Chris Brubeck's Latest Composition, 'Mark Twain's World A Symphonic Journey With Genuine Thespians,' to Receive World Premiere by Stockton Symphony April 7 And 9.

(From AScribe)

STOCKTON, Calif. -- "Mark Twain's World -- A Symphonic Journey with Genuine Thespians," Chris Brubeck's unusual 90-minute symphonic composition with narration and staged dramatic scenes, will receive its world premiere by the Stockton Symphony under its music director, Peter Jaffe, on Thursday, April 7, at 8:00 pm and Saturday, April 9. at 6:00 p.m. Both performances will take place at Atherton Auditorium on the San Joaquin Delta College campus, with a pre-concert talk by the composer and Maestro Jaffe 45 minutes prior to curtain time each evening.

Working from Mark Twain's autobiography and other books and stories by this prolific American author, Chris Brubeck created not only the music but the script for "Mark Twain's World," covering Twain's life from his childhood in Hannibal, Missouri, through the loss of his wife and children in later years and his farewell visit to Hannibal. The nine musical sections plus overture are scored for standard symphonic orchestration plus folk instruments (guitar, banjo, harmonica, jaw harp and accordion), all of which are played by Peter Madcat Ruth, a member of Chris's jazz/ blues/folk trio Triple Play.

The role of Mark Twain will be taken by Webster Williams, a 1972 graduate of Stockton's University of the Pacific with extensive theater, film and television credits. Members of the Stockton Civic Theater will portray various Twain characters from such works as "Huckleberry Finn," "Life on the Mississippi," "The Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" and "The War Prayer." The dramatic re-enactments are staged by Al Muller.

Chris Brubeck is a resident composer with the Stockton Symphony for its 2004-2005 season, with his residency made possible through a grant from Music Alive, a residency program of the American Symphony Orchestra League and Meet the Composer. Music Alive is made possible with support from The Andrew Mellon Foundation, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, The Aaron Copland Fund for Music, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

"'Mark Twain's World' far surpasses the concept of incidental music, weaving music with text in a fashion that is unique to the live concert hall," commented Peter Jaffe. "Chris spent a good year steeping himself in Twain literature, and then set to work on a brilliant creation for which he is both composer and playwright. His script and music have already been previewed by two notable Twain scholars, who praised him highly for the depth, insight, and elegant devotion with which he depicts the arc of Twain s remarkable life."

"Mark Twain's World" is the latest in a series of symphonic compositions by Chris Brubeck, whose works have been performed worldwide by the London Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the Boston Pops, the New York Pops, the Russian National Orchestra, the Czech National Symphony Orchestra, the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Philadelphia and Minnesota Orchestras, and the Pittsburgh, Houston and Baltimore Symphonies.