Acknowledgments Recording, Editing and Mixing: Paul Kozel Producer: Paul Kozel Engineer and Producer Paul Kozel is a Professor at the City College of New York and is the founder and director of Sonic Arts Center (http://sonic.arts.ccny.cuny.edu/). In addition, Paul is a professional audio engineer, producer, composer/arranger, and sound designer. Production Assistance Provided by: David Sanford, Sarah Clarke, Peter Susser, Regina Heer Mastering: Scott Hull, Masterdisk THE OF Special Thanks: Michael Leavitt, Robert Yekovich Essence Paul Suits’ music is available at [email protected] WORKS WRITTEN FOR ERIC BARTLETT Hugo Weisgall is published by Theodore Presser Peter Susser’s music is available at [email protected] David Sanford’s work is available at http://oxingalemusic.com Cello Cover Photo: Ken Nahoum Recorded in January 2012, 2013, and 2014 at The City College of New York, Recital Hall Major support for this project provided by the Aaron Copland Fund for Music and the Alice M. Ditson Fund. WWW.ALBANYRECORDS.COM TROY1526 ALBANY RECORDS U.S. 915 BROADWAY, ALBANY, NY 12207 TEL: 518.436.8814 FAX: 518.436.0643 ALBANY RECORDS U.K. BOX 137, KENDAL, CUMBRIA LA8 0XD TEL: 01539 824008 Music by Paul Suits | Hugo Weisgall | Peter Susser | David Sanford © 2014 ALBANY RECORDS MADE IN THE USA DDD WARNING: COPYRIGHT SUBSISTS IN ALL RECORDINGS ISSUED UNDER THIS LABEL. The Composers and Their Music PAUL SUITS Pianist and Composer Paul Suits was born in 1955 in California. He studied piano at New York’s Mannes College of Music with Edward Aldwell, Richard Goode and Murray Perahia and was awarded Bachelor and Master of Music degrees. During his years in New York he performed in Carnegie Hall as pianist in Stravinsky’s Les hat a pleasure it is, and an honor too, to be the catalyst for the creation of Noces and Rossini’s Petite Messe Solenelle, as keyboardist in the Philip Glass new works. I enjoyed working with each of these composers, and I am proud to Ensemble, and together with the Gregg Smith Singers, in a premiere recording Wfinally be bringing their music to a wider audience. Paul Suits and I travelled and of the choral works of Elliott Carter. Parallel to his activities as pianist, Paul Suits performed together extensively as members of the Harvey Pittel Trio. Each night has composed since childhood, and in particular for the human voice, e.g. the we would perform a short solo work, and his Fantasy is modeled along the lines opera Die perfekte Magd, based on a story by Agatha Christie, commissioned by of those pieces. As a member of Speculum Musicae I performed the music of and premiered at the Staatstheater Schwerin (Ivan Törzs, conductor); jüngst und countless fine young composers, but both David Sanford and Peter Susser stood einst, a cycle of orchestral songs commissioned by the Basler Bach-Chor (Joachim out for their unique ability to write music for the cello that is challenging, interesting Krause, conductor). His song cycle From the Spoon River Anthology was sung by and original, yet still gratifying to play. Hugo Weisgall was already an established the mezzo-soprano Anne Sofie von Otter in a BBC recital. Together with Lisandro composer when I met him, and he rarely wrote purely instrumental music. What Abadie, bass, he premiered his song cycle Three Views of War in 2008, and in a privilege it is to have a work from such a distinguished individual, and his music 2010 he appeared at the Menuhin Festival in Gstaad together with the contralto for me offers the best of what serialism is capable of. Each of these composers Susanne Gritschneder with his songs to texts by Joachim Ringelnatz. His cantata has, in his own way, found the essence of cello, and I hope you enjoy these worthy Sieben Wege zu Gott was premiered in 2011 in honor of the 100th anniversary of additions to the cello repertoire. the Heiliggeistkirche in Basle. Paul Suits teaches at the Zürcher Hochschule der — ERIC BARTLETT Künste and at the Hochschule für Musik in Basle, where he lives together with his wife, the stage director Regina Heer. FANTASY FOR VIOLONCELLO AND PIANO conducting and composition. Talented in language and with variegated interests, The Fantasy for Violoncello and Piano originally included the words “Folksong and he received his Ph.D in Germanics from Johns Hopkins University. While he was Dance,” which I decided to omit when I revised the piece in 2011, as the “folksong” an assistant military attaché in London, and then a cultural attaché in postwar is a melody of my own invention...and it would be difficult to invent a proper step to Prague, he conducted concerts by some of Europe’s leading orchestras, in which the “dance.” Nevertheless, the terms may give an impression of what I wished to he promoted American music and