Piano Ensemble Program Mar 25, 2018
This program features teams of pianists playing two grand pianos, with a varied repertory.
- Dorothy Bognar and Connie Hegarty will play Robert Schumann's. Andante and Variations, Op .46 and George Gershwin 's, S’Wonderful/Funny Face, arr. Paul Posnak (2007).
- Maryjane Peluso and Allison Platt will play Legend in D Minor, Op. 59, No.1, Slavonic Dance in E Minor, Op.72, No.2, Legend in G Minor Op. 59, No. 3 and Slavonic Dance in C Major, Op. 46, No.1, all by Antonín Dvořák.
- Stacy Cahoon and Diane Day will play Scaramouche Suite for 2 Pianos, Op.165b by Darius Milhaud and Samba Triste from Divertimento Suite for Two Pianos by Richard Rodney Bennett.
- Soohyung Yoo and Munkyung Kim will play a Carmen Fantasy for Two Pianos: Based on Themes by George Bizet, by Greg Anderson (b. 1981).
Admission free.
PROGRAM
Robert Schumann - Andante and Variations, Op.46 (1843)
Robert Schumann's Andante and Variations was the only piece he wrote for two pianos. It was originally written for two pianos, two cellos and French horn. Not happy with the original version after hearing its first performance in March, 1843, and at the urging of his wife Clara and his friend Felix Mendelssohn, Schumann rewrote the piece, eliminating the cellos and horn, and cutting out several passages and variations.
The piece now contains a 32-bar theme, followed by four variations, then a 16-bar restatement of the theme, three more variations, and one last reiteration of the theme leading directly to a tranquil coda with a wonderful spinning down effect. The variations vary in length. Even though the horn part was removed, the sixth variation evokes the heroic sound of a full choir of horns. The treatment of the pianos gives the effect of a dialogue between two people who are so close that they finish each other's sentences, lend support while the other one is talking, and even alternate singing individual words in the 1st variation. There is no hint of dueling personalities here - these two are definitely on the same wave length.
The new version was introduced by Clara Schumann and Felix Mendelssohn. The original version was not performed again until Johannes Brahms and Clara Schumann played it in 1868; and that version was not actually published until 1893 (as WoO 10).
George Gershwin - S’Wonderful/Funny Face, arr. Paul Posnak (2007)
Wanting to fill a regrettable void in the repertoire of Gershwin arrangements for two pianos, Paul Posnak created and published a group of four pieces, including this medley. His aim was to capture Gershwin’s bravura orchestral style as heard in original solo recordings, a style which featured “wonderful inner voices, contrapuntal runs, jazz figurations, sophisticated chordal textures, and swing.”
Dorothy Bognar and Connie Hegarty, duo pianists
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Legend in D Minor, Op.59, No.1
Slavonic Dance in E Minor, Op.72, No.2
Legend in G Minor Op. 59. No. 3
Slavonic Dance in C Major, Op.46, No.1
All by Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904)
Maryjane Peluso and Allison Platt, duo pianists
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Carmen Fantasy for Two Pianos: Based on Themes by George Bizet arranged by Greg Anderson (b. 1981)
The Carmen Fantasy for Two Pianos weaves together several distinct scenes from Georges Bizet's beloved opera Carmen. Several themes from the opera are heard, such as the "Danse Bohémienne”, “Aragonaise", the famous "Habanera", and the "Card Aria". The fantasy concludes with a party scene from the beginning of Act II, in which Carmen and her friends entertain army officer with a song about gypsy girls. The music accelerates to a grand finale in a whirlwind of fevered rhythm, Basque tambourins, and ecstatic dance.
Soohyung Yoo and Munkyung Kim, duo pianists
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Scaramouche Suite for 2 Pianos, Op. 165b by Darius Milhaud
Milhaud was a French composer, teacher and conductor and one of the most prolific composers in the 20th century. The name “Scaramouche” comes from Theatre Scaramouche which has productions aimed towards children. Milhaud produced some music for them. At the same time in the summer of 1937, he was composing various works for the Paris International Exposition. One of the things he needed to prepare was a duo piano work for Marguerite Long and Milhaud's old friend Marcelle Meyer (who later recorded it on a 78 rpm record). He completed it in time of the exposition and it was a great hit. Eventually he agreed to give the rights to the publisher Deiss. The two outer movements of the suite were recycled from two pieces from Le médecin volant and for the slower middle movement he extracted a piece written for Jules Superville's 1936 play Bolivar. The finished structure is as follows: 1. "Vif," 2. "Modéré," 3. "Brazileira" (Mouvement de Samba). There are many other instrumental versions written by Milhaud and that included lyrics for Brazileira later on.
