Wyoming Arts Council

“Fanny, Felix and Friends” topic of unique recital April 9 at Casper College

Featured News | April 4, 2013

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From a Casper College press release:

The Casper community is invited to “experience the intriguing story and delightful songs of sibling composers Fanny Hensel and Felix Mendelssohn on Tuesday, April 9 at 7 p.m. in Durham Recital Hall.

“Felix is renowned for his brilliant orchestral music, especially the incidental music for ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream,’ oratorios like ‘Elijah,’ and songs such as ‘Auf Flügeln des Gesanges.’ Lesser known is that some of his once most celebrated songs were actually composed by Fanny and published under his name,” said Catherine Compton, Fulbright scholar soprano. The lives of this brother and sister “were so intertwined that when Fanny died of a stroke at just 42 years old, it is rumored Felix’s heartbreak was so great that it led to his passing just months later,” she added.

Those attending the recital will “enjoy the music of these German geniuses, and get a glimpse into their lives through readings from their letters and journals, “ said Compton. “The second half of the program explores a different pair of German composers -– Robert and Clara Schumann –- as well as a brief look at American composer Amy Beach through her celebrated ‘Browning songs,’” she noted.

Compton, who completed her Master of Music degree at the University of Colorado at Boulder, was the recipient of the Berton Coffin Scholarship in voice. During her 2011-2012 Fulbright fellowship in Germany, she performed the songs of composer Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel.

Compton will be joined on piano by Sibylle Höhnk who teaches lied and collaborative piano at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy in Leipzig, Germany, and at the Martin-Luther Universität in Halle. She performs across Europe and is a founding member of the Leipzig Klavier Trio, which performs regularly in the prestigious Gewandhaus.

In addition to Tuesday night’s recital, Compton and Höhnk a German song master class on Wednesday, April 10 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. featuring Casper College voice students in the Durham Recital Hall. Durham Recital Hall is located in the Aley Fine Arts Center. Both events are free and open to public.

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