PROGRAM SAMUEL BARBER Adagio for Strings LEONARD BERNSTEIN Symphony No. 1: Jeremiah Prophecy Profanation Lamentation MARTIN HELMCHEN; PHOTO ©GIORGIA BERTAZZI
Friday, May 11 | 8PM Saturday, May 12 | 8PM Sunday, May 13 | 2PM
BARBER, BERNSTEIN, BEETHOVEN
Kelley O'Connor, mezzo-soprano
INTERMISSION LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat Major, Op. 73: Emperor Allegro Adagio un poco moto Rondo: Allegro, ma non troppo
Martin Helmchen, piano
A Jacobs Masterworks Concert
conductor Jahja Ling piano Martin Helmchen mezzo-soprano Kelley O'Connor
All performances at the Jacobs Music Center's Copley Symphony Hall
This concert is made possible, in part, through the generosity of Gayle and Donald Slate
20
PERFORM A NCES MAGAZINE
The approximate running time for this program, including intermission, is one hour and forty minutes. S AN DIEG O SYM P H O N Y O RC H ES T RA 2 0 1 7-1 8 S E A S ON M AY 20 1 8
PROGRAM NOTES | BARBER, BERNSTEIN, BEETHOVEN – MAY 11, 12, 13
ABOUT THE ARTISTS JAHJA LING’S distinguished career as an internationally renowned
the ensemble for the longest time in its 100-year history. He has also led the Orchestra for millions of audience members in its annual downtown concerts as well as the most number of concerts in the Blossom Festival’s history. His telecast of A Concert in Tribute and Remembrance with the Orchestra for 9/11/2011 received a local Emmy® Award. The U.S. House of Representatives presented a
conductor has earned him an exceptional reputation for musical integrity, intensity and expressivity.
Congressional Record of his outstanding achievements in the U.S. Capitol in September 2006. Mr. Ling also served as Music Director of The Florida Orchestra (1988-2003), Artistic Director of the
Born in Jakarta, Indonesia and now a
Taiwan Philharmonic/NSO (1998-2001) and Assistant and Associate
citizen of the United States, he is the
Conductor of the San Francisco Symphony. Deeply committed
first and only conductor of Chinese
to education, Mr. Ling served as founding Music Director of the
descent who holds a music director
Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra (1986-1993), the San Francisco
position with a major orchestra in
Symphony Youth Orchestra (1981-84), and he served as the Director
the U.S. and has conducted all of the major symphony orchestras in
of Tanglewood/BU Young Artists Orchestra during 1983 and 1984
North America including Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Los Angeles,
seasons. In the last two seasons he was named Distinguished
New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and San Francisco.
Principal Guest Faculty of the Cleveland Institute of Music.
Mr. Ling is universally praised for his work as music director of San
Mr. Ling made his European debut with the Leipzig Gewandhaus
Diego Symphony Orchestra from post-bankruptcy state into one of
Orchestra in 1988 and has appeared with the Philharmonic
the top tier major orchestra during his 13-year tenure from 2004 to
orchestras of China, Copenhagen, Hong Kong, Netherlands
2017. He has appointed more than 70 new musicians from all over
(Radio), London (Royal) and Stockholm; the Symphony orchestras
the world to form this remarkable ensemble, and together they have
of Berlin (Radio), Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Jakarta, Leipzig (MDR),
collaborated with world's greatest soloists. In October of 2013 Mr.
Taiwan, Hamburg (NDR), Shanghai, Singapore and Sydney; and the
Ling led the orchestra in a sold-out concert for their first appearance
Chamber orchestras of Lausanne and Scotland. Mr. Ling conducted
at Carnegie Hall, followed by their first international tour to China
Whitney Houston in the national anthem at Super Bowl XXV, and
where they appeared in five concerts in Beijing, Shanghai and Yantai.
in 1983 he conducted a special concert in San Francisco for a state
Together they have recorded works for Telarc Records and Naxos,
visit of England’s Queen Elizabeth II. As part of the celebrations
and eight other CDs on the Orchestra's own label. The Orchestra has
marking the return of Hong Kong to China, Mr. Ling led the Scottish
named him their first Conductor Laureate in its history.
