Flying South and Heading East
Afrikaans and Korean Art Songs
featuring Jennifer Youngs, soprano and Jihea Hong-Park, piano
Sunday, April 23, 2023 at 2:00 pm
St. Paul’s E&R Church (UCC)
6464 East Lovers Lane, Dallas, TX 75214
Tickets: Adult $25, Senior $15, Student $10
The music of this concert will have you moving half way across the globe. Dr. Jennifer Youngs is an Assistant Professor of Voice at Brigham Young University and Korean American pianist Jihea Hong-Park currently holds the position of Associate Professor of Piano at Brigham Young University. They will delight us with the clear and vibrant song literature from the Korean nation that reveals the Korean spirit. The concert will also include South African Afrikaans art songs that can be traced back to the 1900s and now have evolved into an independent art song tradition based on European models.
PROGRAM
Won-ju Lee b. 1979
연 Longing
John Pescod 1896-1968
Oktobermaand
Kyu Hwan Kim 1925-2011
Is My Lover Coming?
Pieter de Villiers 1924-2015
Sewe Boerneef-Liedjies
1. Die berggans het’n veer laat val
2. Waarom is die duiwel vir die slypsteen bang
3. Aandblom is ‘n witblom
Stephano Le Roux Marais 1896-1979
Van die lotos waar die lelies groei Winternag
Martin Watt b. 1970
Winternag
Sungji Hong b. 1973
Awake Up, My Glory
Petrus Johann Lemmer 1896-1989
Kokkeweit
Stephano Le Roux Marais 1896-1979
Heimwee
Won-ju Lee b. 1979
이화우 Pear Blossom Rain
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ABOUT THE PERFORMERS
Jennifer Youngs
Hailed by The Dallas Morning News as, “...the standout in the Rinaldo cast was Jennifer Youngs, who vividly portrayed Armida’s vulnerability as well as ferocity. Her substantive soprano alternately raged, flickered and delicately touched in high notes.” Jennifer made her main stage Dallas Opera debut as Olimpia in Argento’s The Aspern Papers and was seen in the role of Laurette in the Dallas Opera Outreach production of Bizet’s Dr. Miracle. Opera roles include Lucia in Lucia di Lammermoor, Donna Anna in Don Giovanni, Birdie in Regina, Vitellia in La clemenza di Tito, Casilda in The Gondoliers, and Clorinda in La Cenerentola. She has been a featured soloist for Mahler’s 4th Symphony, Carmina Burana, Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, Handel’s Messiah, Haydn’s Creation, Bach’s Cantata #110, Brahms Requiem, Mozart’s Exsulate, jubilate, and Mozart Requiem. She has been a featured soloist with The Dallas Symphony, The Dallas Opera Orchestra, Abilene Philharmonic, Winston-Salam Symphony, Richardson Symphony, and University of North Texas Symphony orchestras. Jennifer is a champion for living composers and has been featured on recitals with composers Jake Heggie, Tom Cipullo, Dominick Argento, S. Andrew Lloyd, Paul David Thomas, Lisa DeSpain, and Dave Brubeck. Jennifer also is a member of the GRAMMY-nominated ensemble, The South Dakota Chorale.
Jennifer has been nominated for a Richard Tucker Foundation Career Grant in NYC by Joyce DiDonato. She is the winner of the Lois Alba Aria Competition, winner of the Kansas City District of the Metropolitan Opera Council Auditions, winner of the concerto competition at The University of North Texas, and a semi-finalist in the Loren Zachary Vocal Competition.
Youngs is an Assistant Professor of Voice at Brigham Young University, in Provo, Utah where she teaches private voice, vocal pedagogy, and diction. Previously, Jennifer was an Assistant Professor and Coordinator of Vocal Studies at Texas Woman’s University, in Denton, Texas. She earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Performance and Pedagogy as well as a Master of Music degree in Performance and Opera from the University of North Texas and a Bachelor of Music degree in Performance from the Conservatory of Music at University of the Pacific.
