Sunday Morning, January 10, 2010, at 11:00

Sunday Morning Coffee Concerts

Sasha Cooke, Mezzo-soprano (Lincoln Center recital debut)

Ken Noda, Piano

ROSSINI La regata veneziana (c.1857–68)Anzoleta avanti la regataAnzoleta co passa la regataAnzoleta dopo la regata

MOZART Deh per questo istante solo, from La clemenza di Tito (1791)

SCHUMANN Liederkreis, Op. 39 (1840)In der FremdeIntermezzoWaldesgesprächDie StilleMondnachtSchöne FremdeAuf einer BurgIn der FremdeWehmutZwielichtIm WaldeFrühlingsnacht

BERNSTEIN What a Movie, from Trouble in Tahiti (1951)

This morning’s program is approximately one hour long and will be performed withoutintermission.

Please join the artists for a cup of coffee following the performance.

Yamaha Piano

Walter Reade Theater

Please make certain your cellular phone,pager, or watch alarm is switched off.

This performance is made possible in part by the Josie Robertson Fund for Lincoln Center.

01-10 Cooke:GP 12/18/09 3:42 PM Page 1

Lincoln Center

Support for Great Performers 2009/2010 isprovided by Suzie and Bruce Kovner, Rita E. andGustave M. Hauser, The Florence Gould Foundation,The Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation, Inc.,Altria Group, Inc., Philip Morris International,The Shubert Foundation, Robert and Anne Essner,Mitsubishi International Corporation, The WinstonFoundation, EMC2, Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation,Great Performers Circle, Chairman’s Council, andFriends of Lincoln Center.

Public support is provided by the New York StateCouncil on the Arts.

Corporate support is provided by BNY Mellon.

Endowment support is provided by the AmericanExpress Cultural Preservation Fund.

Endowment support is provided by UBS.

Movado is an Official Sponsor of Lincoln Center, Inc.

WNBC/WNJU are Official Broadcast Partners ofLincoln Center, Inc.

Continental Airlines is the Official Airline of LincolnCenter, Inc.

MetLife is the National Sponsor of Lincoln Center, Inc.

Upcoming Sunday Morning Coffee Concerts inthe Walter Reade Theater:

Sunday Morning, January 31, 2010, at 11:00Fauré QuartetMAHLER: Piano Quartet in A minorBRAHMS: Piano Quartet No. 1 in G minor, Op. 25

Sunday Morning, February 21, 2010, at 11:00David Greilsammer, PianoProgram to include works by RAMEAU, LIGETI,MOZART, SATIE, MONTEVERDI, JANÁCEK,SCARLATTI, and JOHN ADAMS

Sunday Morning, March 14, 2010, at 11:00Leon McCawley, PianoBARBER: Nocturne (Homage to John Field), Op. 33CHOPIN: Sonata in B-flat minor, Op. 35CHOPIN: Nocturne in C-sharp minor, Op. 27, No. 1BARBER: Sonata, Op. 26

Sunday Morning, April 18, 2010, at 11:00Moscow String QuartetBORODIN: String Quartet No. 2 in D majorSHOSTAKOVICH: String Quartet No. 4 in D major,Op. 83

For tickets, call CENTERCHARGE at (212) 721-6500or visit LincolnCenter.org. Call the Lincoln CenterInfo Request Line at (212) 875-5766 to learn aboutprogram cancellations or request a GreatPerformers brochure.

Visit LCGreatPerformers.org to view essays, inter-views, and other information relating to this sea-son’s programs.

We would like to remind you that the sound of coughing and rustling paper might distract theperformers and your fellow audience members.

In consideration of the performing artists and members of the audience, those who must leavebefore the end of the performance are asked to do so between pieces, not during the performance.The taking of photographs and the use of recording equipment are not allowed in the building.

01-10 Cooke:GP 12/18/09 3:42 PM Page 2

Lincoln Center

Notes on the Programby Kathryn L. Libin

La regata veneziana (c.1857–68)GIOACHINO ROSSINIBorn February 29, 1792, in PesaroDied November 13, 1868, in Passy

Approximate length: 8 minutes

During the last ten years of Rossini’s life,from 1858 until his death in November1868, his home at No. 2, rue de la Chausséed’Antin in Paris became celebrated for itsorganized Saturday soirées to which thecream of Parisian society flocked. After thepremiere of Rossini’s last great opera,Guillaume Tell, in 1829, the composer livedin semi-retirement, nursing a complex ofserious health problems and composingrarely. But by 1858, in better health and spir-its, Rossini began to compose again and toentertain a steady flow of visitors. For hisSaturday evening concerts he and his wifewould send out engraved invitations, whichbecame much sought after; the finestpianists and singers of the era appearedhere, and most of the works performedwere Rossini’s own.

