Faculty Recital: Cristina Valdés, piano

$20 General; $15 UW affiliate; $10 students/seniors. Tickets on sale Sept. 10.
Cristina Valdes, piano (Photo: Marcia Davis).

Pianist Cristina Valdés performs Charles Ives’ monumental Concord Sonata and Arnold Schoenberg’s Three Pieces Op. 11 and his Six Little Piano Pieces Op. 19 in observance of the 150th birthday of these two iconic composers. With Rachel Reyes, flute. 


Program

Drei Klavierstücke, Op. 11 (1909) - Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951)
I. Mässige 
II. Mässige 
III. Bewegte 
Sechs kleine Klavierstücke, Op. 19 (1911) - Arnold Schoenberg 
I. Leicht, zart 
II. Sehr langsame 
IV. Rasch, aber leicht 
V. Etwas rasch 
VI. Sehr langsam 
Piano Sonata No. 2, 'Concord, Mass., 1840–60' (1909-15) - Charles Ives (1874-1954)
I. "Emerson"
II. "Hawthorne"
III. "The Alcotts"
IV. "Thoreau"

Notes

2024 marks the 150th birthday of two of the most important and innovative composers of the 20th century: Arnold Schoenberg and Charles Ives. Though their styles and philosophies were quite different from one another, their search for new modes of expression pushed the established boundaries of musical language and changed the landscape of classical music.  

Schoenberg’s quest for “musical prose” led him to abandon tonality as a way to more effectively depict the complexities of the human experience. Removing all constraints became the way for him to achieve the utmost human expression.  Ives, however, chose the path of looking back to tradition and incorporating the use of hymns and popular tunes in his concert music, and choosing compositional forms such as the tone poem, which was distinctly Romantic. Despite incorporating  more traditional elements in his music, Ives was revolutionary in his use of polytonality and avant-garde techniques such as quarter tones, tone clusters, and polyrhythms. Like Schoenberg, dissonance was a way for Ives to express the complexity and depth of human emotions.

The pieces chosen for tonight’s concert are some of their most well-known works, and also just happen to be my favorites! They are works which showcase the unique sound world of each composer, and highlight what an exciting time the early twentieth century was for musical innovation.


Biography