The Garden City High School Music Department

A 2005, 2006 & 2007 Grammy Signature School Finalist Proudly presents an

Apotheosis

The Apotheosis of St. Ignatius, oil on canvas, 1685 by Baciccio

Featuring the Women’s Chorus, Chamber Choir,

Wind Symphony, Wind Ensemble and Award Winning Composer

Samuel R. Hazo

Thursday, April 26, 2007 at 7:30 p.m. Inez Norman Spiers Auditorium

Garden City High School

Concert Etiquette

Welcome to the Garden City High School Music Department’s Concert. We are very grateful that you have joined us this evening. So that all members of the audience may fully enjoy and appreciate the extraordinary efforts put forth by our students, we respectfully ask that you observe the following guidelines:

• Turn off cell phones, beepers and any other devices that make a noise.

• Refrain from text messaging and electronic games. • No flash photography during the performance. If

videotaping, please do not block the aisle or the view of others.

• Keep talking to a bare minimum and a whisper. • Do not move to and from your seat in the middle of a piece.

Please wait until the end of a work or movement (unless you are dealing with a crying child).

• Exit and enter the auditorium through the rear lobby doors only. Please do not use side doors until after the performance is over.

• Quietly open and close doors. • Do not make noise in the hallways outside of the

auditorium. • While enthusiastic applause is most welcome, please avoid

calling out performers’ names or other types of excessive “cheerleading” and do not display signs of any kind. Also remember that, in a multi-movement work, it is customary to wait until the conclusion of the final movement before applauding.

• Stay until the end – it’s worth the wait!

GARDEN CITY HIGH SCHOOL WOMEN’S CHORUS Robert Ludwig, Director

Amanda Joyce, Student Director Mason Senft, Accompanist

Nigra Sum Pablo Casals (1876-1973) She Weeps Over Rahoon Eric Whitacre (b.1970)

Caitlin Mullins, English Horn

Ain’t No Grave Can Hold My Body Down Traditional Spiritual Arranged by Paul Caldwell and Sean Ivory

GARDEN CITY HIGH SCHOOL CHAMBER CHOIR

Robert Ludwig, Director Ryan Torino, Student Director

Mason Senft, Accompanist

J’entends le moulin Quebec folksong, arranged by Donald Patriquin Two Chinese Folksongs Arranged by Philip Lawson Hvad est du dog skjøn Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)

Ryan Torino, baritone

Great Day Traditional Spiritual, arr. by Warren Martin Erin Lynch, soprano; Robert Townsend, tenor; Daniel Ohngemach, bass

COMBINED CHOIRS

Mi’kmaq Honour Song Lydia Adams

INTERMISSION

GARDEN CITY HIGH SCHOOL WIND SYMPHONY Brandon Psenicka, Director

Fantasy on Yankee Doodle Mark Williams Perthshire Majesty Samuel R. Hazo In Flight Samuel R. Hazo (b. 1966)

Samuel R. Hazo, Conductor

GARDEN CITY HIGH SCHOOL WIND ENSEMBLE James P. McCrann, Director

Ride Samuel R. Hazo Suo-Gan Traditional Welsh Folksong Arranged by James Curnow

Jennifer Yoo, Soprano

Today is the Gift Samuel R. Hazo With the Chamber Choir and Women’s Chorus

Samuel R. Hazo, Conductor

Symphonie Funèbre et Triomphale Louis Hector Berlioz (1803-1869)

