2021/22 concert season at the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall
Concert programme
Principal Conductor Edward Gardner supported by Aud Jebsen Principal Guest Conductor Karina Canellakis Conductor Emeritus Vladimir Jurowski Patron HRH The Duke of Kent KG Artistic Director Elena Dubinets Chief Executive David Burke Leader Pieter Schoeman supported by Neil Westreich
Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall Saturday 27 November 2021 | 7.30pm
Canellakis conducts Sibelius John Adams The Chairman Dances (Foxtrot for Orchestra) (12’) Gershwin Piano Concerto in F (29’) Interval (20’) Sibelius The Oceanides, Op. 73 (10’) Sibelius Symphony No. 5 in E flat major, Op. 82 (31’) Karina Canellakis conductor Inon Barnatan piano
This concert is being filmed for future broadcast on Marquee TV. We would be grateful if audience noise during the performance could be kept to a minimum, and if audience members could kindly hold applause until the end of each full work. Thank you for your co-operation.
The timings shown are not precise and are given only as a guide. CONCERT PRESENTED BY THE LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA
Contents 2 Welcome LPO news 3 On stage tonight 4 London Philharmonic Orchestra 5 Leader: Pieter Schoeman 6 Karina Canellakis 7 Inon Barnatan 8 Programme notes 10 Recommended recordings 13 Sound Futures donors 14 Thank you 16 LPO administration
London Philharmonic Orchestra • 27 November 2021 • Canellakis conducts Sibelius
Welcome to the Southbank Centre
LPO news Tonight’s concert on Marquee TV
We hope you enjoy your visit. We have a Duty Manager available at all times. If you need any information or help, please ask a member of staff.
We are delighted that ten concerts from our 2021/22 Royal Festival Hall season are being filmed for broadcast on Marquee TV throughout the year. Selected works from this evening’s concert are being filmed and will be broadcast on Marquee TV on Saturday 15 January 2022 at 7.30pm. The broadcast will remain available to watch free of charge for 48 hours without a Marquee TV subscription.
Eating, drinking and shopping? Take in the views over food and drinks at the Riverside Terrace Cafe, Level 2, Royal Festival Hall. Visit our shops for products inspired by our great cultural experiences, iconic buildings and central London location. Explore across the site with Beany Green, Côte Brasserie, Foyles, Giraffe, Honest Burger, Las Iguanas, Le Pain Quotidien, Ping Pong, Pret, Strada, Skylon, Slice, Spiritland, wagamama and Wahaca.
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If you would like to get in touch with us following your visit, please write to: Visitor Contact Team, Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London SE1 8XX, or email customer@southbankcentre.co.uk
Visit marquee.tv/LPO2021 to find out more, enjoy a free trial or subscribe.
We look forward to seeing you again soon.
Royal Philharmonic Society Award
A few points to note for your comfort and enjoyment:
Vopera’s virtual lockdown production of Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortileges, performed by the LPO and first broadcast in November 2020, has won the Opera and Music Theatre category at the 2021 Royal Philharmonic Society Awards. The winners were announced on 1 November in a ceremony at Wigmore Hall, in which the judging panel said: ‘This digital production burst out of nowhere, courtesy of the newly-formed company Vopera. It’s a spectacular creation that generated welcome employment for a raft of housebound talent, sublimely supported by an ensemble of London Philharmonic players. It lifted spirits and wittily spoke to current times.’
Photography is not allowed in the auditorium. Latecomers will only be admitted to the auditorium if there is a suitable break in the performance. Recording is not permitted in the auditorium without the prior consent of the Southbank Centre. The Southbank Centre reserves the right to confiscate video or sound equipment and hold it in safekeeping until the performance has ended. Mobiles and watches should be switched off before the performance begins.
This is the latest in a stream of awards for the production, which was directed by Rachael Hewer, produced by Tamzin Aitken and conducted by Lee Reynolds: it previously won the Opera category of the 2021 South Bank Sky Arts Awards and a 2020 Digital Classical Music Award.
Enjoying your visit safely As we continue our 2021/22 LPO season, the health and wellbeing of our audiences, musicians and staff remains our top priority, and all concerts and events will have appropriate safety measures in place in accordance with Government guidelines: the Southbank Centre’s website will be kept up-todate with all the latest information. To find out more, visit southbankcentre.co.uk/visit or speak to a member of Southbank Centre staff.
vopera20.com
Out of respect for our staff and visitors, we ask that you continue to wear a face covering inside our venues if you are able to do so. Thank you.
