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The Princess and the Sewing Machine – January 21, 1996 | Walter Hall, Toronto
Music in the life of the Princesse de Polignac (1865-1943)

date: January 21, 1996

Winnaretta Singer was the daughter of the American inventor of the sewing machine; she married into the French aristocracy. Her inherited wealth enabled her to become the greatest individual patron of the arts in France during the early 20th century. Our concert told her life story with the aid of her memoirs, published posthumously in Horizon magazine. The music included some of her commissions and other pieces by composers whom she befriended, several of whom she supported financially in a significant way. Fauré’s Cinq Mélodies de Venise, Op.58, begun in the Princess’s Venetian palazzo and dedicated to her, formed the centrepiece. We were delighted to discover The Merry Singer, a jingle advertising the sewing machine, as an appropriate preface to the afternoon. This concert was first performed by us in May 1986.

Song Artist Composer Poet
The Merry Singer Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Pomeroy, David, tenor; Polegato, Brett, baritone; Ralls, Stephen, piano Leverne, Henry Leverne, Henry
Couplets des deux hommes d’armes (Geneviève de Brabant) Pomeroy, David, tenor; Polegato, Brett, baritone; Ralls, Stephen, piano Offenbach, Jacques Crémieux, Hector / Tréfeu, Etienne
Adagio ma non troppo e molto espressivo (String Quartet in C# minor, Op.131) Ralls, Stephen / Ubukata, Bruce, piano Beethoven, Ludwig van n/a
Larmes, Op.51/1 Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Ralls, Stephen, piano Fauré, Gabriel Richepin, Jean
Tendresse, Op.56/5 (Dolly) Ralls, Stephen / Ubukata, Bruce, piano Fauré, Gabriel n/a
L’Ile heureuse Polegato, Brett, baritone; Ralls, Stephen, piano Chabrier, Emmanuel Mikhaël, Ephraïm
Villanelle des petits canards Polegato, Brett, baritone; Ralls, Stephen, piano Chabrier, Emmanuel Gérard, Rosemonde
Souvenirs de Munich (excerpt) Ralls, Stephen / Ubukata, Bruce, piano Chabrier, Emmanuel n/a
Mandoline, Op.58/1 (Cinq Mélodies de Venise) Pomeroy, David, tenor; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Fauré, Gabriel Verlaine, Paul
En sourdine, Op.58/2 (Cinq Mélodies de Venise) Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Fauré, Gabriel Verlaine, Paul
Green, Op.58/3 (Cinq Mélodies de Venise) Polegato, Brett, baritone; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Fauré, Gabriel Verlaine, Paul
Entr’acte, Op.57/2 (Shylock) Ralls, Stephen / Ubukata, Bruce, piano Fauré, Gabriel n/a
A Clymène, Op.58/4 (Cinq Mélodies de Venise) Pomeroy, David, tenor; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Fauré, Gabriel Verlaine, Paul
C’est l’extase, Op.58/5 (Cinq Mélodies de Venise) Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Fauré, Gabriel Verlaine, Paul
La barcheta (Venezia) Pomeroy, David, tenor; Ralls, Stephen, piano Hahn, Reynaldo Buratti, Pietro
INTERMISSION
March of the Women Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Ralls, Stephen, piano Smyth, Dame Ethel anon.
Brutal – modéré (Trois Morceaux en forme de poire) Ralls, Stephen / Ubukata, Bruce, piano Satie, Erik n/a
Asturiana (Siete canciones populares españolas) Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Ralls, Stephen, piano Falla, Manuel de anon.
Jota (Siete canciones populares españolas) Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Ralls, Stephen, piano Falla, Manuel de anon.
Montparnasse Polegato, Brett, baritone; Ralls, Stephen, piano Poulenc, Francis Apollinaire, Guillaume
Hyde Park Polegato, Brett, baritone; Ralls, Stephen, piano Poulenc, Francis Apollinaire, Guillaume
Bleuet Pomeroy, David, tenor; Ralls, Stephen, piano Poulenc, Francis Apollinaire, Guillaume
March (à Alfredo Casella) (Three Easy Pieces ) Ralls, Stephen / Ubukata, Bruce, piano Stravinsky, Igor n/a
Waltz (à Erik Satie) (Three Easy Pieces ) Ralls, Stephen / Ubukata, Bruce, piano Stravinsky, Igor n/a
Polka (à Sergei Diaghilev) (Three Easy Pieces ) Ralls, Stephen / Ubukata, Bruce, piano Stravinsky, Igor n/a
Quel sguardo sdegnosetto (Scherzi musicali) Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Monteverdi, Claudio Magni, Bartholomeo
Duet (Le Diable boiteux) Pomeroy, David, tenor; Polegato, Brett, baritone; Ralls, Stephen / Ubukata, Bruce, piano Françaix, Jean Françaix, Jean
Pavane pour une infante défunte Ralls, Stephen / Ubukata, Bruce, piano Ravel, Maurice n/a
Adieux de l’hôtesse arabe Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Bizet, Georges Hugo, Victor
La primavera (Venezia) Robbin, Catherine, mezzo; Pomeroy, David, tenor; Polegato, Brett, baritone; Ubukata, Bruce, piano Hahn, Reynaldo Cicogna, Alvise