French Composer Honored at Faculty Recital

By Lilly Gannon, Contributing Writer

French composer Claude Debussy was honored at a faculty recital, entitled “Debussy: Friend and Foe,” held on Feb. 1 in Stretansky Concert Hall.  

Adjunct Faculty in Music Jeffrey Fahnestock performed, along with Susquehanna alumna Susan Hochmiller and Gettysburg College pianist Scott Crowne. Fahenstock and Hochmiller sang tenor and soprano, respectively. 

According to Fahnestock, the purpose of this recital was to honor the 100th anniversary of Debussy’s death in 2018. He added that the title “Debussy: Friend and Foe” referred to controversies around Debussy’s personal life and how the conservative musical generation before him responded. 

The group performed four works by Debussy: “Ariettes oubliees,” “Trois poemes de Stephane Mallarme,” “Pelleas et Melisande” and “L’Enfant Prodigue.” 

They also performed music by his contemporaries: “Viens” by Camille Saint-Saens, “Nocturne,” “Amour d’Antan” and “Printemps triste” by Earnest Chausson and “Puisqu’ici-bas toute ame” by Gabriel Faure. 

“We are performing some duets and songs by Debussy’s contemporaries to show how far forward he moved music composition,” Fahnestock said. 

Before each piece, Fahnestock gave a short introduction to put the work into context. The program also included an English translation for the music so that the audience could follow along. 

“I want to demonstrate to our… music students that learning about and performing music continues after graduation,” Fahnestock said. 

Attendees also expressed their enjoyment at the recital. 

“Usually I don’t enjoy operatic singing,” said sophomore Emily Hendershot. “However, this is one of the few exceptions.”