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  Press Releases

  Naxos Announces the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center Release of 'Simple Gifts: The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center at Shaker Village'

  August 30, 2016 | By A440 Arts Group

  Contact: Paula Mlyn, A440 Arts Group, (212) 924-3829, paula@a440arts.com
  
  NEW YORK, NY –On September 9, 2016, CMS Live releases "Simple Gifts: The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center at Shaker Village." The recording captures a historic moment in American history: the first performance of Aaron Copland’s landmark ballet score "Appalachian Spring" in the heart of an authentic Shaker village, Kentucky’s historic Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill. The album, which was recorded live in May 2015, is also being released on the same day as the program debuts as the season opening broadcast of "Live From Lincoln Center" on PBS (September 9, 2016, 9:00 pm on most stations).
  
  In addition to "Appalachian Spring," the recording presents an all-American-inspired program and includes: Louis Moreau Gottschalk’s "The Union, Concert Paraphrase on National Airs" for Piano, Op. 48; Antonín Dvorák’s Sonatina in G major for Violin and Piano, Op. 100; Samuel Barber’s "Souvenirs" for Piano, Four Hands, Op. 28; Mark O’Connor’s "F.C.’s Jig for Violin and Viola;" and Stephen Foster’s Selections from "The Social Orchestra" for Ensemble (arr. Tara Helen O’Connor). Featured on the album are esteemed musicians from the CMS roster: pianists Gilles Vonsattel and Wu Han; violinists Aaron Boyd, Adam Barnett-Hart, Kristin Lee, and Arnaud Sussmann; violists Pierre Lapointe and Paul Neubauer; cellists David Finckel and Brook Speltz; double bassist DaXun Zhang; flutist Tara Helen O-Connor; clarinetist David Shifrin; and bassoonist Peter Kolkay. Recorded for the CMS Live label by Grammy-winning engineer and producer Da-Hong Seetoo, the CD is distributed internationally by Naxos.
  
  CMS Artistic Directors David Finckel and Wu Han note in the album’s introduction, “Copland adapted the famous Shaker song ‘“Simple Gifts”’ as the centerpiece of his moving depiction of an Appalachian wedding, and The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center proudly brought Copland’s masterful realization of the tune ‘“home”’ for the first time since its original composition by Elder Joseph Brackett in 1848. When that tune—containing music and a message which have become universal—sounded in the hushed tobacco barn of the village, the communal emotional intensity hit a peak rarely experienced in a concert hall, a moment here captured for eternity, for all to share.”
  
  To watch a clip from "Simple Gifts: The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center at Shaker Village": https://vimeo.com/user13644116/review/148541888/50321cefca
  
  The recording’s program opens with Louis Moreau Gottschalk’s "The Union, Concert Paraphase on National Airs" for piano, written in 1862. In album notes, Director of Artistic Planning and Touring Adriaan Fuchs writes, “Gottschalk played a tremendous role in the development of an authentic American musical voice… The Union: Concert Paraphrase on National Airs is nothing if not the greatest patriotic celebration in all of music… In it, Gottschalk weaves together several patriotic tunes including ‘“Yankee Doodle,”’ ‘ “Hail, Columbia,’” and ‘“The Star-Spangled Banner,”’ which at the time of The Union’s composition was not yet the official anthem of the United States.”
  
  After Antonín Dvorák’s historic arrival in the “New World” in 1892, an inspiring visit to Minnesota’s Minnehaha Falls in the summer of 1893 led the composer to jot a brief musical theme on his shirt sleeve, inspired by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s famous poem, "The Song of Hiawatha." That melody became the theme of the Larghetto of the composer’s final chamber work written in America: the Sonatina for Violin and Piano in G Major, a composition filled with invigorating freshness, delicacy and delightful joy.
  
  "Souvenirs" for Piano, Four Hands (1951-52) was somewhat of a departure for the more serious, neo-romantic composer Samuel Barber, who eschewed the “Americana” influences of Ives, Gershwin, and Copland. "Souvenirs" was created at the request of Barber’s friend and student Charles Turner, whom after encouraging the composer to write his suite of six duets for piano, four hands, persuaded the composer to write something in a lighter vein. Barber and Turner frequently played this charming suite of dances together at parties and social gatherings, to great effect.
  
  In 1995, Mark O’Connor, one of today’s foremost fiddle virtuosos, teamed up with cellist Yo-Yo Ma and double bassist Edgar Meyer for the album Appalachia Waltz, which featured, among others, his composition, "F.C.’s Jig," for violin and cello, based on the third movement of his earlier Fiddle Concerto (hence “F.C.”). O’Connor himself explained: “I retained the violin line from the score and adapted the entire symphonic orchestration into the second line.” O’Connor later arranged "F.C.’s Jig" for violin and viola.
  
