Katie Cameron
A & E Editor
This Sunday, three faculty members at The College of Wooster are proud to present “Flights of Fancy,” a concert in Gault Recital Hall at the Scheide Music Center. Carrie Culver, a soprano, Hild Peerson, a clarinet player, and Brian Dykstra will perform multiple pieces in various combinations.
Peerson is an instructor of clarinet at the College, and additionally performs with the Westerville Symphony near Columbus. Culver is an associate professor, and teaches voice, Opera Workshop and interdisciplinary courses; her specialties reside in Spanish and Latin American music and in chamber music. Dykstra, who previously served as a professor for 38 years at Wooster, is currently the Neille O. and Gertrude M. Rowe Professor of Music Emeritus and teaches piano.
Peerson and Dykstra will perform all three pieces of German composer Robert Schumann’s “Fantasiestücke Op. 73,” a dreamy dual performance for piano and clarinet written in the mid-19th century. The pair will also premiere Dykstra’s piece “The National Pastime,” a baseball rag for piano and clarinet he wrote for Peerson and her husband, pianist Kenneth Williams in 2006.
Later, Culver and Dykstra will perform five classic Schumann songs together for soprano and piano. Culver and Peerson will also pair up for the more modern 20th century “Three Vocalises” — pieces Culver described as “songs without words”— a piece for clarinet and soprano by English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams.
To round out the program, all three musicians will perform together for three selections. The first song is “The Shepherd on the Rock” by 19th century Austrian composer Franz Shubert, the second selection includes four Christmas songs by 19th century German composer Peter Cornelius, and finally, the third section is by Ohio composer Christopher Weait, where he produces a more light-hearted, humorous song entitled “The Cat as Clarinet.”
The music of the concert varies in style and in time period; the selections reflect favorites of the faculty members over the course of their careers. At the turn of the 20th century, chamber music was the most popular form of entertainment. This concert is an homage to that classical music tradition, as well as a chance for all three faculty members to remain active as performers.
Culver encourages college students to attend the performance, though many may not consider it their taste. “I think many younger people — college age — have yet to be exposed to this kind of performance,” said Culver. “Chamber music can seem a bit old-fashioned and formal, but the reward for the audience’s quiet attention is to be caught up in beautiful sound made solely by human effort, to soak in lyrics that run the gamut from extremely funny to achingly sad, and to be reminded that live performance can be fun and inspiring.”
Even after years of performing, does the stage fright ever go away, even for accomplished musicians like Culver, Peerson and Dykstra? “For me, no, never,” said Culver. “But you learn to channel it into excitement and once the first note is out there — that’s when the fun begins.”
The concert will begin at 4:00 p.m. at Gault Recital Hall and admission is free.