CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, NORTHRIDGE
GRADUATE RECITAL IN INSTRUMENTAL CONDUCTING
Pulcinella Suite
by
Igor Stravinsky
An abstract submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of Master of Music in Music, Conducting
by
Ya-Lun Yu
June 2007
The abstract ofYa-Lun Yu is approved:
Prot'essor David Aks
Date
Dr. John
Dale
!I
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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S1gnature page ... .. ...... ........... . .... .. ... . ... ... ... ....... .. ... .... . .. .. .. . . ..... . 11
Abstract ...................................................... . ......................... iv
Program ............... .. ............................................................. ... ]
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ABSTRACT
GTADUATE RECITAL IN INSTRUMENTAL CONDUCTING
by
Ya-Lun Yu
Master of Music in Music, Conducting
The Graduate Recital in Conducting for Ya-Lun Yu consisted of a performance of
modern orchestral repertoire, presented on the last concert of the CSUN Symphony
Orchestra during fall 2006 semester. The piece conducted on the concert was the
Pulcinella Suite ( 1949) by Igor Stravinsky. The performance took place on 15 December
2006 in the performance hall at Van Nuys High School and was part of the regular
concert season for the CSUN Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Dr. John
Roscigno.
Music of the Pulcinella Suite originated from the ballet Pulcine/la that Stravinsky
composed and arranged, based on music by the eighteenth century composer Giovanni
Battista Pergolesi in 1919 (although it was later found out that the compositions were by
Domenico Gallo). The ballet was commissioned by Serge Diaghilev, the director of Ballet
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Russes in Paris.
Prior to the First World War, the productions by Diaghilev's Ballet Russes were
heavily based on the Russian style. During the wartime, however, Ballet Russes was
obligated to be more open to western elements ofmusic. In 1917 and 1919, Ballet Russes
had two extremely successful productions, Les Femmes de bonne hmeur and La Boutique
fantasque, respectively. Both of these productions have one thing in common: the music
was based on eighteenth century music. The music for Les Femmes de bonne hmeur was
arranged by Vincenzo Tommasini based on the music by Domenico Scarlatti, and La
Boutique fantasque was arranged by Ottorino Respaghi based on the music by Rossini.
The success of these two productions gave Diaghilev the idea to ask Stravinsky to write
the ballet Pulcine/la based on music by Pergolesi.
Stravinsky employed a unique instrumentation rarely used in the twentieth century.
He followed the practice of the eighteenth century and used a small orchestra with no
clarinet, very limited brass, and no percussion instruments. Stravinsky divided the string
section into concertina and ripieno. The concertina is a string quartet plus a double bass,
and the ripieno is a small orchestra (4+4+4+3+3). In four movements ofthe ballet,
Stravinsky used vocalists: soprano, tenor and bass soloists. The interesting thing is the
soloists were considered part of the orchestra, meaning they did not represent any
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characters on stage. But vocal lines were replaced by instruments in the suite for
orchestra.
In terms of the orchestration, Stravinsky grouped instruments very skillfully. In each
movement, we can see different grouping of instruments. The combinations of different
instruments created a different and interesting personality to each movement. We often
see the "call and response" style of writing pass between not only concerti no and ripieno,
but also between wind and string instruments, and brass and string instruments. And
because there were no percussion instruments, Stravinsky often used very dry
instrumental timbres to create the percussive sound in the rhythmic sections. We are able
to hear the music change suddenly from a light and classical melody to a dry and
percussive rhythmic passage. The combination of these elements not only made the music
interesting, it also served as a turning point for Stravinsky on his compositional journey.
The Pulcinella Suite contains eight movements. It starts with an overture, which is
almost identical in melody to the original music from Twelve Trio Sonatas by Gallo.
Stravinsky re-orchestrated it for the chamber orchestra and added or subtracted some
notes in some phrases, but still kept the same classical sound. The second movement is a
slow movement named Serenata. Stravinsky used oboe to replace the vocal part which
was used in the ballet version. The end of the Serenata connects directly to the third
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movement, which is a fast movement containing three small sections. We can hear
moments of modern sounds that appear within the classical melody. Even though
Stravinsky used classical instrumentation, his writing and orchestration gave these old
melodies twentieth century new blood. The fourth movement is a Tarantella, a fast
movement in six-eight time. Stravinsky used hemiola and percussive brass sounds to give
the music a forward driving motion. Once again the fourth movement connects to the
fifth movement, Toccata. The melody is introduced by the trumpet and then passed on to
other sections in the orchestra. As with other movements in the Pulcine/la Suite, we hear
the modern "Stravinsky sound" combined with a classical melody. The sixth movement is
a Gavotta with two variations. Stravinsky only used wood winds and horns (and
occasionally trumpet and trombone) in this movement. The seventh movement was called
Duetto and later change to Vivo in the 1949 version. It's a duet between a solo trombone
and a solo double bass. The last movement is Minuetto with Finale. Once again,
Stravinsky took a classical melody and added modern elements such as syncopated
rhythm, uneven musical phrases, and percussive sounds.
