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CONCERT PROGRAM NOTES
By Philip Reed Moran
 
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From the March 2, 2007 concert:
CONCERTANTE
String Sextet from
Capriccio, Op. 85 – Richard Strauss (1869-1949)
A “piece within a piece,” the String Sextet from Capriccio, Opus 85, opens
Strauss’s later opera, the one-act Capriccio
(1940-41). The sextet is heard
offstage. Paul Hosely, in his note accompanying
the recent Philadelphia Orchestra members’ performance of the sextet, called Capriccio “one of the composer’s most
intimate and effortlessly melodic theatre pieces,” a statement corroborated
by Strauss himself when he called it a “second Rosenkavalier without the
longeurs.” None of his opera scores
says Strauss scholar Michael Kennedy, is “more refined, more translucent,
more elegant, more varied …” Thus it
is with the sextet.
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Sextet for Strings
in A Major, Op. 48 – Antonin Dvorak (1845-1904)
Allegro
moderato
Dumka
Furiant
Finale
The String
Sextet in A Major, Opus 48, is an excellent example of Antonin Dvorak’s
beautiful melodies, colorful harmony, rich sonorities and rhythmic inventiveness. Richly Slovanic, the work also evidences a
masterful compositional style. The
first movement takes a sonata from with its quiet and delicate main theme, a
development with “off-feat” rhythmic patterns, and a tender return that
reflects the main theme. The second
movement employs Dvorak’s beloved dumka,
an elegiac Slavoci folk ballad form allowing great freedom of expression with
its fast and slow tempos. Here Dvorak
uses a slow Gypsy polka alternating with a lovely and expressive Gypsy
lullaby. The third movement is a
non-so-furious furiant with a trio
section reminiscent of his Slavonic Dances.
The last movement is a set of six variations fluctuating between b
minor and a major with a brighter middle section in d major. The closing is a stretto, a quickening of tempo, a kind of piling together that
lends the music great excitement.
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Sextet for
Strings in B-flat Major, Op. 18 – Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Allegro ma non troppo
Adante ma moderato
Scherzo: Allegro molto – Trio, Animato
Rondo: Poco allegretto e grazioso
Johannes Brahms in his String Sextet in B flat Major, Op. 18, the first of
his two sextets, presents the form not as a string quartet plus two or a
doubling of a string trio but in a form all its own, reflecting, if anything,
the serenades of Mozart and Beethoven but with an imprint singularly his
own. This work was written between
1858 and 1860 during a particularly happy time in Brahm’s life when he had
accepted a brief position at the Court of Detmold deep in the Teutoburger
forest. His despair over the death of
Robert Schumann had abated, and even his unrequited love of Clara Schumann
had been abandoned. So it is that this
sextet exudes a certain sunniness and ease seldom associated with Brahms
because of his profound self-criticism of his work. The work had its premiere in Hanover in
1860 by an ensemble that included Brahms’ great friend and musical advisor,
violinist Joseph Joachim.
The first
movement is almost Schubert-like in its Viennese three-quarter waltz time
except that it bears Brahms’ affinity for the linking of melodic motifs. The second movement is the form of a theme
and six variations. The third is a
Scherzo. Respect for Classical style
is honored again in the Rondo although the first cello’s opening is a new
effect. (Adapted from notes by Lucy
Miller.)
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From the January 19, 2007 concert: THE ASPEN ENSEMBLE
Trois Aquarelles
for Flute, Violoncello and Piano – Philippe Gaubert (1879-1941)
Par un clair matin
Soir d’automne
Serenade
Reflecting in music a water color technique in which paper is enhanced by the
addition of colors, Trois Aquarelles for Flute, Violoncello and Piano by
Philippe Gaubert offers a variety of instrumental colors in its three
movements that together unite in one overall blend. “Par un clair matin” opens with a sturdy
flute telling of a bright morning, with sunlight to be heard in the piano’s
arpeggios. In “Soir d’automne” a
somber cello melody takes one to the sentiments of fall, to be lightened by a
romantic pairing of flute and piano.
The third movement, “Serenade,” is Spanish in style. The composer, Gaubert, was among the most
prominent musicians in post-World War France.
Following years as flutist with the Paris Opera, he became principal
conductor of both the Opera and the Societe des Concerts, as well as
professor of flute at the Paris Conservatoire, all in 1919. Born in 1879, he died in Paris in 1941.
