Sasha Cooke, mezzo-sopranoPei-Yao Wang, pianistLa regata veneziana: Tre canzoni in dialetto veneziano ....................................................Gioacchino ROSSINI (1792-1868) Anzoleta avanti la regata Anzoleta co passa la regata Anzoleta dopo la regata

Selections from Les Nuits d’Été, Op. 7 .........................................................................................Hector BERLIOZ (1803-1869) Villanelle La spectre de la rose Absence L’Ile inconnu

INTERMISSION

Non so piu cosa son from Le nozze di Figaro Deh per questo istante solo from La clemenza di Tito.......................................Wolfgang Amadeus MOZART (1756-1791)

Losing My MindTake me to the World ................................................................................................................Stephen SONDHEIM (1930- )

One Life to Live Wie lange noch? ............................................................................................................................................Kurt WEILL (1900-1950)

Program subject to change

YOUNG CONCERT ARTISTS, INC.250 West 57 St., New York, NY 10107

PROGRAM NOTESLa regatta veneziana: Tre canzoni in dialetto veneziano (The Venetian Regatta)Gioacchino RossiniBorn on Feb. 29, 1792 in Pesaro, ItalyDied on Nov. 13, 1868 in Passy, France

Gioacchino Rossini began writing operas as a student at the Bologna Academy. He was com-missioned to write operas and eventually his fame spread throughout Europe. In 1825, he was ap-pointed as composer to King Charles X and moved to Paris. When Charles was dethroned in the 1830 revolution, Rossini left Paris for Italy. During the next 19 years, he wrote three religious works and only a few other pieces. He moved back to Paris in 1855 with his second wife and quickly became the center of the Parisian artistic and intellectual life. He began

to compose again and wrote lighthearted and witty works to be performed in his home during social gatherings. La regatta veneziana is a set of three canzonettas in Venetian dialect that he wrote for this purpose. The text comes from poems by Count Carlo Pepoli, an Italian poet and librettist. The poems are about a Venetian girl named Anzoleta, whose lover, Momolo is participating in a gondola race. In the first song, Anzoleta cheers her lover on as the race begins. The agitated theme at the beginning of the second song portrays Anzoleta’s anxiety as the race progresses and then relaxes at the end as she realizes that Momolo has won. The third song reflects the excited Anzoleta boasting about Momolo and kissing him. This cycle of three songs was published in 1835 and is catalogued as Les soirées musicales: no. 9.

SaSha Cooke

TRANSLATIONLa regata veneziana: Tre canzoni in dialetto venezianoMusic: Gioacchino RossiniTexts: Francesco Maria Piave

Anzoleta avanti la regataLà su la [machina] xe la bandiera,varda, la vedistu, 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 el 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

Anzoleta co passa la regataI xe qua, i xe qua, vardeli, vardeli,povereti 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 [paleto]1se 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 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 tragheto]ti xe el megio barcarol.

The Venetian Regata: Three songs in Venetian dialect

Anzoleta before the regattaThere on the “machina” is the flag,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 the first prize.Go, think of your Anzoleta,who’s whatching you from this balcony.Once in the boat, Momolo, don’t gawp!Once in the boat, Momolo, fly.

When the regatta passesThey’re coming, they’re coming, look, 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.

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 Venice spoke:she declared you the winner. Have a kiss, God bless you!No one rows better than you,of all the breeds of gondoliers,you’re the best.

lied.ku.edu

TRANSLATIONLes Nuits d’Été, Op. 7Text: Pierre-Jules-Théophile Gautier

VillanelleQuand viendra la saison nouvelle,Quand auront disparu les froids,Tous les deux nous irons, ma belle,Pour cueillir le muguet aux bois.

Sous nos pieds égrénant les perlesQue l’on voit, au matin trembler,Nous irons écouter les merles Siffler.

Le printemps est venu, ma belle;C’est le mois des amants béni;Et l’oiseau, satinant son aile,Dit [ses] vers au rebord du nid.

Oh! Viens donc sur ce banc de mousse,Pour parler de nos beaux amours,Et dis-moi de ta voix si douce: Toujours!

