Foster texts of the upcoming December 23rd, 2011 ICAMus concert with Scuola Comunale di Musica “Giuseppe Verdi” of Prato, Italy are online.

Such lyrics, in most cases authored by the composer, are often perceived as controversial by modern standards, and should be understood exclusively within the mid-19th-century framework. In that context, Foster was an innovator, consistently striving to raise the level of his texts; he actually reduced the impact of many of the clichés and stereotypes common at the time.

If read and listened to in a historically informed perspective, the Foster pieces provide a unique musical illumination of 19th-century songwriting in America.

Please find the ICAMus - Scuola di Prato Christmas Concert performance texts revised on the original sheet-music edition, with a new Italian translation by Aloma Bardi.