Suite for Percussion Concerto for Four Percussion Soloists and Symphonic Wind Ensemble Encounters VI: Concertino for Roto-Toms & Percussion Quartet Encounters IX

Earplay | Mary Chun, conductor New England Conservatory Wind Ensemble | Frank Battisti, conductor New England Conservatory Percussion Ensemble | Frank Epstein, conductor Craig Mc Nutt, Roto Toms Marshall Taylor, saxophone Don Liuzzi, percussion VintageWILLIAM KRAFT

WWW.ALBANYRECORDS.COM and beyond TROY1157 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 © 2010 ALBANY RECORDS MADE IN THE USA DDD WARNING: COPYRIGHT SUBSISTS IN ALL RECORDINGS ISSUED UNDER THIS LABEL. the Contemporary Record Society competition; commissions from the Library of Congress, U.S. Air Force The Composer Band, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Kronos Quartet, Voices of Change, the Schoenberg Institute, consortium William Kraft (b. 1923, Chicago) has had a long and active career as composer, conductor, timpanist/ of Speculum Musicae/San Francisco Contemporary Music Players/ Contemporary Music Forum, The Boston percussionist and teacher. He is Professor Emeritus at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where Pops Orchestra, consortium of Pacific Symphony/Spokane Symphony/Tucson Symphony, the Los Angeles he served for 11 years (1991–2002) as Chairman of the Composition Department and Corwin Professor Philharmonic, among others. His works have been performed by the New York Philharmonic, San Francisco of Music Composition. Mr. Kraft had previously been a member of the Los Angeles Philharmonic for 26 Symphony, Boston Symphony, Chicago and Philadelphia Orchestras, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and years; eight years as percussionist, and 18 as Principal Timpanist. For three seasons, he was also assistant other major American orchestras as well as in Europe, Japan, Korea, China, Australia, Israel, and the U.S.S.R. conductor of the orchestra, and thereafter, frequent guest conductor. In 1981 Ernest Fleischmann, the Mr. Kraft’s Contextures: Riots—Decade ‘60 (1967) has been choreographed and performed by both the executive director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, appointed William Kraft to be Composer-in-Residence, Scottish National Ballet and the Minnesota Dance Company. In 1986, United Air Lines commissioned a which for one year was under the auspices of the Philharmonic and taken over for the next three years work expressly to accompany a lumetric sculpture by Michael Hayden titled Sky’s the Limit for their by the Meet the Composer program. A major part of the program was to serve as founding director of the pedestrian passageway at Chicago-O’Hare International Airport. In November 1990, Mr. Kraft was inducted orchestra’s performing arm for contemporary music, the Philharmonic New Music Group. Also included into the Hall of Fame of the Percussive Arts Society. were commissions for both the orchestra and the New Music Group. Compact Discs completely devoted to Mr. Kraft’s music can be found on Harmonia Mundi, CRI, Mr. Kraft was awarded two Anton Seidl Fellowships at Columbia University, graduating with a Cambria, Albany, Crystal and Nonesuch labels. Other works can be found on GM, Crystal, London Decca bachelor’s degree magna cum laude in 1951, and a master’s degree in composition. His principal instructors and Neuma. were Jack Beeson, Seth Bingham, Henry Brant, Henry Cowell, Erich Hertzmann, Paul Henry Lang, Otto Luening, and Vladimir Ussachevsky. He received his training in percussion from Morris Goldenberg and in timpani from Saul Goodman, and studied conducting with Rudolph Thomas and Fritz Zweig. The Music During his early years in Los Angeles, he organized and directed the Los Angeles Percussion Ensemble, Vintage Renaissance and Beyond (2005) a group which played a vital part in premieres and recordings of works by such renowned composers as “Beyond” in the title refers to going into the past beyond the renaissance into the Middle Ages and also Ginastera, Harrison, Krenek, Stravinsky, and Varese. Kraft served as Stravinsky’s timpanist and percus- moving forward into the 21st century for this setting. sionist in charge of all percussion activities for the composer’s Los Angeles performances and recordings. What has always attracted me to early music was the directness and clarity of expression as opposed As a percussion soloist, he performed in the American premieres of Stockhausen’s Zyklus and Boulez’ to the dramatic and emotionally laden works in the 19th century repertory. Also, the combination of different Le Marteau sans Maitre, in addition to recording Histoire du soldat under Stravinsky’s direction. instruments thus offering a multitude of colors, plus the use of small ensembles, spoke directly to the Mr. Kraft has received numerous awards and commissions, including two Kennedy Center Friedheim 20th century (and beyond!) Pierrot Lunaire of Schoenberg and Histoire du Soldat of Stravinsky. Awards; two Guggenheim Fellowships; two Ford Foundation commissions; fellowships from the Huntington Nothing in the three pieces on which Vintage Renaissance and Beyond is based has been altered. Hartford Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts; the