Chamber Orchestra in Hong Kong in May 1997. In May 2000 his
Mr. Ling holds a special relationship with one of the world’s greatest orchestras, The Cleveland Orchestra, beginning in 1984 and continuing for 34 seasons, having conducted more than 550 concerts over 600 works. He has held the positions of Associate Conductor (1984-85), Resident Conductor (1985-2002), Blossom Festival Director (2000-05) and as regular guest conductor in every season since 2005, making him the conductor who has conducted
gala performance with the St. Louis Symphony and cellist Yo-Yo Ma was featured on the ABC News program 20/20. In 2001 Mr. Ling was invited to conduct the Super World Orchestra, an orchestra comprised of principals of 30 of the most prominent orchestras in Europe, America and Asia for performances in Osaka and Tokyo. In 2009 he conducted the Worldwide Chinese Festival Orchestra in the new National Center for the Performing Arts in Beijing, and Chinese Central Television (CCTV) and Phoenix Television in China telecast an hour-long profile of his musical journey worldwide. In June of 2012
Concert Sponsor Spotlight
GAYLE AND DONALD SLATE
he conducted the Schleswig-Holstein Festival Orchestra in Berlin’s O2 World with Lang Lang on the occasion of his 30th birthday, including Herbie Hancock and 50 young pianists from around the world. Mr. Ling’s recordings for Telarc include the Dupré Organ Symphony
Gayle and Don Slate have been staunch supporters of the San Diego Symphony Orchestra for many years. Don serves on the San Diego Symphony Orchestra Board and Executive Committee and served as Chair of the Development Committee. Gayle was a founding member of Symphony 1000, Symphony Stars and Partner with a Player.
S A N D I EG O SYMPHONY ORC HESTRA 2017-18 SE ASON M AY 2018
and the Rheinberger Organ Concerto with soloist Michael Murray and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and two albums of baroque works with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra (the first of which was nominated for a Grammy®). In 1998 Azica Records released a disc with Mr. Ling and the Florida Orchestra entitled Symphonic Dances, featuring Bernstein’s Symphonic Dances from West Side Story, Strauss’s Rosenkavalier Suite and Ravel’s Suite No. 2 from
P ERFO RM AN C ES MAG A Z I N E
21
PROGRAM NOTES | BARBER, BERNSTEIN, BEETHOVEN – MAY 11, 12, 13 Daphnis et Chloé. Mr. Ling and The Florida Orchestra have also
John Adams wrote the title role of The Gospel According to the Other
recorded Stephen Montague’s From the White Edge of Phrygia for
Mary for Kelley O’Connor, and she has performed the work, both
Continuum. His performance with the New York Philharmonic of the
in concert and in Peter Sellars’ fully staged production, under the
world premiere of Ellen Taaffe Zwilich’s Third Symphony is featured
batons of Gustavo Dudamel, Grant Gershon, Sir Simon Rattle and
in a recent compact disc collection of Philharmonic performances
David Robertson. She has sung the composer’s El Niño with Vladimir
entitled American Celebrations. Recent releases with The Cleveland
Jurowski and the London Philharmonic Orchestra and continues to
Orchestra include a special edition CD featuring Mr. Ling and
be the eminent living interpreter of Peter Lieberson’s Neruda Songs,
the orchestra performing Saint-Saëns’ Organ Symphony for the
having given this moving set of songs with Christoph Eschenbach
rededication of Severance Hall’s Norton Memorial Organ.
and the National Symphony Orchestra, with Bernard Haitink and the
Mr. Ling began playing piano at the age of four under the tutelage of Suzy Djoeandy and Rudy Laban. He studied piano and conducting at Juilliard where he earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees. Mr.
Chicago Symphony Orchestra, with Robert Spano and the Minnesota Orchestra and with David Zinman and the Berliner Philharmoniker and the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, among many others.
