CAL PERFORMANCES PRESENTS PROGRAM

Sunday, April 3, 2011, 3pm Hertz Hall Jessica Rivera, soprano Molly Morkoski, piano Ensemble Meme Donato Cabrera, conductor Barry Crawford flute Carol McGonnell clarinet Austin Hartman violin Liuh-wen Ting viola Thom Wedge Thom Caroline Stinson Jessica Rivera Molly Morkoski piano Alex Lipowski percussion (b. 1967) Ātash Sorushān (“Fire Angels”) (2010) PROGRAM Libretto by Niloufar Talebi (West Coast premiere)

Robert Schumann (1810–1856) Frauenliebe und -leben, Op. 42 (1840) Invocation Voyage Seit ich ihn gesehen Transformation Er, der Herrlichste von Allen Restoration Ich kann’s nicht fassen, nicht glauben Du Ring an meinem Finger Commissioned by Cal Performances and Carnegie Hall through Meet the Composer’s Helft mir, ihr Schwestern Commissioning Music/USA program, which is made possible by generous support from the Süsser Freund, du blickest Mary Flagler Cary Charitable Trust, Ford Foundation, Francis Goelet Charitable Lead Trusts, An meinem Herzen, an meiner Brust New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York State Council on the Arts, Nun hast du mir den ersten Schmerz gethan William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Helen F. Whitaker Fund.

Claude Debussy (1862–1918) Ariettes oubliées (1885–1888; rev. 1903)

C’est l’extase Il pleure dans mon cœur Funded by the Koret Foundation, this performance is part of Cal Performances’ L’ombre des arbres 2010–2011 Koret Recital Series, which brings world-class artists to our community. Paysages belges: Chevaux de bois Aquarelles: Green Cal Performances’ 2010–2011 season is sponsored by Wells Fargo. Aquarelles: Spleen

INTERMISSION

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Robert Schumann (1810–1856) of these, however, omitting the comforting vers- and sensuality, and woke echoes in this symbol- in English. Green is an expression of young love Frauenliebe und -leben (“Woman’s Love and es of the final poem, so his cycle ends with the ist musician.” Debussy’s earliest Verlaine song that progresses from ardor to repose. Spleen in Life”), Op. 42 sorrow over the beloved’s sudden death, made (1882) was Clair de lune (“Moonlight”), which English means “ill-tempered” but in French deeply poignant by the reprise of the opening he set again a decade later. (The poem also pro- “melancholy,” and the cycle’s closing song sug- Composed in 1840. song, the music of new love, as a piano postlude. vided the milieu for the famous, but musically gests the despair of an abandoned lover and the unrelated, Clair de lune that serves as the third longing for the beloved even among the splen- September 12, 1840—the day he married Clara movement of his Suite bergamasque for piano.) dors of nature. Wieck—was a watershed in Robert Schumann’s Claude Debussy (1862–1918) During the next quarter-century, Debussy set creative life. For years he and Clara had struggled Ariettes oubliées (“Forgotten Ariettes”) eighteen more poems of Verlaine, including the to bring about their marriage against the will of Ariettes oubliées (1888), two sets of Fêtes galantes Mark Grey (b. 1967) her father, even taking him to court, before they Composed in 1885–1888; revised in 1903. (1891, 1904), Trois mélodies (1891) and several Ātash Sorushān (“Fire Angels”) for soprano, could be united. The joy of their victory and the independent pieces. piano, flute/piccolo, clarinet/bass clarinet, anticipation of their long-delayed life together English musicologist Edward Lockspeiser’s Debussy composed the six songs comprising violin, viola, cello and percussion inspired Schumann to explore whole new worlds statement that “poetry fertilizes the art of Ariettes oubliées (“Forgotten Ariettes”) between Libretto by Niloufar Talebi of expression. For the decade before 1839, he had Debussy” is borne out by the dozens of songs 1885, when he was (grudgingly) fulfilling the limited himself entirely to works for solo piano, that the composer created throughout his ca- terms of winning the Prix de Rome at the Villa Composed in 2010. Premiered on March 29, 2011, though both he and Clara pined for grander reer. French artists at the dawn of the 20th Medici, near the city’s famed Spanish Steps, and in Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, New York, by things. “Sometimes I would like to smash my pi- century were seeking to escape the hyperven- 1888, by which time he had returned (early) to soprano Jessica Rivera, pianist Molly Morkoski and ano, it has become too narrow for my thoughts,” tilated expression of Romanticism, specifically Paris. These songs, among the first expressions Ensemble Meme. Robert wrote on April 14 to Heinrich Dorn, his the pervasive influence of Germanic Wagnerian of Debussy’s distinctive creative voice, were composition teacher. His first important move Romanticism, to forge a new art informed by published separately under their individual titles Mark Grey, born in Evanston, Illinois, on New away from the confines of the keyboard came intimation and suggestion, by gossamer image in 1888 and revised and reissued as the Ariettes Year’s Day 1967, earned bachelor’s and master’s during the year of his marriage, when he com- and evocative word. Debussy was profoundly af- oubliées in 1903. The texts are from Verlaine’s degrees in composition and electro-acoustic posed nearly 150 songs. In July, just after he had fected by these quietly revolutionary French ar- Romances sans paroles (“Romances Without music at San José State University, where his learned that Papa Wieck could no longer legally tistic upheavals, and he immersed himself in the Words”), written while he was in London with teachers included electro-acoustic music pioneer keep him and Clara apart, Robert zealously took painting and poetry of his near-contemporaries. Rimbaud in 1872–1873; they were published in Allen Strange and composer Pablo Furman. up the intimate domestic poetry of the German He sought to embody the spirit of his nation in 1874, when Verlaine was in prison for attack- Grey’s parallel careers in composition and sound Romanticist Adalbert von Chamisso (1781– his music—he chose as his personal title mu- ing his companion. The words and aura of C’est design began to develop when he was publish- 1838), setting eight of his verses as Frauenliebe sicien français—and found continual inspiration l’extase (“This Is Ecstasy”), the first of the three ing technical materials and writing a monthly und -leben, two more (Die Kartenlegerin and Die for his work in the painting of the Impressionists poems taken from the portion of Romances sans column as an editorial intern at Keyboard maga- rote Hanne) in his Drei Gesänge, Op. 31, and five and the verses of the Symbolists. All of his songs paroles that Verlaine titled Ariettes oubliées, are zine from 1990 to 1996. His sound designs have of his adaptations of Hans Christian Andersen as use French texts by French authors. perfectly embodied in the song’s voluptuous since been seen and heard in major concert halls, the Fünf Lieder, Op. 40. Frauenliebe und -leben Nearly one-third of Debussy’s songs are set- mood and sylvan harmonic palette. Il pleure dans theaters and opera houses around the world. He and the contemporaneous song cycles Myrthen, tings of poems by Paul Verlaine. Verlaine (1844– mon cœur (“There Is Weeping in My Heart”), was artistic collaborator, sound designer and Dichterliebe and the Op. 39 Liederkreis were 1896) led a rough life—his tempestuous liaison one of Debussy’s rippling “water pieces,” soundscape engineer for ’s criti- Schumann’s wedding presents for Clara. “Few with the poet Arthur Rimbaud ended when equates the gentle rain over a city with sorrow cally acclaimed On the Transmigration of Souls, women in all history,” observed the composer’s Verlaine shot and wounded his companion; experienced “without reason.” The “drowned composed for the opening concert of the New biographer Robert Haven Schauffler, “have re- after two years in jail, Verlaine descended into hopes” of a grieving traveler are reflected in York Philharmonic’s 2002–2003 season in ceived such gifts from their lovers.” drunkenness and debauchery—but his writ- the “pale landscape” described in L’ombre des commemoration of those who died in the trag- Chamisso’s original Frauenliebe und -leben ings possess a rare evocative quality, a “versified arbres (“The Shadow of the Trees”). The exu- edy of September 11, 2001, which received the consisted of a cycle of nine poems encapsulat- music” that provided the perfect verbal core for berant Chevaux de bois (“Wooden Horses”) is 2004 Pulitzer Prize in Music as well as three ing a woman’s courtship and married life: awak- Debussy’s tonal wrapping. “[In Verlaine’s po- one of the half-dozen poems in Romances sans Grammy Awards; Grey was the first sound de- ening love, admiration of her lover, proposal, etry] is no hard realism, no exulting, no roman- paroles with which Verlaine evoked Paysages signer to work with the Philharmonic. He has engagement, wedding, pregnancy, maternity, ticism,” wrote James Husst Hall in his histori- belges (“Belgian Landscapes”), this one set in also done sound designs for the Kronos Quartet, bereavement and consolation in children and cal survey of the art song. “Fluid in substance Brussels. The Ariettes oubliées closes with two Philip Glass, Steve Reich, Terry Riley, Lyric grandchildren. Schumann set only the first eight and form, his verses moved between mysticism Aquarelles (“Watercolors”), which the poet titled Opera of Chicago and ; his

