BEACH CITIES

SYMPHONY

NEWSLETTER

 

VOLUME IX, NO. 1.   October  2001

 

 

THE BEACH CITIES SYMPHONY PRESENTS MARÍA PÉREZ-GOODMAN

IN A PERFORMANCE OF RACHMANINOFF'S CONCERTO NO. 2 IN C MINOR

ON FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2001

CONCERT TIME: 8:15 P.M.

Pre-concert lecture: 7:30 P.M.

Marsee Auditorium, El Camino College

Information: (310) 379-9725 or (310) 539-4649

 

 

MARÍA PÉREZ-GOODMAN, our piano soloist on November 16, is a native of San Juan, Puerto Rico, where she received her early musical training. She earned degrees in piano performance from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester and the University of Washington in Seattle and is currently finishing work on a D.M.A. at the University of Washington. Coincidentally, when invited to perform the Rachmaninoff Second Concerto with the Beach Cities Symphony, she had just received coaching on this work from renowned concert pianist André Watts.  Mrs. Pérez-Goodman has appeared with the Claremont Symphony Orchestra, the Puerto Rico Conservatory Orchestra, and the Hour of Power Orchestra of the Crystal Cathedral. Her schedule of solo recitals has included performances in Spain, Puerto Rico, Washington, New York, and Southern California. She is currently a faculty member at the Claremont School of Music and at Azusa Pacific University.

María Pérez-Goodman is married to Beach Cities Symphony percussionist Jason Goodman, whom she met while they were attending the Eastman School of Music. His cymbals will be punctuating the dazzling crescendos of Rachmaninoff’s third movement.

 

A special post-concert party will be held in the mezzanine following the concert on November 16. Members of the Beach Cities Symphony Association and their guests are all invited. Be sure to come and shake the hand of our special guest, Bob Peterson, who is not only conducting the National Anthem at the concert, but also is playing second horn. Join him, Music Director Barry Brisk, and members of the symphony for this special party.  If you are not yet a member of the Association, you can join by mailing your check in the enclosed envelope or by stopping at our membership table in the lobby at the concert.

 

DAPHNIS AND CHLOË: LESSONS IN LOVE

 

Maurice Ravel's orchestral music for the ballet Daphnis and Chloë is often regarded as the composer’s finest accomplishment. The second suite, far more frequently performed than the first, uses musical sound effects to create a pastoral setting with cavorting nymphs and shepherds, twittering birds and babbling brooks. An eloquent flute solo represents the voice of Pan, who has intervened to save the shepherdess Chloë from the captivity of pirates and return her to Daphnis, the goatherd who has loved her since both were children. Once reunited, Daphnis and Chloë express their passion and then embrace; in the final danse générale they are joined by the entire company as the sound rises to an intoxicating crescendo.

The story of Daphnis and Chloë by Longus, an author about whom nothing is known, contains the classic elements of episodic romance, a popular form of literature which flowered in Greece in the second and third centuries a.d. In these early novels, innocent young lovers are separated by a series of difficulties and ordeals, seduced by rivals, discouraged from their union by disapproving parents, but are eventually brought together by some form of divine intervention. However, in contrast to other authors of his time, Longus infuses his story with psychological depth, avoiding stock characters and trite sentimentality to create a hero and heroine who emerge as individuals described with humor and touching detail.

Both young lovers are foundlings who have been raised by simple peasants and who have grown to care for one another chastely and selflessly. While tending their flocks, they exchange longing glances and, eventually, many hugs and kisses but do not consummate their relationship out of a combination of ignorance and consideration; specifically, Daphnis has been warned by an older goatherd that the act of love for a virgin is painful and distressing. Not wanting to harm Chloë, Daphnis suppresses his desires but eventually makes use of the eager instruction of a married woman who teaches him to be a considerate lover. She promises him that Chloë’s pain will not last, that she will weep but soon dry her tears, and that she will experience pleasure if Daphnis is patient and gentle. The conclusion of the story fulfills this promise.

By choosing to set his story in the countryside, Longus added another dimension which elevates Daphnis and Chloë above other early romances, that of the pastoral tradition in which the society of shepherds supposedly lives free from the complex corruption of city life. But the world portrayed by Longus, while idyllic in its depiction of the beauties of nature and the inherent decency of its peasants, is also filled with uncertainties and perils. As a prime example, both Daphnis and Chloë were abandoned by their birth parents because their existence would have inconvenienced and strained the resources of their families. In both cases the infants survive because the nurturing instinct of animals is stronger than that of their true parents. Daphnis is suckled by a she-goat until he is found and raised by a goatherd and his wife; Chloë is fed by a ewe who affectionately nurses her, thus leading to her discovery by a shepherd who carries her home. The rustics take over care of the foundlings, moved by their plight but also impressed by the gold and ivory trinkets lying beside them. When the two young people grow to love one another, both sets of foster parents oppose the match because of their secret hopes that their charges are deserving of a partner from a higher station in life. At the end of the tale, the natural fathers reclaim their children and ensure their financial security. Love triumphs over all obstacles, but a healthy bank account and extensive property holdings provide the clinching argument for all four sets of parents.

Poverty is not the only danger in Daphnis and Chloë’s world. Wolves menace the flocks and herdsmen. Pirates roam the coastline and regularly raid the countryside for captives and supplies. Winters are harsh; ice and snow keep the flocks from grazing and farmers and herdsmen from working outdoors. Daphnis unintentionally alienates a group of young noblemen cruising off the coast in their yacht, and their city of origin retaliates by sending an army to carry off sheep, grain, wine, and peasants. Urban-dwelling landowners make yearly visits to inspect their holdings and exact tribute from the rustics, who are in effect human property. And hanging over all is the constant need to appease the gods.  Every auspicious event calls for a sacrifice to one of the many deities that rule the fate of men: Zeus, Dionysos, Demeter, Pan, the nymphs of the grotto where Chloë was first discovered, various minor rural gods.  One lesson seems to be that since any person’s fortune can change on a whim, selfless devotion to another person becomes the only certainty.  Longus was a gifted and perceptive writer who knew how to tell the truth about life’s hardships and convince us at the same time that love conquers all.