The creative work of Rossini’s last tenyears comprises some 158 pieces, sortedinto collections of 14 albums and jealouslyguarded by his wife; Rossini himself, whonever intended to publish them, referred tothem as his Péchés de vieillesse (“Sins ofOld Age”) and frequently played them forfriends and at his Saturday evenings. Manyof the Péchés are humorous, satirical, oreccentric; some are small-scale experi-ments in harmony or form; quite a few aresentimental in nature. While most arevocal pieces, some are for piano or otherinstruments. The first volume, an Albumitaliano, contains a set of three canzonet-tas, called La regata veneziana, on texts inVenetian dialect by the great librettistFrancesco Maria Piave. In this little songcycle Rossini unfolds a simple narrative ofa Venetian girl, Anzoleta, caught up in agondola race in which her lover, Momolo,is a competitor. Much of the drama isembedded in the piano part, with its rock-ing rhythmic motion and, during the raceitself in the second song, the anxiouslymurmuring chords in the right hand. Thethird song reflects the glories and rewardsof victory in a ravishing waltz.

La regata venezianaText: Francesco Maria Piave

Anzoleta avanti la regataLà su la machina xe la bandiera,Varda, la vendistu, vala a ciapar.Co quela tornime in qua sta sera,O pur a sconderte ti pol andar.

In pope, Momolo, no te incantar.

Va, voga d’anema la gondoleta,Né il primo premio te pol mancar.Va là, recordite la to AnzoletaChe da sto pergolo te sta a vardar.

In pope, Momolo, no te incantar.In pope, Momolo, cori a svolar!

The Venetian RegattaTrans.: Paolo Montanari

Anzoleta Before the RegattaOver there the flag is flying,look, can you see it? Go for it!Come back with it tonightor else you can run away and hide.

Once in the boat, Momolo, don’t gawp!

Row the gondola with heart and soul,then you cannot help but win first prize.Go, think of your Anzoleta,who’s watching you from this balcony.

Once in the boat, Momolo, don’t gawp!Once in the boat, Momolo, fly!

(Please do not turn the page until the completion of the song.)

01-10 Cooke:GP 12/18/09 3:42 PM Page 3

Anzoleta dopo la regataCiapa un baso, un altro ancora,Caro Momolo, de cuor;Qua destrachite che xe oraDe sugarte sto sudor.

Ah t’o visto co passandoSu mi l’ocio ti a butàE go dito respirando:Un bel premio el ciaparà,

Sì, un bel premio in sta bandiera,Che xe rossa de color;Gha parlà Venezia intiera,La t’a dito vincitor.

Ciapa un baso, benedeto,A vogar nissun te pol,De casada de traghetoTi xe el megio barcarol.

Anzoleta After the RegattaHave a kiss! Another one!Dear Momolo, from my heart;rest here, for it’s high timeto dry this sweat.

Ah, I saw you when, as passing,you threw a glance at meand I said, breathing again:he’s going to win a good prize,

indeed, the prize of this flag,that is the red one;the whole of Venice spoke:she declared you the winner.

Have a kiss, God bless you!No one rows better than you,of all the breeds of gondoliersyou’re the best.

Lincoln Center

Anzoleta co passa la regataI xe qua, vardeli,Povereli i ghe da drento,Ah contrario tira el vento,I gha l’acqua in so favor.

El mio Momolo dov’elo?Ah lo vedo, el xe secondo.Ah! Che smania! Me confondo,A tremar me sento el cuor.

Su, coragio, voga, voga,Prima d’esser al paletoSe ti voghi, ghe scometo,Tutti indrio ti lassarà.

Caro, caro, par che el svola,El li magna tuti quantiMeza barca l’è andà avanti,Ah capisso, el m’a vardà.

Anzoleta When the Regatta PassesThey’re coming, look at them,the poor things! They row hard!Ah, the wind is against them,but the tide is running their way.

My Momolo, where is he?Ah! I see him, he’s the second,ah! I’m in a fidget! I get confused,I feel my heart trembling.

Come on, row! Row!Before you reach the pole,if you keep on rowing, I’ll lay a betyou’ll leave all the others behind.

Dear boy, he seems to be flying,he’s beating the others hollow,he’s gone half a length ahead,ah, I understand: he looked at me.

