Fantasia for Theremin, Oboe, String Quartet, and Piano

Apollo Chamber Players presents the Texas premiere of Bohuslav Martinů's 'Fantasia for Theremin, Oboe, String Quartet and Piano. Performance with world renowned thereminist CAROLINA EYCK recorded live as part of ‘Theremin Fantasies’ season concert program, February 16, 2019 at Midtown Arts and Theater Center Houston (MATCH). Matthew J. Detrick, violin I • Anabel Ramirez Detrick, violin II Whitney Bullock, viola • Matthew Dudzik, cello • Carolina Eyck, theremin • Elizabeth Priestly Siffert, oboe • Alejandro Barrañon, piano Program note: Composer BOHUSLAV MARTINŮ left his Czechoslovakian homeland for Paris in 1923. When the German army approached Paris early in the Second World War he fled, first to southern France, and then to the United States in 1941 where he settled in New York with his french wife. His symphonic career began at this time, and his six symphonies were performed by all the major U.S. orchestras over the next decade. Ever the avant-garde composer, he gladly accepted a commission from Lucie Bigelow Rose, the premiere thereminist of this era. What birthed was a chamber work of ingenious proportions - Fantasia for Theremin, Oboe, String Quartet and Piano. Mrs. Rosen premiered the piece as theremin soloist in New York City on November 3, 1945, with collaborators of the Koutzen Quartet and Robert Boom. Martinů writing for the theremin is revelatory. Despite his experimental tendencies, this composer ‘wanderer’ in eternal exile was a seeker of balanced musical moments. Anyone even slightly familiar with Martinů’s musical language recognizes such things: harmonic tension is reduced to nothing, folk styles reign in the upper registers, sweet timbres are carefully cultivated. These moments occur in more expansive works such as Fantaisies symphoniques and in the middle movement of the 2nd violin concerto. Yet this Fantasia stands alone as one which combines the style and musical personality of the composer with an instrument not usually associated with the concert stage. Apollo is honored to present the Texas premiere of this unique work with such an esteemed thereminist and guest artists friends. -note by Matthew J. Detrick More at: apollochamberplayers.org Videography: Ben Doyle, Runaway Productions Audio: Ryan Edwards and Shannon Smith, Coincident Sound