the original manuscript of the exsultate, jubilate k.165 by mozar...his older brother and by his...

The original manuscript of the Exsultate, jubilate K.165 by Mozar

IN BRIEF EXSULTATE! | OPUS COLLECTIVE.

Today, you’ll hear the Illawarra’s very own musicians as well as guest soloists in the new setting of the Opus Collective Orchestra and Soloists. This is the groups debut performance. They appear under the baton of David Vance and with Guest Artists: Jacqueline Ward, Jeremy Boulton and Zoe Chen. Now, about the repertoire… Ich habe genug is one of a number of cantatas Bach wrote for solo bass. The cantata was composed in 1727 for the Feast of the Purification of Mary. Mary and Joseph, upon reaching the eight days of purification, take the baby Jesus to the Temple of Jerusalem for circumcision. They come across Simeon, a ‘just and devout’ man who had the ‘Holy Ghost… upon him’ who revealed to Simeon that ‘he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord’s Christ’. Simeon, taking the child in his arms, blesses God and declares his happiness to depart the world in peace and find salvation in heaven. The Fantasia from Fantasia and Fugue in C Minor, also by Bach makes a fine pair with the first movement of the Ich habe genug cantata: both are in C minor and share a consistent 'noble, elegiac' mood. This piece was popularized later by Edward Elgar when he orchestrated the work in the early 1920s. The prolific output of Michael Haydn has frequently been overshadowed by the work of his older brother, Joseph. In his time however, M. Haydn’s work was admired by his older brother and by his good friend, Mozart. The Regina Coeli (duo cantata) you’ll hear today is the first time it’ll be heard in Australia. The score being used is copy of a manuscript in a music library in Salzburg and has been digitized especially for this performance. The Pifa, sometimes known as the Pastoral Symphony, serves to introduce the scene in Handel’s Messiah depicting the ‘shepherds abiding in the fields’. It’s not difficult to get the sense of scene being depicted in the simple harmonies of the upper strings and the hypnotizing drone of the cello. Finally, you’ll be treated to the Exsultate, jubilate by Mozart. This was composed in 1773 when W.A. Mozart was just sixteen years old. It was originally composed for a countertenor and is now a staple of the soprano repertoire.

THE ARTISTS OF OPUS COLLECTIVE. * = denotes soloist

David Vance | Conductor

David Vance holds honours degrees in English literature (UNSW) and in music performance (Sydney University) and pursued further musical studies as an accompanist and conductor in Italy, Austria and England. He taught at the University of Sydney and the NSW Conservatorium of Music before his appointment in 1982 by the University of Wollongong with a specific brief to develop musical activities on campus.

When he retired in 2012 as an Associate Professor, his contribution to the musical life of the university was recognised in the award of an Honorary Fellowship. He has subsequently devoted much of his time to the mentoring of young musicians. David’s conducting experience includes an extensive repertoire of a cappella choral music as well major works for choir and orchestra, including Handel’s Messiah, Orff’s Carmina Burana, Haydn’s The Creation, Mozart’s Requiem, Beethoven’s Mass in C and Rossini’s Stabat Mater, often in association with professional orchestras. David has broadcast and recorded chamber music for the ABC and remains active as an accompanist with a particular interest in vocal repertoire.

Jacqueline Ward | Soprano*

Jacqueline specializes in early music and church music. She is a masters candidate at the Sydney Conservatorium, training under Maree Ryan AM, and a scholar at St. Stephens Uniting Church. As well as a music researcher and presenter, Jacqueline is an award-winning composer and is Associate Director of Aurora Choralis.

Jeremy Boulton | Baritone*

Jeremy is currently reading for a Bachelor of Music (Performance) at the Sydney Conservatorium (SCM). He studies with Maree Ryan AM. Jeremy has featured as a soloist for the Opera Australia Benevolent Fund, SCM Early Music Ensemble, Opera Projects & Argyle Orchestra (Hobart).

Zoe Chen | Oboe I*

Zoe Chen is a member of International Double Reed Society and Jiangsu Musicians Association. She completed her undergraduate and postgraduate studies at Nanjing University of the Arts, with Tong Zhu, and further studied with Conall McCallum in Sydney Conservatorium of Music. She won the Excellent Instructor Award in the Tenth International Youth Art Festival Selection Competition of China and the Silver Award for Oboe solo in the Orchestra Competition of the European Salzburg Music and Dance Festival in 2017 and 2014 respectively. From 2009 to 2013, she held the post of principal oboe of Nanjing Philharmonic Orchestra and Festival Orchestra.

