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An invitation from David Gordon:
The so-called "Romantic" era - usually thought to be most of the 19th century in Europe and the Americas - prized the emotional content of art, often allowing it to take preference over traditional form and structure. Musical composers sought new ways to express the deep feelings of the human heart - from love to longing, from joy to grief.
The era of Romanticism was about much more than "romantic" love songs. Did you know that the French composer Gabriel Faure set to music a poetic cry of despair written by a young man imprisoned for attempting to murder a friend? Or that Brahms (in 1864) wrote a song based on an exultant poem by the ancient Persian poet Hafiz?
For the Romantic artist, beauty was everywhere. There was a deep sense of a return to nature and to belief in the goodness of humanity; the rediscovery of the artist as a supremely individual creator; and the exaltation of the senses and emotions over reason and intellect.
The evening features a major dose of our favorite specialty: the deeply romantic 19th century songs of Franz Schubert and Johannes Brahms. We'll also offer some elegant French songs by the neo-romantic Gabriel Faure, and music by Ralph Vaughan-Williams, Peter Warlock, and Benjamin Britten, composers who brought much of the Romantic aesthetic well into the 20th Century.
The concert will also include the powerful "Planting a Sequoia" by Alva Henderson and Dana Gioia(current Chair of the National Endowment for the Arts).
This special event takes place in the hall of the Carmel Woman's Club, downtown Carmel at 9th and San Carlos, directly across from the Sunset Center.
Please join us on June 11. We plan to make it a very special evening.
- David
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