KORI BARKLEY
Staff Writer
Fredonia is known for its matchless creativity and amazing endeavors in all aspects of the university; it is only fitting that faculty in the School of Music would create a way to put an exciting twist on performing traditional music.
Tonight at 8 p.m. in Rosch Recital Hall, RETRO, Fredonia’s faculty chamber group dedicated to music of the 20th century, will present a celebratory concert of the longstanding and fine art of poking fun at serious music.
The program will feature mostly improvised staging of admired chamber music, light-hearted mockery between faculty members and other silly, yet-to-be-revealed elements.
Note: this is not an April Fools’ joke!
“To rise to the top of any genre in the music field is no mean feat, so our revue of comedic ensemble material includes some of the most enduring and funniest collaborations of the 20th century: Victor Borge and Leonid Hambro, Darlene and Jonathan Edwards [and] Peter Schickele’s PDQ Bach,” Mary Cobb, member of RETRO, explained.
Other faculty on the program will include David Rose, David Colwell, Natasha Farny, Wildy Zumwalt, Phyllis East, Susan Royal, Marc Guy, Kay Stonefelt, Shinobu Takagi, Dan Ihasz, Gerald Gray, Vernon Huff, Joe Dan Harper, Rick Webb, Laura Koepke and Sarah Hamilton. Guest student performer, Kelsey Williams, will be featured on horn.
Although not a 20th century composer, the program will open with Mozart’s “A Musical Joke, K. 522,” complete with wrong notes and rhythms.
“Mozart was not above making fun of what he considered to be trite, sterile and even incompetent music-making of his less capable contemporaries,” Cobb said. “That’s why we’re starting off with ‘The Joke’ … it opens with an example of the ultimate in a stereotypical classical composition and moves from subtle sneering to outright mockery in the later movements.”
The mockery and sneering will continue with “Toot Suite” and “Schleptet in E-flat Major,” classically composed by J.S. Bach’s latest, least competent son, PDQ Bach, and hilariously arranged by Peter Schickele. The two pieces will pay tribute to Schickele, as this year is the 50th anniversary of his rediscovery of PDQ Bach, providing merriment to classical music enthusiasts everywhere.
Following a short “intermissing,” an appealingly easy and fun version of Chopin’s famous “Minute” Waltz, arranged for two pianos by Cobb and Phyllis East, will make fun of the “serious high brow stuff,” as Cobb described it, before standards from popular rep, like “Stayin’ Alive” and “Moonlight Bay” will delight audiences with deliberate errors, missed beats and off-pitch singing.
“There should be humor in music-making, especially on the stage,” Takagi said. “Things will happen that shouldn’t happen, but we will let it for [tonight]. We teach to be serious and professionals, but there’s a time to let it loose.”
“The point is not to be educational, really,” Cobb added. “We decided to perform on April Fools’ because we want it to be a fun RETRO — not too serious.”
Tonight’s grand finale is one of exclusive quality. “Eine kleine Boomwhackers,” Chris Crockarell’s arrangement of Mozart’s “Eine kleine Nachtmusik,” will be performed by a varied collection of RETRO members on colorful, plastic percussion tubes tuned to specific pitches.
“Come to laugh and have a good time,” Cobb encouraged.