Videos
The Evanston Symphony Orchestra is proud to provide videos to educate you about the pieces we perform and, at times, the soloists who will be performing. The video(s) below are examples only and do not represent performances by the Evanston Symphony Orchestra unless noted.
Debussy
Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun
details to come
Poulenc
Concerto for Organ,
Strings and Timpani
details to come
Respighi
Roman Festivals (IV)
The dazzling finale to Feste Romane: "La Befana" (the Epiphany).
Our Soloist
David Schrader, organ
Equally at home in front of a harpsichord, organ, piano, or fortepiano, David Schrader is "truly an extraordinary musician ... (who) brings not only the unfailing right technical approach to each of these different instruments, but always an imaginative, fascinating musicality to all of them" (Norman Pelligrini, WFMT, Chicago). A performer of wide ranging interests and accomplishments, Mr. Schrader has performed at the American Guild of Organists’ national convention on four occasions performing as a featured artist with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, and the Colorado Symphony Orchestra. Mr. Schrader has appeared as a soloist on organ and on harpsichord with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra having performed under the direction of Sir Georg Solti, Daniel Barenboim, and Pierre Boulez. He has also appeared with the and Chicago's Grant Park Symphony under Carlos Kalmar, and with many other orchestras throughout the United States and Canada.
In addition, Mr. Schrader has appeared at the Brooklyn Academy of Music as the repetiteur and principal harpsichordist in Chicago Opera Theater’s highly acclaimed production of "Orfeo" under Jane Glover. He was the featured performer at the prestigious Irving Gilmore Keyboard Festival, performing concerts on organ, harpsichord and clavichord. And, Mr. Schrader appeared as a soloist at the Ravina Festival under the direction of Nicholas McGegan performing all six of the Bach Brandenberg Concertos.
Mr. Schrader has appeared at numerous music festivals throughout the United States and Europe. He performed as the Artist of the Year at the Oulunsalo Soi Music Festival in Oulu, Finland. He was the harpsichord soloist with the Nagaokakyo Chamber Ensemble in a tour of Japan under Yuko Mori and the Canadian baroque orchestra Tafelmusik in a European tour, He has also performed at the Aspen Music Festival, the Michigan Mozartfest with Roger Norrington, the Connecticut Early Music Festival, the Manitou Music Festival, and the Woodstock Mozart Festival where he performed as soloist and conductor.
A resident of Chicago, Mr. Schrader leads an active musical life at home. He performs with Baroque Band (Chicago's period instrument orchestra), Music of the Baroque, the Newberry Consort, and Bach Week in Evanston. Mr. Schrader has appeared with Chicago Chamber Musicians, Contemporary Chamber Players, Chicago Baroque Ensemble, and The City Musick. He is a frequent guest on WFMT radio (Chicago) on recordings and in live broadcasts as part of WFMT's "Live From Studio One" programming.
Mr. Schrader's recording with Grant Park Symphony of music for organ and orchestra by American composers is the first recording of the Casavant Frères organ in Chicago's Symphony Center which was described by John von Rhein of the Chicago Tribune as a "rich palette of sounds and deft rhythmic interplay ...Schrader's 17th recording for the Chicago-based indie label may be his best yet. Go for it,"
Mr. Schrader's other recordings include concerti of J. S. Bach with the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra, and continuo with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for both recordings of Sir Georg Solti's "Creation", and the "St. Matthew Passion" and "Messiah". Mr. Schrader has many releases of solo repertoire on the Cedille label, including the music of J.S. Bach, Soler, Franck, Vivaldi, Dupre and Domenico Scarlatti. His recording of Soler "Fandango & Sonatas" was described thus "We have never heard more beautiful, natural, realistic harpsichord sound .. The playing? Excellent ... There is no better recording on CD" (American Record Guide). "The popular ‘Fandango’ has perhaps never received so exhilarating a reading" (Chicago Tribune). "His recording of J. S. Bach "Fantasies & Fugues" "captures the sense of improvisatory, virtuosic energy that is to be found so plentifully in this music." (Continuo) Mr. Schrader has also recorded for the Centaur and CRI labels.
Mr. Schrader is on the faculty of Roosevelt University, Chicago College of Performing Arts - Music Conservatory for performance and academic studies where he has taught both graduate and undergraduate courses since 1986. From 1993 through 1995 he also directed the Collegium Musicum at Northwestern University. He has also taught at the Music Institute of Chicago (formerly know as The Music Center of the North Shore.) Since 1980, he has been the organist of the Church of the Ascension, whose liturgies command a national reputation for musical integrity.
Mr. Schrader received a Doctor of Music degree in organ from Indiana University as well as the coveted Performer's Certificate. He received a Bachelor of Music in piano and a Bachelor of Music in organ from the University of Colorado. His principal teachers have been Storm Bull, Abbey Simon, Oswald Ragatz, Anthony Newman and Everett Jay Hilty.
Sunday, June 16, 2013
2:30 pm
Pick-Staiger Concert Hall
50 Arts Circle Drive, Evanston
Our spectacular season finale showcases the virtuosity of the entire ESO in French favorites, including a performance of the Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun to mark the 150th birthday of Debussy. David Schrader reveals the full power of the organ in both Poulenc’s concerto as well as in Respighi’s portrait of Rome, which also includes mandolins, Roman trumpets, and nine percussion players.
