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ASOprogram
Atlanta Symphony Orchestra
A founding member of the Robert W. Woodruff Arts Center
Robert Spano, Music Director
Donald Runnicles, Principal Guest Conductor
Delta classical Series Concerts
Thursday, June 4, Friday, June 5, and Saturday, June 6, 2009, at 8 p.m.
Miguel Harth-Bedoya, Conductor
Luciana Souza, Mezzo-Soprano and Percussion
Scott Tennant, Guitar
Rosa Collantes and Stefan Zawistowski, Dancers
Tangos, Fados and Dance!
Blas Galindo (1910-1993)
Sones de Mariachi (1940)
Ernesto LecuonA (1895-1963) (arr. Morton Gould)
Malagueña from Andalucía Suite
Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992) (arr. Alejandro Drago)
Fuga y Misterio (1969)
Enrique Soro (1884-1954)
Danza Fantástica (1905)
AntÔnio Carlos Jobim (1927-1994) (arr. Vince Mendoza)
Jobim Tribute
I. Passarim
II. Águas de Março
III. Modinha
IV. Pato Preto
Luciana Souza, Mezzo-Soprano
Scott Tennant, Guitar
INTERMISSION
Santos Cifuentes (1870-1932)
Scherzo Sobre Aires Tropicales
Atlanta’s Performing Arts Publication 23
Atlanta Symphony Orchestra
sponsors
CNN en Español is the only 24-hour Spanish language news network in the U.S. Marking
the first time CNN independently produced a 24-hour network in a language other than
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breaking coverage supported by in-depth analysis, worldwide business and financial
news, global weather updates, sports and features, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The
network is currently available in 26 million households throughout the Americas.
is proud to sponsor the Delta Classical Series
of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.
Delta’s commitment to the communities we serve began the day our first flight took off.
After almost 80 years, Delta’s community spirit worldwide continues to be a cornerstone
of our organization. As a force for global good, our mission is to continuously create
value through an inclusive culture by leveraging partnerships and serving communities where we live and work. It includes not only valuing individual differences of race,
religion, gender, nationality and lifestyle, but also managing and valuing the diversity of work teams, intracompany teams and business partnerships.
Major funding for theAtlanta Symphony Orchestra is provided by the
Fulton County Board of Commissioners under the guidance of the
Fulton County Arts Council.
Solo pianos used by the ASO are gifts of the Atlanta Steinway Society and in
memory of David Goldwasser. The Hamburg Steinway piano is a gift received
by the ASO in honor of Rosi Fiedotin.
The Yamaha custom six-quarter tuba is a gift received by the ASO in honor
of Principal Tuba player Michael Moore from The Antinori Foundation.
This performance is being recorded for broadcast at a later time. ASO concert
broadcasts are heard each week on Atlanta’s WABE FM-90.1 and Georgia Public
Broadcasting’s statewide network.
The ASO records for Telarc. Other ASO recordings are available on the Argo,
Deutsche Grammophon, New World, Nonesuch, Philips and Sony Classical labels.
Media sponsors: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and WSB 750 AM.
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ASOprogram
Silvestre Revueltas (1899-1940)
Sensemayá (1937)
Ángel Villoldo (1861-1919)/Gerardo Rodriguez (1891-1948)
El Choclo (1903) & La Cumparsita (1917)
Osvaldo Golijov (b. 1960)
Lúa Descolorida (2002)
Ariel Ramírez (b. 1921)/Félix Luna (b. 1925)
Alfonsina y el Mar (1969)
Simón Díaz (b. 1928)
Tonada de la Luna Llena
Luciana Souza, Mezzo-Soprano and Percussion
Scott Tennant, Guitar
Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983)
Four Dances from Estancia (1941)
I. The Land Workers
II. Wheat Dance
III. The Cattlemen
IV. Final Dance (Malambo)
“Inside the Music” preview of the concert, Thursday at 7 p.m.,
presented by Ken Meltzer, ASO Insider and Program Annotator.
The use of cameras or recording devices during the concert is strictly prohibited.
Atlanta’s Performing Arts Publication 25
Notes on the Program
By Ken Meltzer and Evans Mirageas
Tangos, Fados and Dance!