01-10 Cooke:GP 12/18/09 3:42 PM Page 4

Lincoln Center

Deh per questo istante solo, from Laclemenza di Tito (1791)WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZARTBorn January 27, 1756, in SalzburgDied December 5, 1791, in Vienna

Approximate length: 7 minutes

In the 18th century, an age of absolutemonarchies and expanding empires, thatoperas portraying the benevolent exerciseof power by wise rulers should have flour-ished must come as no surprise. PietroMetastasio’s 1734 libretto, La clemenza diTito, was one among dozens of operaticplots that extolled the virtues of benevolentrule, and was set to music by over 40 dif-ferent composers before Mozart eventuallyencountered it. In writing his moderndrama, Metastasio reached back to thedays of the Roman Empire and based hisstory on the career of Titus FlaviusVespasianus, an emperor who reigned from79 to 81 A.D. Mozart’s setting of the librettowas intended as homage to a noble ruler,Leopold II, who had just ascended the

throne. Ceremonies that would crownLeopold as king of Bohemia were sched-uled for September 1791 in Prague, and theBohemian aristocracy commissioned a newopera based on Metastasio’s Tito. On themorning of Tuesday, September 6, the coro-nation ceremony itself finally took place in aservice at St. Vitus Cathedral, on Prague’scastle hill. That evening Mozart’s new operawas unveiled before the emperor and anaudience of distinguished guests.

The role of Sesto, the rebellious subjectwho would put Tito’s famed clemency tothe test, was originally sung by a wellknown soprano castrato, DomenicoBedini. In this pivotal scene in Act II,Sesto’s earlier conspiracy against his rulerhas been revealed and he finds himselfunable to justify his treachery. In a rondothat begins at adagio tempo and gathersforce in a soaring allegro, Sesto remindsTito of their past friendship and disclosesthe grief and guilt that torment him. It isthis powerful musical outburst that ulti-mately persuades Tito to pardon the traitor.

Deh per questo istante soloText: Caterino Mazzola

Deh per questo istante soloTi ricorda il primo amor.Che morir mi fa di duoloIl tuo sdegno, il tuo rigor.Di pietade indegno, è vero,Sol spirar io deggio orror.Pur saresti men severo,Se vedessi questo cor.

Disperato vado a morte;Ma il morir non mi spaventa.Il pensiero mi tormentaChe fui teco un traditor!(Tanto affanno soffre un core,Nè si more di dolor!)

Ah, for This Moment OnlyTrans.: Brad Suverkrop

Ah, for this moment only,remember the affection we once felt,for it causes me to die of sorrow,your disdain and firmness.It is true I am unworthy of mercy,and that the sight of me must inspire horror,yet you would be less severe,if you could see this heart.

Desperate I go to deathbut dying does not frighten me.The thought that torments meis that I have betrayed you.(Ah, that a heart can suffer such anguishand not die from the pain.)

(Please do not turn the page until the completion of the song.)

01-10 Cooke:GP 12/18/09 3:42 PM Page 5

Lincoln Center

Liederkreis, Op. 39 (1840)ROBERT SCHUMANNBorn June 8, 1810, in Zwickau, SaxonyDied July 29, 1856, in Endenich, near Bonn

Approximate length: 27 minutes

The year 1840 has often been referred toas the “year of song” in RobertSchumann’s life. Most of 1839 had beenspent in an atmosphere of turmoil and cri-sis, as Schumann and his fiancée, pianistClara Wieck, battled the legal obstacleswith which her father sought to preventtheir marriage. But a new year dawnedwith hope for the lovers, and Schumannsought an expressive outlet in the lyricismof poetry and music; beginning with theLiederkreis by Heine, Op. 24, and Myrthen,Op. 25, he composed dozens of his great-est songs in this period, including his songcycle on poems by Eichendorff, hisDichterliebe, and the Frauenliebe und-leben. As he wrote to Clara, “I should liketo sing myself to death like a nightingale.”

Joseph von Eichendorff, born in UpperSilesia in 1788, was one of an older genera-tion of Romantic poets whose verses, unlikethose of his contemporary Goethe, had noteasily lent themselves to musical settingbefore Schumann. But Schumann wasdrawn to the images of nature and theRomantic soul-searching and isolation inEichendorff’s poetry; most of the versesused in the Liederkreis, Op. 39, derive fromEichendorff’s novel Presentiment and Pres-ent. The opening song, “In der Fremde,”sets a tone of loneliness and alienation thatwill recur throughout the cycle. The famoussong “Waldesgespräch” conjures up theworld of German legend; its abandonedbride and Rhineland castle are evoked againin the haunting song “Auf einer Burg.” Afew of the songs, such as “Die Stille” and“Wehmut,” employ a quasi-folk song stylematching the artless words. “Mondnacht,”near the heart of the cycle, is among themost lyrical and nocturne-like of the songs,while “Frühlingsnacht” brings the cycle to aclose with joyous fervor.

