Smith College Performing Arts Center

September. To many, it is a month of transition: the summer heat and daylight gradually wane, leading to the crisp cool and vivid colors of autumn, and the insouciance of summer holidays gives way to the gravitas of scholastic endeavors. To me, however, September has always been synonymous with a fresh start and the dawning of new possibilities and perspectives. With this in mind, I can’t think of a more appropriate and galvanizing way to usher in the academic year than with a concert that features reimaginings of classics old and new. I am thrilled to present one of the opening events of the 2010/2011 Smith Performing Arts season: on Friday, September 17 @ 8 PM, my piano duo partner Greg Anderson and I will give a recital at Sweeney Concert Hall.

Greg and I will perform music that navigates a vast territory of diverse styles, emotions, images, themes, and psychological states; the audience will encounter sounds and stories that are raw and refined, intimate and entertaining, dreamy and violent, tragic and blissful, and—most importantly—relevant and timeless. Besides definitive works of the classical music literature (namely Brahms’ Variations on a Theme by Haydn, a masterful composition of grace and grandeur, and Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring, one of the 20^th century’s most earth-shattering creations), the program is primarily comprised of our original transcriptions. We have put our personal signature on an eclectic mix of pieces: vocal music by Bach, Schumann, Arne, Villa-Lobos, and Bizet; a sexy Piazzolla tango; and Radiohead’s prog-rock freak-out epic “Paranoid Android.” Is there a common denominator amid all this variety? Yes—this concert is all about passion.

This is my second year of teaching at Smith College, and it has been a refreshing, enriching journey thus far. I find Smith to be a haven that gives me renewed inspiration and purpose, as well as much-needed serenity and space. The campus, with its bucolic beauty and state-of-the-art resources, is truly conducive to creativity. Above all, I am overjoyed to teach such thoughtful, motivated, and altruistic young women, and I feel deeply grateful to be a member of such a phenomenal department, school, and community.

Please join me this Friday in welcoming a new chapter of discovery and adventure! I look forward to another memorable year here, and I am especially excited to give a concert that pays tribute to the bold and trailblazing spirit of Smith!

Elizabeth Joy Roe

Visiting Artist and Lecturer in Music

www.elizabethjoyroe.com

www.andersonroe.net