On Saturday, October 15 at 4pm in Dumke Recital Hall, join the Utah Viola Society as we celebrate the legacy of David Dalton in recital. This recital was curated by Dr. Dalton’s former student and assistant, Utah violist and BYU alumna Emily Barret Brown. Utah Viola Society is very grateful to Emily for her work and time putting together this recital!
Performers include Leslie Richards, Emily Barret Brown with Melissa Heath, soprano, Caryn Jackson Bradley, Megan Mason, LeeAnn Morgan. (Plus a special surprise! Shhh! Don’t tell!)
Each of the performers on Saturday have a direct connection to David Dalton in that they were all private students of his, whether at the college level or college prep. Some have double connections, for instance Megan Mason and Caryn Jackson studied both with Emily Brown and David Dalton.
All of the repertoire to be performed has a David Dalton connection. The Marais, Donizetti, Minsky, and Nin are all works that David Dalton transcribed and/or edited and saw to publication. The Telemann is a small representation of a larger body of work that David helped William Primrose edit and get to publication. (LeeAnn Morgan did her DMA dissertation on this subject and will be speaking a little about it at the recital.)
About her years with David Dalton, Emily recalls, “I remember playing the puffy marshmallow game with DD and some other students at his home during my college years (in which you pass a bag of marshmallows around the circle, keep adding to the stash in your mouth and have to say something like “I can fit X-number of marshmallows in my mouth!” without spitting, swallowing or gagging. I remember that he won.
I remember that Hiroko (Primrose) and David jointly decided that I was to become a violist when I was about 16. After taking lessons with David Dalton for about a year, I remember him saying something to the effect of “You are starting to sound like a real violist.” He transformed my bow arm from that of a violinist to what he would call an “echt” violist (German for “true”). I also remember him trying to communicate to me exclusively in German during a lesson even though he knew my German was lousy :). From the first viola congress I attended at age 15 and the 8 or more I’ve been to since, David Dalton has introduced me to some of the finest violists in the world. He also brought them to BYU. We would sit and have lunch with them, I got to play for many of them in masterclasses and come to understand a little better what a wealth of opportunity there was and is for our great instrument. I credit David Dalton with opening my eyes to possibility and for continually showing me the best the world has to offer.”
Join us to celebrate the legacy of David Dalton on Saturday, October 15 at 4pm in Dumke Recital Hall as part of Viola Day 2016!
Leslie Richards, viola
Gaetano Donizetti (Edited by David Dalton)
Melissa Heath, soprano
Emily Barrett Brown, viola
Lara Lambert Allen, piano
Aaron Minsky (Arranged by David Dalton)
Caryn Jackson Bradley, viola
Joaquin Nintendo (Arranged by David Dalton)
I. Montanesa
II. Granadina
Megan Mason, viola
Two of our lovely recitalists, Leslie Richards and Emily Barrett Brown