Thitipol Piseskul Master final exam of : Conservatorium van Amsterdam

Master final exam of :
            Thitipol Piseskul
                   Tobias Borsboom, Piano

Works by:
Debussy, Mantovani, Berio, Lago, Lauba and Albright
9th June 2021, 16h00
at Bernard Haitinkzaal

Biography
  Thitipol Piseskul

                                     Was born in 1997, Bangkok, Thailand. His
                             passion of music started at Music Campus for
                             General Public, College of Music, Mahidol University,
                             under the coaching of Promwut Sudtakoo. At the age
                             of 14, he got admitted in Pre-College program at
                             College of Music, Mahidol University where he
                             studied Classical Saxophone with Prof.Shyen Lee and
                             Wisuwat Pruksavanich.

       He had several masterclasses with Jean-Marie Londeix, Dr.Scott Turpen,
Dr.Chiu Huan Wu, Masato Kumoi, Kenneth Tse, Kyle Horch, Hans de Jong, Claude
Delangle, Jean-Denis Michat, Timothy Mcallister, Lars Mlekusch and Nobuya
Sugawa.
     As an aspiring young saxophonist, in 2014, his quartet “Fire-Yen Saxophone
Quartet” was awarded the top prize (2nd prize) and Takatsuki Mayer Award in
the Grand Final by 15th Osaka International Music Competition in Section II,
Ensemble Category.
        In 2016, after he moved to the Netherlands, his other quartet “Lagom
Saxophone Quartet” was awarded 1st prize by WMC Kerkrade music competition
and a year later, was awarded 1st prize by Princess Christina competition (Local).
      He graduated with a Bachelor of Music (Classical Saxophone Performance)
from Conservatorium van Amsterdam in 2019 under the coaching of Prof.Arno
Bornkamp and continued his Master’s in “Classical Saxophone Performance” and
“Karnatic rhythm in Western music” at Conservatorium van Amsterdam, under
the coaching of Prof.Arno Bornkamp and Prof.Rafael Reina Camara.

                                     -1-

Biography
                                      Tobias Borsboom is one of the best-
                                  known young Dutch pianists, performing
                                  extensively both as a soloist and in other
                                  capacities. In 2015 he made his debut in
                                  all the major concert halls of the
                                  Netherlands as a soloist in "Gershwin's
                                  Piano Concerto in F" with the Dutch
                                  Student Orchestra conducted by Quentin
                                  Clare. With violinist Piotr Jasiurkowski
he played the Masters on Tour series of The International Holland Music
Sessions (2013-2014), and in 2015, after being nominated twice, he won the
prestigious Dutch Classical Talent Award for his solo performance as well
as the audience award with his duo partner Piotr Jasiurkowski. With
pianoduo partner Yukiko Hasegawa he recently got chosen as one of the
Shizuoka Masters “Shizuoka no meishutachi” in Japan.
    In recent years, Tobias Borsboom has been successful at several other
competitions. With Piotr Jasiurkowski he won the audience award and the
Who's Next Award at the Almere Chamber Music Competition (NL, 2015)
and he was awarded first prize at the Grand Dominique (NL, 2012).
Additionally, he was a prize winner at the Young Pianist Foundation Piano
Competition (3rd prize and prize for best interpretation of a Dutch work,
NL, 2010), the Concertgebouw Entree Kamermuziek Concours (NL, 2006)
and the Prinses Christina Concours (NL, 2005).
        In 2013, Tobias Borsboom completed his Master's degree at the
Conservatoire of Amsterdam, where he studied with Jan Wijn. He has
taken lessons with such renowned pianists as Paolo Giacometti, Maria João
Pires, Klaus Hellwig, Jan Boguslaw Strobel, Georg Friedrich Schenck and
Geoffrey Douglas Madge.

                                   -2-

Programme

Prelude a l'Apres midi d'un faune..................................Claude Debussy
(Arranger : Gustave Samazeuilh, Transcriber: Arno Bornkamp and Ivo Janssen)

L'incandescence de la Bruine.......................................Bruno Mantovani

Sequenza VIIb............................................................................Luciano Berio
                                                                       (Arranger: Claude Delangle)

                                     —- intermission —-

Consecuencias.........................................................................Guillermo Lago
i. de la ignorancia
ii. del amor
iii. de la violencia

Worksong................................................................................Christian Lauba

Sonata.....................................................................................William Albright
i. Two-Part Invention
ii. La follia nuova: a lament for George Cacioppo
iii. Scherzo "Will o' the wisp"
iv. Recitative and Dance

                                                  -3-

Prelude a l'Apres midi d'un faune, Claude Debussy (1862-1918)