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Trio for
Violin, Viola and Cello – Gideon Klein (1919-1945)
Allegro
Variations on a Moravian Folk Song
Molto vivace
Czech composer Gideon Klein’s Trio for Violin, Viola and Cello ranks high
musically among string trios. A
Moravian Jew, Klein completed the trio in October 1944, nine days before he
was taken off to Auschwitz. After
Auschwitz, Klein was transported to another concentration camp in the
Silesian coal mining area, where he died at age 25. His string trio harkens back to the folk
tales of his youth, especially the second movement, Variations on a Moravian
Folk Song. Klein studied at Prague Conservatory
and Charles University in Prague.
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Serenade,
Op. 25 for Flute, Violin and Viola – Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Entrata: Allegro
Tempo ordinario d’ un Minuetto
Allegro molto
Andante con variazioni
Allegro scherzando e vivace
Adagio; Allegro vivace disinvolto
Beethoven’s Serenade for Flute, Violin and Viola, Op. 25, was among the kinds
of music popular with the Viennese in the years around 1700. Also in demand were ballroom dances,
easy-to-play piano variations and marching songs, of which Beethoven
contributed his share during this early period of his composition. His chamber music of this time was
traditional in essence, but his creativity was beginning to make advances on
the older forms.
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Piano
Quartet in A Major, Op. 26 – Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Allegro non troppo
Poco adagio
Scherzo: Poco allegro; Trio
Finale: Allegro
Johannes Brahms completed his Piano Quartet in A Major, Op. 26, in 1861, the
same year he finished writing the Piano Quartet in G Minor, Op. 25. He’d been working on both concurrently for
four years. Although similar in form,
the two quartets differ greatly. Both
quartets premiered successfully in Vienna about a year later, with Brahms at
the piano. Op. 26 moves from a sedate
opening movement that develops in intensity, introduces a depth of musical
ideas in the second movement, offers a restrained Scherzo, and finishes off
with a hearty folk dance.
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From the December 1, 2006 concert: THE BOREALIS STRING QUARTET
Quartet in
F Major, K. 590 – Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Allegro
moderato
Andante
Menuetto: Allegretto
Allegro
The F
Major, K. 590, is Mozart’s last quartet, written in June 1790, a year and a
half before his death. The tenth of his
mature quartets, it is the twenty-third that he wrote. The opening theme can be described simply
as an ascending arpeggio followed by a descending scale. Mozart immediately transforms this basic
material, effecting a change of the character originally presented. The cello starts the second theme, moving
up two octaves to the new lyrical melody.
The first theme returns to end the exposition, followed by a concise
development leading to the recapitulation.
The coda is attractive and witty.
Alfred Einstein, noted Mozart scholar, has called the allegretto “one
of the most sensitive movements in the whole literature of chamber
music.” The opening of the Menuetto
and the central trio are rich in appoggiaturas, quick ornamental notes. Irregular phrase lengths contribute to the
movement’s overall eccentric quality.
The finale is a vivacious frolic.
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Quartet No.
4 in D Major, Op. 83 – Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975)
Allegretto
Andantino
Allegretto
Allegretto
Dmitri
Shostakovich’s String Quartet No. 4 in D Major, Op. 83, was begun in 1949,
shortly after the composer’s return from New York, where he had been
humiliated by being paraded by Stalin as a member of the Soviet delegation to
the Peace Congress. He completed the
quartet in late December. In the
previous year he had been savaged in the Soviet cultural purge, stripped of
teaching positions and prestige, and had his music banned from study and
performance. The quartet had its
official premier in December 1953 in Moscow.
The work reverts to a four-movement layout and impulses reminiscent of
the First Quartet. A bagpipe drone
underlies a third of the opening pastoral movement before there is a change
in harmony. The second movement is a
romance, the poetic melody played chiefly by the first violin. The mysterious, muted third movement in C
Minor bridges directly into the last movement, the quartet’s clear center of
gravity. Shostakovich has fashioned
his themes from the melodic modes and distinctive gestures of Jewish folk
music.
