The Kennesaw State University School of Music presents Junior Recital: Michael Alcorn, tenor, accompanied by Sherri Barrett.https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/musicprograms/1837/thumbnail.jp

Alcorn, Michael

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                                            Department of Music   presents   Junior Recital   Michael Alcorn, tenor   Sherri Barrett, piano       Saturday, May 10, 2008 5:00 pm Music Building Recital Hall   Eighty-fourth Concert of the 2007-2008 season                                           Kennesaw State University Department of Music Junior Recital  Michael Alcorn, tenor Sherri Barrett, piano  May 10, 2008 5:00 pm  PROGRAM   I Comfort ye my people (Isaiah 40:1-3) George Frideric Handel  (1685-1759) Have comfort, saith your God, for he has heard your cries and rid your iniquities.  Ev’ry valley shall be exalted (Isaiah 40:4)  Let every valley be lifted up, and every mountain and hill made low.  Let all your strife be eased.   from Messiah   II Ständchen (Kügler) Johannes Brahms   (1833-1897) In the midst of a moonlit night, three students play and sing music in the garden, while two young lovers whisper to one another “forget me not.  Abendstern (J. Mayrhofer) Franz Schubert  (1797-1828) Oh beautiful star! Why do you linger alone? “ I expose my love, but get nothing in return, therefore I stay here alone and still.”  Des Müllers Blumen (Müller)  from Die Schöne Müllerin The flowers by the brook are like the miller’s daughter’s eyes, bright and blue! I will plant the flowers outside her window so when she wakes she will see my tears of devotion upon their petals.  Ungeduld (Müller)  from Die Schöne Müllerin I would write of my love everywhere. I would have a young bird sing of it. I would breathe it into the morning air. My heart is yours and will remain so forever! Ernest Charles (1895 - 1984) is known for his simple, unpretentious American art songs. Most of which were published in the 1930’s and 1940’s.    “He began his career as a singer in Broadway revues and in vaudeville; also wrote songs in an appetizing semi-classical genre, suitable for recitals. His 1st commercial success came in 1932 when the popular baritone John Charles Thomas sang his song Clouds in a N.Y. recital. Encouraged, Charles put out something like 50 solo songs, many of which made the top listing among recitalists.”  (Baker’s Biographical Dictionary of Musicians; 8th edition, compiled by Nicolas Slonimsky)  .     ✤✤✤✤                                         some of his most noteworthy works are his Requiem, the opera Penelope, and the orchestral suite Masques et Bergamasques. He also wrote chamber music; his most well-known being his two piano quartets.  V.  Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) a British composer, conductor, violist, and pianist is best known for The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra (1946), which was composed to accompany Instruments of the Orchestra, an educational film narrated and conducted by Malcolm Sargent. Britten was an exceptionally accomplished pianist, and frequently performed in chamber music or accompanying lieder. He had a life long companionship with Peter Pears, for whom he specifically wrote many of his vocal works. He is also one of the most famous opera composers of the 20th century. His most famous operas are Peter Grimes, Albert Herring, The Turn of the Screw, Billy Budd, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Death in Venice. Some of his other more famous works include: Nocturnal after John Dowland for guitar, sacred choral work Rejoice in the Lamb, and Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings.   Samuel Barber (1910 –1981) was an American composer of classical music ranging from orchestral, to opera, choral, and piano music. His Adagio for Strings is his most famous composition and can be heard in films such as Platoon, The Elephant Man, El Norte, Amélie and Lorenzo's Oil. He wrote his first musical composition at age 7 and attempted to write his first opera at the age of 10. He was an organist at the age of 12. When he was 14, he entered the conservatory Curtis Institute, where he studied piano, composition, and voice. He had a strong admiration for poetry which aided the composition of his vocal music. His most famous vocal works are Knoxville: Summer of 1915, the opera Vanessa, and the song cycle Hermit Songs, first recorded by Leontyne Price.  III O del mio amato ben (A. Donaudy) Stefano Donaudy   (1878-1925) Oh, my love. Without you there is no joy. All is lost yet I  continue to seek you in vain.   IV Au bord de l’eau (Prudhomme) Gabriel Fauré   (1845-1924) We sit together on the bank. Watching the reflection of the horizon on the passing water. The flower fragrances overtake us. May this moment last forever!  Mandoline (Verlaine) The beautiful listeners talk insipidly under the singing branches as the mandolin plays amidst the chatter.  