Summer Sprite for Orchestra

Summer Sprite for Orchestra was completed in December, 2004. The piece originated from a singular encounter with little angels at Chang-Kyung Palace, which is the oldest and the most beautiful palace in Korea, and where the kings of the Chosun Dynasty (1393-1897) lived. This encounter was in the summer of 2002. I certainly could not prove that those angels I met were real. Possibly they were the reflection of drops of water after a sudden shower on that summer day. However, I definitely remember that short, unforgettable, and mysterious moment and the angels' beautiful dance-like celebration. Summer Sprite is based on these special memories and the encounter with the little angels that summer. Summer Sprite consists of 3 movements: "Greeting," "Encounter," and "Celebration." These follow the course of my encounter with the little angels. In Summer Sprite, I wished to describe the image of the angels as well as the progression of greeting, encounter, and celebration with them. The moods that follow in Summer Sprite are by turns lyrical, poetic, fantastic, mysterious, and dream-like. In each movement, I describe the meeting of angels and composer through the use of the soloists -- violin (sometimes viola) and cello. As suggested by the subtitle of the first movement, "Greeting" portrays the moment when a surprised I met the angels. It begins with tam-tam, marimba, harp, and piano and sets a mysterious and dark mood. The second movement, "Encounter," is shorter than the first movement. This movement provides a more tranquil mood as well as more unique timbres resulting from the use of mutes and special instruments (English horn, harp, crotales, suspended cymbal, and celesta). The delicate expression of the percussion is particularly important in establishing the static mood of this movement . The last movement, °?Celebration,°± is bright and energetic. It is also the longest. Here, I require the most delicate changes of dynamics and tempo, the most vigorous harmonies, and the fastest rhythmic figures, as well as the most independent, lyrical, and poetic melodies. For bright orchestral tone color, I used various kinds of percussion such as timpani, xylophone, marimba, vibraphone, cymbals, side drum, tambourine, triangle, and bass drum. This last movement is divided rondo-like into five sections: The first (mm.1-3), second (mm.4 - rehearsal number 1), third (rehearsal numbers 2-4), fourth (rehearsal numbers 5-7), and fifth, (rehearsal numbers 8 -18). To sum up, Summer Sprite describes an unforgettable and mysterious moment in a my life. My intention was to portray this through a concerto-like framework. A model for this would be Brahms°Ø °?Double Concerto°± in A minor, op.102, in which the solo cello stands for my angel and the solo violin (sometimes solo viola) for me.

SELECTED CHARACTER PIECES OF FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN (1810-1849), FRANZ LISZT (1811-1886) AND JOHANNES BRAHMS (1833-1897)

During the 19th century, Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849), Franz Liszt (1811- 1886), and Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) were among the most recognized composers of character pieces. Their compositions have been considered a significant milestone in piano literature. Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849) did not give descriptive titles to his character pieces. He grouped them into several genres such as Mazurkas, Polonaises. His Mazurkas and Polonaises are influenced by Polish dance music and inspired by the polish national idiom. Franz Liszt (1811-1886) was influenced in many ways by Chopin, and adopted Chopin’s lyricism, melodic style, and tempo rubato. However, Liszt frequently drew on non-musical subjects (e.g., art, literature) for inspiration. “Harmonies poétiques et religieuses” and “Années de pèlerinage” are especially representative of character pieces in which poetic and pictorial imagination are reflected. Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) was a conservative traditionalist, synthesizing Romantic expression and Classical tradition remarkably well. Like Chopin, Brahms avoided using programmatic titles for his works. The titles of Brahms’ short character pieces are often taken from traditional lyrical or dramatic genres such as ballade, rhapsody and scherzo. Because of his conservatism, Brahms was considered the main rival of Liszt in the Romantic Period. Brahms character pieces in his third period (e.g., Scherzo Op.4, Ballades of Op.10, and Rhapsodies of Op.79) are concise and focused. The form of Brahms’ character pieces is mostly simple ternary (ABA), and his style is introspective and lyrical. Through this recording project, I was able to get a better understanding of the styles of Chopin, Brahms and Liszt through their character pieces. This recording dissertation consists of two CDs recorded in the Dekelboum Concert Hall at the University of Maryland, College Park. These recordings are documented on compact disc recordings that are housed within the University of Maryland Library System.

SCHUBERT’S WINTERREISE AND THE PIANO TRIO IN Eb; TWO REMARKABLE WORKS FROM ONE REMARKABLE YEAR – 1827: A RECORDING PROJECT

During Franz Schubert’s penultimate year of 1827, he produced two profoundly important and mature works that are the focus of this recording project. The works are, in chronological order: • Winterreise (cycle of 24 songs on the poetry of Wilhelm Müller, 1794-1827) • Piano Trio in Eb Major, Op. 100, D. 929 A unique feature of the project is to present Winterreise in two poetic orders: as traditionally performed and published by Schubert, and in the final ordering published by the poet. The program notes accompanying the dissertation’s three compact discs have extensive information as well as comparative tables of Müller’s and Schubert’s final ordering of the cycle. There are significant differences in ordering, and ultimately the listener will determine which is more dramatically satisfying. Dark melancholy is the central emotion in Winterreise, which Schubert composed at various times throughout 1827 in a mood of corresponding gloom and distress. By contrast, the summer and fall of that year produced, in quick succession, the two glowing and remarkable Piano Trios in Bb and Eb, the second of which is included on these compact discs. The contrast between the trios and Winterreise follows the outward circumstances of Schubert’s life and health, a pattern of sorrow and later consolation and elation. The sound recordings for this dissertation recording project are available on three compact discs that can be found in the Digital Repository at the University of Maryland (DRUM). Winterreise was recorded in August 2009, at the University of Baltimore recital hall in Baltimore, Maryland with University of Maryland Professor François Loup. The trio, recorded in live performance in Baltimore in the spring of 2010, features two members of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra: Qing Li, B.S.O. principal second violin, and Bo Li, B.S.O. section cellist.