Peter Nickolas | Organ*/Continuo

Peter has been involved with amateur music-making of many forms over many years: as a singer in the Canzona of Queensland, the Wollongong University Singers and several other less formal groups, as a pianist in numerous amateur chamber music ensembles, and as a church organist and occasional recitalist. In recent years, he has accompanied the Illawarra Choral Society in a number of concerts, has sung with and accompanied the local choral group Con Voci, and has given two solo recitals on the Ronald Sharp Organ in the Wollongong Town Hall. In his day job, Peter lectures in Mathematics at the University of Wollongong.

Jacob Antonio Tim Talbot

Jonathan Karanikas

Catalina Dermenjian Hayden Burge

Jacob Antonio | Violin I

Since age nine, Jacob has been playing violin in community youth orchestras and major music camps until he left school to study a Bachelor of Music (Music Education) at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Since completing this degree in 2011, he has been teaching violin, viola and cello as well as performing regularly and running string programs and ensembles at several different primary and high schools across the Shoalhaven and Southern Highlands.

Tim Talbot | Violin II

Tim has played the piano and violin since he was five years old. Classically trained, he received AMusA for violin in 2016. Tim regularly performs at local weddings and functions as part of Unique Strings. He particularly enjoys the music of J.S. Bach and Max Richter.

Jonathan Karanikas | Viola

Sydney-based Jonathan Karanikas is a freelance orchestral violinist and violist, performing regularly with Penrith Symphony, Manly Warringah Choir Orchestra, Ryde Hunters Hill Symphony, Sutherland Shire Symphony, and in music theatre productions. He has also appeared as guest concertmaster with The Filmharmonia Orchestra and Illawarra On Pointe Productions, and performs with the St. George Chamber Orchestra, of which he is co-founder and orchestra manager. Jonathan studied viola under Robert Harris (former ACO principal viola), and completed tertiary studies in accounting and taxation at UNSW, working in public practice accounting. His interests in musicology has seen several of his articles published and peer-reviewed in the Journal of the Australian and New Zealand Viola Society. Also a brass player, Jonathan is a member of St. George Brass Band, as well as the Treasurer of the Band Association of NSW.

Catalina Dermenjian | Cello

Catalina is an Armenian Cellist, based in Australia. She has completed the HSC in 2017, at Wollongong High School of the Performing Arts and Wollongong Conservatorium of Music, continuing her study in arts, drama, and music. She is currently studying Bachelor of Music (Performance) at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music under Mr. Georg Pederson, one of Australia’s foremost cello teachers and performers. She is a member of Steel City Strings and the Sydney Conservatorium of Music Symphony Orchestra.

Hayden Burge | Bassoon

Hayden began his musical journey at five years old learning piano, adding cello when he turned eight. He studied these instruments to a very high standard and took up the bassoon three years ago. Hayden is a member of Sydney Youth Orchestra playing both bassoon and contrabassoon.

Dianne Harris | Oboe II

A multi-instrumentalist, Dianne performs with the Western Sydney Symphony Orchestra and Sydney Contemporary Orchestra premiering new compositions. Locally she has played with the Illawarra Choral Society, Steel City Strings and for Illawarra On Pointe Productions playing orchestral concerts, ballets and musicals. She also plays in musicals, bands and in her saxophone quartet.

Bevan Nicholas | Horn I

Bevan is a Wollongong local who graduated Sydney Conservatorium of Music in 2015. During his time in Sydney, Bevan performed with several prominent Sydney and Wollongong orchestras, often as Principal Horn. Since then Bevan has gone on to complete postgraduate study in psychology and is completing a research master’s degree in Medicine at the University of Wollongong.

Maya Bongarzoni | Horn II

Maya is a young, passionate French horn player. She has performed with numerous ensembles including the NSW Wind Ensemble, Albatross Musical Theatre Company, Shoalhaven Youth Orchestra and Young On Pointe Orchestra. Maya enjoys playing both classical and musical theatre horn repertoire.

Dianne Harris

Bevan Nicholas Maya Bongarzoni

PROGRAMME.

