Technological University Dublin ARROW@TU Dublin Concert Programmes Conservatory of Music and Drama 2012 Wexford Festival Opera, William Vincent Wallace Bicentenary Recitals Una Hunt DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://arrow.tudublin.ie/aaconmuscp Part of the Arts and Humanities Commons Recommended Citation William Vincent Wallace Bicentenary Recitals Programme (Wexford Festival Opera, October-November 2012) This Other is brought to you for free and open access by the Conservatory of Music and Drama at ARROW@TU Dublin. It has been accepted for inclusion in Concert Programmes by an authorized administrator of ARROW@TU Dublin. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 License 24 October–4 November, 2012 Concert | William V Wallace Recital Sponsors & Funders William V Wallace Recital Thursday 25 October | 15:30 JEROME HYNES THEATRE Grant-aided by the Arts Council Friday 2 November | 11:00 Image of William V Wallace is reproduced courtesy of the National Library of Ireland (call number EP WALL-WI (1) III) Festival supported by Fáilte Ireland WILLIAM VINCENT WALLACE (1812–1865) THE DELIUS TRUST Songs and piano music from the William Vincent Wallace Album Máire Flavin (Mezzo-soprano, 25 October) | Rachel Kelly (Mezzo-soprano, 2 November) Lead Production Sponsor Print Media Sponsor & Production Sponsor Production Sponsor Una Hunt (Piano) L’Arlesiana Le Roi malgré lui A Village Romeo and Juliet Salon dances Valse Gracieuse: La Pluie d’Or Schottisch: The Village Festival Song Preferred Hotel Partner Proudly Supporting Le Roi malgré lui Orange Flowers (Romance) Celtic Fantasy The Harp that Once and Fly not Yet Four canzonets — The Seasons Spring – The joyful, joyful Spring Summer – It is the happy Summer time Autumn – The leaves are turning red Winter – The Spring and Summer both are past Piano solo Official IT & Sponsors of the Education Partner Sponsors of the Official Festival Partner Communications Partner Festival Dress Rehearsals Lunchtime Recitals ’Tis the Harp in the Air (romance – Souvenir de Maritana) Invitation Polka Song Say my Heart, can this be Love Opera excerpt from Maritana Proudly Supporting Italian Institute of Culture – Dublin National Broadcast Le Roi malgré lui Proudly Supporting L’Arlesiana Media Partner Community Partner Exclusive Champagne Supplier How Dreary to my Heart – Scenes that are Brightest Sponsors of The Gala Concert Youth Ticketing Sponsors Official Airport Partner Restaurant Partner Restaurant Partner On the cover: Images reproduced courtesy of the National Library of Ireland (call number MU-vc-34) William V Wallace Recital 1 William V Wallace Recital Notes A unique recital of drawing room music and has been published this year to commemorate Salon dances Valse Gracieuse: La Pluie d’Or opera favourites celebrating the bicentenary of the composer’s bicentenary. The album’s the birth of Irish composer, William Vincent popularity was assured when it was advertised Schottisch: The Village Festival Wallace (1812–1865). Wallace was one of the as a ‘must have’ gift for Christmas 1853.The New most extraordinary musical personalities of York Times declared ‘…This is unquestionably the nineteenth century – not only a composer, one of the handsomest gift books of the season but a virtuoso on two instruments (piano and … we cannot conceive of a more graceful and From his early years Wallace arranged and Wallace would have heard Johann Strauss the violin) and a global traveller. He visited parts of elegant offering to the ladies of the United States’, performed dance music, initially for military Elder’s band when it performed in London in the world that no other Irish musician had set and in The Musical World and Times, Wallace’s bands and later for Dublin theatres and 1849, and the band included the overture to foot in and widened his sphere of influence by prowess as a composer was highly praised: ‘the ballrooms. La pluie d’or (shower of gold), a valse Maritana in its repertoire – still a favourite establishing a music school in Sydney, Australia transcendent genius of Wallace has never before gracieuse, is the more difficult of the two salon in Vienna a year after Wallace’s opera was where he is still regarded as the first great been so fully developed’. The book’s illustrations dances, but was still within the reach of those performed there. The schottisch originated in instrumentalist to visit that continent. From here are indeed handsome, and were described as who practised their scales and arpeggios. The Bohemia and was a very popular variant of the he blazed a trail through South America where ‘among the finest specimens of lithographic main theme, with its cascading notes, which is polka. In The Village Festival Wallace captured he was maestro to a season of Italian opera in art ever done in America’. These