American Academy and Institute of In Danza Alta written by Francesco de la Torre (1483-1504), the piccolo plays the entire tune with Arts and Letters Music Award; the Norlin/MacDowell Fellowship; the Club 100 Distinguished Artist of comments by the viola, and, occasionally, with the other strings. The rest of the ensemble joins in and Los Angeles Award, the ASCAP Award; the NACUSA Award; the Eva Judd O’Meara Award; first place in gradually draws the music into the 21st century where fragments of the tune are exploited. Danza Alta is the only instrumental piece of the 12 or so surviving works by Francesco, the rest My solution was to add two movements that were not pedagogical and title the work Suite for being secular or sacred vocal music. Percussion. As Suite for Percussion, there are five movements: 1.) Fanfare; 2.) Andante; 3.) Ostinato; Hildegard von Bingen’s antiphon O rubor sanguinis is found in the large work 11,000 Virgins, 4.) Toccata and 5.) Cadenza. (1, 3 and 4 begin the original Suite for Weatherkings). As such, the piece chants for the Feast of St. Ursula. I felt it would be a violation to do anything but state the chant as it was premiered on November 6, 1961. was written. Therefore, it is set in a statement-response structure. Phrases of the chant are stated in unison, followed by responses from the ensemble. Concerto for Four Percussion Soloists and Symphonic Wind Ensemble (1995) On the other hand, the Bransle, whose composer is unknown, invites tinkering. It is a rather bawdy The Concerto is transcribed from the original version for orchestra. Wind instruments, including brass, piece that one can readily imagine hearing it played by the shawm, the precursor to the oboe that played a strong part in the orchestral version, so much so that when Erich Leinsdorf performed the work arrived in Europe from the near east in the 12th century. In France, where it originated, it was also with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, he arranged the orchestra seating so that the winds were brought called “branle.” In Italy “brando,” but in England by any of three names: “brawl, brall, brangill.” forward and the strings pushed back. Therefore it was quite natural to do a transcription for wind Bransle is harmonized primarily with the interval of the fifth, characteristic of the period. When ensemble. The Concerto for Four Percussionists and Orchestra was written in 1964 and premiered the tune is completely stated, it is joined by Danza Alta. The two play together and then as if being March 10, 1966 by Zubin Mehta and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. The wind ensemble version was played by two minstrels wandering off into the forest (or wherever), Vintage Renaissance and Beyond recorded and premiered February 20th and 21, 1997 by the New England Conservatory Wind Ensemble comes to a quiet conclusion. conducted by Frank L. Battisti. The structure is the conventional three-movement concerto form, differing in that the first movement Suite for Percussion (1961) is slow and the second fast. The first movement features expressive solos by glockenspiel, vibraphone, The Suite for Percussion was originally commissioned by Remo Belli as a three movement work titled graduated drums and timpani against a light accompaniment in the ensemble. This is a way of saying Suite for Weatherkings, “Weahterkings” being his brand name for plastic drum heads. Mr. Belli realized “percussion can be beautiful.” the potential for the plastic mylar as drumheads, particularly as not being subject to the effects of The second movement rides on a jazz-like ostinato stemming from the way Count Basie’s drummer humidity, a constant problem for percussionists. From what could be considered a cottage industry, Jo Jones would reverse the hi-hat rhythm. The middle section for percussion alone was written first to Weatherking” has mushroomed into an enormous company simply called Remo now making a large guarantee an idiomatic character. Then pitches were set to the rhythms thus creating the first section. variety of percussion instruments distributed throughout the world. The third movement cadenza and variations, opens with a brief dialogue between timpani and tuba, My publisher at that time refused to publish music with a brand name in the title. Thus Suite after which the timpani plays the cadenza, which sets off the 12 variations that follow. The variations are for Weatherkings remained unpublished until Lawrence Morton, director of the well known Monday set in pairs wherein each states the variation and then in the succeeding variation the percussion responds. Evening Concerts, wanted to program my percussion music, of which only one other piece, the Theme and Variations for Percussion Quartet, existed. Encounters VI: Concertino for Roto-toms and Percussion (1976) I resisted. The MEC was renown for programming avant-garde works—often premiers. Morton’s The Concertino explores the musical possibilities of Roto-toms. The sound of these drums is a cross between response was: “Bill, these days anything for percussion is considered avant-garde.” A debatable premise. a tom-tom and timpani, and their pitch is changed by rotating the drum. During the course of the work, the