Program Book - Chicago Youth in Music Festival Orchestra Open Rehearsal

SUMMIT

OPEN

Riccardo Muti conductor

LISZT Les préludes

The Chicago Youth in Music Festival is generously sponsored by Megan and Steve Shebik and Michael and Linda Simon.

Monday, April 11, 2022, at 7:00

CHICAGO YOUTH IN MUSIC FESTIVAL OPEN REHEARSAL

Riccardo Muti Conductor Festival Orchestra

liszt

There will be no intermission.

Les préludes, Symphonic Poem No. 3

The Chicago Youth in Music Festival is generously sponsored by Megan and Steve Shebik and Michael and Linda Simon.

The National Pathways Summit is generously sponsored by the Paul M. Angell Family Foundation.

The National Pathways Summit is generously sponsored by the Paul M. Angell Family Foundation.

comments by phillip huscher

franz liszt

Born October 22, 1811; Raiding, Hungary

Died July 31, 1886; Bayreuth, Bavaria

Les préludes, Symphonic Poem No. 3, after Lamartine composed 1849–55

On May 5, 1856, Liszt sent the newly published scores of six of his symphonic poems, including Les préludes, to Richard Wagner. In return, Wagner sent off the original scores to Das Rheingold and Die Walküre, followed by a letter full of kind words for Liszt’s newest efforts. The two composers had been unusually close for many years, each sometimes alone in appreciating what the other was up to, although in the next decade, when Wagner fathered two children with Liszt’s daughter Cosima, the relationship was severely strained. But in 1856—Wagner never suspecting that he would one day have to accept Liszt as his father-in-law—they were united in pushing music toward a new frontier. Scholars and musicians have argued over their comparative success ever since, and, although it is Wagner, largely by virtue of an advanced case of self-pro motion and a very modern understanding of public relations, who is generally seen as the greater revolutionary, there are those who would agree with the verdict of Princess SaynWittgenstein, who knew them both: “[Liszt] has hurled his lance much farther into the future than Wagner.”

In November 1856, Liszt and Wagner took part in a concert in Saint Gallen, with Wagner conducting the Eroica Symphony and Liszt his own Orpheus and Les préludes. In 1856, Les préludes was new music: it had been finished and first performed only two years before in Weimar. But it was also new in the more important sense of modern, fresh, and novel. That is some times hard to accept today, for Les préludes is arguably Liszt’s best-known composition and certainly his most played orches tral work; and because of its fame and familiarity, and all the music that was later conceived in its image, we fail to realize its novelty.

There are a number of common misconceptions about Liszt’s symphonic poems. Liszt did invent the name—the term sinfonische Dichtung (Symphonic Poem) was used for the first time in 1854—to describe music that did not strictly follow any of the classical forms, and that was, in some way, related to literary or pictorial works. But he did not invent the musical concept, which is a logical outgrowth of the single-movement

first performance February 23, 1854; Weimar, Germany

instrumentation three flutes with piccolo, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, harp, bass drum, cymbals, snare drum, strings approximate performance time 16 minutes

above: Franz Liszt, portrait by Wilhelm von Kaulbach (1805–1874), 1856. Franz Liszt Memorial Museum, Budapest, Hungary

dramatic overtures of Beethoven, rather than multi-movement program symphonies like Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique. There are precedents as well for Liszt’s important exper iments with one-movement forms and for his use of thematic transformation, often in place of a Beethovenian development of material. Schubert’s Wanderer Fantasy, which Liszt knew well, played spectacularly, and later arranged for piano and orchestra, anticipates much that is essential to Liszt’s best work. The novelty of Liszt’s symphonic poems is that, like Berlioz in his Symphonie fantastique, he took ideas that were in the air and made something unimag ined, distinctive, successful, and highly influ ential. Without Les préludes and the rest of the Liszt canon, Smetana’s Ma vlást, Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet, and Strauss’s Death and Transfiguration are unthinkable.

Perhaps the greatest confusion about Liszt’s works has to do with the relationship between the music and the program—that is, which came first. In most cases, it was the music. Les préludes had a previous life as an overture to an unpub lished choral work, Les quatre élémens (The Four Elements), and Lamartine’s poem was only

unearthed when Liszt decided to make some thing of his overture and needed a title and gen eral game plan to accompany it. All the musical themes in Les préludes came from the four pieces of the choral work, and they have more to do with earth and water than with Lamartine’s war and peace. Still, Lamartine’s title has served very nicely over the years, and, as long as we do not try to read too much into Liszt’s music, neither Liszt nor Lamartine suffers.

The music is conceived in three large para graphs with a brief introduction. The first paragraph contains most of the material for the work, including an important, flowing melody for cellos and second violins; the second begins tempestuously but dissolves into a genial, pastoral mood (and introduces a new theme); the final section is a triumphant reworking (marked marziale) of the first. The whole is tightly knit and wisely paced, and Liszt’s trademark transfor mation of themes is particularly effective.