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

Ich habe genug (I have enough), BWV 82 (1727) Cantata for Bass

David Vance | Conductor Jeremy Boulton | Baritone Opus Collective Orchestra

Fantasia from Fantasia & Fugue in C Minor, BWV 537 (1709)

Peter Nickolas | Organ

Johann Michael Haydn (1737-1806)

Regina Coeli, (ca. 1762) – Australian Premiere Cantata for Soprano & Bass

David Vance | Conductor Jacqueline Ward | Soprano Jeremy Boulton | Baritone Opus Collective Orchestra

Georg Frideric Händel (1685-1759)

Pifa (Pastoral Symphony) Messiah, HWV 56/Pt.1/13 (1741) Opus Collective Orchestra

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

Exsultate, jubilate K.165/158a (1773) Cantata for Soprano

David Vance | Conductor Jacqueline Ward | Soprano Opus Collective Orchestra

ABOUT THE PROGRAMME.



David Vance | Conductor Jeremy Boulton | Baritone Opus Collective Orchestra

Ich habe genug is one of a number of cantatas Bach wrote for solo bass, most likely intended for Johann Christoph Samuel Lipsius who was a frequent singer in Leipzig's Thomaskirche. The cantata was composed in 1727 for the Feast of the Purification of Mary, sometimes known as Candlemas, celebrated on February, however the source of the words remained unknown until 2015 when matching texts were discovered in a volume of of sacred verses by Christoph Birkmann, a German theologian who was a student at the University of Leipzig at the time Bach wrote the cantata.

The Biblical story for this German text by Birkmann comes from Luke 2:25ff. Mary and Joseph, upon reaching the eight days of purification, take the baby Jesus to the Temple of Jerusalem for circumcision. They come across Simeon, a ‘just and devout’ man who had the ‘Holy Ghost… upon him’ who revealed to Simeon that ‘he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord’s Christ’. Simeon, taking the child in his arms, blesses God declares his happiness to depart the world in peace and find salvation in heaven. Since the fourth century, Simeon's song has entered the Christian liturgy (as the Nunc Dimittis) and is often employed in services of evening worship. The cantata consists of three arias separated by two recitatives. The opening movement with a duet between a solo oboe and the voice of Simeon declaring ‘I have enough’. (It’s important to note that Simeon does not say ‘I’ve had enough!’ in any outraged sense, but rather claims spiritual fulfilment at the sight of seeing Christ.) The oboe and the voice share the melodic material with free overlapping of the parts that complement each other. Meanwhile, the strings and continuo maintain a steady pulse in setting a strong mood, centred on a brooding C minor tonality. The recitative which follows is a statement of a strong belief in God and a wish to ‘break the chains’ of earthly life and go with joy to God.'

The central aria depicts death as a restful state for Simeon: more than once the music comes to an apparent halt as though Simeon has fallen asleep only to awaken again. He declaims his wish to no longer be part of this world. The melody of the voice is shared with the violin, with it occurring in unison midway through the piece, acknowledging Simeon’s conviction and belief in what he’s saying – though it be sombre and reflective in tone. In a second recitative, Simeon is becoming impatient for his death and wishes to go to that ‘beautiful’ place at once. In the final aria, Simeon happily anticipates his death. The solo oboe appears again in ascending scalic figures doubled by the strings, this time juxtaposed with the voice part as Simeon joyfully exits this world into the arms of God.

Fantasia from Fantasia & Fugue in C Minor, BWV 537 (1709)

Peter Nickolas | Organ

Bach was in Weimar at this point in his life hired by the town’s Duke, Wilhelm Ernst. He was encouraged to employ his talents at the organ. During this same tenure under Ernst in Weimar, Bach would also compose the Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, BWV 565. The Fantasia makes a fine pair with the first movement of the Ich habe genug cantata BWV 82: both are in C minor; both share the same 'noble, elegiac' mood that Bach's early biographer Philipp Spitta detected in the Fantasia; both even begin with the same expressive upward leap of a sixth, though this is ornamented in the case of the cantata. The Fantasia begins with a masterly passage of intricate three-part counterpoint over a fixed low pedal C. Then, with the keyboard voices remaining static for a bar, the pedals begin a new section, introducing a theme formed from rising octaves and descending, sighing note-pairs. Versions of these two sections are then repeated, the first transposed and with counterpoint inverted and the second extended in length and harmonic range and flowering into almost continuous semiquaver movement in its final bars. Much later in the early 1920s, Edward Elgar would orchestrate both Fantasia and Fugue parts of this work after an agreement with Richard Strauss was not honoured by him to orchestrate the Fantasia movement.



