Tunisian-born, Canadian-American composer Karim Al-Zand’s Parizade and the Singing Tree is a magical work based upon a Middle Eastern folk tale and featuring a female protagonist. The Festival commissioned Al-Zand to fully orchestrate the work for its 2018 premiere, featuring the Cabrillo Festival Orchestra conducted by Cristi Măcelaru, and narrated by Nora el-Samahy. This virtual premiere is illustrated by 9-year-old Beni Măcelaru, adding a vibrant young interpretation to the storyline that is sure to capture the imagination of children.
This family-friendly adventure includes a self-guided Tour of the Orchestra—with a welcome by Beni Măcelaru and his sister Maria—in which Festival musicians introduce their instruments to kids and their families—in charming and amusing ways.
Karim Al-Zand: Parizade and Singing Tree (2001, rev. for full orchestra 2018)
World Premiere | Orchestral Version August 5, 2018
Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium, Santa Cruz, CA
Cabrillo Festival Orchestra, conducted by Cristian Măcelaru
Nora el Samahy, narrator
Beni Măcelaru, illustrator
Part I. In which Parizade seeks the Singing Tree and hears the Dervish’s warning.
Part II. In which Parizade climbs the mountain and endures the travails of the ascent.
Part III. In which Parizade hears the wondrous song of the Singing Tree.
Part VI. In which the music of the Singing Tree proves to be magical.
PROGRAM NOTE
This charming folk tale has as its source an episode from the Thousand Nights and A Night [Alf laylah wa-laylah] collection of folktales—or the so-called ‘Arabian Nights.’ Unlike Aladdin, Ali Baba or Sindbad, Parizade is unfortunately not one of the better-known figures in the Arabian Nights. Her story is often omitted in the more popular published translations of the work. It is translated, however, in Sir Richard Burton’s encyclopedic edition; it appears as one of his many ‘Supplemental Nights’ (1886–1888). Parizade’s quest for the Singing Tree—in which “many princes and noblemen” before her have failed—is an exciting tale of adventure, determination and wonderment. As is common in the long, episodic tales of the collection, Parizade’s encounter with the Singing Tree is a story embedded within a larger narrative, one entitled variously by translators as The Sisters Who Envied their Cadette, or The Talking Bird, the Singing Tree, and the Golden Water. I have adapted the story somewhat for the present work. The language used is largely my own, though I have borrowed a charming phrase here and there from the Burton translation and those of Lane and Scott (1863 and 1909).
COMPOSER BIOGRAPHY
The music of Canadian-American composer Karim Al-Zand (b.1970) has been called “strong and startlingly lovely” (Boston Globe). His compositions are wide-ranging in influence and inspiration, encompassing solo, chamber, vocal and orchestral works. From scores for dance, to compositions for young people, to multi-disciplinary and collaborative works, Al-Zand’s music is diverse in both its subject matter and its audience. It explores connections between music and other arts, and draws inspiration from varied sources such as graphic art, myths and fables, folk music of the world, film, spoken word, jazz, and his own Middle Eastern heritage. Al-Zand’s music has enjoyed success in the US, Canada and abroad and he is the recipient of several national awards, including the “Arts and Letters Award in Music” from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He is a founding and artistic board member of Musiqa, Houston’s premier contemporary music group, which presents concerts featuring new and classic repertoire of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. In his scholarly work, he has pursued several diverse areas of music theory, including topics in jazz, counterpoint, and improvisation (both jazz and 18th century extemporization). Al-Zand was born in Tunis, Tunisia, raised in Ottawa, Canada and educated in Montreal (McGill University, BMus 1993) and Cambridge (Harvard University, PhD 2000). Since 2000 he has taught composition and music theory in Houston at the Shepherd School of Music, Rice University.