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Quartet in
F minor, Op. 80 – Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Allegro
vivace assai
Allegro
assai
Adagio
Finale:
Allegro molto
The Quartet
in F Minor, Op. 80, completed in 1847, was Felix Mendelssohn’s last completed
piece of chamber music. Powerful and
impassioned, it reflects the composer’s grief at the sudden death that year
of his beloved older sister Fanny at the age of 41. He himself died less than two months after
completing the quartet. The first
movement of the quartet opens in agitated fashion and builds up to a motto
theme that finally resolves into a warm, tender presentation. As the subsidiary theme advances, the
instruments sustain long-held notes in highly chromatic, advanced harmonies. The coda starts quietly and becomes
intense, a quality it holds to the end.
The second movement is savage and sardonic, unlike the effervescence
of Mendelssohn’s other scherzos. The
first part is a bizarre dance. The
most personal movement is the elegiac Adagio.
The music expresses, with great power and conviction, Mendelssohn’s
deep despair and anguish. The
sonata-form last movement projects a restless anxiety that offers little in
the way of solace or acceptance. The
two themes are held under control, but the composer’s wrath emerges, to rise
again in the coda.
(Program notes are adapted from Laurel
E. Fay notes and Melvin Berger’s “Guide to Chamber Music.”)
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From the November 1, 2006 concert: ROBERTO PLANO, Pianist
Rondo in D
Major, KV 485 – Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
An eighteenth
century rondo can be a bright, cheerful, rollicking piece to get a program
under way, and Mozart’s Rondo in D Major, K. 485, written in Vienna in 1786,
fills that bill nicely. It has some
mildly menacing or somber variations in it, but overall it has a friskiness
that gives the rondo a delightful air.
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Sonata in B
flat Major, D 960 – Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
The sadness
of composer Franz Schubert’s final days of a short life can be detected in
his Sonata in B Flat Major (D960). The
heralded lyrical quality of his work is tinged by the painful nearness of
death. Depth of emotion fills the
first three movements of this sublime Schubert masterpiece, one of the three
sonatas written during his last year of life.
The first two movements contrast to each other, though both are slow
and quiet. The third movement models a
fast waltz with celestial vitality, despite the underlying sadness.
The final
thirty-first year of Schubert’s followed a career marked often by financial
and professional difficult times. It
is said that it was only in his last year that he could afford to buy his
first piano. This composer, who
bridged the Classical music world with that of the Romantic era, died in
Vienna in 1828.
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Ballade No.
2 in B minor – Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
Soirees de
Vienne: Valse Caprise d’apres Schubert No. 6 – Franz Liszt
Valse e
Napoli (from Annees de Pelerinage) – Franz Liszt
Canzone
Gondoliera
Tarantella
The Ballade
No. 2 in B Minor, a recording favorite, is a memento of the virtuosic piano
performances of its showman composer, Franz Liszt. His recitals as he toured Europe in the
mid-1800s evoked widespread “Lisztomania,” wildly favorable fanaticism of
both men and women for his skill and colorful presentation. The Hungarian artist was generally regarded
during his public years as the world’s greatest piano performer, an opinion
still held by many today, despite the lack of any aural evidence of his
playing.
Franz Liszt’s
“Venezia e Napoli” is a set of three pieces written about 1840. The melodic “Gondoliera” is in barcarolle
style, followed by “Canzone,” in a deeper, heavier tone, and the concluding
“Tarantella” is a lively dance of that name.
These Romantic pieces reflect Liszt’s inspiration from an early visit
to Italy.
The Valse
Caprice is based on Schubert works that create the Romantic aura of the
Vienna of Schubert’s years there.
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From the September 29, 2006 concert: THE CLAREMONT TRIO
Piano Trio
in G Major, Op. 1, No. 2 – Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Adagio –
Allegro vivace
Largo con
espressione
Scherzo:
Allegro
Finale:
Presto
Haydn
himself applauded Beethoven’s first compositions to which the young master and
his former student would give the name opus, the tri-part piano trio Op. 1,
which includes the No. 2 in G. Major.
Published in 1795, they represented a great advance in breadth of
conception and confidence of execution—possessing four movements with a slow
movement and a scherzo or minuet, perhaps for the first time for the
medium. In the No. 2’s slow
introduction, the violin’s first melodic phrase casually anticipates the
first subject of the following Allegro
vivace. The movement has a breadth
and range characteristic of Beethoven throughout his career. The succeeding Largo is long, highly dramatic in places, and is largely
dominated by the ornate piano part, though not to the exclusion of expressive
melodic writing for the violin and cello.