6 CAL PERFORMANCES CAL PERFORMANCES 7 PROGRAM NOTES PROGRAM NOTES collaboration on John Adams’s Dr. Atomic at the Poetry by Iranians Around the World and found- philosophical concepts with human character- Met in October 2008 was the first sound design ing director of the Translation Project. Among istics. In the Zoroastrian (ancient Iranian reli- employed by that company. Talebi’s other works are Midnight Approaches gion) tradition, angels watch over things, such as Grey was Composer-in-Residence with the (a DVD of poetry videos) and the theater piec- days of the week, months, truth, etc. The arch- Phoenix Symphony during the 2007–2008 sea- es Four Springs, ICARUS/RISE and The Persian angel Sorush is a messenger angel, like Gabriel, son, premiering a ten-minute work titled The Rite of Spring. Her distinctions include awards who presides over the beginning and end of the Summons in September 2007 and the full-length from the International Center for Writing and world. Sorush fights against demons that threat- Enemy Slayer: A Navajo Oratorio, based on a Translation, American Literary Translators en to extinguish the world’s fire/passion/truth. Navajo creation myth, the following February; Association Fellowship, PEN/New York State Sorushān is the plural form of the proper name Enemy Slayer was recorded by Naxos. He has Council on the Arts and the Willis Barnstone Sorush. Ātash is the Persian word for fire, an el- also written works for the Kronos Quartet Translation Prize. ement essential to the destruction and renova- (Bertoia I and II [2003], toured throughout tion of Mana and Ahsha, and all they represent. Europe, Australia and America), violinist * * * The title, Ātash Sorushān (‘Fire Angels’), refers Leila Josefowicz (San Andreas Suite [2004] and to the role both Mana and Ahsha played out, the violin concerto Elevation, premiered in Niloufar Talebi has provided the following in- angels with a message of purification and peace, 2006 at the Colorado Music Festival), former formation about Ātash Sorushān: ending a world and beginning a new one. Mana Kronos Quartet cellist Joan Jeanrenaud (Sands “The Vision: Ātash Sorushān (‘Fire Angels’), and Ahsha begin under the assumption of differ- of Time [2002] and Blood Red [2001]), violinist co-commissioned by Carnegie Hall, Cal ence, and, through the power of transformation, Piotr Szewczyk (Left for the Dogs [2007]), Paul Performances and Meet the Composer, connects end by realizing their sameness. By humanizing Dresher Ensemble (Kemi [2003]), Los Angeles evocative new music and a story that builds them, each with his and her own equally mag- Philharmonic’s Minimalist Jukebox Festival (The bridges to greater understanding and invite re- nificent strengths and weaknesses, we explore Sleepless Dream [2006]), Atlanta Symphony (the flection on the decade following September 11, the grey areas of history in the reflection of our fanfare Ahsha [2011]) and Los Angeles Master 2001—an event that ultimately inspired the cre- past decade.” Chorale (Mugunghwa: Rose of Sharon [2011]), as ation of this work. well as music for ’s production of “The Story:Ātash Sorushān is a story about Othello at Vienna’s Wiener Festwochen (2009). love and connection. It tells the tale of two larger- © 2011 Dr. Richard E. Rodda than-life beings, Mana and Ahsha, who dwell * * * in separate realms, both convinced of their su- preme power. One day, in an all-out collision, Ātash Sorushān (“Fire Angels”) was commis- as their outward and mighty façades crumble, sioned by Cal Performances and Carnegie Hall a transcendent final movement begins, reveal- through Meet the Composer’s Commissioning ing the truth: in our moments of vulnerability, Music/USA program, which is made possible by we are one. Fire Angels summons the questions: generous support from the Mary Flagler Cary How can we better understand relationships Charitable Trust, Ford Foundation, Francis with our fellow human beings? How can a dev- Goelet Charitable Lead Trusts, New York City astating event between two dominant forces be- Department of Cultural Affairs, New York State come a ground zero for love? Council on the Arts, William and Flora Hewlett “The History:Ātash Sorushān draws upon Foundation, and Helen F. Whitaker Fund. various cultural elements, weaving ancient tradi- The libretto forĀtash Sorushān is by writer, tions of the East into modern and universal con- award-winning translator and theater artist cerns of the present day. Mana is the Oceanic Niloufar Talebi, who was born in London to and Persian term for the divine life force that Iranian parents. Talebi, who received her B.A. embodies everything; Ahsha is an Avestan term in Comparative Literature from UC Irvine and for truth/existence. While Mana and Ahsha her M.F.A. from Bennington College, is editor are not personified in their traditions, I re- and translator of the anthology Belonging: New imagined them as characters by marrying their

