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CONCERT PROGRAM NOTES

Philip Reed Moran - Editor

From the November 20, 2009 concert: CYPRESS STRING QUARTET

String Quartet Op. 11 – Samuel Barber (1910-1981)

The final version of Samuel Barber’s String Quartet, Op. 11, one of two American composers’ works on the program, was written and revised over a period of seven years. He wrote the slow movement in 1936, during travels in Italy and Austria. The full quartet was premiered that year in Rome, but it was not until the work was published in 1943 that the finale was completed to his satisfaction. The Molto adagio movement was reworked into an orchestral Adagio for Strings, premiered in 1938, by Arturo Toscanini and the NBC Symphony Orchestra and became a beloved masterpiece of the movie Platoon, and on Michael Moore’s Sicko.

The unison opening theme has a strong classical spirit, in free sonata form, while the contrasting, familiar melody of the Adagio is first heard from the first violin and repeated canonically, followed without pause by the final movement.

Born March 9, 1910, in West Chester, Pennsylvania, Samuel Barber became immersed in music at an early age and at 14 entered Curtis Institute. There he met fellow student Gian Carlo Menotti, who became his lifetime partner. During his twenties many famous artists either commissioned or performed his works. He won the Pulitzer Prize twice, and continued composing until he neared 70. He died in 1981.

Two Sketches on American Indian Themes – Charles Tomlinson Griffes (1884-1920)

Charles Tomlinson Griffes, a native of upstate New York, studied four years in Berlin with composer Engelbert Humperdinck, student of and assistant to Richard Wagner. Despite this early training, he eventually tried consciously to avoid European romanticism and to create a truly American idiom. Along the way he delved into various impressionistic genres, some of an exotic nature, and retains the reputation of a major American impressionist. The culmination of this direction can be seen in the Two Sketches on American Indian Themes written in 1919, a year before he died. In the first sketch, “Farewell Song of the Chippewa Indians,” Griffes calls upon musicians to imitate Indian drums in playing the piece. The second sketch retells his musical view of a Native American dance.

String Quartet in G Minor, Op. 10 – Achille-Claude Debussy (1862-1918)

Claude Debussy’s String Quartet in G Minor, Op. 11 exemplifies the novel forms, harmonies and experimentation with instrumental sonorities he introduced as a partial reaction to traditional Nineteenth-century rules. The complex opening theme is repeated in varying altered form throughout the entire cyclic work. This, his only string quartet, stresses sonority, timbre and a pliant rhythmic sense.

Though reflecting his Impressionism, with hints of Russian and Oriental music, his interpretation of a sonata retains a strong flavor of Romanticism. The ground-breaking quartet is widely recognized among Debussy’s great compositions and as one of the most original in French chamber music. Written in 1892 and performed the following year to mixed critical reactions, the quartet in a way reflects the general revulsion among French composers against German influence following the Franco-Prussian War of 1870.

Debussy attended the Paris Conservatoire at the age of 10. In 1884 he was awarded the prestigious Prix de Rome, and with it came an unhappy period in that city. After two years, 1885-86, the fiery, bearded composer returned to Paris, where he fraternized with Impressionistic painters and Symbolist poets, and strived to compose what he deemed real French music. He died in 1918 of cancer.

From the September 25, 2009 concert: NEW YORK CHAMBER SOLOISTS

Serenade in G Major for five strings, (“Eine kleine Nachtmusik”), K. 525 – Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

Many a concertgoer passing a rehearsal hall and hearing “Ta tum…tat um…ta tum ta tum ta tum” spanning an octave would recognize the opening movement of Mozart’s Serenade in G Major, “Eine kleine Nachtmusik.” However familiar, though, the serenade for five strings K525 is programmed less than it deserves, due to the general ascendancy of the string quartet. This much loved composition was written in Vienna four years before Mozart’s death in 1791.

The opening rhythmic Allegro is in sonata form, followed by the slower and graceful Romanza in a rondo style, and the contrasting Minuet and Trio of the third movement are followed by the concluding lively Rondo.

The serenade was written at a time the composer was much in debt, partly because of his carelessness with money. Nevertheless he had had a succession of subscription concerts in 1784, introducing six piano concertos, that buoyed him considerably. A year later he began work on the opera Le Nozze di Figaro. During this difficult period he wrote, among other compositions, the well-known K458 quartet, familiarly known as “the Hunt” because of the suggestion of a hunting-horn in its main theme.