T
his concert, the conclusion of the ASO’s two-week “Musica Ardiénte” Festival,
presents a whirlwind tour of song, dance and instrumental music. Celebrated Tango
dancers Rosa Collantes and Stefan Zawistowski, songstress Luciana Souza (hailed for her
part in the Golijov Pasión), guitarist Scott Tennant, Maestro Miguel Harth-Bedoya and the
Atlanta Symphony Orchestra present the Tangos of Argentina, the Bambucas of Colombia,
and the Sambas of Brazil Rosa. Rosa, Stefan, Luciana, Scott, Miguel and the ASO transport us to the steamy nights of Buenos Aires, Havana, Bogota and Rio de Janeiro!
Blas Galindo (1910-1993): Sones de Mariachi (1940) (Mexico)
Blas Galindo was born in a remote village in the Mexican state of Jalisco, and did not begin
to study music until he attended the Mexico City Conservatory, where he was instructed by
Carlos Chávez, Mexico’s most famous composer. Galindo formed a group of four composers
who sought to promote traditional Mexican music. Galindo promoted his works in the United
States when he composed a piece for a concert at the New York Museum of Modern Art. In
1940 he conducted the first version of Sones de Mariachi. The brief orchestral work is a sparkling fusion of popular Mexican melodies, blended with the exuberant mariachi style.
Ernesto Lecuona (1895-1963): Malagueña from Andalucía Suite
(arr. Morton Gould) (Cuba)
Ernesto Lecuona y Casado was a Cuban composer and pianist of Basque descent, and worldwide fame. He composed over 600 pieces, mostly in the Cuban vein, and was a pianist of exceptional quality. The mix of African, Spanish and native melodic, harmonic and rhythmic qualities
made his music quite often irresistible on the dance floor. He was wildly popular in his heyday
of the 1930s and 1940s. With matinee-idol good looks and a fluent piano technique, he could
easily be labeled the George Gershwin of Cuban music, so prolific and in tune was he with the
musical taste of his time. This concert features American composer Morton Gould’s (1913-1996)
arrangement of the seductive Malagueña, from Lecuona’s Andalucía Suite. Among his most
popular works, Malagueña is a brief, radio and 78rpm-length friendly(!) piece, evoking Cuba
and its many cultures coming together.
Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992): Fuga y Misterio (1969) (arr. Alejandro Drago)
(Argentina)
Dancers Rosa Collantes and Stefan Zawistowski make their first appearance in this concert,
performing a new choreography of Fuga y Misterio (1969), by the father of the “New Tango,”
Argentine composer Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992). The work, typical of Piazzolla’s unique and
masterful blending of classical and popular styles, is performed in an orchestral arrangement
by Alejandro Drago.
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Enrique Soro (1884-1954): Danza Fantástica (1916) (Chile)
Enrique Soro is credited with composing Chile’s first full-length symphony — his Sinfonia
romántica in 1921. The title of this work gives a clue to the style of his entire output, which is
based on the Romantic tradition of Tchaikovsky, Dvor̆ák, and Verdi that was favored in Chile
during his formative years. Soro also drew on native elements, particularly in some of his
piano pieces, which feature Chilean melodic and rhythmic devices. Danza Fantástica (1916) is
a full orchestra version of a piece originally part of Soro’s 1905 Suite for Large String Orchestra.
The brief, exuberant work contrasts two main themes — the first with its pounding repeated
notes, dizzy scales, and comic flitting touches and the contrasting second with its tuneful,
Hollywoodesque lyricism.
AntÔnio Carlos Jobim (1927-1994) Jobim Tribute (arr. Vince Mendoza)
(Brazil), with Luciana Souza, Vocalist, and Scott Tennant, Guitar
The opening half of the program concludes with the first appearance of vocalist Luciana Souza,
a frequent and treasured collaborator with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Souza, along
with guitarist Scott Tennant, join Maestro Harth-Bedoya and the ASO for a Jobim Tribute.
Antônio Carlos Brasileiro de Almeida Jobim was born in Rio de Janeiro and died in New York.
He was a Grammy Award-winning Brazilian songwriter, composer, arranger, singer and pianist/
guitarist. A primary force behind the creation of the bossa nova style, Jobim is acknowledged
as one of the most influential popular composers of the 20th century. His songs have been
performed by many singers and instrumentalists within Brazil and internationally. Vince
Mendoza’s arrangement, for vocalist and orchestra, includes four songs by the great Brazilian
musician — Passarim, Águas de Março, Modinha, and Pato Preto.