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Robert Schumann (1810–1856) 3. 3. Frauenliebe und -leben, Op. 42 Ich kann’s nicht fassen, nicht glauben, I cannot grasp it, believe it, 1. 1. Es hat ein Traum mich berückt; I am in the spell of a dream; Wie hätt’ er doch unter allen how, amongst all, has he Seit ich ihn gesehen, Since seeing him, Mich Arme erhöht und beglückt? raised and favored poor me? Glaub ich blind zu sein; I think I am blind; Wo ich hin nur blicke, wherever I look, Mir war’s, er habe gesprochen: He said, I thought, Seh’ ich ihn allein; him only I see; »Ich bin auf ewig Dein,« “I am forever yours,” Wie im wachen Traume as in a waking dream Mir war’s, ich träume noch immer, I was, I thought, still dreaming, Schwebt sein Bild mir vor, he floats before me, Es kann ja nimmer so sein. for it can never be so. Taucht aus tiefstem Dunkel rising out of darkest depths Heller nur empor. only more brightly. O lass im Traume mich sterben, O let me, dreaming, die, Gewieget an seiner Brust, cradled on his breast; Sonst ist licht- und farblos For the rest, dark and pale Den seligen Tod mich schlürfen blissful death let me savor, Alles um mich her, is all around, In Tränen unendlicher Lust. in tears of endless joy. Nach der Schwestern Spiele for my sisters’ games Nicht begehr, ich mehr, I am no longer eager, 4. 4. Möchte lieber weinen I would weep Still im Kämmerlein; quietly in my room; Du Ring an meinem Finger, Ring on my finger, Seit ich ihm gesehen, since seeing him, Mein goldenes Ringelein, my little golden ring, Glaub ich blind zu sein. I think I am blind. Ich drücke dich fromm an die Lippen, devoutly I press you to my lips, An das Herze mein. to my heart. 2. 2. Ich hatt’ ihn ausgeträumet, I had finished dreaming Er, der Herrlichste von allen, He is the most wonderful of all, Der Kindheit friedlich schönen Traum, childhood’s tranquil pleasant dream, Wie so milde, wie so gut. so gentle, so good. Ich fand allein mich, verloren alone I found myself, forlorn Holde Lippen, klares Auge, Sweet lips, bright eyes, Im öden unendlichen Raum. in boundless desolation. Heller Sinn und fester Mut. clear mind and firm resolve. Du Ring an meinem Finger, Ring on my finger, So wie dort in blauer Tiefe As there in the blue depths Da hast du mich erst belehrt, you have first taught me, Hell und herrlich jener Stern, that star, clear and wonderful, Hast meinem Blick erschlossen unlocked my eyes Also er an meinem Himmel so he is in my heaven, Des Lebens unendlichen, tiefen Wert. to life’s deep, boundless worth. Hell und herrlich, hehr und fern. clear and wonderful, majestic, remote. Ich will ihm dienen, ihm leben, I will serve him, live for him, Wandle, wandle deine Bahnen; Wander, wander your ways; Ihm angehören ganz, belong wholly to him, Nur betrachten deinen Schein, just to watch your radiance, Hin selber mich geben und finden yield to him and find Nur in Demut ihn betrachten, just to watch it in humility, Verklärt mich in seinem Glanz. myself transfigured in his light. Selig nur und traurig sein. just to be blissful and sad! 5. 5. Höre nicht mein stilles Beten, Hear not my silent prayer Deinem Glücke nur geweiht; for your happiness alone; Helft mir, ihr Schwestern, Help me, sisters, Darfst mich niedre Magd nicht kennen, me, lowly maid, you must not know, Freundlich mich schmücken, in kindness to adorn myself, Hoher Stern der Herrlichkeit. lofty, wonderful star. Dient der Glücklichen heute, mir, serve me, the happy one, today, Windet geschäftig eagerly twine Nur die Würdigste von allen Only the most worthy woman of all Mir um die Stirne about my brow Darf beglücken deine Wahl may your choice favor Noch der blühenden Myrte Zier. the flowering myrtle. Und ich will die Hohe segnen and that exalted one will I bless Viele tausend Mal. many thousands of times. Als ich befriedigt, When I, content, Freudigen Herzens, with joyous heart, Will mich freuen dann und weinen, Then shall I rejoice and weep, Sonst dem Geliebten im Arme lag, lay in my beloved’s arms, Selig, selig bin ich dann, be blissful, blissful then; Immer noch rief er, still would he call Sollte mir das Herz auch brechen, even if my heart should break, Sehnsucht im Herzen, with yearning heart, Brich, o Herz, was liegt daran? then break, O heart, what matter? Ungeduldig den heutigen Tag. impatiently for today.

