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Home , Castanets, Classical guitar, Spanish opera, The Zoo, Tonadilla, Zarzuela

A MINI-GUIDE

The Story ...... 2 Meet the Cast ...... 3 What is ? ...... 5 Meet the Creator of Little Red ...... 6 The Composers ...... 7 Activity: Make your own ! ...... 10 The Story: Bear Hug/Abrazo de oso!

Bear Hug/Abrazo de oso! is a bilingual (in two different languages) youth and the cast sings in both English and Spanish. It is set in a zoo.

The Zookeeper enters the stage while feeding some of his favorite animals including Marla, the koala bear, and Polly the panda bear. He admits that while he loves his job as zookeeper, he’s nervous about the grizzly exhibit next door. Grizzly bears are known to eat meat and he feels less than confident.

Polly the panda greets the audience and mentions her love of reading and learning. She hears singing next to her exhibit and meets Bernardo, a very special Spanish brown bear and newest exhibit to the zoo. In fact, the entire zoo is decorated to welcome the newest bear! Bernardo, who has just arrived to the zoo and doesn’t speak much English, is nervous and feels lost. He misses his family. Polly distracts him from his loneliness by playing games like charades, trying to understand her new friend. They come across a locked gate. Polly has always wondered what was on the other side of the zoo and her adventur - ous personality starts the bears on a search for the key and out of their exhibit.

The two meet Marla, the zoo’s koala bear. Koalas are actually marsupials—that means Marla isn’t really a bear at all! Koala bears are generally sleepy and like to eat plants such as eucalyptus. She agrees to help search for the key. Marla wonders aloud what could be on the other side of the locked gate and begins to name off scary creatures that could be in wait! Could it be lions, or tigers, or bears? OR tarantula spi - ders??? Bernardo hears the word “tarántula” and begins to sing an exciting Spanish folk song about tarantulas! According to Bernardo’s song, a person must dance to save themselves from a spider bite. The three bears dance and sing of the “tarántula,” forgetting momentarily about their search for the key.

Marla spots the key that had been dropped in the bushes and holds it up declaring, “llave!” The bears excitedly use the key to open the locked gate. Just then, they hear a scary, low sound and look up to see Griff the grizzly bear looking down on them! Griff chases the bears threatening to eat them! Bernardo has a brilliant idea and runs in to the insect exhibit next door. He grabs a real tarantula spider and rushes to Griff. Griff, who is afraid of spiders, begins to run from the three bears. He finally stops and admits to being afraid of not just spiders, but the dark, thunder, and lightning as well! Marla asks if being mean all of the time makes him lonely. Griff agrees that he pushes other bears and potential friends away be - cause he’s different than other grizzlies and doesn’t want anyone to know he’s actually very sensitive and not scary at all—he even likes writing poems!

Polly assures Griff that everyone feels lonely and different sometimes. Bernardo understands how the grizzly feels especially since he’s new to the zoo and so far from home. They all decide that though they may look different, be from other countries, and even speak different languages, they are all very much the same where it counts. Our differences make the world a beautiful place and kindness brings us all to - gether. BEAR HUG! ¡ABRAZO DE OSO!

2 Meet the Cast

The cast is made up of Nashville Opera’s Mary Ragland Emerging Artists. These performers come from all over the country and stay in Nashville for three to four months to take part in our training pro - gram. They are part of Bear Hug/Abrazo de oso! and our mainstage productions of ’s Tales of Hoffmann as well as Marc Blitzstein’s The Cradle Will Rock. We asked our singers some questions so that you can get to know them!

Chelsea Friedlander, Marla the Koala From Princeton, New Jersey Has sung with Chautauqua Opera, Dayton Opera, , Opera Saratoga, Opera in the Ozarks What is your favorite holiday? Thanksgiving What is your favorite food? Chinese Dumplings What do you like to do for fun? Sing back-up for Kristen Chenowith! What’s a little-known fact about you? I don’t know how to ride a bike!