Jihea Hong-Park
Korean American pianist Jihea Hong-Park enjoys a versatile and vibrant career as a soloist, chamber musician, and collaborative pianist. She has performed at major venues such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Merkin Hall, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Steinway Hall, The Kosciusko Foundation, the Bar Harbor Music Festival, and the Caramoor Summer Music Festival. She has appeared on concert stages internationally, including performances at the International Symposium and Festival of the Centre of Intercultural Music Arts at the University of Cambridge (England), Incheon Performing Arts Center (South Korea), Yun I-Sang Concert Hall (North Korea), Komae Ecorma Hall and Niigata Performing Arts Center (Japan), Stockholm Cathedral (Sweden), Maarja-Magdaleena Lutheran Church (Estonia), and Riga Dome Cathedral (Latvia). Additionally, she has performed at notable academic institutions such as Tokyo College of Music, University of North Texas, UCLA, University of Southern California, College of William and Mary, St. Francis College, Stevens Institute of Technology, and Rutgers University. Enthusiastic about contemporary music, she has premiered works by highly acclaimed composers including Sophia Serghi, Jean Ahn, Steven Ricks, Gui Sook Lee, and Eric Sessler. In 2019, Ms. Hong-Park co-hosted a series of five New York Philharmonic Young People’s Concerts alongside the Omaha Symphony’s music director, Thomas Wilkins, at David Geffen Hall, Lincoln Center.
Ms. Hong-Park currently holds the position of Associate Professor of Piano at Brigham Young University. Her students have won numerous awards in state, regional, and national competitions resulting in performances with the Utah Symphony, Timpanogos Symphony Orchestra, the Utah Philharmonic Orchestra, and American West Symphony. During the summers, she serves on the artist faculty at Brevard Music Center in North Carolina, one of the country’s elite summer festivals for gifted music students.
Ms. Hong-Park received her B.M. and M.M. degrees at The Juilliard School and pursued postgraduate studies at Teachers College, Columbia University. Her principal teachers include Julian Martin, Jacob Lateiner, and Bruce Brubaker. Upon her graduation from Juilliard, she received the school’s highest award, William Schuman Commencement Prize, for her exceptional achievement, leadership, and service in music.
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NOTES FROM ARTISTIC DIRECTOR, CHRISTIAN BESTER
Voces Intimae welcomes you to this event. We are grateful for your attendance and support. So everyone can enjoy this performance, we ask for your attention to several issues:
• Please take a moment to turn off your cellular phone, pager, or any audio alerts. Since tonight’s concert is being recorded, we ask you to be as quiet as possible during the performance.
• Please notice the organization of the program so that your applause will be offered at appropriate intervals. Entire works or groupings of pieces will usually be performed without interruption.
• If you must leave during the performance, please wait for applause to do so.
Won-ju Lee b. 1979
연 Longing
John Pescod 1896-1968
Oktobermaand
Kyu Hwan Kim 1925-2011
Is My Lover Coming?
Pieter de Villiers 1924-2015
Sewe Boerneef-Liedjies
1. Die berggans het’n veer laat val
2. Waarom is die duiwel vir die slypsteen bang
3. Aandblom is ‘n witblom
Stephano Le Roux Marais 1896-1979
Van die lotos waar die lelies groei Winternag
Martin Watt b. 1970
Winternag
Sungji Hong b. 1973
Awake Up, My Glory
Petrus Johann Lemmer 1896-1989
Kokkeweit
Stephano Le Roux Marais 1896-1979
Heimwee
Won-ju Lee b. 1979
이화우 Pear Blossom Rain
-----
ABOUT THE PERFORMERS
Jennifer Youngs
Hailed by The Dallas Morning News as, “...the standout in the Rinaldo cast was Jennifer Youngs, who vividly portrayed Armida’s vulnerability as well as ferocity. Her substantive soprano alternately raged, flickered and delicately touched in high notes.” Jennifer made her main stage Dallas Opera debut as Olimpia in Argento’s The Aspern Papers and was seen in the role of Laurette in the Dallas Opera Outreach production of Bizet’s Dr. Miracle. Opera roles include Lucia in Lucia di Lammermoor, Donna Anna in Don Giovanni, Birdie in Regina, Vitellia in La clemenza di Tito, Casilda in The Gondoliers, and Clorinda in La Cenerentola. She has been a featured soloist for Mahler’s 4th Symphony, Carmina Burana, Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, Handel’s Messiah, Haydn’s Creation, Bach’s Cantata #110, Brahms Requiem, Mozart’s Exsulate, jubilate, and Mozart Requiem. She has been a featured soloist with The Dallas Symphony, The Dallas Opera Orchestra, Abilene Philharmonic, Winston-Salam Symphony, Richardson Symphony, and University of North Texas Symphony orchestras. Jennifer is a champion for living composers and has been featured on recitals with composers Jake Heggie, Tom Cipullo, Dominick Argento, S. Andrew Lloyd, Paul David Thomas, Lisa DeSpain, and Dave Brubeck. Jennifer also is a member of the GRAMMY-nominated ensemble, The South Dakota Chorale.