Loin, bien loin égarant nos courses,Faisons fuir le lapin caché,Et le daim, au miroir des sourcesAdmirant son grand bois penché;

Puis chez nous, tout heureux, tout aises,En paniers, en laçant nos doigts,Revenons, rapportant des fraises,Des bois.

Le spectre de la roseSoulêve ta paupière closeQu’effleure un songe virginal!Je suis le spectre d’une roseQue tu portais hier au bal.Tu me pris encore emperléeDes pleurs d’argent de l’arrosoir,Et, parmi la fête étoilée,Tu me promenas tout le soir.Ô toi qui de ma mort fus cause,Sans que tu puisses le chasser,[Toute la nuit] mon spectre roseÀ ton chevet viendra danser;

VillanelleWhen verdant spring again approaches,when winter’s chills have disappeared,through the woods we shall stroll, my darling,the fair primrose to cull at will.

The trembling bright pearls that are shining,each morning we shall brush aside;we shall go to hear the gay thrushes singing.

The flowers are abloom, my darling,of happy lovers ‘tis the month;and the bird his soft wing englossing,sings [carols sweet] within his nest.

Come with me on the mossy bank,where we’ll talk of nothing else but love,and whisper with thy voice so tender:always!

Far, far off let our footsteps wander,fright’ning the hiding hare away,while the deer at the spring is gazing,admiring his reflected horns.

Then back home, with our hearts rejoicing,and fondly our fingers entwined,lets return, let’s return bringing fresh wild berries wood-grown.

The ghost of the roseOpen your closed eyelidwhich is gently brushed by a virginal dream!I am the ghost of the rosethat you wore last night at the ball.You took me when I was still sprinkled with pearlsof silvery tears from the watering-can,and, among the sparkling festivities,you carried me the entire night.O you, who caused my death:without the power to chase it away,you will be visited every night by my ghost,which will dance at your bedside.

VillanelleLa spectre de la roseAbsenceL’Ile inconnuFrom Les Nuits d’Été, Op. 7 (Summer Nights) Hector BerliozBorn on Dec. 11, 1803 in La Côte-Saint-André, FranceDied on March 8, 1869 in Paris, France

Hector Berlioz was the leading musician of his generation in France. He struggled for accep-tance throughout his life as a composer, critic and

conductor. Berlioz wrote this song cycle in 1841 and based it on a setting of six poems from the collection La Comedie de la Mort (The Comedy of Death) published in 1838 by Theophile Gautier. It was originally written for piano and either baritone, contralto or mezzo-soprano. The texts are some of the most magnificent that Berlioz ever set—all Ro-mantic poetry and dealing with texts such as young lovers gathering strawberries, the smell of faded rose blossoms, et cetera. Berlioz later changed the vocal line to be appropriate for a soprano voice and then arranged it for orchestra. Les Nuits d’Été became the first orchestral song cycle ever written.

SaSha Cooke

Mais ne crains rien, je ne réclameNi messe ni De Profundis.Ce léger parfum est mon äme,Et j’arrive du du paradis.

Mon destin fut digne d’envie,[Pour avoir un trépas] si beau,Plus d’un aurait donné sa vie;[Car j’ai ta gorge pour] tombeau,Et sur l’albâtre où je reposeUn poëte avec un baiserÉcrivit: “Cigît une rose,Que tous les rois vont jalouser.”

AbsenceReviens, reviens, ma bien-aimée ! Comme une fleur loin du soleil, La fleur de ma vie est fermée, Loin de ton sourire vermeil.

Entre nos coeurs tant de distance ! Tant d’espace entre nos baisers ! Ô sort amer! ô dure absence ! Ô grands désirs inapaisés !

D’ici là-bas que de campagnes, Que de villes et de hameaux, Que de vallons et de montagnes, À lasser le pied des chevaux !

Au pays qui me prend ma belle, Hélas! si je pouvais aller ; Et si mon corps avait une aile Comme mon âme pour voler !

Par-dessus les vertes collines, Les montagnes au front d’azur, Les champs rayés et les ravines, J’irais d’un vol rapide et sûr.

Le corps ne suit pas la pensée; Pour moi, mon âme, va tout droit, Comme une colombe blessée, S’abattre au rebord de son toit.