Phillip Huscher is the program annotator for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

profiles

Riccardo Muti Conductor

Riccardo Muti is one of the world’s preeminent conduc tors. In 2010, he became the tenth music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. It was recently announced that he would extend his tenure through the 2022–23 season at the request of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association. Muti’s leadership has been distin guished by the strength of his artistic partnership with the Orchestra; his dedication to performing great works of the past and present, including thirteen world premieres to date; the enthusias tic reception he and the CSO have received on national and international tours; and eight recordings on the CSO Resound label, with three Grammy awards among them. In addition, his contributions to the cultural life of Chicago— with performances throughout its many neigh borhoods and at Orchestra Hall—have made a lasting impact on the city.

Born in Naples, Riccardo Muti studied piano under Vincenzo Vitale at the Conservatory of San Pietro a Majella, graduating with distinction. He subsequently received a diploma in compo sition and conducting from the Giuseppe Verdi Conservatory in Milan under the guidance of Bruno Bettinelli and Antonino Votto.

He first came to the attention of critics and the public in 1967, when he won the Guido Cantelli Conducting Competition, by unanimous vote of the jury, in Milan. In 1968, he became principal conductor of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, a position he held until 1980. In 1971, Muti was invited by Herbert von Karajan to conduct at the Salzburg Festival, the first of many occasions, which led to a celebration of fifty years of artistic collaboration with the Austrian festival in 2020. During the 1970s, Muti was chief conductor of London’s Philharmonia Orchestra (1972–1982), succeeding Otto Klemperer. From 1980 to 1992, he inherited the position of music director of the Philadelphia Orchestra from Eugene Ormandy.

PHOTO BY TODD ROSENBERG

From 1986 to 2005, he was music director of Teatro alla Scala, and during that time, he directed major projects such as the three Mozart/Da Ponte operas and Wagner’s Ring cycle in addition to his exceptional contribu tions to the Verdi repertoire. His tenure as music director of Teatro alla Scala, the longest in its history, culminated in the triumphant reopen ing of the restored opera house on December 7, 2004, with Salieri’s Europa riconosciuta.

Over the course of his extraordinary career, Riccardo Muti has conducted the most import ant orchestras in the world: from the Berlin Philharmonic to the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and from the New York Philharmonic to the Orchestre National de France; as well as the Vienna Philharmonic, an orchestra to which he is linked by particularly close and important ties, and with which he has appeared at the Salzburg Festival since 1971. When Muti was invited to lead the Vienna Philharmonic’s 150th-anniversary concert, the orchestra pre sented him with the Golden Ring, a special sign of esteem and affection, awarded only to a few select conductors. In 2021, he conducted the Vienna Philharmonic in the New Year’s Concert for the sixth time.

Muti has received numerous international honors over the course of his career. He is Cavaliere di Gran Croce of the Italian Republic and a recipient of the German Verdienstkreuz. He received the decoration of Officer of the Legion of Honor from French President Nicolas Sarkozy. He was made an honorary Knight Commander of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II. The Salzburg Mozarteum awarded him its silver medal for his contribution to Mozart’s music, and in Vienna, he was elected an honorary member of the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde, Vienna Hofmusikkapelle, and Vienna State Opera. The State of Israel has hon ored him with the Wolf Prize in the arts. In July 2018, President Petro Poroshenko presented Muti with the State Award of Ukraine during the Roads of Friendship concert at the Ravenna Festival in Italy following earlier performances in Kiev. In October 2018, Muti received the

prestigious Praemium Imperiale for Music of the Japan Arts Association in Tokyo.

In September 2010, Riccardo Muti became music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and was named 2010 Musician of the Year by Musical America. At the 53rd annual Grammy Awards ceremony in 2011, his live performance of Verdi’s Messa da Requiem with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus was awarded Grammy awards for Best Classical Album and Best Choral Performance. In 2011, Muti was selected as the recipient of the cov eted Birgit Nilsson Prize. In 2011, he received the Opera News Award in New York City and Spain’s prestigious Prince of Asturias Award for the Arts. That summer, he was named an hon orary member of the Vienna Philharmonic and honorary director for life of the Rome Opera. In May 2012, he was awarded the highest papal honor: the Knight of the Grand Cross First

Class of the Order of St. Gregory the Great by Pope Benedict XVI. In 2016, he was honored by the Japanese government with the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star. On August 15, 2021, Muti received the Great Golden Decoration of Honor for Services to the Republic of Austria, the highest possible civilian honor from the Austrian government.

