Scholarly Program Notes on the Graduate Voice Recital of Laura Kucharik

This document is a discussion of the repertoire performed on my graduate voice recital. The program consists of “Erbarme Dich, mein Gott” from Johann Sebastian Bach’s St. Matthew’s Passion; three French mélodies by Franz Liszt: “S’il est un charmant gazon,” “Comment disaient-ils,” “Oh, quand je dors”; Lee Hoiby’s Three Ages of Woman, a setting of three poems by Elizabeth Bishop; Siete Canciones Populares Españolas by Manuel de Falla; four songs by Richard Strauss: “Zueignung,” “Allerseelen,” “Die Nacht,” “Befreit”; and “Non píu mesta,” the finale of the opera La Cenerentola by Gioacchino Rossini. My document contains limited biographical information, more specifically noting the significance of the composition within the life and career of the composer. For the Bach and Rossini pieces, both excerpted from a larger work, I discuss their roles within the respective works. I explore the origin or author of the song text, as well as analyzing and interpreting the text and its relationship to the music—incorporating my original analyses with published scholarly commentary. Finally, I consider appropriate performance practices for the selected works