The Scherzo features a
delicate B minor Trio and a
fade-out Coda. The Finale,
with busy repeated notes on violin and cello in the first theme, is
reminiscent of Haydn.
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Piano Trio
(1987) – Ellen Taafe Zwilich (b. 1939)
Allegro con
brio
Lento,
freely
Presto
Ellen Taafe
Zwilich as a young pianist would often write her own pieces for lessons
instead of playing the standard beginner’s repertory. However, she began her career as a
professional violinist freelancing in New York while studying violin at
Juilliard. It was only later that she
studied composition in earnest at The Julliard School. She was the first woman to receive a
doctorate in composition from Juilliard and the first female composer to be
awarded a Pulitzer Prize in music. She
admits that the tonality of the Second Viennese School was an important
inspiration, but it was the quasi-Romantic music of Berg rather than the
acerbic chromaticism of Webern that really excited her. In composing her Piano Trio (1987), Zwilich
draws on the spirit as well as the techniques of Beethoven. As in Beethoven’s trios, the instruments
are treated as equals, sharing but independent. The first movement, Allegro con brio, begins with long, held notes in the violin and
cello over a nervous chromatic pattern in the piano. After unexpected silences and reduced
dynamic level, it is soon apparent that the chromatic whirling and long-held
notes are the basis for the entire movement.
In the second movement, Lento,
the piano enters only after the strings have outlined fragments of melodies
from the first movement. Here these
fragments are reinterpreted as a lament.
The brief Presto is a
vigorous dance with surprising silences that are used to dramatic ends.
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Piano Trio in
E minor, Op. 90 (“Dumky”) – Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904)
Lento
Poco adagio
Andante
Andante
moderato
Allegro
Lento
maestoso
Antonin
Dvorak avoided monotony in the six Dumka
folk dances that are comprised in his Piano Trio in E minor, Op. 90, by giving
each a distinctive coloring. In this
1890-91 composition known as the Dumky,
the first three movements are to be played without pause. The third movement is a theme with
variations. The fourth corresponds to
the conventional slow movement with contrasting fast section, while the
fifth, Allegro, for its duration
can be likened to the ordinary Scherzo. The sixth movement returns to its original
mood (but not the original key). Every
movement except the fifth begins in brooding fashion and works up to Slavic
intensity. The Dumky, best known of Dvorak’s trio pieces, is typical of his
chamber music, reflecting the musical vitality of his Bohemian heritage.
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From the April 14, 2006 concert: MARINA LOMAZOV, Pianist
Images,
Book I -- Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
Reflets dans l’aeu
Hommage a Rameau
Mouvement
The poetic meditation characteristic of Claude Debussy pervades his Images,
Book I, but the final movement of the third composition also shows his
appreciation of fast-moving energy. The piano solos were written in 1904-05,
at a time when he was already regarded as France’s most important composer.
Debussy’s works mostly reflect poetic or pictorial themes, as do his Images,
and depart dramatically from traditional forms and harmony. The innovative
creativity of his music forms a bridge between the music of Wagner and today.
Early in his career, though, his work was not so highly regarded by the
pooh-bahs of France’s musical establishment. Born near Paris, Debussey
entered the Paris Conservatoire in 1872 and won the Prix de Rome there in
1884, spending the next two years in the Italian capital. However, his work
was considered so unorthodox that Conservatoire officials wouldn’t authorize
public performances, and Debussy wouldn’t write the expected performance
overture of his two musical offerings (envois) for the prize.
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From Les
Saisons -- Pietr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
April. The Snowdrop
November. Troika
February. Carnival
Biographers of Pietr Ilyich Tchaikovsky have little to say about this Les
Saisons, of which the Snowdrop, Troika, and Carnival are three of 12 pieces
reflecting each month of the year, except to note that once a month for a
year his manservant would remind him, “Ilyich, this is your day for sending
to Petersburg.” The composer would then dash off one of the miniature piano
pieces commissioned by a Petersburg music magazine, the Nouvelist. Critics
have seen this casual attitude both as lack of seriousness about his music at
the time (1875) or evidence of his artistic fluency.
