Althea Ifeka
Oboe, Oboe d'Amore & Cor Anglais
Soloist
Althea Ifeka & Dominic
Saunders
Oboe & Piano Duo & Programmes
Programming Philosophy | Set Programmes | Bespoke Programmes | Dominic Saunders
One of Althea's principal interests as a musician is recital programming. Here she presents original and carefully-researched recitals aimed at adding value to your concert series. As promoters you are invited to choose between set recital programmes or bespoke recitals tailored to your individual requirements. Bespoke recitals might be appropriate if you are scheduling for a festival exploring a particular theme, or for the anniversary season of a composer, for example.
Althea's duo partner is the pianist Dominic Saunders. To read his biography, please click here.
Programming Philosophy
Each set programme has been carefully planned in order to achieve the following objectives:
- to enthrall, stretch and stimulate the audience by letting them hear the rich sound of the oboe d'amore and cor anglais in addition to the oboe
- to demonstrate the breadth of the oboe's repertoire, which is considerably larger than it is often given credit for
- to support promoters in the areas of ticket sales and promotional efforts by including works by famous composers as well as lesser-known ones
- to explore thoroughly the riches of the twentieth-century by including works from the earlier part of the century as well as the latter
- to promote the music of present-day British composers who are an important part of the current renaissance in composition in Britain
Set Programmes
Lunchtime Recitals are primarily non-thematic recitals in which the focus is variety. Each recital features music for at least two of the three oboes. The concerts are timed to last 50 minutes in total, including introductions, and will not include an encore.
The Wide World of the Oboe
for Oboe, Cor Anglais and Piano
N.B. A solo work for oboe d'amore by G.P. Telemann (1681-1767) - Fantasia no. 9 - can be included in both programmes should time permit. Duration: 6 mins
2008-9 & 2009-10
Giacomo Rossini (1792-1868) Variations (1810)
Sir Eugene Goossens (1893-1962) Concerto in One Movement Op. 45 (1927)
Franz Schubert (1797-1828) Impromptu in Gb D.899 for solo piano
Paul Hindemith (1895-1963) Sonate (1941) for cor anglais and piano
Jonathan Dove (b. 1959) Music for a Lovelorn Lennanshee (1993)
2010-11 & 2011-12
J. W. Kalliwoda (1801-1866) Morceau de Salon Op. 228
Paul Patterson (b.1947) Duologue (1985)
Johannes Brahms (1833-97) Klavierstücke op.118 nos 1 and 2 for solo piano
Bela Bartok (1881-1945) Three Folksongs from the County of Csisk, An Evening in the Village & Bagpipers
Anton Reicha (1770-1836) Scene for cor anglais and piano
For the 2009-10, 2010-11 & 2011-12 seasons, the following set lunchtime programme will also be available:
The Music of France
for Oboe, Oboe d'Amore, Cor Anglais and Piano
Charles Colin (1832-1881) Premier Solo de Concours (1868)
Henri Dutilleux (b.1916) Sonata (1947)
EITHER Gilbert Amy (b.1936) Jeux (1971) for solo oboe
OR Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) Pièce en forme de Habenera (1926)
Claude Debussy (1862-1918) La Cathedrale engloutie from Preludes Bk 1 for piano solo
Claude Debussy Rapsodie (1903) for cor anglais and piano
Theophile Lalliet (1837-1892) Fantasia on Themes by Chopin for oboe d'amore and piano
Evening Recitals present an excellent opportunity to explore musical themes in greater depth. Each recital contains two halves of 40-45 minutes including introductions. Evening recitals normally include all three oboes with piano, unless the constraints of the theme prevent the inclusion of one of the larger oboes.
For the 2008-9, 2009-10 & 2010-11 seasons, the following set programme will be available:
Old World, New World
Music from the 19th & 20th centuries by American composers and Europeans with connections to America.
For Oboe, Oboe d'Amore, Cor Anglais & Piano
Paul Hindemith (1895-1963) Sonate (1938) for oboe and piano
William Grant Still (1895-1978) Incantation and Dance (1945)
Charles Griffes (1884-1920) The White Peacock from Roman Sketches Op.7 for solo piano
Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904) Zwei Humoresken for solo piano
John Marvin (b.1931) Five Pieces for Cor Anglais and Piano (1989)
Interval
Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) Temporal Variations (1936)
Samuel Barber (1910-1981) Canzonetta (1978) for oboe & piano
Theophile Lalliet (1837-1892) Fantasia on Themes by Chopin for oboe d'amore and piano
Jonathan Dove (b. 1959) Music for a Lovelorn Lennanshee (1993)
This programme contains some interesting repertoire. Of particular note is the piece by the African-American oboist, composer and conductor, William Grant Still. A student of Varèse, Still nonetheless wrote in a predominantly tonal style, integrating European neo-classicism with the traditional harmonies and gestures of Afro-American spirituals. Other interesting repertoire includes the 19th-century piano solos by Dvorak and Griffes, and Jonathan Dove's spectacular piece, which is partly influenced by American minimalism.
For the 2009-10, 2010-11 & 2011-12 seasons, the following set programme will also be available:
Stories of Love and Sorrow
Romantic music by four of the greats - Schumann, Lizst, Beethoven and the oboe virtuoso Pasculli - is contrasted with music by four living British composers: Michael Berkeley, Jonathan Dove, David Matthews and Thea Musgrave.
For Oboe, Cor Anglais, Piano and optional Tape
Robert Schumann (1810-1856) Three Romances Op.94
Michael Berkeley (b.1948) Fierce Tears I or II (1983/1990)
Franz Lizst (1811-1886) La Lugubre Gondola for solo piano
David Matthews (b. 1942) A Little Threnody (1993) for solo cor anglais
Antonio Pasculli (1842-1924) Amelia: Fantasia sopra Un Ballo in Maschera di Verdi for cor anglais & piano
Interval
Jonathan Dove (b. 1959) Music for a Lovelorn Lennanshee (1993)
Thea Musgrave (b.1928) Niobe for oboe and tape*
Franz Liszt Sonneto 104 del Petrarca for solo piano
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Variations on "Là Ci Darem le Mano" from Mozart's Opera Don Giovanni
*If a cassette tape player is not available, this piece can be replaced by Niobe and Arethusa from Six Metamorphoses After Ovid Op. 49 for oboe solo by Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)
Bespoke Programmes
Please contact Althea to discuss your requirements, or to discuss any amendments to set programmes.
Dominic Saunders, piano
Dominic
Saunders read music initially at York University, winning the Wilfrid Mellers
Prize and graduating with first-class honours. He then attended the Royal
Academy of Music in London, with the Lloyds Bank Scholarship, where he won
numerous prizes. Since then he has gained increasing recognition for his work
as soloist, accompanist and ensemble player in a wide range of styles, playing
at the Proms and all the main London venues, all over the UK and Europe, and
in the USA and the Caribbean. His first appearance at the Carnegie Hall in
New York was in 2002.
Dominic was a founder member of Jane's Minstrels, the instrumental ensemble set up by Jane Manning. He is also the pianist with Icebreaker and Lontano and has played with other ensembles such as the London Sinfonietta and Endymion. Contemporary music is a special priority and he has premiered the works of numerous composers. Recent commercial recordings have included a disc of chamber music by the Scottish composer Ed McGuire which was selected as a CD of the month in Gramophone magazine. Concerts in the last year have included appearances at the London's South Bank and at the Lincoln Centre in New York. He enjoys teaching, and has also written on music for the Guardian newspaper.