featured American works. He also managed to express in the music: a feeling for a bygone world which never existed, and never compose in those difficult surroundings. could exist...but which at certain moments is present in my consciousness. The His opera Six Characters in Search of an Author brought Weisgall national music is quite tonal, and, I suppose, quite American. Having now lived almost half acclaim when it was first performed by the New York City Opera in 1959. The same my life in Europe, I have the feeling, playing it again, of looking back on a bygone life! company commissioned and performed his Nine Rivers from Jordan in 1968, and That life included numerous road trips and concerts in which I had the privilege of later staged his Esther, based on the biblical story. His other operas include Athaliah, collaborating with Eric Bartlett – for whose artistry and friendship I am grateful. The Gardens of Adonis, Jenny/or The Hundred Nights, Will You Marry Me?, The — PAUL SUITS Tenor, and his most frequently performed opera, The Stronger. Weisgall was chairman of the faculty of the Cantors Institute at the Jewish Theological Seminary from 1952-1986 and taught at the Juilliard School. In 1961 he HUGO WEISGALL simultaneously became a Professor of Music at Queens College in New York, retiring While Hugo Weisgall (1912-1997) is probably best remembered as one of America’s in 1983 as Distinguished Professor. He served as President of the American Music most important composers of opera and large-scale song cycles, reflecting his intense Center, as President of the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, and lifelong interest in both western and Judaic literature, his output also includes as Director of the Composer-in-Residence program for the Lyric Opera of Chicago. orchestral, chamber and choral works, and music for ballet. His father was a cantor I was introduced to Hugo Weisgall in 1982 by his manager, Michael Leavitt, and and while Jewishness was the core of his being, it never defined him. The literary I asked him to write a short piece for my Merkin Concert Hall debut recital in 1984. merit of his compositions, their original vocal style, and their serious attention to musical and dramatic detail all mark a significant contribution to American music. ARIOSO AND BURLESCA Born in Czechoslovakia, Weisgall’s family came to the United States in 1921. Like Verdi, the vast majority of Weisgall’s music is vocal, and so this Arioso and He studied at the Peabody Conservatory, and with Roger Sessions. At the Curtis Burlesca stands out as a jewel among his very few purely instrumental works. He Institute he studied with Fritz Reiner and Rosario Scalero and earned diplomas in once said, “I can sing anything I write. If I can’t sing it I don’t write it.” This Arioso, with its searing melodic line and large leaps, is perhaps vocal in its singing nature Competition, Manhattan School of Music (1984). Susser has a long association with while instrumental in its range. The support harmonies, while still typically serial, Columbia University, where he earned his DMA and in 2011 was made Director beautifully illuminate the emotional narrative of the piece.The Burlesca arrived in of Undergraduate Musicianship. He studied composition with Mario Davidovsky my mailbox one week before the debut recital, and so was not premiered on that and George Edwards at Columbia University and Henry Brant and Vivian Fine at occasion but had to wait until the following year. Somewhat more light-hearted in Bennington College. He was invited by Gyorgy Ligeti to attend a master class in nature, it acts as the perfect foil to the dramatic intensity of the Arioso. Hamburg, Germany in 1988. Susser studied cello with Lorne Munroe, Ardyth Alton — ERIC BARTLETT and Michael Finckel. FIVE BALLADS FOR SOLO CELLO PETER SUSSER When I was a kid learning to play the cello, one of the oddly satisfying experiences I recall was playing études. Rarely attaining the technical goal of each, I was none- Composer Peter Susser has been commissioned by a variety of orchestras, theless entertained by the good tunes that seduced me into attempting to improve Ensembles, soloists and organizations including the Unitarian/Universalist Church my technique. Rarely studied for their compositional insight, composers like (Nantucket, MA), the Queen’s Chamber Band, the Chamber Music Conference and Popper, Franchomme, Duport and Greutzmacher taught me much as a composer. Composers Forum of the East, the Sage City and New Amsterdam Symphonies, While focused on a specific mission, many of these pieces also told a good story. and Speculum Musicae. His music has been awarded prizes from the Composition That’s what I wanted to accomplish with these Five Ballads.