Passionate about teaching young musi cians, Muti founded the Luigi Cherubini Youth Orchestra in 2004 and the Riccardo Muti Italian Opera Academy in 2015. Through Le vie dell’Amicizia (The Roads of Friendship), a project of the Ravenna Festival in Italy, he has conducted in many of the world’s most troubled areas in order to bring attention to civic and social issues.

riccardomuti.com riccardomutioperacademy.com

A Call for Peace

On February 24, 2022, the day the world learned of Russia’s attack on Ukraine, Riccardo Muti took the stage at Orchestra Hall to lead the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. To open the evening, Muti dedicated the performance of the work, and its explicit message of universal kinship, to the people of Ukraine and other victims of needless violence around the world: “We make music that means joy and peace. But we cannot play this symphony dedicated to joy and brotherhood without thinking of the suffering of the Ukrainian people. . . . We will think in this moment that joy without peace cannot exist.”

His call for peace and the powerful performance that followed resonated with audiences in Chicago and around the world. As Carla Moreni of Italy’s Il Sole 24 Ore described it, “The Ninth Symphony always succeeds in its effect. But sometimes it seems to be touched by the gods. . . . I have never heard it like this before.” She continued, “There is no doubt that Muti imparts to the CSO the most profound and personal qualities of his long [career]. . . . He conducts according to the thousand secrets of the Italian school— ancient and perfect—with virtuosity, but at the same time, with extreme freedom.” Hedy Weiss wrote for WTTW that, “The bravura rendering of this masterwork was, indeed, a temporary balm for the soul and evidence of how great works of art speak to us throughout time.”

Following his February Chicago residency, Muti traveled to Japan to conduct the Tokyo Harusai Festival Orchestra in two concerts streamed live from the Main Hall at the Bunka Kaikan on March 18 and from Sumida Triphony Hall on March 19, respectively. The concerts included performances of Mozart’s Symphony no. 39 as well as Schubert’s Symphony no. 8 (Unfinished) and Overture in the Italian Style in C major.

Riccardo Muti conducts the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony on February 25, 2022.

Chicago Youth in Music Festival and National Pathways Summit

A collaborative project of the Negaunee Music Institute at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Musical Pathways Initiative (CMPI), and National Instrumentalist Mentoring and Advancement Network (NIMAN), the Chicago Youth in Music Festival and National Pathways Summit has con vened students, professional musicians, and institutional leaders for three days of learning, strategic conversations, and community building.

Since Saturday, April 9, student musicians from across the country have worked together and alongside musicians from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Civic Orchestra of Chicago, and Chicago Sinfonietta’s Project Inclusion Fellowship. These students were selected for the Festival follow ing a competitive audition process that occurred in December. Through amplifying the voices and talents of young musicians whose backgrounds are underrepresented in American orchestras, the project brings further aware ness to the exceptional capacity of pathways’ programs to nurture new gen erations of classical musicians. Preparatory rehearsals for this evening’s open rehearsal of the Festival Orchestra have been led by CSO Sir Georg Solti Conducting Apprentice Lina González-Granados, and sectionals were led by members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

The Summit has included numerous workgroup sessions designed to explore key questions and devise strategies around sustainability, efficacy, and national coalescence of initiatives. In addition to workgroup sessions at Symphony Center, a roundtable and keynote event, including a perfor mance by the Festival Orchestra student musicians, was hosted by the Merit School of Music.

This Festival and Summit celebrates the impact of pathways programs, while also serving as a catalyst for collective action that supports stu dent musicians who have been historically excluded from opportunities in classical music. Pathways initiatives in Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston, Washington, D.C., and Baltimore are made possible thanks to the generous support of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Negaunee Music Institute at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra

Across Chicago and around the world, the Negaunee Music Institute connects people to the extraordinary musical resources of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Programming educates audiences, trains young musi cians, and serves diverse communities, with the goal of transforming lives through active participation in music.

Current Negaunee Music Institute programs include CSO School and Family Concerts; open rehearsals; in-depth school and community partner ships; the Civic Orchestra of Chicago; intensive training and performance opportunities for young musicians including the Percussion Scholarship Program, Chicago Youth in Music Festival, and Crain-Maling Foundation CSO Young Artists Competition; and education and community engage ment activities during CSO domestic and international tours. Worldwide, the Negaunee Music Institute’s annual reach is approximately 200,000 through all channels, including radio broadcasts, teacher’s guides, and online resources.

