Brent Flinchbaugh, trumpet
Kristina Lobenhofer, piano
Senior Recital
October 30, 2004
Griswold Hall
Peabody Conservatory
For pictures of the recital click here.
Sonatine pour trompette et piano
Jean Francaix (1912-1997)
I. Prelude
II. Sarabande
III. Gigue
Jean Francaix (1912-1997), a student of Nadia Boulanger at the Paris Conservatory, composed with great facility and consistent wit. His works demonstrate effortless charm in traditional French settings. In 1952, after the Paris Conservatory began hiring composers to write a new piece each year for competition within departments, Francaix wrote his Sonatine for trumpet and piano. This obviously French piece begins with a light-hearted Prelude. Next, in one of the most beautiful yet odd second movements of any trumpet sonata, the composer weaves long, beautiful melodies in the muted trumpet over the piano, then changes to have trumpet play accompaniment to piano. But, while still in the second movement, Francaix inserts a wildly schizophrenic, unaccompanied trumpet passage. After a brief piano introduction (of four measures) the trumpet takes over the melodious Gigue until the final, tantalizing rip to high c.
Sonata for horn, trumpet, and trombone
Francis Poulenc (1889-1963)
I. Allegro Moderato
II. Andante
III. Rondeau
Aaron Brant, French horn
Gregory Campbell, trombone
Francis Poulenc (1899-1963), also a Parisian composer, always believed that above all music was written and performed to be enjoyed. In 1922, a time when brass chamber music was extremely uncommon, Poulenc wrote his Sonata for horn, trumpet, and trombone. The first and third movements are spirited, energetic, and rhythmic while the second movement laments a melancholy theme. The sonata posses many traditionally French folk and popular qualities that leave audiences filled with spirit and vigor.
Sonata fur Trompete und Klavier
Paul Hindemith (1895-1963)
I. Mit Kraft
II. Massig bewegt-Lebhaft
III. Trauermusik. Sehr langsam;Ruhid bewegt-
Alle Menschen mussen sterbenn. Sehr ruhig
Paul Hindemith (1895-1963), born near Frankfurt, Germany, began his musical training as a violinist and composer, but later changed to viola. As a composer, Hindemith possessed a unique style of harmony and counterpoint, and an uncommon ability to write in a multitude of styles, from expressionism to neoclassicism to jazz. His concern with so many branches of music sprang from a sense of ethical responsibility that inevitably became more acute with the rise of the Nazi regime. Hindemith's Sonata for trumpet and piano, written in 1939, is almost programmatic in nature. The first movement possesses a distinct disintegration of rhythmic continuity between the trumpet and piano. As the movement progresses to the final statement of the original theme, the piano and trumpet seem to be playing different meters simultaneously. Hindemith treats the rhythmic destruction symbolically as the socio-political destruction of Europe in the 1930's. The second movement is light and playful in nature; a breath of fresh air between two movements filled with despair. The third movement depicts a funeral scene. After a piano introduction, the trumpet sounds a call to worship followed by a sorrowful, moaning melody that soars overtop the piano. A rolling 12/8 melody depicts the walk to the grave sight. Once there, a soprano soloist laments a tragic melody with sparse piano accompaniment. After a lengthy pause the German hymn Alle Menschen mussen sterben (All Men Must Die) closes Hindemith's Sonata, leaving a feeling of dispair and loss in its silence. (Notes adapted from conversation between Paul Hindemith and John Ware, former principal trumpet of the New York Philharmonic (relayed via Chris Gekker).
Haroutiun (Resurrection)
Alan Hovhaness (1911-2000)
I. Aria
II. Fugue
Christopher Kovalchick, violin
Jina Lee, violin
Kyle Knipe, viola
Daniel Joebstl, cello
Matthew Boggs, bass
Alan Hovhaness (1911-2000), born in Somerville, Massachusetts, represents the only American composer on the program. Throughout his life, Hovhaness was a bit of a mystic, wandering the mountains of New England; he believed that mountains were "symbols, like pyramids of man's attempt to know God. Mountains are symbolic meeting places between the mundane and spiritual worlds." Unlike his well-known Prayer of St. Gregory, Haroutiun, which is Hovhaness' father's first name, is performed much less frequently, even though the Aria sounds much the same as Prayer.
Septet in E-flat Major, Op. 65
Camille Saint-Saens (1835-1931)
I. Preambule
II. Menuet
III. Intermede
IV. Gavotte et Finale
Christopher Kovalchick, violin
Jina Lee, violin
Kyle Knipe, viola
Daniel Joebstl, cello
Matthew Boggs, bass
Charles Camille Saint-Saens (1835-1921), a virtuoso pianist who made his debut at age ten and entered the Paris Conservatory at age thirteen, composed music of beautiful grace and elegance which make him one of France's best loved musicians. In 1881, Saint-Saens wrote his Septet Op. 65 at the invitation of La Societe de la Trompette. The unique scoring of trumpet, string quintet and piano illustrates his willingness to experiment with unusual combinations of instruments.
All program notes by Brent Flinchbaugh.
