World premiere

Program note | The German drinking song Trink, trink, Brüderlein, trink was written in 1927 by Wilhelm Lindemann and first gained popularity in 1928, when it was recorded by Austrian tenor, Max Kuttner. Over the last century, the song has become a staple of Oktoberfest celebrations around the world. While this new choral version remains true to the traditional melody throughout, the piano accompaniment strays from slight harmonic embellishment of the refrain into simple tributes to Stravinsky and Schoenberg during the first verse. The final verse is a bit jazzier as the sopranos deliver a sultrier effect atop the sustained “oohs” from the other sections. The refrain retains the original German text. Each verse has been loosely translated to English by arranger Trevor Shaw.

Text

Trink, trink, Brüderlein trink

Laß doch die Sorgen zu Haus!

Trink, trink, Brüderlein trink

Zieh doch die Stirn nicht so kraus!

Meide den Kummer

Und meide den Schmerz

Dann ist das Leben ein Scherz!

Meide den Kummer

Und meide den Schmerz

Dann ist das Leben ein Scherz!

O let us continue our drinking

Libations will fill us with cheer

And let us hate no man nor woman

But give them a full Stein of beer!

It may be a goblet or wineglass,

As long as you’re happy today.

So, buy a round for your neighbor

Who may not be able to pay.

(Refrain Translation)

Drink, drink, little brother, drink

Leave your worries at home!

Drink, drink, little brother, drink

Don’t frown like that!

Forget your sorrow

And forget your pain

Then life will be a joke!

Forget your sorrow

And forget your pain

Then life will be a joke!

World premiere

Program note | The tinku is a ritual "fighting" dance meant to draw blood to honor Pacha Mama (Mother Earth). Señora chichera is a popular Bolivian tinku that has catchy syncopation, raucous stomps, and lyrics in Spanish and Quechua, an Incan language. The verse in Quechua is curiously not a translation of the Spanish verse. The alcoholic drink mentioned in the song is chicha, a fermented corn drink enjoyed in the Andes for many centuries. This arrangement for mixed chorus and piano celebrates the song's tradition while exploring some typical Andean parallel harmonies that would horrify J. S. Bach.

Text

Señora chichera
Madame chicha vendor

Véndeme chichita
Sell me a little chicha

Si no tiene chicha
If you don’t have any chicha

Cualquiera cosita
Anything little thing will do

Huila palomita
Vuela palomita [Fly, little dove]

Chihuanku chihuanku
Chiwaku chiwaku [zorzal/thrush]

Machayku chihuanku
Me han hecho embriagar chiwaku [They got me drunk, thrush]

China jampahatua
Con sapo hembra [with the female toad]

Kasayku chihuanku
Me han hecho casar chiwaku [They made me get married, thrush]

Huila palomita
Vuela palomita [Fly, little dove]

World premiere

Adrienne Inglis, flute
Robbie LaBanca, bodhrán

Program note | This song began as a poem by English poet Rudyard Kipling, published under the title "A Tree Song" in Puck of Pook's Hill (1906). The text was set to music and renamed to "Oak, Ash and Thorn" by storied English folksinger Peter Bellamy, released on his album of the same name in 1970.

Set for chorus, flute, and drum, this raucous little ditty serves as a reminder that, although we may wander from our purpose, we are always drawn back. I hope this piece will conjure up images of rituals around a campfire, calling out to the gods of old, and - of course - a healthy flow of ale and mead.