Santos Cifuentes (1870-1932): Scherzo Sobre Aires Tropicales
(Colombia)
Silvestre Revueltas (1899-1940): Sensemayá (1937) (Mexico)
Silvestre Revueltas was a violinist who studied at the Mexican National Conservatory, at St.
Edwards College in Austin, Texas, and at the Chicago Musical College. In Mexico, he conducted
and taught at the National Conservatory. Though thoroughly Mexican, Revueltas was not
active in efforts to seek out folk music or to dwell in Mexico’s past. When asked about this, he
responded: “Why should I put on boots and climb mountains for Mexican folklore, if I have the
spirit of Mexico deep within me?” Instead, his music evoked his Mexican present in its sharp
contrasts, hard-edged rhythms and vivid orchestral colorings.
Revueltas’s orchestral work, Sensemayá (Chant to Kill a Snake), is based on a poem by Nicolas
Guillén, an Afro-Cuban poet. The title seems to have been a word invented by the poet purely
for its sound. The poem begins “Mayombe--bombe--Mayombe! /The snake has glossy eyes /
The snake comes and coils itself around a tree /with its glossy eyes around a tree.” Revueltas’s
original setting in 1937 was for voice and small orchestra, but he revised it the next year for
large orchestra. The work’s suggestions of paganism and primitivism accorded well with the
spirit of much early twentieth-century music.
Atlanta’s Performing Arts Publication 27
Ángel Villoldo (1861-1919): El Choclo (1903) (Argentina)
It is not known exactly when Ángel Villoldo composed his internationally-renowned tango, El
Choclo. The piece was premiered in 1903 (the date appears on a program of the venue) at the
elegant restaurant “El Americano” on 966 Cangallo Street. The conductor, José Luis Roncallo,
had to disguise the work by titling the number as “danza criolla,” because the owner of the
local did not like tango music!
Why “El Choclo”? Irene Villoldo, sister of the composer, once explained it to the singer Juan
Carlos Marambio Catán:
“El choclo” was in fact a tough guy who as well was a pimp that was based in the
surroundings of Junín and Lavalle. He was called by that name because of the
color of his hair. When Villoldo wrote the first lyric of that tango he was careful
not to allude to the pimp in it!
Gerardo Rodríguez (1897-1948): La Cumparsita (1917) (Uruguay)
La Cumparsita is one of the most famous and recognizable tango songs of all time. The title
translates as “The little parade,” and the original lyrics begin: “The little parade of endless
miseries...” It was composed in the music room of Club Nacional de Football, and played for
the first time in Confitería La Giralda, a cafeteria located where the Palacio Salvo now stands in
downtown Montevideo. Among other appearances in popular media, it was included in a ball
scene of the film Sunset Boulevard (1950) where it was danced by Gloria Swanson and William
Holden and, remixed, could be heard in Take the Lead, where a three-dancer tango danced to
it—Jenna Dewan, Dante Basco and Elijah Kelley!
Both of the above will be danced by Rosa Collantes and Stefan Zawistowski.
Osvaldo Golijov (b. 1960): Lúa Descolorida (2002) (Argentina)
Luciana Souza and Scott Tennant take center stage to perform three songs. First is Lúa
Descolorida (2002), by the Argentine composer and member of the “Atlanta School,” Osvaldo
Golijov (b. 1960). According to the composer:
“A dead man in Spain is more dead there than anywhere else” said García Lorca,
explaining that Spanish poets define rather than allude. Lúa Descolorida, a
poem by Lorca’s beloved Rosalía de Castro written in Gallego (the language of
the Galicia region in Spain) defines despair in a way that is simultaneously tender
and tragic. The musical setting is a constellation of clearly defined symbols that
affirm contradictory things at the same time, becoming in the end a suspended
question mark. The song is at once a slow motion ride in a cosmic horse, an homage to Couperin’s melismas in his Lessons of Tenebrae, and velvet bells coming
from three different churches. But the strongest inspiration for Lúa Descolorida
was Dawn Upshaw’s rainbow of a voice, and I wanted to give her music so quietly
radiant that it would bring an echo of the single tear that Schubert brings without
warning in his voicing of a C major chord. The original version of this song was
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commissioned by the Barlow Endowment for Music Composition and premiered
by Dawn Upshaw and Gilbert Kalish in April 1999.
