Op. 89 LE PETIT PRINCE (THE LITTLE PRINCE) (August 18, 2000) (after Antoine de St. Exupery) I. Moonlight II. Changeling III. Dandy Situation IV. Pale Asteroid V. Chopping Weeds VI. Starset VII. Spiky Flower VIII. Day IX. Goodbye X. Royal March XI. Red Face XII. Galleon Song XIII. Figurehead XIV. Cross Purposes XV. Geography XVI. Grand Mariner XVII. Parade XVIII. Pollen XIX. Serenade XX. Garden XXI. Old Friends XXII. Engine XXIII. Elixir XXIV. Sleep XXV. Fountain XXVI. Serpent XXVII. Falling XXVIII. Epilogue
Performances:
April 13-15; 20-22; 27-29, 2001 NEW MUSIC THEATRE Ensemble Festival of New Plays and Operas, Dominican University, San Rafael, CA First Prize for Best New Work, First Prize for Best Actress, Third Prize for Best Direction
July 20-22, 2001 Fresh Voices II Festival, Goat Hall Productions Goat Hall, San Francisco, CA
ST. EXUPERY - David Saslav THE LITTLE PRINCE - Heather Gavin ASTRONOMER - Miriam Lewis FLOWER, SERPENT - Deirdre Lobo KING, FOX - Mark Alburger ENGINEER - Janet Lohr WATER PILL SALESMAN - John Thorne
DIRECTOR - Harriet March Page
November 23-25; 30; December 1-2; 7-9, 2001 NEW MUSIC THEATRE Ensemble Dominican University Players, Dominican University, San Rafael, CA
Recording:
The Little Prince (Niew Music, 2008) I. Moonlight
II. Changeling
III. Dandy Situation IV. Pale Asteroid V. Chopping Weeds VI. Starset VII. Spiky Flower VIII. Day IX. Goodbye X. Royal March XI. Red Face XII. Galleon Song XIII. Figurehead XIV. Cross Purposes XV. Geography XVI. Grand Mariner XVII. Parade XVIII. Pollen XIX. Serenade XX. Garden XXI. Old Friends XXII. Engine XXIII. Elixir XXIV. Sleep XXV. Fountain XXVI. Serpent XXVII. Falling XXVIII. Epilogue
[Antigone: X. QUARTET - "Come on, now" Alburger, L. Page, Saslav - 8/3/01]
Op. 88 ANTIGONE (August 10, 2000) (after Jean Anouilh and Sophocles) Tragic Opera for Voices and Orchestra (2222 2231 2perc, pf, strings) OVERTURE I. CHORUS - "Here we are" II. DUET - "Where have you been" III. TRIO - "Antigone / Now you're both" IV. DUET - "Aren't you well" V. DUET - "Where is your pain" VI. DUET - "Haemon" VIa. ARIA - "You swore" VII. ARIA - "I can't sleep" VIII. DUET - "It's like this" IX. CHORUS - "The spring is wound" X. QUARTET - "Come on, now" XI. TRIO - "What is this" XII. ARIA - "The pride of Oedipus" XIII. DUET - "Where are you going" XIV. DUET - "I shall save you yet" XV. ARIA - "You think you knew" XVI. DUET - "Antigone / You, too" XVII. SEPTET - "Take her away" XVIII. DUET - "It's you" XIX. ARIA - "News to break your heart" XX. SEXTET - "I've had them laid" XXI. CHORUS - "There we are"
ANTIGONE (libretto after Jean Anouilh and Sophocles) is a "grid" opera based on W.A. Mozart's The Magic Flute, from which is taken form (often including exact number of measures, tempo markings, and keys), but little content. Much of the music was written in the spirit of the title character: that of rebellion -- major keys become minor, very slow tempi become very fast, stolid rhythms become almost irrationally syncopated. The opera also alludes to Philip Glass's Einstein on the Beach and Akhnaten, 50's rock, J.S. Bach's Cantata No. 140 ("Wachet Auf"), Ancient Greek music, 70's pop, Arthur Sullivan, Gian Carlo Menotti's Amahl and the Night Visitors, Sergei Prokofiev's Symphony No. 3, the Beach Boys, John Barry's Dances With Wolves, Igor Stravinsky's Pulcinella and Ebony Concerto, Giuseppe Verdi's La Traviata and Aida, Meredith Willson's The Music Man, Alburger's Sonata for Oboe, Piano, and Percussion, and Balinese gamelan music.
