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recitals Becoming (or, is there life after opera?)
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songs of triumph & despair
Stephen Chen, Mezzo
Karen Shumka, Piano
30 Sept 2004 | 12:30 PM
"New at New West" series @ Douglas CollegeI. Flora
Butterworth - Loveliest of Trees (Shropshire Lad)
Handel - Presti Omai (Julius Caesar)
Handel - Ombra Mai Fu (Serse)
Chen - One Perfect Rose (Vicious Cycle)Since the Greeks, poets and musicians have utilized plants as symbols and metaphors for emotional states. Cherry blossoms represent the prime of life for Butterworth, while Handel invokes palms for victory and seeks solace under a shady tree. Dorothy Parker's verse creates a new twist on the rose/love equation.
II. City
Ian Gordon - Dream Keeper
Musto - Litany (Shadow of the Blues)
Somers - Five Songs for Dark VoiceThe poetry of Langston Hughes sings of urban dreams and disappointments, represented here in settings by Ricky Ian Gordon and John Musto. Its Canadian counterpart is Harry Somers' setting of Michael Fram's poetry for Maureen Forrester.