East Meets West at HSU with Silk Road Junction 101

 According to two Fortuna musicians, the place that East meets West is Highway 101. On Saturday February 22, East and West will meet musically when their duo, Silk Road Junction 101, performs at Humboldt State’s Fulkerson Recital Hall. 

 As Silk Road Junction 101, Sarah McClimon and Rahman Abdur perform an international array of music on both eastern and western instruments. She plays the flute, harmonium and the Japanese string instrument called the koto. He plays the South Asian tabla drums, which he began studying as a child in Bangladesh.

 “We draw on our experiences living in Bangladesh, India, Japan, Hawaii, and California to explore the rhythms and melodies of Asia and the United States,” Sarah explained. “The Silk Road was a network of trade routes that linked Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Highway 101 links three states along the U.S. West Coast. Our music is a junction between these worlds—old and new, East and West.” 

 Their program at HSU features music from Japan, the Middle East, South Asia and the West. Another Fortuna musician, Sherry Hanson, joins them on viola.

 Sarah McClimon grew up in Fortuna, where she studied piano with her mother, Ruth McClimon. She then studied flute at a college in the midwestern U.S. and the koto in Japan. With a PhD in ethnomusicology, she teaches at Fortuna High School and at HSU. 

 Rahman Abdur studied in India and Japan, also earning an ethnomusicology doctorate. He performs with a fusion ensemble (SquarPeg) and with the Scotia Band. 

 Silk Road Junction 101 performs on Saturday February 22 at 8 p.m. in the Fulkerson Recital Hall at HSU. $10/$5 students and seniors, from HSU Box Office (826-3928) or at the door. This Guest Artists concert is produced by the HSU Music Department.

Media: Tri-City Weekly, Mad River Union, HSU Now

Silk Road Junction 101 at HSU: Program and Notes

Part One: Japan and the Middle East
( Songs in the first part are performed on koto and tabla unless otherwise noted.)

 Kazoe Uta Hensōkyoku (Variations on Counting Song)
Arranged by Kikushiro Masaaki. Koto solo. A Japanese song that celebrates the New Year. This arrangement includes many ornaments, chords, and left hand techniques, demonstrating the range of sounds characteristic of the koto.

 Haru no Sugata (Arrival of Spring)
 composed by Eto Kimio.  Koto solo.This work for koto solo is a little gem that celebrates the coming of spring. There are many special techniques for the left hand including pitch bends, plucking with the left hand, and vibrato.

  Sakura (Cherry Blossoms)
 Traditional Japanese, arranged by Miyagi Michio. Perhaps the most famous Japanese song, Sakura celebrates the fleeting beauty of the delicate cherry blossoms that bloom for a short time in spring. Japanese cherish cherry blossoms and often arrange “cherry viewing” parties called hanami. This arrangement showcases the many techniques and tone colors that the koto can produce.

 Mugon Kashū: Gypsy no Uta (Song Without Words: Gypsy Song)
 By Yuize Shin’ichi. In the summer of 1955, kotoist Yuize Shin’ichi took a trip around Europe. During that time, he enjoyed listening to the folk songs of many nations. He used three of them to create the suite “Songs Without Words.” The final movement, “Gypsy Song,” is based on the Israeli folk song, “Zum Gali Gali.”

 Sasurai Warabe Uta Shū (Songs of Wandering)
By Tsutomu Sakamoto. Koto with daf. Sakamoto Tsutomu (1926-1996) was a blind kotoist and prolific composer who represents the postwar period of Japanese traditional music. This work represents a feeling of restless wandering. The scales and musical feeling depicts the Middle East. The left hand creates a tango-like rhythm in the main theme. Rahman accompanies on the Iranian frame drum daf.

 Haru no Umi – Spring Sea, Miyagi Michio (1894-1956)
 Koto and viola duet with Sherry Hanson, viola.  Miyagi Michio was Japan’s most notable koto performer and composer. He was born in late 19th century Japan and spent much of his childhood in Korea. He lost his eyesight at a young age and took up a traditional path for blind people at the time- that of a professional musician. His genius was the ability to blend traditional Japanese and Western classical musical elements, and he was a pioneer in the new koto movement. “Spring Sea” was composed in 1929 for shakuhachi bamboo flute and koto, but it is frequently performed with violin and koto as we will perform it this evening.

 Part Two: South Asia and Beyond
(Songs in the second part will be performed on flute and tabla unless otherwise noted.)

