Good Evening And Welcome To The La Follette Orchestras Fall Concert

CONCERT NOTES

Two Songs of Newfoundland Arr. Carrie Gruselle  “She’s Like the Swallow” is one of the most familiar tunes of Newfoundland. The lyrics depict a tale of unrequited love. The maiden in the story gives a rose and her heart to her love. He thinks this is an act of foolishness, because why would he choose her when he would like to delight in everyone. She resolves to love her love, but she’ll love no more. Killigrews was a settlement founded in Newfoundland in the 1800’s. John Burke is credited with writing this jig in the 1920’s. It is closely based on an older New York Irish song called “The Irish Jubilee.” Both pieces document a party, the guest lists and the antics enjoyed by those involved. Kalimba: African Thumb Piano Bob Lipton (1950-present)  The kalimba or African thumb piano gets it sound from metal keys being plucked by the player’s thumbs on a wood resonator. To achieve this sound, the piece is scored all pizzicato. Unique poly-rhythms are present throughout this piece. Bob Lipton is a San Francisco area composer, educator and performer. His main instrument is tuba. His biography also claims that he was in Tom Petty’s high school rock and roll band. Reverie James Corigliano (1945-present)  Reverie for String Orchestra was composed in memory of Frank Console, James Corigliano’s uncle and first teacher. This work was premiered in February of 1978. James Corigliano was born in New York, NY. He attended the State University of New York with a teaching emphasis. His main instruments are clarinet and saxophone. He spent his career teaching, directing and composing around Albany, NY and has since retired from teaching. In addition to Reverie, Corigliano has numerous other published compositions. Matador Susan Day  This piece was inspired by a visit to Seville, Spain. Seville has one of the most noted and oldest bullfighting arenas in all of Spain. Spanish-influenced melodies, harmonies and rhythms are spread throughout the Orchestra. Susan Day is a string educator and composer residing in Colorado. She has over 40 compositions for the young Orchestra and has won numerous awards for these compositions. Murphy’s Jig Susan Day  Murphy’s Jig is an Irish influenced composition. The melody works through three different keys and various section combinations. An interesting feature of traditional Irish music is the presence of slides and musical ornaments. Mordants, trills and turns are written into the music, but also added at the player’s discretion. Prelude and Fugue John Harmon (1935-present)  John Harmon is a Wisconsin composer with published works in jazz, band, choir and orchestra. He was an acclaimed jazz pianist, performing in Europe and New York City at the beginning of his career. He returned to Wisconsin and became the founding director of Jazz Studies at Lawrence University in Appleton, WI. Prelude and Fugue was composed in 1985 when John was in a composition residency with the Fon du Lac School District. El Gaucho Bob Lipton (1950-present)  El Gaucho (the cowboy) is a piece composed with group technique development in mind. Lipton wrote this to increase his Orchestra’s confidence. Playing with correct bow technique in accents and large bows, while doing Latin-inspired rhythms, is an interesting component explored in this piece. In addition, minor finger patterns and dynamic contrast are present throughout this composition. Zoosters Breakout Hans Zimmer (1957-present) // Arr. Paul Lavender  Hans Zimmer was born in Germany from a Jewish mother who escaped the Holocaust. His father passed away when he was young and he escaped his pain by focusing on music. Zimmer was a member of the Buggles, the band who’s song, Video Killed the Radio Star, was the first song to play on MTV. After leaving the Buggles, he played in a few bands and wrote jingles for commercials. His career then moved into scoring and arranging for movies, with the first big hit of Rain Man. He has won four Grammy’s, two Golden Globes and one Academy Award for his compositions. Zoosters Breakout is from the movie Madagascar. Music for a Found Harmonium Simon Jeffes (1949-1997) // Arr. Andrew Dabczynski  Written in 1984 by English composer Simon Jeffes, this piece has been described as “minimalist folk music.” It is widely recognized for its appearance in the movie Napoleon Dynamite. Jeffes was a classically trained guitarist, composer and arranger. He was the founding member of the Penguin Café Orchestra. He passed away from an inoperable brain tumor in 1997. Aria Ready for a Little Opera Arr. Carrie Gruselle  Aria Ready is a medley of famous opera melodies from Rossini to Wagner. Spanning works from the Classical and Romantic eras, we have studied the traditional styles of these arias, in addition to working through various keys and meters. The Ludlows from “Legends of the Fall” James Horner (1953-2015) // Arr. John Moss  Being the soundtrack composer to two of the highest grossing movies of all time, Titanic and Avatar, James Horner’s impact on film music was pronounced. He began piano instruction at 5 years old and went on to study composition at USC. Much of his work before 1979 was for “halls,” especially Symphony Orchestras. In 1979, he chose to focus on film music. He composed music for over 100 films. His 1994 work on Legends of the Fall resulted in a Golden Globe Nomination. In addition to his composing, he also taught at UCLA. Horner tragically passed away in a plane crash last year. Carpe Diem Richard Meyer (1957-present)  Carpe Diem is a piece composed in ABA form. The opening section features a spirited main theme with supporting lyrical melody. The “B” section is a lullaby that is followed by a recapitulation of the main theme in a different orchestration. Richard Meyer wrote this piece in 2007. He lives in California, has over 130 published compositions and is the current String Editor for Alfred Music. The Lord of the Rings Howard Shore (1946-present) // Arr. Bob Cerulli  The Lord of the Rings was the big break in Howard Shore’s composing career. He was born in Toronto, Ontario and was involved in music at a young age. At a summer camp when he was 13, Shore became good friends with Lorne Michaels, the creator of Saturday Night Live. After studying music at Berklee College of Music in Boston, he took a job as Music Director for Saturday Night Live from 1975-1980. After leaving SNL, Shore composed for many films, but without much critical acclaim or notoriety. After credits on BIG, Philadelphia, and Mrs. Doubtfire, The Lord of the Rings proved to be his break out picture. He won a Grammy and an Oscar for this movie, which led to more prominence among film composers.

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