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 27 November 2021 • Canellakis conducts Sibelius
On stage tonight First Violins
Pieter Schoeman* Leader Chair supported by Neil Westreich
Kate Oswin
Chair supported by Friends of the Orchestra
Lasma Taimina
Chair supported by Irina Gofman & Mr Rodrik V. G. Cave
Minn Majoe Martin Höhmann
Chair supported by Chris Aldren
Yang Zhang
Chair supported by Eric Tomsett
Katalin Varnagy
Chair supported by Sonja Drexler
Laura Ayoub Thomas Eisner Rasa Zukauskaite Catherine Craig Nilufar Alimaksumova Amanda Smith Ruth Schulten Tina Gruenberg Morane Cohen-Lamberger
Second Violins
Tania Mazzetti Principal Chair supported by Countess Dominique Loredan
Nandor Farkas Emma Oldfield Nancy Elan Joseph Maher Kate Birchall Nynke Hijlkema Sarah Thornett Marie-Anne Mairesse Anna Harpham Fiona Higham Thea Spiers Alison Strange
Violas
Piccolos
David Quiggle Principal Richard Waters
Stewart McIlwham* Principal
Juliette Bausor
Co-Principal
Ting-Ru Lai Benedetto Pollani Laura Vallejo Michelle Bruil Daniel Cornford Martin Wray Stanislav Popov Joseph Fisher Raquel Bolivar Rebecca Carrington
Oboes
Ian Hardwick* Principal Alice Munday
Cor Anglais
Sue Böhling* Principal
Chair supported by Dr Barry Grimaldi
Clarinets
Cellos
Benjamin Mellefont Principal
Sasho Somov
Thomas Watmough
Guest Principal
Francis Bucknall Laura Donoghue David Lale Gregory Walmsley Elisabeth Wiklander Tom Roff George Hoult Sibylle Hentschel David Bucknall
Chair supported by Roger Greenwood
Paul Richards*
Trombones
Mark Templeton* Principal Chair supported by William & Alex de Winton
David Whitehouse
Bass Trombone
Lyndon Meredith Principal
Tuba
Lee Tsarmaklis* Principal
Timpani
Simon Carrington* Principal Chair supported by Victoria Robey OBE
Henry Baldwin
Percussion
Andrew Barclay* Principal Chair supported by Gill & Garf Collins
Bass Clarinet
Paul Richards* Principal
Bassoons
Jonathan Davies* Principal
Kevin Rundell* Principal Sebastian Pennar Co-Principal
Rachel Masters Principal Tamara Young
Contrabassoon
Piano
Horns
* Holds a professorial appointment in London
Simon Estell* Principal
Hugh Kluger George Peniston Tom Walley Lowri Morgan Charlotte Kerbegian Adam Wynter
Harps
Gareth Newman
Chair supported by Sir Simon Robey
Double Basses
Henry Baldwin Co-Principal Keith Millar Karen Hutt
John Ryan* Principal Stephen Craigen
Catherine Edwards
Guest Principal
Martin Hobbs Mark Vines Co-Principal Gareth Mollison
Flutes
Juliette Bausor Principal
Chair supported by Caroline, Jamie & Zander Sharp
Trumpets
Hannah Grayson Stewart McIlwham*
James Fountain* Principal Anne McAneney Tom Nielsen
The London Philharmonic Orchestra also acknowledges the following chair supporters whose players are not present at this concert: David & Yi Buckley Bianca & Stuart Roden
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 27 November 2021 • Canellakis conducts Sibelius
© Benjamin Ealovega
London Philharmonic Orchestra
the Orchestra takes up its annual residency at Glyndebourne Festival Opera, where it has been Resident Symphony Orchestra for over 50 years. The Orchestra also tours internationally, performing to sell-out audiences worldwide. In 1956 it became the first British orchestra to appear in Soviet Russia and in 1973 made the first ever visit to China by a Western orchestra.
One of the finest orchestras on the international stage, the London Philharmonic Orchestra balances a long and distinguished history with its reputation as one of the UK’s most forward-looking ensembles. As well as its concert performances, the Orchestra also records film soundtracks, releases CDs and downloads on its own label, and reaches thousands of people every year through activities for families, schools and local communities.
The London Philharmonic Orchestra has recorded many blockbuster film scores, from The Lord of the Rings trilogy to Lawrence of Arabia, East is East, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and Thor: The Dark World. It also broadcasts regularly on television and radio, and in 2005 established its own record label. There are now over 100 releases available on CD and to download. Recent highlights include Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 11 and Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 under Vladimir Jurowski, and a commemorative box set of historic recordings with former Principal Conductor Sir Adrian Boult.
The Orchestra was founded by Sir Thomas Beecham in 1932, and has since been headed by many great conductors including Sir Adrian Boult, Bernard Haitink, Sir Georg Solti, Klaus Tennstedt and Kurt Masur. In September 2021 Edward Gardner became the Orchestra’s Principal Conductor, succeeding Vladimir Jurowski, who became Conductor Emeritus in recognition of his transformative impact on the Orchestra as Principal Conductor from 2007–21. Karina Canellakis is the Orchestra’s current Principal Guest Conductor and Brett Dean is the Orchestra’s current Composer-in-Residence.
In summer 2012 the London Philharmonic Orchestra performed as part of The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Pageant on the River Thames, and was also chosen to record all the world’s national anthems for the London 2012 Olympics. In 2013 it was the winner of the RPS Music Award for Ensemble.
The Orchestra is resident at the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall in London, where it gives around 40 concerts each season. It also enjoys flourishing residencies in Brighton, Eastbourne and Saffron Walden, and performs regularly around the UK. Each summer
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 27 November 2021 • Canellakis conducts Sibelius
Pieter Schoeman
The London Philharmonic Orchestra is committed to inspiring the next generation of musicians, and recently celebrated the 30th anniversary of its Education and Community department, whose work over three decades has introduced so many people of all ages to orchestral music and created opportunities for people of all backgrounds to fulfil their creative potential. Its dynamic and wide-ranging programme provides first musical experiences for children and families; offers creative projects and professional development opportunities for schools and teachers; inspires talented teenage instrumentalists to progress their skills; and develops the next generation of professional musicians. The Orchestra’s work at the forefront of digital technology has enabled it to reach millions of people worldwide. Over the pandemic period the LPO further developed its relationship with UK and international audiences through its ‘LPOnline’ digital content: over 100 videos of performances, insights, and introductions to playlists, which collectively received over 3 million views worldwide and led to the LPO being named runner-up in the Digital Classical Music Awards 2020. From Autumn 2020 the Orchestra was delighted to be able to return to its Southbank Centre home to perform a season of concerts filmed live and streamed free of charge via Marquee TV.
© Benjamin Ealovega
Leader
Pieter Schoeman was appointed Leader of the London Philharmonic Orchestra in 2008, having previously been Co-Leader since 2002. He is also a Professor of Violin at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music & Dance. Pieter has performed worldwide as a soloist and recitalist in such famous halls as the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Moscow’s Rachmaninov Hall, Capella Hall in St Petersburg, Staatsbibliothek in Berlin, Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles and London’s Royal Festival Hall. As a chamber musician he regularly appears at London’s prestigious Wigmore Hall. His chamber music partners have included Anne-Sophie Mutter, Veronika Eberle, Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Boris Garlitsky, JeanGuihen Queyras, Yannick Nézet-Séguin and Martin Helmchen.