Sara Crigger, mezzo-soprano Polly the Panda From Alaska Has sung with Miami Music Festival, Tidewater Opera Initiative, Chrysalis Opera, CMA Festival Do you play any musical instruments? Yes! I have performed professionally as a cellist. Do you have any pets? Yes, a dog named Belle What’s a little-known fact about you? I am an accomplished seamstress and like to listen to heavy metal!

Darius Thomas, Bernardo, the Spanish Brown Bear From Sherman, Texas Has sung with Knoxville Opera, Janiec Opera Company, University of Tennessee Opera Theatre What’s your favorite book? Harry Potter Series What do you like to do other than sing? Play sports—football, golf and competitive bowling What’s an interesting fact about you? I have a twin brother! Do you play any musical instruments? for 10 years now!

3 Brent Hetherington, Zookeeper Griff the Grizzly Bear From Tyler Texas Has performed with Pensacola Opera, Janiec Opera Company, Central City Opera, University of Tennessee Opera Theatre Favorite Food? Tacos! My least favorite is peas…EW. What do you do for fun? Bake! Before I became an opera singer, I wanted to be a pastry chef and open a bakery. Do you have any pets? No, but I have three older sisters! Interesting fact about yourself? Beyonce once smiled at me— I had a front row ticket to her concert and I’m tall

Elizabeth Chua, pianist Tour Music Director Manager/Pianist From Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Has performed with Mill City Summer Opera, Opera Steamboat, Apotheosis Opera, Bach Society of Minnesota and Do you have any pets? Two cats—Eddie and Charlie! Do you play any musical instruments? Of course piano and also violin. I started playing both at the age of four. Favorite Holiday? Christmas! Can you speak any foreign languages? Chinese, Cantonese, and Malay! Anna Young, Director of Education & Outreach Stage Director Creator of Bear Hug/Abrazo de oso! From Lives in Nashville, Tennessee, but is from Greenville, South Carolina Pets? A black cat named “Pants” Favorite movies? The Little Mermaid, Goonies, La La Land Favorite food? Chocolate and Tacos What do you do for fun? Read, watercolor, cook, and play classical

4 What Is a Zarzuela?

Zarzuela is ! contain popular Spanish songs, dances, and spoken dialogue—just like in and musical theater. These operas were inspired by music written in Germany, and and often had political themes woven within their storylines. The name zarzuela actually means “brambles.” The first zarzuelas were performed at a royal hunting lodge whose walls were covered in “zarzas” or brambles. Theatre-goers associated the sight of the briars covering the walls with the operas going on within them. The name stuck and we now call Spanish operas zarzuelas! Read the history of the art form below. The history of zarzuela

In 1657, at the Royal Palace of El Pardo, King Philip IV of and his court attended the first perform - ance of a new . The story was by poet Pedro Calderón de la Barca, with music by Juan de Hidalgo. This comedy, El Laurel de Apolo, marks a new kind of opera called “La Zarzuela.” Zarzuela was named after one of the King’s hunting lodges, situated in a remote countryside thick with zarzas, or brambles. The lodge was often visited by clowns and actors from the city of ! They knew that once they saw the bramble-covered walls outside, there was Spanish opera, zarzuela, being performed inside. Calderón and Hidalgo were known as the best Spanish playwright and composer of the day. Their com - positions were witty and fun with excellent music supported by well-written stories. However, the more popular Italian operas overshadowed Spanish zarzuela. Important pieces such as La Clementina, never re - ceived the acclaim they deserved. There are many styles represented in zarzuelas. The classical style is represented by sophisticated vocal en - sembles in which several singers sing together, and solo pieces matched with spoken dialogue—very much like musical theater! Characters of this style often played relatable, comic characters. This mirrored the way classical Italian operas were written. Francisco Barbieri, regarded as the musical founding father of classical zarzuela, was greatly influenced by Italian composers like Rossini and Donizetti. His music is greatly featured in Bear Hug/Abrazo de oso! were also being written. These were short, 10 to 20 minute musical pieces with dialogue. They are comedic, tiny operas! Bear Hug/Abrazo de oso! could be thought of as a because of its light storyline, script and length. Many important zarzuelas were inspired by the city of Madrid. The spirit, sights and sounds of the capital drew composers during the classical period through the beginning of the 20th century. The very best zarzuelas set in Madrid include Tomás Bretón’s classic La verbena de la paloma and Ruperto Chapí’s La Re - voltosa. During the 1920s and 30s, zarzuelas were made popular by featuring the best popular dances of Madrid with and habaneras—all popular styles of Spanish dance. This style provide a flavor unlike any - thing else in the operatic repertoire. Zarzuela writing slowed with the onset of the , and only the composer Pablo Sorozábal kept the form alive into the 1950s. Even so, the legacy of nearly one hundred years and thousands of works of zarzuela remains incomparably rich. What a joy to feature this vibrant music in Bear Hug/Abrazo de oso!