Ling continued his conducting study at Yale School of Music where
Recent seasons include performances of Wagner’s Wesendonck
he earned a Doctor of Musical Arts. He was awarded the Leonard
Lieder with Matthias Pintscher conducting the Indianapolis Symphony
Bernstein Conducting Fellowship at Tanglewood Music Center
Orchestra, Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde with Louis Langrée and
and the Los Angeles Philharmonic Institute under Mr. Bernstein.
the Detroit Symphony and with Donald Runnicles and the Atlanta
Mr. Ling recently received the Bravo Classical Music Icon Lifetime
Symphony Orchestra, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with Iván
Achievement Award from San Diego County for his contribution to
Fischer and the Budapest Festival Orchestra, Ravel’s Shéhérazade
enriching the cultural life of San Diego. n
with Esa-Pekka Salonen and the Philharmonia Orchestra, Berio’s Folk
Songs with Daniel Harding and the London Symphony Orchestra, and the role of Erda in performances of Wagner’s Das Rheingold with the
Possessing a voice of uncommon
New York Philharmonic and Alan Gilbert. She has appeared in recital
allure, musical sophistication far
in Boston’s Jordan Hall with Thomas Adès in a program of Brahms,
beyond her years, and intuitive
Purcell and Stravinsky, at the Collaborative Arts Institute Chicago
and innate dramatic artistry, the
offering works of Debussy, Massenet and Chausson, in Cincinnati
Grammy® Award-winning mezzo-
with pianist Louis Langrée in art songs of Brahms and Ravel, and in
soprano KELLEY O’CONNOR
Jackson Hole accompanied by her frequent collaborator, Donald
has emerged as one of the most compelling performers of her generation. During the 2017-18 season, the
Runnicles, in music of Brahms and Bernstein. Ms. O’Connor has appeared numerous times with Gustavo Dudamel, including in performances of Bernstein’s Jeremiah Symphony on an international tour with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and of
artist’s impressive symphonic calendar includes performances of
Mahler’s Resurrection Symphony with the Simón Bolívar Orchestra.
Bernstein’s Jeremiah Symphony with Alan Gilbert and the New York
She enjoys a rich musical collaboration with Franz Welser-Möst and
Philharmonic and with Jahja Ling and the San Diego Symphony, Beethoven’s Missa solemnis with David Robertson and the St. Louis Symphony, Mahler’s Eighth Symphony with Andrés Orozco-Estrada
The Cleveland Orchestra, with whom she has sung Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and Mass in C, Bernstein’s Jeremiah Symphony, staged performances of Falstaff (both in Cleveland and at the
leading the Tonkünstler-Orchester Niederösterreich and Mahler’s
Lucerne Festival) and Stravinsky’s Requiem Canticles. With Christoph
Des knaben Wunderhorn with Krzysztof Urbański and the Indianapolis
Eschenbach and the National Symphony Orchestra, she has sung
Symphony Orchestra. She returns to the stage of The Kennedy
excerpts from Roussel’s Padmâvatî and given the world premiere
Center for performances of John Adams’ The Gospel According to
of a vocal work written for Ms. O’Connor by the legendary Indian
the Other Mary marking her first collaboration with Gianandrea Noseda, and sings Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with Jun Märkl on the podium of the Milwaukee Symphony. Kelley O’Connor gives the world premiere of a song cycle by Bryce Dessner at Carnegie Hall with Robert Spano leading the Orchestra of St. Luke’s and, later in the season, she joins Robert Spano and the Atlanta Symphony for the world premiere of a new work written for her by Michael Kurth. The American mezzo brings Carmen into her repertoire with presentations by Opera Buffs and the Los Angeles Opera under the baton of James Conlon.
22
PERFORM A NCES MAGAZINE
musician, Zakir Hussain. Operatic highlights include Donizetti’s Anna Bolena at the Lyric Opera of Chicago conducted by Patrick Summers and directed by Kevin Newbury, Madama Butterfly in a new production by Lillian Groag at the Boston Lyric Opera and at the Cincinnati Opera under the baton of Ramón Tebar, Berlioz’s Béatrice et Bénédict at Opera Boston, Falstaff with the Santa Fe Opera and A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Lyric Opera of Chicago and the Canadian Opera Company.
