This captivating event delves into the stories of musical works that have risen from obscurity to rightful recognition. Featuring members of the Atlanta Symphony, Opera, and Ballet Orchestras, as well as esteemed Georgia State faculty, this evening promises an impeccably performed musical journey that pays homage to the artistry that finally gets its well-deserved spotlight.
ABOUT THIS WORK
Austrian conductor and composer Johann Georg Lickl (1769-1843) studied music as a church organist in his early years, then went to Vienna (1785), where he continued his studies with Albrechtsberger and Haydn. He was active as a teacher and organist in the Leopoldstadt. He became associated around 1789 with Schikaneder’s Freihaus-Theater auf der Wieden, where he contributed numbers to popular Singspiels. He also went on to compose numerous comic operas and sacred music.
The Cassation in E flat Major (with rare cast oboe, clarinet, horn and bassoon) was long considered lost and was originally attributed to Mozart. It was first printed in 1798 in Vienna by the publisher Eder, but it was not until about 20 years ago that a complete copy of this print was found in a Hungarian library and its true composer was known.
LEARN ABOUT THIS CHAMBER WORK'S REDISCOVERY
The Piano Quartet in A minor, or more exactly the Quartet Movement for Piano, Violin, Viola and Cello in A Minor, by Gustav Mahler is the first movement to an abandoned piano quartet and the composer's sole surviving piece of instrumental chamber music. Mahler began work on this piece towards the end of his first year at the Vienna Conservatory, when he was around 15 or 16 years of age. The piece had its first performance on July 10, 1876, at the conservatory with Mahler at the piano. However, the piece was never published. The manuscript was rediscovered by Mahler's widow Alma Mahler in the 1960s, and the work premiered in the United States on February 12, 1964, at the Philharmonic Hall in New York City.
LEARN ABOUT NONET IN F MINOR
Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (1875 – 1912) had a brilliance that was overshadowed in his time, but his works are now experiencing a resnaissance.
Nonet in F minor, Op. 2, was written in 1894. It is scored for oboe, clarinet, horn, bassoon, violin, viola, cello, double bass, and piano. Its first performance (and apparently the only one until very recent times) was on a student concert at the Royal College of Music on July 5, 1894.
Nonet is in four large movements, and its scoring makes it almost orchestral in sound. The influence of Dvořák, whom Coleridge-Taylor admired greatly, is evident in the opening theme of the first movement; nevertheless, there is much individuality of style throughout the entire work. The slow movement is characterized by florid lines and a truly masterful second theme. The duple-meter Scherzo has been aptly described by Geoffrey Self (The Hiawatha Man, 1995) as “goblinesque,” with its minor key and pervasive pizzicato in the strings, but it also contains a lyrical trio. The final movement does not adopt a conventional “finale” character—neither light and playful, nor heroic—but rather, with its major key and rousing spirit, conveys a sense of easy, unexaggerated confidence.
—Jane Ellsworth
Robert J. Ambrose
Conductor Robert J. Ambrose enjoys a highly successful and diverse career as a dynamic and engaging musician. His musical interests cross many genres and can be seen in the wide range of professional activities he pursues. Dr. Ambrose studied formally at Boston College, Boston University and Northwestern University, where he received the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in conducting.
Dr. Ambrose has conducted professionally across the United States as well as in Australia, Canada, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan. His interpretations have earned the enthusiastic praise of many leading composers including Pulitzer Prize winners Leslie Bassett, Michael Colgrass and John Harbison. Dr. Ambrose is considered an authority on Arnold Schoenberg’s landmark piece Pierrot Lunaire, having conducted it several times in three different countries. He has conducted over two dozen premiere performances including works by Michael Colgrass, Jonathan Newman, Joel Puckett, Christopher Theofanidis and Joseph Turrin. In addition, a recent performance of Igor Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms under his direction has been given repeated airings on Georgia Public Radio.
Dr. Ambrose is founder and music director of the Atlanta Chamber Winds a professional dectet specializing in the promotion of music by emerging composers as well as lesser-known works of established composers. Their premiere compact disc, Music from Paris, was released in 2009 on the Albany Records label and has received outstanding reviews in both Fanfare and Gramophone magazines.
As a guitarist, Robert Ambrose has performed in dozens of jazz ensembles, combos, rock bands and pit orchestras. His rock band “Hoochie Suit,” formed with members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, received rave reviews throughout the Chicago area and performed for such distinguished guests as Yo-Yo Ma and Daniel Barenboim.
Dr. Ambrose currently serves as director of bands, associate professor of music and associate director of the School of Music at Georgia State University, a Research I institution of 32,000 students located in Atlanta, GA. As director of bands he conducts the Symphonic Wind Ensemble, maintains a highly selective studio of graduate students in the Master of Music in wind band conducting degree program, and oversees a large, comprehensive band program comprised of four concert ensembles and three athletic bands. He lives in Peachtree City, GA with his wife Sarah Kruser Ambrose, a professional flute player, and daughters Isabelle and Hannah.