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Poem -- Rodion Schedrin (b. 1932)
A la Albeniz
Basso Ostinato
(Notes by Marina Lomazov) Contemporary Russian composer Rodion Schedrin,
Shostakovich’s successor as chairman of the Composers’ Union, has divided his
time between Moscow and Germany since 1992. His work, bold to the point of
being labeled “nervy,” typically fuses stylistically contrasting elements
into a coherent framework. A la Albeniz (1952) develops a pair of dances that
evoke the remarkable piano set Iberia by Isaac Albeniz (1860-1909). The work
has become popular because of its colorful transcription for violin and
piano. Basso Ostinato is a jazzy and excitable work with swinging
improvisatory patterns set against the percussive driving framework of the
ostinato bass line.
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Ballade No.
4 in F minor, Op. 52 -- Fryderyk
Chopin (1810-1849)
Andante Spianato and Grande Polonaise Billiante, Op. 22
Fryderyk Chopin’s Ballade No. 4 in F minor is broadly acclaimed as the
pinnacle of Romantic music of the 19th century. Written during Chopin’s
latter years, the highly structured Ballade No. 4 – expressive of a piano
form that he developed as his own along with the polonaise and scherzo – is
regarded by some as summing up the achievements of his musical life. The
intensity of the chief theme is followed by a pastorally expressive second
theme. In the music can be detected his Slavonic roots. The great majority of
his works are for solo piano. Though notation on paper rarely captures the
freedom of his anticipation and delay of melody, a portion of the Ballade in
F minor captures in its written form the magic of this performance art. The
brilliant and exciting Spianato and Grande Polonaise Brilliante, Op. 22, a
great Chopin favorite, will end the concert.
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From the March 3, 2006 concert: THE ADASKIN STRING TRIO AND TOM
GALLANT, OBOE
Quartet No. 2 for Oboe and Strings in F Major -- Josef Fiala (1748-1816)
Allegro spirituoso
Menuetto moderato
Andante
Allegro
(Notes by Tom Gallant)
Josef Fiala was not only a virtuoso oboist but a cellist and composer. He
studied music in Prague and in 1777 became a musician in the Munich court
where he met the Mozart family. Josef Fiala became a great friend of the
Mozart family and is often mentioned in Mozart’s letters. Leopold Mozart
recommended him to the Archbishop of Salzburg, and Fiala became oboist with
the orchestra in Salzburg, where he performed in 1785. After 1785 he moved to
Vienna and toured widely and spent a period of time performing in St.
Petersburg. Although his works in general are not well known, Fiala wrote a
wide variety of chamber music works, divertimenti and symphonies and was
highly regarded by Mozart. He wrote two charming and skillfully composed
works for oboe and strings.
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Trio for
Strings (1919) -- Roland Alexis Manuel
Levy (1891-1966)
Allegro
Sarabrande
Rondo
(Notes by Emlyn Ngai)
The Trio for Strings is more contrapuntal than Roland-Manuel’s usual
compositional form. The classical forms used are treated in a loose manner.
The movement is in sonata form, with the reappearance of the second theme
occurring before the recapitulation, making the whole structure
quasi-palindromic (reading the same backward or forward). The second movement
captures the lilting quality of the Sarabande but brings to mind a chanson
rather than a dance. The work closes with a lively, crisp rondo.
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String
Trio, Op. 9, No. 3 -- Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Allegro con spirito
Adagio con espressione
Scherzo: Allegro molto e Vivace
Beethoven’s String Trio No. 3, Op. 9, published in 1798, was one of the three
pieces in an opus that showed a tremendous advance in his mastery of chamber
music. The first movement, in intrinsic sonata style, begins essentially
quietly, its main theme then returning in forceful fashion. The trio was
dedicated to Count Johan Georg von Browne in appreciation of that patron’s
support.