S AN DIEG O SYM P H O N Y O RC H ES T RA 2 0 1 7-1 8 S E A S ON M AY 20 1 8
PROGRAM NOTES | BARBER, BERNSTEIN, BEETHOVEN – MAY 11, 12, 13 Kelley O’Connor has received unanimous international, critical
Philharmonic, Orchestre de Paris, Vienna Philharmonic and the
acclaim for her numerous performances as Federico García Lorca in
NHK Symphony in Japan. Other international engagements include
Osvaldo Golijov’s Ainadamar. Ms. O’Connor created the role for the
the City of Birmingham Symphony, Frankfurt Radio Symphony,
world premiere at Tanglewood, under the baton of Robert Spano,
Gürzenich-Orchester/Cologne, Orchestre Philharmonique de
and subsequently joined Miguel Harth-Bedoya for performances
Monte-Carlo, Philharmonia Orchestra/London, Prague Symphony
of Golijov’s piece with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Walt
and the Swedish Chamber Orchestra. Artist-in-Residence with the
Disney Concert Hall. She reprised her “musically seductive, palpably
Zürich Tonhalle Orchestra during the 2011-12 season, he has also
charismatic” (Washington Post) portrayal of Lorca in the world
appeared with the BBC/London, Bournemouth Symphony, Deutsche
premiere of the revised edition of Ainadamar at the Santa Fe Opera
Kammerphilharmonie/Bremen, Dresden Philharmonic, DSO/Berlin,
in a new staging by Peter Sellars during the 2005 season, which
Hallé Orchestra/Manchester, Giuseppe Verdi Symphony/Milan,
was also presented at New York City’s Lincoln Center and Madrid’s
NDR/Hamburg, Netherlands Philharmonic, Orchestre National de
Teatro Real.
Lyon, Orchestre National de France, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic,
For her debut with the Atlanta Symphony in Ainadamar, she joined Robert Spano for performances and a Grammy® Award-winning Deutsche Grammophon recording. Her discography also includes
Rotterdam Philharmonic, RSO/Berlin, Scottish Chamber Orchestra and the Stuttgart Radio Orchestra, among others. In France, he tours with La Chambre Philharmonique under Emmanuel Krivine.
Mahler’s Third Symphony with Jaap van Zweden and the Dallas
Mr. Helmchen has collaborated with such renowned conductors as
Symphony Orchestra, Lieberson’s Neruda Songs with Robert Spano
David Afkham, Marc Albrecht, Herbert Blomstedt, Semyon Bychkov,
and the Atlanta Symphony, Adams’ The Gospel According to the Other
Christoph von Dohnányi, Sir Mark Elder, Thierry Fischer, Lawrence
Mary with Gustavo Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic,
Foster, Edward Gardner, Valery Gergiev, Hans Graf, Manfred
and Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with Franz Welser-Möst and The
Honeck, Philippe Herreweghe, Pablo Heras-Casado, Marek Janowski,
Cleveland Orchestra. n
Michail Jurowski, Vladimir Jurowski, Bernhard Klee, Jiri Kout, Andris
With his highly virtuosic yet unpretentious style, MARTIN HELMCHEN has taken his place among the great pianists of his generation. Born in 1982, he has made a series of sensational U.S. orchestral debuts, beginning in 2011 at Tanglewood, playing the Schumann Concerto with the Boston Symphony Orchestra under Christoph von Dohnányi. In 2014, with the New York Philharmonic at Lincoln Center, he gave a revelatory performance of the Dvořák Piano Concerto; in 2015 he made his Symphony Hall debut, performing Beethoven's Concerto No. 5 with the Boston Symphony Orchestra; and in 2016 he performed with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, playing Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 2. Recent
Nelsons, Sir Roger Norrington, Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Christoph Poppen, Markus Poschner, Michael Sanderling, Heinrich Schiff, Marcus Stenz, Krzysztof Urbanski, Gilbert Varga and David Zinman, to name a few. An enthusiastic recitalist, Martin Helmchen has performed at prestigious venues around the world, such as The Frick Collection/ New York, Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall (with cellist Marie-Elisabeth Hecker), the Coast Recital Society, San Francisco Performances, ArtSpring, Wigmore Hall/London and the Alte Oper in Frankfurt. He also appears regularly at major German festivals, as well as the Schubertiade, Lockenhaus and Marlboro. He was Artist-in-Residence at Germany's 2017 Schwetzingen SWR Festival.
summer festival debuts include his 2017 performance of Beethoven's
With a passion for chamber music, largely ignited by his early
Concerto No. 4 with the Aspen Festival Orchestra and his 2016
collaborations with the late cellist Boris Pergamenschikow, Mr.
performance of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 25 with the Mostly
Helmchen now performs regularly with Heinrich Schiff and Marie-
Mozart Festival Orchestra at Lincoln Center under Thierry Fischer.