September 2021 saw the opening of a new live concert season at the Royal Festival Hall, featuring many of the world’s leading musicians including Sheku KannehMason, Klaus Mäkelä, Renée Fleming, Bryn Terfel and this season’s Artist-in-Residence, Julia Fischer. The Orchestra is delighted to be continuing to offer digital streams to selected concerts throughout the season through its ongoing partnership with Intersection and Marquee TV.
Pieter has performed numerous times as a soloist with the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Highlights have included an appearance as both conductor and soloist in Vivaldi’s Four Seasons at the Royal Festival Hall, the Brahms Double Concerto with Kristina Blaumane, and the Britten Double Concerto with Alexander Zemtsov, which was recorded and released on the LPO Label to great critical acclaim.
lpo.org.uk
Pieter has appeared as Guest Leader with the BBC, Barcelona, Bordeaux, Lyon and Baltimore symphony orchestras, and the Rotterdam and BBC Philharmonic orchestras. Pieter’s chair in the LPO is generously supported by Neil Westreich.
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 27 November 2021 • Canellakis conducts Sibelius
Karina Canellakis Principal Guest Conductor, London Philharmonic Orchestra
Symphony at the Bregenzer Festspiele in the third act of Wagner’s Siegfried. In the past few seasons she has conducted critically acclaimed productions of Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Die Zauberflöte and Le nozze di Figaro, David Lang’s the loser and Peter Maxwell Davies’s The Hogboon.
© Mathias Bothor
Since winning the Sir Georg Solti Conducting Award in 2016, Karina has become a guest conductor with leading orchestras around the world including the London Symphony Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra, Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, and the symphony orchestras of Melbourne, Sydney, Toronto, Cincinnati, Minnesota and Detroit. She made an immediate impact on the players of the LPO when she made her debut with them in October 2018 in a concert of Sibelius, Dvořák and Bartók at the Royal Festival Hall. Karina was the first woman to conduct the First Night of the BBC Proms in 2019, with the BBC Symphony Orchestra. She was also the first woman to ever conduct the Nobel Prize Concert with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic in 2018.
Karina Canellakis became the London Philharmonic Orchestra’s Principal Guest Conductor in September 2020. Internationally acclaimed for her emotionally charged performances, technical command and interpretive depth, Karina has become one of the most in-demand conductors of her generation. She is also Chief Conductor of the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra and Principal Guest Conductor of the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin (RSB).
Already known to many in the classical music world for her virtuoso violin playing, Karina was initially encouraged to pursue conducting by Sir Simon Rattle while she was playing regularly in the Berlin Philharmonic for two years as a member of its Orchester-Akademie. She performed for many years as a soloist, guest leader and chamber musician, spending her summers at the Marlboro Music Festival, until conducting eventually became her focus. Karina was born and raised in New York City.
The 2021/22 season includes concerts with some of the finest European and US orchestras, including her debuts with the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the HR-Sinfonieorchester (Frankfurt Radio), and returns to the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony and Orchestre de Paris. During summer 2021 she made debuts with the Boston Symphony at Tanglewood, the Cleveland Orchestra at the Blossom Festival and the Orchestre National de France at the St Denis Festival, and performed Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Vienna Symphony as the culminating performance of ‘Nine Beethoven Symphonies from nine European cities’ live on the TV channel ARTE.
Karina returns to the London Philharmonic Orchestra for three further concerts at the Royal Festival Hall this season, the next being on 1 December when she conducts Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10 and Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3 with soloist Stephen Hough, in a concert dedicated to the memory of former LPO Principal Conductor Bernard Haitink. In 2022 she returns for a programme of Shostakovich, Tchaikovsky and Victoria Borisova-Ollas (19 January), followed by Wagner, Ravel, Scriabin and Lili Boulanger (22 January).
On the operatic stage this season, Karina will conduct a new production of Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées with the Orchestre National de France. She enjoys conducting opera-inconcert and will lead the Netherlands Radio Orchestra at the Concertgebouw in Janáček’s Kát’a Kabanová, the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic in the second act of Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde, and the Vienna
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 27 November 2021 • Canellakis conducts Sibelius
Inon Barnatan piano
In the 2019/20 season he gave solo recitals at Carnegie’s Zankell Hall and London’s Wigmore Hall, and reunited for a European tour with his frequent recital partner, cellist Alisa Weilerstein.
© Marco Borggreve
Passionate about contemporary music, Inon has commissioned and performed works by many living composers, premiering pieces by Thomas Adès, Sebastian Currier, Avner Dorman and Andrew Norman, among many others. The coming season sees his return to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra; his debuts with the Liverpool Philharmonic and Montreal Symphony orchestras; and the Pentatone release of his Time Traveler’s Suite album: a programme merging Baroque movements by Bach, Handel, Rameau and Couperin with movements by Ravel, Ligeti, Barber and Thomas Adès to create a unique Baroque-inspired suite, culminating in Brahms’s Variations on a Theme by Handel.
