By
the age of 13 Mozart had written concertos, sonatas, symphonies,
a German operetta, and an Italian opera buffa. At the age
of 17, Scranton, too, is something of a prodigy who dabbles
in composing, although certainly not on such a grand scale.
“Mostly
I just make up extra harmony parts for choir pieces now,”
she said, indicating that she would someday like to compose
full works.
During
the trip, Scranton said the Symphonette participated in
a workshop at a music school where she had an opportunity
to learn from a guest conductor.
“He
kind of opened up the idea of using your ears to make music,”
Scranton said, “so now I’m a lot more interested in composing
my own music.”
The
Symphonette played seven or eight pieces for their festival
performances. The selections included Mozart’s “Il Seraglio”
overture, George Bizet’s “Suite No.1” from his opera “Carmen,”
the “Russian Eastern Overture” by Nikolai Rimsky‑Korsakov,
and works by other composers.
The
Symphonette’s conductor, Walter Temme, called the 16‑minute
Russian overture a long and ambitious piece that is fast‑paced
and features solos. The overture’s length did not present
much of a challenge to Scranton who said, “The longest
piece I ever played was a whole symphony which was 57 minutes
long.”
The
Symphonette’s performances generally include at least one
or two American pieces and the Mozart Festival was no exception,
especially considering it was also part of another event,
the annual “American Celebration of Music in Austria.”
Bringing a bit of the United States to the European
Union, Scranton and the Symphonette included the music of
the quintessential American composer Aaron Copeland, performing
“Hoedown,” an excerpt from his “Rodeo” ballet.
“All
the little kids love that song because they recognize it,”
Scranton said, referring to the fact that Copeland’s music
is used in the Beef Producers’ television commercial campaign:
“Beef. It’s What’s for Dinner.”
The
tour also included some sight‑ seeing, one stop of
which was Mozart’s home in Salzburg. “(Mozart’s) childhood
house was kind of weird because it wasn’t really his stuff,”
Scranton said, explaining that the furnishings and decor
had been modernized by the home’s current owner according
to how he thought Mozart would decorated his house if he
were living in it today.
Back
home now, the Symphonette will need to start practicing
again because Carefree‑based Arizona Musicfest has
hired them to play annually for students in the Cave Creek
Unified School District.
“We
have absolutely no question that we want to have them back
year after year because they were inspiring and joyous as
performers,” said Pat Cohen, education chair for Arizona
Musicfest.
“For
a young group, they play with amazingly maturity,” Temme
said of his Symphonette
musicians, who, after their trip to the Mozart Festival,
should be at least a little more seasoned from soaking
up some European history firsthand.
“You
could see all the history, but then again everything is
really modern,” Scranton said, adding that as modern as
it is, Starbucks is still not allowed in Austria. “It’s
very exciting–very different from here. It definitely has
an antique feel to it.”