  Raga Bhupali: classical music of North India. A Raga is a framework for improvisation that includes a mood, time of day, scale, melody, patterns for improvisation, and a rhythmic cycle. Raga Bhupali portrays a feeling of devotion. It is best performed in the evening. Every raga begins with a slow section (alap) in free rhythm introducing each note of the raga. Then the tabla joins in, providing the rhythmic accompaniment to the melody. After playing the melody (gat), the flute alternates fragments of the gat with improvisational patterns (tan). After a period of call and response between solo and drum, the melody is played again. Then a series of fast passages set up for the ending. As the music becomes faster and faster, the final pattern (tihai) is played three times before a rousing end.

 Lahora: Tabla improvisational solo accompanied by harmonium.Lahora is a solo tabla improvisational piece. This lahora is based on Tintal, a 16 beat cycle improvisation, accompanied by the flute, showing the myriad tone colors and virtuosic rhythms of the tabla.

  “Bourée angloise” from Flute Partita in A minor by J.S. Bach.
 “Badinerie” from Suite in B Minor for flute by J.S. Bach.
What if Johann Sebastian Bach had a chance to visit India? He certainly would have written something for tabla… Here is an arrangement of two Bach classics for flute and tabla.

  Gram Chara (Remembering My Hometown)
 Lyrics and music by Rabindranath Tagore, translated by Anjan Ganguly. Flute and khol. This is a song written by the famous Bengali poet, composer and writer Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941), the first Asian to win the Nobel Prize in literature in 1913 for his book of poetry Gitanjali: My king’s road that lies still before my house makes my heart wistful. It stretches its beckoning hand towards me; its silence calls me out of my home; with dumb entreaties it kisses my feet at every step. It leads me on I know not to what abandonment, to what sudden gain or surprises of distress. I know not where its windings end- But my King's road that lies still before my house makes my heart wistful.

Majhi Nao Chairya De (Bangladeshi Boatman’s Song)
 Lyrics by S. M. Hedayet, music by Ahmed Imtiaj Bulbul. Flute and dhol. Oh Boatman, let’s start the boat, raise the sails and as we sail, you may sing as much as you like.

 Ektara Bhajayo na (The Importance of Preserving Tradition)
 Popular song of Bangladesh.  Harmonium and tabla. Ektara is a popular song of Bangladesh that reminds young people to cherish and preserve their traditional culture. It humorously juxtaposes traditional food, clothing and music with imported popular culture. Here is a translation: Don’t play the ektara (one-stringed lute); don’t play the doutara (two stringed lute). Play the conga drums and guitar instead. If you play the one-stringed lute and the two-stringed lute, I will remember that I was once a Bengali. Don’t wear a sari; don’t decorate your feet with henna. Wear pants and a maxi dress instead. If you wear a sari and paint your feet with henna, I will remember that I was once a Bengali. Don’t cook shukto (bitter gourd); don’t make pais (rice pudding). Make Mongolian barbeque and Chinese food instead. If you make bitter gourd and rice pudding, I will remember that I was once a Bengali.

  Purano Sei Diner Kotha (When I think of my Hometown—Bengali)
 Hotaru no Hikari (By the Light of the Fireflies—Japanese);
Auld Lang Syne (English), traditional Scottish Harmonium and tabla.
While “Auld Lang Syne” is very popular in the English-speaking world, its lovely melody has spread around the world. Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) visited English in 1878 and was enchanted by the folk songs of English and Scotland. He adapted the melody and added a Bengali poem about the importance and persistence of memories. The same melody was adapted for use in Japanese schools during Japan’s period of modernization in the second half of the nineteenth century. Inagaki Chikai published “The Light of the Fireflies” in his 1881 book of Children’s School Songs. Bengali: How is it possible to forget the old days of my life? Japanese: Time piles up, reading by the light of fireflies/ And snow by the window/ Years have gone by without notice. /Now the day has dawned on the cedar door/ And it’s time to say “farewell.”

Silk Road Junction 101: The Performers

Sarah McClimon, flutist, kotoist and singer, grew up in Fortuna and began studies on piano with her mother, Ruth McClimon. She studied flute with Judy Scott and Jill Petricca. She studied music education at St. Olaf College, and studied flute with Cynthia Stokes, flutist with St. Paul Chamber Orchestra. She earned a Bachelor of Music in instrumental music education, magna cum laude, and an MA and PhD in ethnomusicology from University of Hawaii.