Toujours (Grandmougin) You ask me to part from you and forget our love. You might as well ask the sun not to shine, the winds not to roar, or the waves of the sea to drain away.   V Avenging and bright arr. Benjamin Britten  from Moore’s Irish Melodies (1913-1976) We will avenge the brutal murder of Usnachs sons and  will not rest until revenge is ours!  How sweet the answer  from Moore’s Irish Melodies How sweet are echoes to music at night, but not as sweet as the sounds of love given by one who is dear.  The monk and his cat (Irish monk) Samuel Barber  from Hermit Songs (1910-1981) My cat, how happy we are! We each have our own work,  yet we are companions enjoying each others company.   When I have sung my songs (E. Charles) Ernest Charles  (1895-1984) I shall not sing my songs to anyone else. I can only sing them to you.  This recital is presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Bachelor of Music in Performance.  Mr. Alcorn is a student of Valerie Walters                                         Program Notes  I.  George Frederick Handel (1685 –1759) was a German-born British composer of the Baroque period. Handel's compositions include fifty operas, twenty three oratorios, a large number of ecumenical pieces, and sixteen organ concerti. He influenced many composers including Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven. His work helped lead the transition from the Baroque to the Classical era. His most famous oratorio work was Messiah. The entire work was written in just 24 days. The libretto was arranged by Charles Jennens and comes from the old testament. The first section of this work draws from the book of Isaiah which prophesies the coming of the messiah. It was originally written to be performed during Easter, but since Handel’s death it has become traditional during the Christmas season.  II.   Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) was born in Hamburg, Germany. He first studied music with his father, a double-bass player for the Hamburg opera; he later studied composition with Eduard Marxsen. Brahms was a talented pianist, giving his first public recital at the age of 14. Brahms conducted the orchestra of the Society of the Friends of Music in Vienna from 1872 to 1875. He then devoted himself entirely  to composition. He resisted the popular 20th century programmatic music, and wrote absolute music, with no settings or narratives. However, his lieder did reflect folk themes and scenes from rural life. He wrote 144  piano and voice settings of German folk songs.  Franz Peter Schubert (1797-1828) was an Austrian composer. He wrote approximately 600 Lieder, seven symphonies, the famous “Unfinished Symphony”, operas, and a large amount of chamber and solo piano music. His music is easily recognized by his unique style of melodic and harmonic   writing, especially in his Lieder in which he used luscious melodies and dramatic, almost picturesque accompaniment.  III.  Stefano Donaudy (1879 –1925) was a minor Italian composer active in the 1890s and early 20th century. No biographical or musicological studies have so far been devoted to him, but it seems that Donaudy was very gifted, as a variety of sources say his first opera Folchetto and one of his most popular songs, Vaghissima sembianza, were written in 1892, when he was only thirteen. After studies with the director of Palermo's Conservatoire, Guglielmo Zuelli (a rival of Giacomo Puccini in his early years), Donaudy made a living as a singing teacher, coach and accompanist for some of Sicily's wealthiest families, all while also pursuing a career as a composer. He wrote mostly vocal music, both opera and song, along with some chamber and orchestral music. Practically all his song texts and libretti were supplied by or written by his brother, Alberto Donaudy (1880-1941), a poet whose style reflects the prevailing literary tastes of the period.  IV.  Gabriel Fauré (1845 –1924) was a French composer, organist, pianist, and teacher. He was the foremost French composer of his generation, and his musical style influenced many 20th century composers. He studied with several prominent French musicians, including Camille Saint-Saëns, who introduced him to the music of several contemporary composers, including Robert Schumann and Franz Liszt. Gabriel Fauré is regarded as the master of the French art song, or mélodie. His works ranged from an early romantic style, to late 19th century Romantic, and finally to a 20th century aesthetic. His work was based on a strong understanding of harmonic structures which he received at the École Niedermeyer from his harmony teacher Gustave Lefèvre, who wrote the book Traité d'harmonie (Paris, 1889). Fauré was a prolific composer, and 

Junior Recital: Michael Alcorn, tenor

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Junior Recital: Michael Alcorn, tenor

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