Brumas (CD NUM 1197)
Ângela Silva
soprano
Paulo Guerreiro
horn
Francisco Sassetti
Piano
Eurico Carrapatoso | António Rebello Neves | João Francisco Nascimento
Vasco Pearce de Azevedo | António Victorino D´Almeida
Eurico Carrapatoso
Sete melodias em forma de bruma
(traditional melodies from Azores)
This work was ordered by the Direcção Regional de Cultura of Azores.
It consists of harmonisations over traditional melodies from Azores that was written in 1998 and performed for the first time by Ana Ferraz (soprano), Gabriela Canavilhas (piano) and António Costa (trompa) at Expo 98.
It is dedicated to the earthquake victims in Faial that occurred 9th July, 1998.
The tone is melancholic resembling mysterious brumes over that magical archipelago. Those Isles are also painted by blue and green.
This is one more step in my personal discovery, feeling myself very portuguese, in direction of my musical graal.
Eurico Carrapatoso, Dez, 2009
Rebello Neves
Rebello Neves (1874-1957) – He was born in Tavira and died
in Faro, where he spent the greater part of his life.
He mostly composed song for voice and piano with texts of portuguese writers, specially from the region of Algarve. Besides, he was pianist and conductor, directing school choirs and orchestras from Algarve.
Ângela Silva, Jan, 2010
Five Portuguese Songs
These five songs composed by my great-grandfather (Ecos da Serra, Partindo-se, Cantiga de Embalar, Embalando um coração e À luz dos Olhos Teus) belong to a song compilation published in May, 1946 for Algarve Region. This edition was an initiative by the president Dr. Jose Correia do Nascimento , after taken a deliberation in Dez, 1944 for Municipal Chamber of Faro. He was influenced by the homage paid to Rebello Neves and decided to create the “City Medal” to award the people that deserve the honour to be distinguished in the city of Faro. The first medal was created for Maestro Rebello Neves.
In these songs there is a great simplicity and melody richness where we can find different characteristics of his music: Sadness in Partindo-se, rural character in Ecos da Serra (rural but with great vocal demand for the soprano part who should own a sweet and flexible high range), melancholy at À luz dos teus olhos (slow valse character) or sweetness in Embalando um coração and in Cantiga de Embalar (dedicated to “his granddaughter “, my mother).
Vasco Pearce de Azevedo – Fev, 2010
João Francisco Nascimento
Portuguese composer João Francisco Nascimento (b. 1957) graduated from Universidade Técnica de Lisboa with a degree in Physical Education in 1984.
He taught Physical Education in several institutions such as Fundação Liga Portuguesa dos Deficientes Motores. In 1993 he began his musical studies with Eurico Carrapatoso at Academia de Amadores de Música. In 1997, he began
his composition studies with António Pinho Vargas and Christopher Bochmann at the Escola Superior de Música de Lisboa. From 2005-08 he made a master’s degree with Christopher Bochmann at the Universidade Nova de Lisboa where he graduated with highest honors. Since 2003, he has taught Analysis and Techniques of Composition at the Conservatório Regional de Évora. Since 2006, he has taught Musical Analysis and History of Music at the Instituto
Superior de Estudos Interculturais e Transdisciplinares (Instituto Piaget –’D0Almada). His works have been performed by most major ensembles and orchestras in Portugal.
Nossa Senhoras das Neves
“Nossa Senhora das Neves” is a song of Alentejo, the region of Beja, mentioned in the book “Moments vocals of Baixo Alentejo” of João Ranita of Nazareth. Tell us about our mother and God’s mother, linking us to “Mother Nature”, to the immensity of the plain land that collects, protects and embraces calmly travel adventure in it.
Ilhas, December 8, 2009
Gabriela
Gabriela was a very young girl, who for many years ago used to take the train line in Estoril. Dark-skinned, curly long hair and his smile were so infectious that the old hermit could not resist smiling when secretly watched her running away having the rain her companion.
Ilhas, December 8, 2009
Vasco Pearce de Azevedo
Born in Lisbon, Vasco Pearce de Azevedo finished his Bachelor Degree in Composition at the Lisbon Superior School of Music, having studied with Christopher Bochmann and Constança Capdeville. He frequented several Master Classes in conducting having worked with Jean-Sébastien Béreau, Ernst Schelle, Jenö Rehak, and Octav Calleya (orchestral conducting) and with Erwin List, Josep Prats, Johann Duijck, Laszlo Heltay,
Edgar Saramago, and José Robert (choral conducting). Vasco Azevedo received his Master’s Degree in orchestral and choral conducting at the University of Cincinnati, under the supervision of Gerhard Samuel, Christopher Zimmermann, Elmer Thomas, and John Leman. He obtained, in 1997, the 3rd Prize in the IIIº International Conducting Competition Maestro Pedro de Freitas Branco, and in 1996, a Honourable Mention in the 2nd Fundação Oriente International Competition for Young Orchestra Conductors. In 1988, in the “Novos Valores da Cultura” Competition, he obtained the 1º Prize in Choral Music with the Syntagma Musicum Choir, and a Honorable Mention in Composition with the piece “3 Pantoneças in Memoriam Alban Berg”.