Descends dans sa gorge divine, Blonde et fauve comme de l’or, Douce comme un duvet d’hermine, Sa gorge, mon royal trésor ;

Et dis, mon âme, à cette belle :«Tu sais bien qu’il compte les jours! Ô ma colombe! à tire d’aile, Retourne au nid de nos amours.»

L’Ile InconnueDites, la jeune belle,Où voulez-vous aller?La voile [enfle] son aile,La brise va souffler.L’aviron est d’ivoire,Le pavillon de moire,

But fear nothing; I demandneither Mass nor De Profundis;this mild perfume is my soul,and I’ve come from Paradise.

My destiny is worthy of envy;and to have a fate so fine,more than one would give his lifefor on your breast I have my tomb,and on the alabaster where I rest,a poet with a kisswrote: “Here lies a rose,of which all kings may be jealous.”

AbsenceCome back, come back, my dearest love! Like a flower far from the sun, the flower of my life has drooped,removed from the charm of your smile.

Between our hearts how long a distance! What a wide space our kisses divide! O bitter fate! O cruel absence! O longing vain, unsatisfied!

From here to there the countrysideof cities and hamletsthe valleys and mountainsthat weary the feet of horses.

To that far land where dwells my love,alas! if I could only go! If wings were tied to my body, as to my soul, then I would fly!

Far away, above the green hill tops, the lofty mountains with peaks of blue,the meadows gay, the babbling rivers, with quick, sure wing I’d take my flight!

The body can’t keep up with thought! With me the spirit goes ahead, just like a poor dove that is wounded and lights on the roof of his cot.

Down into her divine throatblonde and shining like goldsoft like a coverlet of ermineher throat, my royal treasure.

And say, my soul, to my sweetheart:O my own dove! Fly with all swiftness, back to the nest hallowed with love! You know well that he counts the days!

The Unkown IslandSay, young beauty,where do you wish to go?The sail swells itself,the breeze will blow.The oar is made of ivory,the flag is of silk,

lied.ku.edu

Le gouvernail d’or fin;J’ai pour lest une orange,Pour voile une aile d’ange,Pour mousse un séraphin.

Dites, la jeune belle,Où voulez-vous aller?La voile enfle son aile,La brise va souffler.

Est-ce dans la Baltique?Dans la mer Pacifique?Dans l’île de Java?Ou bien est-ce en Norvège,Cueillir la fleur de neige,Ou la fleur d’Angsoka?Dites, la jeune belle,Où voulez-vous aller?Menez-moi, dit la belle,À la rive fidèleOù l’on aime toujours!Cette rive, ma chère,On ne la connaît guèreAu pays des amours.

the helm is of fine gold;I have for ballast an orange,for a sail, the wing of an angel,for a deck boy, a seraph.

Say, young beauty,where do you wish to go?The sail swells itself,the breeze will blow.

Is it to the Baltic?To the Pacific Ocean?To the island of Java?Or is it well to Norway,to gather the flower of the snow,or the flower of Angsoka?Say, young beauty,where do you wish to go?Lead me, says the beauty,to the faithful shorewhere one loves always!This shore, my darling,we hardly know at allin the land of love.

Non so piu cosa son from Le nozze di Figaro, K. 492Deh per questo istante solo from La clemenza di Tito, K. 621Wolfgang Amadeus MozartBorn on Jan. 27, 1756 in Salzburg, AustriaDied on Dec. 5, 1791 in Vienna, Austria

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart had already achieved great fame as a composer by the time he began work on the opera buffa (comic opera), The Marriage of Figaro, in the fall of 1785 with librettist Lorenzo da Ponte. It was performed for the first time at the Burgtheater in Vienna in May of the following year and audiences immediately loved the work. There is a certain amount of controversy, even today, over whether there were specific political undercurrents to the opera but more likely, it is simply a comedy of domestic drama — although one that likely reflects the ideas of the time regarding class and gender. The Marriage of Figaro is a continuation of the plot from The Barber of Seville and takes place several years later in the palace of Count Almaviva. The Count has given Figaro a job as the head of his servant staff but is very interested in Figaro’s bride-to-be, Susanna. The Count shamelessly chases after Susanna and tries his best to delay their wedding, set for that very day. Figaro, Susanna and the Count’s wife, Rosina, conspire together to expose the Count’s plan. The Count tries to interest Figaro in another woman, old enough to be his mother—and, as it turns out, she is his mother! In the end, Figaro and Susanna are hap-pily married, the Countess forgives the Count and all is well again. Non so piu cosa son is sung by Cheru-bino, the Count’s page, and is a role that is often sung by a mezzo-soprano rather than a young boy.

