OAKLAND SYMPHONY III OAKLAND SYMPHONY V VI OAKLAND SYMPHONY MESSAGE FROM THE MAESTRO ur January and February concerts are full Oof legendary figures. In January, ourNotes WHAT’S from the African Diaspora concert presents a wide range of accomplished composers of African descent, from Duke Ellington to more recently widely discovered Florence Price, INSIDE and all the way back to the most famous 18th JANUARY 25, 2019 century black composer, Joseph Bologne, the NOTES FROM THE Chevalier de St.-Georges. These are excellent AFRICAN DIASPORA | 3 and fascinating pieces, all of which should be OAKLAND SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA | 4 heard more frequently. GUEST ARTIST | 5 PROGRAM NOTES | 7 Then in February comes our second Playlist, MarcoSanchez.net Photo: this time featuring music that has meaning for one of the great civil rights FEBRUARY 22, 2019 icons, Dolores Huerta. From her work with Carlos Chavez and Robert F. DOLORES HUERTA’S PLAYLIST | 11 Kennedy to her current work, training activists through her foundation OAKLAND SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA | 13 now when they are so desperately needed, she has been a beacon of hope GUEST ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES | 14 to all that know her. It is an honor to share her Playlist with our audience. OAKLAND SYMPHONY YOUTH ORCHESTRA | 18 Her selections, much like our community, are diverse and engaging. I hope you enjoy these two months of exploration. SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2019 OAKLAND SYMPHONY YOUTH ~Michael Morgan, Music Director ORCHESTRA WINTER CONCERT | 20 OAKLAND SYMPHONY YOUTH ORCHESTRA | 21 GUEST ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES | 22 PROGRAM NOTES | 25 ARTISTIC STAFF BIOGRAPHIES | 27 MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ABOUT US | 30 elcome as we continue to celebrate the ANNUAL FUND DONORS | 31 Wdiversity of our community through music in 2019. TRIBUTE FUND | 35 ENDOWMENT FUND | 36 Through 85 years of symphonic music and 60 years of symphonic choral music CALVIN SIMMONS LEGACY SOCIETY | 36 in Oakland, the Symphony continues a CORPORATE AND INSTITUTIONAL GIFTS | 37 proud tradition of diversity. Oakland was IN-KIND DONORS | 38 home to the first African-American Music Director of a professional orchestra when it VOLUNTEERS | 39 appointed the late Calvin Simmons in 1979. BOARD OF DIRECTORS & STAFF | 40 Today, Michael Morgan and the Oakland Symphony continue to amplify that which is uniquely Oakland. We celebrate Oakland’s rich black cultural heritage as the orchestra gives life to the voices of extraordinary composers of the African Diaspora – the Chevalier de Saint-Georges, AKA “the black Mozart;” Florence Price, the Cover Design by: Nick Francis first African-American woman symphonic composer; Duke Ellington, the African-American composer who embraced his compositions as simply ‘American Music’. We musically honor Dolores Huerta as a labor leader, civil rights activist, ADVERTISING Onstage Publications and role model who continues to inspire new generations because Advertising Department “sí, se puede.” Also in February, world-renowned pianist Emanuel Ax teams 937-424-0529 | 866-503-1966 up with the Oakland Symphony in a week-long residency to champion e-mail: equal access to high quality musical experiences and education for [email protected] Oaklanders of all ages and backgrounds. www.onstagepublications.com This program is published in association Meanwhile, the Oakland Symphony Youth Orchestra prepares to represent with Onstage Publications, 1612 Prosser Oakland as ambassadors on an international tour to China. Avenue, Dayton, Ohio 45409. This program may not be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission from the These are only samples of the programs rooted in the spirit of Oakland this publisher. Onstage Publications is a division season that you inspire and make possible. This is your Oakland. This is of Just Business, Inc. Contents ©2019. your Oakland Symphony. Thank you for sharing this journey. All rights reserved. Printed in the U.S.A. ~Dr. Mieko Hatano, Executive Director OAKLAND SYMPHONY 1 Oakland Symphony presents NOTES FROM THE AFRICAN DIASPORA JOSEPH BOLOGNE, CHEVALIER DE SAINT-GEORGES (1745–1799) Symphony No. 1 in G major, Op. 11 I. Allegro II. Andante III. Allegro assai ANTONIO CARLOS GOMES (1836-1896) C’era una volta un principe from Act II of Il Guarany I. Allegro non troppo II. Allegretto con moto III. Allegro non troppo; Un peu moins vite Shawnette Sulker, soprano WILLIAM GRANT STILL (1895-1978) Songs of Separation I. Idolatry II. Poéme III. Parted Shawnette Sulker, soprano Her appearance tonight is generously underwritten by an anonymous donor INTERMISSION FLORENCE PRICE (1887-1953) Symphony No. 3 in C minor I. Andante II. Andante ma non troppo III. Juba: Allegro IV. Scherzo: Finale EDWARD KENNEDY (DUKE) ELLINGTON Harlem The 2018–2019 Season of Oakland Symphony