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Remembrance | Walter Hall, Toronto
Songs of war and peace

date: November 11, 1990

The arrival of the first concert of a new season on Sunday, November 11, provided an ideal opportunity to consider the large corpus of music relating to Remembrance Day. There was additional point to this, given the current build-up of opposing forces leading to the combat of the Gulf War. Repertoire for the concert ranged widely, including English, German and French songs; the second half contained a significant number of popular songs from the war periods of the 20th century. The encore tellingly consisted of a version in both English and German of “Lili Marleen”. Spoken extracts included some appropriate poetry, together with reminiscences by writers of the last century including Wilfred Owen, Ronald Blythe and Osbert Sitwell. A particularly effective reading was an extended portion of Alan Bennett’s play, Forty Years On, describing the night of August 3, 1914.

Song Artist Composer Poet
La Paix Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Hahn, Reynaldo Banville, Théodore de
Song (The Heart’s Assurance) Anderson, Valdine, soprano; Ralls, Stephen, piano Tippett, Sir Michael Lewis, Alun
Der Tambour (Mörike-Lieder) Schade, Michael, tenor; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Wolf, Hugo Mörike, Eduard
Grenadier Braun, Russell, baritone; Ralls, Stephen, piano Morawetz, Oskar Housman, Alfred Edward
Wo die schönen Trompeten blasen (Lieder aus “Des Knaben Wunderhorn”) Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Mahler, Gustav anon. (Des Knaben Wunderhorn)
Think no more, lad (A Shropshire Lad) Braun, Russell, baritone; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Butterworth, George Housman, Alfred Edward
The lads in their hundreds (A Shropshire Lad) Braun, Russell, baritone; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Butterworth, George Housman, Alfred Edward
To Gratiana Dancing and Singing Schade, Michael, tenor; Ralls, Stephen, piano Browne, W.Denis Lovelace, Richard
Noël des enfants qui n’ont plus de maisons Anderson, Valdine, soprano; Ralls, Stephen, piano Debussy, Claude Debussy, Claude
In Flanders Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Gurney, Ivor Harvey, Frederick William
Canticle III: Still falls the rain, Op.55 Schade, Michael, tenor; Vaugeois, Lise, horn; Ralls, Stephen, piano Britten, Benjamin Sitwell, Dame Edith
INTERMISSION
K-K-K-Katy Anderson, Valdine, soprano; Schade, Michael, tenor; Braun, Russell, baritone; Ralls, Stephen, piano O’Hara, Geoffrey O’Hara, Geoffrey
When your boy comes back to you Anderson, Valdine, soprano; Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Schade, Michael, tenor; Braun, Russell, baritone; Ralls, Stephen / Ubukata, Bruce, piano Thompson, Gordon V. Thompson, Gordon V.
Ma, I miss your apple pie Anderson, Valdine, soprano; Braun, Russell, baritone; Ralls, Stephen, piano Lombardo, Carmen / Loeb, John Jacob Lombardo, Carmen / Loeb, John Jacob
417’s Lament Schade, Michael, tenor; Braun, Russell, baritone Schultze, Norbert anon.
Carry on! Anderson, Valdine, soprano; Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Schade, Michael, tenor; Braun, Russell, baritone; Ralls, Stephen / Ubukata, Bruce, piano Dainty, Ernest Maxted, Stanley / Thompson, Gordon V.
Und was bekam des Soldaten Weib? Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Ralls, Stephen, piano Weill, Kurt Brecht, Bertolt
C (Deux Poèmes de Louis Aragon) Anderson, Valdine, soprano; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Poulenc, Francis Aragon, Louis
Au pays où se fait la guerre Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Duparc, Henri Gautier, Théophile
Der Tamboursgesell (Lieder aus “Des Knaben Wunderhorn”) Braun, Russell, baritone; Ralls, Stephen, piano Mahler, Gustav anon. (Des Knaben Wunderhorn)
Remember your lovers (The Heart’s Assurance) Anderson, Valdine, soprano; Ralls, Stephen, piano Tippett, Sir Michael Keyes, Sidney
Lili Marleen – ENCORE Anderson, Valdine, soprano; Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Schade, Michael, tenor; Braun, Russell, baritone; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Schultze, Norbert Leip, Hans / Connor, Tommie