Storytelling in Music

The Elizabeth Brown Dee Fund for Music in the Schools The Utah Symphony Celebrate Utah Symphony’s 75th anniversary with us this year. We look forward to having you in the audience for our concert, made possible by the financial support of many donors, including generous funding from the Professional Outreach Programs in the Schools, appropriated by the Utah State Legislature with the Utah State Board of Education. The Elizabeth Brown Dee Fund for Music in the Schools

Utah Symphony Storytelling in Music This slide show has composer biographies with additional background for the full orchestra elementary school concerts for the 2018-19 year titled Storytelling in Music. There is a separate Concert Preparation slide show to prepare your students to attend the concerts. There is also a separate slide show with audio and video files of the music for this concert. Feel free to play this music throughout the school year.

John Williams (1932 - ) Flight to Neverland from Hook American composer John Williams lived in both New York City and Los Angeles when he was growing up. He studied music in college in both of those cities. He has written music for many movies, and you’ve probably seen a lot of them. His movie music is very popular and he has won numerous Academy Awards, Grammys and Golden Globe awards. The music for Hook was written in 1991.

John Williams (1932 - ) Flight to Neverland from Hook The theme music of the 2002 Winter Olympics, held in Salt Lake City, was written by John Williams. Its title is “Call of the Champions.” This music can still be heard at the Olympic Legacy fountain at the Gateway.

Modest Mussorgsky (1839-1881) Night on Bald Mountain Russian composer Modest Mussorgsky got his first piano lessons from his mother. From an early age, he enjoyed improvising music and he gave recitals in his home. From 13 to 17, he attended the Cadet School of the Guards.

Modest Mussorgsky (1839-1881) Night on Bald Mountain Even though the only instrument he was familiar with was the piano, he began composing music for orchestra. Mussorgsky got formal training in writing for orchestra and used what he learned to write music that was often based on Russian folk music or folk tales.

Modest Mussorgsky (1839-1881) Night on Bald Mountain The music that became Night on Bald Mountain began as an opera. That piece was never finished, and years later Mussorgsky wrote this piece for orchestra, finishing it in 1867. Mussorgsky uses all the sections of the orchestra very well to stir our imaginations as he tells a musical story.

Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) The Firebird: Infernal Dance & Finale Igor Stravinsky was also a Russian composer. His father was a musician but his parents did not want their son to become one. They sent him to law school. At law school, Stravinsky made friends with a very important musician of the time and was soon on his way to a lifetime of music.

Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) The Firebird: Infernal Dance & Finale Stravinsky went to France where he began writing music for ballets that became quite famous. The Firebird ballet was written in 1910. It was based on a Russian folk tale. Different parts of the music are often played in concert halls, without the dancers.

Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) The Firebird: Infernal Dance & Finale Stravinsky came to the United States in 1939, planning just to give some lectures and return home. But even though he traveled around the world for the much of the rest of his life, the United States became his home.

Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953) Cinderella Waltz & Midnight from Cinderella Suite Another Russian, Sergei Prokofiev, was musically advanced from a young age. He wrote his first piano piece when he was five years old. He had a career as a pianist and composer. Wars and Russian politics made life in Russia unstable, so Prokofiev moved to the United States, and then to Paris, France.

Sergei Prokofiev(1891-1953) Cinderella Waltz & Midnight from Cinderella Suite Eventually he and his family returned home. He continued to compose but found himself being criticized, along with other composers, by the government. Prokofiev is especially well known as the composer of Peter and the Wolf.

Sergei Prokofiev(1891-1953) Cinderella Waltz & Midnight from Cinderella Suite Cinderella was first written as a ballet. It took four years to write and was finished in 1944. The Cinderella Suites that use music from the ballet, were written in 1946. These are performed without dancers, in the concert hall.

Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) Beauty and the Beast from the Mother Goose Suite Ravel’s early music experiences were with piano lessons which he began when he was seven. He lived in Paris and was able to enter the famous Paris Conservatoire when he was just 12 years old.

Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) Beauty and the Beast from the Mother Goose Suite Ravel composed during a time when music styles were changing a lot. He is one of the composers responsible for the start of what became known as Impressionism in music. It was influenced by Impressionist painters like Monet.

Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) Beauty and the Beast from the Mother Goose Suite The Mother Goose Suite was first written as a piano duet, and then a piano solo , in 1910. Ravel re-wrote it for orchestra in 1911. When Ravel was in his mid-40s, he chose to move away from Paris. He lived the rest of his life in secluded semi-retirement. He continued composing and also had a hobby of collecting all kinds of mechanical toys. Ravel’s home, outside of Paris: The Belevedère

Hector Berlioz (1803-1869) Symphonie fantastique: V. TBA Berlioz was from a small town in France. His parents hoped he would become a doctor, like his father. Berlioz began to study medicine but found he was not suited for it. At that point, he chose to pursue music as his career, something he had been studying since he was 12. He had played the flute and guitar. In addition to writing music, Berlioz was a conductor and music critic.

Hector Berlioz (1803-1869) Symphonie fantastique: V. TBA Symphonie Fantastique was written in 1830. It is music inspired by a story of that Berlioz made up. At our concert, we’re going to play part of the 5th and final movement of this piece. But we’re going to put our own story to the music – one we hope you’ll enjoy.

Utah Symphony Storytelling in Music You’ve finished the composer biography slides. Remember that you can listen to the music for this concert any time through the school year. It’s on its own PowerPoint document titled Storytelling in Music: Concert Music. And there is a document with cross-curricular lesson plans to use after you attend the concert. All materials can be found at this link. http://www.usuoeducation.org/index.php/for-teachers/teacher-materials