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Publication Date

10-10-2017

Year of Release

2017

Note(s)

Elizabeth Reed Smith, conductor and violinist

Scott Foote, guest conductor

Şölen Dikener, cellist

Program Notes

American composer Don Gillis was born in Missouri and educated at Texas Christian University and North Texas State University. His wide-ranging career included stints as producer and scriptwriter for the NBC Symphony Orchestra directed by Arturo Toscanini, producer of several radio programs, president of the Symphony Foundation of America, vice president of the Interlochen Music Camp, and academic appointments at Southern Methodist University, Dallas Baptist College, and the University of South Carolina. He composed prolifically. He strived to interpret American culture in his music, drawing on popular music and jazz, and incorporating whimsy and humor, in both his music and titles. His best known work is his Symphony No. 5½. The Short Overture, written in 1944, was given its first performance by the NBC Symphony under Milton Katims in 1945. "To an Unwritten Opera" was added later to the title. There is no indication Gillis ever intended to write an opera. 'The overture is based on a rumba rhythm with syncopated melodies repeating and interweaving.

Sir Laurence Olivier directed and starred in the 1955 film Richard III, based on Shakespeare's play. Walton had written music for Olivier's Hamlet and Henry V, and enjoyed working with Olivier, but hated writing film music, and felt that by the time he got to Richard III he was out of ideas and inspiration for historical film music. Nonetheless, his music for Richard III was well-received. It was conducted for the film by Scottish conductor Muir Mathieson, who later arranged tl1e Shakespeare Suite from the film score.

David Williams was born in Enon Valley, Pennsylvania in 1953. He attended West Virginia University where he earned degrees in music education (bachelor's), music history (master's), and music composition (doctorate). He studied composition with Thomas Canning and John Beall, orchestration with William Winstead, musicology witl1 Barton Hudson and Christopher Wilkinson, and conducting with Don Wilcox.

He has composed over 130 works including pieces for chamber ensembles, wind band, orchestra, keyboard, and liturgical functions.

Recent works for band or orchestra include Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Wind Ensemble (2017), Concert Music for Violin, Cello, and Strings (2017), Crux for Wind Ensemble (2017), December for band (2016), Divinum Mysterium for orchestra (2016), Fefnir Dreams of Flight for concert band (2016), Peregrine for Band (2014), Echoes and Elegies for Wind Ensemble (2012), and Sussex Variants for band (2015). In December, 2017, the West Virginia Symphony will premiere the orchestral version of December.

Williams lives in Dunbar, West Virginia. He is a music specialist for Kanawha County Schools and conductor of the Kanawha Valley Community Band. Since 1990 he has been the classical music critic for the Charleston Gazette. He is an active guest conductor and a scholar in the music of the American band.

Léo Delibes was primarily a composer of operas and ballets, in a country - France - that took its opera and ballet very seriously. The ballet Sylvia was composed in 1876 six years after his greatest success, Coppélia, and to some extent is still in its shadow. The composer Tchaikovsky, however was enamored of Sylvia, and compared his own ballet Swan Lake most unfavorably with it. The story on which Sylvia is based, involving a shepherd, a nymph, and Greek gods, is complicated and convoluted. A 1901 Russian production caused the producer, none other than the great Serge Dhaghilev, to resign in furor over being required to submit to supervision because of his youth. The suite from the ballet pulls four of the most popular numbers. Notable is the Prelude of the Huntresses, in which the horn section sounds an almost Wagnerian hunting call, and the third movement, Pizzicati, probably Delibes' most famous work, used in countless cartoons.

About the artists

Guest conductor Scott Foote is a native of Syracuse, New York. He earned his Bachelors degree in Music Education at Syracuse University in 1987. In 1992, he enlisted in the US Navy as a musician. Over his 24 year career, he served as trombonist, Drum Major, and Ceremonial Band Conductor, and he held various administrative positions within seven Navy Bands. While in the Navy, he attended the Navy School of Music three times for basic and advanced training in performance, conducting, and arranging. He retired at the rank of Chief Musician on August 2, 2016.

