By Kelsey Rogers, Asst. Living & Arts Editor
Seniors Kevin Grzybek and Andrew Davis will perform their senior recital on Nov. 12 at 2:30 p.m. in Stretansky Concert Hall.
Grzybek, string bass, and Davis, baritone, will perform a variety of musical works. The repertoire for the recital features famous composers such as Mozart and Beethoven.
Grzybek and Davis participate in a number of activities together, from the intramural ultimate frisbee team to the Phi Mu Alpha fraternity.
Grzybek said that their friendship over the past three years has helped them with preparation for the recital.
“I think we both know each other pretty well,” Grzybek said. “We know each other’s ticks and what makes us irritated and what gets us motivated.”
Davis agrees that the two have been working well together under the pressure of performing a senior recital in the fall.
“This process has been kind of rushed because with a recital in the fall, you have to do things quicker,” Davis said. “If you do it in the spring, you have all of fall to prepare for it.”
Grzybek will perform “Sonatina in G Minor” by German composer Ludwig van Beethoven, “Cello Sonata No. 2 in E minor” by
Italian composer Benedetto Marcello, “Vocalise” by Rus- sian composer Sergei Rach- maninoff and “Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise” by Austro- Hungarian composer Sigmund Romberg.
“Sonatina” by Beethoven is translated as “little sonata” due to the piece being composed in a more condensed fashion than a normal sonata.
The piece will be performed in three sections, transitioning from a dark and gloomy sound to a faster tempo before reverting to the initially slower pace.
“Cello Sonata No. 2” was composed by Benedetto, an Italian who also served in the Venetian government in the 1700s while simultaneously composing music. Benedetto had composed numerous concertos and church music.
The cello sonata was originally written to be performed on cello and harpsichord, but is often adapted to be performed on double bass and piano, which is the adaptation that Grzybek will be using.
“Vocalise” by Rachmaninoff appears independently as the last of his “14 Romances.”
Rachmaninoff emigrated from Russia to the U.S. at the start of the Russian Revolution, performing, composing and conducting during the early 1900s in the U.S. and Europe.
The piece was originally written for a soprano voice and a piano accompaniment and has been rewritten for double bass and piano. Grzybek will be accompanied by pianists sophomore Ali Hordeski for “Sonatina in G Minor”, senior Anna Dunn for “Cello Sonata No. 2 in E Minor” and junior Benjamin Nylander for “Vocalise.”
“Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise” will be accompanied by sophomore Hayden Stacki on drum set and seniors Dylan Little on trumpet and Tyler Mariano on piano.
Davis will perform various songs by Hugo Wolf, an Austrian composer from the romantic era. Featured pieces include “Nimmersatte Liebe,” “Der Mond hat eine schwere Klag’ erhoben” and “Der Rattenfanger.”
Davis will also perform songs by the French composer Jacques Ibert, featuring “Chanson a Dulcinee” and “Chanson de la mort” and the early American modernist composer Charles Ives, performing “Down East,” “Things Our Fathers Loved” and “Circus Band.”
Joining Davis in “La ci darem la mano” by Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is junior Heather Knox, soprano. Jaime Namminga, lecturer in music, will accompany on piano for all of Davis’ pieces.
Musical performances throughout the rest of the week include the Jazz Ensemble concert on Nov. 15 at 7:30 p.m. and the University Orchestra concert on Nov. 18 at 7:30 p.m., both in Stretansky Concert Hall.