Quintet for oboe, clarinet, violin, viola and double bass, Op. 39 – Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953)

Sergei Prokofiev wrote his Quintet for oboe, clarinet, violin, viola and double bass, Op. 39 in 1924 for a ballet, “Trapeze,” performed by Boris Romanov touring ballet company. Both Romanov and the ballet company are largely obscure historically. The work was commissioned to be music fit for a circus, but the instrumentation of the musicians accompanying the dancers was such that the quintet is more of a concert piece, perhaps the circumstance offering Prokofiev opportunity to exercise his musical wit and playful charm in this, for him, odd composition.

The sic movements vary in length and the harmonies are strong, producing a sometimes grating and unblended sound that is , however, strangely enticing.

This relatively early composition was preceded by years of study and composition, which in themselves followed his first try at writing music at age five. He was the only child of a well-to-do Ukrainian couple. Op. 39 provides a taste of the grace, economy of form, and style that characterizes his musical genius.

Quintet in B minor for clarinet and strings, Op. 115 – Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)

Johannes Brahms’ Quintet in B minor for clarinet and strings, Op. 115, is a test for musical groups to reach back over a century to capture the grace and delicacy of Brahms’ creation. The composition was dedicated to Richard Muhlfeld, a clarinetist he greatly admired. In addition to the clarinet quintet, Brahms also wrote his Trio for Piano, Clarinet and Cello in A minor, Op. 114, for Muhlfeld in 1891. Performances of the quintet that year were followed by concerts of it throughout Europe.

The theme of this somber composition is voiced by the strings in the first movement, to be followed in the next movement by a tender love passage in the clarinet, with then a return to the dark opening spirit. The brief third movement introduces a sweet evocative interlude, and the “con moto” final movement returns to the opening theme.

From the February 13, 2009 concert: ROBERTO PLANO

Davidsbündlertänze, Op. 6 – Robert Schumann (1810-1856)

Romantic composer Robert Schumann wrote the Davidsbündlertänze in 1837 at a time of much emotional distress on his part. At age 24, he was in love with 15-year-old Clara Wieck, an accomplished pianist and daughter of Schumann’s teacher, Friedrich Wieck. Schumann had been forbidden by the father to see the girl. The father even appealed to the courts to halt the match, but ultimately the lovers married in 1840.
The resolution of this difficult time was followed by a period of major creativity by the German composer. Davidsbündlertänze, written after he and Clara became reconciled, illustrates his previous distress. The composition oddly reflects two sides of his personality. The separate dances of the piece represent the volatile Floristan or the gentle Eusebius, each mood identified by an initial at the end of the manuscript.

Sonata in B flat, K. 333 – Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Piano Sonata No. 13 in B flat, k.333/315c, has had questions raised about the time and place of its origin. Music historians, though, have generally concluded it was written in late 1783 in Linz during the return to Vienna of the composer and his new wife Constanze from a visit to Salzburg. It was published on April 21, 1784, in Vienna. The B flat Sonata followed a trio of sonatas written in Salzburg that include the greatly admired Sonata in F, k.332.
The Sonata in B flat’s opening phrase in the Allegro lively first movement is seen again in masked form at the start of the last movement. Also characteristic of the sonata are the arpeggio-like broken chords that begin and end the first movement and are echoed in the final Allegretto. The Andante Cantabile second movement moves slowly and serenely, close in theme to the other movements. Like the first movement, the Allegretto concluding movement opens playfully and moves to an intense climax. A second part of this movement passes through complex piano writing to a decisive end.

Transcendental Etude No. 11 Harmonies du Soir – Franz Liszt (1811-1886)

Franz Liszt’s Transcendental Etude No. 11 in D flat, “Harmonies due Soir,” demonstrates his great Romantic innovations. A child piano prodigy, he developed into recognition as Europe’s greatest living piano virtuoso and as a composer.
The eleventh etude is said to be the most artistic of the series of 12 Transcendental studies. The first version of the etude was composed in his teen years and later revised as one of the extraordinarily difficult Transcendental Etudes. Liszt’s chromaticism is among other highlighted musical elements such as chordal diversity and octave jumps in what is termed a “study of harmonies.”

Aprés une lecture du Dante: Fantasie quasi sonata (from Années de pèlerinage, Book II ‘Italie’) – Liszt

The composer’s other composition on the program, Aprés une lecture du Dante: Fantasie quasi sonata, followed his reading of Dante’s poem, “The Divine Comedy,” while Liszt and his lover, Countess Marie d’Agoult, (a scandal of the day) vacationed in northern Italy in 1837. The “Dante Sonata” was published in revised form in 1856 as part of his Années de pèlerinage (Years of Pilgrimage). The first of two subjects chromatically typifies the lost souls in hell. A chorale that follows tells of the happiness of those in heaven.

