LAN SHUI Music Director
subscription concert
Emperor And PathĂŠtique 25 August 2017 Esplanade Concert Hall Performing Home of the SSO
Kahchun Wong, conductor Shai Wosner, piano
25 Aug 2017, Fri
Emperor And Pathétique Singapore Symphony Orchestra Kahchun Wong, conductor
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN
Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major, Op. 73 “Emperor” 38’00
1. Allegro 2. Adagio un poco mosso 3. Rondo: Allegro Shai Wosner, piano Intermission 20’00
Shai Wosner will autograph CDs in the stalls foyer.
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Op. 74 “Pathétique” 46’00
1. Adagio – Allegro non troppo 2. Allegro con grazia 3. Allegro molto vivace 4. Adagio lamentoso
Concert duration: 2 hrs Go green. Digital programme booklets are available on www.sso.org.sg. Scan the QR code in the foyer to view a copy.
S ing a p or e S y mp hon y Or c he s t r a ‘A fine display of orchestral bravado for the SSO and Shui’ The Guardian
Since its founding in 1979, the Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO) has been Singapore’s flagship orchestra, touching lives through classical music and providing the heartbeat of the cultural scene in the cosmopolitan city-state. In addition to its subscription series concerts, the orchestra is well-loved for its outdoor and community appearances, and its significant role educating the young people of Singapore. The SSO has also earned an international reputation for its orchestral virtuosity, having garnered sterling reviews for its overseas tours and many successful recordings. The SSO makes its performing home at the 1,800-seat state-of-the-art Esplanade Concert Hall. More intimate works and all outreach and community performances take place at the
673-seat Victoria Concert Hall, the home of the SSO. The orchestra performs 100 concerts a year, and its versatile repertoire spans alltime favourites and orchestral masterpieces to exciting cutting-edge premieres. Bridging the musical traditions of East and West, Singaporean and Asian musicians and composers are regularly showcased in the concert season. This has been a core of the SSO’s programming philosophy from the very beginning under Choo Hoey, who was Music Director from 1979 to 1996. Since Lan Shui assumed the position of Music Director in 1997, the SSO has performed in Europe, Asia and the United States. In May 2016 the SSO was invited to perform at the Dresden Music Festival and the Prague Spring International Music Festival. This successful five‑city tour of
Germany and Prague also included the SSO’s return to the Berlin Philharmonie after six years. In 2014 the SSO’s debut at the 120th BBC Proms in London received critical acclaim in the major UK newspapers The Guardian and Telegraph. The SSO has also performed in China on multiple occasions. Notable SSO releases under BIS include a Rachmaninov series, a Debussy disc, “Seascapes” featuring sea-themed music by Debussy, Frank Bridge, Glazunov and Zhou Long, and the first-ever cycle of Tcherepnin’s piano concertos and symphonies. The SSO has also collaborated with such great artists as Lorin Maazel, Charles Dutoit, Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Neeme Järvi, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Lang Lang, Yo-Yo Ma, Leonidas Kavakos and Gil Shaham.
K a hc hun Wong conductor
The Singaporean conductor Kahchun Wong came to international attention as winner of the Mahler Competition in May 2016, following in the footsteps of Gustavo Dudamel, who immediately appointed him as a Conducting Fellow with the Los Angeles Philharmonic for the 2016/2017 season. After an astounding last-minute debut with the Nuremberg Symphony Orchestra in October 2016, he was unanimously elected as its next Chief Conductor from the 2018/2019 season. Wong begins his 2017/2018 season with the Singapore Symphony, followed by debuts with the Czech Philharmonic, Konzerthausorchester Berlin, National Symphony of Taiwan, Orchestre Capitole du Toulouse, Orquestra de València, Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg, Shenzhen Symphony, and Teatro lirico Giuseppe Verdi di Trieste, as well as re-invitations to the Bamberg Symphony, China Philharmonic, George Enescu Philharmonic and Shanghai Symphony. In December 2017, he will tour China with the Nuremberg Symphony and in summer 2018, lead Klassik Open-Air, the largest European outdoor festival of classical music. A protégé of the late Kurt Masur, Wong has also assisted Gustavo Dudamel and Esa-Pekka Salonen with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Valery Gergiev and Yannick Nézet-Séguin with the Rotterdam Philharmonic, and Tsung Yeh with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra. He has additionally been invited by Ivan Fischer to deputise with the Budapest Festival Orchestra on its North American tour in January 2018. A Lee Kuan Yew Scholar (Public Service Commission), Wong studied conducting at the Hans-Eisler Musikhochschule in Berlin and composition at the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music.
