Colleges of the Fenway Orchestra - Festival Prelude/Festival March

 

On Monday, February 12^th, the Colleges of the Fenway Orchestra rehearsed Gena Branscombe’s 1914 piece, “Festival Prelude/Festival March.” 

 

What made this rehearsal special?  It is the first rehearsal and soon to be first performance of the original orchestration of this piece in over 100 years.  And, to add more to this explanation, the original orchestral work is in Miss Branscombe’s manuscript at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.  From scanned photos of the manuscript, the piece was transcribed into Finale, note by note by note, for the rehearsal to happen! 

 Damali Willingham, The Gena Branscombe Project’s 2020 Composer scholarship winner, took on the task of re-creating the score from its original instrumentation.  When a student at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Damali arranged this same piece for wind ensemble and conducted the performance in Spring 2022.  Damali is one talented musician and a wonderful, positive person! 

 

Thanks to Dan Ryan for programming Gena’s “Festival Prelude/Festival March” for the Colleges of Fenway Spring concert on Wednesday, March 27^th.  Thanks also to his orchestra for their dedicated work leading up to their performance. 

                                                                    Gena Branscombe 

#BringingBackBranscombe

"Antonia: A Portrait of a Woman" - Antonia Brico

 

Writing about symphony orchestra conductor Antonia Brico (1902-1989) for the second time is quite the honor.  This past Saturday, February 3^rd, at the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York City, I attended a showing of the 1974 Academy Award nominated documentary film,  “Antonia: A Portrait of a Woman.” In the audience on Saturday were the movie’s producers and directors, Judy Collins and Jill Godmilow, who spoke of their experiences making the documentary.

In the late 1970s, the movie was shown on PBS, which I watched because I had met Dr. Brico in 1977 when she conducted a concert for a summer string program at the conservatory in Cincinnati.  What you see of her in the movie is exactly who she was in real life; a dedicated musician, exacting in rehearsals, thoughtful and kind. 

 “Antonia: A Portrait of a Woman,” has been remastered and is available to watch on YouTube.  After you click on the hyperlink, take 57 minutes to learn about this remarkable woman conductor who broke down barriers in the 1930s and faced  discrimination her entire career. 

There is always a connection to Gena Branscombe in my blog!  In the small world of classical music Miss Branscombe and Antonia Brico’s lives crossed paths.  Gena organized a meeting, gala concert and dinner for the New York Matinee Musicale in December 1935.  She engaged composers Amy Beach and Marion Bauer as well as Antonia Brico as speakers for the event. 

 

#BringingBackBranscombe