Opus Orchestra presents: Song of the Earth | Unfinished

Music Director: Peter Walls

Song of the Earth Hamilton: Friday 29 November Tauranga: Sunday 1 December

Unfinished Rotorua : Saturday 30 November

Welcome from the Music Director Kia ora.

Welcome to this final concert for 2019 from Opus Orchestra. It is absolutely thrilling to be able to welcome back Simon O’Neill as our soloist for this. Many in our audience will remember the wonderful concerts that Simon did with Opus at the end of 2016. He suggested at that time that we think about doing Mahler’s Song of the Earth in the Iain Farrington edition, which is so skilfully arranged for a smaller orchestra. (Mahler’s original score requires over 90 players.) It is such a privilege to be performing this masterpiece with Simon, who earlier this year sang it with Sir Simon Rattle and the Czech Philharmonic.

I have so enjoyed preparing this profound and profoundly beautiful work. It is essentially Mahler’s final symphony – but for it he chose to set six poems that originate in ancient China. These evoke a world of exquisite cultivation against the backdrop of changing seasons represented almost as in ceramics. All may ultimately be read as reflections on the transience of human life and on death.

Iain Farrington is not the only musician to have produced a reduced orchestration. Schönberg did too (though for a rather idiosyncratic group of instruments that includes harmonium). How can this work given the scale of Mahler’s vision? One of things that is always said about Mahler’s orchestration is that he treated a massive symphony orchestra like a chamber ensemble. So many of the exquisite colours in Mahler’s score still shine through (perhaps even more clearly) in the version we present.

The original plan was to combine this with Ross Harris’s Three Pieces for Orchestra (which include a movement called ‘Vienna (Mahler)’. Circumstances beyond our control made that impracticable though I am delighted to let you have a taste with ‘Lucerne (Wagner)’. Perhaps Opus will get to play the entire set before too long. And it is always a pleasure to perform Mozart’s brilliant Haffner Symphony. (How better to start an Opus concert?)

Dear Rotorua audience members, how cruel to have to read my enthusiasm for Mahler. But I do hope that you will enjoy another masterpiece – Schubert’s ‘Unfinished’ Symphony. This is a work of immense importance. For me, it is the first truly Romantic symphony. It is the point where, in his orchestral writing, Schubert turns to look away from Mozart and Beethoven as a model and finds a new kind of expressiveness – one that shares with Mahler’s Song of the Earth a deep sense of longing.

We are about to embark on a new era – one in which Orchestras Central Trust supported by Creative New Zealand are committed to seeing Opus develop artistically and fulfil in every sense its role as the professional regional orchestra for the Waikato/Bay of Plenty.

Peter Walls ONZM

Peter Walls has been Music Director of Opus Orchestra since 2004. He is currently also Music Director of Nota Bene, a Wellington chamber choir. He has appeared as a guest conductor with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, the NZSO National Youth Orchestra, Orchestra Wellington, the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, Voices New Zealand Chamber Choir, and various other choirs including the Civic Choirs in Hamilton, Tauranga and Rotorua.

He has conducted many opera productions including Jack Body’s Alley in the New Zealand Arts Festival in 1998, Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi for Southern Opera in 2009, Verdi’s La Traviata for the Gisborne Opera Festival and Leoncavallo’s Cavalleria Rusticana for Opera Wanganui (these last two productions with a young Simon O’Neill as Alfredo and Turridu respectively). Peter is Emeritus Professor of Music at Victoria University of Wellington. He was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to music in 2012.

Simon O'Neill: Soloist - Song of the Earth A native of Ashburton, Simon O’Neill is one of the finest heroic tenors on the international stage. He has been described by the international press as “THE Wagnerian tenor of his generation” and… “the best heroic tenor to emerge over the last decade”. He is the most internationally recognised New Zealand opera singer since Dame Kiri Te Kanawa and Sir Donald McIntyre.