Sh a i Wo sne r piano
Pianist Shai Wosner has attracted international recognition for his exceptional artistry, musical integrity and creative insight. His performances of a broad range of repertoire, from Beethoven and Mozart to Schoenberg and Ligeti, as well as music by his contemporaries, communicate his imaginative programming and intellectual curiosity. A favourite among audiences and critics, he has been called a “highly intelligent player in his prime” (The Washington Post) with a “keen musical mind and deep musical soul” (All Things Considered). The latest addition to Wosner’s discography features an eclectic pairing of concertos and solo pieces by Haydn and Ligeti, with conductor Nicholas Collon and the Danish National Symphony Orchestra. The album marks Wosner’s first orchestral recording and his fourth for the Onyx label. Shai Wosner has appeared with major orchestras in North America including the Chicago Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl, National Arts Centre Orchestra, The St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, and the symphony orchestras of Atlanta, Baltimore, Berkeley, Dallas, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh and San Francisco. His performance with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra was broadcast on American Public Radio. Recent international appearances include concerts with the Hungarian National Philharmonic, Helsinki Philharmonic and the Badische Staatskapelle.
SSO MU S ICIAN S Lan Shui Music Director joshua tan Associate Conductor jason lai Associate Conductor andrew litton Principal Guest Conductor Choo Hoey Conductor Emeritus Eudenice Palaruan Choral Director
FIRST VIOLIN Igor Yuzefovich° Concertmaster Lynnette Seah Co-Concertmaster Kong Zhao Hui* Associate Concertmaster Chan Yoong-Han Fixed Chair Cao Can* Chen Da Wei Duan Yu Ling Foo Say Ming Gu Wen Li Jin Li Cindy Lee Lim Shue Churn^ Sui Jing Jing Karen Tan William Tan Wei Zhe SECOND VIOLIN Michael Loh Associate Principal Hai-Won Kwok Fixed Chair Nikolai Koval*
Ionut Mazareanu^ Chikako Sasaki* Margit Saur Shao Tao Tao Edward Tan^ Lillian Wang Wu Man Yun* Xu Jue Yi* Ye Lin* Yeo Teow Meng Yin Shu Zhan* Zhang Si Jing* VIOLA Zhang Manchin Principal Guan Qi Associate Principal Gu Bing Jie* Fixed Chair Marietta Ku Born Lau^ Lim Chun^ Liu Hang^ Luo Biao Shui Bing Tan Wee-Hsin Janice Tsai^ Yang Shi Li Yeo Jan Wea^ CELLO Ng Pei-Sian Principal Yu Jing Associate Principal Guo Hao Fixed Chair Chan Wei Shing Ding Xiao Feng^ Lin Juan^ Song Woon Teng Wang Yan Wang Zihao* Peter Wilson Wu Dai Dai Zhao Yu Er DOUBLE BASS Guennadi Mouzyka Principal Yang Zheng Yi Associate Principal Karen Yeo Fixed Chair Olga Alexandrova
Raffael Bietenhader^ Julian Li^ Ma Li Ming^ Jacek Mirucki Wang Xu FLUTE Jin Ta Principal Evgueni Brokmiller Associate Principal Roberto Alvarez Miao Shanshan PICCOLO
HORN Han Chang Chou Principal Gao Jian Associate Principal Jamie Hersch Associate Principal Marc-Antoine Robillard Associate Principal Hoang Van Hoc^ Kartik Alan Jairamin TRUMPET Jon Paul Dante Principal David Smith Associate Principal Lau Wen Rong Sergey Tyuteykin
Roberto Alvarez Assistant Principal TROMBONE OBOE Rachel Walker Principal Pan Yun Associate Principal Carolyn Hollier Elaine Yeo COR ANGLAIS Elaine Yeo Associate Principal CLARINET Ma Yue Principal Li Xin Associate Principal Liu Yoko Tang Xiao Ping BASS CLARINET Tang Xiao Ping Assistant Principal BASSOON Liu Chang Associate Principal Christoph Wichert Zhao Ying Xue
Allen Meek Principal Damian Patti Associate Principal Samuel Armstrong BASS TROMBONE Wang Wei Assistant Principal TUBA Hidehiro Fujita Principal TIMPANI Christian Schiøler Principal Jonathan Fox Associate Principal PERCUSSION Jonathan Fox Principal Mark Suter Associate Principal Lim Meng Keh Zhu Zheng Yi HARP Gulnara Mashurova Principal
CONTRA BASSOON Zhao Ying Xue Assistant Principal
*With deep appreciation to the Rin Collection for their generous loan of string instruments. °Igor Yuzefovich plays an instrument generously loaned by Mr & Mrs G K Goh ^Musician on temporary contract Musicians listed alphabetically by family name rotate their seats on a per programme basis.