  Closing the album are three Selections from "The Social Orchestra" by Stephen Foster (arranged by CMS Artist, flutist Tara Helen O’Connor). Foster, so well-known for his over 200 truly popular “American” songs, also wrote a half-dozen instrumental pieces in popular dance styles of the day. The Social Orchestra, published in 1854, was a compendium of 73 arrangements for various instruments ranging from opera and classical music to his own popular airs, three of which close the recording’s program.
  
  TRACK LISTING
  
  01 Louis Moreau Gottschalk (1829-1869) "The Union, Concert Paraphrase on National Airs" for Piano, Op. 48 (1862) Gilles Vonsattel, piano 7:20
  
  02-05 Antonín Dvorák (1841-1904) Sonatina in G major for Violin and Piano, Op. 100 (1893) Arnaud Sussmann, violin; Wu Han, piano
  
  Allegro risoluto 6:10 Larghetto 4:11 Scherzo: Molto vivace 3:07 Finale: Allegro 6:33
  
  06-11 Samuel Barber (1910-1981) "Souvenirs" for Piano, Four Hands, Op. 28 (1951-52) Gilles Vonsattel, piano; Wu Han, piano
  
  Waltz 3:40 Schottische 2:07 Pad de deux 3:35 Two-Step 1:51 Hesitation Tango 3:27 Galop 2:37
  
  12 Mark O’Connor (b. 1961) "F.C.’s Jig" for Violin and Viola (1992-93) Arnaud Sussmann, violin; Paul Neubauer, viola 3:48
  
  13 Aaron Copland (1900-1990) "Appalachian Spring" Suite for Ensemble (1944) Kristin Lee, Arnaud Sussmann, Adam Barnett-Hart, Aaron Boyd, violin; Paul Neubauer, Pierre Lapointe, viola; David Finckel, Brook Speltz, cello; DaXun Zhang, double bass; Tara Helen O’Connor, flute; David Shifrin, clarinet; Peter Kolkay, bassoon, Gilles Vonsattel, piano 24:41
  
  14-16 Stephen Foster (1826-1864) Selections from "The Social Orchestra" for Ensemble (arr. Tara Helen O’Connor) (1854) Gilles Vonsattel, Wu Han, piano; Adam Barnett-Hart, Arnaud Sussmann, Aaron Boyd, Kristin Lee, violin; Pierre Lapointe, Paul Neubauer, viola; Brook Speltz, David Finckel, cello; DaXun Zhang, double bass; Tara Helen O’Connor, flute; David Shifrin, clarinet; Peter Kolkay, bassoon
  
  Village Quadrille No. 1 1:29 Jeannie’s Own Schottisch 1:31 Village Quadrille No. 4 1:13
  
  ABOUT THE CHAMBER MUSIC SOCIETY OF LINCOLN CENTER
  
  The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center makes its home at Alice Tully Hall, which has received international acclaim as one of the world’s most exciting venues for chamber music. CMS presents chamber music of every instrumentation, style, and historical period in its extensive concert season in New York, its national and international tours, its many recordings and national radio broadcasts, its broad commissioning program, and its multifaceted educational programs. Demonstrating the belief that the future of chamber music lies in engaging and expanding the audience, CMS has created programs to bring the art of chamber music to audiences from a wide range of backgrounds, ages, and levels of musical knowledge. The artistic core of CMS is a multi-generational, dynamic repertory company of expert chamber musicians who form an evolving musical community. As part of that community, the CMS Two program discovers and weaves into the artistic fabric a select number of highly gifted young artists—individuals and ensembles—who embody the great performance traditions of the past while setting new standards for the future. CMS produces its own recordings on the CMS Studio Recordings label, which has been highly praised for both the artistry and the recorded sound of the eclectic range of repertoire it has released. These recordings are sold on-site at concerts in New York, on tour, and through the CMS website as well as online retailers such as iTunes. The newest media innovation, CMS Live, offers recordings both on CD and by download of extraordinary live performances chosen by CMS artistic directors David Finckel and Wu Han from among each season’s many concerts. In addition to Simple Gifts on CMS Live (distributed by Naxos), CMS also has a broad range of historic recordings on the Arabesque, Delos, SONY Classical, Telarc, Musical Heritage Society, MusicMasters, and Omega Record Classics labels. Selected live CMS concerts are available for download as part of Deutsche Grammophon’s DG Concerts series. For more information, visit: chambermusicsociety.org.
  
  ABOUT LIVE FROM LINCOLN CENTER
  
  Live From Lincoln Center is a cornerstone of performing arts broadcasting, presenting the world’s greatest artists and performances in music, dance and theater from Lincoln Center’s renowned stages. Now in its 42nd season on PBS, the pioneering series—produced by Lincoln Center—has been seen by hundreds of millions of viewers since its debut and celebrated by 14 Emmy Awards and other honors for its broadcasting excellence. Additional Live From Lincoln Center content is accessible online at PBS.org.