Graduate recital in voice

Includes recorded audio files in WAV and MP3 formats, 55:47 in length.This recital contains a broad sampling of songs from various musical periods.\ud The four major languages, English, French, German, and Italian are represented. Each\ud piece was chosen for the stylistic or technical challenge that it presented.\ud This recital begins with a diverse group by George Frideric Handel. The first\ud piece, "Thou didst blow", is from Handel's 1738 oratorio, Israel in Egypt. The aria\ud contains coloratura melismas and chromatic passages. It is followed by, "Oh sleep, why\ud dost thou leave me?" from Handel's 1744 oratorio, Semele. This oratorio embarked on a\ud new form of writing, the non-sacred oratorio.\ud The next two arias were composed early in Handel's career. "Tutta raccolta\ud ancor11\ud , from the opera Scipione, was written in 1726. In this aria, Berenice sings about.\ud her love as she awaits the unknown future. Her uncertainty is voiced in repeated tenuto\ud notes interrupted by abrupt changes of pitch and rhythm. The final selection of the first\ud set, "Alma mia", is from Handel's opera Floridante written in 1721. This da capo aria\ud emphasizes sustained legato singing.\ud Four German lieder by Johannes Brahms make up the second group. Brahms\ud wrote over three hundred songs for solo voice and piano. The first two songs represent\ud Brahms' early vocal writing. ??? Juchhe!??? is a three-verse poem in which the first and\ud second strophe are identical. The third verse is varied, yet contains similar melodic,\ud rhythmic, and harmonic structures. 11Juchhe! 11 is a lively song that is uncharacteristic of\ud Brahms' later vocal writing.\ud Brahms broke new ground in the world of German lieder with the composition of\ud "An eine Aolsharfe???. The free vocal line and tempi of this lied are uncharacteristic of the\ud classical lied form. "An eine Aolsharfe" combines arioso, recitative, and aria like\ud materials.\ud This German sets ends with one of Brahms' most dramatic lied, "Von ewiger\ud Liebe". Wentzig's poem begins with two lovers walking in the warm twilight. For some\ud reason, the man believes that the woman is embarrassed to show their love in public. He\ud has doubts that their love is not strong enough to withstand public torment. Brahms sets\ud this portion of the poem with a gloomy and mysterious tone in a minor key. The entire\ud mood of the song changes as the girl enters, singing in a major key, confirming that their\ud love is as strong as steel.\ud The first half of the recital ends with the aria, "Klange der Heimat", also known\ud as the "Csardas", from Johann Strauss's Die Fledermaus. This spirited aria requires crisp\ud diction and a playful attitude. The aria is sung by Rosalinde as she attends a party\ud disguised as a Hungarian Countess. Adele, Rosalinde's maid, recognizes her mistress.\ud She challenges Rosalinde to prove her Hungarian authenticity. Consequently, Rosalinde\ud is forced to improvise a Hungarian csardas for the party guests, after which, she is no\ud longer doubted and continues with her disguise at the party.\ud The second half of this recital begins with a group of three chansons written in\ud 1868 and 1873 by George Bizet. These songs were selected for their contrasting\ud treatment of the French language. In the first selection, "Ma vie a son secret", (My life\ud has its secrecy) Bizet skillfully set the words of Felix Arvers. The piano plays a large\ud melodic role in between the sections of the vocal lines. The piano takes over the vocal\ud line and continues the melodic idea at the end of the final verse. The next piece, "La\ud chanson du fou", (The song of the fool) has a feeling of questioning or mystery. The\ud piano part is minimalistic as the vocal line pushes the text forward. The set ends with\ud "Serenade", (Serenade). This charming love chanson was one of Bizet's later songs. The\ud arpeggiated piano accompaniment and fluid text create an air of unattainable love.\ud The following set, four songs by Charles Griffes, represents work from his\ud Impressionistic period. The set begins with the straightforward and happy song, "We'll\ud to the woods, and gather may". It is an ecstatic melody over broken chords in the\ud accompaniment. "Thy Dark Eyes To Mine??? and ???The Lament Of Ian The Proud??? are\ud from a song cycle written for the poems of Fionna MacLeod. The long and intensive\ud vocal lines build to powerful climaxes. ???The Lament Of Ian The Proud??? opens with a\ud haunting leitmotif that develops motion and intensity as the old man's agitation builds. (See more in text