Elisabeth Hecker. Other partners include Juliane Banse, Veronika
During the 2017-18 season he will return to Symphony Hall with
Eberle, Julia Fischer (with whom he toured Asia last season), Sharon
Maestro von Dohnányi, performing Beethoven's Concerto No. 3
Kam, Gidon Kremer, Sabine Meyer, Christian Tetzlaff, Lars Vogt
with the Boston Symphony. He will also make debuts with both the
and Tabea Zimmermann. In 2016 he was invited to return to Elena
San Diego and Kansas City Symphonies.
Bashkirova's International Chamber Music Festival in Jerusalem.
Mr. Helmchen has also appeared with the symphonies of Dallas, Grand Rapids, Houston, Portland (Oregon), Saint Louis and San
Since 2010 he has been Associate Professor of Chamber Music at the Kronberg Academy.
Francisco, as well as with The Cleveland Orchestra at Blossom. In
An active recording artist, Martin Helmchen’s debut disc of Mozart
May 2014 he made a highly acclaimed recital debut at The Kennedy
concertos with the Netherlands Chamber Philharmonic was released
Center in Washington, D.C.
in September 2007 through his exclusive contract with PentaTone. A
Among Martin Helmchen’s worldwide highlights are performances with the Berlin Philharmonic, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, London
S A N D I EG O SYMPHONY ORC HESTRA 2017-18 SE ASON M AY 2018
second Mozart concerto disc with the same orchestra was released in 2013. His first solo CD, a recording of works by Schubert, won an ECHO Award in 2009. Other discs for PentaTone include the
P ERFO RM AN C ES MAG A Z I N E
23
PROGRAM NOTES | BARBER, BERNSTEIN, BEETHOVEN – MAY 11, 12, 13 Mendelssohn concertos, the Schumann and Dvořák concertos, and
conductor had memorized both scores and – not needing them –
the highly acclaimed complete works of Schubert for violin and piano
had simply sent them back; he did not ask to see them again until
with Julia Fischer.
rehearsals were about to begin. Toscanini led the premiere of what
Martin Helmchen studied with Galina Iwanzowa at the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler in Berlin, with Arie Vardie at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Hanover and with William Grant Naboré. His career took off when he won the 2001 Clara Haskil International
had now come to be known as the Adagio for Strings on November 5, 1938. He liked this music well enough that he took it on the NBC Symphony’s tour of South America in 1940 and recorded it shortly after the beginning of World War II.
Piano Competition at the age of 19. Other distinctions include a
The Adagio for Strings takes the form of a long arch. It is built on only
fellowship from the Borletti-Buitoni Trust (2005); the Credit Suisse
one theme, a slow and sinuous melody initially heard in the first violins.
Young Artist Award (2006), culminating in his debut with the Vienna
There is an “archaic” quality about this music that is easy to sense but
Philharmonic Orchestra under Valery Gergiev at the Lucerne
difficult to define – Barber’s noble melody almost has something in
Festival; and soloist in the "BBC New Generation Artists"
common with medieval choral music. (In fact, late in life Barber made
program (2005-07). n
a choral arrangement of the Adagio for Strings, setting the Agnus Dei
text.) The theme develops with slow but inexorable power, passing from section to section and gathering force with each repetition until
ABOUT THE MUSIC
finally it builds to a climax of great intensity. Here the music breaks off
Adagio for Strings
The restrained and solemn character of the Adagio has led to its
SAMUEL BARBER Born March 9, 1910, West Chester, Pennsylvania Died January 23, 1981, New York City Barber spent the summer and fall of 1936 in the small village of St. Wolfgang in the Tyrol. The 26-year-old composer had just completed
suddenly, falls away and concludes on nearly inaudible fragments of the original theme.