 While living in Japan for six years, she learned Japanese music with the support of the Japanese Ministry of Education and the Japan Foundation. At Tokyo University of the Arts (Toyko Geijutsu Daigaku), she studied koto with Dr. Andō Masateru. Sarah has taught at University of Tsukuba, Japan and at Humboldt State University's International English Language Institute. She currently teaches music at Fortuna High School and in the Department of Secondary Education at HSU.

 Rahman Abdur, tabla drums, was born in Bangladesh and began studying tabla at the age of six. In 1988 and 1992, he won national awards for tabla performance. Beginning in 1994 he studied percussion at Rabindra Bharati University in Calcutta, India with the support of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations, where he was awarded the Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees. He studied ethnomusicology in Japan at Tokyo University of the Arts, with a scholarship from the Ministry of Education, Japan, where he earned an MA and PhD in ethnomusicology.

 He has been an active performer of tabla in Bangladesh for national television, and at diverse performance venues in Japan. He performs with fusion ensemble SquarPeg and with the Scotia Band. He currently teaches tabla lessons.

Sherry Hanson joins Silk Road Junction 101 as a special guest this evening. She studied viola at Peabody Conservatory of Music and played with the Sacramento Symphony. She currently teaches music at Fortuna Elementary School District. She gives private violin and viola lessons and performs with the Eureka Symphony.

More information on Silk Road Junction 101 can be found at their website.

Good Vibes at HSU with Vibraphonist Ted Piltzecker

 Renowned jazz vibraphonist and composer Ted Piltzecker comes to Fulkerson Recital Hall at HSU for a solo performance on Saturday February 8.

 With three successful solo albums and another with his group Steppe Forward, Piltzecker has won praise for his originality and flair. One jazz magazine described his solo album Standing Alone as “43 minutes [of ] expressive grace.” 

 A former director of the Aspen Music Festival, Piltzecker plays in concerts and festivals around the world. “Ted is not just a great jazz vibraphone player, he is an artist,” said HSU Music professor Eugene Novotney. “He plays with a full sense of the history of his art form, but he always sounds current and fresh. He is an amazing musician!”

Piltzecker will be on campus for several days working with HSU music students, so his concert may feature "special guests." 

 Ted Piltzecker performs on the vibraphone at 8 p.m. on Saturday February 8 in the Fulkerson Recital Hall on the HSU campus. $10/$5 students and seniors, from HSU Box Office (826-3928) or at the door. A Guest Artist concert produced by HSU Music Department.

Ted Piltzecker Biography
From his website:

Vibraphonist/composer, Ted Piltzecker toured internationally with the George Shearing Quintet as well as with his own unique ensembles. He has recorded three albums as a leader. His debut album, Destinations, climbed to number eight in national jazz airplay, and his second release, Unicycle Man on the Equilibrium label (featuring Bob Minter, Harvie S, James Williams, and Dave Meade) remained on the Gavin Jazz Chart for months. The Victory Music Review calls it "a thoughtful recording filled with tasteful flair, the product of confident mature musicians who are committed to the ensemble." Jazz writer and critic, Nat Hentoff praised the album as "a lyrical, thoughtful, relaxing meeting of mutually appreciative improvisers whose time is timeless."

 His most recent recording, Standing Alone, a collection of standards for solo vibraphone has also been critically acclaimed. All About Jazz reports that "He fills the 43-minutes with expressive grace, maintaining interest throughout." Muse calls it "a simultaneously technically impressive and deeply relaxing listening experience."

 The National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts, and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts have awarded grants to Ted in both performance and composition. His percussion music is available through Bachovich Music Publications, and his chamber works have been aired on National Public Radio’s "Performance Today" and the Canadian Broadcasting Company’s "Arts National."

 Ted has held faculty positions at the University of Michigan, William Paterson University in Wayne, New Jersey, the University of Bridgeport in Connecticut, and the Manhattan School of Music. He is an associate professor at the Purchase Conservatory of Music, State University of New York, and he remains a popular clinician in universities across the country.

 For eight years, Ted directed the jazz program at the Aspen Music Festival where he regularly performed with many of the great names in jazz. (Jimmy Heath, Joe Williams, Clark Terry, Mel Torme, Ernie Watts, Hubert Laws, Slide Hampton, Toshiko Akiyoshi, and many more.) Ted has performed in New York area concerts and clubs with guitarists Gene Burtoncini and Vic Juris, bassists Rufus Reid and Todd Coolman, drummers Lewis Nash, Dennis Mackrel, and Clarence Penn, pianists Jim McNeeley, John Hicks, and Bill Charlap, and with saxophonists Chris Potter and Javon Jackson. Jazz USA commented on his recording with the Shearing Quintet featuring John Pizarrelli for Telarc - "The vibes are glassy and glamorous - this is Ted Piltzecker, who always finds the right thing to say."