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Helft mir, ihr Schwestern, Help me, sisters, Kommen wird der Morgen, The morning will come Helft mir verscheuchen help banish Wo der Traum erwacht; when that dream will awake, Eine törichte Bangigkeit; foolish fear; Und daraus dein Bildnis and your image Dass ich mit klarem so that I, clear-eyed, Mir entgegen lacht. laugh up at me. Aug ihn empfange, may receive him, Ihn, die Quelle der Freudigkeit. the source of joy. 7. 7.

Bist, mein Geliebter, You, my beloved, An meinem Herzen, an meiner Brust, At my heart, at my breast, Du mir erschienen, have appeared before me, Du meine Wonne, du meine Lust. you my delight, you my joy! Gibst du mir, Sonne, deinen Schein? will you, sun, give me your radiance? Das Glück ist die Liebe, Happiness is love, Lass mich in Andacht, Let me in reverence, Die Lieb ist das Glück, love is happiness, Lass mich in Demut, let me in humility, Ich hab’s gesagt und nehm’s nicht zurück. I have said and will not take back. Lass mich verneigen dem Herren mein. let me bow to my lord. Hab, überschwenglich mich geschätzt, I thought myself rapturous, Bin überglücklich aber jetzt. but now I am delirious with joy. Streuet ihm, Schwestern, Sisters, Nur die da säugt, nur die da liebt Only she who suckles, only she who loves Streuet ihm Blumen, strew flowers for him, Das Kind, dem sie die Nahrung gibt; the child she nourishes; Bringt ihm knospende Rosen dar. offer budding roses. Nur eine Mutter weiss allein, only a mother knows Aber euch, Schwestern, But you, sisters, Was lieben heisst und glücklich sein. what it means to love and be happy. Grüss, ich mit Wehmut, I salute sadly, O wie bedaur’ ich doch den Mann, Oh, how I pity the man Freudig scheidend aus eurer Schar. departing, joyous, from your throng. Der Mutterglück nicht fühlen kann. who cannot feel a mother’s bliss. Du lieber, lieber Engel du, You dear, dear angel, 6. 6. Du schaust mich an und lächelst dazu. you look at me and smile. An meinem Herzen, an meiner Brust, At my heart, at my breast, Süsser Freund, du blickest Sweet friend, you look Du meine Wonne, du meine Lust. you my delight, you my joy! Mich verwundert an, at me in wonder, Kannst es nicht begreifen, cannot understand 8. 8. Wie ich weinen kann; how I weep; Lass der feuchten Perlen these moist pearls let, Nun hast du mir den ersten Schmerz getan, Now you have caused me my first pain, Ungewohnte Zier as a strange adornment, Der aber traf, but it has struck me hard. Freudig hell erzittern tremble joyous bright Du schläfst, du harter, unbarmherz’ger Mann, You, harsh, pitiless man are sleeping In dem Auge mir. in my eyes. Den Todesschlaf. the sleep of death.

Wie so bang mein Busen, How anxious my heart, Es blicket die Verlass’ne vor sich hin, The deserted one stares ahead, Wie so wonnevoll! how full of bliss! Die Welt ist leer. the world is void. Wüsst, ich nur mit Worten, If only I knew words Geliebet hab, ich und gelebt, Loved have I and lived, Wie ich’s sagen soll; to say it; Ich bin nicht lebend mehr. I am living no longer. Komm und birg dein Antlitz come, hide your face, Hier an meiner Brust, here, against my breast, Ich zieh, mich in mein Inn’res still zurück, Quietly I withdraw into myself Will ins Ohr dir flüstern for me to whisper you Der Schleier fällt; the veil falls; Alle meine Lust. my full joy. Da hab, ich dich und mein verlor’nes Glück, there I have you and my lost happiness, Du meine Welt. my world. Weisst du nun die Tränen, Now you know the tears Die ich weinen kann, that I can weep, Sollst du nicht sie sehen, are you not to see them, Claude Debussy(1862–1918) Du geliebter Mann? beloved man? Ariettes oubliées Forgotten Ariettes Bleib, an meinem Herzen, Stay against my heart, Fühle dessen Schlag, feel its beat, C’est l’extase This Is Ecstasy Dass ich fest und fester So that I may press you Nur dich drücken mag. even closer. C’est l’extase langoureuse, This is languorous ecstasy, Hier an meinem Bette Here by my bed C’est la fatigue amoureuse, This is love’s weariness, Hat die Wiege Raum, is the cradle’s place, C’est tous les frissons des bois It is all that quivers in the woods Wo sie still verberge where, silent, it shall hide Parmi l’étreinte des brises, Amid the embrace of the breezes, Meinen holden Traum. my sweet dream. C’est vers les ramures grises It is, through the grey foliage, Le chœur des petites voix. The chorus of little voices.