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he a r t f e lt t h a nks to t he f r ie nds a nd fa mily of mr g oh g eok k him In appreciation of a major gift from the Family and Friends of Mr Goh Geok Khim on the occasion of his 85th birthday on 17 July 2017, the Singapore Symphony Orchestra is pleased to announce the naming of the SSO Concertmaster position, the GK Goh Chair.
Igor Yuzefovich Concertmaster The GK Goh Chair Endowed by the Family and Friends of Mr Goh Geok Khim
mu s ic i a n c h a ir s
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8 September 2017
Fri | 7.30pm Esplanade Concert Hall Subscription Concert
LITTON•BAVOUZET SHOSTAKOVICH October, Op. 131 BARTÓK Piano Concerto No. 1 TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Op. 36 Andrew Litton, conductor Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, piano “Bartók gives me hope, makes me laugh, brings me to tears and makes me see life in a bigger perspective. He helps me to live.” – Jean-Efflam Bavouzet Pre-concert Talk 6.30pm | library@esplanade Post-concert MEET & GREET with Andrew Litton and Jean-Efflam Bavouzet. Visit www.sso.org.sg/friends for more details.
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LUDW IG VAN B EETHOVEN (1770 -18 27 ) Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major, Op. 73 “Emperor”
38’00
Although Beethoven did not affix a subtitle to this work, in its grandeur and splendour, it is indeed an emperor among concertos. The name, which, strangely enough, is not used in German-speaking countries, appears to have been bestowed by the pianist and publisher John Cramer, a close friend of Beethoven. Another theory has it that a French officer called out “C’est l’empereur” during a majestic passage at the first Viennese performance. In any case, Beethoven would certainly not have had in mind to honour Napoleon: the French, led by their Emperor, were once again at war with Austria, and in the spring of 1809, France occupied Vienna. “Nothing but drums, cannons, human misery of every sort!” wrote Beethoven on 26 July to his publisher in Leipzig. But the spirit of heroism nonetheless infuses this music, and the Emperor Concerto, over and above its inherent musical qualities, stands as a stirring testament to man’s heroic will to survive in trying times. The last of Beethoven’s five piano concertos was finished in October of 1809, but its first performance waited for over two years; this took place in Leipzig on 28 November 1811 with Johann Philipp Christian Schulz conducting the Gewandhaus Orchestra and soloist Friedrich Schneider. (There may have been earlier performances, or private ones, but these are unconfirmed.) The first Viennese performance took place in February of 1812. Here the critical reception was much cooler. Beethoven was accused of “being able to obtain the support only of connoisseurs”. But in neither performance was he the soloist. He had played the premieres of his four previous concertos, but now his hearing was so far gone that a continuing career as a pianist was out of the question. The Emperor Concerto opens in resplendent majesty: three imperious chords are sounded by the orchestra, each in turn elaborated by the soloist in “fountains and cascades” (to quote Michael Steinberg’s apt phrase) of arpeggios, trills, scales and broken octaves. Following this impressive introduction comes the first subject – a big, sonorous, richly scored theme punctuated with martial elements. The mysterious second theme occurs first in tentative tones in E-flat minor, then immediately afterwards in a flowing legato horn duet in E-flat major. When the piano finally returns, the two principal themes and other material are elaborated and developed in a mighty discourse between soloist and orchestra.
The movement’s majestic grandeur is reflected in its length. At about twenty minutes, it was the longest concerto movement written to date, and it had few equals until Brahms’ concertos of more than half a century later. Another notable feature of this movement is the incorporation of the improvisatory introduction (those grand chords for full orchestra followed by extended flourishes from the soloist) into the recapitulation as an essential organic component of the formal structure. Still another departure from tradition is the omission of the standard cadenza for the soloist, this function having already been fulfilled by the opening flourishes and the return of this passage at the recapitulation. The slow movement is one of Beethoven’s most profound. A hushed mood of sublime simplicity offers refreshing, soothing contrast to the militant grandeur and exuberance of the first movement. At its conclusion, in a transitional passage, Beethoven outlines the principal theme of the next movement, and suddenly, without a break, the jubilant finale bursts forth in full panoply. Although nominally in rondo form, there is but a single contrasting episode, a lyrical theme of regal bearing heard twice in the course of the movement, but only by the soloist. In the central episode, the galloping main theme is subjected to what amounts to a short series of variations as Beethoven re-introduces it three times, each in a different key in succession (C major, A-flat major, E major) before returning to the home key of E-flat. Eventually the theme expires, almost as if exhausted from its relentless repetitions, only to revive in one final, exuberant burst of energy.