frequent use as mourning music, much to Barber’s distress. It was broadcast in both the United States and England immediately following the announcement of President Roosevelt’s death in 1945, and – ironically – it was performed by the New York Philharmonic to mark Barber’s own death in 1981. More recently, the Adagio has almost become a victim of its own success: it seems fated to be used
a symphony, and now his thoughts turned to chamber music. The
whenever someone needs music that sounds both “ceremonial” and
Curtis String Quartet, made up of friends from the Curtis Institute,
“American,” and its obsessive use as part of the soundtrack of the
was planning a European tour that fall, and they had invited Barber
motion picture Platoon is only one example. Perhaps the best way to
to compose a quartet for them to play on the tour. Barber struggled
hear this familiar music is to try – as much as possible – to scrape it
with it, however, and the Quartet in B minor – as the three-movement
free of these cultural accretions and to listen to the skill with which its
quartet was called – was not ready for the Curtis Quartet to play; the
young creator takes his solemn melody – still beautiful after countless
Pro Arte Quartet eventually gave the first performance in Rome on
hearings – and builds it to that powerful climax, then leads it through
December 14, 1936. Even before the quartet had been played, though,
its long descent into silence. n
Barber knew that there was something extraordinary about its central movement, an Adagio. On September 13, 1936, he wrote to the cellist of the Curtis Quartet: “I have just finished the slow movement of my quartet today – it is a knockout!” During the summers of these years, Barber and his friend Gian Carlo Menotti had been visiting Arturo Toscanini at the conductor’s summer home at a villa on Lake Maggiore. In the summer of 1937, the conductor – who had just heard Barber’s First Symphony performed at the Salzburg Festival – asked to see some of his music, and the young composer sent Toscanini the manuscript scores of an Essay for Orchestra and of an arrangement for string orchestra he had made of the quartet’s slow movement. But then Barber heard nothing, and the scores were returned by mail, without comment. Stung, Barber refused to accompany Menotti when his friend went to say goodbye to the maestro at the end of the summer. Toscanini recognized what had happened and said to Menotti: “Tell him not to be mad. I’m not going to play one of his pieces, I’m going to play them both.” The
24
PERFORM A NCES MAGAZINE
Symphony No. 1: Jeremiah LEONARD BERNSTEIN Born August 25, 1918, Lawrence, MA Died October 14, 1990, New York City Leonard Bernstein graduated from Harvard in 1939, unsure about which course he should pursue: should he be a composer of classical music, a composer of shows, a song-writer, a conductor or a pianist? That fall he entered the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia for graduate study, and those months brought two other events of significance. In September Hitler invaded Poland, World War II began, and chaos descended on Europe. And that December Bernstein sketched a piece for mezzo-soprano and orchestra that he called a “Hebrew song.” Based on a text drawn from the Book of Lamentations, the piece lay unfinished while Bernstein continued his studies at Curtis.
S AN DIEG O SYM P H O N Y O RC H ES T RA 2 0 1 7-1 8 S E A S ON M AY 20 1 8
PROGRAM NOTES | BARBER, BERNSTEIN, BEETHOVEN – MAY 11, 12, 13 Move ahead three years: in the fall of 1942 Bernstein learned of a
SOME NOTES: Bernstein insisted that there was no specifically Jewish
composing competition sponsored by the New England Conservatory.
musical material in Jeremiah, but others have disagreed, making out
Working as fast as he could, Bernstein revised his “Hebrew song,”
traces of Hebrew cantillation, particularly in the second and third
composed two new, purely instrumental movements to precede it,
movements. Several people who saw the symphony in score before its
and assembled them as his First Symphony, which he titled Jeremiah.