Samba Triste from Divertimento Suite for Two Pianos by Richard Rodney Bennett
Sir Richard Rodney Bennett was born in England in 1936 to musical parents. He became a famous British composer of over 200 works for the concert hall and 50 scores for film and television. He also was a well known jazz pianist and was in New York from 1979 till his death in 2012. The Samba Triste is part of a Four Piece Suite which was composed in 1974 and first performed by the composer and Susan Bradshaw in a BBC broadcast. In 1975 in Australia was the 1st real public performance. The work was later used for the ballet by Dance Prism which was performed in London in 1976. His love of jazz is heard throughout all 4 of these movements.
Stacy Cahoon and Diane Day
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BIOS
Dorothy Bognar holds B.A. and M.A. degrees in music from the University of California (Santa Barbara and Berkeley) and an MLS from UC Berkeley. She served as Head of the University of Connecticut Music Library from 1969-1998. Subsequently she has been teaching piano, playing keyboard in the swing band Flamingo, and performing both solo and ensemble music. She has performed in numerous duo-piano concerts and as a solo pianist.
rvatory Alumni Concert. Also Ms. Kim performed as piano duo with Heejin Ku at Sejong Center for Performing Arts.In the United States, Russia, and Korea, Ms. Kim has actively participated in master classes and music festivals. Ms. Kim conducted the master class with Leon Fleisher at the William Kapell International Piano Competition & Festival, led the master class with Noel Lee and Gyorgy Sandor in NY, and participated in the Tchaikovsky Conservatory and Foundation sponsored master class with Yuri Bogdanov.
Ms. Kim had numerous recitals and chamber concerts and also has been awarded many prizes in competitions. Ms. Kim appeared as a soloist with the Bulgarian National Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Seoul City Philharmonic Orchestra. Ms. Kim also has selected as New Rising Artist by Korean Piano Association in 2006. In addition, Ms. Kim has been awarded for Piano Competition by National Young Artist Competition, by Korean Piano Association, and by Music Journal. Recent performances include appearances at Gildenhorn Hall and Dekelboum Hall of Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center in Maryland, Miriam Friedberg Hall, Goodwin Hall, Cohen-Davison Theater and Griswold Hall in Baltimore, Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall in NY, Kennedy Center Terrace Theater, Ewon Cultural Center, Mozart Hall, Ceramic Palace Hall, Sejong Center for Performing Arts, and Seoul Arts Center in Seoul, Scriabin Museum Concert Hall in Moscow, Berlin Philharmonic Chamber Hall in Berlin and Kuenstler Haus in Munich. Ms. Kim awarded the Chevy Chase Scholarship in 2009 and performed at the benefit concert sponsored by the Club of Chevy Chase in 2010.
Ms. Kim taught piano performance at Sunhwa Arts School and Sunhwa Arts High School in Seoul until last year and moved to West Hartford last Spring.
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Stacy Cahoon, pianist, enjoys collaborating with vocalists and instrumentalists alike. She holds performance degrees from the University of Massachusetts at Lowell, and a Master of Music in Accompanying and Ensemble from the Hartt School of Music. Her active accompanying life has included flute duo performances at Lincoln Center’s Bruno Library, and St. Peter’s Church in NYC, and vocal concerts at the Mark Twain House, and South Church in New Britain. As a member of Trio Cantabile, consisting of voice, harp, and piano, she has performed at The Wood Memorial Library in South Windsor, and the Music at the Red Door concert series at St. John’s Episcopal Church in West Hartford. Since 1995, Stacy has been the accompanist for the Travelers Chorale, the oldest company-sponsored singing group in the country. In 2008, her choral composition “Little Tree” a setting of the poem by e.e. cummings, had its premiere at Bushnell Hall. As a soloist, she has presented recitals at Center Church in Hartford, the Unitarian Meeting House, West Hartford, CT and throughout her native Cape Cod. Stacy is an independent piano teacher in West Hartford, where she resides with her husband and two musical daughters.
Diane Day, a native of Simsbury, started studying piano at age 7. She graduated from the 4-year program at the Hartford Conservatory with an artist’s diploma in Piano and a minor in Theory & Composition. She studied with Juan Nazarian, Maria Luisa Faini, and Howard Parsons. Having taught piano privately for over 40 years, she also performed chamber music, accompanied soloists and groups, including dance, and has performed many solo concerts over her career. Specific ensemble work included the "Quindec" a piano quintet she performed with many years in the area. Her duo piano work was first in the "Duffy-Day Duo" and now works with Stacy Cahoon. She lives in West Hartford with her husband.
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