Illinois State University School of Music faculty will be showcased this spring through their performances on the Charles W. Bolen Faculty Recital Series.
Professor Katherine Lewis (viola) will be joined by colleagues Geoffrey Duce (piano) and Daniel Baer (piano) in a recital of romantic and contemporary works for viola on Tuesday, January 23, at 8 p.m. in the Center for the Performing Arts Concert Hall. The program will open with a work for solo viola by Elaine Fine. “Elaine Fine is an Illinois composer, and her Sephardic Suite is filled with moments of both intense sorrow and joy”, shared Dr. Lewis. This, along with a piece by Panamanian composer Roque Cordero (Illinois State University Distinguished Professor) are new works that Lewis is adding to her repertoire. “Roque Cordero’s esteemed career at ISU was remarkable,” says Lewis. “I’m hoping to record these three short 12-tone works in the next year or two.” Another contemporary piece on the program is Viola Power by Mark Phillips, written for solo viola with interactive media. “This piece is the most personally challenging work on the program as it’s only my second attempt at performing with electronics. Working with electronics provides a whole new type of sonic experience for the audience, yet it can be challenging for me as I am used to being able to manipulate time more freely.” Lewis was attracted to studying this piece because of the rhythmic energy and ever-changing melodic patterns. Lewis’s recital closes with a Brahms sonata for viola and piano. “The two sonatas Brahms composed for viola are central pillars of the viola repertoire, and although I teach his sonatas frequently, I have not performed one of them during my tenure at ISU. The E-flat sonata was one of my first loves as a young student and relearning it in a different part of my life with a new perspective has been a fulfilling challenge.”
Professor David Gresham (clarinet) and guest artist Momoko Gresham (piano) will present a concert of works for clarinet and piano on Tuesday, January 30, at 8 p.m. in the Center for the Performing Arts. The Gresham duo recital program will begin with Four Fantasy Pieces by Niels Gade, a Danish composer and protégé of Robert Schumann. The works are modeled on Schumann’s famous Fantasy Pieces for clarinet. Next on the program is American composer Alvin Etler’s first clarinet sonata, from 1952. “This is a short, but serious and engaging piece,” says Dr. Gresham. “It shows the influence of Etler’s primary teacher, Paul Hindemith.” Gresham enjoys “stealing” music from other instruments and arranging them for clarinet, so the second half of the program begins with his own arrangement of Gabriel Fauré’s first violin sonata. Gresham finds that this big, French-Romantic piece works wonderfully well on the clarinet. The last piece on the program is another French work: the beautiful and exciting Sonata for Clarinet and Piano by Francis Poulenc (1962).
Instructional Assistant Professor Cora Swenson Lee will present a recital of unaccompanied works for cello on Monday, February 5, at 7:30 p.m. in Kemp Recital Hall. Dr. Lee’s recital is structured in two parts. The evening will begin with a set of unaccompanied pieces by Imogen Holst, Chen Yi, and Gaspar Cassado. Each work explores the traditional music of the composer’s native country in some way. Lee will be joined by colleague Dr. Geoffrey Duce (piano) in the second half of the program, performing Frederic Chopin’s Sonata for Cello and Piano. “This recital program is a mix of pieces which are new to me and which I have learned previously,” says Lee. “I have quite enjoyed exploring the new works this year. Other works I have known and loved for many years; playing them feels like visiting old friends.” Lee is looking forward to performing these varied and captivating solo pieces, and to sharing the stage with her colleague on one of her favorite sonatas.
Performances in Kemp Recital Hall are free events. Performances in the Center for the Performing Arts are ticketed.
The Charles W. Bolen Faculty Recital Series is named after Charles Bolen, the first dean of the Wonsook Kim College of Fine Arts who served in the position from 1970-1988.
