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ram of 20th century musicApril 9 and 10, 1976Walker Art Center

I

he Lamentations of Jeremiah (1946). Alberto Ginasterao Vos Omnes Qui Transitis Per ·ViamAh! All ye that pass by, behold, and see if there be any sorrowlike unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith the Lord hathafflicted me in the day of his fierce anger.

Ego Vir Videns Paupertatem MeamI am the man that hath seen afftlction by the rod of his wrath. Hehath led me and brought me into darkness, but not into Iiqht. Also,when I cry and shout, he shutteth out my prayer.

Recordare Domine Quid Accident NobisRemember, 0 Lord, what is come upon us: consider, and behold our reproach.Turn thou us unto thee, 0 Lord, and we shall be turned; renew our days as of old.

Aspirati ns (for Six Speakers) * (1971) Harold OwenAmidst the mists and coldest frostsWith stoutest wrists and loadest boastsHe thrusts his fists against the postsAnd still insists he sees the ghosts; "but no tape

Robert Trotter, Dean of the University of Oregon School of Music, challenged the composer tomake a setting of this text which he had used early in his education as an exercise in diction.Harold Owen is also a professor of music at the University.

Some Starry ight (from "Three Astronomer Poems") Charles Braden(1974,Charles Braden, a graduate of Macalester College, is currently living in the Twin Cities.

III

Serenade to M sic (1929) , R. Vaughan Will iamstext by William Shakespeare (The Merchant of Venice, Act V)

"Serenade To Music" was composed for and dedicated to Sir Henry J. Wood on the occasion of hisJubilee, in recognition of his services to music.

INTERMISSION

IV

Un Soir de Neige (1944) Francis Poulenc(sung in French)

De grandes cuillers de neige ...Man wanders through a cold and unfriendly winter's night as he does through life.

La Bonne neige . . . . .A frightened beast tries to escape the traps set by the hunter in a winter forest.The poet rebukes the cowardice of the animal and at the same time cries outagainst inexorable and inevitable death.

Bois meurtri ...The woods represent both death and shelter and correspond to meditation onIife and death.

"La nuit Ie froid la solitude ...Just as a plant grows natura.lly toward the sun, man, by his very nature, resiststhe night, the cold and solitude which try to imprison him. Man cannot escapedeath, but he can defy it. ' .

poems by Paul Eluardtranslation by Virginia Schubert

Francis Poulenc felt that the poems he set to music-were eloquent enough to speak for themselves-without undue pushing or prodding from him. Consequently, it is a kind of simplicity that makesPoulenc's choral music beautiful and durable.

VI

Suoni (Op. 62) (1970) 4 •••.••••••••• ~ ••••••••••••••••••••• Knut Nystedt(flute, marimba and women's voices)

LiberamenteAllegroAdagioVivo

"Suoni ," which means "sounds," was composed by the Norwegian composer Knut Nystedt inJanuary 1970. The work has no text in the usual sense. It is an interplay of vocal and instrumentalexpressions built on a 12-tone row.

VII

Five Flower Songs (1950) ' Benjamin BrittenTo DaffodilsFair daffodils, we weep to see you haste away ~so soon.Stay, stay, until the hasting day has run to evensongWe will go with you along ...

text by Robert Herrick

The Succession of the Four Sweet MonthsFirst April, sh , with mellow showers opens the way for early flowers.Then, after her, comes smiling May, in a more rich and sweet array.Next enters June and brings us more gems.Then lastly July comes, and she more wealth brings i~ than all those three.

text by Robert Herrick

Marsh Flowe-rsHere, the strong mallow strikes herslirnv root,Here, the dull night shade hangs her deadly fruit;On the hills of dust the hen-bane's faded greenAnd pencil'd flower of sickly scent is seen,The flower is green.

text by George Crabbe

The Evening PrimroseWhen once the sun sinks in the west,And dew drops pearl the evening's breast,The evening primrose opens a-newIts delicate blossoms to the dew ...

text b~ John Clare

Ballad of Green BroomThere was an old man liv'd out in the woodAnd his trade was a-cutting of broom, green broom ..

anonymous text

The Dale Warland Singers

SopranoElizabeth BradenRuth ynes BrewsterSue DoranNancy EricksonFredrika Herrick *Julie HimmelstrupJanet JohnsonMary Lou OlsonMarie Sathrum

AltoKaren JohnsonLynn JonesFrances KirchnerMichaela MahadyDianne PrieditisCharlotte Straka *Rica Jane VanRuth Warland

* section leaders

Instru mental istsCynthia Stokes, flutePamela Shaffer, violinMorris Brand, marimbaJulie Himmelstrup, piano

Wa /ne KiveJl, assistant conductorJ. Michele Edwards, research directorJulie Himmelstrup, accompan-ist

ssell P. Allen, manager

TenorRussell P. AllenPaul J. AndersonPaul BergquistTimothy JohnsonRobert KnudtsonA. Douglas NodlandDavid NordliGordon W. 0150n*

BassJohn AuseJack JaegerRalph Petersen *James RoddeThomas W. ShafferTerry SheetzWi~liam StromMark Taintor

Program cover by Michaela Mahady

Special hanks to Glad Robinson Youse and May Munson for theigenerous support.

For further information on the Dale Warland Singers, please write to:

The Dale Warland Singers1643 Wellesley AvenueSaint Paul, Minnesota 55105

This activity is made possible in part by a grant provided by theMinnesota State Legistature and the Congress of the United States.