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Quartet in
F Major for Oboe and Strings, K. 370
-- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Allegro
Adagio
Rondeau: Allegro
(Notes by Tom Gallant)
Mozart composed his Oboe quartet in 1781 while on a trip to Munich. He was in
Munich composing the opera Idomaneo for the carnival celebration at the
invitation of Elector Carl Theodor. Mozart, of course, was anxious to take a
break from his post as violinist and organist to the Archbishop of Salzburg,
who often treated him poorly and whom Mozart despised. While in Munich he
worked with the Mannheim Court Orchestra which was considered one of the best
in Europe and included his friend and oboist Freidrich Ramm. Ramm was one of
the few virtuoso performers on the oboe of the time. Mozart had worked with
the other prominent oboe virtuosi of the time including Guiseppe Ferlendis,
for whom he wrote a concerto (K. 314), and with the Viennese oboist Franz
Joseph Czerwenka for whom he started another concerto that was never
finished. Unlike the oboe of today which is outfitted with all sorts of keys
and mechanisms, the oboe of Mozart’s time was very simple with only a few
keys. Freidrich Ramm must have been an astonishing player since the work even
today is one of the most demanding works ever written for the oboe. The work
begins with a lighthearted and sparkling theme by the oboe that is joined by
the strings, with imitative passages throughout. The brief second movement is
much like an opera aria with the oboe as the singer in the leading role, and
includes a brief cadenza. Although the movement is short, it has an
extraordinary amount of emotional range. The final movement contains one of
the first instances of polyrhythm with the strings performing in 6/8 meter
while the oboe performs in 4/4 meter. The work contains many florid and very
difficult passages for the oboe which encompass the entire range of the
instrument with frequent use of some of the highest notes that were rarely
heard at the time.
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From the January 20, 2006 concert -- THE LOS ANGELES PIANO
QUARTET:
Sonata in G Major for Violin and Piano, K. 379 --
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
I. Adagio
II. Allegro
III. Andantino cantabile Tema (mit sechs Variationen)
Written in 1781 after his arrival in Vienna following the demeaning break
with Archbishop Hieronymus of Salzburg, this sonata was among his first
Viennese publications. The sonata was advanced in conceptual depth over his
earlier sonatas. Notable is his firmer grasp of instrumental textures. The
sonata gives equal prominence to both instruments, so much so that in parts
the composition might be called a piano solo with accompaniment. This would
reflect Mozart’s longtime consideration of the piano as the dominating
instrument. In a novel way, he begins the sonata with a strong Adagio that
moves quickly into a vigorous G minor Allegro. The composition ends with a
set of six variations.
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Piano
Quartet in G Minor, K. 478 -- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
I. Allegro
II. Andante
III. Rondo (Allegro)
The Piano Quartet in G Minor, K. 478 demonstrates Mozart’s move away from the
centuries-old use of the keyboard as the continuo figured bass accompaniment
of the upper voices. This, the composer’s first piano quartet, was completed
in 1785, and gives equal prominence to all four instruments. It was published
in 1787. The G minor key is prominent in Mozart’s works. Biographer Alfred
Einstein calls it Mozart’s “key of fate.” All four instruments in the G minor
open powerfully with a unison theme. The piano alone introduces the second
subject. In contrast to the first movement’s heartiness, the Andante is
serene, starting with a charming melancholy melody. The concluding Rondo is
replete with melodies, ending the quartet with a joyfulness contrasting the
first two movements. In all, Mozart finished about 60 chamber works. Among
them are six later quartets dedicated to Haydn. This sextet of quartets
helped cement the composer’s mastery of the form, well above all his
contemporaries except Haydn.
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Piano
Quartet in C Minor, Op. 15 -- Gabriel Faure (1845-1924)
I. Allegro molto moderato
II. Scherzo: Allegro vivo
III. Adagio
IV. Allegro molto
Faure moves forcefully away from the conventions of the Romantic era in this
1879 composition. The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians says, “ The
composer’s use of harmony and melody affected the teaching of harmony for
later generations.” It was not so much that he replaced the traditions as
that he expanded them, sometimes calmly, sometimes with great intensity.
Faure devoted many of his composing years to chamber music, as well as to his
sensitive songs. Op. 15 is considered one of his most important chamber
works; it is certainly perhaps the most popular of his chamber music. Unison
strings announce the opening theme in the Allegro molto moderato in an
energetic fashion, changing into a lyrical melody. The Scherzo is
characterized by the light pizzicato strings, followed by a slow Adagio that
allows all the quartet’s instruments to be heard fully. The concluding
Allegro molto has heavily syncopated features. Faure’s blending of piano and
strings achieved a beauty that carried into the development of his
later-prominent works. Faure was a major force in French music in the closing
decades of the 19th century and opening decades of the next century. His
music was paramount, of course, but he was also director of the Paris
Conservatoire 1905-20, where his composition classes were attended by may
later-prominent composers. He was music critic of Le Figaro 1903-21. Faure
died in 1924.