various effects used include pitch and fingernail glissandi; playing on the rims; and playing on the heads with fingers, brushes, timpani sticks, wood mallets or rattan. Harmonics on the octave and the fourth above the fundamental pitch are produced by the drums when weights (in this case, small The Performers pitched cymbals called “crotales”) are placed in the center of the drumheads. In return the drum itself Founded in 1985 by a consortium acts as a resonator for the crotales, which also have a fundamental pitch when played on the center dome. of composers and musicians, The opening section of the Concertino introduces a motive, played by the soloist, while the Earplay is dedicated to the per- ensemble sustains a bowed chord on the vibraphone. Following this cadenza-like introduction, the formance of new chamber music piece gradually moves into a bright 6/8 tempo that is characterized by constant 16th-notes in all offering audiences a unique parts. After a brief period of interaction, the ensemble continues its 16th-note patterns and the soloist opportunity to hear eloquent, plays an improvised solo. Next, an interlude is presented by the ensemble, which leads to a dramatic vivid performances of some of (l to r) Tod Brody, Ellen Ruth Rose, Karen Rosenak, Mary Chun, Thalia Moore, recapitulation by the soloist of the motivic material. A thematically–derived coda concludes the work. today’s finest chamber music. Peter Josheff, Terrie Baune Encounters VI, commissioned by Remo Belli, is dedicated to Jennifer Kraft, the composer’s daughter. Earplay concerts feature the The premiere performance took place in 1976 at the MEMC National Convention in Atlantic City, New Earplayers, a group of seven artists who, as a group, have developed a lyrical and ferocious style. Mary Jersey, and was performed by the Temple University Percussion Ensemble conducted by Glenn Steele. Chun conducts the group of six outstanding Bay Area musicians: Tod Brody, flute and piccolo; Peter Josheff, clarinet and bass clarinet; Terrie Baune, violin; Ellen Ruth Rose, viola; Thalia Moore, cello; and Encounters IX (1982) Michael Orland, piano (guest artist). Encounters IX was commissioned by Baylor University for David Hastings and Larry Vanlandingham. It Earplay has a long and successful track record of selecting, commissioning, and performing new was premiered July 9, 1982 at the international Saxophone Congress in Nuremburg, Germany by Hastings chamber music by regional composers. In its 24-year history, Earplay has performed more than 425 and Vanlandingham. The work is in one continuous movement with a variety of sections within. As with works including 107 world premieres, commissioned 47 new pieces and produced over 100 U.S., the other works in my Encounters series, particularly those involving solo percussion and an instrument, California and/or Bay Area premieres. This record includes composers with international reputations the attempt is made to draw out the relationships as well as the differences between the two soloists. like Pulitzer-Prize winner Wayne Peterson, Andrew Imbrie, William Kraft, and Jonathan Harvey. This means that sometimes the percussion will be melodic and sometimes the saxophone will be percussive. The rest of the time they will be doing their own thing. Encounters IX has undergone a substantial revision for the performance by Don Liuzzi and Marshall Taylor. I thank Marshall for his insights and suggestions. In demand as a fierce advocate of new work, conductor Mary Chun has worked with many composers —William Kraft such as John Adams, Olivier Messiaen, Andrew Imbrie, Wayne Peterson, Libby Larsen and Tan Dun, to name a few, helping shape the new classical repertoire of our time. A frequent collaborator in lyric work, she conducted the European and Canadian premiere performances of John Adams’ hybrid opera Ceiling/Sky in Paris, Hamburg and Montreal in addition to the world premiere performance of Libby Larsen’s opera, Everyman Jack, based on the life of Jack London. Conductor Emeritus of the New England Conservatory Wind Ensemble, Frank Don Liuzzi earned his Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Michigan L. Battisti led this permiere ensemble for 30 years, making recordings for and his Master of Music degree from Temple University. His primary teachers Centaur, Albany Records and Golden Crest. Dr. Battisti is responsible for were Alan Abel, Charles Owen, and John Soroka. commissioning and premiering more than 60 works for wind ensemble by Before joining The Philadelphia Orchestra in 1989, Mr. Liuzzi was a mem- distinguished composers from the United States and around the world. A ber of the Pittsburgh Symphony percussion section from 1982 to 1989. While noted guest conductor and authority on wind music literature, Battisti has in Pittsburgh he taught percussion and conducted the percussion ensemble at served as president of the U.S. College Band Directors National Association, Duquesne University, was assistant conductor of the Three Rivers Young Peoples has guest conducted around the world, and founded the National Wind Orchestra, and appeared on PBS’ nationally syndicated Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood, Ennsemble Conference and the World