Soprano Jennifer Jakob and pianist Maria Sumareva to present Liederabend Oct. 18

Oct. 8, 2009 -- Soprano Jennifer Jakob and pianist Maria Sumareva will perform an intimate Liederabend for the Washington University Department of Music in Arts & Sciences at 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 18, in Graham Chapel.

Literally translated as "evening of song," Liederabend is a German term referring to a recital given by a singer and pianist, particularly of works by 19th-century Austrian or German composers.

The program will open with Der Hirt auf dem Felsen ("The Shepherd on the Rock") by Franz Schubert. Written in 1828, during the final months of Schubert's life, Der Hirt auf dem Felsen was his second-to-last song and is largely based on poetry by Wilhelm Müller. It consists of three contrasting musical sections — a warm opening melody that turns darker as the Shepherd contemplates grief and loneliness but concludes with an optimistic look to the coming spring.

The program will continue with four songs from the Mädchenblumen, Op. 22, ("Flower Girls") of Richard Strauss. Composed between 1868-88, each of these songs compares a woman with a flower: Kornblumen ("Cornflowers"), Mohnblumen ("Poppies"), Epheu ("Ivy") and Wasserrose ("Waterlily").

Next up will be selections from the Brettl-Lieder ("Cabaret Songs") of Arnold Schoenberg. Written in 1901, these represented Schoenberg's attempt to address serious musical ideas through a popular format. Jakob and Sumareva will present three examples: Gigerlette, based on poetry by Otto Julius Bierbaum; Mahnung ("Warning"), based on poetry by Gustav Hochstetter; and Arie aus dem Spiegel von Arkadien ("Aria from The Mirror of Arcady") based on poetry by Emanuel Schikaneder.

Following a brief intermission, the concert will conclude with Frauenliebe und Leben, Op. 42, ("A Woman's Love and Life") by Robert Schumann. Written in 1840, shortly before the composer's own marriage to Clara Wieck, this song cycle represents eight different life stages, from early courtship and wedding to motherhood and the death of her husband.

The concert is free and open to the public. Graham Chapel is located immediately north of the Mallinckrodt Student Center, 6445 Forsyth Blvd. The program is sponsored in association with the Department of Germanic Languages & Literatures in Arts & Sciences.

For more information, call (314) 935-5566 or email kschultz@artsci.wustl.edu.

Jennifer Jakob

Jakob, a native of Kempten, Germany, is currently pursuing her master's degree at Indiana University, where she has performed the role of Frau Fluth in Otto Nicolai's The Merry Wives of Windsor and Rita in the collegiate premiere of William Bolcom's A Wedding. She received her bachelor's degree from Oberlin College, where she won the Senior Concerto Competition. In 2005 Jakob debuted in Italy as Clarina in Gioachino Rossini's La Cambiale di Matrimonio, as part of the Oberlin in Italy program.

In 2006 and 2007 Jakob served as a Gerdine Young Artist for Opera Theatre of St. Louis, covering the role of Rose Maurrant in Kurt Weill's Street Scene and the title role in David Carlson's Anna Karenina. She spent the past two summers as an apprentice singer with the Santa Fe Opera and recently sang the role of Annina in Giuseppe Verdi's La Traviata. Next spring she will join the Lyric Opera of Chicago as a member of its Ryan Opera Center.

Maria Sumareva

Sumareva, a native of Chisinau, Moldova, began her piano studies at the age of eight at the Republican Musical Lyceum "C.Porumbescu" and the following year won first prize at the Jeunesses Musicales International in Bucharest, Romania. At age 13 she debuted with the Moldovan National Symphonic Orchestra, performing Prokofiev's Piano Concerto in D-flat Major, op.10. She has given solo performances at numerous international music festivals, including the Budapest Spring Festival, the Northern Lights Music Festival in Aurora, MN; and the Jacobs Music-Steinway and Sons "Peace Piano Tour" in 2004.