III. Apothéose

With the combined Chamber Choir, Women’s Chorus & Wind Symphony

Samuel R. Hazo

(b. 1966) Samuel R. Hazo resides in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In 2003, Mr. Hazo became the first composer in history to be the winner of both composition contests sponsored by the National Band Association. He has composed for the professional, university and public school levels in addition to writing original scores for television, radio and the stage. His original symphonic compositions include performances with actors Brooke Shields, James Earl Jones, David Conrad and Richard Kiley. He has also written symphonic arrangements for three-time Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter Lucinda Williams. Mr. Hazo’s compositions have been performed and recorded world-wide and have also aired in full-length programs on National Public Radio. He has served as composer-in-residence at the University of Minnesota Conducting Symposium and has also lectured on music and music education at universities and high schools internationally. In 2004, Mr. Hazo's compositions were listed in a published national survey of the "Top Twenty Compositions of All Time" for wind band. Mr. Hazo has been a music teacher at every educational grade level and was twice named “Teacher of Distinction” by the southwestern Pennsylvania Teachers’ Excellence Foundation. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Duquesne University where he was awarded as Outstanding Graduate in Music Education. Mr. Hazo serves as a guest conductor and is a clinician for Hal Leonard Corporation. He is also sponsored by Sibelius Music Software. Recordings of his compositions appear on Klavier Records and Mark Records.

Program Notes

Nigra Sum Nigra sum, sed formosa, filiae Jerusalem: Ideo dilexit me Rex, et introduxit me in cubiculum suum, et dixit mihi: Surge et veni amica mea, jam hiems transit, imber abiit et recessit, flores apparuerunt in terrat nostra, etmpus putationis ad venit. Alleluia.

I am a dark-skinned but comely daughter of Jerusalem, Therefore have I pleased the Lord and he has brought me into his chamber And said to me: arise my love and come. For now the winter is past, the rain is over and gone, The flowers have appeared in our land, The time of pruning is come.

Spanish cellist Pablo Casals composed this setting of a biblical poem of spring in 1942. The phrase, “nigra sum,” refers to a young woman who has become darkly tanned by working in the fields. She Weeps Over Rahoon

Rain on Rahoon falls softly, softly falling, Where my dark lover lies.

Sad is his voice that calls me, sadly calling, At grey moonrise.

Love, hear thou

How soft, how sad his voice is ever calling, Ever unanswered, and the dark rain falling,

Then as now.

Dark too our hearts, O love, shall lie and cold As his sad heart has lain

Under the moongrey nettles, the black mould And muttering rain.

The celebrated young composer, Eric Whitacre, wrote this musical setting of a melancholy James Joyce poem for the Women’s Chorus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The poem was written in 1912, shortly after Joyce visited the grave in Rahoon, Ireland of Michael Bodkin, the Galway boyfriend of Joyce’s future wife, Nora Barnacle. Ain’t No Grave Can Hold My Body Down This traditional refrain was popular with gospel singers in the American South in the first half of the twentieth century. This arrangement, which was commissioned by the Calvin College Women’s Chorale, makes use of American Sign Language in the refrain. We thank Ms. Tamara Lombardo for her assistance in teaching our singers the proper signing of the text. J’entends le moulin The text of this French Canadian folksong seems, at times, illogical because of its choices of words simply to create rhymes. I hear the millwheel tiqe tique taque My father is having a house built. It’s being built with three gables. There are three carpenters building it. The youngest is my darling. What do you have in your apron? It’s a pie made of three pigeons. Let’s sit down and eat it. While sitting down they all leapt up. Causing the sea and fish to tremble, And the stones on the bottom of the sea.

Two Chinese Folksongs British composer, Philip Lawson, is a baritone with the world-famous singing group “The King’s Singers.” Diu diu tang, a song about a train going through a tunnel is framed by the beautiful Hsiao cheng about the welcome visitors receive in the typical Chinese village. Hvad est du dog skjøn The great Norwegian composer, Edvard Grieg, composed this setting of a paraphrase of The Song of Songs, Chapter 4 in the fall of 1906, one year before his death. The tune is deeply rooted in Norwegian folk music, and focuses on an alternation between major and minor keys, Greig himself once said that folk melodies were like life itself – you could never really tell which key they were in. Mi’kmaq Honour Song The Mi’kmaq peoples are the indigenous inhabitants of northeastern New England, and Canada’s Atlantic provinces. The Honour Song is a chant dedicated to and in honor of the creator, and uses nature sounds of the region in addition to a chant handed down through the ages and a complex, continually changing 11-note chord cluster.