From the January 16, 2009 concert: OSIRIS PIANO TRIO

Piano Trio No. 8 in B-flat, Wo0 39 – Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

It wasn’t until after Ludwig van Beethoven’s death that the Piano Trio No. 8 in B-flat, Wo039, was found among his works and not published until 1830. Simple yet reflecting the mature composer, much of the piano part consists of a single melodic line over repeated chords or Alberti figures.

Beethoven composed the Allegretto piece for Maximiliane Brentano, the 10-year-old daughter of friends, to encourage her playing. This despite an earlier incident in which she poured water on his head, that yet did not end his liking of her. He later dedicated his Piano Sonata Op. 109 to her.

In sonata form, the single movement opens without introduction. Both main and second themes are first heard from the piano and then move to the violin and cello. After the development section and recapitulation, an impressively large coda follows. Beethoven’s piano background produces many scale passages and a lengthy trill as the piece moves to its conclusion.

Three Nocturnes (1924) – Ernest Bloch (1880-1959)

In the Three Nocturnes, Ernest Bloch expresses three aspects of night. The Andante evokes darkness using the lowest octave of the piano. He adds a magical touch with keening harmonies (called “ghost notes”) and a quavering tremolo in the muted strings. In the second movement, Andante quieto, we hear an emotional idyll, its rocking motion recalling a lullaby. The stormy Tempestoso of the third Nocturne generates an emotional abyss in which a strong rhythmic pulse and sudden eruption express the desire and passion that night may have in store.

Bloch was born of a Jewish family in Switzerland. In 1916, after living in Brussels, Munich and Paris, he left for the United States, where he worked as a composer, conductor and teacher. The Three Nocturnes, in his preferred dreamily romantic style, were composed in 1924 for the New York Trio. They reflect a nostalgic sense of the Europe he’d left behind.

Ernest Bloch became an American citizen in 1924, but spent most of the 1930’s in Europe. He left there as anti-Semitic forces grew too strong; works such as Schelomo-Hebrew Rhapsody for cello and orchestra had earned him a reputation as a “Jewish composer.” He lived in the USA until his death in 1959. The Three Nocturnes are today among his most frequently performed works.

Piano Trio on Irish Folk Tunes (1925) – Frank Martin (1890-1974)

The Piano Trio on Irish Folk Tunes is not what Swiss composer Frank Martin had been commissioned to write. A wealthy American patron had asked that Martin use popular Irish folk melodies. Martin, in Paris in 1924-25 at a time when rhythm was engaging European composers, immersed himself in the rhythms of ancient Greece, Bulgaria and the Near East and applied them to ancient Irish tunes that he found in the Biblioteque National des Paris. The patron backed out. The melodies are distributed over the trio’s three movements and recombined with each other in numerous ingenious ways. The three instruments seem to proceed on independent ways in this truly breathtaking example of Martin’s early work.

Piano Trio No. 7 in B-flat, Op. 97 “Archduke” – Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

The “Archduke” Trio, Op. 97 in B-flat, was Beethoven’s last piano trio and is regarded as the greatest of all works for this instrumental combination. The composer dedicated the piece to Archduke Rudolph of Austria, one of his truest friends and for a time a pupil. The Trio in B-flat was first publicly premiered on April 11, 1814. Beethoven played the piano, in his last public performance at the keyboard.

From the December 12, 2008 concert: LA CATRINA STRING QUARTET

Sonoralia, Op. 3 “La Zacatecana” (1994) – Emmanuel Arias y Luna (b. 1935)

Composer Emmanuel Arias y Luna has had a long interest in Mexican culture and folklore and has traveled throughout the country observing its traditions. He has received an award from the government of the State of Mexico for his symphonic poem Juarez. His works have been performed in Europe, Canada and Japan as well as Mexico. Sonoralia, Opus 3, “La Zacatecana” was originally written for string orchestra, but is now performed often in its quartet version. Its two movements are written in tonal style with Mexican influences. The slow initial Danza reflects sounds as of a Mexican salon of the beginning nineteenth century. Jarabe, a dance form popular about that time, draws its influence from other dances, and is characterized by its spontaneous, improvisatory nature.