The work Pulcine/la is really a turning point to Stravinsky's composition career. As
we can see in Pulcinella Suite, Stravinsky used a classical approach to create new modern
sounds. The hybrid ofthese two genres produced a new style: Neo-Classical.
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The challenges for conductors to perform the Pulcine/la Suite are many. First, there
are many tempo changes throughout the score due to the continuation of the movements
or different sections within the movement. Most of the time, the conductor doesn't have
time to prepare the tempo changes. Therefore, in order for the tempo changes to work
right, the conductor needs to be very familiar and sure about the metronomic pulse and
hit it accurately. There is a need to run the transitions many times with the orchestra to let
the orchestra establish the feeling of the tempo change. Second, conductors need to pay
great attention to the balance of the orchestra. Since the music is a blend between
classical and modem, conductors need to make sure the moments of classical and modem
sound are clearly distinguished. The way to achieve this is through the balance between
the sections of the orchestra. If the balance is not right, the classical sound won't be as
quick and light; also the modem sound won't be as harsh and percussive. It is also very
difficult piece for the orchestra, demanding great skill from the many soloists.
I am very thankful for the opportunity to conduct this wonderful music with very
talented players. The study of the music, which blends two different styles, not only
widened my view of classical music, but also taught me to look at things from different
angles. I believe it was a very useful experience in my career and life as a conductor.
Vlll
•
csun mus1c
2006-2007
CSUN Symphony Orchestra
John Roscigno, conductor
Wang Jie, guest composer
Alan Yu, guest conductor
Cary Belling, guest conductor
Friday, December 15, 2006 8 p.m.,
Van Nuys High School
PROGRAM
Suite For Suings ..... ..... ... ...... ........ .... ...... .......... ........ .. ..... .............. ..... Leos Janacek
1. Moderato
2. Adagio
3. Andanre Con Moro
4. Presto
5. Adagio
6. Andanre
tPulcinella Suite .......... .. ........................ .. ................. .. .... ..... ........... .Igor Stravinsky
I. Sinfonia
2. Serenara
3. Scherzi no- Allegrerro - Andantino
4. Taramella
5. Toccata
6. Gavorra (Con Due Variazioni)
7. Vivo
8. Minueno - Finale
ALAN YU, conductor
*Death Of Socrates ........... ............... .. .................... .. ... .... .. .... .......... ......... Wang Jie
tFive Slavonic Dances, Op. 46 ................. ..................................... Antonin Dvorak
CARY BELLING, conductor
*World Premiere Performance- Winner OJ Northridge Composition Prize
fEeing conducted in partial fulj£/lment of the requirements for the degree of master of
music in conducting.
lhe program will be performed without intermission. Please turn offall electronic devices prior to the start of the program. This performance of the CS UN Symphony is brought
to you, in part, through the generous support ofthe the Barbera Family Endawment
and the continued support of the Samuel Goldberg & Sons Foundation.
CSUN SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
John Roscigno, Conductor
VIOLIN I
*Edgar Sandoval
Crystal Alforque
Tamara Gyulnazarova
Jamie Mclaughlin
Smbar Atsilatsyan
Megan Gilby
Christine Snipes
Yeon Choi
Jose Berrones
VIOLIN II
*Debbie May
Pet rose Boyadzh yan
Jar-el Cruz
Jacob Lassen
VickyChoi
Daniel Northrup
Emily Creecy
Daniel Newheiser
Russel Terao
Ashlie Neilson
Randall Sprague
Bianca Samaniego
t Michael Ferri!
