Evocative

Carlos Simon (b.1986)

This piece was inspired by an interview with Oprah Winfrey, in which she quoted:

“I have felt the presence of God my whole life. Even when I didn’t have a name for it, I could feel the voice bigger than myself speaking to me, and all of us have that same voice. Be still and know it. You can acknowledge it or not. You can worship it or not. You can praise it, you can ignore it or you can know it. Know it. It’s always there speaking to you and waiting for you to hear it in every move, in every decision .

-Oprah Winfrey, May 25, 2011

In the composer’s own words:
“I believe it’s that art should reflect life. If the music is sort of holding up a mirror or reflecting what’s out there, then the goal for me in every piece I write, is for someone else find themselves in it.”

Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)

Ravel is widely regarded as one of the most popular French composers of the 20th century. Famous for orchestral works such as Bolero and Daphnis et Chloé,  his chamber compositions (Piano Trio, String Quartet, Sonata for violin and cello, Introduction and Allegro – which we offer later in our season) are beloved mainstays of the chamber music world.  The Chansons madécasses was commissioned in 1925 by Library of Congress and the American patron Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge. It is a work that offers a more experimental side of Ravel’s compositional style. The 18th century texts by Évariste de Parny (1753–1814) express sensuousness, anti-colonialist/anti-slavery sentiments, and the simplicity of stillness.

In the composer’s own words:
“The only love affair I have ever had was with music.”

Caroline Boissier Butini (1786-1836)

Caroline Boissier-Butini was a Swiss composer/pianist from the upper class which allowed her some freedom to pursue to musical talents. There is scant information regarding her musical education, although her upper-class lifestyle allowed her the freedom to pursue and develop her talents. All of Butini’s compositions (which include seven piano concertos) are housed in her family’s archives at the Bibliothèque de Genève, which is digitizing the entire collection. The works have begun making their way to the public through the Association Caroline Boissier-Butini.

BCMS is grateful to Catherine Rae Sheldon for leading us to the Association when we could not find a contemporary score. We are indebted to Irène Minder-Jeanneret, vice president of the Association, for sending us a free copy of this trio which will only be available for us to purchase next year. The Butini Association is very excited to have this work performed in the USA.

In the composer’s own words:
“I am better than the keyboard players of Paris.”

Read more at The Association Caroline Boissier-Butini.

Rita Strohl (1865-1941)

Rita Strohl was a gifted young French pianist who entered the Paris Conservatory as a young teenager. She also studied composition for several years privately with Adrien Barthe, developing her unique artistic voice. She seems to have had a strong independent streak which makes her compositions stand slightly outside the traditions in which she lived. Strohl was a highly respected composer in her time, composing vocal, symphonic and chamber music works. The piano quintet dates from the early in her career and does not follow the prevailing conventions of the period. Though the work is known to have been performed during her lifetime – it was never published. 

BCMS is once again grateful to Catherine Rae Sheldon for leading us to Palazzetto Bru Zane, an institution dedicated to the rediscovery and promotion of French romantic music. They are resurrecting the memory of nineteenth-century French women composers that had been completely ‘lost’ and have edited most of Rita Strohl’s chamber music, offering them for free as part of their mission.  We are thankful to Marie Humbert at Bru Zane for sending us a copy of the Fantaisie-Quintette.