Program
Dukas
- Fanfare: La Péri
Saint Saëns
- Danse Macabre
Poulenc
- Concerto for Organ,
Strings and Timpani
- David Schrader, Organ
Debussy
- Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun
Respighi
- Roman Festivals
Tickets
Buy Tickets
INDIVIDUAL CONCERT TICKETS:
Advance Sales:
$28 Adult, $23 Seniors
Children 12 and younger are admitted absolutely FREE.
Please call 847.864.8804 or email tickets@evanstonsymphony.org for all orders with
children’s tickets.
Box Office Sales:
$35 Adult, $30 Seniors
Children 12 and younger are admitted absolutely FREE.
$5.00 Student Tickets, subject to availability, at the box office with ID.
Group discounts are available for parties of 10 or more. Please call 847.864.8804 for further information
Friday, June 14, 2013 at 1:30 PM
North Shore Retirement Hotel
1611 Chicago Ave., Evanston
FREE.
Program Notes
by David Ellis
FANFARE: LA PÉRI
Paul Dukas (1865–1935)
The entry on Paul Dukas in the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians divides his compositions into two categories: Surviving Works and Destroyed/Projected Works. His ruthless standards for craftsmanship meant that only 15 works have survived, the most important of which are the Symphony in C Major, the Piano Sonata in E Flat Minor, the opera Ariane et Barbe-Bleu, the ballet La Péri, and The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, whose popularity has overshadowed all of his other compositions. La Péri was premiered in Paris in 1912 and was the last of his major compositions. The short fanfare, for a normal complement of brass, was added just before the premiere to precede the 20 minute ballet.
DANSE MACABRE
Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921)
The catalogue of Saint-Saëns’ works comprises close to 200 listings, a reflection of both his facility at composing and his long life. The Danse Macabre was originally a two minute song for baritone and piano (1872), which was then transformed into a tone poem for orchestra and premiered in 1874. The orchestration includes the violin of the concertmaster being intentionally mistuned to create the dissonance known as “diabolus in musica” (the devil is frequently associated with the fiddle) and a prominent part for the xylophone, representing bones rattling. The very first sound of the piece is the harp chiming 12 times to indicate midnight. The mistuned violin enters and the orchestration expands as the dance intensifies. A short fugato (a miniature fugue) leads to a paraphrase of the medieval Dies Irae chant used to depict the day of wrath. At the peak of the frenzied dance, the cock (the oboe) crows, signifying sunrise and the end of the dance.
CONCERTO FOR ORGAN, STRINGS AND TIMPANI IN G MINOR
Francis Poulenc (1899–1962)
Poulenc was born into a wealthy family, which gave him the ability to compose
full-time without financial worries. He took full advantage of the Parisian
social scene and night-life, and his compositions of the 1920’s, full of wit and catchy tunes, reflected this environment. However, in 1936 his closest friend was killed in a car
accident, deeply affecting both Poulenc and his music. Poulenc renewed his deep
Catholic faith and the Organ Concerto, premiered in Paris in 1938, was his
first major work after this change. Poulenc wrote to his friend Jean Francaix: “The concerto …is not the amusing Poulenc of the Concerto for two pianos, but more like a Poulenc en route for the cloister.”
Poulenc studied the organ works of Bach and Buxtehude and was advised by the organist/composer Maurice Durufle while composing the concerto. It is comprised of seven sections (whose tempo markings are shown on the program page) which alternate austere harmonies in the slower sections with tunes reminscent of his earlier “popular” style in the faster parts. The arresting opening from the organ returns at the end to frame the concerto’s 22 minutes.
PRELUDE TO THE AFTERNOON OF A FAUN
Claude Debussy (1862–1918)
Debussy is arguably the greatest of all French composers, and the Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun is both the earliest of his masterpieces and one of the most influential works in the history of music. It has been described both as the first work of twentieth century music and as the start of musical Impressionism. The Prelude is based upon a poem by Stéphane Mallarmé about a faun (half man, half goat) daydreaming about possibly non-existent nymphs.
A faun is typically depicted playing a panpipe, so Debussy opens with a long
flute melody, one of the most famous solos in the orchestral literature. This theme is without
strong tonality and lacks a definitive feeling of an ending. After several
minutes, the woodwind section plus horn in unison introduce a contrasting theme
in the style of Debussy’s more overtly romantic works, such as Clair de Lune. The climax of the piece is reached with the restatement of this romantic theme by the strings, after which
the flute melody is recapitulated leading to an evanescent conclusion.
ROMAN FESTIVALS
Ottorino Respighi (1879–1936)
Respighi is that rarity, an Italian composer better known for his orchestral works than for his operas. His renown is primarily based on his trilogy of symphonic poems depicting and glorifying Rome: The Fountains of Rome (1917), The Pines of Rome (1924), and Roman Festivals (premiered 1929 in New York City under Arturo Toscanini).
Roman Festivals is the largest of the trilogy, both in length and in the size of its orchestra, which includes an organ, three buccine (ancient trumpets), mandolin, piano (4 hands) and a percussion battery requiring ten players. Like the other two symphonic poems, it is in four sections; Respighi provided these (paraphrased) interpretations:
Circus Games. It is the people’s holiday at the Circus Maximus, where under a threatening sky Christians martyrs are fed to wild beasts.
The Jubilee. Pilgrims trail down a long road praying, until they see Rome. A hymn of praise bursts forth and the churches ring out their reply.
Harvest Festival in October. Echoes of the hunt, tinkling bells, songs of love. Then in the tender twilight the mandolin plays a romantic serenade.
