Hawaii Tribune-Herald Island Beat Thursday, March 9, 2017 9 Pre-Sale Tickets: General $12; Keiki 12 & Under $8 Day of Show: General $15; Keiki 12 & Under $10 Tickets can be purchased at the box office or over the phone with a credit card at 934-7010, M-F, 10am-3pm “I was trying to find an interesting repertoire,” she says. “I really wanted to do songs that work well with the audience and the setting. I spend a long time trying to find the right balance of styles — some standards that people can connect with and some repertoire that is new to the audience.” Where a typical program might include songs in French, German, English and Italian, this recital will showcase songs in the first three as well as Russian, Danish, Swedish and Hawaiian. “As classical musicians, we are always contending with the idea of how do we bring people in,” Schutz says. “First of all, there is very little that’s stuffy about our recital or us as performers in general. You should come to a classical concert for the same reason you go to a movie: it’s an evening of entertainment, but also it should move you. You should be drawn into the action that’s going on. “Vocal music is a good way to be introduced to classical music because there’s a story to be told. You might not get the details because of the language, but you should certainly get the emotion.” Schutz herself has enjoyed a multifaceted career, which includes concert/recital and opera performances for audiences throughout the U.S., Europe and the Far East. She was born in Wales and has been singing in a professional capacity since age 12. It was while pursuing her bachelor’s degree in music from Stony Brook University when she met her husband during her first freshman voice lesson. Korth, a soloist, chamber musician, collaborator and teacher, is currently an associate professor of music at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Schutz, who also has a master’s of music degree from Bard University in New York, is an avid supporter of classical and new music, and enjoys close working relationships with many young composers and new music ensembles. She has premiered dozens of new works, several of which were written specifically for her. Myers’ piece, “The Hula Mano,” to be premiered at this concert, is one such composition. “When Jeff was a professor at UH-Manoa we got to know him,” Schutz says. “After leaving Hawaii, he wrote us the first of his hula text songs, ‘He Mele No Kane’ in 2014. ‘The Hula Mano’ is the third composition he’s written for us.” Myers, now based in New York, says he first became interested in traditional hula texts during his time in Hawaii and began writing compositions based on the stories in these texts because he was looking for something “epic.” “I like writing songs in languages that I don’t speak, because they offer different sonic possibilities,” Myers says. “Hawaiian is a terrific vocal language, with many vowels — it is really sonorous and fluid.” He says he liked the idea of the shark (mano) as a metaphor for love or romance. “Instead of the typical terrifying shark like in ‘Jaws,’ the shark bite here is the infatuation of love and the thrill of a romantic adventure. “The shark has you in its jaws in the way that love takes over your entire being and subsumes you.” In his research, Myers says he found that Hawaiian texts often intertwine spirituality, the natural environment and the human condition in fascinating ways. “The shark can be a predator, a god or love all in one,” he says. “Water, rivers, clouds and rain can be essentially spiritual. There is a holistic attitude towards life that is refreshing for a city dweller like me. Hopefully, my music can highlight or amplify this sentiment and give the audience a chance to encounter it.” Schutz is quick to explain they are not trying to imitate Hawaiian music with Myers’ piece. “I think Jeff has found a good balance,” she says. “He’s hinting at aspects of the tradition of Hawaiian music, but I think he’s been able to connect the text and express it without trying to fit in into that tradition. “We intend to celebrate culture through the use of the Hawaiian text in a different context.” Schutz says that some audiences shy away from more contemporary pieces, but they shouldn’t. “It shouldn’t scare people,” she says. “It’s easy to understand Mozart or Shubert. They are so famous; people know what to expect. Contemporary music is so diverse. It pushes the envelope on what you can do with harmony. It’s not always pleasant to the ear, but it’s extremely expressive.” As a vocalist, Schutz says she enjoys the freedom of expression that contemporary pieces afford the artist performing them. “Performing a new piece is my interpretation,” she says. “There’s a huge amount of freedom with that. There’s no precedence. It’s very much creating things from scratch.” Tickets are $25 general admission, $20 for seniors 60 and older, and $10 for students, available at the UH-Hilo PAC box office, The Most Irresistible Shop and Music Exchange. Remaining tickets will be available at the door after 6:45 p.m. that evening. Call the UH-Hilo box office at 932-7490 or order online at artscenter. uhh.hawaii.edu. CONCERT From page 7 Courtesy photo Rachel Schutz performs in 2014 with the Taitung University Orchestra in Taiwan.
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