5 Meet the Creator

Anna Young (1981 –Present)

Anna Steenerson Young accepted the position of Director of Educa - tion and Outreach for Nashville Opera in 2015 and runs the presti - gious Mary Ragland Emerging Artist Program. Bear Hug/Abrazo de oso! is Anna’s second piece to be produced by Nashville Opera. The Enchanted Forest (a choose-your-own-adventure opera) marked her first creation for the education tour which brings the power of opera and live performance to more than 23,000 children and families in Middle Tennessee each year. Prior to this, she was the Assistant Director of Opera for the College of Charleston, a position she held following a successful career as a singer with opera companies across the United States. She was honored to create the role of ‘Emily’ in the world premiere of Ned Rorem’s opera Our Town for which she received glowing reviews in the national and international press, including The New York Times. She earned a Master of Music degree on full scholarship from the prestigious Jacob’s School of Music at Indiana University, and her Bachelor’s degree from Converse College in Spartanburg, South Carolina. She comes to Nashville with her husband David who is also an opera singer as well as a resident physi - cian in otolaryngology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

6 Meet the Composers

Francisco Asenjo Barbieri (1823 –1894)

Barbieri, born August 3rd 1823, was one of the most influential Spanish composers of the nineteenth century and is thought of as the very best composer of zarzuela by many. His first music teacher was José Ordóñez Mayorito, and in 1837 he entered the Madrid Conservatory, where he studied clarinet, piano, voice and composition. A true jack-of-all-trades! Between 1841 and 1844 he made a living as a singer, clarinetist, copyist, piano teacher and writer of popular songs and dances, as well as an academic chorus master! Composing Il Buontempone (1847, in Italian) marked the beginning of his operatic career. Though he first found success by writing , he also founded La España Musical to promote native Spanish opera. He supported his -musical work through journalism and was a music critic (for La Ilustración) and a copyist, , and translator at the . Because of his great love for Spanish theatre, he eventually abandoned writ - ing Italian opera altogether and produced his first zarzuela in 1850. He was central to the group of composers, including Oudrid, Gaztambide and Arrieta. He worked in 1851 at the Teatro del Circo, directing the chorus as well as pro - viding many original stage works. In 1856 the (The Theatre of Zarzuela) was founded. In the 1860s, Barbieri broadened his activities even further by founding the So - ciety for Orchestral Music (1866) and introduced much of the German symphonic repertoire to Madrid. He also published a wide variety of books on music, politics and other topics. He died in Madrid on February 19, 1894, loaded with honors and recognized at home and abroad as “the father figure of Spanish music.” Barbieri’s contribution to the growth of Spanish culture and music cannot be overemphasized. His work contributed greatly to an entire nation’s musical style setting it apart from the vast tradition of Italian opera. Though not every piece was a great success like his zarzuela Jugar con fuego (1851), there are many pieces of quality such as Los diamantes de la Corona (1854), El Diablo en el poder (1856) and Entre mi mujer y el negro (1859). El barberillo de Lavapiés (1874) is a true gem in his body of work and many of the best and most exciting melodies featured in Bear Hug/Abrazo de oso! come from this particular zarzuela! Barbieri greatly influenced Spanish composers that followed and helped an entire culture find its voice by creating a genuinely Spanish style not only in zarzuela and opera, but also in all kinds of music and composition. Gerónimo Giménez (1854 –1923)

