Ann K. Gebuhr
Ann K. Gebuhr holds the Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance, Master of Music in Theory, and Doctor of Philosophy with a major in Music Theory from Indiana University. A dedicated teacher of music theory, she also enjoys a growing career as a composer. Her music has been performed throughout the United States and in Europe, including performances by the Houston Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony, Louisville Orchestra, Filharmonie George Enescu of Bucharest, Romania, Evergreen Chamber Orchestra and the Waterloo Symphony. She is a MacDowell Colony Fellow and is the first woman to be awarded the Creative Artist Award in Composition by the Cultural Arts Council of Houston/Harris County. Her works have been published by the Bassoon Heritage Edition, MMB Music and Thomas House Publications. Bonhoeffer, her second opera, received its world premiere in Houston in May 2000, and a compact disc recording of that premiere was released in November 2000. In 2002 she was awarded a Scholar in Residence Fellowship by the Rockefeller Foundation for a month-long residency at the Study and Conference Center in Bellagio, Italy. She currently serves as Professor of Music, Associate Dean in the College of Arts and Humanities, and Director of the School of Music at Houston Baptist University. A member of Christ the King Lutheran Church in Houston, she serves on the board of the Bach Society of Houston and is a member of the Division for Spiritual Formation of the Episcopal Diocese of Houston/Galveston and the Gulf Coast Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
FROM THE COMPOSER
" Pax Vobiscum "
The Latin text is an ancient liturgical text and is used here as an antiphon preceding and following the second portion of text, which is in English.
The Latin text is an ancient liturgical text and is used here as an antiphon preceding and following the second portion of text, which is in English.
The English text is an ancient Chinese proverb that I learned in elementary school, oft-remembered over the years. The 'jubilation' for that proverb uses the single word 'peace' in five languages, representing countries currently suffering from conflict, war, and death -- Aramaic (Palestine), Bengali (India and Pakistan), Swahili (Africa), Hebrew (Israel), and English (the United States).
The musical language is neotonal, using pentachords and third relationships as a basis for composition. The use of pentachords is an extension of the medieval and earlier practice of using tetrachords in composing chants, and it is also symbolic of the five wounds suffered by Christ, the "Prince of Peace" (Isaiah 9:5). The third relationships are used as a symbol for the Trinity and for three primary religions of the world that are centered in the Middle East - Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. - Ann Gebuhr
