CABARET: MIRROR OF SOCIETIES

The basic definition of a cabaret is a café that offers live entertainment performed by singers, musicians and dancers and serves food and drink. It is generally housed in small, intimate spaces. Starting in the middle of the nineteenth century, artists, composers and writers met at Parisian cafés and salons to share their works. The cabaret was a suitable place for social activities. Artists could meet, discuss their opinions, and share their art in a relaxed setting. Even though cabaret music was often based on popular idioms, social and political commentary coupled with satirical settings represented the true soul of the genre. This trend flourished in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The first cabaret in Paris, Le Chat Noir inspired the growth of similar places in major cities throughout Europe besides Paris. The three recitals that comprise this dissertation project were performed at University of Maryland venues: the Robert & Arlene Kogod Theatre on 11 May 2011, Ulrich Recital Hall on 4 December 2011, and Gildenhorn Recital Hall on 4 March 2012. The repertoire for the first recital included works by Erik Satie with mezzo-soprano Monica Soto-Gil, Friedrich Hollaender with soprano Gabrielle DeMers, William Bolcom with baritone Ethan Watermeier and mezzo-soprano Stepanie Sadownik, and Poulenc with baritone Andrew McLaughlin. André Previn‘s Tango Song and Dance with violinist Jennifer Kim served as the instrumental interlude. The second recital included songs by Friedrich Hollaender with mezzo-soprano Monica Soto-Gil, Hanns Eisler and Viktor Ullmann with mezzo-soprano Stephanie Sadownik, and Mischa Spoliansky with soprano CarrieAnne Winter. Victor Hollaender‘s Romance and Albumblatt were the instrumental interludes with violinist Jennifer Kim. The last recital featured works for piano and violin, the Graceful Ghost Rag by William Bolcom with violinist Jenny Wu, Four Souvenirs by Paul Schoenfield with violinist Jennifer Kim, Cabaret Songs by Benjamin Britten with soprano Linda Mabbs, and Souvenirs for piano four-hands by Samuel Barber with pianist Rita Sloan. The recitals were recorded on compact discs and are archived within the Digital Repository at the University of Maryland (DRUM).

Bridging the Divide Between the Soloist and the Ensemble Player

In conservatories and music schools, the general practice for an aspiring pianist is to focus on solo performance learning mainly solo repertoire. With the advent of the advanced degree in collaborative piano, pianists could submerge themselves in the study of duo sonatas, larger chamber music ensembles, and art song. The appearance of this degree was an important step in the development of pianists, as this kind of work requires specific training and focus to master the vast repertoire involved. However it also more clearly brought out the invisible divide separating the solo pianist from the collaborative pianist, a.k.a. the accompanist. While geniuses such as Bach, Beethoven and Brahms were known to compose and perform all types of music, the appearance of super stars such as Liszt and Paganini helped bring into being the term accompanist and since then music world has tacitly embraced this divide. The goal of my dissertational study is to show that this divide need not exist. The three recitals which comprise this dissertational project were all performed at the University of Maryland, the first on 12 November 2010 at Gildenhom Recital Hall, the second at Ulrich Recital Hall on 10 September 2011, and the third at Gildenhorn Recital Hall on 11 November 2011. The repertoire included Rachmaninoff Prelude in g# minor op. 32 no. 12 and Etude-Tableaux in Eb minor op. 29 no. 5, Brahms Sonata for Piano and Violin in d minor op. 108, Mendelssohn Piano Trio in d minor op. 49, Chopin Sonata No.2 in Bb minor, Franck Sonata for Piano and Violin, Prokofiev Piano Concerto no. 2 in g minor op. 16 with pianist Elizabeth Brown as orchestra, Beethoven Sonata for Piano and Violin in A op 47 (Kreutzer), and Paul Schoenfield Cafe Music. All works with violin and cello were performed with violinist Rebecca Racusin, and cellist Devree Lewis. The recitals were recorded on compact discs and are archived within the Digital Repository at the University of Maryland(DRUM).

Suite from L'histoire du soldat = The soldier's tale /

Marche du soldat -- Le violon du soldat -- Petit concert -- Tango-valse-rag -- La danse du diable.

Konzert, A moll, Klavier, konzertante Violine, Flöte und Streichorchester /

Reduction for 2 pianos.

Quartett in F moll. Op. 7,II. Für 2 Violinen, Violoncell und Klavier /

Breitkopf & Härtels Kammermusik-Bibliothek, Nr. 1900a/b

Brandenburg concerto no. 5 in D major. [music] /

For flute, violin, harpsicord (cembalo concertato) and strings.

Triple concerto in A minor ; Old version of the first five clavier concerti. [music] /

Mode of access: Internet.

At dawning. [music] /

English and French words ; English words printed also as text on verso of violin part.

Bach Institute Library holdings : J.S. Bach editions brought to press or prepared for publication during the composer's lifetime /

In container.

Symphony concertante, op. 84 ; Horn concerto (1762) /

Cover title.

A choice collection of 51 Welsh airs, adapted for the harp, piano-forte, harpsichord, violin, or flute.

Mode of access: Internet.

Trios for piano, violin, and violoncello.

Trio I in E♭, op. 1, no. 1.--Trio II in G, op. 1, no. 2.--Trio III in C minor, op. 1, no. 3.--Trio IV in B♭, op. 11.--Trio V in D, op. 70, no. 1.--Trio VI in E♭, op. 70, no. 2.--Trio VII in B♭, op. 97.

Harding's original collection of jigs and reels. [music] : 200 jigs, reels and country dances for piano, violin, flute or mandolin.

Cover title.

Quartet, G minor, for pianoforte, violin, viola and violoncello, Köchel-Edition, no. 478. [music] /

Mode of access: Internet.

Trio IV in C major, K.548, for piano, violin and violoncello. [music] /

Cover title.