presents

December 2, 8 PMPhi Beta Kappa Hall

Songs From The Opera

ProgramThe Marriage of FigaroOverture Featuring Arjun Malhotra Guest Conducter

“Cinque, dieci, venti” Duettino Susanna/Figaro Sophia Farion/Will Theuer

“Se a caso madama la nota” Duettino Susanna/Figaro Sophia Farion/Will Theuer

“Se vuol ballare, signor contino” Cavatina Figaro Will Theuer

“Non piu andai, farfallone amoroso” Aria Figaro Robert Quittmeyer

“Porgi amor qualche ristoro” Cavatina Countess Kyu Won Kang

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

“Crudel, perche finora fermi” Duettino Susanna/Count Emily Chrisman/Miguel Petrosky

“E Susanna non vien/Dove sono” Recit. & Aria Countess Rachel Rose

“Che soave zeffiretto/Sull’aria” Duettino Susanna/Countess Rachel Rose/Emily Chrisman

“Giunse alfin momento” Aria Sussana Emily Chrisman

*Special Thanks to Mary and Ryan Fletch-er. The vocalists for todays program study opera under their direction.

~Intermission~Meditation from Thais

Carmen Suites Suite I Prelude Aragonaise Seguedille Intermezzo Les dragons d’Alcala Les Toreadors Suite II Habanera Chanson du Toreador Danse Boheme

Jules Massenet

Georges Bizet

First ViolinRachael Stambaugh, Concertmaster*Matthew Wang, Concertmaster*Kate HansenJerry O’DwyerEvangeline HsiehAlexandra CramerNicole CookShouzhuo SunJacob AlterBrendan BoylanBorah Kim

Second ViolinRyan Harriss*Emma TainterTiara JohnsonAlexis PayneLauren WengrovitzRayna YuFabiana Arrazola Casey CharbonneauMaxwell CloeConor ScanlonMary Haas (C.M.)

ViolaEvan Dienstman* Madeleine YiRachael GreenmanShelby FerebeeMegan Kitts Hannah Winckler-Olick Noelle VarneyEmily Hinshaw Iria Gomez Garcia Charlie Whittaker (C.M.)

CelloDarcey Pittman*Sarah LettauLuke SchwenkeAijan McHaleRobert CollieWill Park Jordan Noble Diane Whitaker (C.M.)Carl Andersen (C.M.)

BassHannah Stevenson*James Burns Andrew Torma

FluteAllison Greenday Jill Mao Ruth Ann BeaverYutong Zhan

OboeKarl Spiker (G.S.) Emily ChrismanAbby Jackson

ClarinetArjun Malhotra Rebecca Quinn Ronghong Dai

BassoonJames BowersJohnny WillingAyush Joshi Katherine Bowles

French HornJohn Mitchell* Emily Pratt Ailish BovaKathy Urbonya (C.M.)

TrumpetCharles BalaanJoseph Handy Chad Amos

TromboneMike Kikta Sarah Grave FraryMichael Mannella

TubaRyan Richardson

Timpani Madeline Brass

PercussionJohn WillingAyush Joshi

HarpHope Wright

Stage ManagersChad AmosHope Wright

Orchestra LibrarianHannah Stevenson

* denotes Principal(G.S.) denotes Graduate Student(C.M.) denotes Community Member

Emily Chrisman, ‘17, PresidentEvan Dienstman, ‘17, VP of FundraisingShelby Ferebee, ‘17, TreasurerJames Burns, ‘18, SecretaryHannah Stevenson, ‘18, Publicity Director

William Park, ‘17, VP of DevelopmentFabiana Arrazola, ‘18, HistorianRyan Harriss/Megan Kitts, ‘17, Social ChairsHope Wright, ‘18, Tour DirectorNicole Cook, ‘18, Tour Director

Under the direction of David Grandis

About the VocalistsEmily Chrisman ‘17Emily is a Marketing and Music double major from Roanoke, VA. She is the President of the Symphony in which she plays oboe. Emily is also a member of the Accidentals.

Sophia Farion ‘17Hailing from Philadelphia, Sophia is majoring in English and Gov-ernment. Outside of her studies she is an active William & Mary musician, taking voice lessons, singing in the Opera Workshop, and leading DoubleTake A Cappella as the Musical Director.

Kyu Won Kang ‘19Kyu has been studying voice with Ryan Fletcher for the past two years, and has performed in student recitals and Opera Workshops.

