A Musical Fantasy
Mikhail Glinka, Trio Pathetique for Clarinet, Bassoon and Piano in d minor
John Mackey, Breakdown Tango for Clarinet, Violin, Cello and Piano
Georges Bizet, Carmen Fantasy for Flute, Clarinet and Piano, arranged by Michael Webster
Ernö von Dohnányi, Sextet in C major for Violin, Viola, Cello, Clarinet, Horn and Piano, Op. 37
Concert Sponsor:
Mikhail Glinka, Trio Pathetique for clarinet, bassoon and piano in d minor: Glinka is widely regarded as the father of classical Russian music. He is best remembered for his operas, but he also composed chamber music.
John Mackey, Breakdown Tango for clarinet, violin, cello and piano: John Mackey is a 36-year-old American composer, a graduate of The Julliard School and the Cleveland Institute of Music, and a composition student of John Corigliano (“The Red Violin”). “Breakdown Tango” was commissioned by the Parsons Dance Company for the ballet “Promenade.” It is one of many works that Mackey has composed on commission from dance companies. This piece, called “darkly dramatic” by The New York Times, is also referred to as “Dementia.”
Georges Bizet, Carmen Fantasy, arranged for flute, clarinet and piano by Michael Webster: This is a virtuosic work based on Bizet’s 1875 opera, “Carmen.” Most music-lovers are familiar with the Carmen Fantasy arranged for piano by Vladimir Horowitz. This piece was arranged for chamber ensemble by Michael Webster, a professor of clarinet at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University and a performer in many musical formats, including his own Webster Trio of flute, clarinet and piano.
Ernö von Dohnányi, Sextet in C major for violin, viola, cello, clarinet, horn and piano, op. 37: Dohnányi is a 20th Century Hungarian composer. Unlike his fellow countrymen Béla Bartók and Zoltán Kodály, he was not a nationalistic composer, but he composed in the broader Romantic European tradition of Liszt and Brahms.