‘One of the most admired pianists of his generation’ (The New York Times), Inon Barnatan has established a unique and varied career, equally celebrated as a soloist, curator and collaborator. He is a regular soloist with many of the world’s foremost orchestras and conductors, and served as the inaugural Artist-inAssociation of the New York Philharmonic for three seasons. During the pre-pandemic period of the 2019/20 season, Inon performed with the symphony orchestras of Minnesota, Dresden, Barcelona, Stockholm, Ottawa, Innsbruck, Tenerife and Los Angeles; recreated Beethoven’s legendary 1808 concert with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra; and finished recording the complete Beethoven piano concertos with Alan Gilbert and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, released by Pentatone in 2020. When public concerts stopped during the pandemic, Inon recorded concert films and streamed performances with numerous orchestras, including the Boston, Pittsburgh, Atlanta, Detroit, New Jersey and San Diego symphony orchestras; conducted Mozart and Beethoven concertos from the keyboard with the Seattle Symphony; performed the US premiere of Matthias Pintscher’s Piano Concerto with the New World Symphony; and gave numerous recitals and chamber music performances online. The recipient of the Avery Fisher Career Grant and Lincoln Center’s Martin E. Segal Award, Inon Barnatan is also a sought-after recitalist and chamber musician, and in 2019 he embarked on his first season as music director of La Jolla Music Society’s Summerfest in California, one of the foremost music festivals in the US.
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 27 November 2021 • Canellakis conducts Sibelius
Programme notes John Adams born 1947
The Chairman Dances (Foxtrot for Orchestra) 1985
History has left us the sketchbooks and manuscripts of many canonical composers to pore over, but these days it is rare to get a glimpse into the composition process, and to see how ideas for a new work take shape, are altered or are even discarded along the way. But when John Adams was working on his groundbreaking 1987 opera Nixon in China, he found himself composing a scene that would never make it into the finished opera. ‘I started somewhat hazily working on the music, not knowing if it had the right tone’, he explains, ‘and pretty soon I realised it wouldn’t work at all for the opera – it was a parody of what I imagined Chinese movie music of the ‘30s sounded like’. So Adams ditched the scene and instead repurposed it as a standalone work in its own right – a ‘foxtrot for orchestra’, as he calls it – which imagines a ‘slightly ridiculous but irresistible’ scenario in which the youthful Mao Tse Tung dances the foxtrot with his mistress (and future wife) Chiang Ch’ing. In Adams’s imagined scene, Chiang Ch’ing has gatecrashed the Presidential banquet. When the band begin to play and she takes the floor to dance, Mao is so excited that he leaps out of his portrait on the wall to join her.
John Adams © Deborah O’Grady
The music itself is unmistakeably Adams, with its pulsing, minimalist undercurrent and shifting, overlapping textures. Wind and brass dominate the opening section, which bristles with intent and just a hint of foreboding, but when Chiang Ch’ing begins to dance, the orchestra melts into a glitzy, Hollywoodesque foxtrot, all sweeping strings, syncopated brass and heady romanticism. Chiang Ch’ing, the former movie queen, has won Mao over.
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 27 November 2021 • Canellakis conducts Sibelius
Programme notes George Gershwin 1898–1937
Piano Concerto in F 1925
Inon Barnatan piano 1 Allegro 2 Adagio — Andante con moto 3 Allegro agitato By the age of 21, George Gershwin was already earning himself a reputation as one of the foremost composers of popular song, with a clutch of Broadway musicals and a string of hit songs to his name. He aired much of his early cabaret music at George White’s ‘Scandals’ – a long-running series of renowned revue shows on Broadway – and in 1923 he was approached by its bandleader, Paul Whiteman, with an idea for a new ‘jazz concerto’ to be performed at an all-jazz concert in New York’s Aeolian Hall. Rhapsody in Blue was premiered the following year to huge acclaim. The public adored this ‘new voice’ in American music, and the fluidity with which Gershwin segued between jazz and classical styles. Walter Damrosch, then conductor of the New York Symphony Orchestra, was among those in the audience for the premiere, and he wrote to Gershwin the very next day with a commission for a new piano concerto. While the Rhapsody had been composed for Whiteman’s big band (and only later adapted for full orchestra), Damrosch wanted a full-scale concerto for piano and symphony orchestra, and for Gershwin to star as the soloist. ‘Many people had thought that the Rhapsody was only a happy accident,’ Gershwin later recollected. ‘I went out to show them that there was plenty more where that came from. I made up my mind to compose a piece of “absolute” music.’ Continued overleaf
George Gershwin
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 27 November 2021 • Canellakis conducts Sibelius
Programme notes
The Concerto in F for piano and orchestra was premiered at Carnegie Hall in December 1925, with Damrosch at the podium and Gershwin at the piano. Despite Damrosch’s high hopes, it was not met with the same adulation as the Rhapsody had been nearly two years earlier – Prokofiev went so far as to call it ‘amateurish’. But its lack of immediate appeal has been softened by the reputation it has earned since, and it is now celebrated for its less flamboyant, more earnest musical language. Not that this is apparent from the grand orchestral introduction which, with its pounding timpani and Hollywood-esque flourishes, has all the hallmarks of the grand American style. When the soloist finally enters, it is with a quiet and understated second theme, little more than a syncopated rhythm on a single note. It is a far cry from the dramatic opening entry in the Rhapsody and seems to make Gershwin’s intentions clear: this is not just a showpiece but a ‘serious’ concerto moulded in the classical style.
Recommended recordings of tonight’s works by Laurie Watt John Adams: The Chairman Dances City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra Simon Rattle (Warner download) Gershwin: Piano Concerto in F Kirill Gerstein | St Louis Symphony Orchestra David Robertson (Myrios) Sibelius: The Oceanides Lahti Symphony Orchestra | Osmo Vänskä (BIS) Sibelius: Symphony No. 5 London Philharmonic Orchestra | Jukka-Pekka Saraste (LPO Label LPO-0057) or London Philharmonic Orchestra | Paavo Berglund (LPO Label LPO-0065)
While the rest of the first movement flits wilfully between pounding virtuosity and impassioned, sweeping grandeur, it leads to a more restrained and tender slow movement (Gershwin called it ‘poetic, nocturnal’), that pays homage to the American blues. The final Allegro is a glorious musical riot, circling back to the syncopated theme from the opening movement but taking this dramatically up-tempo. Gershwin holds nothing back, flexing his rhythmic muscles and driving the movement forwards at pace towards its dizzying, off-kilter close. Adams & Gershwin programme notes © Jo Kirkbride
Interval – 20 minutes An announcement will be made five minutes before the end of the interval.