 Ted appears as a featured soloist in percussion festivals around the world, from Hannover's Deutsches Percussion Symposium and London's Percussive Arts Society (UK) to Brazil's Ritmos da Terra. He performed at Puerto Rico Conservatory, at the Festival in La Patagonia, Argentina, at the Festival Internacional de Percusiones in Monterrey, Mexico, at the Festival de Vibráfono y Marimba for the US Embassy in Lima, Peru, and at the Encontro Internacional de Percussåo in Tatui, Brazil.

His appearances with orchestras, including the Tucson Symphony, San Diego Symphony, Regina Symphony Orchestras have variously spotlighted Ted as a performer, composer, and conductor. European engagements as a jazz headliner include the esteemed UMO Jazz Orchestra in Helsinki (guest soloist/composer) and several tours of German clubs and concert halls. His diverse performing interests have included tours with the Kenny Endo Taiko Ensemble of Tokyo, appearances at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York with organist Dorothy Papadakos, and concerts with classical cellists, Yehuda Hanani and Julia Lichten, violinists Calvin Wiersma and Rubén Gonzales, clarinetists Ayako Oshima and Dick Waller, and harpists Nancy Allen and Emily Mitchell.

 Ted is a graduate of the Eastman and Manhattan Schools of Music. He is also a licensed pilot and unicyclist.

Pictured: Ryan McGaughey, Levi Walls, Craig Hull, Gladys Arechiga, Ana Cruz, Sydney Chandler and Justin Santos.  Not pictured: Kevin Amos, Erin Laetz, Neil Bost and Angela Galioto.

HSU Music Students in Annual Honors Recital

 A Bach partita, an Offenbach aria, a composition for marimba and John Cage sonatas are among the musical selections on the program for the 2014 HSU Music student Honors Recital on Friday February 7 in Fulkerson Recital Hall. 

 The concert features eleven student players, selected by juried performances after fall semester. Faculty chose representatives from each performance area. “It is like a ‘best of’ showcase for the music students enrolled in studio lessons,” HSU Music professor Elisabeth Harrington explained. 

 The 2014 participants are Kevin Amos (marimba), Justin Santos (guitar), Ryan McGaughey (piano), Craig Hull (trombone), Erin Laetz (flute), Gladys Arechiga (alto saxophone), Ana Cruz (soprano), Levi Walls (piano), Sydney Chandler (horn), Angela Galioto (violin) and Neil Bost (vibraphone.) Staff pianist John Chernoff accompanies many of the selections.

 The 2014 Honors Recital is performed on Friday February 8 at 8 p.m. in Fulkerson Recital Hall. There is no admission charge. A public reception in honor of the players will be held after the concert.

2014 Honors Recital Program

Time for Marimba (1968) by Minoru Miki (1930-2011)
 Kevin Amos, marimba

 Partita No. 3 in E, BWV 1006a by Johann Sebastian Bach
 Prelude
 Justin Santos, guitar 

 Sonata No. 9, Op. 68 by Alexander Scriabin (1872-1915)
 Ryan McGaughey, piano

 Cavatine, Op. 144 by Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921)
 Craig Hull, trombone 
 John Chernoff, piano

 Concerto for Flute by Carl Nielsen
 I. Allegro moderato
Erin Laetz, flute
 John Chernoff, piano

 Sonata, Op. 19 by Paul Creston
 Gladys Arechiga, alto saxophone
 John Chernoff, piano

 “Elle a fui, la tourterelle” from Les contes d’Hoffmann by Jacques Offenbach (1819-1880)
 Ana Cruz, soprano
 John Chernoff, piano

 From Sonatas and Interludes (1946-1948) by  John Cage
 Sonata IX  Second Interlude
 Sonata V
 Levi Walls, piano

 Parable for Solo Horn:  Parable VIII, Op. 120 by Vincent Persichetti (1915-1987)
 Sydney Chandler, horn 

 Tempo di Minuetto by Fritz Kreisler (1875-1962)
 Angela Galioto, violin
 John Chernoff, piano

 Mourning Dove Sonnet (1983) by Christopher Deanne (b. 1958)
 Neil Bost, Vibraphone