    ‘Prelude a l'Apres midi d'un faune’ is a symphonic poem for orchestra which
was composed by Claude Debussy in 1894. The composition was inspired by
the poem L'après-midi d'un faune by Stéphane Mallarmé. It is one of Debussy's
most famous works and is considered a turning point in the history of Western
art music. Pierre Boulez considered the score to be the beginning of modern
music, observing that "the flute of the faun brought new breath to the art of
music.”
     The music of this prelude is a very free illustration of Mallarmé's beautiful
poem. By no means does it claim to be a synthesis of it. Rather there is a
succession of scenes through which pass the desires and dreams of the faun in
the heat of the afternoon. Then, tired of pursuing the timorous flight
of nymphs and naiads, he succumbs to intoxicating sleep, in which he can finally
realize his dreams of possession in universal Nature. This arrangement was first
made for flute and piano by Gustave Samazeuilh and was transcribed for
soprano saxophone and piano by the collaboration of Arno Bornkamp and Ivo
Janssen.
  L'incandescence de la Bruine - Bruno Mantovani (1974-present)

     L’Incandescence de la Bruine was composed by Bruno Mantovani in 1997
for French saxophonist Vincent David and his pianist, Dorothée Bocquet. The
title translates roughly to “The Glow of the Drizzle.” As you listen, consider
how the sound of the music reflects a vision of the world through the rain.
The first note is a concert F, and this note is repeated throughout the piece in
both the saxophone and piano parts. Sometimes the note is repeated
incessantly, like the pounding of the rain. Other times it is obscured by a
quarter-tone, much like the rain can blur the vision of the outside world.
        Throughout the piece, the musical lines of the piano and saxophone
weave in and out of each other, often interacting conversationally. The
saxophone frequently imitates sounds that are electronic in nature and
features many extended techniques for the instrument such as slap tongue,
flutter tongue, and growling.

                                       -4-

Sequenza VIIb - Luciano Berio (1925-2003)

     Sequenza VII was written in 1969 for an oboist, Heinz Holliger. At that
time, Berio tended to reject traditional musical notation and like his other
sequenzas, Berio meant for Sequenza VII to be played by a virtuoso who was
not only proficient technically but who had a "virtuosity of the intellect" as
well. He claimed this intellectual virtuosity by notating measures in seconds
instead of bars although there are some sections of the work that use
traditional rhythmic notation.
      Importantly, the piece is built around a drone played on a B natural,
which typically comes from an offstage source. In his instructions on the
score, Berio writes:

   “a B natural must sound throughout the piece. The sound-source should
   preferably not be visible. This can be an oscillator, a clarinet, a pre-taped oboe,
   or something else. The intensity should be kept to a minimum with quite small
   variations. The B natural should give the impression of lending a slight
   resonance to the oboe”

     While the drone is sounding, the solo will be the one who narrates the
spectral soundscape of this concert pitch by using various forms of advanced
and extended technique, including using five alternate fingerings for one
note in a single measure, multiphonics, double tonguing, trills on multiple
notes at a time, overblowing, flutter-tonguing, traditional harmonics, and
microtonal trills. In 1993, this piece was arranged for solo soprano
saxophone which Berio gave its name 'Sequenza VIIb' by Claude Delangle.

                                       -5-

Consecuencias - Guillermo Lago (1960-present)

      In 2014 Lago was approached by the young Lithuanian saxophonist Rusne
Mikiskaite after a concert with the Netherlands Wind Ensemble in the
Amsterdam Muziekgebouw aan het IJ where he had been performing his
arrangement of Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet with his colleagues. She had
received an invitation by a Festival in Lithuania for concerts with a string quartet
and asked Lago if he had suggestions. He decided on the spot to write a piece for
her and promised her so. 'Consecuencias' (consequences) is the result of that
promise which he completed in 2015.
       A three-movement piece; the first movement portraying consequences of
ignorance, the second consequences of love which dedicated to his wife, Saskia
Törnqvist and the third consequences of violence. The version for alto saxophone
and strings is dedicated to both Rusne and Lago's long-time friend Arno
Bornkamp which later, he also published the piece with piano reduction.

              Worksong - Christian Lauba (1952-present)

         “Worksong”(2008), an etude no.15 from Lauba’s big collection for the
mastery of side keys and register breaks in which the listener can experience the
clever unfolding of an originally simple minor third motive which quoting ‘Work
song’. Work song is a piece of music closely connected to a form of work, either
sung while conducting a task (usually to coordinate timing). Although that there
is not much information about this piece but I strongly believe that it is deeply
connected to songs that were developed in the era of slavery, an African-
American work song.
        A common feature of African American songs was the call-and-response
format, where a leader would sing a verse or verses and the others would respond
with a chorus. This came from African traditions of agricultural work song and
found its way into the spirituals that developed once Africans in bondage began
to convert to Christianity and to both gospel music and the blues afterward. This
format of ‘question and answer’ is repeated through the whole piece combing
with the development of the quoted minor third motive.