VIOLA
*Brvan Gonzalez
Ell~n Ushijima
April Lopez
Chris Sandoval
CELLO
*Yoo-Jung Chang
Suji Kang
Craig Treusdell
Stephen Hyde
Tia Eshou
Lizabeth Schultz
BASS
*Serena Vaquilar
*Joseph McFadden
Brenton Kossak
Carla Capolupo
Jayme Lewis
Corey Dawson
FLUTE
*Melissa Odic
*Laura Recendez
Grace Kim
*Principal
tC\'UN Faculty
OBOE
*Lindsey Sears
Brianna Negrete
ENGLISH HORN
Jacob Lieberstein
CLARINET
*Arrhur Karapetian
Crystal Fisher
BASS & E-FLAT CLARINET
Taby Brown
Jennifer Dominguez
BASSOON
*John Marston
Angela Cross
CONTRABASSOON
Kevin Yedlin
HORN
*Ryan Ramey
Stewart Rosen
Tawnee Lillo
Kristina Orcutt
TRUMPET
*Erick Jove!
*Blake Hanna
Rene Godina
TROMBONE
*Lindsay McMurray
Robert Rivas
Eric Wallace
TUBA
*Anthony Mason
TIMPANI
*Steve Hernandez
PERCUSSION
*Daniel Blum
Andrew Keller
Kenny Downey
Spencer Goad
PIANO
*Narsuko Ejire
HARP
*Lies! Erman
GRADUATE ASSISTANT
Alan Yu
THE NORTHRIDGE COMPOSITION PRI ZE
The Music Deparrmcnt ar C alifornia Stare University, Northridge is commined ro
supporting the creation and performance of new orchesrr:!l works rhar cominue ro expand
the contemporary symphonic repertoire in a creative way. Since rhe Fall of 2002, rhe
composition faculty ar Cal Stare Northridge have heen promoting a national competition
designed for young American composers writing orchestral music. This competition offers a
cash prize and a premiere performance with rhe CSUN Symphony.
2006-07 RECIPIENT
WANG JIE composer
Born and raised in Shanghai, China, Wang Jie (b. 1980) is an active composer based in
New York City, where she is pursuing her Master's degree in composition under Richard
Daniel pour at rhe Manhattan School of Music.
While honored robe pan of the Northridge Composition Prize, Jie is working on an opera
which will be performed hy rhe New York City Opera during VOX 2007: Showcasing
American Composers.
Wang Jie was a Schumann fellow of Aspen Music Festival, a fearured composer at 2006
Beijing Modern Music Festival, and has received several awards from organizations such as
BMI and American Music Cenrer.
ALAN YU guest conductor
Originally from Taiwan, Alan Yu began his musical career ar age four,wirh his mother as his
first piano teacher. At eleven, he picked up the violin. Despite rhe late starr, Alan's violin
playing gave him an opportunity to come ro rhe United Stares in 1998 to study with Fung
Ho at the Los Angeles County High School for rhe Arts. In 2000, Alan entered California
Stare University, Northridge as a major in violin performance and studied with Mary Kim.
He received his Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance in 2005 and is currently pursuing
a Master o(Music in Conducting at CSUN. In 2006, Alan became a participanr of the
California Conducting Institute and a Graduate Assistant in conducting ar CSUN. Outside
of school, Alan has composed and arranged many original sacred choral pieces and has been
the resident conc.lucror of his church choir since 2002.
CARY BELLING guest couductor
For the past 20 years, Cary Belling has been active in Southern California as a composer,
conductor, violinist and teacher. His compositions have been performed hy the Burbank
Philharmonic, the Pasadena Pops Orchestra, rhe San Bernarc.lino Symphony, the Pasadena
Community Orchestra, the Brentwood Symphony and the Palisades Symphony. He has
worked as an assistant conducror with the Pasadena Pops Orchestra and guest conductor
with Arcadia High School and rhe Old Town Music Co nservarory. H e has also worked as an
orchestrator and conductor in the film industry. Currently, he is rhe conducting assistant with
the University Synagogue Orchesrra and a masters candidate at California State University at
Northridge. In addition he directs th e String Program at 'TI1e Chandler School in Pasadena
and also mainrains his own private studio teaching violin, viola and cello. Mr. Belling has
received compositional awards from the American Com posers Forum, The American Music
Center, the Pasadena Cultural Affa irs Division, rh e Meer rhe Compose r-California as well
as six consecutive ASC:AP Special Avnrds. He holds a Bachelor of Musi c degree from rhe
University of Texas ar Austin, and won a violin position with rlu: San Antonio Symphony
ar age 22.