In Flight, in the words of the composer, is a tone poem that musically recreates the experience of flying in a fighter aircraft. In the score, one can find many musical suggestions that mimic qualities of piloting a fighter jet such as combative motifs, the serenity of the sky, the weightless feeling after a climb, breaking through the clouds, and even the shape of an actual fighter aircraft maneuver depicted in the piccolo, flute and xylophone runs. It was premiered at Carnegie Music Hall in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania by the Duquesne University Wind Symphony; Dr. Robert Cameron, Conductor. Since then, the recording of that performance has aired across the United States in programming sponsored and broadcast by National Public Radio. It was dedicated to the composer’s cousin, Nicholas H. Romah, who at the time of In Flight’s composition had just retired as a full Colonel from the United States Marine Corps.

Perthshire Majesty was commissioned in January of 2003 by the Tara Winds of Atlanta, Georgia. According to the composer, if you look up the derivation of the name "David Gregory," the conductor of the Tara Winds and President of the National Band Association, you will find that it means beloved watchman. I can not imagine a more accurate name for a person who has devoted himself to serve as a guardian and inspirer of people in all stages of life. I have witnessed, through David's unique qualities in friendship and musicianship, his unequivocal compassion for those who wish to advance music and the quality of its education. When David and the Tara Winds' membership commissioned me to compose a piece for their ensemble, I knew that the greatest challenge would be to create music that equaled the genuine warmth exhibited by the musicians I had gotten to know. Consequently, the graciousness of the Tara Winds' members predetermined the lush feel of this composition, but I still had to pinpoint a style in which to write. When I found out that David's ancestry led back to County Perthshire in Scotland, the style was set. Perthshire Majesty, a Scottish ballad for wind band.

Fantasy on “Yankee Doodle” is a free treatment on one of America’s most famous early songs. Yankee Doodle seems like such a simple melody, but it's amazing how well Mark Williams develops it using a set of variations. Although opened by a humorous statement of the theme by solo tuba, you'll soon find that this is not a novelty piece...the varied styles and moods are displayed in well-written music that is perfectly held together by the original theme. It was commissions by, and premiered at, the Bethlehem Central School District Band Festival in Delmar, NY, in 1995 with the composer conducting. Mark Williams has extensive experience with young musicians has made him one of the most popular writers of music for school bands and orchestras. Co-author of the Accent on Achievement band method, Mark's teaching includes 12 years at the elementary level, where he served as director of the Spokane All-City Band program.

RIDE, in the words of the composer, was written as a gesture of appreciation for all of the kind things Jack Stamp has done for me; ranging from his unwavering friendship to his heartfelt advice on composition and subjects beyond. During the years 2001 & 2002, some wonderful things began to happen with my compositions that were unparalleled to any professional good fortune I had previously experienced. The common thread in all of these things was Jack Stamp. I began to receive calls from all over the country, inquiring about my music, and when I traced back the steps of how someone so far away could know of my (then) unpublished works, all paths led to either reading sessions Jack had conducted, or recommendations he made to band directors about new pieces for wind band. The noblest thing about him was that he never let me reciprocate in any way, not even allowing me to buy him dessert after a concert. All he would ever say is, "just keep sending us music," which I could only take as the privilege it was, as well as an opportunity to give something back that was truly unique. In late April of 2002, Jack had invited me to take part in a composer's forum he had organized for his students at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Following the first day of the forum, Jack invited all of the composers to his house. The combination of such an invigorating day as well as my trying to follow Jack at the top speed a country road can be

driven, is what wrote this piece in my head in the time it took to get from the IUP campus to the Stamp residence. RIDE was written and titled for that exact moment in my life when Jack Stamp's generosity and lead foot were as equal in their inspiration as the beautiful Indiana, PA country side blurring past my car window.

