Daniel Canosa, Music Director
Integration
February 9, 2025
4:00 PM
ST. PAUL'S LUTHERAN CHURCH *
1658 Excelsior Avenue
Oakland, CA 94602
* Glenview Classical Series
Since 2018 the Glenview Classical Series has presented monthly concerts featuring talented local musicians. Co-curated by Lewis Patzner and Derek Sup, the series focuses on bringing classical music of all types to new audiences, They have programmed concerts themed around Bach, 20th century avant-garde, newly composed local music, and more.
PROGRAM
Canoeing Silver Lake
Alexis Alrich
Integration Orchestra Suite
Ariel Wang
Concerto for Clarinet No. 1, opus 73 in F minor
Carl Maria von Weber (1786 - 1826)
Kyle Beard, clarinet
I- Allegro
II- Adagio ma non troppo
III- Rondo: Allegretto
Overture, Scherzo & Finale, opus 52 in E minor
Robert Schumann (1810 - 1856)
I- Overture: Andante con moto - Allegro
II- Scherzo: Vivo
III- Finale: Allegro molto vivace
PROGRAM NOTES
Canoeing Silver Lake
Alexis Alrich
Note by Alexis Alrich
This piece was inspired by, as the title suggests, days spent exploring by canoe this beautiful lake to the south of Lake Tahoe in the Sierra Nevada mountains. Silver Lake sits in a bowl of pink granite boulders and is dotted with small islands. When I was there, the lake was calm, but the air almost vibrated with a palpable spirit from some combination of the sparkling air, the grand mountain views, the visible and hidden wildlife and the brilliant blue water.
The piece begins in a quiet mood, evoking the gentle rhythm of paddling, and hints of fish rising over a stretch of tranquil water. In this boundless landscape, harmonies and melodies float freely in and out of the mind’s ear.
However, the jagged peaks in the distance suggest more powerful weather and conditions. The music progresses into stormy passages. The rhythm becomes more erratic and challenging with changing meters and a faster tempo. Gradually this mood dissipates and the calm returns, with a hint of the syncopation just barely disturbing the waters.
Integration Orchestra Suite
Ariel Wang
Note by Ariel Wang
I wrote this piece as a part of my life-long journey integrating the many aspects of my life which sometimes feel at odds with each other. As an independent woman, an artist and intellectual, caught between two cultures, who grew up with a very mixed background all over the US, one of the hardest things in my life has been taking those often contrasting experiences and trying to make sense of them all. This piece is a sonic illustration of that struggle, and primarily draws from my background and love for folk and classical music, and especially the Chinese folk-style music that I grew up listening to from children's song tapes to movie musicals.
Concerto for Clarinet No. 1, opus 73 in F minor
Carl Maria von Weber (1786-1826)
Note by James Leonard
Carl Maria von Weber composed his Clarinet Concerto No. 1 in F minor, Op. 73, in 1811 after his Concertino for Clarinet and Orchester in E flat major, Op. 26, and before his Clarinet Concerto No. 2 in E flat major, Op. 74. All three works were written for and dedicated to the clarinetist Heinrich Joseph Baermann, and all three show a complete understanding of the capabilities of the instrument. Weber's Clarinet Concerto No. 1 is distinctly different from the earlier concertino: where the earlier work is lightly playful and lyrically expressive, the Concerto No. 1 is deeply serious and dramatically, almost operatically, expressive. The concerto is in three movements: a forceful opening Allegro, an intensely expressive central Adagio, and an energetic closing Rondo Allegretto. Weber is clearly a master of the Romantic orchestra, and his writing for the soloists is supremely skillful throughout. Additional reading...
Overture, Scherzo & Finale, opus 52 in E minor
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
Note by Georg Predota, Interlude
Used with permission
With the wider oeuvre of Schumann’s orchestral compositions, the Overture, Scherzo and Finale always stood in the shadow of the four symphonies. As a scholar wrote, “to this day, audiences have failed to grasp the work’s inventive concept as a lighter-weight symphony that was easy to understand, lacking a slow movement and consisting of three independent movements that could be played individually.”
The melodies are certainly high-spirited and lyrical throughout, and Schumann employed a comparatively light scoring. The “Overture” is a small-scale sonata form prefaced by a gloomy introduction in the minor key. Two contrasting themes enjoy a jovial conversation, and a brief coda brings this light movement to a close. The dance-like “Scherzo” harkens back to Schumann’s early piano pieces, and the “Finale” brims with contrapuntal confidence. A scholar writes, “Given the freshness of its musical ideas, the tight formal discipline and the relatively transparent orchestration, this piece deserves to be counted among Schumann’s finest orchestral works." Read full note...
FEATURED COMPOSERS
Alexis Alrich, Composer
Alexis Alrich began piano and composition lessons at age eight.
Her composition studies continued at the New England Conservatory of Music, California Institute of the Arts, and with Lou Harrison at Mills College where she got her master’s degree in music composition.
Her musical style is based on traditional Western classical music, with influences including minimalism, French Impressionism, gamelan, Chinese music and American roots music. Her style is melodic and tonal, using lively rhythms and colorful timbres to weave a musical narrative.
Her music has received critical praise: “From its shimmering opening, Alexis Alrich’s substantial three-movement Marimba Concerto creates a distinctively lyrical world. The insistent rhythmic patterns of minimalism sit naturally alongside calmer, more impressionistic textures…” – BBC Music (Concertos for Mallet Instruments CD review).
She has received numerous grants and commissions, most recently a grant from the California Arts Council for the project Wolf Creek Anthem. Two CDs of her orchestral works have been released on Naxos Records: Marimba Concerto performed by Evelyn Glennie and the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong, and Bell and Drum Tower performed by the Janaček Philharmonic.