Cherubino sings of his love for all women, particularly the Countess.

Mozart was commissioned to write a coronation op-era to celebrate the crowning of Leopold II in 1791. He composed La clemenza di Tito for this purpose. Originally, Salieri was asked to do the commission but when he refused, Mozart was asked. There was not enough time to write an entirely new libretto for the opera so Metastasio’s La clemenza di Tito, 1734 was used. The text was arranged by Caterino Mazzolà, who cut much of the original dialogue and composed several new arias, duets, trios and ensemble for the opera. It is an opera seria (serious opera) based on the life of the Roman Emperor Titus. Vitellia, the daughter of deposed emperor Vitellius, wants revenge against Titus. She convinces Titus’ friend Sextus, who is in love with her, to turn against him. However, Vitellia finds out Titus has sent Beren-ice of Cilicia away, whom he was likely to marry. She tells Sextus to wait, hoping that Titus will choose her to be his empress. Instead, Titus summons her sister, Servilia. Servilia, however, is in love with Annio, a friend of Sextus’ and tells Titus this. Instead of forcing her to marry him, Titus thanks Servilia for her honesty and decides to allow her to marry Annio. Vitellia does not yet know any of this and is angry that Titus has chosen her sister. She summons Sextus and sends him on his way to assassinate Titus. In the meantime, Titus summons Vitellia, planning to ask her to marry him. She then feels very guilty for what she has asked Sextus to do, but there is no way to stop him. Sextus, meanwhile, stabs the wrong person and is arrested. Sextus takes the blame for the assassination attempt. Ultimately, Vitellia confesses her role in the assassina-tion attempt and Titus pardons both her and Sextus.

SaSha Cooke

TRANSLATIONNon so piu cosa son Cherubino’s aria from Le Nozze di FigaroNon so piu cosa son, cosa faccio,Or di foco ora sono di ghiaccio, Ogni donna cangiar di colore, Ogni donna mi fa palpitar. Solo ai nomi d’amor di diletto, Mi si turba, mi s’altera il petto, E a parlare mi sforza d’amore Un desio ch’io non posso spiegar. Non so piu cosa son, cosa faccio,Or di foco ora sono di ghiaccio, Ogni donna cangiar di colore, Ogni donna mi fa palpitar.Parlo d’amor vegliando,Parlo d’amor sognando, All’acqua, all’ombra, ai monti Ai fiori, all’erbe, ai fonti, All’eco, all’aria, ai venti, Che il suon de’ vani accenti Portano via con se. E se non ho chi m’oda, Parlo d’amor con me!

Deh per questo istante Solo from La clemenza di TitoDeh per questo istante solo Ti ricorda il primo amor. Che morir mi fa di duolo Il tuo sdegno il tuo rigor. Di peitade indegno e vero, Sol spirar io deggio orror. Pur sareti 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, Ne si more di dolor!)

I no longer know what I am

I no longer know what I am or what I do, one minute I’m on fire, the next I’m frozen, every woman changes my color [makes me blush] every woman makes my heart beat faster. At the mere mention of love, of delight, I become disturbed, my heartbeat changes, I try to speak of love I feel a desire which I cannot explain. I no longer know what I am or what I do, one minute I’m on fire, the next I’m frozen, every woman changes my color [makes me blush]every woman makes my heart beat faster. I speak of love awake I speak of love in my dreams, to the water, the shadows, the mountains, to the flowers, the grass, the fountains, to the echoes, the air, the winds, that the sound of vain accents speech is carried away with itself.

And if nobody listens, I speak of love to myself!