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O le frêle et frais murmure! Oh, that frail, fresh murmur! Paysages belges: Chevaux de bois Belgian Landscapes: Wooden Horses Cela gazouille et susurre, That chirping and whispering Cela ressemble au cri doux Resembles the gentle cry Tournez, tournez, bons chevaux de bois, Turn, keep turning, good wooden horses, Que l’herbe agitée expire… Uttered by rustling grass… Tournez cent tours, tounez mille tours. Turn a hundred times, turn a thousand times. Tu dirais, sous l’eau qui vire, It might be the muffled sound of rolling pebbles Tournez souvent et tournez toujours, Turn often, turn again and again, Le roulis sourd des cailloux. In an eddying stream. Tournez, tournez au son des hautbois. Turn, turn to the sound of oboes.

Cette âme qui se lamente The soul that is lamenting L’enfant tout rouge et la mère blanche, The red-faced child and the white-faced mother, En cette plainte dormante In this sleepy plaint Le gars en noir et la fille en rose. The lad in black and the girl in pink. C’est la nôtre, n’est-ce pas? Is ours, is it not? L’une à la chose et l’autre à la pose, She’s flirting, he’s posing, La mienne, dis, et la tienne, Mine, yes, and yours, Chacun se paie un sou de dimanche. Everyone pays a penny for a bit of Sunday fun. Dont s’exhale l’humble antienne Whose humble refrain softly rises Par ce tiède soir, tout bas? On this balmy evening? Tournez, tournez, chevaux de leur cœur, Turn, turn, horses of their hearts, Tandis qu’autour de tous vos tournois While over all your tourneys Clignote l’œil du filou sournois. Flashes the eye of a shifty rogue. Il pleure dans mon cœur There Is Weeping in My Heart Tournez au son du piston vainqueur! Turn to the sound of the conquering cornet!

Il pleure dans mon cœur There is weeping in my heart C’est étonnant comme ça vous soûle, It’s amazing how it makes your head spin Comme il pleut sur la ville. As there is rain over the city. D’aller ainsi dans ce cirque bête, To ride like that in this silly circus, Quelle est cette langueur What is this languor Rien dans le ventre et mal dans la tête, With your empty belly and your aching head, Qui pénètre mon cœur? That penetrates my heart? Du mal en masse et du bien en foule; Uneasy withal yet happy in the crowd;

O bruit doux de la pluie, Oh, the gentle sound of rain, Tournez dadas, sans qu’il soit besoin Turn, hobbyhorses, with no need Par terre et sur les toits! On the ground and on the roofs! D’user jamais de nuls éperons For anyone to use spurs Pour un cœur qui s’ennuie, For a heart that is wearied, Pour commander à vos galops ronds. To control your circular galloping. O le bruit de la pluie! Oh the sound of rain! Tournez, tournez, sans espoir de foin, Turn, turn, without hoping for hay,

Il pleure sans raison There is weeping without reason Et dépêchez, chevaux de leur âme, And hurry, horses of their souls, Dans ce cœur qui s’écœure. In this disheartened heart. Déjà voici que sonne à la soupe For already the call to supper is sounded Quoi! nulle trahison? What? No betrayal? La nuit qui tombe et chasse la troupe As night falls and disperses the band Ce deuil est sans raison. This mourning is without reason. De gais buveurs, que leur soif affame. Of cheerful drinkers famished by their thirst.

C’est bien la pire peine, And that is the very worst suffering, Tournez, tournez! Le ciel en velours Turn, turn! The velvet sky De ne savoir pourquoi, Not to know why, D’astres en or se vêt lentement, Slowly decks itself in golden stars, Sans amour et sans haine Without love and without hatred, L’Eglise tinte un glas tristement. The church bell tolls a mournful knell. Mon cœur a tant de peine! My heart is so full of suffering. Tournez au son joyeux des tambours, tournez. Turn to the joyful sound of drums, turn.

L’ombre des arbres The Shadow of the Trees Aquarelles: Green Watercolors: Green

L’ombre des arbres dans la rivière embrumée The shadow of the trees in the misty river Voici des fruits, des fleurs, des feuilles et des branches Here are fruits, flowers, leaves and branches Meurt comme de la fumée, Dies sway like smoke, Et puis voici mon cœur qui ne bat que pour vous. And here too is my heart that beats only for you. Tandis qu’en l’air, parmi les ramures réelles, While in the sir, amid the solid boughs, Ne le déchirez pas avec vos deux mains blanches Do not rend it with your two white hands, Se plaignent les tourterelles. The turtledoves lament. Et qu’à vos yeux si beaux l’humble présent soit doux. And may your lovely eyes look kindly on this humble gift.

Combien ô voyageur, ce paysage blême How well, O traveler, did this pale landscape J’arrive tout couvert encore de rosée I come here still covered in dew Te mira blême toi-même, Reflect your own pallor, Que le vent du matin vient glacer à mon front. That the morning wind has chilled on my brow. Et que tristes pleuraient dans les hautes feuillées, And how sadly did they weep in the foliage on high, Souffrez que ma fatigue à vos pieds repose Grant that my fatigue, resting at your feet, Tes espérances noyées. Those drowned hopes of yours. Rêve des chers instants qui la délasseront. May dream of the precious moments that will refresh it.

Sur votre jeune sein laissez rouler ma tête On your young bosom may I cradle my head, Toute sonore encor de vos derniers baisers; Still ringing with your last kisses; Laissez-la s’apaiser de la bonne tempête, Let it calm down there after the marvelous storm, Et que je dorme un peu puisque vous reposez. And let me sleep a little, now that you are resting.