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOV SK Y (18 4 0 -18 93) Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Op. 74 “Pathétique”
46’00
So firmly entrenched in the public consciousness is this symphony’s subtitle that the work is often referred to simply as “The Pathétique”. Yet, just one day after naming the symphony, Tchaikovsky tried to get his publisher, Jurgenson, to remove the word. But Jurgenson, no doubt with an eye towards the sales potential of such a catchy title, let the work go out as “Symphonie pathétique”, and the name stuck. The Russian patetichesky, incidentally, derives from the Greek patheticos, referring to something passionate, emotional, and having overtones of suffering. Death seems to lurk in much of the work. The words “death” and “dying” occur in a letter Tchaikovsky wrote explaining the plan of the symphony. Some listeners hear an expression of a hypersensitive artist given to alternating moods of exaltation and dejection, and try to follow each emotional state in the music as a mirror of the composer’s soul. Predominantly dark orchestral colours, the frequent use of sinking themes and downward scales, the minor tonality, outbursts of defiance and poignant dissonances all contribute to Tchaikovsky’s expressive purpose. Other listeners take their cue from critic Philip Hale, who wrote, “Here is a work that, without a hint or a suggestion of a programme, sums up in the most imaginative language the life of man, with his illusions, desires, loves, struggles, victories, unavoidable end.” Musicologist and composer Jonathan Kramer offers this balanced view: “Tchaikovsky’s sentimentalism was symptomatic of his era, but today the excesses of late romantic art can be appreciated in their historical context. We have known, in the wars of the twentieth century, a deeper and far more devastating hysteria than is depicted in the Sixth Symphony. The unbridled outpouring of this music, especially in its last movement, is tolerable today because it does not seem to portray the deepest possible human despair.” Tchaikovsky began working on his last symphony in February of 1893 and conducted the first performance on 28 October in St. Petersburg. It was only mildly successful, due to a puzzling Adagio finale that ended softly, an indifferent orchestra, and the composer’s consequent lack of enthusiastic leadership. At the second performance, three weeks later, conducted
by Eduard Napravnik, the symphony left a powerful impression. But the composer was dead – his Symphonie pathétique had become his swan song. In the first movement, the introductory bassoon solo, which crawls slowly through the murkiest colours of the orchestra, becomes the melodic material for the Allegro section’s principal theme. The second theme, presented by the violins, is probably the most memorable of the entire work – haunting in its beauty, poignancy, and sad lyricism. The clarinet brings this theme down to the limits of audibility … a crash abruptly shatters the mood, and the development section ensues, one of the most violent and ferocious passages Tchaikovsky ever wrote. A brief recapitulation is followed by a consoling coda. The second movement is sometimes referred to as a “broken-backed waltz”, limping yet graceful, in 5/4 meter. A trio section in the middle, also in 5/4, is noteworthy for the steady, pulsing notes in the bassoons, double basses and timpani. The third movement combines elements of a light scherzo with a heavy march. So festive and exuberant does the march become that one is tempted to stand and cheer at the end, making all the more effective the anguished cry that opens the finale. The finale’s infinitely warm and tender second theme in D major works itself into a brilliant climax and crashes in a tumultuous descent of scales in the strings. The first theme returns in continuously rising peaks of intensity, agitation and dramatic conflict. Finally the energy is spent, the sense of struggle subsides, and a solemn trombone chorale leads into the return of the movement’s second theme, no longer in D major but in B minor – dark, dolorous, weighted down in inexpressible grief and resignation. The underlying heart throb of double basses eventually ceases and the symphony dies away into blackness … nothingness … Programme notes by Robert Markow
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A S ta nding Ovat ion to o ur c or p or at e Pa r t ne r s Patron Sponsor
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Official Hotel
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Official outdoor media partner
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LEE FOUNDATION
Supported by various corporate sponsors and individual donors, the Singapore Symphony Orchestra is a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee and registered under the Charities Order.
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