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 27 November 2021 • Canellakis conducts Sibelius
Programme notes Jean Sibelius 1865–1957
The Oceanides, Op. 73 1914
In 1905 the Finnish painter Akeseli Gallen-Kallela produced Aallottaret, a depiction of the seductive feminine life-forces of the ocean in radiant pinks and golds. The following decade, Gallen-Kallela’s friend Jean Sibelius set about writing an orchestral depiction of the same figures and context in response to a commission from a festival in Norfolk, Connecticut. Sibelius called his piece The Oceanides.
Aallottaret by Akseli Gallen-Kallela (1865–1931)
As the composer sailed to America in 1914 for the work’s premiere – perhaps as the Atlantic heaved underneath his steamer – he learned new things about the ocean and re-wrote the piece almost entirely. It became shorter, it became more severe, but it also became more typical of 1910s Sibelius in its concurrent brevity and breadth. ‘I seem to be finding myself more and more,’ Sibelius wrote to his wife from the ship. Musicologist Timo Virtanen has described the form of the piece in simple metaphorical terms. ‘The Oceanides can be seen as a single wave’ he writes, ‘slowly gathering force, foam forming on its crest and, on reaching its destination, quickly abating and sweeping the sand on the shore.’ Virtanen expands on that, specifically describing how Sibelius merges the ‘foreground’ of the piece with its ‘background’. The result is the feeling of two concurrent musical planes, completely entwined but of different metaspeeds, something we also hear in the composer’s late symphonies.
Jean Sibelius Photo courtesy of the Royal College of Music, London
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 27 November 2021 • Canellakis conducts Sibelius
Programme notes Jean Sibelius 1865–1957
Symphony No. 5 in E flat major, Op. 82 1915
1 Tempo molto moderato – Allegro moderato 2 Andante mosso, quasi allegretto 3 Allegro molto – Un pochettino largamente In the early 1910s Sibelius could add to his own financial and health problems those of his beloved Finland itself. Russia was strengthening its grip on the province, suspending parliament and attempting to drive out the Finnish language. As Europe slipped towards war, Finland, aligned with Russia, faced mass slaughter and the annihilation of its timber exporting industry. ‘In a deep mire again, but already I am beginning to see dimly the mountain that I shall ascend’, wrote a knowing Sibelius, ‘God opens his door for a moment and his orchestra is playing the Fifth Symphony.’
appears again, returning in another form as the Symphony is injected with optimism by an upwardpining theme – again in the trumpets. Those gestures sow the seeds for Sibelius’s finale, in which the double basses are soon heard spelling out a fifth that augments as the bottom note drops twice, stepping back up in the manner of an ostinato. Here are the Järvenpää swans. As it’s taken up by the horns, the theme gains the pace and grandeur of flight, like the rise and fall of an avian wing. Suddenly, the music shifts key: Sibelius’s long-held bass note or ‘pedal note’ disappears like the falling away of a runway. The swans – magically, gloriously – take flight.
So, the new symphony was rapidly forming in Sibelius’s mind. Themes included the onset of spring and the spirit of the composer’s country home at Järvenpää. Then, on 12 April 1914, Sibelius witnessed a sight that would affect him profoundly and write the Fifth Symphony’s main theme for him. It was a flock of 16 swans, soaring upwards from the Järvenpää lake for their migration. ‘One of my greatest experiences’, Sibelius wrote in his diary, ‘the Fifth Symphony’s final theme … legato in the trumpets.’
Soon they can be heard in the distance again, returning as if for a last farewell. Once more they soar upwards, cutting through a tangling, churning orchestral texture as if to break free from earthly concerns. Six stern orchestral jabs bid them a final salute. Sibelius programme notes © Andrew Mellor
At the time of the Symphony’s Helsinki premiere on 8 December 1915 there were four movements. Sibelius later amalgamated his first movement and scherzo into the opener that was eventually published and that we know now. After the initial, blossoming theme on glowing horns and woodwinds the music gains momentum and folds outwards, the orchestra falling over itself in contrary motion towards the proclamation of a major fourth by the trumpet. The opening motif soon
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 27 November 2021 • Canellakis conducts Sibelius
Sound Futures donors We are grateful to the following donors for their generous contributions to our Sound Futures campaign. Thanks to their support, we successfully raised £1 million by 30 April 2015 which has now been matched pound for pound by Arts Council England through a Catalyst Endowment grant. This has enabled us to create a £2 million endowment fund supporting special artistic projects, creative programming and education work with key venue partners including our Southbank Centre home. Supporters listed below donated £500 or over. For a full list of those who have given to this campaign please visit lpo.org.uk/soundfutures.