Suo-Gan is a traditional Welsh lullaby, which was famously used in the movie Empire of the Sun. The text is as follows:

Huna blentyn yn fy mynwes Clyd a chynnes ydyw hon; Breichiau mam sy'n dynn amdanat, Cariad mam sy dan fy mron; Ni cha' dim amharu'th gyntun, Ni wna undyn â thi gam; Huna'n dawel, annwyl blentyn, Huna'n fwyn ar fron dy fam. Huna'n dawel, heno, huna, Huna'n fwyn, y tlws ei lun; Pam yr wyt yn awr yn gwenu, Gwenu'n dirion yn dy hun? Ai angylion fry sy'n gwenu, Arnat ti yn gwenu'n llon, Tithau'n gwenu'n ôl dan huno, Huno'n dawel ar fy mron? Paid ag ofni, dim ond deilen Gura, gura ar y ddôr; Paid ag ofni, ton fach unig Sua, sua ar lan y môr; Huna blentyn, nid oes yma Ddim i roddi iti fraw; Gwena'n dawel yn fy mynwes Ar yr engyl gwynion draw.

Sleep my baby, at my breast, ’Tis a mother’s arms round you. Make yourself a snug, warm nest. Feel my love forever new. Harm will not meet you in sleep, Hurt will always pass you by. Child beloved, always you’ll keep, In sleep gentle, mother’s breast nigh. Sleep in peace tonight, sleep, O sleep gently, what a sight. A smile I see in slumber deep, What visions make your face bright? Are the angels above smiling, At you in your peaceful rest? Are you beaming back while in Peaceful slumber on mother’s breast? Do not fear the sound, it’s a breeze Brushing leaves against the door. Do not dread the murmurring seas, Lonely waves washing the shore. Sleep child mine, there’s nothing here, While in slumber at my breast, Angels smiling, have no fear, Holy angels guard your rest.

“Tomorrow is a mystery. Yesterday is history. Today is the gift.” – African Proverb.

This composition was commissioned by the Midwest Clinic and is written for brass and percussion. The lyrics, “Zahray Setohta No” are derived from an east African tribal dialect and the translation is “Today is the gift.” On December 1, 1955, Mrs. Rosa Parks displayed a level of courage that only the intrinsic certainty of truth can inspire. Solely because of Mrs. Parks’ action, the contemptible “Montgomery Segregation Law” was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. This work celebrates the golden anniversary of Rosa Parks courageous act, a “gift” to all who believe in equality.

Composed in 1840 in response to a commission from the Ministry of the Interior and first performed later that year, the Symphonie Funèbre et Triomphale (Funeral and Triumphal Symphony) represents the partial fulfillment of a project that had been haunting Berlioz for several years, that of a great funeral celebration in music for France’s great men. The work also betrays the influence of Beethoven, notably the Eroica Symphony for the opening funeral march, and the finale of the Ninth Symphony for the concluding movement. It was written originally for a large wind and brass band. The last movement, Apothéose (Apotheosis), was a favorite in Berlioz’s concerts in the 1840s, when it was frequently played on its own. Gloire! Gloire et triomphe à ces Héros! Hail ye, victors triumphant Venez, élus de l’autre vie! Ye heroes in death still triumphant! Changez, nobles guerriers All for freedom that fought, Tous vos lauriers and victory wrought Pour des palmes immortelles! For rise up warriors victorious! Suivez les Séraphins, Mount up to regions bright beyond your realms Soldats divins Of light, wake to life all glorious! Dans les plaines éternelles! Your life race now is run, A leurs chœurs infinis Glory ye have won! Soyez unis! Anges radieux, with the angels to sing, Rise on victory’s wing, Harmonieux Brûlants comme eux, where the loud anthem shall ring of Entrez, sublimes Victimes Glory and triumph to the brave Gloire et triomphe à ces Héros! Who for freedom fought death! Ils sont tombés aux champs de la Patrie! Thanks we bring, psalms we sing Gloire et respect à leurs tombeaux! Over each hero’s grave!