Liederkreis, Op. 39Text: Joseph von Eichendorff

In der FremdeAus der Heimat hinter den Blitzen rot

Da kommen die Wolken her,Aber Vater und Mutter sind lange tot,Es kennt mich dort keiner mehr.

Wie bald, ach wie bald kommt die stilleZeit,

Da ruhe ich auch, und über mirRauscht die schöne Waldeinsamkeit,Und keiner kennt mich mehr hier.

Song Cycle, Op. 39Trans.: Emily Ezust

In a Foreign LandFrom the direction of home, behind thered flashes of lightning

there come clouds,but Father and Mother are long dead;no one there knows me anymore.

How soon, ah, how soon will that quiettime come,

when I too shall rest, and over methe beautiful forest’s loneliness shall rustle,and no one here shall know me anymore.

01-10 Cooke:GP 12/18/09 3:42 PM Page 6

Lincoln Center

IntermezzoDein Bildnis wunderseligHab ich im Herzensgrund,Das sieht so frisch und fröhlichMich an zu jeder Stund’.

Mein Herz still in sich singetEin altes schönes Lied,Das in die Luft sich schwingetUnd zu dir eilig zieht.

WaldesgesprächEs ist schon spät, es ist schon kalt,Was reitest du einsam durch den Wald.Der Wald ist lang, du bist allein,Du schöne Braut! Ich führ dich heim!

“Groß ist der Männer Trug und List,Vor Schmerz mein Herz gebrochen ist,Wohl irrt das Waldhorn her und hin,O flieh! Du weißt nicht, wer ich bin.”

So reich geschmückt ist Roß und Weib,So wunderschön der junge Leib,Jetzt kenn ich dich—Gott steht mir bei!Du bist die Hexe Lorelei.

“Du kennst mich wohl—vom hohen SteinSchaut still mein Schloß tief in den Rhein.Es ist schon spät, es ist schon kalt,Kommst nimmermehr aus diesem Wald.”

Die StilleEs weiß und rät es doch keiner,Wie mir so wohl ist, so wohl!Ach, wüßt es nur einer, nur einer,Kein Mensch es sonst wissen soll.

So still ist’s nicht draußen im Schnee,So stumm und verschwiegen sindDie Sterne nicht in der Höh,Als meine Gedanken sind.

Ich wünscht’, ich wäre ein VögleinUnd zöge über das Meer,Wohl über das Meer und weiter,Bis daß ich im Himmel wär!

IntermezzoYour blissful, wonderful imageI have in my heart’s depths;it looks so freshly and joyouslyat me in every moment.

My heart sings mutely to itselfan old, beautiful songthat soars into the airand hastens to your side.

Conversation in the WoodsIt is already late, it is already cold;why do you ride alone through the wood?The wood is vast and you are alone,you fair bride! I will lead you home.

“Great are the deceit and cunning of men;my heart has broken for pain.The forest horn strays here and there,O flee! You do not know who I am.”

So richly decked are mount and lady,so wondrously fair the young form;now I recognize you—God stand by me!You are the Witch Loreley.

“You recognize me well—from the lofty cliffsmy castle gazes down into the Rhine.It is already late, it is already cold—you shall never again leave this wood.”

SilenceNo one knows or guesseshow glad I am, so glad!Alas, if only one could know it, just one—no other soul should know it!

The snow outside is not so quiet—nor as mute and silentare the lofty stars,compared to my thoughts.

I wish I were a little bird—I would fly over the sea,well across the sea and farther,until I were in heaven.

(Please do not turn the page until the completion of the song.)

01-10 Cooke:GP 12/18/09 3:42 PM Page 7

Lincoln Center

MondnachtEs war, als hätt’ der Himmel,Die Erde still geküßt,Daß sie im BlütenschimmerVon ihm nun träumen müßt.

Die Luft ging durch die Felder,Die Ähren wogten sacht,Es rauschten leis die Wälder,So sternklar war die Nacht.

Und meine Seele spannteWeit ihre Flügel aus,Flog durch die stillen Lande,Als flöge sie nach Haus.

Schöne FremdeEs rauschen die Wipfel und schauern,Als machten zu dieser StundUm die halbversunkenen MauernDie alten Götter die Rund.