Born in Seville, Giménez began his musical studies with his father. He contin - ued to study in Cadiz with Salvador Viniegra and at the age of twelve played violin at the Teatro Principal. Five years later he was already opera and zarzuela performances in the city but after receiving a scholarship, left to complete his schooling at the Paris Conservatoire. Under the highly popular composer Delphin Alard, he won the First Prize for Harmony and Counter - point—defeating Claude Debussy, one of the most famous French composers of all time! In 1885 he became the conductor of the Teatro Apolo, later moving to the Teatro de la Zarzuela, and the Teatro Lírico. Not only did he write many zarzuelas, Giménez also wrote symphonic and cham - 7 ber works. He conducted his own pieces at Unión Musical Espagñola and the Sociedad de Conciertos. His best stage works date from relatively early in his career and include Trafalgar (1890) and Los voluntarios (1893). He found true fame with three works—the twin sainetes (comic operas) El baile de Luis Alonso and La Boda de Luis Alonso (1896/7), and his masterpiece La Tempranica (1900). The music of La Tempranica is featured in Bear Hug/Abrazo de oso! Unfortunately, success did not follow Giménez throughout his life and his later works fell flat. He experienced financial problems and ill health and was refused a professo - rial chair at the Madrid Conservatory very near the end of his life. He died in near-poverty in Madrid on February 19, 1923.

Manuel de Falla (1876 –1946)

Manuel de Falla was perhaps the most distinguished Spanish composer of the early 20th century. He was able to capture poetry and great pas - sion while representing the very spirit of Spain. Falla took piano les - sons from his mother and later went to Madrid to continue studying piano and composition with Felipe Pedrell, who inspired him with his own love for early Spanish church music, , and native opera (zarzuela). In 1905, Falla won two prizes, one for piano performance and the other for his opera (first performed in Nice, France, in 1913). In 1907 he moved to Paris where he met Claude Debussy, Paul Dukas, and and published his first piano pieces and songs. These three important composers greatly influenced his own orchestral writing. In 1914 he returned to Madrid, where he wrote the music for a , (Love, the Ma - gician, 1915). He was encouraged to write more ballet music by setting Léonide Massine’s El sombrero de picos (The Three-Cornered Hat, 1919). He also wrote a collection of short pieces for piano and orches - tra, Noches en los jardines de España (Nights in the Gardens of Spain, 1916), which showed great creativity and made him an international star as a leading Spanish composer. Falla eventually retired to , where in 1922 he organized a folk music festival (cante hondo) and even composed a puppet opera, El retablo de Maese Pedro! Falla was successful in his lifetime and was in - fluenced by many other great composers of the day—not only Debussy and Ravel but also Igor Stravin - sky (composer of The Rite of Spring and The Firebird)! These cutting-edge composers steered Falla’s style to Neoclassical (modern music of the day) instead of the more easily understood Romantic style. Even so, his pieces still kept the flavor of Spanish culture. Though he never married or had children, his legacy lives on and his picture has even appeared on Spanish money! Ruperto Chapí (1851 –1909)

Ruperto Chapí y Lorente was born on March 27th, 1851 in Villena, Spain. As a true Valencian, Chapí was soon involved in band music, both as a piccolo player and by the age of nine, as a composer and arranger! His first zarzuela, La estrella del bosque, was written when he was only fifteen. The same year, he conducted the Alicante town band! Later, he left for Madrid to join the Conservatory, winning the First Prize in composition in 1872. As a young man he earned money from the Teatro Real who performed his opera Las naves de Cortés (1874). The performance starred the great tenor Tamberlick who drew a large crowd, helping to spotlight

8 Chapí’s work. After this success, he was awarded a scholarship to the Paris Conservatoire where he was determined to compose more serious pieces rather than write for military bands. He wrote another opera in Madrid in 1878, La hija de Jefté, which was well liked and had been performed at the Teatro Real two years earlier. He enjoyed a successful career until he was taken ill in 1909 during a production of his opera Margarita la tornera that he, himself was conducting. He died shortly after, two days before his fifty-eighth birthday.

