Elysée Harp Duo
Beverly Wesner-Hoehn
Kerstin Allvin
Showing off the versatility of the harp, the Elysée Harp Duo
performs its own arrangement of the “Carnival of the
Animals,” which was originally written for a chamber orchestra
with two pianos, along with James Hartway’s 1994 “Two
Nights in Spain.” Hartway
is Distinguished Professor of Music at
Wayne State University whom the Elysée Harp Duo has often
collaborated with.
Faythe Vollrath, keyboard and UC Davis lecturer in music
Heidi Moss Erickson, soprano and UC Davis lecturer in music
On the 400th anniversary of William Byrd’s death (in 1623)
UC Davis lecturer in music Faythe Vollrath will perform music
of Byrd on a popular instrument of the time: the English Tudor
virginal. The instrument is a sort of soft-spoken
harpsichord, and the instrument she will be performing on was
donated by the family of a previous UC Davis voice teacher,
Nadine Salonites. Soprano and also a UC Davis lecturer in music
(teaching voice), Heidi Moss Erickson will perform selections
to be announced. Heidi has learned how to sing through her
Bell’s Palsy paralysis and created an inspiring vocal
pedagogy.
Program
William Byrd: All in a Garden Green and Oh
Mistris Myne
Valencia Baryton Project
Matthew Baker, baryton
Brett Wallfish, viola
Alex Friedhoff, cello
A string trio with four instruments? A harpsichord hiding
behind the cello? The Valencia Baryton Project has dedicated
itself to the performance of music written for an ancient and
little-known instrument, the baryton. A cross between the viola
da gamba and lirone, with 10 resonating and plucked strings
down the back of the instrument, the baryton gives the
traditional string trio an entirely new dimension.
Program
Franz Joseph Haydn: Baryton Trio No. 67 in G Major
The highlight of this solo guitar program is a work by composer
Douglas Boyce, who dedicates his Partita No. 3 (“La Comète”) to
UC Davis Associate Professor Claire
Goldstein in the Department of French and
Italian, and plays off her current
project: Comets in the Sun King’s Cosmos.
Comets in the Sun King’s Cosmos is a study of the
unusually bright comets of 1664–65 and 1680–81, which
appeared not only in the sky but also in ballets and theater,
letters and early journalism, architecture and institutions,
theology and literary style. Goldstein studies how these
comets—considered at the time to be chaotic and without
discernable form or pattern—organized curiosity, scrutiny,
resistance and doubt during the reign of King Louis
XIV in France.
Faythe Vollrath, harpsichord and UC Davis lecturer in music
Katherine Kaiser, soprano
Appearing in different ways, dreams, visions, and fantasies all
materialize as illusions of the mind. Sometimes delightful, and
sometimes disturbing, these illusions provide insight into
inner desires and provide composers license to flaunt musical
conventions and compose with inventive forms and ideas. This
concert will feature music full of mind-bending forms, dreamy
sound worlds, and fantastic texts. Giles Farnaby’s
“Dreame” perceives what the composer views in his sleep. Henry
Purcell’s “Blessed Virgin’s Expostulations” demands the return
of the angel Gabriel, first seen as a vision by Mary in her
early years.
Program
Giles Farnaby: Giles Farnaby’s Dreame
Henry Purcell: Bess of Bedlam and Blessed Virgin’s
Expostulations
Barbara Strozzi: Celli, stelle
Girolamo Frescobaldi: Se l’aura spira tutta vezzosa
Giovanni Battista Draghi: “Where Art Thou of God of Dreams”
Stephen Beatty: Vocalise for Soprano and
Harpsichord (2022)
The “I Exist Project”
amplifies the richness and diversity of queer life, culture,
and artistry by partnering with a broad spectrum of talented
queer composers and performers. Our mission is to inspire the
creation and promotion of innovative queer repertoire that
celebrates the unique experiences and voices within our
community, fostering greater understanding, connection, and
visibility for all.
Program
Selections by Trey Makler (jouissance, or learning to let
go), Jennifer Higdon, Spencer Arias, Xenia St. Charles
Iris Llyllyth, Peter Dayton, and more’.
Joy S. Shinkoskey was the mother of Deborah Pinkerton and
mother-in-law to Bret Hewitt. They established an endowment to
support noon concerts and musical performances in the UC Davis
Department of Music.
Joy S. Shinkoskey (Pinkerton)
1923–1999
Mother of four children, including Deborah Pinkerton, Joy
Shinkoskey was in her younger years a model and played the
piano which is where she developed her love of music, playing
Beethoven piano works in the Spokane Music Festival, 1940, and
throughout her life.
