SCOTT PENDER: SONGS from TEREZÍN
for brass quintet and chamber choir
SCOTT PENDER: AMERICAN COMPOSER
Scott Pender (b. 1959) has called the phonograph his first music teacher. He cites his parents’ “extensive, eclectic record collection” as a primary early influence. As a child, he began making up tunes at the piano and taught himself to read music. Formal study in piano and theory as a teenager led to his enrollment at Peabody Conservatory, where he began composition studies with Jean Ivey. He holds degrees in philosophy from Georgetown University and music composition from Peabody Conservatory.
He was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to study in the United Kingdom with the English composer Gavin Bryars. In addition to a MacDowell Colony residency and the Fulbright Fellowship, he has received honors and grants from the Virginia Arts Festival John Duffy Composers Institute, the D.C. Commission on the Arts & Humanities, the American Music Center, ASCAP, BMI, Meet the Composer, the Southeastern Composers’ League, the Phi Beta Kappa Society, and others. Read More
He was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to study in the United Kingdom with the English composer Gavin Bryars. In addition to a MacDowell Colony residency and the Fulbright Fellowship, he has received honors and grants from the Virginia Arts Festival John Duffy Composers Institute, the D.C. Commission on the Arts & Humanities, the American Music Center, ASCAP, BMI, Meet the Composer, the Southeastern Composers’ League, the Phi Beta Kappa Society, and others. Read More
Scott Pender's Songs from Terezín
was co-commissioned by the Annapolis Brass Quintet and the
Brass Chamber Music Society of Annapolis in 1991.
was co-commissioned by the Annapolis Brass Quintet and the
Brass Chamber Music Society of Annapolis in 1991.
Songs from Terezín
April 7, 1991 World Premiere
Performed by the
Morgan State University Singers
Nathan Carter, Director
and the
Annapolis Brass Quintet
Robert Suggs, trumpet; David Cran, trumpet;
Sharon Tiebert, horn; Wayne Wells, trombone;
Robert Posten, bass trombone.
To listen
Duration: 8'48"
Tap > Below
(There may be a slight delay before sound begins.)
April 7, 1991 World Premiere
Performed by the
Morgan State University Singers
Nathan Carter, Director
and the
Annapolis Brass Quintet
Robert Suggs, trumpet; David Cran, trumpet;
Sharon Tiebert, horn; Wayne Wells, trombone;
Robert Posten, bass trombone.
To listen
Duration: 8'48"
Tap > Below
(There may be a slight delay before sound begins.)
SONGS from TEREZÍN
The texts for these songs are taken from the book "I never saw another butterfly":
Children’s drawings and poems from Terezín Concentration Camp 1942-1944.
"I had been familiar with these poems for some time, and I had always wanted to set them to music. When the Annapolis Brass Quintet approached me with the idea of writing an inspirational piece for brass quintet and chamber chorus, these poems seemed perfect. They are certainly inspirational, but beyond inspiration, they cover a range of feelings, from nostalgia to despair to open optimism."
~ Composer, Scott Pender ~
Of the 15,000 children who were held at Terezín Concentration Camp from 1942 to 1944, fewer than 100 survived.
INTRODUCTION
|
1. THE BUTTERFLY
Pavel Friedman, 1942 The last, the very last, So richly, brightly, dazzlingly yellow. Perhaps if the sun's tears would sing against a white stone... Such, such a yellow Is carried lightly 'way up high. It went away I'm sure because it wished to kiss the world goodbye. For seven weeks I've lived in here, Penned up inside this ghetto But I have found my people here. The dandelions call to me And the white chestnut candles in the court. Only I never saw another butterfly. That butterfly was the last one. Butterfies don't live here, In the ghetto. 2. I'D LIKE TO GO AWAY ALONE Alena Synková I'd like to go away alone Where there are other, nicer people, Somewhere into the far unknown, There, where no one kills another. Maybe more of us, A thousand strong, Will reach this goal Before too long. |
3. TO OLGA
Alena Synková Listen! The boat whistle has sounded now And we must sail Out toward an unknown port. We'll sail a long, long way And dreams will turn to truth. On, how sweet the name Morocco! Listen! Now it's time. The wind sings songs of far away, Just look up to heaven And think about the violets. Listen! Now it's time. 4. BIRDSONG Anonymous, 1941 He doesn't know the world at all Who stays in his nest and doesn't go out. He doesn't know what birds know best Nor what I want to sing about, That the world is full of lovliness. When dewdrops sparkle in the grass And earth's aflood with morning light, A blackbird sings upon a bush To greet the dawning after night. Then I know how fine it is to live. Hey, try to open up your heart To beauty; go to the woods some day And weave a wreath of memory there. Then if the tears obscure your way You'll know how wonderful it is To be alive. |
. . . I never saw another butterfly . . .
by Hana Volavkova (Author).
Children's Drawings and Poems from Terezín Concentration Camp 1942-1944 (Copyright 1978 by Artia, Prague) and used with kind permission of the translator Jeanne Nemcová.
Children's Drawings and Poems from Terezín Concentration Camp 1942-1944
. . . I never saw another butterfly . . .
by Hana Volavkova (Author).
Children's Drawings and Poems from Terezín Concentration Camp 1942-1944 (Copyright 1978 by Artia, Prague) and used with kind permission of the translator Jeanne Nemcová.
Children's Drawings and Poems from Terezín Concentration Camp 1942-1944
In these poems and pictures drawn by the young inmates, we see the daily misery of these uprooted children, as well as their hopes and fears, their courage and optimism.
60 color illustrations.
60 color illustrations.
To see/read more of
. . . I never saw another butterfly . . .
(external link)
to the Holocaust Center of Seattle
Tap Here
. . . I never saw another butterfly . . .
(external link)
to the Holocaust Center of Seattle
Tap Here
To listen to
The 1992 World Premiere Performance of
SCOTT PENDER'S FRAGMENTS
featuring the
COLUMBIA PRO CANTARE & ANNAPOLIS BRASS QUINTET
Frances Dawson, Conducting
Tap HERE
The 1992 World Premiere Performance of
SCOTT PENDER'S FRAGMENTS
featuring the
COLUMBIA PRO CANTARE & ANNAPOLIS BRASS QUINTET
Frances Dawson, Conducting
Tap HERE
FOSTERING BRASS CHAMBER MUSIC
The score and parts for Scott Pender's Songs from Terezín and for Scott Pender's Fragments, along with the entire ABQ music library, are available for research and performance from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music.
For direct access to the Annapolis Brass Quintet Special Collection @ Oberlin
Tap Here
The score and parts for Scott Pender's Songs from Terezín and for Scott Pender's Fragments, along with the entire ABQ music library, are available for research and performance from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music.
For direct access to the Annapolis Brass Quintet Special Collection @ Oberlin
Tap Here