Amadeo Vives (1871 –1932)

Born in Collbató, Spain on November 18, 1871, Amadeo Vives studied as a child with Felipe Pedrell, one of the most famous composers of 20th Century Spanish music. His studies took him to Barcelona where he helped found the influential Orféo Catalá (1891), marking a time of great success for 's musical history. The Orféo Catalá was a vocal that strove to spread both local and national awareness. This prestigious choir still performs today! Soon after, he moved to Madrid where he lived the rest of his life. There he first published a series of concert works and much-loved choral songs. L’emigrant (1894) was so influential it was used as a call-to-arms for Catalan exiles around the world! Later, he focused his writing on zarzuela which is what he later became known for. Vives had many other interests and once wrote a successful play (non-musical) called Jo no sabia que el món era així (1929). His dream was to become an orchestral composer though many say he may have lacked the con - fidence to try. In fact, there is a book, Sofia (1923), which describes his troubles and frustrations. He never wanted to be known only for writing zarzuela though his success was great and he was well loved in his country. In fact, when Vives died on December 1, 1932, a Parliamentary session was canceled so the public could attend his funeral. He remains one of the most beloved composers of many Spaniards today. José Serrano (1873 –1941)

José Serrano Simeón was born in Sueca, Valencia, on October 14, 1873. His father was a conductor of the town band and first to teach José music lessons. The young boy was very accomplished at both the vio - lin and guitar by the time he was twelve. As with many talented Span - ish composers, he moved to Madrid to study music but wasn’t happy there and returned home. Soon after, he worked as an assistant to another successful Spanish composer, Manuel Fernández Caballero. Caballero was blind and depended on Serrano to help write out his manu - scripts. He was even given the opportunity to help with the scoring (when a composer chooses which instrument to play each part) of a very popular zarzuela called . He later wrote of his experience with Caballero in the musical journal El Salonillo. This op - portunity led to another when the popular Alvarez Quintero brothers asked him to write music to their play, El motete. He agreed to work with the famous brothers and wrote such a wonderful zarzuela, he re - mained a working, successful composer the rest of his life. His most famous works include La dolorosa (Lady of the Sorrows) and La canción del olvido (The Song of Forgetting) . He wrote over 50 zarzuelas total by the time he died at the age of 67 in Madrid!

9 Activity: Make Your Own Castanets!

What You Need

• Cardboard • Safety scissors • 4 bottle caps • A hammer • Superglue • Glitter, markers, other decorations

What To Do

1. Teachers, being careful to keep your students’ fingers out of your workspace, flatten the bottle caps slightly with a hammer.

2. Draw two wide strips with rounded edges onto the cardboard and allow your child to cut them out using the safety scissors. Fold each in half, so they look like duck bills.

3. Taking over duties, put a dab of glue on the jagged edge (the bottom) of each bottle cap. Glue one to the top and one to the bottom of the inside of each piece of cardboard so the bottle caps meet when you close the cardboard duck bills. Let dry.

4. Encourage your students to decorate the castanets however they like. Let dry.

5. Hand your students the castanets and show them how to press the upper and lower pieces of card - board together so the bottle caps meet and click.

6. Have them position one castanet in each hand and encourage them to create an upbeat rhythm or, if they like, an entire song!

7. Play your castanets to the music of Bear Hug/Abrazo de oso by listening to the excerpts on the Nashville Opera website at: nashvilleopera.org/for-teachers

Fun Fact

Castanets are a favorite instrument of the Spanish culture. The opera by Bizet is one of the most famous and beloved operas ever written. The leading lady (and mezzo soprano) portraying Car - men often has to play castanets, sing, and dance at the same time during the performance!

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