String Quartet No. 61 in D minor, Op. 76 no. 2, Hob. III: 76, “Fifths” – Franz Josef Haydn (1732-1809)

Franz Josef Haydn’s String Quartet No. 61 in D minor, Opus 76, No. 2, has been named “the Fifth” because of the falling interval of the main theme immediately voiced by the first violin. The slow second movement’s “o piu tosto” means “or rather,” indicating ambiguity. The main body of the minuet is in canon style, and the vivace assai finale displays shifts between major and minor with another coda using triples that have not been heard before. Written toward the end of a long career, the quartet displays Haydn’s liking for captivating rhythms and sonorities.

Metro Chabacano (1991) – Javier Alvarez (b. 1956)

Javier Alvarez lives in Merida, Mexico, and is director of the music department of the Escuela Superior de Artes de Yucatan. He had lived in London 1982-2005. Of active Mexican composers, he has been the most widely recognized internationally. Metro Chabacano has a continuous eighth-note movement of moderately driving speed from which short melodic solos emerge from each instrument. The repeated notes give a false sense of simplicity, Daniel Vega-Albela notes: although the piece is brief and in a single movement, the rhythms, accents and melodic fragments that emerge from the eighth-note motto perpetuo background are intricately playful.

Huapango (1941) – Jose Pablo Moncayo (1912-1958)

Jose Pablo Moncayo was born in Guadalajara, Mexico. He entered the Mexico City Conservatory where he studied piano, as well as composition with Carlos Chavez. He also studied with and became friends with Aaron Copland. One of Moncayo’s first professional jobs was as a percussionist with the Orquesta Sinfonica Mexicana, of which he became the conductor from 1949-1954. He also played in jazz orchestras. As a member of a set of composers nicknamed the “Group of Four,” Moncayo, along with Galindo, Contreras and Ayala, wrote music that reflected the melodies, rhythms, and harmonies of Mexican folk music. Moncayo’s Huapango, originally written for orchestra, incorporates the music of three Mexican folk dances: El Siquisiri, El Balaju, and El Gavilan. It has become so popular that it is sometimes called Mexico’s second national anthem.

String Quartet No. 1 in G minor, Op. 27 – Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)

Edvard Grieg characterized the String Quartet No. 1 in G minor, Opus 27, as a slice out of his own life. It was written during the several years Grieg and his wife Nina lived in Hardanger, after moving there from Oslo. The whole quartet, in many ways a bridge between the late Beethoven quartets and Debussy’s quartet of 15 years later, is built on the melody of his Ibsen song Spillemaend (Minstrel). This underlies all four movements. The opening motive pervades the whole quartet. The composition has a richness of sound that is almost orchestral. Unconventional in its markedly homophonic style, the quartet also has masterful polyphonic passages. Intrigued by the quartet, Franz Liszt found it “distinctive and admirable.”

From the November 21, 2008 concert: THE FINE ARTS QUARTET

Quartet No. 1 in D minor – Juan Crisostomo de Arriaga (1806-1826)

Quartet No. 1 in D minor was one of three expressive quartets composed by Juan Crisostomo de Arriaga shortly before his death in 1826 as he neared age 20. This was his only music published before he died. Although born in the Spanish Basque city of Bilbao and called the “Spanish Mozart,” the composer wrote music that reflected a transitional period between Mozart’s classicism and the early romanticism of Beethoven. The pieces were written while Arriaga was in Paris, where he studied at the Conservatoire. At age 18, Arriaga was teaching at that great music school.

Although thus musically broader in context, Arriaga’s Quartet No. 1 does contain Spanish references. In the first movement, an Allegro, a Spanish melody is heard after a dark and moving opening. The following Adagio con espressione moves both rhythmically and tenderly. The third movement, Menuetto: Allegro, offers a traditional 18^th-century dance in the trio, followed by a slow introduction to the final Adagio-Allegretto movement.

Quartet No. 1 in G minor (1889) – Sergei Rachmaninov (1873-1943)

Sergei Rachmaninov’s Quartet No. 1 in G minor, written in 1889, is also a composition by a master before he had reached his 20^th birthday. The piece, with two movements, was one of two string quartets that he left unfinished. The first movement, Romance, is delicate and graceful, reminiscent of Tchaikovsky, whom Rachmaninov greatly admired.

Following a recovery from an early state of depression, this last of the great Russian Romanticists continued on a successful career that combined his virtuoso piano concretizing with conducting and composing. His Second Symphony achieved widespread acclaim, as did his second and third piano concertos and Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini.