sumptuous similar in style to the famous Shower of Pearls by the Viennese éclat typical of this type of lively Mexico City. A new career began as impresario embellishments were produced by the celebrated the Limerick–born composer George Alexander central European dance. before his return to London where his own first artist Napoleon Sarony, the emperor of New Osborne (1806–1893), makes good use of the opera, Maritana, was an outstanding success. York lithography, and his firm Sarony and Major upper reaches of the new seven-octave piano. He was then just thirty-three years old and had became one of the most successful in its field. already had enough experiences to fill several The lithographs were coloured by Spearing and lifetimes! Tales of his adventures and escapades Stutzman in the United States. certainly helped to promote the popularity of his Today’s concert highlights the music from publications, particularly of his salon music. Wallace’s 1854 American Music Album which Wallace had great success as a composer of is available for sale after the performance. The drawing room music in America. His publisher facsimile and CD is published by Heritage Music in New York, William Hall and Son, produced Productions and RTÉ lyric fm in association with a particularly fine collection of Wallace’s music the National Library of Ireland and has been in 1854, an original copy of which is now in the generously sponsored by the Department of Arts, collections at the National Library of Ireland. A Heritage and the Gaeltacht. limited edition facsimile of the album, plus a CD 2 William V Wallace Recital William V Wallace Recital 3 William V Wallace Recital Notes Song Orange Flowers (Romance) Celtic Fantasy The Harp that Once and Fly not Yet Text: H.F. Chorley (1808–1872) The critic Henry Fothergill Chorley, who also wrote the libretto for Wallace’s opera heT Amber Witch, In the middle of the nineteenth century Wallace c. 1859. His Celtic Fantasias are not only tuneful was a great admirer of the soprano Mme Henriette Sontag (1806–1854), the dedicatee of Orange Flowers. published a great number of fantasia-style pieces and attractive, they contain a good deal of the Born in Germany, Sontag had been soprano soloist in the first performance of Beethoven’s Ninth for the piano based on Irish and Scottish airs. melodramatic, and were thus extremely popular. Symphony and became a star of both Italian and German opera. In his 1862 book Thirty Years’ Musical His only rivals in this genre were fellow Irishman This fantasy, which includes two famous airs Recollections Chorley wrote that though a German ‘her tendencies were towards all that was elegant and and pianist, George Alexander Osborne, and the from Thomas Moore’sIrish Melodies, opens with florid in Southern music’. Orange Flowers is a virtuoso piece written to display the qualities that Chorley Welsh-born Henry Brinley Richards. Wallace cascading arpeggios before introducing both mentions, incorporating the Spanish atmosphere so often evoked in his compositions. The song was began issuing his fantasias shortly after his arrival themes, and builds to a dramatic conclusion. probably written in advance of Sontag’s visit to the USA in 1852. The published score for voice and piano in London in 1845 and published them until contains orchestral cues, but no instrumental parts have been found. Sing your northern prairies In your dreary far land In a pretty lay. Groweth nothing fair Of your tiny daisies Fit for triumph’s garland And pale flow’rs of may! Twin’d in beauty’s hair Four canzonets The Seasons Texts: H.C. Watson (1818–1875) We have sweeter music, Deck the maiden yearning Richer airs are ours By the river side Spring – The joyful, joyful Spring Breathing at the eventide With a wreath of mourning Summer – It is the happy Summer time From the orange bow’rs. We adorn the Bride. Autumn – The leaves are turning red Look! how stars of silver Leave to northern praises ’Mid the green leaves glow, All their chill-white may. Winter – The Spring and Summer both are past Look! how cressets golden And their pretty daisies Hang from every bough. Fit for child’s array Each a cap discloses We have sweeter music That rare nectar pours Richer airs are ours. Henry Cood Watson, who is now regarded as America’s first real music critic, provided the words to What are all your roses? What are all your roses? five out of the six songs in Wallace’s 1854 Album. A fine writer and practical musician, Watson’s lyrics We have orange flow’rs We have orange flow’rs! are highly regarded. The seasons are used as a metaphor for the journey through life: the wonder and What are all your roses? What are all your roses? innocence of youth in Spring, the rapture and ecstasy of adult love in Summer, maturity in Autumn, fond We have orange flow’rs We have orange flow’rs.