Founded in 1919, the Civic Orchestra of Chicago is a signature program of the Negaunee Music Institute. Civic Orchestra members participate in rigorous orchestral training led by Principal Conductor Ken-David Masur, musicians of the CSO, and luminary guest conductors, including CSO Zell Music Director Riccardo Muti. The importance of the Civic Orchestra’s role in Greater Chicago is underscored by its commitment to present free con certs at Symphony Center and in neighborhoods throughout the city. Civic Orchestra performances can also be heard locally on WFMT (98.7 FM). cso.org/institute

Chicago Musical Pathways Initiative

The mission of the Chicago Musical Pathways Initiative is to identify and develop gifted and motivated orchestral students from underrepresented backgrounds for acceptance into top-tier conservatory, college, or uni versity classical music programs in preparation for careers as professional musicians. Musicians selected for CMPI are carefully assessed and provided with comprehensive supports—musical and extra-musical (e.g., financial, instructional, academic, etc.) to remove many of the barriers to access that can discourage or derail the training of talented young musicians from underrepresented backgrounds before they are able to realize their full musical potential.

chicagopathways.org

National Instrumentalist Mentoring and Advancement Network

The National Instrumentalist Mentoring and Advancement Network is a national coalition that works to align and promote equity initiatives in the classical music field and develop equitable opportunities and inclusive environments to advance BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color) instrumentalists to thrive in classical music.

With a mission to create a level playing field for BIPOC classical music instrumentalists, NIMAN works with a broad coalition of members. We connect, convene, and facilitate music organizations and BIPOC instrumentalists along two parallel paths:

We are building a comprehensive bridge of support and mentorship for aspiring BIPOC musicians to navigate the journey from student to professional, assisting in breaking down barriers to achieving success in the field.

We work with our member institutions to dismantle the structural inequities, biases, and systemic racism ingrained in many of the policies and practices in the field that inhibit the creation of equitable opportunities and environments for BIPOC classical musicians.

NIMAN’s mission is centered around the values of Collaboration, Connectedness, and Equity.

Learn more about our organization and programs at niman.org.

Chicago Youth in Music Festival and National Pathways Summit Partners

Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Talent Development Program

Boston BEAM

Chicago Sinfonietta

Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra Nouveau Program

Cleveland Institute of Music Musical Pathway Fellowship

Merit School of Music

Nashville Symphony Accelerando

Peabody Preparatory Baltimore Pathways Program

PMAY Artists’ Initiative

Washington Musical Pathways Initiative

Youth Orchestra San Antonio Rising Star Fellows

Chicago Youth in Music Festival Open Rehearsal Festival Orchestra

violins

Sameer Agrawal

Esme Arias-Kim Noah Briones

Aidan Daniels Joe DeAngelo** Diego Diaz** Baird Dodge* Lauren Edwards Dylan Feldpausch** Hermine Gagné* Nicholas Garza Valentina Guillen Menesello** Robbie Herbst** Alexandria Hill**/# Samuel Igbo Elena Ionescu* Anagha Kapsi Hee Yeon Kim** Luke Lentini** Nelson Mendoza** Simon Michal* Nancy Park* Renee Perpignan Gabriela Salvador-Riera Emily Samuel Ella Saputra

Rannveig Marta Sarc** Florence Schwartz* Subin Shin** Susan Synnestvedt* Brent Taghap**/# Amaya Tucker

violas Israel Anselme Sunghee Choi* Wei-Ting Kuo* Lucas Lauprasert Pedro Pablo Mendez** Bethany Pereboom** Amanda Perez*** Max Raimi* Teddy Schenkman** Dillon Scott Nilli Tayidi Bruno Vaz da Silva**/# Benjamin Wagner**

cellos

Alex Aranzabal

Jonathan Colon Lucas Das Xavier Ip Katinka Kleijn* Brandon Leonard Miles Link** Kwanchi Loo Francisco Malespin** Lindsey Sharpe**/# Ari Webb

basses

Nathan Beaver** Gabriel de los Reyes Nicholas DeLaurentis** Caleb Edwards** Benjamin Foerster** Andrew French** Wesley Jones** Travis Phillips Olivia Reyes** Bria Rives

harps Sage Harrison-Conaway Eleanor Kirk**

flutes

Alliese Bonner Jennifer Gunn* Min Ha Kim** Aarushi Kumar Stefán Ragnar Höskuldsson* Anika Veda

oboes Zachary Allen Scott Hostetler* Oliver Talukder*** Laura Yawney**

clarinets

Yassin Adams Jeffrey Bedford Daniel Solowey** John Yeh*

bassoons

Jackson Bernal Mackenzie Brauns** Keith Buncke* Xayvion Davidson horns

Austin Adaranijo Abby Black** David Cooper* Dan Gingrich* Kaytoya Ichoku Elena Miller Nelson Yovera** Derek Woods

trumpets

Esteban Batallán* Ismael Cañizares** Natalia Noriega Alexander Vinson

trombones Orlandis Maise Michael Mulcahey* Owen Riordan Hugo Saavedra**

bass trombones Calleigh Riordan Charles Vernon*

tuba

Lowrider James Gene Pokorny*

timpani Simón Gómez Gallego**

percussion Isabel Armenta Joe Bricker** Aleo Esparza Sophia Luong