Miguel Petrosky ‘17Miguel is from Covington, VA and is majoring in Government with a minor in Music. He is involved in musicals and solo performanc-es around campus and in the Williamsburg area.

Robert Quittmeyer ‘17From Mobile, Alabama, Robert is a double major in marketing and music. He has directed the Christopher Wren Singers for two years and has sang with the Stairwells since his freshman year.

Rachel Rose ‘18Living in Schenectady, NY, Rachel is an Anthropology and Music double major. She is involved in the Opera Workshop ensemble, the American Indian Student Association, and is the President of the Club Softball team.

Will Theuer ‘17Will is from Richmond, VA and is studying Computer Science and Linguistics. He is involved in several singning groups, including the Botetourt Chamber Singers and the Gentlemen of the College

About the ConductorDavid Grandis

Conductor David Grandis recently obtained a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. There, he served as the assistant of Professor James Smith with the Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra and Opera. He also recently served as Assistant Conductor of the Mid-Atlantic Symphony Orchestra and Capital City Symphony Orchestra in Washington, DC. Previous positions have in-cluded Cover Conductor at the National Philharmonic, Assistant Con-ductor at the Baltimore Opera Company, and at the Chesapeake Youth Symphony Orchestra. Mr. Grandis’ guest conducting opportunities have included the Bordeaux National Symphony Orchestra, Nice Philharmon-ic Orchestra, Lyon National Opera, Sofia New Symphony Orchestra and Minsk Philharmonic Orchestra.

Before coming to the United States in 2004 for post-graduate study with Gustav Meier at the Peabody Conservatory, Mr. Grandis held posi-tions in his native France, leading the University Orchestra in Grenoble and his own chamber orchestra in Nice. Further studies were completed in several national conservatories in France. He began his conducting apprenticeship with Klaus Weise and earned a B.M. in Musicology in France.

David Grandis received a graduate performance diploma from Peabody Conservatory and during that time served as Assistant Conduc-tor of the Peabody Symphony Orchestra and the Peabody Opera. He earned a master’s degree in orchestral conducting from the University of Illinois under Donald Schleicher.

Among the conductors with whom he has participated in master classes are Marin Alsop, Gustav Meier, Rossen Milanov, Misha Kats, John Farrer, Daniel Lewis and Donald Thulean.

Mr. Grandis has an equal interest in both symphonic and lyric literature. He has studied voice for several years and performed a few roles in productions such as Pagliacci (Silvio), Werther (Albert), Pélléas et Mélisande (Pélléas), Faust (Valentin), and Die Zauberflöte (Papageno). Albert Lance invited him to conduct productions of Gounod’s Faust and Puccini’s Il Tabarro in France. Mr. Grandis was recently Assistant Conductor at the Lyon National Opera in June 2010 for Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel and in December 2010 for Massenet’s Werther.

Program The Marriage of Figaro

A profoundly humane comedy, The Marrige of Figaro is a remarkable marriage of Mozart’s music at the height of his genius and one of the best librettos ever set.

Plot Synopsis: Figaro and Susanna are to marry, but the Count has given them rooms near to his own, which will be convenient if he needs access to Susanna. Bar-tolo wants to take revenge on Figaro, who had helped the Count to marry his ward Rosina, now the Countess. His housekeeper Marcellina has lent money to Figaro, who has promised to marry her, if he cannot repay it. Cherubino tells Susanna that he loves all women, and Susanna hides him, as the Count is heard approaching. His proposals to Susanna are interrupted by the sound of Don Basilio coming near, and he too hides behind the chair, allowing Cherubino to hide himself sitting on it, under a dress thrown over him by Susanna. Basilio now refers to Cherubino’s love for the Countess, and the Count emerges to find out more. Susanna tries to distract them by fainting, but Cherubino is discov-ered. Figaro brings in a group of peasants, singing praise of the Count, who has surrendered, it is suggested, his droit de seigneur as far as Susanna is concerned, but the Count delays their marriage and packs Cherubino off to the army. Figa-ro, however, detains Cherubino, since he has plans for him. In the second act the Countess, in her room, is sad, neglected by her husband. She listens to Figaro’s plan to dress Cherubino as a girl and put him in Susanna’s place in an attempt to trap the Count. Cherubino is singing of his love for the Countess, when the Count returns from hunting, eager to pursue matters divulged to him in an anonymous letter accusing the Countess. Cherubino hides in the closet and Susanna, unseen by the others, comes in. The Countess tells her husband that Susanna is in the closet but the door cannot be opened. The Count, suspicious, goes to fetch tools to open the door, taking the Countess with him. This allows Cherubino to jump out of the window and Susanna to take his place. The Count returns and the closet is opened, revealing Susanna. Antonio, the gardener, adds complications when he comes in to complain of someone jumping out of the window, and Figaro now claims that it was him. The act ends with the appearance of Don Basilio, Bartolo and Marcellina, seeking justice.

