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Daniel Canosa, Music Director

 

Prometheus’ Fire
November 3, 2024
4:00 PM
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FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

72 Kensington Road

San Anselmo, CA 94960

Tickets $25 online and at the door

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PROGRAM

 

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The Creatures of Prometheus, Op. 43

Overture to the Ballet

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827)

 

 

Pelléas et Mélisande

Suite from the incidental music to the play

Jean Sibelius (1865 - 1957)

 

I-   At the Castle Gate

II-  Mélisande

III-  At the Seashore

IV-   A Spring in the Park

V-   The Three Blind Sisters (Mélisande's Song)

VI-   Pastorale

VII-   Mélisande at the Spinning Wheel

VIII-   Entr'acte

XI-   The Death of Mélisande

 

Méditation

Symphonic intermezzo from the opera Thaïs

Jules Massenet (1842 - 1912)

            Brooke Aird, violin

 

Petite Suite

Orch. Henri Büsser

Claude Debussy (1862 - 1918)

 

I-   En bateau (Sailing): Andantino

II-   Cortège (Retinue): Moderato

III-   Menuet: Moderato

IV-   Ballet: Allegro giusto

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PROGRAM NOTES

The Creatures of Prometheus, Op. 43 (1801)

Overture to the Ballet

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827) 

The ballet is an allegory based on the mythical story of Prometheus- one of the Titans of Greek mythology – the supreme trickster, a god of fire. In his entire career Beethoven composed only one ballet score. The first performance of the Prometheus ballet was on March 28, 1801, in Vienna. Beethoven wrote an overture, an introduction, fifteen numbers and a finale. Read more.

 

Pelléas et Mélisande (1905)

Suite from the incidental music to the play

Jean Sibelius (1865–1957)  

Following a commission by the Swedish Theatre, Jean Sibelius wrote the music for Maurice Maeterlinck’s play Pelléas and Mélisande in 1905. The play, which was performed for the first time in 1893, was a notable symbolist work, and the music Sibelius wrote for it has perhaps the most symbolist atmosphere of all his works. The original incidental music included ten pieces. The first piece is the overture, which is perhaps the most sombre piece in the work. In the orchestral suite it is called “At the Castle Gate”. The second piece is equally dark; in the orchestral suite it is simply called “Mélisande”. A wistful cor anglais solo describes how Golaud finds Mélisande in the woods beside a spring. The third piece is called “At the Seashore” in the orchestral suite. The principal characters are standing on the seashore, watching a boat sail away. The fourth piece in the orchestral suite is “A Spring in the Park”. A waltz melody opens the scene, in which the principal characters go to a spring in the park. Mélisande drops the ring that Golaud has given her. The fifth piece is called “Mélisande at the Spinning-Wheel” in the orchestral suite. The music uses dark tones to depict the spinning of the wheel. The sixth piece is “The Three Blind Sisters” in the orchestral suite. Mélisande’s song is in the style of a ballad. The seventh piece is the “Pastorale” of the orchestral suite. Golaud and Pelléas discuss Mélisande’s pregnancy. Sibelius moves the scene forward from below the earth into the light of day. The eighth piece is the elegant and vivacious Entr’acte of the orchestral suite. In the play the principal characters agree upon a secret encounter. The ninth piece is missing from the orchestral suite. In an episode lasting about three minutes we hear the overture to a scene in which King Arkel converses with Mélisande. Golaud strikes the deceitful woman and kills Pelléas. The pearl of the incidental music is the extraordinarily beautiful “Death of Mélisande”. Other composers to write music for the play include Fauré, Debussy and Schoenberg. Read more. ​

 

Méditation from Thaïs (1888)

Jules Massenet (1842–1912)

Brooke Aird, violin soloist

Massenet’s “Thaïs” is a beautiful feat of musical drama. The opera, which premiered on March 16, 1894, is rich in its character development and Massenet’s own development as a dramatist. While the work is filled with glorious musical writing, there is no doubt that the single most iconic moment of the work is the dramatic midpoint – Thaïs’ meditation. Played by a solo violin, the passage is a lyrical gem that has found itself into concert halls and many recording studios. Read more.

 

Petite Suite (1889)

Claude Debussy (1862–1918)

arr. Paul Henri Busser (1872-1973)

Petite Suite was composed between 1886 and 1889, during a period when Debussy was experimenting with various musical forms and styles. The suite was originally written for piano four hands, a popular format in the 19th century, which allowed two pianists to perform together on one piano. This version was later orchestrated by Debussy’s contemporary, Henri Büsser, in 1907, making the work accessible to larger audiences through orchestral performances. The first movement, En Bateau (On a Boat), is a serene and flowing piece that captures the sensation of gently gliding over water. The second movement, Cortège (Procession),is lively and celebratory, depicting a joyful procession or parade. The third movement, Menuet, returns to a more refined and elegant character, typical of the traditional minuet dance form. This movement is graceful and poised, with a stately melody that evokes the elegance of 18th-century courtly dances. The final movement, Ballet, is a lively and spirited conclusion to the suite.  Read more.

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ORCHESTRA

Violin I

Brooke Aird, concertmaster

Harry Chomsky

Jeanette Isenberg

 

Violin II

Tara Flandreau

Pam Otsuka

Ariel Wang

 

Viola

Kathy Wright

Shawn Prudhomme

 

Cello

Joel Cohen

Margaret Moores

 

Bass

Kevin Gordon

Mark Culbertson

 

Flute

Carol Adee

Jane Lenoir

 

Oboe

Margot Golding

Keith Sklower

 

English horn

Keith Sklower

 

Clarinet

Kyle Beard

Matthew Rupert

 

Bassoon

Jay Benson

Steven Peterson

 

Horn

Beth Milne

Ruth Wilson

 

Trumpet

Mark Nemoyten

Sean Lane-Bortell

 

Timpani/Percussion

Christian Foster Howes

 

Harp

Anna Maria Mendieta

 

 

SOLOIST

Brooke Aird, violin

Brooke Aird studied at the Manhattan School of Music and did his first professional playing in Off-Broadway shows. He is a longtime member of The Marin Symphony, and has played in almost all of the San Francisco Bay Area orchestras at one time or another. An accomplished chamber musician, Brooke is a member of The Carol String Trio and was violinist in the new music group “Sounds New” with which he performed hundreds of compositions written by living American composers. As a soloist he has performed violin concertos by Bach, Bruch, Mozart, Tchaikovsky, and Prokofiev. In addition to music Brooke has been involved with food. He earned an Associate of Culinary Arts degree, and for a time ran a small catering company called “For The Love Of Food” with his wife.

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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

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Our most sincere thanks to the First Presbyterian Church of San Anselmo and Rev. Scott Clark for their support.

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