Rachmaninov lived in Moscow from 1910 until the Russian Revolution in 1917, when he moved to Scandinavia. The following year he went to the United States, where he lived mainly for the remainder of his life. A virtuoso pianist, he continued to compose, but devoted his main efforts to concretizing.

Quartet in C Major, Op. 59, No. 3 – Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

The three quartets of Opus 59, including No. 3 in C Major, by Ludwig van Beethoven, written as he was approaching total deafness and could hear little of what he composed, are considered the best of this realm of music, almost symphonic and dwarfing all previous string quartets. A noted reviewer has called Opus 59 “in some ways the most wholly successful in existence.” The 1806 opus, commissioned by Count Razoumovsky, Russian ambassador to Vienna and a violinist with his own quartet, is popularly identified by his name.

The first movement of this truly powerful composition, the Andante con moto, opens quietly with rare slowness and leads into an animated Allegro and a subsequent imitative figure by the four instruments, ending with a jaunty coda. The second movement—mournful turning fervent—is followed by a Menuetto: Grazioso in traditional minuet fashion of the times. This movement’s contrasting mild and piercing sections lead into the Allegro molto finale, in which fugal and melodic elements join for an electrifying conclusion to a highly acclaimed concert favorite.

From the October 17, 2008 concert: JACQUES THIBAUD STRING TRIO – BERLIN

String Trio in E-flat Major, Opus. 3 – Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

The String Trio in E-flat major, Op. 3, was Ludwig van Beethoven’s first string ensemble work, modeled after Mozart’s famous Divertimento K.563 for String Trio of 1788. It brought the young Beethoven international attention. He did write three more string trios, Op. 9, with four movements in contrast to Op. 3’s six. Composers have tended to avoid the challenge of string trios, largely because of the lack of the fourth instrument of a quartet. Beethoven’s Op. 3 was most likely composed in Vienna in 1794 and was published in May 1796. The first movement, Allegro con brio, is in sonata form and moves through a broad theme into a violin/cello duet. The composition proceeds with exciting interplay among the three instruments, to conclude with a fervent Allegro.

String Trio (1944) – Gideon Klein (1919-1945)

The Trio for Violin, Viola and Cello is a showpiece by Czech composer and pianist Gideon Klein, but it can’t possibly reflect the inhumane conditions under which it was created in the Nazi concentration camp Terezin in 1944. It was written nine days before Klein, a Moravian Jew, was shipped out bound for Auschwitz. He died several months later in a concentration camp in the Silesian coal mines. Despite the sadness of this origin, the trio echoes the happy feelings of Klein’s native Moravia (the second movement is termed “Variations Upon a Moravian Folk Song) and the influence of composers Leos Janacek, Vitezslav Novak and Arnold Schonberg. Born in 1919 in Prerov, Czechoslovakia, Klein studied at the Conservatory and Charles University in Prague. The Nuremberg Laws forced him to cease his studies in 1940. His compositions could not be played, but he continued as a concert pianist using pseudonyms. He was sent in 1940 to Theresienstadt, converted from a former garrison town into a seeming paradise ghetto showplace to deceive the Jews and the international community under German occupation during World War II, a year after the camp was opened. Music was encouraged as a device to maintain appearances. During his three years there, Klein was active in things musical. He formed chamber ensembles, organized solo concerts and played his compositions and those of others. He wrote a piano sonata, quartets and choral works in addition to the trio. These were found years later.

String Trio in A Major, Opus 27/1 – Heinrich von Herzogenberg

Heinrich von Herzogenberg was a friend and admirer of the 10-years-older Johannes Brahms, a link evident in the music of the String Trio in A Major, Op. 27/1 with its lavish, romantic ensemble timbre. Herzogenberg was one of the few composers in this era who wrote for a small ensemble. A member of a French family that had left that country during the revolution, Herzogenberg was born in Graz, Austria. While studying at the conservatory there, he was introduced by his teacher not only to his wife-to-be but to Brahms, her piano teacher. In 1872, Herzogenberg moved to Leipzig, a major city for music. His works were extensive: piano compositions, varied chamber pieces, vocal music, motets, oratorios and symphonies. His two string trios, Op. 27, published in 1879, were praised by Brahms. In thus reverting to the neglected traditional trio, Herzogenberg produced works of deep ensemble content, fine structure and rich melody.

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.

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.

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.)

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.”)

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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."

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.

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.

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.