Women’s Chorus @ indicates All-County, + = Modern Music Masters Honor Society,

Soprano I Gemma Donofrio@+ Amanda Joyce+ Kristyn Ohngemach Kelly Thompson Rosanna Valastro Alto I Caitlin Crowley@+ Katie DiBona Jenna Dincensen Ashley Galligan Stacy Georgas Heidi Jaye Kasey Leuffer Gina Malfa@+ Meredith Mazzari Lexee Miniero Michaela Murphy Brittany Norton Alyssa Olivo+ Elizabeth Record Allison Rose Lisa Ruggiero Lauren Schroeder Erin Shea

Soprano II Ashley Bressingham Kristin Ciroeri Katie Dempsey Michelle DiMattia+ Kaitlyn Gallagher+ Amanda Halvorsen Shauna Keague Kelly Kiernan Alexa Kiffel Allison Lloret Amelia Malito Kristen McGeough Kelly Packman Kaitlyn Seiferth Alto 2 Andrea Boccia Ashley Daily Aubrey Dailey Tina Graziosi Candace Hall+ Stephanie Hanson Kristie Maurice Kathryn Roulett Elizabeth Steiner Mariel Ward

Chamber Choir

@ indicates All-County, + = Modern Music Masters Honor Society, AS=All-State. ASA=Alternate AE=All-Eastern Alternate

Soprano 1 Kristen Focella@+ Meaghan Wallace@+ Jennifer Yoo+ Soprano 2 Sarah D’Antonio@+ Jaclyn D’Aversa@+ Jennifer LeSueur@+ Erin Lynch+ Lindsey Marrinan Tory Sotell Bass 1 Liam Bingham@+ Kevin Clark+ Dan Hickcox James Ladner@+ Luke Mitchell+ Greg Wright+@ASA Kenneth Wright Bass 2 Daniel Ohngemach@+AS Matthew Poon+ Armand Ranjbaran+ Ryan Torino, @+ASAE

Alto 1 Maddie Adams+ Ashley Repetti@+ Brittany Stein@+ Lauren Terracciano Alto 2 Jenna Amoroso+ Carolyn Cutrone@+ Jenna Daly Christine Muller Elise Terracciano Maggie Tittler+@ Tenor 1 Bobby Townsend+ Tenor 2 Joe Heaphy Josh Littlefield Connor McGuinness Gabe Mollica Jonathan Muscarella@+

Wind Symphony @ indicates All-County, + = Modern Music Masters Honor Society, *=Principal,

^=Co-Principal, AS=All-State. ASA=Alternate AE=All-Eastern Alternate

Flute Michele Bacigalupo Angela Cascione Kate Castronovo Lorelyn Fitzgerald Lauren Giambrone Elizabeth Glover Lisa Glover Abigail Hepworth Erin Kadamus Laura Martens Kelsey Quinn Chesney Randi* Oboe Lisa DeJoseph* Clarinet Catherine Appell Marissa Dioguardi* Kacie Flynn Thomas Leone Nicole Matteini Juliana Nesi Jeremy Snailer Jessica Zayas Bass Clarinet Jane Furey*

Bassoon William Beecher*+ Emily Menges Alto Saxophone Courtney Alford + Alyssa Bachowski Christian Gallo Dorothy Niemira Juliana Ortego Jordan Ramsland* Joseph Spedale Ryan Theobalt Tenor Saxophone Michael Abatemarco Matt Barnes* Baritone Saxophone James Naples* Trumpet Patrick Bradley* Gregory Butler^ Andrew Cauchi Brendan Creighton Michael DeRose Thomas Greco Kenneth Martens Nicole Matteini