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From the December 2, 2005 Concert -- THE FINE ARTS QUARTET
String Quartet in
Bb Major; K. 458, “Hunt” -- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
I. Allegro vivace assai
II. Menuetto: Moderato
III. Adagio
IV. Allegro assai
Quartet K458 is one of the six called the “Haydn quartets” because Mozart
dedicated them to his fellow composer. The two played together in string
quartets during that time, and Haydn considered Mozart to be the greatest
composer he knew. The K458 quartet of 1784, called “the Hunt” because of its
suggestion of a hunting-horn in its main theme, is textually rich and
evidences Mozart’s playfulness throughout. The K458, like his other quartets
of the six, owes a stylistic debt to the 24-years-older Haydn master of the
quartet form. Nevertheless, Mozart through his innate craftsmanship and grasp
of form significantly changed the direction of the string quartet. These six
quartets were among the many and varied masterpieces composed during the last
turbulent nine years of Mozart’s life, beset though he was with financial
problems. That he was careless with money, both for clothes and entertaining,
helped create his monetary difficulties. (Were the composer alive today, he
would surely have welcomed such an income source as the soundtrack use of
“the Hunt” in the 2005 “Because of Winn-Dixie” movie about a 10-year-old and
a stray dog in Florida.) In 1784, before the Haydn quartets, Mozart had
introduced six piano concertos at subscription concerts with much success. In
Vienna with his recently married wife, Constanze Weber, Mozart began work in
1785 on the opera “Le Nozze di Figaro.” He died six years later.
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String
Quartet No. 1, “Kreutzer” -- Leos
Janacek (1854-1928)
I. Adagio-con moto
II. Con moto
III. Con moto-vivo-andante
IV. Con moto
Janacek said he had written Quartet No. 1 in a matter of days in 1923. In
contrast to this first quartet, his opera Jenufa took him from 1984 to 1903
to compose. The first movement of Quartet No. 1 is in traditional if succinct
sonata form, with the folklike theme voiced by the cello. Janacek’s deep
interest in fold music is evident throughout the quartet, which was inspired
by Tolstoy’s “Kreutzer Sonata.” His second string quartet was published
posthumously in 1928. At the time he wrote Quartet No. 1 his fortunes began
to improve markedly after earlier years without great success. That same year
he began to work on a four movement symphonic work, “The Danube.” Starting in
1924, his 70th year, he made much progress in teaching and in having his
operas produced. Like his father and grandfather before him, during his life
he devoted much time to teaching. From 1881 to 1919 he was director of the
college of organists at Brno. Born in Moravia in 1854, Janacek became highly
esteemed for his knowledge of Moravian folk music. String quartets were far
from his major compositional emphasis; he wrote mostly operas, into which he
incorporated folk music, and choral compositions. This Czech compose died in
1928.
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String
Quartet in Eb Major, Op. 12 -- Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
I. Adagio non troppo; Allegro non tardante
II. Canzonetta: Allegretto
III. Andante espressivo
IV. Molto allegro e vivace
“Is it true that you are waiting for me in the arbour by the vine-clad wall?”
This question from a love song was used by Mendelssohn as a source in the
thematic development of his Quartet Op. 12. The piece was composed in 1829 and
is regarded as superior in form and originality. The first movement
especially has been said to suggest the thematic shape of Beethoven’s “Harp”
quartet. Mendelssohn’s Three Quartets Op. 44 of 1837-38 are considered to be
masterpieces of his quartet writing. Unfortunately, until the past century
his quartets have been sadly neglected. This neglect stemmed partially from
anti-Semitism from the mid-1800s that inhibited the spread of his music,
which had been well received in the earlier 1800s. In Germany’s Hitler years,
Mendelssohn’s music was even suppressed. Another hindrance to this early
spread of his music was Romantic misinterpretation of his compositions by
performers. Mendelssohn, who was born in 1809 and died in 1847, was primarily
known as a pianist, though he also played organ and the violin competently.
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FROM NOVEMBER 4,
2005, CONCERT (TERESA WALTERS, PIANIST)
At the request of
Dr. Walters and the Baldwin Concert Associates, there were no program notes.
Rather, during the concert, Teresa Walters shares enlightening information
about the music before performing various selections on the recital program.