Notable engagements have included Siegmund in Die Walküre at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden with Pappano, Teatro alla Scala and Berlin Staatsoper with Barenboim, at the Metropolitan Opera with Runnicles (Otto Shenk) then Luisi (Robert Lepage), and at Deutsche Oper Berlin with Rattle; at the Royal Opera House he has performed the title roles in Lohengrin, Parsifal, Florestan in Fidelio, and Stolzing in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg; Lohengrin and Parsifal at the Bayreuth Festival with Nelsons and Gatti; Parsifal with Thielemann at the Wiener Staatsoper; the Tambourmajor in Wozzeck with Levine at the Metropolitan Opera; Verdi’s Otello with the London Symphony Orchestra and Colin Davis; Das Lied von der Erde at Carnegie Hall with Levine and the Met Orchestra; Siegfried with the Hallé Orchestra and Mark Elder at the Edinburgh Festival, Die Walküre with Jaap van Zweden and the New York Philharmonic and with Rattle and the Berlin Philharmonic and the BBC Proms with Barenboim.

He is a Fulbright Scholar, an officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, alumnus of The Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music and University of Otago, he holds a Doctor of Music from Victoria University (Honoris Causa), Arts Foundation Laureate, and is a Grammy nominated recording artist with EMI, Decca and Naxos.

Simon lives in Auckland with his wife, Carmel and their three children.

http://www.simononeill.com Elena Abramova: Concertmaster Russian born Violinist, Elena Abramova, holds a Masters Degree from the State Conservatory of St Petersburg, Russia, and a Doctorate in Violin performance from the University of Auckland. Elena has lived in Auckland since 2003 where she is a sought after freelance violinist, chamber musician, and teacher. she has played with the NZSO, APO, ACO, NZ Trio and other professional ensembles.

She has been a concertmaster of Waitakere Orchestra for 10 years and has led a number of other orchestras including Aorangi Symphony, NZ Concerto Orchestra and the St Petersburg University Orchestra. Elena and her husband Greg McGarity founded Auckland Trio which plays concerts both as a traditional classical string trio and also as a cutting edge fusion ensemble exploring non-classical virtuosic string music.

Find out more: www.orchestras.org.nz

Programme Notes

SONG OF THE EARTH - Hamilton | Tauranga Symphony No. 35 in D, K.385 (‘Haffner’) MOZART Lucerne (Wagner) ROSS HARRIS Das Lied von der Erde arr. Iain Farrington GUSTAV MAHLER (translations will be provided during the concert) UNFINISHED - Rotorua Symphony No. 35 in D, K.385 (‘Haffner’) Lucerne (Wagner) Symphony No. 8 in B Minor (‘Unfinished’)

MOZART ROSS HARRIS SCHUBERT

W. A. Mozart (1756-1791) Symphony No. 35 in D, K. 385 (‘Haffner’) Allegro con spirito Andante Menuetto Presto

In July 1782, Siegmund Haffner – a friend of the Mozart family in Salzburg – received an ennoblement from the Emperor of Austria, elevating him to the rank of Edler (the lowest rung of the Austrian nobility). Mozart, then living in Vienna, wrote an exuberant work in D major to mark the occasion, which is now known as the ‘Haffner’ Symphony. Mozart then decided to programme the Symphony in his 1783 Lent concerts, and when he received the score back from Salzburg he wrote to his father: ‘My new Haffner symphony has quite astonished me, for I had forgotten every single note of it. It must certainly make a good effect.’

In its original form, Mozart’s work was designed as a serenade (not to be confused with his ‘Haffner’ Serenade, K. 250, of 1776) so to transform the piece into a symphony, Mozart excised its introductory march, and one of its two minuet movements. After adding flutes and clarinets to the first and last movements of the Symphony, the work received its Viennese premiere at the Burgtheater on 23 March 1783. The Burgtheater concert took place in the presence of Emperor Joseph, and by Mozart’s own account, was a great success. He began the programme with the first three movements of the ‘Haffner’ Symphony, and the music that followed included arias from Ideomeno and Lucio Silla, and performances of his Piano Concertos in C major (K. 415) and D major (K. 175). Mozart also played several improvisations (‘because the Emperor was present’) and after other vocal and instrumental pieces, concluded the concert with the finale of his ‘Haffner’ Symphony.

This Symphony abounds with extrovert effects, from its dramatic and ceremonial opening chords to the mirthful scurrying of the finale. The intimate, confiding character of the Andante, forms a complete contrast with the first movement, before a grandiose Menuetto. Finally, the Presto plays an amusing game with the audience, reminiscent of the finale of Mozart’s earlier ‘Paris’ Symphony before concluding with emphatic statements of triumphant D major.