Masur Circle Arts Council England Dunard Fund Victoria Robey OBE Emmanuel & Barrie Roman The Underwood Trust
Welser-Möst Circle William & Alex de Winton John Ireland Charitable Trust The Tsukanov Family Foundation Neil Westreich
Tennstedt Circle Valentina & Dmitry Aksenov Richard Buxton The Candide Trust Michael & Elena Kroupeev Kirby Laing Foundation Mr & Mrs Makharinsky Alexey & Anastasia Reznikovich Sir Simon Robey Bianca & Stuart Roden Simon & Vero Turner The late Mr K Twyman
Solti Patrons Ageas John & Manon Antoniazzi Gabor Beyer, through BTO Management Consulting AG Jon Claydon Mrs Mina Goodman & Miss Suzanne Goodman Roddy & April Gow The Jeniffer & Jonathan Harris Charitable Trust Mr James R.D. Korner Christoph Ladanyi & Dr Sophia Ladanyi-Czernin Robert Markwick & Kasia Robinski
The Maurice Marks Charitable Trust Mr Paris Natar The Rothschild Foundation Tom & Phillis Sharpe The Viney Family
Haitink Patrons Mark & Elizabeth Adams Dr Christopher Aldren Mrs Pauline Baumgartner Lady Jane Berrill Mr Frederick Brittenden David & Yi Yao Buckley Mr Clive Butler Gill & Garf Collins Mr John H Cook Mr Alistair Corbett Bruno De Kegel Georgy Djaparidze David Ellen Christopher Fraser OBE David & Victoria Graham Fuller Goldman Sachs International Mr Gavin Graham Moya Greene Mrs Dorothy Hambleton Tony & Susie Hayes Malcolm Herring Catherine Høgel & Ben Mardle Mrs Philip Kan Rehmet Kassim-Lakha de Morixe Rose & Dudley Leigh Lady Roslyn Marion Lyons Miss Jeanette Martin Duncan Matthews QC Diana & Allan Morgenthau Charitable Trust Dr Karen Morton Mr Roger Phillimore Ruth Rattenbury The Reed Foundation The Rind Foundation Sir Bernard Rix
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David Ross & Line Forestier (Canada) Carolina & Martin Schwab Dr Brian Smith Lady Valerie Solti Mr & Mrs G Stein Dr Peter Stephenson Miss Anne Stoddart TFS Loans Limited Marina Vaizey Jenny Watson Guy & Utti Whittaker
Pritchard Donors Ralph & Elizabeth Aldwinckle Mrs Arlene Beare Mr Patrick & Mrs Joan Benner Mr Conrad Blakey Dr Anthony Buckland Paul Collins Alastair Crawford Mr Derek B. Gray Mr Roger Greenwood The HA.SH Foundation Darren & Jennifer Holmes Honeymead Arts Trust Mr Geoffrey Kirkham Drs Frank & Gek Lim Peter Mace Mr & Mrs David Malpas Dr David McGibney Michael & Patricia McLaren-Turner Mr & Mrs Andrew Neill Mr Christopher Querée The Rosalyn & Nicholas Springer Charitable Trust Timothy Walker CBE AM Christopher Williams Peter Wilson Smith Mr Anthony Yolland and all other donors who wish to remain anonymous
London Philharmonic Orchestra • 27 November 2021 • Canellakis conducts Sibelius
Thank you We are extremely grateful to all donors who have given generously to the LPO over the past year. Your generosity helps maintain the breadth and depth of the LPO’s activities, as well as supporting the Orchestra both on and off the concert platform.
Artistic Director’s Circle Anonymous donors Mrs Aline Foriel-Destezet Mrs Christina Lang Assael In memory of Mrs Rita Reay Sir Simon & Lady Robey OBE
Orchestra Circle
The Candide Trust William & Alex de Winton Aud Jebsen Mr & Mrs Philip Kan Neil Westreich The American Friends of the London Philharmonic Orchestra
Principal Associates
An anonymous donor Richard Buxton Gill & Garf Collins In memory of Brenda Lyndoe Casbon In memory of Ann Marguerite Collins Hamish & Sophie Forsyth The Tsukanov Family
Associates
Anonymous donors Steven M. Berzin Ms Veronika BorovikKhilchevskaya Irina Gofman & Mr Rodrik V. G. Cave The Lambert Family Charitable Trust Countess Dominique Loredan Mr & Mrs Makharinsky George Ramishvili Stuart & Bianca Roden Julian & Gill Simmonds In memory of Hazel Amy Smith Deanie & Jay Stein
Gold Patrons
An anonymous donor Chris Aldren David & Yi Buckley David Burke & Valerie Graham David & Elizabeth Challen In memory of Allner Mavis Channing Sonja Drexler The Vernon Ellis Foundation Peter & Fiona Espenhahn Marie-Laure Favre-Gilly de Varennes de Beuill Mr Roger Greenwood
Nicholas & Felicity Lyons Geoff & Meg Mann Harriet & Michael Maunsell Marianne Parsons Dr Wiebke Pekrull Mr Gerald Pettit Mr Roger Phillimore Gillian Pole Mr Michael Posen Mr Christopher Querée Sir Bernard Rix Mr Robert Ross Priscylla Shaw Patrick & Belinda Snowball Charlotte Stevenson Mr Robert Swannell Tony & Hilary Vines Mr & Mrs John C Tucker Mr & Mrs John & Susi Underwood Marina Vaizey Jenny Watson CBE Mr John Weekes Christopher Williams
Malcolm Herring John & Angela Kessler Dame Theresa Sackler Scott & Kathleen Simpson Eric Tomsett Andrew & Rosemary Tusa The Viney Family Guy & Utti Whittaker
Silver Patrons
Mrs A Beare The Rt Hon. The Lord Burns GCB Bruno De Kegel Jan & Leni Du Plessis Ulrike & Benno Engelmann Simon & Meg Freakley Pehr G Gyllenhammar The Jeniffer & Jonathan Harris Charitable Trust Catherine Høgel & Ben Mardle Wg. Cdr. & Mrs M T Liddiard OBE JP RAF Sofiya Machulskaya Mrs Elizabeth Meshkvicheva The Metherell Family Andrew Neill Peter & Lucy Noble Marianne Parsons Tom & Phillis Sharpe Laurence Watt Grenville & Krysia Williams
