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Debra Wendells Cross, flute
John Powell (1882-1963) was born in Richmond, Virginia into an old southern family. He received his bachelor of arts degree from the University of Virginia in 1901, then went to Vienna where he undertook piano and composition studies for the next several years. Upon his return to the United States, Powell began to develop a style based on American themes. He did extensive research on the music of his native Virginia, and the distinctive modal harmonies of Appalachian folk music became part of his own compositions. In the 1920's he was invited to appear as guest artist on a European tour with the New York Symphony, performing his most famous piece, Rapsodie Nègre for piano and orchestra.
Both “Pretty Sally” and “At the Foot of Yonders Mountain,” taken from Five Virginian Folk Songs, are songs of unrequited love. The heroine of each song spurns her suitor because of the gentleman's lack of wealth and land.
The music of Alan Hovhaness, (b. 1911) born of Armenian and Scottish ancestry, is an elegant example of the many different influences upon American classical music. He was inspired by music of the Renaissance, Armenian folk music, and the music of Japan and Korea. He has experimented with several styles, and much of the body of his work is spiritual in nature. He studied at the New England Conservatory of Music.
Bruce Campbell (b. 1948) received his undergraduate degree from Brandeis University, then went on to earn a Master's degree in pipe organ at The Juilliard School, and a Ph.D. in Music Theory from Yale University. He has given organ recitals nationwide, and appeared as soloist with the Boston Pops Orchestra under Arthur Fiedler. His numerous compositions have ranged from anthems and solo works, to music for large ensembles, including a work for symphonic band with bagpipe obbligato. His State of Michigan Sesquicentennial March was chosen in open competition to commemorate the year-long event in 1987. His works are published by Shawnee Press, Southern Music Company, Concordia and Transcontinental. He has been Associate Professor in the School of Music at Michigan State University since 1985.
Lamar Stringfield (1897-1959) was born in Raleigh, North Carolina. He studied at Wake Forest University, then traveled to New York to study flute and composition at the Institute of Musical Art. He spent some time as a freelance player and conductor in New York, then returned to his home in North Carolina where he founded the North Carolina Symphony. In 1928 he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his orchestral suite From the Southern Mountains. He was particularly interested in using American folk music in his compositions, including American Indian themes.
Edward MacDowell (1860-1908) was one of the first American composers to achieve international recognition. Born in New York, he studied piano and composition in Paris and Frankfurt. After several years abroad, where he was a protégé of Liszt, he returned to the United States to establish himself as a leading American musical figure. He was named the first Professor of Music at Columbia University, and served there until 1904. His music was definitely shaped by his European sojourn, taking influences from Schumann, Listz, Wagner and Grieg.
Ken Kreuzer, (b. 1973) a native of New York, received an undergraduate degree from Ithaca College. He later earned a masters degree from East Carolina University, where he co-founded and conducted the East Carolina Contemporary Orchestra. In April of 1997, Concerto for Trombone and Orchestra was premiered by James T. Miller, assistant principal trombonist of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Kreuzer has had compositions performed at the New York Brass Conference, the International Trombone Association Conference, and the Hampton Roads (Virginia) Flute Fair. Mr. Kreuzer serves as professor of theory and composition at the Governor's School of the Arts in Norfolk, Virginia.
A transplanted Argentinean, Mario Broeders has made New York City his home since 1960 when he began the study of theory and composition at the Juilliard School. He has written many art songs in Spanish and English, pieces for piano, harp and flute, and wind ensembles. He is now composing the music and writing the lyrics for a Song Cycle based upon the diary of Anne Frank.
Kenya T. Tillery (b. 1972) received a bachelor's degree from East Carolina University and attended graduate school at Appalachian State University, studying music theory and composition. She received a master's degree in the art and business of film composition at the North Carolina School of the Arts. Upon being selected recipient of the 1998 BMI Pete Carpenter Film-Scoring Fellowship, she moved to Los Angeles, California. This fellowship gave her the privilege of studying with Mike Post at his studio in Burbank. Since, Tillery has assisted Stephen James Taylor as an orchestrator and has been chosen to participate in the 1999 Sundance Film Composers Lab.
