The Stephen F. Austin State University School of Fine Arts presents an All-Hagen song recital, featuring collaborative pianist Ron Petti and members of the Stephen F. Austin State University voice faculty.
The 90 minute concert wil feature five song-cycles on poetry by Paul Muldoon, Mark Strand, Christina Rosetti, Richard McCann, Gwen Hagen, Mark Skinner, Stephen Sandy, Walt Whitman, Gardner McFall, Sara Teasdale, Stephen Dunn, Emily Lawless, Emily Dickinson, Andrei Codrescu, Charles Baudelaire, Paul Verlaine, William Blake, John Keats, Kim Roberts, A.E. Houseman, Gwen Hagen, Walt Whitman, Theodore Roethke, the Bible (G) (E), Ruben Dario (S), Peter Handke (G), Seamus Heaney, and Wilhelm Muller.
Hagen, with over 300 art songs and thirteen song cycles in print, is one of America’s most prolific and frequently-performed art song composers. According to Wikipedia, Hagen's vocal music is described in The New Grove as "the cornerstone of his compositional output."[38] Hagen has remarked, "I love voices and I like singers, and along with the intersection of loving music and words and singers, I adore the process of composing and going through the production of musical theater. There is the communion of people coming together to commit to undertaking a work of art that is larger than any of us."[39] "Using his gift for composing vocal lines, [Hagen] produces songs that flow lyrically and illuminate texts with unerring musical and dramatic aim. His scores are full of extensive markings, requiring singers to use variety of tone color to achieve the emotions inherent in the texts."[40] According to Opera News, "to say that [Hagen] is a remarkable musician is to underrate him. Daron is music."[6] The NATS Journal of Singing has described Hagen as "the finest American composer of vocal music in his generation."[48]
In addition to his activities as a song composer, Hagen has composed 12 operas, five symphonies, reams of chamber music, and a memoir, published in 2019, called Duet with the Past. He is currently writing a sequel to the memoir, entitled Duet with the Future, and completing two new operas for premiere during the next two years.
While on campus, Hagen will also give a vocal masterclass for singers and a composition masterclass. The following cycles will be featured (click on the title for more information):
More details here.