Rehearsals & Listening for You–PAVAROTTI LIVES FOREVER!

Hello, Senior Symphony!

You are awesome, and I am so proud of every one of you. I hope you are all doing well, and I hope this note will make your day even better. : )

Looking forward, we have sectionals with our coaches this Monday, so please prepare for those; and leaders, please give thought to the section’s needs. The schedule is below. Also, very best wishes to all of you playing this weekend in the Concerto Competition.

So, I asked if any of you had heard of Giacomo Puccini, Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo, etc. The Mascagni that we’ll perform, in particular, touches on the height of romantic Italian opera. You need to experience this kind of music, and I guess I am the person who has the privilege to introduce this magnificent part of the repertoire to you.

When I was growing up in Washington, D.C. , my mother took me to the record store and bought me my first two classical recordings…on LP, of course. Along with a recording of the Mozart Horn Concertos as performed by the great horn player Dennis Brain, she purchased a “Greatest Hits” album of arias (songs) sung by Italian tenor and opera star Luciano Pavarotti. Along with other classical recordings my father owned, these recordings really ignited the song in my heart which I still carry inside me today. Do you have a song in your heart when you play? Something that leads you a bit as you practice, rehearse and perform? I bet you do…perhaps you haven’t thought about it in those terms. That inner song is what carries you, in part with your other musical instincts, to higher musicianship and spiritual connection with the music and, by extension, with others with whom you perform and for whom we play in our audiences. The song in your heart, your imagination and knowledge, and your technical skill give voice to your spirit. These elements help make you a successful musician. We can talk more about this if you wish sometime…

As promised, here are some EPIC recordings…go get lost in them. And read about the opera plots…such drama! Good speakers or headphones, etc., are a must…

You won’t be sorry…

  • “E lucevan le stelle”

Luciano Pavarotti leads the cast for this 1978 Metropolitan Opera production of Giacomo Puccini’s Tosca

https://youtu.be/EAqHQMX7GHY?si=6eOBCAXqYh26Za5l

  • Puccini, Turandot, Act I: “Non piangere, Liù!” – “Ah! Per l’ultima volta!”

Luciano Pavarotti · Montserrat Caballé · Nicolai Ghiaurov · Tom Krause · Pier Francesco Poli · Piero de Palma · John Alldis Choir ·

London Philharmonic Orchestra · Zubin Mehta Conductor

https://youtu.be/9qR3xp2oL-w?si=eyyskJDFcSNYBZj_

  • Pavarotti’s Greatest Hits  (this is unmatched)

https://youtu.be/_fbx-w48bFk?si=15B40vC9U6ESE1nV

  • Giacomo Puccini’s Il Tabarro  (one of the three operas in what’s called “Il Trittico”)

https://youtu.be/jknyRR2NKFk?si=H0JvlWpOSGMK-KXe&t=155

Maybe songs by Richard Strauss next…

Warm regards,

Carter

Monday, January 13

  • 5:20 – Arrive at MYAC
  • 5:30 – Sectionals. Please concentrate first on Verdi and Price (Mvts.1-3)….then Fountains of Rome.
    • Violin I:  Alex Ayers
    • Violin II: Ji-Yeon Lee
    • Viola: Amanda Koch
    • Cello: Adrien Zitoun
    • Bass: Jon McCullough-Benner
    • Harp
    • Woodwinds: Kevin Pearl
    • Brass: Don Sipe
    • Percussion: Tobie Wilkinson
  • 7:30 – Break
  • 7:50 – Verdi, “Ballabile” from Act III Otello | Mascagni, Intermezzo from L’Amico Fritz | Respighi, Fountains of Rome | Price, Symphony No. 3, mvts. 1 & 3
  • 8:45 – Rehearsal End

Sunday, January 19

  • 1:20 – Arrive at MYAC
  • 1:30 – Full Orchestra
  • 1:35 – Price, Symphony No. 3
  • 2:30 – Verdi, “Ballabile” from Act III Otello | Mascagni, Intermezzo from L’Amico Fritz | Respighi, Fountains of Rome
  • 3:30 – Rehearsal End

Saturday, February 22

  • Founders Concert: Italian Maestros and an American Queen

Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901), “Ballabile” from Act III, Otello

Pietro Mascagni (1863-1945), “Intermezzo” from L’Amico Fritz

Ottorino Respighi (1879-1936), Fountains of Rome

I. La fontana di Valle Guilia all’alba
II. La fontana del Tritone a mattino
III. La fontana de Trevi al meriggio
IV. La fontana di Villa Medici al tramonto

Intermission

Florence Price (1887-1953), Symphony No. 3 in C Minor

I. Andante – Allegro
II. Andante ma non troppo
III. Juba. Allegro
IV. Scherzo. Finale. Allegro

Scroll to Top