Founded in 1874 by Norwegian Lutheran immi- grants, St. Olaf is a nationally ranked liberal arts college located in Northfield, Minnesota, approximately 70 km south of the Twin Cities of Minne- apolis and St. Paul, the largest metropolitan area in the upper Midwest. St. Olaf is home to 3,000 students from nearly every state in the country and more than 80 countries and offers 85-majors, concentrations, and academic programs. For more than half a century, St. Olaf students have taken advantage of international and off-campus study programs — including in Norway — that offer profound, life-changing experiences. Living and studying abroad is fundamental to understanding other cultures and perspectives and to becoming an educated citizen in a changing world. go.stolaf.edu I 1874 ble St. Olaf College grunnlagt av norske lutherske immigranter, og er i dag en høyt ansett liberal arts college. Skolen ligger i Northfield, Minnesota, ca 70 kilometer sør for tvillingbyene; Minneapolis og St. Paul, som er den største metropolen i den nordlige delen av midtvesten. St. Olaf huser 3,000 studenter fra nesten samtlige amerikanske stater, mer enn 80 land, og kan tilby over 85 ulike typer bachelorprogrammer og fagkonsentrasjoner. I nesten 50 år har St. Olaf studenter hatt stort utbytte av å ta del i internas- jonale utvekslingsprogrammer — blant annet i Norge — som skaper meningsfulle opplevelser og minner for livet. Verden er i rask endring, derfor er det å bo og studere i utlandet helt fundamentalt for å forstå andre kulturer og perspektiver, og på den måten bli en samfunnsorientert borger. 1 ST. OLAF ORCHESTRA CONCERT PROGRAM OVERTURE TO THE SCHOOL FOR SCANDAL Samuel Barber (1910–1981) THESE WORLDS IN US Missy Mazzoli (b. 1980) NORWEGIAN DANCE, OP. 35, NO. 1 Edvard Grieg (1843–1907) SYMPHONY NO. 5 IN E MINOR, OP. 64 IV. ANDANTE MAESTOSO - ALLEGRO VIVACE Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840–1893) “HEDWIG’S THEME” FROM HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER’S STONE John Williams (b. 1932) ST. OLAF CHOIR & ST. OLAF ORCHESTRA COMBINED CONCERT PROGRAM I WILL LIGHT CANDLES THIS CHRISTMAS Kim André Arnesen (b. 1980) “IN THE HALL OF THE MOUNTAIN KING” FROM PEER GYNT, OP. 23, NO. 7 Edvard Grieg (1843–1907) 2 ST. OLAF CHOIR CONCERT PROGRAM * CANTATE DOMINO Claudio Monteverdi (1567–1643) HEAR MY PRAYER, O LORD Henry Purcell (1659–1695) ALLELUJAH (LOBET DEN HERRN, Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750) ALLE HEIDEN BWV 230) * HVAD EST DU DOG SKJÖN Edvard Grieg (1843–1907) ALLELUIA (BRAZILIAN PSALM) Jean Berger (1909–2002) * ADORAMUS TE Matthew Peterson (b. 1984) O CRUX Mark Jennings (b. 1968) * ALLELUIA Jake Runestad (b. 1986) * O DAY FULL OF GRACE Christoph E.F. Weyse (1774–1842) / arr. F. Melius Christiansen (1871–1955) * SANCTUS (LONDON) Ola Gjeilo (b. 1978) WHEN MEMORY FADES Jayne Southwick Cool (b. 1947) / arr. Eric Nelson (b. 1959) MY HEART IS LONGING arr. Leland Sateren (1913–2007) * NORGE, MITT NORGE Alfred Paulsen (1849–1956) / arr. Kenneth Jennings (1925–2015) * PÅL PÅ HAUGEN arr. Bradley Ellingboe (b. 1958) ROCKIN’ JERUSALEM arr. André J. Thomas (b. 1952) * AMAZING GRACE arr. Keith McCutchen (b. 1964) * HERE’S ONE arr. Mark Hayes (b. 1953) * WALK TOGETHER, CHILDREN arr. Moses G. Hogan Jr. (1957–2003) CHILDREN OF THE HEAVENLY FATHER arr. Robert Scholz (b. 1939) GLORIA arr. André J. Thomas (b. 1952) * BEAUTIFUL SAVIOR arr. F. Melius Christiansen (1871–1955) * To be selected from during combined concerts 2019 NORWAY TOUR 3 ORCHESTRA PROGRAM NOTES OVERTURE TO THE SCHOOL FOR SCANDAL that placed you in that world, Samuel Barber (1910–1981) and me in this; or that misfortune placed these worlds in us. Today, the name Samuel Barber almost always accompanies a singular piece, Adagio for Strings. This piece is dedicated to my father, who was a During the years before Adagio was written, Barber soldier during the Vietnam War. In talking to him, it was a little-known but rising star, earning two occurred to me that as we grow older, we Bearns Prizes, one for his first work for full accumulate worlds of intense memory within us, orchestra, The School for Scandal overture. and that grief is often not far from joy. I like the idea that music can reflect painful and blissful The piece propelled Barber into the eyes of the sentiments in a single note or gesture, and sought music world in 1933 after its premiere with the to create a sound palette that I hope is at once Philadelphia Orchestra. The title of the piece completely new and strangely familiar to the comes from the play The School for Scandal by listener. Richard Sheridan, but it is not intended to be incidental music for the play; rather he intended it — Notes by the composer, Missy Mazzoli “as a musical reflection of the play’s spirit.” The exciting spirit of the play is immediately recognizable in the music through its fast rhythms, NORWEGIAN DANCE, OP. 