Hier hinter den MyrtenbäumenIn heimlich dämmernder Pracht,Was sprichst du wirr wie in TräumenZu mir, phantastische Nacht?

Es funkeln auf mich alle SterneMit glühendem Liebesblick,Es redet trunken die FerneWie vom künftigem, großem Glück.

Auf einer BurgEingeschlafen auf der LauerOben ist der alte Ritter;Drüber gehen Regenschauer,Und der Wald rauscht durch das Gitter.

Eingewachsen Bart und HaareUnd versteinert Brust und Krause,Sitzt er viele hundert JahreOben in der stillen Klause.

Draußen ist es still und friedlich,Alle sind ins Tal gezogen,Waldesvögel einsam singenIn den leeren Fensterbogen.

Eine Hochzeit fährt da untenAuf dem Rhein im Sonnenscheine,Musikanten spielen munter,Und die schöne Braut, sie weinet.

Moonlit NightIt was as if the skyhad quietly kissed the earth,so that in a shower of blossomsshe must only dream of him.

The breeze wafted through the fields,the ears of corn waved gently,the forests rustled faintly,So sparkling clear was the night.

And my soul stretchedits wings out far,flew through the still lands,as if it were flying home.

Beautiful Foreign LandThe treetops rustle and shiveras if at this hourabout the half-sunken wallsthe old gods are making their rounds.

Here, behind the myrtle trees,in secretly darkening splendor,what do you murmur, as if in a dream,to me, fantastic night?

The stars glitter down on mewith glowing, loving gazes,and the distance speaks tipsily,it seems, of great future happiness.

In a CastleAsleep on his watch upthere is the old knight;above move rainshowers,and the wood rustles through the grill.

Beard and hair grown into one,chest and ruff have turned to stone;he sits for many hundreds of yearsabove in his silent den.

Outside it is quiet and peaceful:all have taken to the valley;woodbirds sing alonein the empty arching windows.

A wedding passes bybelow on the Rhine, in the sunlight:musicians play gailyand the fair bride—she weeps.

01-10 Cooke:GP 12/18/09 3:42 PM Page 8

Lincoln Center

In der FremdeIch hör’ die Bächlein rauschenIm Walde her und hin.Im Walde, in dem Rauschen,Ich weiß nicht, wo ich bin.

Die Nachtigallen schlagenHier in der Einsamkeit,Als wollten sie was sagenVon der alten, schönen Zeit.

Die Mondesschimmer fliegen,Als säh ich unter mirDas Schloß im Tale liegen,Und ist doch so weit von hier!

Als müßte in dem Garten,Voll Rosen weiß und rot,Meine Liebste auf mich warten,Und ist doch lange tot.

WehmutIch kann wohl manchmal singen,Als ob ich fröhlich sei,Doch heimlich Tränen dringen,Da wird das Herz mir frei.

Es lassen Nachtigallen,Spielt draußen Frühlingsluft,Der Sehnsucht Lied erschallenAus ihres Kerkers Gruft.

Da lauschen alle Herzen,Und alles ist erfreut,Doch keiner fühlt die Schmerzen,Im Lied das tiefe Leid.

In a Foreign LandI hear the brooklets rushinghere and there in the wood.In the wood, amidst the rushing,I know not where I am.

The nightingales singhere in the solitude,as if they wantedto speak of fine old times.

The moonbeams dartand I seem to see below mea castle lying in the valley—yet it is so far from here!

It seems as if, in the gardenfull of roses white and red,my sweetheart were waiting for me—yet she is long since dead.

SadnessSometimes I can singas if I were happy,but secretly tears well upand free my heart.

The nightingales,when spring breezes play,let their songs of yearningresound from the depths of their dungeons.

Then all hearts listenand everyone rejoices;yet no one truly feels the anguishof the song’s deep sorrow.

(Please do not turn the page until the completion of the song.)

01-10 Cooke:GP 12/18/09 3:42 PM Page 9

ZwielichtDämmrung will die Flügel spreiten,Schaurig rühren sich die Bäume,Wolken ziehn wie schwere Träume—Was will dieses Graun bedeuten?

Hast ein Reh du lieb vor andern,Laß es nicht alleine grasen,Jäger ziehn im Wald und blasen,Stimmen hin und wieder wandern.

Hast du einen Freund hienieden,Trau ihm nicht zu dieser Stunde,Freundlich wohl mit Aug’ und Munde,Sinnt er Krieg im tück’schen Frieden.

Was heut gehet müde unter,Hebt sich morgen neu geboren.Manches geht in Nacht verloren—Hüte dich, sei wach und munter!