Performances:
January 27, 2001 NEW MUSIC THEATRE Ensemble Z Space, San Francisco, CA
Antigone - Letitia Page Creon - Richard Mix Ismene / Nurse - Harriet March Page Guard - Mark Alburger Piano - Melissa Smith
March 9, 2001 NEW MUSIC THEATRE Ensemble College Music Society, San Francisco Conservatory, CA
Antigone - Letitia Page Ismene / Nurse - Harriet March Page Creon / Guard - Mark Alburger Piano - Melissa Smith
March 10 , 2001 NEW MUSIC THEATRE Ensemble National Association of Composers, Arts Center, Palo Alto, CA
Antigone - Letitia Page Ismene / Nurse - Harriet March Page Creon / Guard - Mark Alburger Piano - Melissa Smith
August 3-5, 2001 Fresh Voices II Festival Goat Hall, San Francisco, CA
Antigone - Letitia Page Creon - Micah Epps Haemon / Messenger / Guard II - David Saslav Ismene - Harriet March Page Nurse - Miriam Lewis Messenger / Guard I - Robert Benda Guard III - Mark Alburger Page - John Thorn Eurydice - Sharon Walters
Director - Harriet March Page Music Director - Mark Alburger
New Music Pierrot Ensemble
[I. CHORUS - "Here we are" Lewis, L. Page, Walters, H. Page, Benda, Saslav]
[II. DUET - "Where have you been" Walters, L. Page, Lewis]
[V. DUET - "Where is your pain" Lewis, L. Page]
[VI. DUET - "Haemon" L. Page, Saslav]
[VII. ARIA - "I can't sleep" Walters, H. Page, L. Page]
[IX. CHORUS - "The spring is wound" Lewis, H. Page, Walters, L. Page, Saslav, Benda, Epps, Thorn, Alburger]
[X. QUARTET - "Come on, now" [Alburger, L. Page, Saslav]
[XIV. DUET - "I shall save you yet" Thorn, Epps, L. Page]
April 5, 2003 San Francisco Composers Chamber Orchestra Goat Hall, San Francisco, CA
OVERTURE
October 3, 2003 Phillip Almquist, Bass Diablo Valley College, Pleasant Hill, CA
XII. ARIA - "The Pride of Oedipus"
April 20, 2007 Halfway Mark San Francisco Cabaret Opera San Francisco Composers Chamber Orchestra Old First Presbyterian Church, San Francisco, CA
Antigone - Eliza O'Malley Guards - David Chavez, Karl Coryat, William Loney, Christopher Lujan, Mark Alburger
X. QUARTET - "Come on, now"
[O'Malley, Henry]
April 19, 2008 The Red Horse Eliza O'Malley, Harriet March Page, Beth Henry St. Gregory of Nyssa, San Francisco, CA
Antigone - Eliza O'Malley Ismene - Elizabeth Henry Nurse - Harriet March Page
Piano - Mark Alburger
[V. DUET - "Where Is Your Pain" O'Malley, Page]
[Mikheyenko, Lahm]
November 7-9, 2008 Opera Apocalypse! Goat Hall Productions / San Francisco Cabaret Opera The Next Stage, San Francisco, CA
Antigone - Eliza O'Malley (11/7 and 9) Antigone - Letitia C. Page (11/8) Creon - Micah Epps Haemon / Messenger / Guard III - Michael Desnoyers Ismene - Kimberly Anderman Nurse / Eurydice - Meghan Dibble Guard I - Maria Mikheyenko Guard II - Erin Lahm Antigone's Handmaid - Alix Jerinic Ismene's Handmaid / Antigone Dancer - Dalyte Kodzis Oedipus / Haemon Dancer - William Loney Page - Lisa McHenry The Puppetmaster - Terence Bennan The Fixer - Adam Broner
Artistic Director - Harriet March Page Music Director - Mark Alburger Piano - Keisuke Nakagoshi Choreographer - William Loney
Mark Alburger (b. 1957, Upper Darby, PA) is an award-winning, eclectic ASCAP composer of postminimal, postpopular, and postcomedic sensibilities. He is Music Director of San Francisco Composers Chamber Orchestra and San Francisco Cabaret Opera, Editor-Publisher of 21st-Century Music (P.O. Box 2842 San Anselmo, CA 94960) and New Music, Music Critic for Commuter Times, and Instructor in Music Theory and Literature at Diablo Valley College. His principal teachers were Gerald Levinson, Joan Panetti, and James Freeman at Swarthmore College (B.A.); Jules Langert at Dominican University (M.A.); Christopher Yavelow at Claremont University (Ph.D.); and Terry Riley. Dr. Alburger has composed 215 major works over the past 39 years, including chamber music, concertos, oratorios, operas, song cycles, and symphonies. His complete catalogue is being issued on discs from New Music. Alburger's multiple blogs include: markalburger.blogspot.com,
markalburger2013.blogspot.com,
markalburgerworks.blogspot.com, markalburgerevents.blogspot.com, markalburgermusichistory.blogspot.
com, 21st-centurymusic.blogspot.com
Op. 89 LE PETIT PRINCE (THE LITTLE PRINCE)