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Aquarelles: Spleen Watercolors: Spleen Ahsha

Les roses étaient toutes rouges, The roses were all red, I am Ahsha Et les lierres étaient tout noirs. And the ivy all black. Son of ancient empires proud Chère, pour peu que tu te bouges, Dearest, you need only make the slightest move, Truth of existence Renaissent tous mes désespoirs. For all my despair to be reborn. Order of the universe Rightness in the path Le ciel était trop bleu, trop tendre, The sky was too blue, too tender, Of the sun moon and stars. La mer trop verte et l’air trop doux; The sea too green and the air too mild; My realm cleansing fire Je crains toujours, ce qu’est d’attendre, I still fear—how terrible is this waiting!— I walk the forests Quelque fuite atroce de vous! That you may cruelly abandon me! Of my birthland Fragrance of emerald earth Du houx à la feuille vernie, Of the glossy leaved holly, In my pores Et du luisant buis je suis las, And of the gleaming box tree I am weary, Our ways are handed down Et de la campagne infinie, And of the infinite countryside, Breast to breast Et de tout, fors de vous. Hélas! And of everything, save of you. Alas! Ten thousand times. If only all could glory in The pageantry Mark Grey (b. 1967) Fire Angels Of my ancestral land. Ātash Sorushān Libretto by Niloufar Talebi Quoted poetry of Sohrab Sepehri, from “Dar Golestaaneh,” sung in the original Persian. invocation Dar deleh man In my heart Chizist mesleh yek bisheyeh noor There is something Mana Mesleh khaabeh dameh sobh Like a beam of light Va chenaan bee-taabam ke delam mikhaahad Like the sleep of dawn I am Mana of great power Bedavam taa taheh dasht And I am so restless that I want Mana the beautiful Beravam taa sareh kooh. To run to the edge of the fields Daughter of light Doorhaa aavaayist Up the mountains. So resplendent my following Ke maraa mikhaanad. In the distance Is bedazzled in my court There are songs Blinded by my glow That siren me… So glorious I tower Into the heavens Away I must go My influence be upon the universe To breed our peerless ways I am usher of gods And deliver Mana Life force of all living and nonliving From lust Divine energy of the universe. May she honor the life She shepherds. Darkness lays in wait Beneath a gilded heart voyage Whose lurking breath I sense Each time I jest about Ahsha And I know a mighty rush Will come gentle On the blasting wings of Phoenix As the Sound of Water’s Footsteps I speed across the seas To transport me Turquoise and blue To my marrow Until beyond the lands I see To my roots of truth. A beam so bright Blinding to my gaze

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Into the caverns Our heart Of Mana the powerful In step with his halting breath I charge with might Nothing exists but Mastering her metallic will Our Common Pain And Mana opens light in light In the eternity Quivers rolling downward Of this revealing day. And up her form Flash of lightning Ahsha Across the fields. Mana your steely guise dissolves Mana As we plunge into oblivion Now your softness hangs upon the dawn Ahsha splits me with thunder Of this rich century Bursting waves of heat Vincible as the infant fawn. Ignite my heart My zealot plumes urged Fire to air Me to your darkness Gorr Gorr Gorr But I too was fire adrift Earth to water From destiny Shorr Shorr Shorr Longing to pluck We are a roaring hurricane The vanity Falling to our knees That leaps out of my chest A vortex of sound and flesh To spread like an animal In the bright blue morning On jagged cliffs. Our first meeting is such Here we rest shattered On sweltering skin In the rivers of wanton venom. Ahsha’s and mine. We are but one Windblown seed transformation That eons Of bygone dust Mana Have lastly together clung.

From my open ribs What will they say us? Phoenix that pierces That ours was Into darkness “A monumental struggle Rains a river Of good versus evil,” Into which we plummet That I was, “An enemy hiding in shadows and caves?” Ahsha and I Our shadows were within Flaxen tresses swirling We both abandoned our traits In raven mane. Mana the instinct to prosper I watch over and over The life she protects and The final shreds Ahsha the oath of rightness. Of my morphing face. We are not now in the “Middle hour of our grief.” Stunned frozen in the silence Grief had existed Of our submerging limbs From our forsaken ways. Deaf to babbling mouths Now we vanquish our demons My eyes fix upon Ahsha’s: “Make no mistake about it,” A thousand lights have smitten me From these ashes Are these my own forlorn eyes We begin anew Flung a million miles At this leveling ground From our paths? Determined to beat I want nothing now Again a new But to be closer to his beating heart Ardent heart.