Im WaldeEs zog eine Hochzeit den Berg entlang,

Ich hörte die Vögel schlagen,Da blitzten viel Reiter, das Waldhorn klang,Das war ein lustiges Jagen!

Und eh’ ich’s gedacht, war alles verhallt,

Die Nacht bedecket die Runde,Nur von den Bergen noch rauschet der Wald

Und mich schauert’s im Herzensgrunde.

FrühlingsnachtÜber’n Garten durch die LüfteHört’ ich Wandervögel ziehn,Das bedeutet Frühlingsdüfte,Unten fängt’s schon an zu blüh’n.

Jauchzen möcht’ ich, möchte weinen,Ist mir’s doch, als könnt’s nicht sein!Alte Wunder wieder scheinenMit dem Mondesglanz herein.

TwilightDusk prepares to spread its wings,the trees rustle ominously,clouds approach like heavy dreams—what does this horror mean?

If you have a favorite fawn,don’t let it graze alone;hunters roam the forest,sounding their horns, their voices strayingtime and again.

If you have a friend on earth,do not trust him in this hour;friendly might he seem in eye and mouth,yet he plans for war in deceitful peace.

What today goes wearily down,will lift itself tomorrow newly born.Much goes astray at night—beware—be alert and wide awake!

In the ForestBeside the mountain there passed awedding party.

I heard the birds singing;then there blazed past many horsemen,their forest horns sounding.That was a merry hunt!

And before I could think about it,everything had died away

and the night threw a cloak all around.Only from the mountains did the woodsyet rustle,

and deep in my heart I shudder.

Spring NightAbove the garden and across the skyI heard migrating birds passing;that meant that spring was in the air;below, things are already beginning tobloom.

I could rejoice, I could weep—I feel as though it cannot be!Old wonders appear againwith the moonlight.

Lincoln Center

01-10 Cooke:GP 12/18/09 3:42 PM Page 10

Lincoln Center

Und der Mond, die Sterne sagen’s,Und im Träumen rauscht’s der Hain,Und die Nachtigallen schlagen’s:Sie ist deine! Sie ist dein!

And the moon and stars say it,and in a dream the grove murmurs it,and the nightingales sing it:She is yours! She is yours!

What a Movie, from Trouble in Tahiti(1951)LEONARD BERNSTEINBorn August 25, 1918, in Lawrence,

MassachusettsDied October 14, 1990, in New York

Approximate length: 8 minutes

Leonard Bernstein grew up in Boston,where he attended Harvard and first begancomposing, with the influence and encour-agement of Aaron Copland as well as his for-mal teachers. Later he studied piano andconducting at the Curtis Institute, and in1942 became assistant to Serge Kous-sevitzky at Tanglewood. In 1944, threeimportant successes laid the groundworkfor the facets of his future career as a com-poser: the premiere of his “Jeremiah”Symphony, the opening of his ballet (withchoreographer Jerome Robbins) FancyFree, and his Broadway debut with On theTown. He produced a stream of importanttheater works in the 1950s, including hismost enduringly popular pieces, Candideand West Side Story. Inspired by composerMarc Blitzstein, whose agitprop opera TheCradle Will Rock Bernstein had conducted

while a student at Harvard, Bernstein com-posed a one-act chamber opera in 1951titled Trouble in Tahiti; its premiere tookplace at Brandeis University on June 12,1952, with Bernstein conducting.

Trouble in Tahiti combines satirical socialcommentary with sharp parodies of popularand commercial music. But it also shows amore serious and tender side in its portrayalof the unhappy central characters, Sam andDinah, whom Bernstein—who wrote thelibretto himself—modeled on his own par-ents. The couple, though apparently livingthe post-war suburban “American Dream,”are isolated from one another and disen-chanted with their marriage. In the song“What a Movie” Dinah describes in mockingdetail a terrible movie she has seen calledTrouble in Tahiti. But as the song unfolds,mirroring Dinah’s emotions as it veerssharply from dissonance to lyricism, she getsswept up in the romantic innocence of themovie’s narrative. In the end, Trouble in Tahitiprovides the image of happiness that willsubstitute for true reconciliation.

—Copyright © 2010 by Kathryn K. Libin

01-10 Cooke:GP 12/18/09 3:42 PM Page 11

Lincoln Center

What a Movie!Text: Leonard Bernstein

What a movie!What a terrible, awful movie!It’s a crime what they put on the screen!I can hardly believe what I’ve seen!Do they think we’re a lot of children?It would bore any four year old!What drivel! What nonsense!What escapist Technicolor twaddle!“Trouble in Tahiti,” indeed!“Trouble in Tahiti,” imagine!