Ah, for this moment only!

Ah for this moment only,remember the affection we once feltfor 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 methe though that torments meis that I have betrayed you.Ah that a hear can suffer such anguishand not die from the pain.

Losing My Mind from FolliesTake Me to the World from Evening Primrose Stephen SondheimBorn on March 22, 1930 in New York City, N.Y. Stephen Sondheim is likely the most well-known name in American theatre because of his numer-ous and highly successful Broadway shows. His songs are demanding of their singers, but the wit and pacing of his lyrics has created demand for long runs of his shows. His most famous works as a composer/lyricist include: Sweeny Todd, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Sunday in the Park with George and Into the Woods, to name a few. He is compared, musically, to Ravel and Copland but uses popular music idioms in his works from pop and jazz to create a style uniquely his own.

Losing My Mind was written by Sondheim for the 1971 musical Follies. The musical is set during a reunion for all of the previous cast members of Weismann’s Follies, a musical revue that ran be-tween World Wars I and II. The show takes place in the old, decrepit Broadway theatre where the production was originally performed. The musical follows two couples, all four of whom were part of Weismann’s Follies. Both marriages are having problems and each person involved remembers their younger selves as everyone at the reunion performs old numbers and reminisces about their early years in show business.

Take Me to the World is from Evening Primrose, a television adaptation of John Collier’s short story by the same name. Sondheim collaborated with John Goldman on the adaptation for ABC. Unfortunately, the series did not click with viewers

lied.ku.edu

Losing My MindMusic and text: Stephen Sondheim

The sun comes up - I think about youThe coffee cup - I think about youI want you so, it’s like I’m losing my mindThe morning ends - I think about youI talk to friends and think about youAnd do they know it’s like I’m losing my mind?All afternoon doing every little choreThe thought of you stays brightSometimes I stand in the middle of the floorNot going left - not going rightI dim the lights and think about youSpend sleepless nights to think about youYou said you loved me, or were you just being kind?Or am I losingLosing my mind?All afternoon doing every little choreThe thought of you stays brightSometimes I stand in the middle of the floorNot going left - not going rightI dim the lights and think about youSpend sleepless nights to think about youYou said you loved meOr were you just being kind?Or am I losing my mind?

Take me to the WorldMusic and text: Stephen Sondheim

Let me see the world with cloudsTake me to the worldOut where I can push through crowdsTake me to the worldA world that smiles with streets instead of aislesWhere I can walk for miles with youTake me to the world that’s realShow me how it’s doneTeach me how to laugh, to feelMove me to the sunJust hold my hand whenever we arriveTake me to a world where I can be aliveLet me see the world that smiles Take me to the world Somewhere I can walk for milesTake me to the worldWith all around things growing in the ground Where birds that make a sound are birdsWe shall see the world come trueWe shall have the worldI won’t be afraid with youWe shall have the worldI’ll hold your hand and know I’m not aloneWe shall have the world to keepSuch a lovely world we’ll weepWe shall have the world forever for our own

TEXT

One Life to Live from Lady in the DarkWie lange noch? (How Much Longer?)Kurt WeillBorn on March 2, 1900 in Dessau, GermanyDied on April 3, 1950 in New York City, N.Y.

Kurt Weill was born into a Jewish family living in Dessau, Germany in 1900. He completed his musical education in Germany and quickly became recognized for his talents in the early 1920s. By 1929, Weill was able to completely withdraw from teaching private theory and composition lessons, and collaborating as a radio contributor in order to devote himself entirely to composition. When the Nazis began to take Germany in the early 1930s, his works were gradually excluded from performances in most German theatres because of his Jewish heritage. Weill fled Germany for Paris in March of 1933, taking with him only a few of his belongings and the sketches for his Second Symphony. He decided to stay in the United States after traveling to New York in 1935 to help with the production of his work, The Eternal Road, commissioned by members of New York’s Jewish

community. He became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1943 and rarely spoke or wrote in German again. He was upset with the change that his country had undergone and believed that the work he had left behind in Germany had been destroyed during the war. In the remaining years of his life, Weill became one of the leading composers in the development of musical theatre. He died in New York City in 1950 from a heart attack.