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Mana oprano jessica rivera is established as Minczuk and the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra, Sone of the most creatively inspired vocal art- Britten’s “Spring” Symphony with Oh Ahsha, beloved ists before the public today. The intelligence, di- and the Atlanta Symphony, and Mahler’s Fourth I could wage wrath mension, and spirituality with which she infuses Symphony with Franz Welser-Möst for a debut At you for charging me But will not. her performances on the great international con- with the Cleveland Orchestra. Ms. Rivera cov- You have unfolded me cert and opera stages has garnered Ms. Rivera ers the role of Pat Nixon for the Metropolitan Just as I have you unique artistic collaborations with many of to- Opera’s company premiere of Nixon in China Such passions have stretched day’s most celebrated composers, including John directed by Peter Sellars and conducted by John Me apart Adams, and Nico Muhly, and Adams and joins the Grammy Award-winning Now I see I had longed has brought her together in collaboration with Beninoise singer-songwriter Angélique Kidjo In exquisite promise such esteemed conductors as Bernard Haitink, for the world premiere of Jonathan Leshnoff’s For you, jaan [dear or beloved, in Persian] of my jaans Sir Simon Rattle, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Robert Hope: An Oratorio at the Kimmel Center with Kin of my kins. Back to the cradle Spano and Michael Tilson Thomas. the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia con- We heel. Ms. Rivera was heralded in the world ducted by Mr. Minczuk. Carnegie Hall and premiere of John Adams’s newest opera, A Cal Performances Berkeley co-commission a restoration Flowering Tree, singing the role of Kumudha, work for Jessica Rivera written by Mark Grey in a production directed by Peter Sellars as part to a libretto by Niloufar Talebi: Ātash Sorushān Except from “Hymns to the Earth” from the Avesta, of the New Crowned Hope Festival in Vienna. (“Fire Angels”), which received its premiere sung in the original Avestan. Since then, she has performed A Flowering Tree during recital presentations at Zankel Hall and Ýat kerenavãn frashem ahûm May [it] restore the world for her debut with the Berliner Philharmoniker Hertz Hall in a collaboration with pianist Molly Azaresheñtem amaresheñtem That never grows old nor dies Afrithyañtem apuyañtem That never decays nor rots with Sir Simon Rattle and, under the compos- Morkoski and the Meme Ensemble. Ýavaêjim ýavaêsum vasô-xshathrem Ever living, ever growing er’s baton, with the , Highlights of recent seasons include perfor- Ýat irista paiti usehishtãn When the dead will rise the , the Orchestra of mances of El Niño with David Robertson and Jasât jvayô amerextish And life and immortality will reign St. Luke’s at Lincoln Center, and the London the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra, Nixon Dathaite frashem vasna anghush. And the world will be restored Symphony Orchestra at the Barbican Centre. Tapes with the Pittsburgh Symphony under At its wish. The London performances were recorded and the direction of John Adams, Golijov’s Three are now commercially available on the Nonesuch Songs for Soprano and Orchestra and Mahler’s We commune again Records label. Fourth Symphony with the Phoenix Symphony With the mothers of our founding fathers Who stood on the same earth The artist made her European operatic de- and Michael Christie, Carmen, as Micaëla, We are present again but as Kitty Oppenheimer in Peter Sellars’s with Bramwell Tovey and the Los Angeles Bursting acclaimed production of John Adams’s Doctor Philharmonic, Poulenc’s Gloria with Bernard Green. Atomic with the Netherlands Opera, a role Haitink and the Chicago Symphony, Beethoven’s that also served for her debut at Lyric Opera Ninth Symphony with Michael Tilson Thomas In all the years still to came of Chicago, and she joined the roster of the and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and Ravel’s The sun will rise again Metropolitan Opera in a past season for its new Shéhérazade with Mr. Tilson Thomas and the To greet with unwavering poise production of under the direction San Francisco Symphony. The tenacity Of our transforming souls. of Alan Gilbert. She gave concert performances Committed to the art of recital, Ms. Rivera of Doctor Atomic with Robert Spano and the has performed in concert halls in New York, Los Quoted poetry of Sohrab Sepehri, from “The Sound of Atlanta Symphony, and her portrayal of Kitty Angeles and Santa Fe. In past seasons, to support Water’s Footsteps,” sung in the original Persian. Oppenheimer was captured in Amsterdam and a recital disc on the Urtext Records label that ex- Kaareh maa nist Our work is not to discover is commercially available on DVD on the BBC/ amines works for soprano, clarinet, and piano, Shenaasaa’iyeh raazeh goleh sorkh The secret of the rose Opus Arte label. Ms. Rivera toured North America with concerts Kaareh maa shaayad een ast Our work is perhaps Performances of the 2010–2011 season in- in Los Angeles, New York (Carnegie Hall), Las Ke miyaaneh goleh Niloufar o gharn To run after the song of truth clude John Adams’s El Niño under the compos- Vegas, Oklahoma City and Chicago (Ravinia Peyeh aavaazeh haghighat bedavim. In the distance between the lotus And the Century. er’s baton at the San Francisco Symphony and Festival). She also has given a recital program at at the Edinburgh International Festival with the Amelia Island Festival accompanied at the and the BBC Scottish Symphony piano by Robert Spano. She was deeply honored Orchestra, Golijov’s She Was Here with Roberto to have received a commission from Carnegie