There she is in her inch or two of sarongFloating, floating, floating, all among the floating flowers.Then she sees him, the handsome American.(I must say he’s really a man,Six feet tall, and each foot just incredible!)Well, they’re madly in love,But there’s trouble ahead;There’s a legend:“If a princess marry white man, and rain fall that day,Then the white man shall be sacrifice without delay.”

Sure enough, on the night of their wedding day,There’s a storm like nothing on earth;Tidal waves and siroccos and hurricanes;And to top it all off,The volcano eruptsAs the natives sing: Ah! Ah! Ah! Olé!They go crazy with the drumming and the chanting and ritual dance,While the lovers sing a ballad of South Seas romance.

It’s so lovely, I wish I could think of it;Da da dee da da…It was called “Island Magic,”I think it was.Oh, a beautiful song!I remember it now:“Island Magic, where the midnight breezes caress us,And the stars above seem to bless us,That’s Island Magic, Island Magic.”

Well, in any case, the hero is tied to a tree.(Did I tell you he’s a flyer who got lost at sea?)Anyway, all the natives are crazy now,

01-10 Cooke:GP 12/18/09 3:42 PM Page 12

Lincoln Center

Running wild with lances and knives;Then they pile up the wood for the sacrifice,And the witch doctor comes,And he sets it on fire.As the natives sing: Ah! Ah! Ah! Olé!

But at this point, comes the good old U.S. Navy,A-singin’ a song.They come swarming down in parachutes a thousand strong!Everything now is cleared up and wonderful:Everyone is happy as pie;And they all do a great rumba version of “Island Magic” of course!It’s a dazzling sight;With the sleek brown native women dancing with the U.S. Navy boys,And a hundred-piece symphony orchestra:“Island Magic!! Where the palm trees whisper together,And it’s always warm summer weather,That’s Island Magic, Island Magic!With the one I love very near;Island Magic,Whispering native words in my ear.Island Magic,Only you, my darling, could weave it,And I never ever will leave it,And I simply cannot believeIt really is mine!Island Magic!Island Ma…”

What a terrible, awful movie!!!How long have I been standing here chattering?If I don’t get going this minute, there won’t be any dinnerWhen Sam comes home!

01-10 Cooke:GP 12/18/09 3:42 PM Page 13

Mezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke has beenacclaimed for her opera performances, assoloist with orchestra, as well as in songrecitals. Her 2009–10 season includes con-certs for the Marilyn Horne Foundation inNew York, at SummerFest in La Jolla, withThe Chamber Music Society of LincolnCenter, with New York Festival of Song, andat the Cosmos Club in Washington, D.C.She debuts with the symphony orchestrasof Milwaukee, Colorado, Seattle, Modesto,Kansas City, San Diego, and Chicago. Alsothis season she sings the role of Meg inFalstaff with the Seattle Opera.

Last seasonMs. Cooke sang the role of KittyOppenheimer in the Metropolitan Opera pre-miere of John Adams’ Doctor Atomic, whichshe later performed with the EnglishNational Opera in her European debut. Shesang Handel’s Messiah with the EdmontonSymphony Orchestra and with the OratorioSociety of New York at Carnegie Hall, andBernstein’s Opening Prayer with theBaltimore Symphony Orchestra under MarinAlsop. Ms. Cooke was presented by YoungConcert Artists at Lincoln Center in Berlioz’sLes nuits d’été with the Orchestra of St.Luke’s under Giancarlo Guerrero and partici-pated in the 2008 Marlboro Chamber MusicFestival in Vermont.

As a winner of the 2007 Young ConcertArtists International Auditions, Ms. Cookeholds the Lindemann Vocal Chair of YCA.Later that year, she gave two debut recitalsin the Young Concert Artists series at the

Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater and atCarnegie’s Zankel Hall.

Ms. Cooke received her bachelor’s degreefrom Rice University and her master’sdegree from The Juilliard School, whereshe was a frequently heard in premieres bythe New Juilliard Ensemble. Ms. Cookehas also attended Music Academy of theWest, the Aspen Music Festival, theRavinia Festival’s Steans Institute, andCentral City Opera’s Young Artists TrainingProgram. Ms. Cooke is a graduate of theLindemann Young Artist DevelopmentProgram of the Metropolitan Opera.

