WESTERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY College of Fine Arts and Communication & School of Music present a

SENIOR RECITAL

Maria González-Iraheta, with Po-Chuan Chiang, piano

Saturday, May 1, 2021 11:00 AM

THE COLLEGE OF FINE ARTS AND COMMUNICATION PROUDLY CELEBRATES 50 YEARS AT WESTERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY

PROGRAM

Cello Suite No. 6 in G Major, BWV 1012 (1685-1750) Prelude Allemande

Viola Concerto (1908-1983) II. Vivo, con molto preciso

Märchenbilder “Fairy Tales”, Op. 113 (1810-1856) I. Nicht schnell (Not fast) II. Lebhaft (Lively) III. Rasch (Quick) IV. Langsam, mit melancholischem Ausdruck (Slowly, with melancholic expression)

Fantasie per viola e orchestra, Op. 9 Johann N. Hummel (1778-1837)

PROGRAM NOTES

By the time J.S. Bach died his music was considered ‘old-fashioned’, critics will often refer to his music as ‘too elaborate’ or ‘too artful’. The Suites for unaccompanied cello were written between 1717-1723 while he was in charge of the composition of the music for the city of Anhalt in Germany. It is said that Suite N. 6 was written for a 5 stringed smaller type of cello, one that could be played in the cello and will be similar to the viola. Since the variety of string instruments during the 18th century, it is possible that J.S. did not intend this work for any specific instrument and it is possible that he himself played in the arm-held cello. It was famous cellist Pablo Casals who found the sheet music in a shop in Barcelona in 1889 recording them decades later around 1940 during the civil war in Spain. This suite is written in a freer form than the rest of the suites having several cadenza-like sections. This prelude is the longest and grandest of the 6 rich, full, extended in range and length. The motion is one of continuous eighth notes, although one feels four beats of triplets per bar. The Allemande is only 20- measure long, in 4/4 time and characterized by frequent passages of 32nd notes occasionally punctuated by 2 and 3 voice chords, is the single longest movement in any of the suites, lasting about 7-1/2 to 8 minutes. It is friendly, inviting, warm, and quite rhapsodic; a sense of improvisation prevails throughout, giving the movement a personal, heartfelt sense. And it’s a particularly slow-paced movement; Bach’s notational choices and intervallic leaps essentially require a very patient, restful approach to tempo.

Walton composed his Viola Concerto at the suggestion of conductor Sir for violist Lionel Tertis. Tertis had served as principal violist in Beecham's orchestra. Beecham, however, had not heard any of Walton's music. Walton wrote in December 1928 that he was "working hard" on the piece and in February 1929 that he had finished the second movement. He wrote that he considered the concerto potentially his finest work to date; whether this assessment would hold true, he added, depended on how the third movement turned out. He completed the work by the middle of 1929.The second movement is short, very energetic, playful, with a strong rhythm theme announced by the viola. Here the viola and the orchestra chase each other all the time, playing the theme in turn, with no rest. The viola makes use of harmonics in several places, adding a touch of special sonority to the piece.

Märchenbilder or Fairy Tale Pictures, for Viola and Piano, Op. 113, was written by Robert Schumann in March 1851. The work is dedicated to the German violinist and conductor Wilhelm Joseph von Wasielewski. It consists of four character pieces and is an original composition featuring the viola from the Romantic period.

Schumann gives us few clues as to what creatures or events are depicted within each movement, except in a section of his journals "hard to find and not translated into English". His 1853 composition Märchenerzählungen or Fairy Tales for Clarinet, Viola and Piano also leaves the details to the imagination of the performers and the audience. The first two movements depict scenes from Rapunzel. A metronome speed of 84 for the crotchet is specified for the first movement (slower than rendered by most performers without this information). The third movement depicts scenes from Rumpelstiltskin, in particular his dancing outside his house with attendant fairies. Accordingly, the metronome speed specified is 120 for the quaver (again, slower than rendered by most performers without this information, on the assumption, mooted on at least one (vinyl) record sleeve, that the movement depicts "a storm at sea"). The fourth movement depicts scenes from The Sleeping Beauty. Whether Schumann found it unnecessary to specify metronome speeds for the second and fourth movements is unknown.

Hummel's Potpourri for viola and orchestra Op. 94 is part of every viola player's core repertoire, especially in its shortened version, the Fantasy. Sprinkled with quotes from operas by Mozart and Rossini and framed by spirited, newly composed passages, this work fills a gap in the small repertoire of the classical-early romantic period. WIU SCHOOL OF MUSIC FACULTY & STAFF

Jeffrey Brown - Dir., School of Music/Piano Jennifer Jones - Music Therapy Ryan Aguirre - Music Education Suyeon Ko - Flute Linda Andrews - Organ Richard Kurasz - Asst. Dir. SOM/Percussion Whitney Ashe - Jazz Studies/Piano Anneliese Land - Recruitment Coordinator Matt Bean - Voice/Musical Theatre James Land - Tuba/Audio Technician Courtney Blankenship - Music Business Natalie Landowski - Piano Bruce Briney - Trumpet Kenny Lee - Cello/Dir. of Orchestral Activities Richard Cangro - Music Education Brian Locke - Music History/Humanities Joanne Chang - Staff Accompanist Rebecca McGuire - Oboe Terry Chasteen - Voice Julieta Mihai - Violin Po-Chuan Chiang - Staff Accompanist Coord. John Mindeman - Trombone/Euphonium Hong-Da Chin - Theory/Composition Kevin Nichols - Percussion John Cooper - Dir. Jazz Studies/Jazz Trumpet James Romig - Theory/Composition Denise Coovert - Music Therapy Clinical Trainer Alonso Rubio - Music Library Specialist Kate Curry - Office Administrator Emily Sevcik - Music Therapy Brisa de Paula - Bassoon/Humanities Penelope Shumate - Voice Mike Fansler - Director of Bands István Szabó - Viola/Humanities Jena Gardner - Horn/Brass Ensemble Matt Thomas - Assoc. Dir. Bands/Marching Band Eric Ginsberg - Clarinet/Humanities Lynn Thompson - Voice/Musical Theatre Anita Hardeman - Music History/Humanities George Turner - Guitar/Humanities Jason Hawkins - Choir/Music Ed./Vocal Jazz John Vana - Saxophone Joanie Herbert - COFAC Recital Hall Manager Phil Weiss - Video Services/Recording Matthew Hughes - Bass/Humanities Brian Winnie - Director of Choral Activities

Maria González-Iraheta is from the studio of Dr. István Szabó and performs this recital in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Bachelor of Music degree in Viola Performance.