Principal Supporters
Anonymous donors Dr R M Aickin Mr Mark Astaire Sir John Baker Tessa Bartley Mr Geoffrey Bateman Mrs Julia Beine Mr Anthony Boswood Dr Carlos Carreno Mr Julien Chilcott-Monk Mr & Mrs Stewart Cohen David & Liz Conway Mr Alistair Corbett Andrew Davenport Mr Simon Douglas Mr Richard Fernyhough Mrs Janet Flynn Mrs Ash Frisby Mr Stephen Goldring Mr Daniel Goldstein Mr Milton Grundy Prof. Emeritus John Gruzelier Nerissa Guest & David Foreman Michael & Christine Henry Mark & Sarah Holford Ivan Hurry Per Jonsson Alexandra Jupin & John Bean Richard & Briony Linsell Paul & Brigitta Lock Mr Peter Mace Nicholas & Lindsay Merriman Andrew T Mills Simon & Fiona Mortimore John Nickson & Simon Rew Mr James Pickford
Bronze Patrons
Anonymous donors Michael Allen Dr Manon Antoniazzi Julian & Annette Armstrong Roger & Clare Barron Mr Philip Bathard-Smith Sir Peter Bazalgette Mikhail Noskov & Vasilina Bindley Mr Bernard Bradbury Sally Bridgeland In memory of Julie Bromley Desmond & Ruth Cecil Mr John H Cook Howard & Veronika Covington John & Sam Dawson Cameron & Kathryn Doley David Ellen Christopher Fraser OBE Virginia Gabbertas MBE David & Jane Gosman Mr Gavin Graham Mrs Dorothy Hambleton J Douglas Home The Jackman Family Jamie & Julia Korner Rose & Dudley Leigh Drs Frank & Gek Lim
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Michael & Carolyn Portillo Mr David Russell Colin Senneck & the Hartley and District LPO Group Nigel Silby Mr Brian Smith Martin & Cheryl Southgate Mr & Mrs G Stein Dr Peter Stephenson Mr Ian Tegner Dr June Wakefield Howard & Sheelagh Watson Roger Woodhouse Mr John Wright
Supporters
Anonymous donors Ralph & Elizabeth Aldwinckle Alexander & Rachel Antelme Julian & Annette Armstrong Lindsay Badenoch Mr Mark Bagshaw & Mr Ian Walker Mr John Barnard Mr John D Barnard Damaris, Richard & Friends Mr David Barrett Diana Barrett Mr Simon Baynham Nick & Rebecca Beresford Mr Paul Bland Mr Keith Bolderson Mr Andrew Botterill Julian & Margaret Bowden & Mr Paul Michel Richard & Jo Brass Mr & Mrs Shaun Brown Mr Alan C Butler Lady Cecilia Cadbury Mrs Marilyn Casford Alison Clarke & Leo Pilkington J Clay Mr Joshua Coger Mr Martin Compton Mr Martin Connelly Mr Stephen Connock Miss Tessa Cowie Mr David Davies Mr Roderick Davies Mr David Devons Anthony & Jo Diamond Miss Sylvia Dowle Mr Andrew Dyke Mr Declan Eardly Mrs Maureen Erskine Mr Peter Faulk Mr Joe Field Ms Chrisine Louise Fluker Mr Kevin Fogarty Mr Richard France Mr Bernard Freudenthal
London Philharmonic Orchestra • 27 November 2021 • Canellakis conducts Sibelius
Thank you
Mrs Adele Friedland & Friends Will Gold Mrs Alison Goulter Mr Andrew Gunn Mr K Haines Mr Martin Hale Roger Hampson Mr Graham Hart Mr & Mrs Nevile Henderson The Jackman Family Mr Ian Kapur Martin Kettle Mr Justin Kitson Ms Yvonne Lock Mrs Sally Manning Belinda Miles Dr Joe Mooney Christopher & Diane Morcom Dame Jane Newell DBE Oliver & Josie Ogg Mr Stephen Olton Mr David Peters Nadya Powell Ms Caroline Priday Mr Richard Rolls Mr Richard Rowland Mr & Mrs Alan Senior Tom Sharpe Mr Kenneth Shaw Ruth Silvestre Barry & Gillian Smith Mr David Southern Ms Mary Stacey Mr Simon Starr Mrs Margaret Thompson Philip & Katie Thonemann Mr Owen Toller Mrs Rose Tremain Ms Mary Stacey Ms Caroline Tate Mr Peter Thierfeldt Dr Ann Turrall Michael & Katie Urmston Dr June Wakefield Mr Dominic Wallis Mrs C Willaims Joanna Williams Mr Kevin Willmering Mr David Woodhead
LPO International Board of Governors
Hon. Benefactor
Simon Freakley Chairman Jay Goffman Alexandra Jupin William A. Kerr Kristina McPhee Natalie Pray Damien Vanderwilt Elizabeth Winter Victoria Robey OBE Hon. Director Jenifer L. Keiser, CPA, EisnerAmper LLP
Elliott Bernerd
Hon. Life Members Alfonso Aijón Kenneth Goode Carol Colburn Grigor CBE Pehr G Gyllenhammar Robert Hill Mrs Jackie Rosenfeld OBE Laurence Watt
Corporate Donors
Barclays CHANEL Fund for Women in the Arts and Culture Pictet Bank
Natasha Tsukanova Chair Steven M. Berzin (USA) Veronika Borovik-Khilchevskaya (Cyprus) Marie-Laure Favre Gilly de Varennes de Bueil (France) Aline Foriel-Destezet (France) Irina Gofman (Russia) Countess Dominique Loredan (Italy) Olivia Ma (Greater China Area) Olga Makharinsky (Russia) George Ramishvili (Georgia) Victoria Robey OBE (USA) Jay Stein (USA)
LPO Corporate Circle Leader freuds Sunshine
Principal Berenberg Bloomberg Carter-Ruck French Chamber of Commerce
Thomas Beecham Group Members
Tutti Lazard Russo-British Chamber of Commerce Walpole
Chris Aldren David & Yi Buckley Gill & Garf Collins William & Alex de Winton Sonja Drexler The Friends of the LPO Irina Gofman Roger Greenwood Dr Barry Grimaldi Mr & Mrs Philip Kan John & Angela Kessler Countess Dominique Loredan Sir Simon Robey Victoria Robey OBE Bianca & Stuart Roden Caroline, Jamie & Zander Sharp Julian & Gill Simmonds Eric Tomsett Neil Westreich Guy & Utti Whittaker