One Life to Live is one of the numbers from Weill’s 1941 musical, Lady in the Dark. The musical included lyrics by Ira Gershwin and was directed by Moss Hart. It ran for less than a year and a half on Broadway but was adapted to film in 1944, although most of the Weill/Gershwin songs from the musical were cut out of the movie. The plot centers around Liza Elliott, an unhappy editor of a fashion magazine that is undergoing psychoanalysis. Almost all of the music is heard in the context of three dream sequences that Liza has, creating the effect of essen-tially having three small operas in one long play. Wie lange noch? was composed by Weill in the spring of 1944. The poem was written by Walter

and did not have a long run. It is the story of a poet, Charles, who renounced the world to go live in a department store and write poetry. After living there awhile, he discovers a secret society of people who have lived in the store for years. He is

told that if anyone from the society tries to return to the outside world, Dark Men come from the mortuary to take the person to the surgical sup-plies department. When the Dark Men leave, there is another mannequin in the clothing display.

SaSha Cooke

One Life to LiveText: Ira Gershwin

There are many minds in circulationBelieving in reincarnationIn me you see one who doesn’t agreeChallenging possible affrontsI believe I’ll only live onceAnd I want to make the most of itIf there’s a party, I want to be the host of itIf there’s a haunted house, I want to be the ghost of itIf I’m in town, I want to be the toast of itI say to me every morningYou’ve only one life to liveSo why be done in?Let’s let the sun inAnd gloom can jump in the riv. No use to beat on the doldrumsLet’s be imaginative, Each day is numberedNo good when slumberedWith only one life to liveWhy let the goblins upset you?One smile and see how they run

And what does worrying net you?Nothing, the thing is to have funAll this may sound kind of hackneyedBut it’s the best I can giveSoon comes DecemberSo please rememberYou’ve only one life to liveJust one life to live

What you collect at the grindstoneBecomes a millstone in timeThis is my thesis:Why go to pieces?Step one while you’re in your primeYou may say that I’m an escapistBut I would rather by far be thatThan be a red tapistLead me, speed me, straight to the barJust laugh at old man repressionAnd send him into obliv.Then you’re the winnerI’m off to dinnerI’ve only one life to liveJust one life to live

Wie lange noch?Music: Kurt WeillText: Walter Mehring

Ich will’s dir gestehn, es war eine Nacht,da hab ich mich willig dir hingegeben.Du hast mich gehabt, mich von Sinnen gebracht,ich glaubte, ich könnte nicht ohne dich leben.Du hast mir das Blaue vom Himmel versprochenund ich habe dich wie ’nen Vater gepflegt.Du hast mich gemartert, hast mich zerbrochen.Ich hätt dir die Erde zu Füssen gelegt.Sieh mich doch an!Wann kommt der Tag an dem ich dir sage:es ist vorbei!Wann kommt der Tag nach dem ich bange?Wie lange noch? Wie lange noch? Wie lange?Ich hab dir geglaubt, ich war wie im Wahn,von all deinen Reden, von deinen Schwüren.Was immer du wolltest, das hab ich getan.Wohin du auch wolltest, da liess ich mich führen.Du hast mir das Blaue vom Himmel versprochenund ich! Ach ich hab’nicht zu weinen gewagt.Doch du hast dein Wort, deine Schwüre gebrochen.Ich habe geschwiegen und hab mich geplagt.Sie mich doch an!Wann kommt der Tag an dem ich dir sage:es ist vorbei!Wann kommt der Tag nach dem ich bange?Wie lange noch? Wie lange noch? Wie lange?

How long after?Translation: Steven Blier

How much longer?I’ll confess it to you: there was a nightwhen I willingly gave myself to you.You took me, drove me out of my mind,and I thought I could not live without you.You promised me blue skies,and I cherished you like a father.You tormented me, you shattered me,and I would have laid the earth at your feet.Look at me!When will the day come when I can say to you: it’s over!When will that longed-for day arrive?How much longer? How much longer? How long?I believed you, caught in the delusionof all your talk, all your vows.I did whatever you wanted.Wherever you led me, I let myself follow.You promised me blue skies,and I never dared to weep.But you broke your word, you broke your vows.I kept silent and tortured myself for you.Look at me!When will the day come when I can say to you: it’s over!When will that longed-for day arrive?How much longer? How much longer? How long?