Association of Symphonic Bands and Ensembles. His many performing marimba and percussion solos. Mr. Liuzzi has been a percussionist with the Network for awards and honors include an Honorary Doctor of Music degree from Ithaca College. New Music and has recorded contemporary chamber works for the CRI, Crystal, and Albany labels. Mr. Liuzzi has given master classes at most major music schools throughout the United States, A native of Amsterdam, Holland, percussionist Frank Epstein came to the and in Canada, Mexico, Spain, Korea, and China. For several seasons he has been a percussion and United States in 1952, settling in Hollywood, California, and joining the Boston timpani coach at the National Orchestral Institute, the New World Symphony, the Pacific Music Festival, Symphony Orchestra in 1968. Epstein has made recordings with the Los and the Canton International Summer Music Academy. He joined the faculty of the Curtis Institute of Angeles Philharmonic, the BSO, and the Boston Pops, as well as with Collage Music in January 1994 and Rowan University in 2000. New Music. As founder of Collage, and music director from its inception in 1972 through 1991, Epstein has overseen the commissioning and performance of more Percussionist Craig McNutt serves as Principal Timpanist of the Rhode Island than 200 new works written especially for the ensemble as well as the produc- Philharmonic Orchestra, the Boston Modern Orchestra Project, and Emmanuel tion of 17 recordings. A faculty member of the New England Conservatory where he conducts the New Music. He performs extensively throughout New England with the Boston England Conservatory Percussion Ensemble and Tanglewood Music Center, Mr Epstein has recorded for Symphony Orchestra, Boston Pops and Pops Esplanade Orchestras, the Boston RCA, Columbia, Deutsche Grammophon, Polydor, London, Nonesuch and many other record labels. Ballet, Boston Lyric Opera, Boston Landmarks Orchestra, Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra, and the Cantata Singers and Ensemble, as well as the period instrument ensembles Boston Baroque and the Handel and Haydn Society. An advocate of contemporary music, Mr. McNutt also performs with Collage New Music, Dinosaur Annex, and ALEA III, all ensembles dedicated to the performance of new music. Mr. McNutt holds degrees from the Hartt School of Music where he studied with Alexander Lepak, and Yale University, where he was a student of Gordon Gottlieb. Marshall Taylor plays in recital, chamber music, ballet, orchestral, new music and modern dance settings. He has played in Eastern and Acknowledgments Western Europe and Japan as well as the United States, and has recorded Vintage Renaissance and Beyond Concerto for Four Percussion Soloists and as both saxophonist and conductor for Abany Records, Arizona University was commissioned by The Serge Koussevitzky Symphonic Wind Ensemble Recordings, CRI, Experimental Intermedia Foundation, Hat Art, Innova, Music Foundation in the Library of Congress was recorded on February 20, 1997, Koch International Classics, Mode, Naxos, Opus One and Zoar. He studied Foundation and Earplay. It premiered May 23, Jordan Hall, Boston; at Wheaton College, Northwestern University and the Paris Conservatoire, the latter under a Fulbright 2005 at Herbst Theatre. Engineering: Joel Gordon and Lisa Nigris grant, and his teachers and coaches include Marcel Mule, Frederick Hemke, Henry Schuman, Marcel Vintage Renaissance and Beyond Moyse and Ifor Jones. He plays with Network for New Music, Orchestra 2001 and other Philadelphia was recorded October 23, 2008 Encounters VI: Concertino for Roto-toms and groups and has performed in New York with the League/ISCM players, Parnassus and the Group for at Bay Records, Berkeley, CA; Percussion Quartet Contemporary Music. He has worked closely with such composers as Milton Babbitt, Luciano Berio, Producer/Editor: Mary Chun; was recorded at New England Conservatory Lukas Foss, David Glaser, Matthew Greenbaum, Karel Husa, William Kraft, Gerald Levinson, Ursula Recording Engineer: Mark Willsher; on February 19, 1997; Mamlok, Pauline Oliveros, Raoul Pleskow, James Primosch, Shulamit Ran, Terry Riley and Maurice Assistant Recording Engineer: Jason Araujo; Producer: William Kraft Wright, playing and recording their compositions, some of which were written for him. He teaches Score reader: Christopher Wendell Jones; Engineer: Lisa Nigris saxophone at Temple University’s Esther Boyer College of Music and Philadelphia Biblical University. Mixed at U.C., Santa Barbara Recording Studio; With Dr. Marion Kant and Dr. Samuel Hsu, he presents concerts of “Entartete Musik” (“Degenerate Editing and mixing: Kevin Kelly Encounters IX Music”)—the music of composers banned, displaced or murdered by the Nazi regime. was recorded at Temple University Suite for Percussion on January 30, 2000; was recorded at New England Conservatory on Engineer: George Blood February 19, 1997; Mastering: Matthew Snyder/MSR Recording Producer: William Kraft Engineer: Lisa Nigris The recording of Vintage Renaissance and Beyond was funded in part through a grant from the Aaron Copland Fund for Music, Inc. The remaining works were recorded with support from the Dorothy Corwin Foundation.