Ross Harris Three Orchestral Pieces (Lucerne) 'Lucerne’ is the second in a set of Three Orchestral Pieces commissioned by Peter and Kathryn Walls for the NZSO’s 2010 European tour. They asked Ross to compose three pieces that could be performed as a suite or individually, each one of which was to reflect on the musical traditions of one of the cities in which the NZSO was performing. The titles of each piece indicate the city chosen and the relevant musical influence associated with the composition. Hence, Vienna (Mahler), Lucerne (Wagner) and Düsseldorf (Schumann). Wagner lived in Lucerne from 1866 until 1872 and it was there that he composed the operas of the Ring Cycle.

Ross Harris produced a chamber orchestra version of his Three Pieces especially for Opus Orchestra.

(This version was commissioned by Peter Walls.)

Gustav Mahler (1860-1911) Das Lied von der Erde arr. Iain Farrington DasTrinklied von Jammer der Erde (‘The Drinking Song of Earth’s Sorrow’) Der Einsame im Herbst (‘The Solitary One in Autumn‘) Von der Jugend (‘Youth‘) Von der Schönheit (‘Beauty‘) Der Trunkene im Frühling (‘The Drunkard in Spring‘) Der Abschied (‘The Farewell‘) In the summer of 1908 Mahler embarked upon an unusual project, a multi-movement orchestral work that fused the song-cycle with the symphony. Although the composition process provoked some self-doubt, once Mahler realised that it was a symphony in all but name ‘the work soon acquired its shape – and was completed before he knew it.’ The texts for each movement came from Die chinesiche Flöte (‘The Chinese Flute’), Hans Bethge’s collection of more than eighty eighth-century Chinese poems translated into German. Mahler chose and adapted six poems, selecting contrasting verses that formed a thematic connection emphasising transience and the ultimate futility of life’s struggles.

Although Mahler wrote very little about his ideas in Das Lied von der Erde, he noticed an example of these feelings of futility when a trumpet player struggled during a rehearsal of Mahler’s Seventh Symphony:‘[his] comment immediately made me think of the inner being of this man. He cannot comprehend his own life of misery, always struggling with the highest muted tones; he cannot see what this is all about and how this screeching fits into the symphony of the world, into the great chord.’ Mahler never heard Das Lied von der Erde performed: the premiere took place in Munich on 20 November, 1911, six months after his death. Mahler’s friend and protege Bruno Walter, conducted, and the composer Anton Webern attended.

He wrote to his colleague Alban Berg:‘[…]Das Lied von der Erde is wonderful. As I told you, it is like the procession of life, or better yet, of that which has been experienced, before the soul of the dying. The work of art is intensified; that which is mere fact evaporates, but the idea remains. That is what these songs are like.’ Arnold Schoenberg planned to make a chamber arrangement of Das Lied von der Erde for his Society for Private Musical Performance in Vienna but did not complete the project.

Iain Farrington’s arrangement follows the spirit, but not the instrumentation of Schoenberg’s plan, emphasising the delicacy and energy of a work initially devised for a vast orchestra. Although Mahler conceived Das Lied von der Erde for tenor and alto or baritone soloists, it is possible for one soloist to perform the songs, as Simon O’Neill will do today.

Franz Schubert (1797-1828) Symphony No. 8 in B minor, D. 759 (‘Unfinished’) Allegro moderato Andante con moto In the early 1820s, Vienna provided an inhospitable environment for the performance of new symphonies. For a young composer like Schubert,organising performances of symphonies proved a difficult and unprofitable enterprise. Meanwhile, the Viennese public leaned more towards the dramatic pleasures of Italian opera, a preference that also caused Beethoven much frustration.

However, lack of opportunity and public enthusiasm did not stifle composers’ symphonic impulses.

Following the successful publication of Schubert’s song-settings of poems by Goethe, including Erlkönig and Gretchen am Spinnrade , Schubert was able to live on the royalties of his publications, but he also had clear ambitions as a symphonist, exemplified by the dramatic character of the Symphony in B minor he would begin in 1822.