Text by Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936)

Of all the trees that grow so fair, old England to adorn

Greater are none beneath the sun than Oak, and Ash, and Thorn

[Chorus]

Sing Oak, and Ash, and Thorn, good sirs

All on a midsummer's morn

Surely we'll sing of no little thing

In Oak, and Ash, and Thorn

Yew that is old, in churchyard mould, he breedeth a mighty bow

Alder for shoes do wise men choose, and Beech for cups also

But when you have killed

And your bowl it is filled, and your shoes are clean outworn

Back you must speed for all that you need to Oak, and Ash, and Thorn

[Chorus]

Elm, she hates mankind and waits, 'til every gust be laid

To drop a limb on the head of him that anyway trusts her shade

But whether a lad be sober or sad, or mellow with ale from the horn

He'll take no wrong when he lyeth along 'neath Oak, and Ash, and Thorn

[Chorus]

Oh, do not tell the priest our plight

For he would call it a sin

But we've been out in the woods all night, a-conjuring summer in

We bring you good news by word of mouth, good news for cattle and corn

Sure as the sun come up from the south, by Oak, and Ash, and Thorn

[Chorus]

World premiere

Text

99 bottles of beer on the wall, 99 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 98 bottles of beer on the wall.

98 bottles of beer on the wall, 98 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 97 bottles of beer on the wall.

97 bottles of beer on the wall, 97 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 96 bottles of beer on the wall.

96 bottles of beer on the wall, 96 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 95 bottles of beer on the wall.

95 bottles of beer on the wall, 95 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 94 bottles of beer on the wall.

94 bottles of beer on the wall, 94 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 93 bottles of beer on the wall.

93 bottles of beer on the wall, 93 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 92 bottles of beer on the wall.

92 bottles of beer on the wall, 92 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 91 bottles of beer on the wall.

91 bottles of beer on the wall, 91 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 90 bottles of beer on the wall.

90 bottles of beer on the wall, 90 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 89 bottles of beer on the wall.

10 bottles of beer on the wall, 10 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 9 bottles of beer on the wall.

9 bottles of beer on the wall, 9 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 8 bottles of beer on the wall.

8 bottles of beer on the wall, 8 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 7 bottles of beer on the wall.

7 bottles of beer on the wall, 7 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 6 bottles of beer on the wall.

6 bottles of beer on the wall, 6 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 5 bottles of beer on the wall.

5 bottles of beer on the wall, 5 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 4 bottles of beer on the wall.

4 bottles of beer on the wall, 4 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 3 bottles of beer on the wall.

3 bottles of beer on the wall, 3 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 2 bottles of beer on the wall.

2 bottles of beer on the wall, 2 bottles of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, 1 bottle of beer on the wall.

1 bottle of beer on the wall, 1 bottle of beer.

Take one down and pass it around, no more bottles of beer on the wall.

World premiere

Program note | To celebrate this concert, I tapped into my Irish roots with a well known traditional song, "The Wild Rover," made popular by many an Irish band. This beloved tune's notation dates back to the sixteenth century. This adaptation is meant to be fun and rowdy (to celebrate the "drinking" interpretation/celebration of it rather than "temperance," which has been argued throughout history), and maybe a tiny bit bawdy from time to time. The audience is encouraged to join in, especially during the last chorus refrain. Sláinte (Cheers)!

Text

I’ve been a wild rover for many a year

And I’ve spent all me money on whiskey and beer.

And now I’m returning with gold in great store

And I never will play the wild rover no more.

And it’s no, nay, never

No, nay, never, no more

Will I play the wild rover

No, never, no more!

I went into an alehouse I used to frequent

And I told the landlady me money was spent.

I asked her for credit, she answered me nay

“Such a custom as yours I could have any day.”

And it’s no, nay, never

No, nay, never, no more

Will I play the wild rover

No, never, no more!

I took from me pocket ten sovereigns bright,

And the landlady’s eyes opened wide with delight.

She says, “I have whiskey and wines of the best

And the words that I spoke sure were only in jest.”

And it’s no, nay, never

No, nay, never, no more

Will I play the wild rover

No, never, no more!

I’ll go home to me parents, confess what I’ve done

And I’ll ask them to pardon their prodigal son.

And if they caress me as oft times before,

I never will play the wild rover no more.

And it’s no, nay, never

No, nay, never, no more

Will I play the wild rover

No, never, no more!