Trumpet Thomas Spain Matthew Thaler William Volz Horns Alexander Castronovo Thomas Elustondo* Nicole Luttinger^+ James Mignon Trombone Tim Brennan Michael Bunn Jack Butler Vincent Dioguardi*@ Will Pauley

Baritone Eric Giacometti Thomas Lapinski* Tuba Kevin O'Hanlon Kendall Pauley Caroline Seery*+ Percussion Matt Cenzoprano Anthony Cordio Tina Dampman Salvatore Fiorenti Patrick Gallagher* David Kadamus Sean Mullooly

Wind Ensemble

@ indicates All-County, + = Modern Music Masters Honor Society, *=Principal, ^=Co-Principal, AS=All-State. ASA=Alternate

AE=All-Eastern Alternate Flute/Piccolo KC Alvey ^+ Colleen Gearns *+ James Ladner +@ Nicole Luttinger + Kristen McElroy ^+ Amanda Olivo + Taylor Papa + Maggie Tittler ^+@ Oboe Gregory Kramer + Caitlin Mullins *+@

English Horn Caitlin Mullins *+@ Bassoon Jenna Kirschner +@ Clarinet Jenna Amoroso +@ Donald Casler Lauren DeJoseph *+ Alex Kong + Melanie Wegener ^+ Emily Werner @ Jennifer Yoo +@

Bass Clarinet Edward Keenan *+

Alto Saxophone Thomas Cordell *+ Christopher Bingold + Tenor Saxophone Nate Furey *+ Baritone Saxophone Thomas Tranfaglia *+ Trumpet Thomas Borsari + Peter Clarke Richard Gustavson ^+@ Justin Kirschner *+ Daniel Koster + Brittany Wilton Horn Meredith Boonshaft *+ Ryan Chow + Ryan Torino +@ ASAE Greg Wright +@ ASA Trombone Peter Boonshaft David Foxen + William Pauley ^ Colin Quinn ^ John Wolf +@

Baritone Horn Blaise Ancona *+ Edward DeMarco @ Tuba Brian Plaut Steven Scarola *+ Synthesized Bass Matthew Thaler Percussion Andrea Delgado Gerard Hugel ^+ Michael Leone Thomas O’Conor + Peter O’Hanlon Blake Stranathan *+ Harp Taylor Papa +

Acknowledgments Special thanks to the Garden City Friends of Music; The Men’s Association; the High School GCHS faculty, staff, and chaperones; Mr. Larry Blass and the crew from Studio; Mr. Ed Beska, Mr. Jim Pickett and the custodial staff; and the Elementary and Middle School music educators who build the foundation for musical excellence.

Garden City Public Schools Board of Education Kenneth J. Monaghan, President Colleen Foley, Vice-President

Laurence Quinn, Trustee Barbara Trapasso, Trustee

Laura Brown, Trustee

Garden City Public Schools Administration Dr. Robert Feirsen, Superintendent of Schools

Dr. Teresa Prendergast, Asst. Superintendent for Curriculum & Instruction Albert Chase, Asst. Superintendent for Business & Finance

Fino Celano, Asst. to the Superintendent Dr. Rita Melikian, Director of Educational Technology

James P. McCrann, District Coordinator of Music & the Arts

Garden City High School Administration Dr. Frank Banta, Interim Principal David Perrotta, Assistant Principal

Dr. Adele Bacotti, Assistant Principal

Garden City High School Music Department James P. McCrann, District Coordinator/Director of Bands

Margaret Gullotta, Director of Orchestral Music Robert Ludwig, Director of Vocal Music & Music Theory

Stephen Mayo, Assistant Director of Vocal Music Brandon Psenicka, Associate Director of Bands

Anthony Santanastaso, Assistant Director of Bands Pat Dino, District Secretary for Music & the Arts

Visit the Garden City High School Music Department Website at

http://highschool.gardencity.k12.ny.us/music/