Once Upon a Time...

5th June 2015

 
 
 
The adventures found in these classic tales bring us back to the very first time we heard their magical stories unfold. Whether we first read them as a book, or heard them in concert, they transported us to another world. The impact of these pieces, lasts a lifetime. Today, we invite you to remember these musical tales, listen to some new legends, and pass them along to the youthful adventurers in your life.
ORCHESTRA

Geoffrey Burgon
The Chronicles of Narnia: Suite (1991)"Girls aren't very good at keeping maps in their brains," said Edmund. "That's because we've got something in them," replied Lucy.
— C.S. Lewis, The Chronicles of Narnia
Joby Talbot
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland: Suite (2012)I can't go back to yesterday because I was a different person then.
— Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
Ernst Toch
Pinocchio, A Merry Overture (1935)In reward for your kind heart, I forgive you for all your old mischief. Boys who love and take good care of their parents when they are old and sick, deserve praise even though they may not be held up as models of obedience and good behavior. Keep on doing so well and you will be happy.
— Carlo Collodi, Pinocchio
SOLOISTS AND ORCHESTRA

Robert Kapilow
Dr. Seuss’s Gertrude McFuzz (1995)There once was a girl-bird named Gertrude McFuzz
And she had the smallest plain tail ever was.
One droopy-droop feather. That’s all that she had.
And, oh! That one feather made Gertrude so sad.
— Dr. Seuss, Gertrude McFuzz
Robert Kapilow
Dr. Seuss’s Green Eggs and Ham (1992)I do not like green eggs and ham.
I do not like them, Sam-I-Am.
— Dr. Seuss, Green Eggs and Ham
Francis Poulenc, orch. Jean Françaix
L' Histoire de Babar (1940)We are not so badly off on this island.
— Jean de Brunhoff, The Travels of Babar
Sergei Prokofiev
Peter and the Wolf (1936) - available in the USA, Canada and Mexico onlyOne morning, a young boy named Peter opened his gate and walked out into the big green meadow.
— Sergei Prokofiev, Peter and the Wolf
Nathaniel Stookey
The Composer is Dead (2006)Wherever there’s a conductor, you’re sure to find a dead composer!
— Lemony Snicket, The Composer Is Dead
SOLOISTS, CHORUS, AND ORCHESTRA

Robert Kapilow
Chris van Allsburg’s Polar Express (1997)At one time, most of my friends could hear the bell, but as years passed, it fell silent for all of them. Even Sarah found one Christmas that she could no longer hear its sweet sound. Though I've grown old, the bell still rings for me, as it does for all who truly believe.
— Chris Van Allsburg, The Polar Express
Bent Sørensen
Den Lille Havfrue (The Little Mermaid) (2005)But a mermaid has no tears, and therefore she suffers so much more.
— Hans Christian Andersen, The Little Mermaid
BALLET

Sergei Prokofiev
Cinderella (1944) - available in the USA, Canada and Mexico onlyShe sat down on a stool, took her foot out of the heavy wooden show, and put it into the slipper that fit her perfectly.
— The Brothers Grimm, Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm
More Tales
 
ORCHESTRA

George Antheil
Tom Sawyer Overture (California Overture) (1949) Plainly, here were "two souls with but a single thought."
— Mark Twain
John McCabe
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe: Suite (1971) If you've been up all night and cried till you have no more tears left in you — you will know that there comes in the end a sort of quietness. You feel as if nothing was ever going to happen again.
— C.S. Lewis, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Poul Ruders
Fairytale (1999) And Winter rushed, Winter and Summer they rushed, and they rush, like I rush, like the howling snow, the flurrying apple blossom, the scurrying foliage; rush! rush! The people too!
— H.C. Andersen, The Wind Tells About Waldemar Daae and his Daughters
SOLOISTS AND ORCHESTRA

Robert X. Rodríguez
A Colorful Symphony (1987) The most important reason for going from one place to another is to see what's in between
— Norton Juster, The Phantom Tollbooth
BALLET

Lera Auerbach
The Owl and the Pussycat (1978) And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand,
They danced by the light of the moon.
— Edward Lear, The Owl and the Pussycat
OPERA

Seymour Barab
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1988) This opera was written for children to collaborate with professional singers. The opera presents the familiar events of the well-known story; the Queen gets her comeuppance in a happy ending.
CHAMBER

Augusta Read Thomas
Wonderland: Chapter 12 - Alice's Evidence 'You're nothing but a pack of cards!' (2015) - currently unavailable Wonderland is a project created by pianist Ashley Wass and violinist Matthew Trusler in order to raise money for the Lenny Trusler Chidren's Foundation dedicated to providing relief from suffering and illness in very sick babies and children. wonderland150.com