TEXT AND TRANSLATION

Mehring, a German author and poet who was a prominent satirist in the Weimar Republic and who fled Germany when he was banned during the Third Reich. The poem is about Hitler’s destruc-tion of Germany, disguised as a melancholy song

of love betrayed. It was commissioned by and recorded for the U.S. Department of War Informa-tion to use in radio broadcasts behind enemy lines.

Program notes by Mary Elizabeth Thompson-Meyer

lied.ku.edu

The fast-rising mezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke has been acclaimed for opera roles, as soloist with orchestra, as well as in song recitals. Her 2009-10 season includes return engagements with the San Francisco Symphony singing Stravinsky’s Pulcinella and Berlioz’s Les Nuits d’Été with conductor Tilson Thomas, and the title role in Gilbert and Sullivan’s Iolanthe with conductor George Manahan. She also sings the role of Meg in Falstaff with the Seattle Opera and the role of Medea in Giasone with the Chicago Opera Theater. Cooke performs in song recitals at the Lied Center of Kansas, for the Marilyn Horne Foundation (N.Y.), SummerFest in La Jolla (Calif.), the Bridgehampton Chamber Music Festival (N.Y.), with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, the New York Festival of Song and at the Cosmos Club in Washington D.C. Upcoming engagements include appearances with the Hong Kong Philharmonic, the Milwaukee, Colorado, Seat-tle, Modesto, Kansas City, San Diego and Chicago Symphony Orchestras, and with the Aspen Festival Orchestra under the direction of David Zinman.

Last season, Cooke was presented by Young Concert Artists at Lincoln Center in Berlioz’s Les Nuits d’Été with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s under Giancarlo Guerrero, and starred at the Metro-politan Opera in the premiere of John Adams’ Doctor Atomic, in the role of Kitty Oppenheimer, a part which she subsequently performed with the English National Opera in her European debut. She sang Handel’s Messiah with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra and with the Oratorio Soci-ety of New York at Carnegie Hall and Bernstein’s Opening Prayer with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra under Marin Alsop. She sang the role of Olga in Tchaikovsky’s Evgeny Onegin with the Israeli Opera in Tel Aviv and participated in the 2009 Spoleto USA Festival and the 2008 Marl-boro Chamber Music Festival.

As a first prize winner of the 2007 Young Concert Artists International Auditions, Cooke holds the Lindemann Vocal Chair of YCA. She gave ac-claimed debut recitals presented by the Young Concert Artists Series at the Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater and at Carnegie’s Zankel Hall.

Cooke performed with the Wolf Trap Opera Com-pany in summer 2007, with the National Symphony Orchestra as Mercedes in a concert performance of Bizet’s Carmen, and as Aloes in Chabrier’s L’Étoile. Other recent notable appearances have included the premieres of Bastianello by John Musto and William Bolcom’s Lucrezia with the New York Festival of Song, a recital at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, D.C., a performance at the Bard Music Festival, Chausson’s Poème de l’amour et de la mer at the Miller Theater, for the Marilyn Horne Founda-tion’s 2007 Gala at Zankel Hall, Mozart’s Mass in C Minor with the Mozart Academy of San Luis Obispo, and Prokofiev’s Alexander Nevsky with the Brazos Valley Symphony Orchestra (Texas). Cooke appeared as the Composer in Strauss’s Ariadne auf Naxos and Endimione in Cavalli’s La Calisto at The Juilliard School. She sang Charlotte in Massenet’s Werther and Dorabella in Mozart’s Così fan tutte at Rice University, and Erika in Barber’s Vanessa with Central City Opera.

Cooke won first prizes in the Sun Valley Opera Vocal Competition and the Bach Vocal Competition sponsored by the American Bach Society and The Bach Choir of Bethlehem. She earned her bach-elor’s degree from Rice University and her master’s degree from The Juilliard School, where she was frequently heard in premieres with the New Juilliard Ensemble. Cooke attended the Music Academy of the West, the Aspen Music Festival, the Ravinia Festival’s Steans Institute and Central City Opera’s Young Artist Training Program. Cooke is a gradu-ate of the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program of the Metropolitan Opera.