As the wedding is prepared, in the third act, Susanna, at the suggestion of the Countess, agrees to an assignation with the Count. Marcellina’s complaint against Figaro is heard and he claims that he needs parental consent for his marriage to her, if it is to take place. It then transpires that Marcellina is in fact his mother and Bartolo his father.

In the fourth act, in the garden at night, Figaro is given cause for jeal-ousy of Susanna, but she is now disguised as the Countess and the Countess as Susanna. The Count unknowingly woos his own wife, while Figaro deliberately provokes his jealousy by his own approaches to the supposed Countess, in fact Susanna. The opera ends with the Count humbled but penitent, reconciled now with his wife, Figaro with Susanna, Cherubino with Barbarina and Marcellina with Bartolo. -The Metropolitan Opera

NotesMeditation from Thais

The piece comes from Massenet’s masterpiece, the opera “Thais” base on Anatole France’s novel of the same title. The opera was first played at the Paris Opera Theater in 1894. The story is set in the in the early first century, on the River Nile. A priest approaches Thais, a dancer of the night world of Alex-andria, with the goal of talking her into repentance and leading her to a life of faith. Ironically, however, his own faith is replaced by love for Thais, just as she is becoming inclined to accept religion.

“Meditation” is played by a solo violin with harp accompaniment between the first and second acts. It portrays the change in Thais’ heart, from wanting to seduce the priest, at the end of the second scene of the first act, to wanting to begin a religious life. It is effectively played at the opening of the sec-ond act when Thais visits the priest to tell him of her decision. The piece is often played independently as a violin solo.

Carmen Suites The opera Carmen was composed 1873-74 and premiered 3 March 1875 at the Opéra-Comique, Paris. Sometime after the composer’s death on 3 June of that year, Ernest Guiraud derived two suites from the opera, published 1882/1887. Georges Bizet composed several operas, however Carmen is uni-versally considered his masterpiece and still one of the most popular operas on today’s stages. Sadly, Bizet did not live to see his story of the fatal love between a gypsy woman and a renegade soldier become a worldwide success. Today Car-men is one of the most popular operas in the world.

The Carmen Suite No. 1’s short Prélude introduces the ominous theme that the opera associates with both Carmen and her fate at the hands of her lover Don José. This leads without pause into the Aragonaise: festive yet delicate and sinuous music that opens Act IV (the final act) as crowds arrive for a parade and bullfight. Next, the lyrical Intermezzo (the Prelude to Act III) fea-tures ravishing woodwind melodies. The Seguedille that follows is an orchestral arrangement of Carmen’s Act I aria in which she seduces Don José into letting her free and meeting her at her friend Lillas Pastia’s tavern. (A seguidilla is a type of Castilian folksong.) Les dragons d’Alcala (The Dragoons of Alcala) is a jaunty march that forms the opera’s Prelude to Act II; later in the act José is heard singing it offstage as he approaches Pastia’s inn. Les Toréadors is the rousing finale of the suite: in the opera it is actually the very opening music, preceding the fateful Carmen theme, and is heard again at the end of the opera, when the Carmen theme interrupts it even more jarringly. In this number we briefly hear the toreador Escamillo’s song, to be presented more fully in the second suite.

The Carmen Suite No. 2 is derived from vocal numbers of the opera. The Habañera is a transcription of Carmen’s famous Act I aria in which she describes love as a wild bird that can never be tamed: “If you don’t love me, I love you; but if I love you, watch out for yourself !” The Chanson du Toréador is Escamillo’s swaggering portrayal of his art. Finally, Danse Bohême is the gypsy dance that Carmen and her friends perform at Lillas Pastia’s: it starts quietly but builds to a frenzy. -Sheboygan Symphony Orchestra

Kae Brown Memorial Symphony Orchestra

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