Faculty Recital
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dash of Hungarian paprika to add flavor. Heavy brooding themes are relieved by playful, dancing melodies, with everything from military marches and drunken Viennese waltz fragments thrown into the mix. The heroic, tritone-based theme first heard in the horn in DEPARTMENT OF the first movement returns in the later movements to unite the whole into some coher- ence, but throughout his musical journeys, Dohnányi remains powerful and delightful, even bordering on orchestral in some of his textures. Few composers have dared to imitate his instrumentation – Penderecki being the most notable example, in 2000 – and for good reason, as Dohnányi has createdin his sextet a uniquely enjoyable piece of chamber music on a grand scale. MUSIC COMING EVENTS Please visit music.evansville.edu for upcoming concerts. Notice: The University of Evansville reserves the right to take photos or video in public spaces for promotional use in print and electronic media. 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FACULTY RECITAL Be a Friend Support the University of Evansville’s Department of Music by Dennis Brain 100 becoming a member of the Friends of UE Music or contributing to the endowment for assistantships for music students. n Assistantship Endowment $___________ n Sponsor – $100 - $249 n President’s Club – $1,000 or more n Donor – $75 - $99 n Benefactor – $500 - $999 n Friend, General Public – $50 - 74 n Patron – $250 - $499 n Friend, Senior Adult – $25 Name _______________________________________________________________________ Tuesday, April 13, 2021 Address _____________________________________________________________________ 7:30 pm City _________________________ State___________ Zip code ______________________ Neu Chapel n Check (payable to University of Evansville) for $ __________________ enclosed Please charge $ ___________________ to my n Visa n MasterCard n Discover Name on card _______________________________________________________________ Card number ________________________________________________________________ Expiration date Security code Signature ____________________________________________________________________ Please complete and mail to: Friends of UE Music, Department of Music, University of Evansville, 1800 Lincoln Avenue, Evansville, Indiana 47722 You can also make your gift online at evansville.edu/give. an orchestral musician and as a soloist. It was his virtuosity and musicality which brought much-neglected repertoire to popularity, including the four concerti by Mozart FACULTY RECITAL and the two concerti of Richard Strauss. At the height of his career, at the age of 36, Brain was killed in a car accident while driving home from a concert. Although his life was brief and his death tragic, he left behind a remarkable recorded legacy, much of which is PROGRAM still considered the gold standard in horn-playing, along with an impressive list of pieces written for him by some of the best composers of his day. Trio for Horn, Violin, and Piano, Op. 44 ............................................ Lennox Berkeley The first piece on our program is the Trio, Op. 44 for Horn, Violin, and Piano by Sir Lennox I. Allegro (1903-1989) Berkeley, an English composer with close personal and professional ties to France. This II. Lento is evident in his music, which has a strong, almost neoclassical sense of tonality and melody. III. Tema con variazioni Berkeley’s output is diverse, covering every genre from operas to small chamber works. Emily Britton, horn Toward the end of his life, he broadened his technique to include serialism and atonality, Jia-Rong Gan, violin but his most significant output dates from earlier in his career in the 1940s and 1950s, Garnet Ungar, piano including tonight’s featured work. The horn trio of 1953 is the same instrumentation as the more famous Brahms Horn Trio, Sextet in C Major, Op. 37 .......................................................................... Ernő Dohnányi which we performed in February 2019. Many composers have been inspired by that piece I. Allegro appassionato (1877-1960) to write for the same instrumentation, and the Berkeley is no exception; pianist Colin Horsley II. Intermezzo: Adagio - Alla marcia - Tempo I commissioned the work for Brain after having performed the Brahms with him. Their record- III. Allegro con sentimento ing is still considered the standard. The piece is in three movements, although the last IV. Allegro vivace, giocoso movement is a set of ten variations on a theme and seems to contain many smaller move- ments within itself. The first movement is in the typical sonata-allegro form, the first theme Thomas Josenhans, clarinet consisting of ascending fourths announced by the horn at the very opening of the move- Emily Britton, horn ment. The second movement is mournful and austere, recalling a funeral cortege, but not Jia-Rong Gan, violin without moments of sweetness and reflection. Lastly, the third movement start with a Mark Hatlestad, viola simply stated theme, which is varied in differing instrumentations, tempos, and modes, Graham Cullen, cello often alluding to the style of various contemporaries of Berkeley, including Hindemith Garnet Ungar, piano and Britten. For the second half of the program, the original trio is joined by clarinet, viola, and cello in the Sextet, Op. 37, by Ernst von Dohnányi. Born under the double eagle of the Austro- PROGRAM NOTES Hungarian empire, Dohnanyi was steeped in both Hungarian folk music and the influ- ences of Brahms and other German Romantics. He is said to have saved the lives of This year marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of the great horn virtuoso, Dennis Brain. over a hundred musicians of Jewish descent during World War II while serving as the Although his life was far too brief, he left an indelible mark on the world of classical music director of the Budapest Academy of Music. Political accusations from both the right through his recordings and the repertoire he inspired, both during his lifetime and after. and the left in his native Hungary caused him to leave the country for the United States, This recital is a tribute to him, featuring a work written specifically for him and a work where he taught at Florida State University until his death. While he is considered to that he performed live for BBC Radio in 1950. have only a minor place in Hungarian music, his influence in the development of that Dennis Brain was born into a horn-playing family in London; his grandfather, uncle, and country’s musical culture is unmistakable, and the expressive quality of his chamber father all held prominent positions as horn players in both England and the United States. music has been described as second only to that of Brahms. In addition, his mother was a composer, and his brother was an oboist who often joined Dohnányi’s Romantic expression is especially evident in the sextet we are performing him in chamber music ensembles. Dennis was not allowed to study horn until his teenage tonight. Unlike many of his contemporaries, Dohnányi was extremely conservative and years and was instead trained on piano and organ. By the age of 21, however, he had continued to compose in the Romantic style while many others were experimenting become accomplished enough on the horn to be named principal horn of the National with atonality and serialism. Much of the Sextet is reminiscent of Brahms but with a Symphony Orchestra, a testament to his artistry and mastery of the instrument. In only a few more short years, he became the most sought-after horn player in Britain, both as Program notes continued on back of program..