35, NO. 1 colorful harmonies, and playful motifs and Edvard Grieg (1843–1907) melodies. This opener showcases many aspects of orchestral playing, and for that, The School for Performed in loving memory of St. Olaf Professor of Scandal overture maintains a place as a fine Norwegian, Margaret Hayford O’Leary selection in any concert program. Edvard Grieg, one of the most performed and — Notes by William Beimers ’20 well-known Norwegian Romantic composers, had a keen interest in music from a young age. He attended regular musical gatherings at his home, THESE WORLDS IN US which helped him gain a love for the music of Missy Mazzoli (b. 1980) Mozart, Weber, and Chopin. At fifteen, he began his formal musical studies at the Conservatory of The title These Worlds In Us comes from James Leipzig, which shaped his path as a composer. Tate’s poem “The Lost Pilot,” a meditation on his father’s death in World War II: Primarily a pianist, Grieg wrote Norwegian Dances for piano duet in 1880. Hans Sitt, a member of the (excerpt) Brodsky Quartet, arranged the four dances for My head cocked towards the sky, orchestra in 1888. These dances retain the strong I cannot get off the ground, sense of Norwegian nationalism and folksong- and you, passing over again, inspired rhythmic and harmonic elements charac- fast, perfect and unwilling teristic of Grieg’s music. Dance No. 1 begins with to tell me that you are doing an exciting chord, which takes off into a fiery dance well, or that it was a mistake 4 with elements reminiscent of “In the Hall of the clarinets in the first movement, known as the Mountain King” from Grieg’s Peer Gynt. A seamless “fate” theme. This distinct, haunting line is transition brings the listener’s attention to a woven throughout the symphony but is most beautiful, singing oboe solo, which is then passed obviously reintroduced to open the fourth off to the strings. After several iterations of the movement, this time reimagined in a major key. lyrical melody, the fiery dance section returns, This transformation outlines a personal journey for ending in a multitude of chords, a last breath of the Tchaikovsky: the understated clarinet melody from melody, and a final punch to end the dance. the first movement has developed into a heroic series of major chords that are impossible to — Notes by Claire Folson ’20 ignore. Tchaikovsky’s fate, whatever it may be, has been not only accepted over the course of the symphony, but is celebrated in the final chords of SYMPHONY NO. 5 IN E MINOR, OP. 64 the last movement. IV. ANDANTE MAESTOSO - ALLEGRO VIVACE Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840–1893) — Notes by Penelope Musto ’21 Plagued by a troubled and unstable youth, Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s personal struggles and untreated “HEDWIG’S THEME” FROM HARRY POTTER depression made him a tortured soul in his adult AND THE SORCERER’S STONE life, providing the backdrop against which his later John Williams (b. 1932) music, specifically the Fifth Symphony, is best understood. His plan for the first movement reads: “The success of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series has been a heartwarming phenomenon to all those “Introduction. Complete resignation before who love books. The worldwide reception that Fate, or, which is the same, before the these works have received added greatly to the inscrutable predestination of Providence. sense of privilege that I felt when I was given the Allegro (I) Murmurs, doubts, plaints, reproaches honor of composing music for the film version of against XXX. (II) Shall I throw myself in the Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. The story’s embraces of faith???” imaginative array of wizards flying on broomsticks and mail-delivering owls, all occupying a wondrous The meaning of “XXX” has been debated by world of magic, offered a unique canvas for music, musicologists, but the widely agreed upon and the prospect of sharing it with some part of explanation is that it is a reference to his the great army of readers who love these books is a homosexuality, which was not a matter of public great joy to me.” knowledge for fear of prosecution and ridicule. However, whether “XXX” refers to Tchaikovsky’s — Williams on composing music for the concealed sexuality, his gambling addiction, or Harry Potter film series some other struggle altogether, it is clear that the concept is one of emotional turmoil and ultimate acceptance. With Tchaikovsky’s own words in mind, the main motto, introduced solemnly by the 2019 NORWAY TOUR 5 COMBINED CONCERT CHORAL TEXTS I WILL LIGHT CANDLES THIS CHRISTMAS “IN THE HALL OF THE MOUNTAIN KING” Kim André Arnesen (b. 1980) FROM PEER GYNT, OP. 23, NO. 7 (Boosey & Hawkes) Edvard Grieg (1843–1907) I will light Candles this Christmas; (The royal hall of the Old Man of the Dovre [the Candles of joy despite all sadness; Mountain King].