V 7 WILLIAM KRAFT I 5 N 1 T 1

Y intage A

O V G R T E and beyond R E N

Concerto for Four Percussion Soloists A

Vintage Renaissance and Beyond I S

1 Danza Alta and Symphonic Wind Ensemble S (Francesco de la Torre 1483-1504) [5:39] 9 Recitativo Quasi Senza Musura [5:42] A N

2 O Rubor Sanguinis 10 Allegro con brio[4:57] C (Hildegard von Bingen 1098-1179) [4:04] 11 Cadenza e Variozini [12:14] E a

3 Bransle New England Conservatory Wind Ensemble n d

(Anonymous) [3:57] Frank Battisti, conductor b e y

Earplay | Mary Chun, conductor Matthew Manturuk | Eric Milstein o n

Tod Brody, flutes | Peter Josheff, clarinets John Tanzer | Scott Vincent, percussion d Terrie Baune, violin | Ellen Ruth Rose, viola Thalia Moore, cello 12 Encounters VI: Concertino for Roto Toms Michael Seth Orland, piano/celeste and Percussion Quartet [9:12] Craig McNutt, roto toms d

n Suite for Percussion Rhett Del Campo | Matthew Manturuk o y 4 Fanfare [1:20] Jeff Ridgeway | Joel Stucki, percussion e b 5 Andante [2:00] d n 6 Ostinato [1:00] 13 [9:43] a Encounters IX 7 Toccata [1:54] E Marshall Taylor, alto saxophone

C 8 Cadenza [4:18] Don Liuzzi, percussion N

A Ted Adkatz | John Tanzer S

S Scott Vincent | Hans Morrison | percussion Total Time = 67:28 I

A Frank Epstein, conductor N E

R WWW.ALBANYRECORDS.COM TROY1157 ALBANY RECORDS U.S. E 915 BROADWAY, ALBANY, NY 12207 T R G

TEL: 518.436.8814 FAX: 518.436.0643 O A ALBANY RECORDS U.K. #34061-BBFHCe Y 1 T BOX 137, KENDAL, CUMBRIA LA8 0XD 1 N TEL: 01539 824008 5 I © 2010 ALBANY RECORDS MADE IN THE USA 7

V DDD WARNING: COPYRIGHT SUBSISTS IN ALL RECORDINGS ISSUED UNDER THIS LABEL.