first, marked "slowly and
expressively" explores a beautifully lyrical set of melodies separated by large intervals and
flowing dynamics in ebb and flow. The cadenza, one of the most unique challenges in the
clarinet repertoire, displays the full gambit of articulations and range. The second and final
movement is entered attacca, and presents the aforementioned unique blend of Jazz and
Classic styles.






Histoire du Tango is one of Astor Piazzolla's more ambitious multi-movement works,
and is intended to depict the history of tango style music in four movements styled at thirty year
intervals. The piece was originally composed for flute and guitar in the 1980s, and has since
seen a fair share of transcriptions and arrangements for various instrumental duos. The
performance on this program has transcribed the original solo line into shared melodies
between four instruments of the clarinet family forming a quartet- the piccolo (Eb) clarinet, the
soprano (Bb) clarinet, the basset horn, and the bass clarinet. Led by the piccolo clarinet,, each
instrument shares the melody in turn, while serving to fill out the accompaniment lines as
necessary. The first and last movements depict respectively Piazzolla's impressions of both the
origins of tango music, and where it will move to in the "performance of tomorrow." The work is
characterized by heavy rhythmic syncopation, fast dynamic alterations and.light, playful
melodies indicative of Piazzolla's trade as a bandoneonist, and his experience with the tango
orchestra.






school( music
university of florida + college of fine arts

Fall 2012 Upcoming Events


NOVEMBER 2012


Nov. 8


Nov. 14


Nov. 15


Nov. 18


UF Wind Symphony
University Auditorium-7:30

UF Symphonic Band
University Auditorium-7:30

UF Symphony Orchestra
.University Auditorium-7:30

Carillon Recital
Century Tower-3:00









F Colege of Fine Arts
SScholof Music

UNIVERSITY bf FLORIDA





To ensure an enjoyable concert experience for all, please refrain from talking,
entering, or exiting while musicians are performing.
Food and drink are prohibited in all concert halls.
Please turn off cell phones and other electronic devices.
Thank you for your cooperation.



P: program number 024 in the
School of Music Events Series of the 2012- 2013 academic year.
The College of Fine Arts School of Music at the University of Florida is an internationally rec-
ognized community of performers, scholars and producers of the arts that offers baccalaure-
ate, master's and doctoral degrees. For more information about specific programs, degrees
and entrance requirements, please visit www.arts.ufl.edu/music/