Making French Connections
What better way to celebrate the stunning renovation of a theatre, the legacy of a president who loves music and all things French, and a stable of thoroughly talented performers, than a series of concerts? Don Wright Faculty of Music professor John Hess conceived the idea to pull them all together at the gala opening of the Paul Davenport Theatre in Talbot College, honouring retiring Western President Paul Davenport.
"I wanted to do something special for the hall," Hess said. "I was sitting at the opening, thinking we have this fantastic new hall and fantastic faculty." He decided to create a series of concerts that would unite them with an unusual mixture of performers and repertoire - something you can only do at a university because of the resources available.
The result is the new Paul Davenport Theatre Series of three concerts showcasing the theatre, the wealth of talent and Dr. Davenport’s passions. Hess said the repertoire for the series is not the usual fare for London performances, and it draws on "odd combinations of people."
The inaugural concert Oct. 25 at 3 p.m., Hommage à Chopin, features four piano faculty: Hess, Stéphan Sylvestre, Leslie Kinton and Allison Wiebe. The title of the concert is taken from two works. One was written by former dean of the Faculty, Jack Behrens, and will be played by Wiebe; the other is a work for four pianos by Rodion Shchedrin. The starting point for the latter is the melody from Chopin’s Prelude in C minor., No. 28 Op. 20. The composer performed it with Nicolas Economou, Paul Gulda and Chick Corea. "It’s a really neat piece," said Hess.
Kinton will perform Chopin’s Nocturne in C minor. "My piece (George Crumb’s Dream Images) quotes Chopin," said Hess. "All the solo pieces connect to Chopin." Sylvestre will perform Etudes Tableaux by Rachmaninoff, who continued the Romantic tradition of Chopin. The opening piece on the program is Paris by Darius Milhaud. Performed by all four pianists, the movements portray aspects of Paris: Montmartre, L’ile Saint-Louis, Montparnasse, Bateaux Mouches, Longchamp and La Tour Eiffel. Chopin lived in Paris for many years.
On Nov. 29 at 7 p.m. The French Connection continues the series with pianists Hess and Carolyn Herrington joined by members of the vocal faculty (Patricia Green, Anita Krause and Sophie Roland), flute professor Fiona Wilkinson and a string quartet made up of Mel Martin, Lucy-Ana Gaston, Virginia Barron and Thomas Wiebe.
"Paul Davenport loves music and has a major thing for France," said Hess. "He’s bilingual and he’s retired there. We have three mezzo sopranos on faculty and Sophie is French, Patricia is bilingual and Anita sings fluently in French." It seemed like a natural combination. It also offered an opportunity to perform works that aren’t often heard. "The work for string quartet, piano and voice – you never get to do it," said Hess. "Chansons Madecasses by Ravel is a classic for mezzos but the chance to do a piece for flute, cello and piano was one we couldn’t pass up. The program ranges from the sublime to the ridiculous – mostly sublime but with some ridiculous."
The last in the series is a cabaret March 7 at 8 p.m. "We tried to use music from the first 20 years in Germany and surrounding area, when cabaret was very important, and influenced by American jazz," said Hess. La Revue de la Cuisine by Martinu incorporates a tango and a Charleston, as well as the odd instrumentation of clarinet, bassoon, trumpet, violin, cello and piano. Other composers on the program include Schonberg, Schwitters, Weill, Schulhoff and Hollander. Faculty performers are Jackalyn Short, Sherry Steele, Jill Ball, Zoltan Kallman, James McKay, Shawn Spicer, Annette-Barbara Vogel, Thomas Wiebe, Bobbi Thompson and Hess.
"The goal was to use as many faculty members as possible, but not to have a hodgepodge program. We want the audience to continually hear new people. The series offers total variety in music and performers. If you don’t like what you hear, wait until the next piece and it will change. It’s performance at its highest level but it’s not stuffy. It’s very inclusive.
"People get to sit in the Paul Davenport Theatre, which is beautiful. They’re close to the performers so there is an immediacy and a visceral connection to the artist."
The Paul Davenport Theatre Series
- Hommage à Chopin
- Sunday, Oct. 25 3 p.m.
- The French Connection
- Sunday, Nov. 29 7 p.m.
- Kabarett? Cabaret
- Sunday, Mar. 7 3 p.m. **New Time**
Tickets $15 for adults, $10 for students and seniors.
Advance sales through Orchestra London’s box office at 519-679-8778 or cash at the door.
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