premiere – including Serge Koussevitzky, Fritz Reiner and Bernstein’s
He barely got it done in time. The deadline was December 31, and
own father Samuel – felt that it needed a fourth movement, one more
in the desperate effort to finish in time Bernstein enlisted a small
consoling after the agonized lamentation that had gone before, but
band of associates, including his sister Shirley, the composer David
the 24-year-old composer refused, feeling that the symphony was
Diamond and the clarinetist David Oppenheim to help with the
emotionally correct in its three-movement form. Those interested
copying and editing. A friend rushed the manuscript to Boston and
in this music should know that in February 1945, a year after the
turned it in late on New Year’s Eve. Bernstein’s symphony did not win
premiere, Bernstein recorded Jeremiah with the Saint Louis Symphony
the competition (one wonders what happened to the piece that did),
and mezzo-soprano Jennie Tourel. That performance has been
but something better happened. His conducting teacher at Curtis, the
remastered and is available on compact disc. n
formidable Fritz Reiner, saw the score, liked it and invited Bernstein to conduct the premiere with Reiner’s own orchestra, the Pittsburgh Symphony. That premiere – on January 28, 1944, with Jennie Tourel as soloist – was so successful that Bernstein was quickly invited to conduct his new symphony with the Boston Symphony, New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, Saint Louis Symphony and others. The New York Music Critics Circle subsequently named Jeremiah the outstanding new classical work of the 1944 season. Bernstein drew his text for the last movement from the Book of Lamentations, Chapters 1, 4, and 5. Lamentations, attributed to the prophet Jeremiah but almost certainly not written by him, agonizes over the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 BC by the forces of Nebuchadnezzar, questions whether God has turned against the Jews and wonders how they might re-establish a relationship. Bernstein’s symphony, like Beethoven’s Ninth and Mahler’s Resurrection Symphony, opens with purely instrumental movements that are then completed by a finale whose text gives meaning to the entire symphonic journey. Bernstein did not want Jeremiah considered program music, and he offered a summary of his intentions: As for programmatic meanings, the intention is…not one of literalness, but of emotional quality. Thus the first movement (“Prophecy”) aims only to parallel in feeling the intensity of the prophet’s pleas with his people; and the scherzo (“Profanation”) to give a general sense of the destruction and chaos brought on by the pagan corruption within the priesthood and the people. The third movement (“Lamentation”), being a setting of a poetic text, is naturally a more literary conception. It is the cry of Jeremiah, as he mourns his beloved Jerusalem, ruined, pillaged and dishonored after his desperate efforts to save it.
Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat Major, Op. 73: Emperor LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Born December 16, 1770, Bonn Died March 26, 1827, Vienna In the spring of 1809 Napoleon – intent upon consolidating his hold on Europe – went to war with Austria. He laid siege to Vienna in May, and after a brief bombardment the city surrendered to the French and was occupied through the remainder of the year. The royal family fled early in May and did not return until January 1810, but Beethoven remained behind throughout the shelling and occupation, and it was during this period that he completed his Fifth Piano Concerto. Some critics have been ready to take their cue from the French occupation and to understand the concerto as Beethoven’s response to it. Alfred Einstein identified what he called a “military character” in this music, and Maynard Solomon has particularized this, hearing “warlike rhythms, victory motifs, thrusting melodies and affirmative character” in it. But – far from being swept up in the fervor of the fighting – Beethoven found the occupation a source of stress and depression. During the shelling, he hid in the basement of his brother Caspar’s house, where he wrapped his head in pillows to protect his ears. To his publishers, Beethoven wrote: “The course of events has affected my body and soul…Life around me is wild and disturbing, nothing but drums, cannons, soldiers, misery of every sort.” The concerto he wrote during this period may be noble and powerful music, but it is noble and powerful in spite of the military occupation rather than
Bernstein may not have wanted Jeremiah to be taken as program
because of it. And in fact, Beethoven had done much of the work on
music, but it is impossible not to make a connection between the
the concerto before the French army entered Vienna: his earliest
agonized text and what was happening in Europe during the period
sketches date from February 1809, and he appears to have had the
it was composed. To newspaper reporters, Bernstein made that
concerto largely complete by April, before the fighting began.
connection clear: “How can I be blind to the problems of my own people? I’d give everything I have to be able to strike a death blow at Fascism.”
S A N D I EG O SYMPHONY ORC HESTRA 2017-18 SE ASON M AY 2018
Beethoven defies expectations from the opening instant of this music. The Allegro bursts to life with a resplendent E-flat Major chord for the whole orchestra, but this is not the start of the expected orchestral
P ERFO RM AN C ES MAG A Z I N E
25
PROGRAM NOTES | BARBER, BERNSTEIN, BEETHOVEN – MAY 11, 12, 13 exposition. Instead, that chord opens the way for a cadenza by the
doubt one of the most original, imaginative, most effective but also
solo piano, a cadenza that the orchestra punctuates twice more
one of the most difficult of all existing concertos…the crowded
with powerful chords before sweeping into the movement’s main
audience was soon put into such a state of enthusiasm that it could
theme and the true exposition. This first movement is marked by a
hardly content itself with the ordinary expressions of recognition and
spaciousness and grandeur far removed from Beethoven’s misery over
enjoyment.” But the Vienna premiere – on February 12, 1812, with
the fighting that wracked Vienna. This is music of shining sweep, built
Beethoven’s pupil Carl Czerny as soloist – did not have a success. One
on two main ideas, both somewhat in the manner of marches: the
journal noted the difficulty of the music and suggested that “It can be
strings’ vigorous main subject and a poised second theme, sounded
understood and appreciated only by connoisseurs.”