World premiere

Diane Skeel, Rebecca Stidolph, Trevor Shaw, Steve Young, soloists

Program note | "The Parting Glass" is a Scottish parting song that dates back to the early 1600s. Before Robert Burns penned the words to "Auld Lang Syne", "The Parting Glass" was one of the most beloved songs for friends and families to sing together at the end of a gathering, raising a glass and bidding each other a fond farewell until they meet again. The song became quite popular in Ireland as well, and the version of the melody and stylings we are most familiar with have been heavily influenced by Irish singing. Many people today know "The Parting Glass" as a somber funeral song, with the lyrics having a much more metaphorical interpretation. However, the earliest versions of the song reflect friends bidding each other goodnight after an evening of drinks and fun.

Text

Of all the money that e'er I had

I spent it in good company.

And all the harm that e'er I've done,

Alas it was to none but me.

And all I've done, for want of wit,

To memory now I can't recall.

So fill to me the parting glass

Good night and joy be to you all.

Fill to me the parting glass

And drink a health what e'er befalls.

Then gently rise and softly call,

"Good night and joy be to you all".

Fill to me the parting glass

And gather as the evening falls.

Then gently rise and softly call,

"Good night and joy be to you all"

Oh, all the comrades that e'er I had

Are sorry for my going away.

And all the sweethearts that e'er I had

Would wish me one more day to stay.

But since it falls unto my lot

That I should rise and you should not,

I'll gently rise and softly call,

"Good night and joy be to you all".

Fill to me the parting glass

And drink a health what e'er befalls.

Then gently rise and softly call,

"Good night and joy be to you all".

Fill to me the parting glass

And gather as the evening falls.

Then gently rise and softly call,

"Good night and joy be to you all".

Carol Brown, fiddle
Robbie LaBanca, bodhrán
Trevor Shaw, guitar

World premiere

Program note | For much of my life, my father played in an Irish folk band, and I grew up with a love of Irish folk music. He would often play my favorite, “Drowsy Maggie” for me on the mandolin, and when I was learning to play guitar, I loved to accompany him. As a young child, my parents would lovingly refer to me as “Molly Brown”, after the “unsinkable” heroine of the Titanic. This often became “Molly Malone” as a nod to my Irish ancestry. Since both Molly and Maggie can be diminutive forms of my first name, it seems fitting to combine my two favorite “name songs” into a fun choral piece that evokes the feeling of stepping into a pub for a trad session— a favorite pastime during my study abroad year in Dublin. Sláinte!

Text

In Dublin's fair city

Where the girls are so pretty

I first set my eyes on sweet Molly Malone

As she wheeled her wheelbarrow

Through streets broad and narrow

Crying, "Cockles and mussels, alive, alive, oh!"

Alive, alive, oh

Alive, alive, oh

Crying, "Cockles and mussels, alive, alive, oh"

She was a fishmonger

And sure 'twas no wonder

For so were her father and mother before

And they both wheeled their barrows

Through streets broad and narrow

Crying, "Cockles and mussels, alive, alive, oh

Alive, alive, oh

Alive, alive, oh

Crying, "Cockles and mussels, alive, alive, oh

She died of a fever

And no one could save her

And that was the end of sweet Molly Malone

But her ghost wheels her barrow

Through streets broad and narrow

Crying, "Cockles and mussels, alive, alive, oh

Alive, alive, oh

Alive, alive, oh

Crying, "Cockles and mussels, alive, alive, oh

Alive, alive, oh

Alive, alive, oh

Crying, "Cockles and mussels, alive, alive, oh

Adrienne Inglis

Bonnie Lockhart

Diane Skeel

Don Anderson

Jennifer Hymel

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Juliane Orlandini

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Katrina Saporsantos

Kay Inmon

Kim Vitray

Laurie Willis

Lynn Lindsay

Rebecca Stidolph

René Simone

Rich Spainhour

Robert Watkins

Sarah Cook

Shawn Harrison

Sherrille Reed

Steven Young

Thomas Kolenda

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