is generously funded in part by the East Bay Community Foundation; the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation; the California Arts Council, a state agency; the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency; and the Oakland City Council and the City of Oakland’s Cultural Funding Program. OAKLAND SYMPHONY 3 OAKLAND SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA Michael Morgan, Music Director and Conductor Bryan Nies, Associate Conductor FIRST VIOLIN VIOLA FLUTE TRUMPET Dawn Harms, Tiantian Lan, Alice Lenaghan, William Harvey, Concertmaster Principal Principal Principal Vivian Warkentin, Margaret Titchener, Rena Urso Leonard Ott Asst. Concertmaster Asst. Principal Owen Miyoshi Kristina Anderson, Betsy London OBOE Chris Barnes Assoc. Concertmaster Patricia Whaley Robin May, Principal Carla Picchi Stephanie Railsback Denis Harper TROMBONE Deborah Spangler Katy Juneau Jesse Barrett Bruce Chrisp, Emanuela Nikiforova Linda Green Principal Stephanie Bibbo Alessandra Aquilanti CLARINET Tom Hornig Hrabba Attladottir Bill Kalinkos, Steve Trapani Matthew Vincent CELLO Principal Katherine Button Daniel Reiter, Diane Maltester TUBA Hande Erdem Principal Ginger Kroft Scott Choate, Joseph Hébert, Principal SECOND VIOLIN Asst. Principal BASSOON David Cheng, Michelle Kwon Deborah Kramer, PERCUSSION Principal Rebecca Roudman Principal Ward Spangler, Sharon Calonico, Michael Graham Jarratt Rossini Principal Asst. Principal Jeffrey Parish Jim Kassis Adrienne Duckworth Paul Rhodes ALTO SAXOPHONE Sergi Goldman-Hull Farley Pearce Bill Kalinkos DRUM SET Cecilia Huang Richard Mathias Artie Storch Robert Donehew BASS Alison Miller Patrick McCarthy, TENOR SAXOPHONE HARP Josepha Fath Principal Kevin Stewart Meredith Clark Sarah Usher Alden Cohen, Robert Farrington Asst. Principal PERSONNEL MANAGER Ben Tudor BARI SAXOPHONE Craig McAmis Carl Stanley Nick DiScala Tim Spears LIBRARIAN David Horn HORN Paul Rhodes Meredith Brown, Principal RECORDING ENGINEER Monica Warchol, Tom Johnson, Johnson Asst. Horn Digital Audio Alicia Telford Alex Camphouse Ross Gershenson 4 OAKLAND SYMPHONY GUEST ARTIST SHAWNETTE SULKER cclaimed for her “heartbreaking poignancy” Aand “beautifully tuned soprano” by the San Francisco Chronicle and for her “enchanting vocal splendor” by the Leipziger Volkszeitung, soprano Shawnette Sulker is a much sought-after artist in the United States and abroad. A consummate performer, her recent operatic roles include singing “The Queen of the Night” (The Magic Flute) with Opera Fairbanks and Hamster in the contemporary opera Animal Tales (Brazelton) with the Garden State Philharmonic in New Jersey. Recent concert performances include singing as a soloist for Fremont Symphony’s Valentine’s Day Concert, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Santa Rosa and Peninsula Symphonies, and Orff’s Carmina Burana with Sacramento Choral Society & Orchestra. Internationally, Sulker has sung Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro, and Lauretta in Adele throughout the Netherlands and Belgium Gianni Schicchi. Some works on Sulker’s concert in a tour of Die Fledermaus, as well as a recital at repertoire list include Mozart’s Grand Mass in Red Door Studios in Amsterdam and an orchestra C minor, Bach’s Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen, concert featuring Porgy and Bess highlights and Mozart’s Exsultate, Jubilate, and Scarlatti’s Su le Mendelssohn’s Psalm 42 in Leipzig’s Gewandhaus sponde del Tebro. Upcoming engagements will and Prague’s Smetana Hall. feature her singing as the Soprano I soloist for Bach’s Mass in B minor with California Bach Sulker has also sung with San Francisco Opera, Society, performing Lucy in The Telephone with Mark Morris Dance Group, American Bach Opera Memphis, singing the soprano solos Soloists, Hawaii Opera Theatre, Eugene in Handel’s Messiah with Pacific Chamber Symphony, Union Avenue Opera, Opera Naples, Symphony, and a Holiday Recital as part of the Pacific Opera Project, West Edge Opera, and renowned Noontime Concerts at Old St. Mary’s the Natchez Opera Festival, to name a few. in San Francisco. Her roles include Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos, Cunegonde in Candide, Constanze in Abduction from the Seraglio, Musetta in La Bohème, OAKLAND SYMPHONY 5 PRE-CONCERT PERFORMERS OAKTOWN JAZZ YOUTH ENSEMBLE the next generation of musicians. Youths learn from professional master musicians and perform aktown Jazz Workshops’ Youth Performance for audiences throughout the Bay Area. Visit OEnsemble features young musicians ages oaktownjazz.org for more information. 12-18 who perform a variety of exciting and challenging jazz classics. Oaktown Jazz Ravi Abcarian - Executive Director Workshops is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization Richard Howell - Instructor and its year-round after school program passes Mark Lee - Instructor on the musical language and traditions of jazz to DESTINY