Ariel Ramírez (b. 1921)/Félix Luna (b. 1925):
Alfonsina y el Mar (1969) (Argentina)
A lament on the death of the Argentine poetess Alfonsina Storni, who threw herself into the
sea at La Plata.
Simón Díaz (b. 1928): Tonada de la Luna Llena (Venezuela)
Simón Díaz is known mainly for his personal crusade aimed at the recovery of the lore and
musical traditions of the llanos, the Venezuelan plains. Convinced that these conform a unique
wealth of wit, wisdom and musical heritage, Díaz devoted himself resolutely to studying, composing and disseminating them. He succeeded in turning the songs of the Venezuelan plains
into an authentic musical genre. Tonada de la Luna Llena is one of his most popular songs.
Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983): Four Dances from Estancia (1941)
(Argentina)
In 1941, Lincoln Kirstein commissioned the celebrated Argentine composer Alberto Ginastera to
write a new ballet for his American Ballet Caravan. Kirstein planned to have George Balanchine
choreograph the work. However, Kirstein’s group disbanded the following year. It was not
until 1952 that Ginastera’s ballet, Estancia, received its first performance, at the Teatro Colón in
Buenos Aires.
Ginastera created a concert suite that incorporated four movements from the original ballet
score. Ginastera’s Suite from Estancia had its first performance in Buenos Aires on May 12, 1943,
with Ferruccio Calusio leading the Teatro Colón Orchestra.
“Estancia” is the Argentine word for “ranch.” The story of the ballet is about a boy from the city
who wants to win the heart of ranch girl. She rejects him, as he seems to be no match for the
gauchos who work on the ranch. But in the end, the city boy earns the ranch girl’s favor by proving he can compete with the gauchos.
Estancia is the first musico-dramatic work to draw upon the “gauchesco” literary and dance
traditions, portraying through characteristic dance and song a “day-in-the-life” of an Argentine
ranch. Striking rhythms pervade the suite, especially in Los trabajadores agrícolas (The Land
Workers), Los Peones de Hacienda (The Cattlemen), and the concluding Malambo — the latter
a type of dance in which gauchos compete through undertaking ever-more-energetic dance
steps. Danza del trigo (Wheat Dance) provides the needed lyrical contrast.
Evans Mirageas is the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra’s Director of Artistic Planning.
Atlanta’s Performing Arts Publication 29
MIGUEL HARTH-BEDOYA, Conductor
C
urrently in his ninth season as Music Director of the Fort Worth Symphony, Miguel
Harth-Bedoya is one of this country’s most exciting and sought-after conductors.
Under his leadership, both the artistic level of the Fort Worth Symphony and its contribution
to the cultural life of the community has grown enormously.
In the words of the Dallas Morning News, “The transformation of the FWSO under music director Miguel Harth-Bedoya
continues to amaze.” The orchestra, under the direction of
Harth-Bedoya, made its Carnegie Hall debut in January 2008.
Recently released recordings include an all-Tchaikovsky CD
and a bilingual recording of Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf.
Harth-Bedoya has appeared with the Baltimore Symphony,
Boston Symphony, the Dallas Symphony, the Detroit Symphony,
Miguel
the Minnesota Orchestra, the Montreal Symphony, the New
Harth-Bedoya
York Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Saint Louis
Symphony, the Toronto Symphony, the Seattle Symphony and the Saint Paul Chamber
Orchestra. In Europe, he has conducted the City of Birmingham Symphony, the Helsinki
Philharmonic, the London Philharmonic, the Madrid National Orchestra, and the Munich
Philharmonic, among others. Festival appearances include Adelaide, Aspen, Avanti (Helsinki),
BBC Proms, Blossom, the Hollywood Bowl (for which he received an Emmy), Interlochen,
Oregon Bach, Ravinia and Tanglewood.
Increasingly in demand as an opera conductor, Harth-Bedoya has appeared with the Minnesota
Opera (Tosca), the Santa Fe Opera (Ainadamar with Dawn Upshaw) and the Canadian Opera
Company (The Barber of Seville). He returned to the Minnesota Opera in September of 2007 to
conduct Un ballo in maschera, and he will conduct several other productions there in the next
few seasons. Upcoming debuts include a new production of La bohème (directed by Jonathan
Miller) at the English National Opera in London.
Born in Peru, Miguel Harth-Bedoya makes his home in Fort Worth with his wife Maritza and
their three children, Elena, Emilio and Elisa. For more information, please visit miguelharthbedoya.com and caminosdelinka.net.