Ken Noda is musical assistant to JamesLevine on the artistic administration of theMetropolitan Opera. He began workingthere in 1991 after he retired from a full-time performing career as a concertpianist. Born to Japanese parents inOctober 1962, he studied with DanielBarenboim and performed as soloist withsuch orchestras as the Berlin, Vienna, NewYork, Israel, and Los Angeles philharmon-ics; the London, Boston, Chicago, SanFrancisco, Montreal, and National sym-phony orchestras; and the ClevelandOrchestra, Orchestre de Paris, andPhilharmonia Orchestra of London; undersuch conductors as Claudio Abbado, DanielBarenboim, Riccardo Chailly, RafaelKubelik, James Levine, Zubin Mehta, SeijiOzawa, and André Previn. He has also col-laborated as chamber musician with Levine(at two pianos), Itzhak Perlman, PinchasZukerman, Cho-Liang Lin, Nigel Kennedy,

Meet the Artists

Sasha Cooke

Ken Noda

Lincoln Center

01-10 Cooke:GP 12/18/09 3:42 PM Page 14

Lincoln Center

and the Emerson String Quartet, and asaccompanist to Kathleen Battle, HildegardBehrens, Maria Ewing, Aprile Millo, KurtMoll, Jessye Norman, Dawn Upshaw, andDeborah Voigt.

Since 1999, he has been a participant everysummer at the Marlboro Music Festivaland also teaches at the Renata ScottoOpera Academy at the invitation of MissScotto. At the Met, he devotes much of histime to the training of young singers in theLindemann Young Artist DevelopmentProgram and also gives master classes atJuilliard and Yale.

Lincoln Center’s Great PerformersInitiated in 1965, Lincoln Center’s Great Per-formers series offers approximately 100classical and contemporary music perfor-mances annually. One of the largest musicpresentation series in the world, Great Per-formers runs from October through Junewith offerings in Lincoln Center’s AveryFisher Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Walter ReadeTheater, Clark Studio Theater, Stanley H.Kaplan Penthouse, and other various per-formance spaces throughout New York City,including the Church of St. Ignatius Loyolaand John Jay College Theater. In 2005,Great Performers expanded to include pre-sentations in the Rose Theater and TheAllen Room at the Time Warner Center atColumbus Circle. The world’s outstandingsymphony orchestras, vocalists, chamberensembles, and recitalists are featured inGreat Performers, as well as special reper-

toire-focused festivals, themed series, andeducational activities. During the 1998–99season, Great Performers added a newdimension to the classical music experiencethrough its New Visions series. In produc-tions specially commissioned by LincolnCenter, New Visions offers innovative stagepresentations and groundbreaking collabo-rations among the world’s leading directors,choreographers, and classical performers.

Lincoln Centerfor the Performing Arts, Inc.Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts(LCPA) serves three primary roles: presen-ter of artistic programming, national leaderin arts and education and community rela-tions, and manager of the Lincoln Centercampus. As a presenter of more than 400events annually, LCPA’s series includeAmerican Songbook, Great Performers, Lin-coln Center Festival, Lincoln Center Out ofDoors, Midsummer Night Swing, and theMostly Mozart Festival. The Emmy Award–winning Live From Lincoln Center extendsLincoln Center’s reach to millions of Ameri-cans nationwide. As a leader in arts andeducation and community relations, LCPAtakes a wide range of activities beyond itshalls through the Lincoln Center Institute, aswell as offering arts-related symposia, fam-ily programming, and accessibility. And asmanager of the Lincoln Center campus,LCPA provides support and services for theLincoln Center complex and its 11 other res-ident organizations.

01-10 Cooke:GP 12/18/09 3:42 PM Page 15

Lincoln Center

LINCOLN CENTER PROGRAMMING DEPARTMENTJane Moss, Vice President, ProgrammingHanako Yamaguchi, Director, Music ProgrammingJon Nakagawa, Director, Contemporary ProgrammingLisa Takemoto, Production ManagerBill Bragin, Director, Public ProgrammingKate Monaghan, Associate Director, ProgrammingCharles Cermele, Producer, Contemporary ProgrammingMelanie Armer, Associate Producer, Contemporary ProgrammingJill Sternheimer, Associate Producer, Public ProgrammingAndrea Murray, Production CoordinatorSheya Meierdierks-Lehman, House Program CoordinatorKimberly DeFilippi, Assistant to the Vice PresidentYukiko Shishikura, Programming Associate

FOR THE WALTER READE THEATERGregory Wolfe, Stage Manager

Ms. Cooke’s representation:Young Concert Artists, Inc.250 West 57th Street, Suite 1222New York, New York 10107

01-10 Cooke:GP 12/18/09 3:42 PM Page 16