Fredericton Symphony Orchestra

Program (pdf version)

• Sleigh Ride - Leroy Anderson
• L'Arlésienne Suite No. 2 - Georges Bizet
  • Pastorale
  • Intermezzo
  • Menuet
  • Farandole

Intermission

• Les Patineurs (The Skaters Waltz) - Émile Waldteufel (arr. David Stone)
• How the Grinch Stole Christmas (Medley) - Arr. Jerry Brubaker
  • You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch
  • He Carves the Roast Beast
  • Welcome Christmas
• Fantasia on Greensleeves - Vaughan Williams
• Die Musikalische Schlittenfahrt (The Musical Sleigh Ride) - Leopold Mozart (arr. Franz Theodor Cursch-Bühren)
  • Intrada
  • Schlittenfahrt (Sleigh ride)
  • Das vor Kälte zitternde Frauenzimmer (The young lady shivering with cold)
  • Des Balles Anfang (The ball begins)
  • Kehraus (End of the ball)
  • Schlittenfahrt (Sleigh ride)
• Christmas Singalong - John Finnegan
  • Jingle Bells
  • Joy to the World
  • It Came Upon the Midnight Clear
  • Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
  • Silent Night
  • Away in a Manger
  • Deck the Hall
  • O Come, All Ye Faithful

Composers

Leroy Anderson

Leroy Anderson (1908 - 1975) is considered "one of the great American masters of light orchestral music." Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Anderson's instruments included piano, organ, double-bass, trombone, tuba, sousaphone, cello, voice. He received his Bachelor and Master's degrees in music from Harvard. He had over forty orchestra compositions to his credit in addition to numerical orchestral arrangements, musical theatre compositions, vocal compositions, and organ compositions. He is known for "Blue Tango," "Bugler's Holiday" and, of course, "Sleigh Ride."

(Source: wikipedia & Leroy Anderson official website)

Georges Bizet

Georges Bizet (1838-1875) is best known for his operas, especially Carmen, and his music is tunefull and approachable, often with a dramatic flair. Bizet attended the Paris Conservatoire and was awarded prizes, including the Prix de Rome in 1857. Much of his music was neglected during his lifetime but has received much success since the 20th century. L'Arlésienne suite was a rare success enjoyed during his later years.

Bizet composed L'Arlésienne as "incidental music" for a play based on a short story of the same name. Most of the twenty-seven numbers he composed are quite short and were only meant as background, but a few stand out. Although it was not well received in its original form, Bizet arranged five of the movements for full symphony orchestra in 1872. L'Arlésienne Suite No. 1, Op. 23 was so successful that in 1979, a second set was commissioned four year's after Bizet's death.

(Source: wikipedia)

Émile Waldteufel

Charles Émile Waldteufel (1837 - 1915) was born into a family of musicians in the city Strasbourg, Germany. When his brother won a place to study violin in Paris, the family followed. Waldteufel was originally taught piano by his father and a family friend, but upon moving to Paris took classes at the Conservatoire de Paris. He later became court pianist and led the orchestra at state balls in France and was subsequently made known to the Prince of Wales, who was so taken by Waldteufel's music that he effectively helped popularize him in London.

Waldteufel was well-known for his popular salon music and composed "Les Patineurs" (The Ice Skaters) in 1882. He is said to have shared a friendly rivalry with Strauss, but his waltzes were differentiated by his more subtle approach to the form.

(Source: wikipedia)

Leopold Mozart

Johann Georg Leopold Mozart, (1719 - 1787), was a German violinist, teacher, and composer. He was given a position that included composition and teaching violin to the choirboys of the Salzburg cathedral. Eventually he was promoted to second violinist and became deputy Kapellmeister. His work, A Treatise on the Fundamental Principles of Violin Playing, was published in 1756, widely distributed and became a standard text.

Leopold Mozart married Anna Maria Pertl had seven children, two of whom lived past infancy. The elder Mozart recognized early on that his two children, Maria Anna (Nannerl) and Wolfgang Theophilus (Wolferl) were gifted and by they time they were eleven and seven the family embarked on a tour across Europe.

Leopold Mozart's compositions are not as well known as his son's, but scholars are striving to learn the extent of his works. He is known for four works in particular, including Die Musikalische Schlittenfahrt (the musical sleigh ride), composed in the winter of 1755/56. This piece is a treat for audience and orchestra members alike.

(Sources: Britannica & wikipedia)

John Finnegan

John Finnegan (1926-2007) was an American musician and composer from Massachusetts who followed in Leroy Anderson's footsteps as an arranger for the Harvard University Band. After graduation in 1947, he taught in public schools and Salem State College for forty years. Upon retirement, he formed Olde Salem Music to publish his arrangements and compositions, and his Christmas Singalong has been performed many times since.

(Source: Wicked Local)