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Hall for the world premiere of a song cycle by A champion of new music, Ms. Morkoski for unaccompanied violin and premiered his as part of Jupiter Symphony Chamber Players, Nico Muhly called The Adulteress given on the has worked with composers John Adams, Louis Violin Concerto. More recently, he composed Lark Quartet, Ensemble Pi, and in duo and trio occasion of her Weill Hall recital performance. Andriessen, Gerald Barry, William Bolcom, the music and sound design for Peter Sellars’s recitals. Meme artists have worked with many Ms. Rivera has sung Susanna in Le nozze di John Corigliano, David Del Tredici, , 2009 theater staging of Othello starring Philip of today’s leading composers, including John Figaro and Musetta in La bohème with the Los John Harbison, Aaron Jay Kernis, David Lang, Seymour Hoffman. In January 2011, the Atlanta Adams, Gerald Barry, George Benjamin, Pierre Angeles Opera. As a member of the prestigious Oliver Knussen, George Perle, Steve Reich and Symphony premiered a new orchestra work, Boulez, , John Corigliano, John Los Angeles Opera Resident Artist Program . Her first solo disc, sched- conducted by Donald Runnicles. Harbison, Aaron Jay Kernis, Oliver Knussen, for three seasons, she received critical acclaim uled for release in 2011, includes several of her Mr. Grey’s Mugunghwa: Rose of Sharon, George Perle, Steven Stucky, Andrew Waggoner from the New York Times for creating the role favorite contemporary pieces as well as works for violinist Jennifer Koh, the Los Angeles and Anna Weesner. For more information, visit of Anastasia in the world premiere of Deborah by Beethoven and Chopin. She is also work- Master Chorale and chamber orchestra, pre- www.ensemblememe.com. Dratell’s Nicholas and Alexandra. ing on two other discs by composer colleagues, miered at Disney Concert Hall in March 2011. For additional information, please visit Gabriela Lena Frank and Martin Kennedy, both Several newly commissioned works by the Los Donato Cabrera holds the Bruno Walter www.jessicarivera.com. for Albany Records. Angeles Philharmonic, Atlanta Symphony and Resident Conductor Chair at the San Francisco Ms. Morkoski was a Fulbright scholar to St. Louis Symphony will premiere during the Symphony and is the Music Director of the San Pianist Molly Morkoski has performed as so- Paris, where she apprenticed with the Ensemble 2012–2014 seasons. Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra. He made loist and collaborative artist throughout the Intercontemporain. She is also a recipient of the During his two decades as a sound designer, his San Francisco Symphony debut in April United States, Europe and Japan. In June 2007, Teresa Sterne Career Grant and the Thayer-Ross Mr. Grey has worked with such artists as John 2009, the Orchestra in a program of she made her solo debut on Carnegie Hall’s Awards. Her principal teachers are Michael Adams, Steve Reich, Philip Glass, Terry Riley Mozart and Ravel. In 2002, he was a Herbert Stern Auditorium stage offering Beethoven’s Zenge, Leonard Hokanson and Gilbert Kalish and the Kronos Quartet. He has premiered ma- von Karajan conducting fellow at the Salzburg Bagatelles, Op. 126, in a prelude concert for the and she holds degrees from the University jor concert and opera works for composers John Festival. From 2005 to 2008, he was associate Emerson String Quartet’s Perspectives series. In of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Indiana Adams, Philip Glass, Steve Reich, Terry Riley conductor of the , partici- 2003, she was invited to perform on the inau- University, Bloomington, and SUNY Stony and Peter Eötvös, among many others. pating in the world premiere of John Adams’s gural concert of Carnegie’s Zankel Hall under Brook. She currently resides in New York City Mr. Grey was the first sound designer in his- Doctor Atomic and conducting performances of the direction of John Adams and has since been and is Associate Professor at CUNY’s Lehman tory to design for the Die Fledermaus, , Tannhäuser and a featured soloist on their Making Music series. College in the Bronx. at Avery Fisher Hall in 2002 (Adams’s On the . He has also assisted in produc- Ms. Morkoski has performed at Carnegie’s Transmigration of Souls), Lyric Opera of Chicago tions at the Metropolitan Opera, Lyric Opera Weill Hall, Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall, Originally from San Francisco, composer in 2007, Disney Concert Hall in 2003 and is the of Chicago and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Merkin Hall, Miller Theatre and Le Poisson Mark Grey made his Carnegie Hall debut as first to design for the Metropolitan Opera, for and has served as an assistant conductor at the Rouge in New York, Boston’s Gardner Museum, a composer with the Kronos Quartet in 2003. Adams’s Doctor Atomic in October 2008. His Ravinia, Spoleto (Italy) and Aspen music festi- St. Louis’s Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts, His solo, ensemble and orchestra music has sound design creations have been seen and heard vals, and the Music Academy of the West. Portland’s Newmark Theater, the Smihsonian been performed in many venues such as the throughout most major concert halls, theaters In April 2010, Mr. Cabrera made his debut in Washington, D.C., Strasbourg Conservatoire Sydney Opera House Concert Hall, Théâtre de and opera houses worldwide. with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. He and the U.S. Embassy in Paris and Nice, France. la Ville in Paris, Barbican Centre in London, made his South American debut in 2008 with She has appeared as soloist at the Tanglewood, Het Muziektheater in Amsterdam, Carnegie Founded in 2009, Ensemble Meme is composed the Orquesta Sinfónica de Concepción in Chile. Bang on a Can and Pacific Rim festivals, and Hall’s Zankel Hall, Philharmonie Hall in of accomplished chamber musicians drawn to- Mr. Cabrera has worked with the young artist performed concertos with the Raleigh, Asheville, Warsaw, UNESCO Palacio de Bellas Artes in gether to perform innovative, wide-ranging pro- programs of the San Francisco Opera, Lyric University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Mexico City, Symphony Hall in Phoenix and grams. Meme artists have collaborated on such Opera of Chicago and Portland Opera. This and Tuscaloosa symphonies, and the Moravian Royce Hall in Los Angeles, and at the Ravinia, stages as Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Hall and Weill past February, he was recognized as a Luminary Philharmonic. An avid chamber musician, Cabrillo, OtherMinds, Perth International and Recital Hall, Merkin Hall, Symphony Space, by the Friends of Mexico Honorary Committee she has performed at the Aspen, Norfolk and Spoleto festivals. Cooper Union, Columbia University’s Miller for his contributions to promoting and devel- Tanglewood festivals; is a member of the Zankel Mr. Grey was the Phoenix Symphony’s Theatre and the in New York; oping the presence of the Mexican community Band, Open End Ensemble and Ensemble Composer in Residence for their 2007–2008 and Jordan Hall, the Gardner Museum, Harvard in the Bay Area. Mr. Cabrera holds music de- Meme; and has collaborated with the New York season, during which he composed Enemy and Boston universities, and the New England grees from the University of Nevada and the Philharmonic Chamber Players, Metropolitan Slayer: A Navajo Oratorio for baritone, a cho- Conservatory in Boston. Festival performances University of Illinois, and he pursued graduate Opera Orchestra, St. Louis Symphony Chamber rus of 130 singers and full orchestra. The work include Lucerne, Aspen, Focus! and Vermont studies at Indiana University Bloomington and Players, New World Symphony, Speculum had its premiere in February 2008. During her Mozart. The musicians also have performed the School of Music. Musicae, Chamber Music Society and 2005–2006 season, violinist Leila Josefowicz re- Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. corded and toured Mr. Grey’s San Andreas Suite

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