Ariel Wang, Composer and Violinist
Ariel Wang began studying violin at the age of nine, and since then has earned a Masters of Music in Violin Performance from San Francisco State University. As a part of her studies at SF State, she also began composing instrumental music. She has composed multiple string quartets, a suite of pieces about Oakland, pieces for the Composer Arranger Performer Orchestra (CAPO), with which she also plays, vocal songs and more. She has mentored with Ryan Shore through the Recording Academy’s composer/songwriter wing, and just completed her first orchestral piece.
As a violinist, Ariel performs and composes music for CAPO and her composer collective through Glenview Classical. She has performed with multiple artists and groups including Miss Lauryn Hill and the Fugees, Stockton Symphony, Chuck Prophet, Meernaa, Oakland Symphony, Kev Choice, Jazz Mafia, Free Key Choir, Bicicletas Por La Paz, Awesome Orchestra, Matt Montgomery, Sapphire Lung and Django Moves to Portland. She has recorded for Aneesa Strings, Artemisia, Kombos Music, Molly James, Catch Prichard and Rachel Lark.
SOLOIST
Kyle Beard, Clarinet
Kyle Beard enjoys a varied musical career in the Bay Area. He is active as a performer on clarinet and bass clarinet (along with occasional saxophone!) with numerous groups across Northern California, including the Luke Doughty Quartet, North State Symphony, the Slow Wave trio, ECHO Chamber Orchestra, Symphony Parnassus, and the Bay Area Rainbow Symphony.
In addition to performing, Kyle is also a dedicated educator, working as an orchestral and reed instrument coach at Berkeley High School, as well as with various schools in Oakland, CA through the Oakland Symphony's MUSE program. He also maintains a private studio, and has had students gain admission to schools such as San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Boston Conservatory/Berklee College of Music, and the Peabody Conservatory.
When not teaching or performing, Kyle is the owner and technician for RBK Winds, a repair shop in Oakland, CA performing instrument repairs for professionals in the Bay Area in addition to the public schools in San Francisco and Oakland.
Kyle received his training at the Peabody Conservatory with Steven Barta, at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music with Luis Baez, and with Michael Sussman at UMass Amherst.
CONDUCTOR
Daniel Canosa
One of the best conductors of his generation, Argentine-born Daniel Canosa has led orchestras in Argentina, the United States, and Europe with performances of symphonic and choral masterworks from all periods. Currently living in California, he is the music director and conductor of ECHO Chamber Orchestra, artistic director and conductor of the Apollo Symphony Orchestra, the music director of Marin Baroque, and Director of Music at First Presbyterian Church in San Anselmo. More...
ORCHESTRA
Violin I
Jeanette Isenberg, concertmaster
Pam Otsuka
Harry Chomsky
Violin II
Ariel Wang
Tara Flandreau
Susanne Wong
Viola
Kathy Wright
Steve Machtiger
Bob Williams
Cello
Lewis Patzner
Ami Nashimoto
Bass
Kevin Gordon
Mark Culbertson
Flute
Carol Adee
Jane Lenoir
Oboe
Margot Golding
Emilia Lopez-Yanez
Clarinet
Kyle Beard
Matthew Rupert
Bassoon
Jay Benson
Lynn Hileman
Horn
Beth Milne
Ruth Wilson
Trumpet
Brendan Wilhelmsen
Sean Lane-Bortell
Timpani
Christian Foster Howes
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Glenview Classical Series
Next Concerts
Friday, March 21, 7:30 PM
Reicha Society presents string quartets by three Czech composers
Sunday, April 21, 4:00 PM
Founders Concert
Lewis Patzner and Derek Sup present a program of music by the greats and each other.
Donors
Founder ($1000+) - Bill Steelman, Anonymous, Stephanie Oana & Joe Osha, The Spalding-Picchi Family Fund, Sheila Schwartzburg, Sandy & John Sup, St. Paul Endowment, Ross Merkel Symphony ($500-999) - Craig McNamara, CA Arts Council, Anonymous, Michelle Schmitt, Mary-Beth Meyer & Laurie Watters, Judy & Gary Pence, Elli Ganelin, Joanne & Alex Swedlow Sonata ($250-499) - Pastor Bagatelle ($100-249) - David Haeker, Christine Sinnott, Kimberley Webster & Barry Stone, Szari Bourque, Naomi Teplow, Ruth Haven Bourque, Gary Ditlefsen, Carla Picchi & Kurt Patzner, Jerry Metzker
The Glenview Classical Series is a 501(C)3 non-profit organization, and all contributions are tax-deductible. Donors who contribute over $100 will be recognized in our concert programs. If you donate $100, you will be included in the respectable Bagatelle tier, a donation of $250-$499 will earn you a spot in the illustrious Sonata tier, and a contribution of $500-$999 will etch your name in the preëminent Symphony tier. If you are able to generously donate more than $1000, you will be recognized as a Founding Donor. Of course you are also free to remain anonymous for your contribution if you so please.
Donations
We receive donations through Paypal at glenviewclassicalseries@gmail.com or by checks made out to Glenview Classical Series, which can be mailed to 1658 Excelsior Ave, Oakland CA 94602, or given to us physically at our next concert.
Instagram: @glenviewclassicalseries
http://www.stpaul-lutheran.com
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ECHO Staff and Steering Committee
Carol Adee, Personnel Manager
Kyle Beard, Treasurer and Grants
Jane Lenoir, Development
Ruth Wilson, Publicity
Matt Rupert, Social Media
Kevin Gordon, Graphic Design
Beth Milne, Librarian
Our most sincere thanks to the First Presbyterian Church of San Anselmo and Rev. Scott Clark for their support.