Jennifer has been nominated for a Richard Tucker Foundation Career Grant in NYC by Joyce DiDonato. She is the winner of the Lois Alba Aria Competition, winner of the Kansas City District of the Metropolitan Opera Council Auditions, winner of the concerto competition at The University of North Texas, and a semi-finalist in the Loren Zachary Vocal Competition.
Youngs is an Assistant Professor of Voice at Brigham Young University, in Provo, Utah where she teaches private voice, vocal pedagogy, and diction. Previously, Jennifer was an Assistant Professor and Coordinator of Vocal Studies at Texas Woman’s University, in Denton, Texas. She earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Performance and Pedagogy as well as a Master of Music degree in Performance and Opera from the University of North Texas and a Bachelor of Music degree in Performance from the Conservatory of Music at University of the Pacific.
Jihea Hong-Park
Korean American pianist Jihea Hong-Park enjoys a versatile and vibrant career as a soloist, chamber musician, and collaborative pianist. She has performed at major venues such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Merkin Hall, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Steinway Hall, The Kosciusko Foundation, the Bar Harbor Music Festival, and the Caramoor Summer Music Festival. She has appeared on concert stages internationally, including performances at the International Symposium and Festival of the Centre of Intercultural Music Arts at the University of Cambridge (England), Incheon Performing Arts Center (South Korea), Yun I-Sang Concert Hall (North Korea), Komae Ecorma Hall and Niigata Performing Arts Center (Japan), Stockholm Cathedral (Sweden), Maarja-Magdaleena Lutheran Church (Estonia), and Riga Dome Cathedral (Latvia). Additionally, she has performed at notable academic institutions such as Tokyo College of Music, University of North Texas, UCLA, University of Southern California, College of William and Mary, St. Francis College, Stevens Institute of Technology, and Rutgers University. Enthusiastic about contemporary music, she has premiered works by highly acclaimed composers including Sophia Serghi, Jean Ahn, Steven Ricks, Gui Sook Lee, and Eric Sessler. In 2019, Ms. Hong-Park co-hosted a series of five New York Philharmonic Young People’s Concerts alongside the Omaha Symphony’s music director, Thomas Wilkins, at David Geffen Hall, Lincoln Center.
Ms. Hong-Park currently holds the position of Associate Professor of Piano at Brigham Young University. Her students have won numerous awards in state, regional, and national competitions resulting in performances with the Utah Symphony, Timpanogos Symphony Orchestra, the Utah Philharmonic Orchestra, and American West Symphony. During the summers, she serves on the artist faculty at Brevard Music Center in North Carolina, one of the country’s elite summer festivals for gifted music students.
Ms. Hong-Park received her B.M. and M.M. degrees at The Juilliard School and pursued postgraduate studies at Teachers College, Columbia University. Her principal teachers include Julian Martin, Jacob Lateiner, and Bruce Brubaker. Upon her graduation from Juilliard, she received the school’s highest award, William Schuman Commencement Prize, for her exceptional achievement, leadership, and service in music.
-----
NOTES FROM ARTISTIC DIRECTOR, CHRISTIAN BESTER
Voces Intimae welcomes you to this event. We are grateful for your attendance and support. So everyone can enjoy this performance, we ask for your attention to several issues:
• Please take a moment to turn off your cellular phone, pager, or any audio alerts. Since tonight’s concert is being recorded, we ask you to be as quiet as possible during the performance.
• Please notice the organization of the program so that your applause will be offered at appropriate intervals. Entire works or groupings of pieces will usually be performed without interruption.
• If you must leave during the performance, please wait for applause to do so.