Trialist Allianz Musical Insurance
Preferred Partners
Gusbourne Estate Lidl Lindt & Sprüngli Ltd London Orthopaedic Clinic Steinway
In-kind Sponsor Google Inc
We are grateful to the Board of the American Friends of the London Philharmonic Orchestra, who assist with fundraising for our activities in the United States of America:
Trusts and Foundations The Boltini Trust Borrows Charitable Trust Boshier-Hinton Foundation The Candide Trust Cockayne – Grants for the Arts The London Community Foundation The David Solomons Charitable Trust The D’Oyly Carte Charitable Trust Dunard Fund Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation The Fidelio Charitable Trust Foyle Foundation Garrick Charitable Trust The Leche Trust Lucille Graham Trust John Horniman’s Children’s Trust John Thaw Foundation The Idlewild Trust Kirby Laing Foundation The Marchus Trust Adam Mickiewicz Institute PRS Foundation The Radcliffe Trust Rivers Foundation The R K Charitable Trust Romanian Cultural Institute Rothschild Foundation RVW Trust Schroder Charity Trust Serge Rachmaninoff Foundation Sir William Boreman’s Foundation Souter Charitable Trust The Stanley Picker Trust The Thomas Deane Trust The Thriplow Charitable Trust The Vaughan Williams Charitable Trust The Victoria Wood Foundation The Viney Family The Barbara Whatmore Charitable Trust The William Alwyn Foundation
and all others who wish to remain anonymous. The LPO would also like to acknowledge all those who have made donations to the Play On Appeal and who have supported the Orchestra during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 27 November 2021 • Canellakis conducts Sibelius
London Philharmonic Orchestra Administration Board of Directors Victoria Robey OBE Chairman Martin Höhmann* President Dr Catherine C. Høgel Vice-Chairman Henry Baldwin* Vice-President Kate Birchall* David Buckley David Burke Bruno De Kegel Deborah Dolce Tanya Joseph Hugh Kluger* Al MacCuish Tania Mazzetti* Stewart McIlwham* Jamie Njoku-Goodwin Andrew Tusa Mark Vines* Neil Westreich Simon Freakley (Ex officio – Chairman of the American Friends of the London Philharmonic Orchestra)
Barry Smith Martin Southgate Chris Viney Laurence Watt Elizabeth Winter
Finance
General Administration
Jean-Paul Ramotar Finance and IT Officer
Dayse Guilherme Finance Manager
Elena Dubinets Artistic Director David Burke Chief Executive Chantelle Vircavs PA to the Executive
Education and Community Talia Lash Interim Education and Community Director
Concert Management
Rebecca Parslow Education and Community Project Manager
Roanna Gibson Concerts Director
Hannah Foakes Tilly Gugenheim Education and Community Project Co-ordinators
Graham Wood Concerts and Recordings Manager Fabio Sarlo Glyndebourne and Projects Manager
*Player-Director
Grace Ko Tours Manager
Advisory Council
Alison Jones Concerts and Recordings Co-ordinator
Martin Höhmann Chairman Christopher Aldren Dr Manon Antoniazzi Roger Barron Richard Brass Helen Brocklebank Simon Callow CBE Desmond Cecil CMG Sir Alan Collins KCVO CMG Andrew Davenport Guillaume Descottes Cameron Doley Christopher Fraser OBE Lord Hall of Birkenhead CBE Jonathan Harris CBE FRICS Marianna Hay MBE Amanda Hill Rehmet Kassim-Lakha Jamie Korner Geoff Mann Clive Marks OBE FCA Stewart McIlwham Andrew Neill Nadya Powell Sir Bernard Rix Victoria Robey OBE Baroness Shackleton Thomas Sharpe QC Julian Simmonds
Frances Slack Finance Director
Development Laura Willis Development Director Stef Woodford Corporate Relations Manager Rosie Morden Individual Giving Manager
Christina Perrin Concerts and Tours Assistant
Anna Quillin Trusts and Foundations Manager
Matthew Freeman Recordings Consultant
Priya Radhakrishnan Georgia Wiltshire Development Assistants
Andrew Chenery Orchestra Personnel Manager Sarah Thomas Martin Sargeson Librarians
Nick Jackman Campaigns and Projects Director
Laura Kitson Stephen O’Flaherty Stage Managers
Kirstin Peltonen Development Associate
Damian Davis Transport Manager
Marketing
Felix Lo Orchestra and Auditions Manager
Kath Trout Marketing and Communications Director Mairi Warren Marketing Manager Rachel Williams Publications Manager Harrie Mayhew Website Manager
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Gavin Miller Box Office Manager Ruth Knight Press and PR Manager Sophie Harvey Digital and Residencies Marketing Manager Greg Felton Digital Creative Kiera Lockard Marketing Assistant
Archives Philip Stuart Discographer Gillian Pole Recordings Archive
Professional Services Charles Russell Speechlys Solicitors Crowe Clark Whitehill LLP Auditors Dr Barry Grimaldi Honorary Doctor Mr Chris Aldren Honorary ENT Surgeon Mr Brian Cohen Mr Simon Owen-Johnstone Hon. Orthopaedic Surgeons London Philharmonic Orchestra 89 Albert Embankment London SE1 7TP Tel: 020 7840 4200 Box Office: 020 7840 4242 Email: admin@lpo.org.uk lpo.org.uk Cover photo James Wicks 2021/22 season identity JMG Studio Printer John Good Ltd