David Vance | Conductor Jacqueline Ward | Soprano Jeremy Boulton | Baritone Opus Collective Orchestra

The prolific output of Michael Haydn has frequently been overshadowed by the work of his older brother, Joseph, however the younger sibling’s work was much admired by his brother and by Michael’s good friend, Mozart. Recognising its quality, modern scholars and musicologists have worked hard to revive his music though it still remains relatively unknown outside Austria and Germany. Many of the sacred vocal works spring from his time in Salzburg where he was appointed Kapellmeister in 1762, a post he was to hold for forty-four years until his death in 1806. Haydn made eight settings of the antiphon Regina coeli throughout his tenure in Salzburg: the one we hear today (in Eb) has not yet been commercially published: the present edition has been transcribed from the archives held in Salzburg. The work, scored for soprano and bass solos accompanied by two violins and continuo (cello and chamber organ), is divided into four sections. The first is a lively allegro in which ascending fanfare figures suggest rejoicing. The resurrexit movement, marked presto, is animated by triplet figures, symbolically representing the third day of Easter. A heartfelt prayer for mercy (Ora pro nobis) follows, characterised by descending vocal lines as if suggesting kneeling. The brisk finale sets the Alleluia as an exhilarating, triple-time dance, bringing this short but attractive work to a jubilant conclusion.

Georg Frideric Händel (1685-1759)

Pifa (Pastoral Symphony) Messiah, HWV 56/Pt.1/13 (1741) Opus Collective Orchestra

The Pifa, sometimes known as the Pastoral Symphony, serves to introduce the scene in Handel’s Messiah depicting the ‘shepherds abiding in the fields’. Handel may well have borrowed the melodic material from the Pifferari, the Italian shepherd-bagpipers who played in the streets of Rome at Christmas. The drone-like accompaniment suggests the bagpipes while the lilting melody, in the style of a Siciliano, is a sort of gentle lullaby. It is not too difficult to imagine that the trills that adorn the melody evoke the bleating of the sheep.



David Vance | Conductor Jacqueline Ward | Soprano

Opus Collective Orchestra

Music lovers recognise the young Mozart as an outstanding prodigy; his solo motet Exsultate, jubilate, written in 1773 when he was just sixteen, demonstrates his extraordinary gifts as a composer. There are three movements - alternately fast-slow-fast - with a recitative section between the first and second movement. The work is accompanied by pairs of oboes and horns, with bassoon, strings and chamber organ, and has a great deal in common with Mozart’s operatic and concert arias. That said, the structure and virtuosity of the motet could arguably be regarded as a concerto for singer. While in Milan for the premiere of his opera Lucio Silla, in which the castrato Venanzio Rauzzini was cast in the principal role, Mozart renewed his acquaintance with the singer whom he had previously heard and admired in Vienna. It is likely that Mozart wrote the work for specifically for Rauzzini, tailoring it to his characteristic talents, while some also claim that Rauzzini supplied the text, a quasi-sacred homage to the power of song. Today, as with many pieces formerly performed by castrati, the work forms part of the female soprano repertoire. It is not widely known that there are three versions of the work; the other two employ Christmas and Trinity-themed texts in the first movement, and substitute flutes for oboes. These versions were discovered only in 1978 in the Stadtpfarrkirche St. Jakob in Wasserburg am Inn, not far from Salzburg where Mozart had been employed as a court musician by the Prince-Archbishop. Mozart's willingness to adapt the earlier piece for liturgical use suggests his pragmatism in meeting the demands of his philistine boss.

TEXTS & TRANSLATIONS.



1. Ich habe genug, Ich habe den Heiland, das Hoffen der Frommen, Auf meine begierigen Arme genommen; Ich habe genug!

Ich hab ihn erblickt, Mein Glaube hat Jesum ans Herze gedrückt; Nun wünsch ich, noch heute mit Freuden Von hinnen zu scheiden.

It is enough. I have held the Savior, the hope of all peoples, In the warm embrace of my arms. It is enough.

I have seen him, My faith has impressed Jesus on my heart; Now I wish this very day To depart from here with joy

2. Ich habe genug. Mein Trost ist nur allein, Dass Jesus mein und ich sein eigen möchte sein. Im Glauben halt ich ihn, Da seh ich auch mit Simeon Die Freude jenes Lebens schon. Laßt uns mit diesem Manne ziehn! Ach! möchte mich von meines Leibes Ketten Der Herr erretten; Ach! wäre doch mein Abschied hier, Mit Freuden sagt ich, Welt, zu dir: Ich habe genug.

It is enough. My one consolation is this: That I am Jesus’ beloved and he is mine. In faith, I hold him. For in Simeon, I already see The joy of life to come. Let us go forth with Simeon! Ah! if only the Lord Would free me from my body’s enslavement; Ah! if indeed my liberation were soon, With joy I would say to you, O World, It is enough.

