Five composers from different eras and countries, all of whose last names begin with “B,” will be featured in a concert on Wednesday, April 30 by the New Mexico State University Faculty Woodwind Quintet. Only after the musicians settled on playing longer works by three of them – Grazyna Bacewicz, Nancy Bachmann, and Jenni Brandon – did they realize that the composers all have B names. They pulled together two shorter works to round out the program, both from the Romantic era, one by American composer Amy Beach and one by the French composer Mel Bonis. “And we weren’t even trying to make it a recital of women composers, either,” said clarinetist Madelyn Moore in this interview with Intermezzo host Leora Zeitlin. “It just so happened.”
Marta Plominska, the new flute professor at NMSU who was also in the interview, introduced the group to the woodwind quintet by Bacewicz, who, like Plominska, came from Poland. “There are so many folklore elements that she brings into [the piece],” she said, “and that’s something that really highlights her Polish roots.”
The work by Nancy Bachmann, “American Quilt Sketches,” takes its inspiration from five quilting patterns, such as the five-pointed star, Sunbonnet Sue, and double-wedding rings. “Each movement sounds like what it’s depicting,” through rhythmic patterns, “Americana” sounds, and other techniques, Moore said. The music by Jenni Brandon is a suite that depicts “Five Frogs,” sometimes swimming, sometimes leaping, sometimes hanging out on a lily pad. “A lot of her music is inspired by nature,” Moore said. Listen to the interview to hear more about each of the composers and how such a program is put together.
In addition to Plominska and Moore, the NMSU Woodwind Quintet includes horn player Angela Winter, oboist Holly Dalager, and bassoonist Rusty Smith. The free concert is at the Atkinson Recital Hall on Wednesday, April 30 at 7:30 p.m.
Musical clips in the interview come from:
1.) Woodwind Quintet: 1. Allegro, by Grazyna Bacewicz, performed by the Cracow Golden Quintet (Dux Records);
2.) American Quilt Sketches: Five-Pointed Star and Double-Wedding Rings, by Nancy Bachmann, performed by Diane Maltester, Michelle Caimotto, Deborah Shidler, Alicia Telford, and Deborah Kramer (Navona Records, cd #6547);
3.) Fireflies, by Amy Beach, performed on piano by Alan Feinberg (Argo, cd #436121).