first by the strings, then repeated memorably as a duet for horns. After so vigorous an exposition, the entrance of the piano feels understated, as it ruminates on the two main themes, but soon the piano part – full of octaves, wide leaps and runs – turns as difficult as it is brilliant. This Allegro is music of an unusual spaciousness: at a length of nearly 20 minutes, it is one of Beethoven’s longest first movements (and is longer than the final two movements combined). Beethoven maintains strict control: he does not allow the soloist the freedom
The nickname “Emperor” did not originate with the composer, and Beethoven’s denunciation of Napoleon’s self-coronation several years earlier suggests that he would not have been sympathetic to it at all. Despite various theories, the source of that nickname remains unknown, and almost certainly Beethoven never heard this concerto referred to by the nickname that we use reflexively today. n
-Program notes by Eric Bromberger
to create his own cadenza but instead writes out a brief cadential treatment of the movement’s themes. The Adagio un poco mosso transports us to a different world altogether. Gone is the energy of the first movement, and now we seem in the midst of sylvan calm. Beethoven moves to the remote key of B Major and mutes the strings, which sing the hymn-like main theme. There follow two extended variations on that rapt melody. The first, for piano over quiet accompaniment, might almost be labeled “Chopinesque” in its expressive freedom, while the second is for winds, embellished by the piano’s steady strands of sixteenths. As he did in the Fourth Piano Concerto, Beethoven links the second and third movements, and that transition is made most effectively here. The second movement concludes on a low B, and then Beethoven drops everything one half-step to B-flat. Out of that expectant change, the piano begins, very gradually, to outline a melodic idea, which struggles to take shape and direction. And then suddenly it does – it is as if these misty imaginings have been hit with an electric current that snaps them to vibrant life as the main theme of final movement. This Allegro is a vigorous rondo that alternates lyric episodes with some of Beethoven’s most rhythmically-energized writing – this music always seems to want to dance. Near the close comes one of its most striking moments, a duet for piano and timpani, which taps out the movement’s fundamental rhythm. And then the piano leaps up to energize the full orchestra, which concludes with one final recall of the rondo theme. At the time he wrote this concerto, Beethoven was 38 and his hearing
Performance History
by Dr. Melvin G. Goldzband, Symphony Archivist Samuel Barber's lovely Adagio for Strings has become a popular favorite, at least partially by having been placed as background music for numerous films and TV shows, a situation hardly considered by Toscanini when he lovingly conducted the music's premiere. Robert Shaw conducted it here for the first time in the summer of 1954. Jahja Ling led the seventh outing of this piece with the orchestra in the 2008-09 season. Bernstein's Jeremiah Symphony, his first, became an instant hit and was played by numerous orchestras as soon as the music became available. Bernstein had become that hot. His recording with the St. Louis Symphony quickly sold out of copies in its first printing. But the work is being given its first San Diego Symphony performance at these concerts. In 1914, Wilhelm Kreuz, with Buren Schryock conducting the first San Diego Symphony Orchestra, gave local audiences their first hearing of Beethoven's great Fifth Piano Concerto, the Emperor. With the contemporary San Diego Symphony, Rudolf Serkin and Robert Shaw, 40 years later, gave later San Diego Symphony audiences their own first hearing of the piece. Justifiably popular, it has been heard since then at these concerts 21 times, most recently when Cristian Măcalaru conducted it with Jeremy Denk as soloist in the 2015-16 season. n
was deteriorating rapidly. It had become so weak by this time that he knew he could not give the first performance of the concerto – this is the only one of his piano concertos for which he did not give the premiere. That premiere had to wait two years after the concerto’s completion: it took place in Leipzig on November 28, 1811, with Friedrich Schuster as soloist. That performance, which Beethoven did not attend, was a great success; a reviewer wrote that “It is without
26
PERFORM A NCES MAGAZINE
S AN DIEG O SYM P H O N Y O RC H ES T RA 2 0 1 7-1 8 S E A S ON M AY 20 1 8