There are just two movements of the B minor Symphony, not – as myth suggests – because of lack of imagination but possibly because he temporarily set the work aside. He sketched, but never completed, the beginnings of a scherzo, prompting speculation that his ideas took a ‘rhetorical turn’ causing a creative impasse. In 1823 Schubert sent the score to Anselm Hüttenbrenner of the Styrian Musikvereinin Graz. The score remained in Hüttenbrenner’s possession until the premiere of the B minor Symphony in Vienna’s Musikvereinssaal in December 1865.

At this belated premiere, critics and public alike were fascinated by the ‘new’and inimitably Schubertian work, which they greeted as a message from the afterlife: ‘When after several introductory bars the clarinet and the oboe in unison intone their sweet song over the calm murmur of the violins, then every child knows the composer, and the half-suppressed exclamation ‘Schubert’ buzzes in whispers through the hall. He has hardly entered, but it is he, as one knew him from his step, from his way of opening the door handle.’ (Eduard Hanslick) Both movements of the Symphony suggest connections in their means of expression with Schubert’s songs and chamber music, but his use of instrumental colour indicated a distinct change in style compared with his other symphonies. .

Moments of darkness and austerity form abrupt contrasts with dramatic disturbance, taking listeners into realms of abject terror and lyrical absolution.

Programme note © Corrina Connor 2019

PRINCIPAL SPONSOR: SIMON O'NEILL PROUDLY SUPPORTED BY

Player List Conductor Peter Walls Concertmaster Elena Abramova* + P.Walls, H Fairburn Violin 1 Trudi Miles Sharon Stephens + A & N Hooper Amber Read Jackie McCaughan Sarah Hart Michie Nishiyama Grace Kim Violin 2 Kerry Langdon* Lucy Gardiner Rebecka Beetz Rebecca Whalley Brigid Eady +A & N Hooper Michele Wahrlich + M & M Carr Beverley Oliver Celia Griffiths Viola Edith Klostermann* Chris Nation Hector Fitzsimons Shelby Hancox Jill Wilson Annette Milson

Cello Yotam Levy* Judith Williams Anna-Marie Alloway Joanna Dann Josh Helm Sarah Jans Double Bass Marija Durdevic*

Flute Agnes Harmath* Anita Macdonald + M Hampson Oboe Joy Liu* + K Mayes Felicity Than

Clarinet Ashley Hopkins* Justus Rozemond

Bassoon Craig Bradfield* Gabrielle Kerin

Horn Henry Swanson* + H Goodman Jill Ferrabee

Trumpet Bill Stoneham* Patrick Webb Trombone Joe Thomas* Mark Bingham Roberta Hickman Timpani Yoshi Tsuruta* Percussion Rachel Thomas Harp Gustavo Beaklini Celeste Euan Safey

*Section Principal + Sponsored Seat

We gratefully acknowledge our family of generous donors

Rotorua Roger Brewster Mary Burdon Steve Chou Mayor Steve Chadwick Stewart & Waiki Edward Hanno Fairburn Catriona Gordon Martin Hampson Alan & Nadine Hooper Genevieve Joyce Judy Keaney QSM Ann Larkin Joanne La Grouw Tom & Sidney Louisson Judy O'Sullivan Lyall & Gabrielle Thurston Life members

Doug Arcus Robert Blair Andrew Buchanan-Smart Brigid Eady Bob Hudson Kathryn Orbell QSM Rita Paczian

Hamilton M & M Carr Bernie and Kaye Crosbie G & J Gallagher T Miles K Mayes and H Goodman C Polglase Tauranga FAME Trust NZ (Regional) B Eady J & L Lengenhagger J & B Russenberger Hugh and Marion Townend Peter Walls ONZM

Additional thanks to: National Library of New Zealand (music) Ashley Hopkins (photography)

Christine Polglase Sharon Stephens Bill Taylor Marion Townend Michele Wahrlich Peter Walls ONZM

PATRON - James Judd

SAVE THE DATES 2020

MARCH MAY JULY SEPTEMBER DECEMBER

The Far Reaches Tour Family Concerts Outside Over There Akakite Mai World Premiere The Four Seasons Music in the Round Revolutionary Beethoven

Please note: all programmes may be subject to change

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