SASHA COOKE

PEI-YAO WANG, PIANISTPianist, Pei-Yao Wang made her official orchestral debut with the Taipei symphony Orchestra at the age of 8 and has since performed as soloist with the Stamford Symphony, Orlando Symphony and Taipei Philharmonic. She has also performed throughout the United States, Canada, Europe and Asia at venues including Carnegie, Avery Fish-er, Alice Tully and Merkin halls in New York City, the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., Salle des Varietes in Monte Carlo, Suntory Hall in Tokyo and the National Concert Hall in Taipei, Taiwan. As a chamber musician, Wang has collaborated with members of the Guarneri, Orion, Chicago, Mendelssohn and Miró quartets and with other distinguished artists including Claude Frank, Hilary Hahn, David Shifrin and Mitsuko Uchida. She is

regularly invited to perform at festivals including Marlboro, Caramoor, Norfolk, La Jolla, Ravinia and Bridgehampton, and was a member of Lincoln Center’s Chamber Music Society Two.

Born in Taipei, Taiwan, Wang was the youngest pianist ever to receive the overall first prize in the Taiwan National Piano Competition, at the age of 8. Four years later, she was invited to study at The Curtis Institute of Music, where she worked with Seymour Lipkin and Gary Graffman. She then studied with Claude Frank at Yale University, where she earned a master’s degree in music, while also pursuing a concentration in architecture. She currently resides in New York City, where for several years she worked with Richard Goode.

SaSha Cooke

2009-10 Friends of the Lied Update This list includes individuals and businesses that have initiated or renewed their Friends of the Lied membership since the original list was published.

BUSINESS FRIENDS Benefactor ($1000+)Wink eyewear

Patron ($500+)Callahan CreekThe Chiropractic ExperienceGould Evans Sponsor ($250+)Enenbach & AssociatesFramewoods Gallery

Friend ($100+)The Crystal Image (photography)Erika EdenGenuine ImitationGoldschmidt Piano ServiceGolf Course Superintendents Association of AmericaThe Green RoomHetrick Air ServicesKring’s InteriorsLawrence Give Back CardsMcDonald’s of LawrenceMargaret MorrisPapa John’sPaulo and BillPizza ShuttleAlvin ToadacheeneThe Wild Women of the Frontier

INDIVIDUAL FRIENDSFellow- $2,500Beverly Smith Billings

Benefactor ($1000+)Erin & John SpiridigliozziLisa Wolf-Wendel & Douglas Wendel

Patron ($500+)Lynne BodleJoyce CastleChris & Kaye DrahozalMatthew F. KrischeA. ParteeMargi & Keith Pence

Sponsor ($250+)Jacqueline Z. DavisJohn A. Downey & Shannan L. SeelySteve & Bobbie GishStephen GrafSusan & Mark HendersonJune & Mark JonesKeith & Laura Nilles Contributor ($100+)AnonymousPeter BockGeorge & Gloria ByersPaul Carttar & Mary Frances EllisJim ClarkRobert FischgrundRobert FriaufDr. Lee C. and Darcy GerhardSharon Graham & Anthea ScouffasAnn & Andy HauseJudy HundleyTom Johnson & Corey HeibergerJeanette & Dan JohnsonRich Kaler & Brad KnaussDevon & Tony KimLaura Martin-EagleMary Ann & Norman SaulJoe & Nita ScalesBarney Warf & Santa AriesLinda Zohner Friend ($50+)Mick & Barbara BraaLynn M. BretzDr. Becky EasonElizabeth GawlikDr. Leslie HascheShayna LeahyDeborah LowmanCharles & Laurie McLane-HigginsonDeborah & Michael OrozcoKatherine Pryor & Jim PetersonRev. Dr. Eugene & Carol SchmidtDr. & Mrs. Mill SpencerTom & Helen SullivanLori TapahonsoScott & Nancy Thellman

lied.ku.edu

SPoNSoRS