Following is the program which Teresa Walters so marvelously performed:
Troix Morceau Pour Piano (Three Pieces
for Piano) -- Lili Boulanger (1893-1918)
-- 1. D'un Vieux Jardin (An Ancient
Garden)
-- 2. D'un Jardin Clair (A Sunny Garden)
-- 3. Cortege (Procession)
Sonnet 123 del Petrarca -- Franz Liszt
(1811-1886)
Benediction (1847) -- Franz Liszt
Rhapsody in Blue -- George Gershwin (1898-1937)
Themes from Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor -- Sergei Rachmaninov (1873-1943)
--
Moderato: Allegro
-- Adagio sostenuto
-- Allegro Scherzando
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FROM OCTOBER 7, 2005, CONCERT (THE BRNO CHAMBER SOLOISTS)
Sinfonia No. 3 in A
Major -- Jan Zach(1699-1773)
Jan Zach, Czech composer, spent much of his musical career traveling,
especially in Germany, Austria and Italy. Born in 1699 in Bohemia, Zach in
his earlier days was organist in various churches. He also was a violinist
and harpsichordist. Eccentric and a disputant, he was dismissed from his post
at the court of Mainz in 1756. In his subsequent travels, he performed and
conducted performances of his compositions. His earlier compositions were in
baroque style and later in the developing classical manner. He wrote both
instrumental and sacred music. Evident in his works is his native Czech folk
music. He died in 1773 at Ellwangen.
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Divertimento
in F Major, K. 138 -- Wolfgang A. Mozart(1756-1791)
Written in Salzburg
in 1772 by the 16-year-old composer, this is a light instrumental work of the
later 18th century especially favored by Mozart and Hadyn. Mozart has graced
this divertimento with strongly sentimental melodies and much verve
throughout. The initial allegro movement is in richly sounding sonata form,
followed by a lyrical andante. In the final presto Mozart has amusingly
contrasted themes. The divertimento was composed between Mozart's second and
third visits to Italy, and K. 138 and its two companion divertimenti have
sometimes been misclassified as the "Salzburg symphonies."
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Cello
Concerto in C Minor -- Johann Christian Bach
(Jan Skrdlik, Cello)
This concerto is a combination of the style of the early Classical Period
with influence of the Baroque solo concerto. The history of the composition
is less exact. It was not published during the life of this youngest son of
J.S. Bach and there is even question that the concerto is properly attributed
to Johann Christian. Assuming it is his, it was probably written during the
composer's London period, from 1762 to his death. The work survived in
manuscript outline with the solo voice and continuo or keyboard reduction.
Henri Casadesus of the famous French musical family was commissioned in 1916
to reconstruct the concerto for solo instrument and orchestra.
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Quintet No.
3 in C Major -- Josef Myslivecek (1737 - 1781)
Josef Myslivecek, like Jan Zach a Czech, was the son of a miller near Prague and
he himself was first a master miller in 1761. His musical training had begun
early and he soon adopted music as a profession. In 1763 he left to study
further in Venice. The performance of his first opera, II Bellerofonte, won
him wide public and professional acclaim. This brought him further
commissions for operas in Italy. He wrote 26 operas, plus 85 symphonies, 6
oratorios, string quartets and trios and other works. Although greatly
remembered for his operas and oratorios, Myslivecek was equally renowned for
instrumental music such as his Quintet No. 3 in C Major. In the 1770's he
became a favorite of the Mozart family, and Myslivecek's style strongly
influenced Mozart's writing. Myslivecek lost his nose in a botched operation
and he died later in Rome, penniless, at the age of 43.
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Serenade for Strings in E-flat Major --
Josef Suk (1874 - 1935)
Unlike
fellow Czech countrymen Josef Myslivecek and Jan Zach, composer and violinist
Josef Suk made little use of Czech music in his compositions. Nor did he
write much chamber music, although he was second violinist with the Czech
quartet for over 40 years until his retirement in 1933. His Serenade for
Strings in E-flat Major, with its late Romantic coloring, was written in
1892, about the time he was courting Otylka, daughter of Antonin Dvorak, who
regarded Suk as his favorite composition student at the Prague Conservatory.
Suk and Otylka married in 1896. One theory is that the Serenade's four
movements paint a portrait of Otylka, whom Suk had fallen in love with when
she was 14 years old. Her death in 1905 was a major blow to the composer. The
Serenade is considered a major work of Suk's early career.
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