                                       -6-

Sonata - William Albright (1944-1998)

      William Hugh Albright was an American composer, organist, and
pianist. He received degrees from both the Eastman School of Music and
University of Michigan where his principal studies were with composer,
Ross Lee Finney. A recipient of a Fulbright Fellowship to study in Paris
with Oliver Messiaen, Albright was appointed to the faculty of the
University of Michigan in 1970. His compositions often combine complex
rhythmic and non-tonal techniques with elements of American popular
music. Sonata for Alto Saxophone and Piano (1984) begins with a "two-part
invention" relying on the rapid exchange and weaving of material between
saxophone and piano. Concerning the second movement, Albright writes:

   "The piece is dedicated to the memory of the composer George Cacioppo, who
   died unexpectedly on April B, 1984. Cofounder of the ONCE Group and mentor
   to three generations of composers, Cacioppo and his music and personality
   rest at the foundation of my thinking. He would very much appreciate the use
   of the traditional title La Follia (the madness) in my reincarnation as La follia
   nuova. Like its Baroque antecedents, the piece is in a chaconne-variation
   form, though sometimes the sections are curiously jumbled together, or
   intersect. The fact that the key is F sharp minor may be important, or may not
   be."

     The codetta serves as a private, intimate tribute to Cacioppo. The third
movement is a whimsical, yet wild scherzo, which only momentarily rises
above the piano dynamic. A lengthy saxophone recitative gives way to the
final "Mad Dance", which includes references to many popular American
styles and highlights the pure bombastic genius of William Albright.

                                       -7-

Special Thanks
 Thanks to Tobias for sharing the stage with me, it is my pleasure
 to perform all these wonderful pieces with you. You are not only
 my accompanist but also my great teacher.
 Thanks to Jen Hong and Nami-san for being my companion in
 Berio. (This is supposed to be a secret until I finished playing
 Berio so please skip reading this if it is not played yet xD)
 Thanks to Arno and Willem who have been teaching me for six
 years. We have shared a lot of memory together and I just don’t
 know how to express my feeling in words. The space on this paper
 is just too less and even more piles of it would not be enough to
 write down how grateful I am having you as my teacher. If I could
 turn back time, I would love to redo all of this moment again.
 Forever your student, Thitipol Piseskul
 Thanks to Pierre, Harmen and Ties for being my committees
 today.
 Thanks to all friends and colleagues in CvA, especially my beloved
 CvA-Sax class. You are just like my home to me. Whenever I feel
 lost, I have you as my spiritual anchor. You are my great
 inspiration, my friends and also my beloved saxophone family : )
 Thanks to Ij saxophone quartet, it was really fun playing with you
 all in this study year. You remind me of how enjoyable I could be
 playing with three great musicians and friends.
 Thanks to Lagom saxophone quartet, it has been long since I last
 played with you but I cannot deny that you are an important part
 of my journey.
 Thanks to all my friends all around this world. Even in this crazy
 pandemic, all messages from you have refreshed me from all
 tiredness and depression miraculously. My regards to you all.
                                  -8-

Thanks to Jeen, my Madam. I know that you are very patient with
me in this study year dealing with my research-fever, recital-
fever, life-fever, etc. You are always there. You understand,
 encourage and inspire me to be a better version of myself. Also
that I have a beautiful format of this program note, it’s all thanks
to you.
Thanks to my beloved family in Thailand. I know that I am such a
selfish son, choosing this path and left our home to fulfill my own
dream in Amsterdam and although I am this bad, you all are still
supporting me. Every time I heard your voice on phone, it always
reminds me how great my family is and makes me want to be
good enough for you. Today I have accomplished a part of my
dream and there is nothing I desire than to cherish this special
moment with you all. Unfortunately, you cannot be here today
but that’s fine. I’m going back to our home soon to show how
developed and matured I am now as a son of our family.
Thanks to this country, the Netherlands. I have learnt to live my
life independently within such a healthy environment. Cycling
with all angry bikers, working in Thai restaurant as a part time
job, meeting varied people from many countries. All the
experiences I have gained here, it makes feel that I am ready to
face any obstacles in my life. I will never forget all of this
wonderful moment by engraving it on both my heart and my soul.

           I will miss you all until we meet again : )

                                                นาย ฐิติพล พิเศษกุล

                             -9-