Upon retirement from naval service, Scott joined the Marshall family and is now in his second year of graduate studies in performance as a conductor.

Scott is married to Theresa and they have three children: Elizabeth, Corey, and Tyler.

Dr. Şöleo Dikener has been the professor of cello and double bass at Marshall University since 2002. He began his teaching career as cello teacher at Hacettepe University in Turkey (1990-1995) and continued at Central Michigan University (1999-2000). As an educator, he has been a vigorous advocate of arts in the United States and Turkey, working on many levels of music education including as the director of Crescendo Music Academy in Michigan, as the coach for All State Orchestras and WV Youth Symphony, and as the founder/artistic director of Akademi Datca (2006-2008) an international summer music school and festival in southwestern Turkey. In 2010 he published a cello method book "Cello Warm-Up!" which received high critical acclaim from The Strad Magazine. As a performer, he promotes the works of contemporary composers from Turkey and the USA. He has recorded seven compact discs that are available on iTunes, Amazon, Napster and other music stores. Dr. Dikener has also appeared as solo cellist and chamber musician in the USA, Germany, Austria, France, Turkey, and England, and has also performed with the Kalamazoo Symphony, Huntington Symphony, CMU Orchestra, Kalamazoo College Orchestra, Marshall Orchestra, Bilkent Symphony, Presidential Symphony, Istanbul State Symphony, and the Hacettepe Symphony. During his studies in France, Dr. Dikener was one of the final assistants of legendary French cellist Paul Tortelier. He received his Doctorate of Musical Arts degree from Michigan State University.

Elizabeth Reed Smith is Professor of violin, viola, orchestra and chamber music at Marshall University. Since earning degrees in violin performance from the Yale University School of Music and the Eastman School of Music, Dr. Smith has received numerous awards, including first prize in the Columbia Philharmonic Orchestra Young Artists Competition. Smith's performances have included solo appearances with Orchestra New England, the Connecticut Chamber Orchestra, the Columbia Philharmonic Orchestra, the Huntington Symphony Orchestra, Seneca Chamber Orchestra and the Marshall University Symphony Orchestra. She has recorded a CD, American Music for Violin and Piano, on Albany Records with pianist Leslie Petteys. She has appeared as a solo recitalist and chamber musician throughout the eastern United States and serves as concertmaster of the Huntington Symphony Orchestra and violinist of the Millefiori Trio. She is conductor of the Marshall University Symphony Orchestra.

Orchestra Personnel

Kaitlyn Fulks, concertmaster, Philip J. Sebastiani, Caroline Kimbro, Kristen Alves, violin I

Maggie Cobb, principal, Heather Taylor, Kelcey Perkins, Molly Page, violin II

Lucia Soltis, principal, Lee Mendenhall, Wyatt McCarty, Dawson Coovert, viola

Ryan Phipps, principal, Steven Schumann, Dean Pauley, Cole Bedway, cello

Connor Barebo, principal, Lars Swanson, bass

Tyler Holbrook, principal, Shelby Ard, flute

Savannah Johnson, principal, Cassandra Thompson-Chapman, oboe

Tiffani Elliott, principal, Kelsey Larck, clarinet

Kay Lawson, principal, Edwin Bingham, bassoon

Chris Cremeans, principal, Matt Darnold, Nicholas Bragg, Bailey Wellman, horn

Josh Matthews, principal, Heather Petrie, trumpet

Brian Ashton, principal, Sarah Keiper, trombone, Kyler Dickerson, bass trombone

Anthony Reynolds, tuba

Chris Scarberry, timpani

Matthew Bradley, William Runyon, percussion

Matt Mennig, keyboard

Note

Smith Recital Hall

Disciplines

Arts and Humanities | Fine Arts | Music | Music Performance

Marshall University Music Department Presents Music for an Occasion, Marshall University Symphony Orchestra, Elizabeth Reed Smith, conductor and violinist, Scott Foote, guest conductor, Şölen Dikener, cellist

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