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luciana souza, Mezzo-Soprano and Percussion
G
rammy winner Luciana Souza is one of Jazz’s
leading singers and interpreters. Hailing from
São Paulo, Brazil, she grew up in a family of Bossa Nova innovators. Her work as a performer transcends traditional boundaries around musical styles, offering solid roots in jazz, sophisticated lineage in world music and an enlightened approach to
classical repertoire and new music.
As a leader, Luciana Souza has seven acclaimed releases
including her three Grammy nominated records Brazilian Duos
Luciana Souza
(2002), North and South (2003) and Duos II (2005). Her debut
recording for Universal/Verve, The New Bossa Nova (2007)
was met with critical acclaim (Bilboard Latin Jazz Album of the Year) and offers an exquisite and
personal interpretation on songs by Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen, Steely Dan and a sublime
duet with James Taylor. The record was produced by Ms. Souza’s husband, Larry Klein.
Ms. Souza has performed and recorded with greats like Herbie Hancock (on his Grammy
winning record, River — The Joni Letters), Paul Simon, Maria Schneider, Danilo Perez, John
Patitucci, Hermeto Pascoal and many others. Her complete discography contains more than
50 records as a side singer. Luciana Souza’s singing has been called transcendental, perfect
and of unparalleled beauty. Entertainment Weekly said, “Her voice traces a landscape of emotion that knows no boundaries.” Luciana Souza has been a prominent soloist in two important
works by composer Osvaldo Golijov — La Pasión According to St. Mark and Oceana. She
has performed with the Bach Akademie Stuttgart, the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the
Brooklyn Philharmonic. Other orchestral appearances include de Falla’s El Amor Brujo with the
New York Philharmonic, the Atlanta Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Her work in
chamber music includes a fruitful collaboration with the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet.
Ms. Souza began her recording career at age three with a radio commercial, and recorded more
than 200 jingles and soundtracks, becoming a first-call studio veteran at age 16. She spent
four years on faculty at Berklee College of Music in Boston, where she received a Bachelor’s
in Jazz Composition. Ms. Souza earned a Master’s degree in Jazz Studies from New England
Conservatory of Music and taught for four years at the prestigious Manhattan School of Music,
in New York City. In 2005, Luciana was awarded Female Jazz Singer of the Year, by the Jazz
Journalists Association.
Atlanta’s Performing Arts Publication 31
ASOprogram
scott tennant, Guitar
S
cott Tennant is a founding member of the Grammywinning ensemble L.A. Guitar Quartet (LAGQ),
which is composed entirely of USC alumni. He is considered
to be one of the world’s top classical guitarists. During his
student years at USC (1980-86), he studied with Pepe Romero
and James Smith, and was a chosen performer in the USC
Segovia Masterclasses of 1981 and 1986. He has authored
several books and articles on guitar technique, including the
Scott Tennant
best-seller Pumping Nylon, which has attained a cult-classic
status. It has become a standard text in conservatory and university guitar programs around
the world.
Mr. Tennant has made numerous recordings as a soloist on the GHA, Delos and GSP labels,
and with the LAGQ he has recorded for GHA, Delos, Sony Classical, Windham Hill, Deutsche
Grammophon and Telarc labels. Their Telarc release LAGQ Latin was nominated for a Grammy
award, and it was their current Telarc title LAGQ’s Guitar Heroes that won a Grammy as the
best classical crossover recording of 2005. Mr. Tennant is best known for his performances of
Spanish music, and his recordings of the music of Joaquín Rodrigo.
rosa collantes, Dancer
R
osa Collantes is an internationally renowned
performer, choreorapher and dance instructor.
She has worked and studied with some of the most
distinguished names in the tango and salsa worlds including
Carlos Gavito, Nito and Elba, Hector Zaraspe, and Pedro and
Laura Escudero. Audiences throught the U.S., South America
and Europe have hailed the intensity and authenticity that
are the hallmark of her work as a featured dancer, ensemble
member and visionary choerographer.
Rosa Collantes
Known for her unique and sensual style, Rosa has performed live at several of Manhattan’s
illustrious venues, including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Madison Square Garden and Town
Hall, and has made guest appearances on television shows including “Good Morning America,”
“Regis and Kathie Lee” and “Best Talk,” as well as on HBO, Telemundo, canal Sur and Sabado
Gigante to mention a few.
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