3. Schlummert ein, ihr matten Augen, Fallet sanft und selig zu!

Welt, ich bleibe nicht mehr hier, Hab ich doch kein Teil an dir, Das der Seele könnte taugen.

Hier muss ich das Elend bauen, Aber dort, dort werd ich schauen Süßen Friede, stille Ruh.

Slumber, my weary eyes, Fall softly and close in contentment.

O World, I will linger here no more. For indeed, I find nothing in you Pleasing to my soul.

Here I am resigned to misery, But there, there I shall feel Sweet peace and quiet rest.

4. Mein Gott! wann kömmt das schöne: Nun! Da ich im Friede fahren werde Und in dem Sande kühler Erde Und dort bei dir im Schoße ruhn? Der Abschied ist gemacht, Welt, gute Nacht!

My God! When will I hear that precious word: “Now!” Then I will depart in peace, And rest both here in the humus of the cool earth And there within your bosom. My departure is at hand, O World, good night!

5.

Ich freue mich auf meinen Tod, Ach, hätt er sich schon eingefunden.

Da entkomm ich aller Not, Die mich noch auf der Welt gebunden.

With gladness, I look forward to my death, (Ah! if only it had already come.)

Then shall I escape all despair That still enslaves me now on earth.



Regina caeli, laetare, alleluia; Quia quem meruisti portare, alleluia, Resurrexit, sicut dixit, alleluia: Ora pro nobis Deum, alleluia.

Queen of heaven, rejoice, alleluia. The Son you merited to bear, alleluia, He has risen as he said, alleluia. Pray to God for us, alleluia.



1. Exsultate, jubilate, o vos animae beatae, dulcia cantica canendo, cantui vestro respondendo, psallant aethera cum me. 2. Fulget amica dies, jam fugere et nubila et procellae; exorta est justis inexspectata quies. Undique obscura regnabat nox, surgite tandem laeti qui timuistis adhuc, et jucundi aurorae fortunatae frondes dextera plena et lilia date. 3. Tu virginum corona, tu nobis pacem dona, tu consolare affectus, unde suspirat cor.

Rejoice, resound with joy, o you blessed souls, singing sweet songs, In response to your singing let the heavens sing forth with me. The friendly day shines forth, both clouds and storms have fled now; for the righteous there has arisen an unexpected calm. Dark night reigned everywhere [before]; arise, happy at last, you who feared till now, and joyful for this lucky dawn, give garlands and lilies with full right hand. You, o crown of virgins, grant us peace, Console our feelings, from which our hearts sigh.

4. Alleluja, alleluja!

CREDITS. Music Supervisor | Pamela Mildenhall Stage Managers | Sako Dermenjian, Pamela Mildenhall Surtitle Operators | Damon Harkness, Aaron Kernaghan Surtitle Adviser | Aaron Kernaghan Venue Manager | Rachael McGarry Orchestra Manager | Jonathan Karanikas Artwork Designer | Jacqueline Ward Announcer | Rob Dennis Box Office | Anne & Billy Boulton Programme Notes | David Vance, Peter Nickolas

Music Preparation | Pamela Mildenhall, David Vance, Jeremy Boulton (M.A.G.A)

(in co-ordination with Ian Coss, Clear Music Australia)

SPONSORS.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO SUPPORT OUR

LOCAL CLASSICAL MUSICIANS?

Why not place an advertisement in our next programme?

Contact Jeremy Boulton on 0450 342 313 or [email protected] for more details.

mailto:[email protected]

UPCOMING EVENTS.

Sunday, 8th September 2:30PM

Sutherland Shire Entertainment Centre

Adrian Keating | Guest Conductor

Noah Oshiro | Cellist

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.

Phil | Star Struck Photos / Jabez Media & Marketing

Mortgage Choice Dapto Downtown Newsagency, Crown Street

Lindsay McDougall | ABC Illawarra Mark Matthews | ABC Illawarra

Desiree Savage | Illawarra Mercury Aaron Kernaghan | GongOpera.com.au

Pamela Mildenhall | Con Voci Chamber Choir & Orchestra Woolmington Productions Opera Chorus & Orchestra

Steel City Strings Wollongong Conservatorium of Music

Sydney Conservatorium of Music Rachael & Reg | The Church on the Mall, Wollongong

The Musicians of the Opus Collective Orchestra

the original manuscript of the exsultate, jubilate k.165 by mozar...his older brother and by his...

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