Vasco Azevedo was Principal Conductor of the Portuguese Musical Youth Orquestra (1992–95), and is since 1995, Principal Conductor and Music Director of the Lisbon Sinfonietta. Vasco Azevedo has been guest conducting the Portuguese Symphony Orchestra, the Lisbon Metropolitan Orchestra, the OPorto Classical Orchestra, the OPorto National Orchestra, the Filarmonia das Beiras, the Algarve Orchestra, the Viana do Castelo Professional School of Music Orchestra, the Artave Orchestra, the Sinfónica Juvenil, and the Portuguese Schools of Music Orchestra. In 1999, he conducted the première of “Dançares” by Fernando Lopes-Graça and the portuguese première of “Agon” by Stravinsky, with the Portuguese National Ballet Company. He is currently a teacher at the Lisbon Superior School of Music. He also has a Degree in Electrotechnical Engeneering.
Bela Aurora (traditional melody from Azores)
This is an harmonization of a melody from S. Miguel at Azores.
This melancholic melody is made by the soprano part, practically free of alterations, while the horn plays a complementary role presenting some material in contrapunto with the voice.
In which of these three strophes are used different harmonisations; the first is written in a diatonic minor tone, the second is also written in a minor tone including some chromatics elements – it is the most dense of the three versions (also happens that the melody changes a little bit to emphasize the pain); the last one written in a relative major tone with some chromatisms, is the brightest of the three strophes.
In the short introduction preceding the soprano part, the horn exposes the theme based in a melody inversion while the piano accompaniment anticipates the harmonization that comes after the voice.
Vasco Pearce de Azevedo – Dez, 2009
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Salvaterra me desterra (traditional melody from Beira Baixa)
The first version of “Salvaterra me desterra” was composed in July, 1988, when Maria Ana Lourenço asked me to write an harmonization of a portuguese popular song for contralto.
That time she needed a portuguese piece for an International Singing Competition in Cervera (Spain) and I decided to write an harmonization typical of the 20th century portuguese composers that emphasizes a pure and simple melody. In July, 1989, I decided to adapt the piano part for five voices (SMzATB), keeping the melody in a solo part (contralto or baritone). This orchestration is also available in a third version for Viola and String Orchestra, similar to the choir version I made before.
Vasco Pearce de Azevedo – Dez, 2009
António Victorino D’Almeida
António Victorino D’Almeida was born in Lisbon on May 21, 1940. A student of Campos Coelho, he completed his superior studies in piano at the National Conservatory of Lisbon, graduating with high honors. He then studied in Vienna, where he received his degree, with highest honors, from the Superior School of Music in Vienna (today, the School of Music), studying with Karl Schiske.
As a concert artist, he developed an intense international career, which placed him among the finest Portuguese pianists of his time, but this activity was inevitably reduced after D’Almeida accepted the post of cultural attaché in Vienna.
His principal activity is, however, composition. Certainly one of the most prolific of Portuguese composers – his works include music for piano solo, piano with other instruments, chamber music, works for orchestra and orchestra with choir, vocal music ranging from Lieder to opera, as well as much music for inema and theater. His music has received praise from such illustrious figures as Hans Swarowski, Godfried von Einem,
João de Freitas Branco or Dimitri Shostakovich.
At the moment, there are nine CD’s, published on the label, Numérica, devoted entirely to the music of António Victorino D’Almeida. Some the most recent of these include “Sinfonia Nº2 | Concertino”, “Sinfonia Nº 3 | Sinfonia Nº 4”, Dinis e Isabel and other Chamber Works” as well as “Sacred Music.” In addition to these, further recordings, by the Opus Ensemble for example, also include works from D’Almeida’s pen.
Três canções op 91 sobre textos de José Carlos Gonzalez e Vocalizo
José Carlos González stands, in my opinion, among the great poets of his generation, part of the famous group associated with café Gelo, so relevant to the surrealist movement in Portugal.
He was a man who displayed an extreme sensitivity to music, a deep connoisseur of the musical repertoire, and his poetry – which, in some cases, directly approaches works by great composers, as is the case of Schubert’s “Octet”… – is clothed in a rhythm and in an expressive language that makes it particularly musical…
Regrettably, there was not enough time for me to produce more Lieder to texts by this author, who was, at the same time a great personal friend – the three presented here are the only ones that exist…
It may be observed that I seek to be coherent in my belief that no instrument is more important than any other, that everything depends on the exact moment in which instruments intervene so that their characteristics may take part in the musical interplay – and I never make an exception for the voice.
For me, this also completely excludes the highly reductive idea of so-called accompaniment: in the music which I make, no one accompanies anyone else, so that everyone is a soloist, in this or that passage…
So, when writing for voice, piano and horn, I may also be writing for horn, piano and voice – or piano, voice and horn…- since no element is, by nature, more salient than the others.
There exist, of course, instruments which are inherently more or less discreet than others, but that is merely a question of character…
And that fact that the voice pronounces the words does not mean, from my point of view, that the other instruments are not interpreting the meaning of the text.
In fact, the Vocalizo was also composed to a text of José Carlos González, whose sense is in the very music, so much so, that I remember quite clearly having explained to him that in this specific case, I would even remove his words.
As a stalwart surrealist, he immediately agreed. In fact, he even considered that it should be up to the listener to imagine those words and the ideas transmitted by the music, without being influenced by his own reading…
In this way, the current disc contains the four (and not three) Lieder which I wrote to texts by a great poet who remains insufficiently well known by the vast majority of people to be properly appreciated within the Portuguese cultural heritage.
António Victorino D’Almeida – Fev, 2010
Numerica 