 

MARSEE AUDITORIUM:

WORLD-CLASS PERFORMERS FIND A LOCAL HOME

by Mary Ann Keating

 

El Camino College’s Marsee Auditorium is now in its 33rd year of bringing world-class performers to the South Bay as well as breathing life into new talent and giving the Beach Cities Symphony a permanent home.

Dr. Robert Haag, who serves on the Beach Cities Symphony Board of Directors and writes the highly interesting program notes, remembers well the auditorium’s history, especially since he was a major part of the performing house from its beginning. We opened on January 13, 1968, recalls Dr. Haag.  After that, we prided ourselves on presenting something from all of the arts including vocalists, dancers, plays, musicals. It was all there during the next few months. Early in the auditorium’s life was a performance by the Los Angeles Philharmonic with tickets set at $5 which, says Dr. Haag, was quite a hefty price considering it was 1968. But the auditorium was full, and the program launched a South Bay tradition of excellence. Under Dr. Haag’s direction, each season sparkled with headliners such as Luciano Pavarotti, the Philadelphia Philharmonic, Van Cliburn, Ella Fitzgerald, Bob Hope and, almost annually, the Vienna Choir Boys.

The college broke tradition in 1982 when it christened the auditorium in honor of its second president, Dr. Stuart E. Marsee, under whose direction the facility was conceived and built. Dr. Marsee, whose tenure saw 24 years of financial stability in building and growth, announced that he did not want a retirement gift from the college. He genuinely loved the institution and expressed gratitude that he had been allowed to steer its years of achievement.

However, an adamant group of administrators, faculty and staff refused to let the president go quietly and insisted that he be memorialized. What better way than to name the auditorium in his honor? Such action required approval of the elected Board of Trustees, which authorized the resolution unanimously. And so, at a dinner marking his retirement, the college’s second president was “given” Marsee Auditorium as a lasting tribute to his love of the arts and his recognition that education doesn’t stop in the classroom.

Now retired, Dr. Marsee lives with his wife, Audrey, in the Hollywood Riviera section of Redondo Beach. His legacy to the community will long be remembered, not only because of the tradition of a community college that helped shape the South Bay, but also because of Marsee Auditorium, a 2,000-seat facility where the performing arts are valued.

 

Mary Ann Keating, Director of Public Information at El Camino College for 23 years, is a member of the Beach Cities Symphony Board of Directors.  She also serves on the Redondo Beach Historical Commission and is a docent at the Banning Residence Museum in Wilmington.

 

LOOKING BACK:

As usual, our Artists of the Future concert in May was an unqualified success. Over 1,000 audience members came to appreciate and applaud this year’s talented soloists, pictured at right with Music Director Barry Brisk following the performance on May 25.

Also highly successful was the annual Beach Cities Symphony Association party and silent auction, held at the West End Racquet and Health Club on June 3. In keeping with the party’s theme of celebrating the myriad cultures in our community, attendees were guests at a Japanese tea ceremony presided over by Mrs. Soyu Abe and Mrs. Itsumi Matsuo, assisted by several colleagues. Later in the afternoon, our Mexican culture was featured in dances performed by el grupo folklorico Las Adelitas, while jazz pianists represented another popular musical strain. Guests sampled tempting foods from around the world, including pot stickers, sushi, nachos and guacamole, strudel, and numerous other offerings. Many hours of work went into making this event a success, and several Board members deserve special thanks: Margaret McWilliams for coordinating food and beverages, Jeanie and George Pelzman for decorating, and Erin Prouty, ably assisted by Joanne Kamada, for organizing the silent auction, which this year netted the symphony nearly $2,000. Two of the more unusual high-ticket items were a week at Spear-O-Wigwam Ranch in Wyoming, donated by Jack and Doris Riehm, and two tickets for the Shakespeare Festival/LA complete with portable cushions and picnic dinner, arranged for by Carol Midford and donated by Festival director Gabe Lopez.

This season the Board is planning other celebrations and fund-raising efforts to replace the summer party. See the announcement on page 1 for the first of these events.

OUR 2001-2002 CONCERT SEASON

 

All concerts are on Friday at 8:15 p.m. in Marsee Auditorium at El Camino College.

 

Pre-concert lectures begin at 7:30 p.m.

 

 

November 16, 2001

Merry Overture                                              Matt Doran

Piano Concerto No. 2                                  Sergei Rachmaninoff

          María Pérez-Goodman, soloist

Daphnis et Chloë Suite No. 2                    Maurice Ravel

 

January 18, 2002

Symphonies of Wind Instruments             Igor Stravinsky

Violin Concerto in D Minor                         J. S. Bach

           Rebecca Rutkowski, Violin Soloist

Symphony No. 5, Op. 67                             L. van Beethoven

 

March 29, 2002

Royal Fireworks Music                                G. F. Handel (arr. Hardy)

Symphonic Variations                                 Cesar Franck

           Linda Love, Piano Soloist

Death and Transfiguration                          Richard Strauss

 

May 24, 2002

Coppelia Ballet Suite No. 1                        Leo Delibes

Rienzi Overture                                             Richard Wagner

MTAC Artists of the Future Concerto Soloists