Program for February 15, 2015 First Baptist Church
Amparito Roca (1925)................. Jaime Texidor (1855–1957)
arr. Aubrey Winter
Spanish composer and conductor Jaime Texidor wrote many works for band, including Amparito Roca, which is possibly the best-known pasodoble (literally, double-step). He named the dance after Ampara Roca, a piano student.
Yorkshire Ballad (1984)................. James Barnes (1949)
James Barnes, professor of theory and composition at the University of Kansas, wrote this original composition in the style of a folksong, with the Yorkshire Dales of northern England in mind.
Suite of Old American Dances (1949)................. Robert Russell Bennett (1894–1981)
1. Cakewalk
2. Schottische
3. Western One-Step
4. Wallflower Waltz
5. Rag
Bennett was an orchestrator of musicals, living and working in New York City. Upon hearing a performance of the famous Goldman Band he was inspired to write something for bands to play. He wrote this suite bearing in mind a Kansas City amusement park of his youth (called “Electric Park”) and the music that emanated from its dance hall. Each of the five dances has its own character. A cakewalk originated on southern plantations where a cake was given as a prize to the slave couple who did the best job of strutting to the jig-like music in imitation of their owners. The schottische is a slow polka that came from Germany through England to the United States. The movement titled Western One-Step is a “Texas Tommy,” a genre that originated in the early 1900s in the entertainment district of San Francisco. Wallflower Waltz might be reflections of a lonely girl at a dance; one who does not get invited onto the floor. The finale, Rag, is unbridled, heel-kicking fun interspersed with lyric episodes reminiscent of the music of George Gershwin.
Kentucky Sunrise (1919)................. Karl L. King (1891–1971)
The dedication on the score reads, “To my friend Rhoda Royal.” Royal was a circus professional of the day who opened the Rhoda Royal Circus in 1919 after World War I but was compelled to close it in 1922 after the start of the Great Recession. He was a horse trainer who at one time managed a horse also named Rhoda Royal in the Barnum and Bailey Circus. In fact, the official Karl King website indicates that Kentucky Sunrise was “Dedicated to Rhoda Royal, horse trainer (named for show horse in B&B Circus).” It is not clear from that whether the dedication is for the man or the horse! In any event, the selection is a ragtime march (a two-step) that was at first used by circus bands for equestrian acts and later was applied to other functions during the show.
Amparito Roca (1925)................. Jaime Texidor (1855–1957)
arr. Aubrey Winter
Spanish composer and conductor Jaime Texidor wrote many works for band, including Amparito Roca, which is possibly the best-known pasodoble (literally, double-step). He named the dance after Ampara Roca, a piano student.
Yorkshire Ballad (1984)................. James Barnes (1949)
James Barnes, professor of theory and composition at the University of Kansas, wrote this original composition in the style of a folksong, with the Yorkshire Dales of northern England in mind.
Suite of Old American Dances (1949)................. Robert Russell Bennett (1894–1981)
1. Cakewalk
2. Schottische
3. Western One-Step
4. Wallflower Waltz
5. Rag
Bennett was an orchestrator of musicals, living and working in New York City. Upon hearing a performance of the famous Goldman Band he was inspired to write something for bands to play. He wrote this suite bearing in mind a Kansas City amusement park of his youth (called “Electric Park”) and the music that emanated from its dance hall. Each of the five dances has its own character. A cakewalk originated on southern plantations where a cake was given as a prize to the slave couple who did the best job of strutting to the jig-like music in imitation of their owners. The schottische is a slow polka that came from Germany through England to the United States. The movement titled Western One-Step is a “Texas Tommy,” a genre that originated in the early 1900s in the entertainment district of San Francisco. Wallflower Waltz might be reflections of a lonely girl at a dance; one who does not get invited onto the floor. The finale, Rag, is unbridled, heel-kicking fun interspersed with lyric episodes reminiscent of the music of George Gershwin.
Kentucky Sunrise (1919)................. Karl L. King (1891–1971)
The dedication on the score reads, “To my friend Rhoda Royal.” Royal was a circus professional of the day who opened the Rhoda Royal Circus in 1919 after World War I but was compelled to close it in 1922 after the start of the Great Recession. He was a horse trainer who at one time managed a horse also named Rhoda Royal in the Barnum and Bailey Circus. In fact, the official Karl King website indicates that Kentucky Sunrise was “Dedicated to Rhoda Royal, horse trainer (named for show horse in B&B Circus).” It is not clear from that whether the dedication is for the man or the horse! In any event, the selection is a ragtime march (a two-step) that was at first used by circus bands for equestrian acts and later was applied to other functions during the show.