Quinto Maganini (1897-1977) grew up in California and started his career as a flutist in the San Francisco Symphony. He later went to New York to study with George Barrère, and became second flutist to his teacher in what was then the New York Philharmonic. He became very interested in conducting and composing, and founded the Maganini Chamber Symphony in 1932, an organization that specialized in performing new works. He served on the faculty at Columbia University and was an editor with Carl Fischer Inc. His own music was performed by many American orchestras, and his flute works were at one time a major part of the literature.
Andrea Stern, (b. 1957) Principal Harpist of the Minnesota Opera, is active as a soloist, recitalist and recording artist. She has produced three recordings featuring many of her own and other's compositions. She has collaborated on projects for Red House Records, Sugo Music, and other independent labels. After studies at Cleveland Institute of Music and the New England Conservatory, she played principal harp with the Maracaibo Symphony in Venezuela. Ms. Stern has given concerts around the world as a featured performer on cruise ships.
Born in Brooklyn, New York, and educated at Harvard University, Timothy Mather Spelman (1891-1970) actually spent most of his professional life in Europe. Winning a Naumburg Award sent him to the Munich Conservatory, then only after a brief stint as Assistant Director of Bands in Washington DC for the War Department, he returned to Italy where he spent the rest of his life with his wife, poet, Leolyn Everett. His music is influenced by Italian Romanticism and French Impressionism.
Barbara Chapman holds the position of Principal Harp for the Virginia Symphony and the Virginia Opera. Ms. Chapman has performed at the Glimmerglass Opera Festival in New York and continues to perform annually at the Virginia Waterfront International Arts Festival. As a founding member of the Virginia Chamber Players, she has been privileged to perform chamber music with Catherine Cho, Paul Neubauer, Richard Stolzman, and her colleagues of the Virginia Symphony. As both orchestral harpist and chamber musician, Ms. Chapman has recorded for New Albion Records, NPR Classics and CD Review and has been broadcast nationally on NPR's Performance Today.
Committed to sharing the joy of music-making, Ms. Chapman maintains a small teaching studio, is on the faculty of The College of William and Mary and has led workshops at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor and the Eastman School of Music, New York.
Ms. Chapman enjoys cooking, gardening, yoga and the music of wild birds. She travels the world and makes a home in Virginia Beach, Virginia with her husband, Jonathan Miller.
Debra Wendells Cross holds the position of Principal Flute in the Virginia Symphony. She also serves on the faculties of The College of William and Mary and Old Dominion University, and during the summer Ms. Cross is Principal Flutist of the Eastern Music Festival in Greensboro, North Carolina. She has participated in many other festivals including Tanglewood, the Colorado Philharmonic, the Music Academy of the West, and the Skaneateles Festival. At the Virginia Waterfront International Arts Festival she has appeared with harpsichordist, Anthony Newman and with both the Orion and the Miami String Quartets, in concerts for broadcast on NPR's Performance Today. She has recorded for New Albion Records, NPR Classics and CD Review. Ms. Cross prepared and was a guest artist in an historical program entitled American Flute Music of the 1920's at the 1998 National Flute Convention.
The Seattle native graduated with honors from the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, where she studied with Boston Symphony member, James Pappoutsakis. From there she went on to study with Michel Debost in Paris, France under the auspices of the Harriet Hale Woolly Scholarship.
Ms. Cross' other interests include tennis, and her labrador retrievers, Sam and Abby, whom she enters in dog obedience trials, and takes on pet therapy visits to nursing homes and schools. She is married to percussionist, Robert W. Cross.
Recorded by Terry Knight, NPR Studios
Edited by Andy Rosenberg, NPR Studios
Mastered by Charlie Pilzer at Airshow Mastering in Springfield, Virginia
Photography by David Radcliff for The Art of Photography
Cover Art by Erin Anderson
Recorded March 21-23, 2000
Chandler Recital Hall, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, Virginia
We gratefully acknowledge the staff of National Public Radio, the Music Department of Old Dominion University, the Virginia Chamber Players and Mrs. Betsy Phillips for their generous assistance during the making of this recording.
Debra Wendells Cross, flute
2 At the Foot of Yonders Mountain [3:00]
12 Crushed Violets [3:14]
16 Caprice Terpsichore [3:57]
19 Indian Serenade [3:31]
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