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Program Notes SATURDAY, OCT 4, 2008, 8:00
P.M. Strathmore Overture Andreas Makris Andreas Makris served for many years as violinist in the
National Symphony Orchestra as well as its Composer in Residence. It is telling
that the famed cellist and former music director of the National Symphony, Mstislav Rostropovich, who has worked with the likes of
Dmitri Shostakovich and Sergei Prokofiev, commissioned more works from Makris
than from any other composer, stating once: “In my opinion, Makris is a great
composer.” Makris and National Philharmonic maestro, “The work is about 4-5 minutes long; it starts with a slow
opening, but with a rather aggressive and pointed texture. After a short
development of the opening theme, there is a clarinet cadenza. From there on,
the music becomes more robust with emphasis on different rhythms. The
development of this new theme is shortly interrupted with material from the
slow movement. Then the music rushes uninterrupted, with a fast texture, up to
the end like a rushing cascade.” Notes by Sara Coffey Violin Concerto No. 2
in D minor, Op. 22 Henryk Wieniawski Henryk Wieniawski was recognized by
his peers as one of the greatest violin virtuosos of his time. Making his
concerto debut appearance in Wieniawski’s Violin Concerto No. 2 in D minor premiered on November 27, 1862 by the composer himself with the
Orchestra of the Russian Musical Society, conducted by Anton Rubinstein. The performance was so intense
that, following the concert, the music critic César Cui wrote to his friend Balakirev: “I still
haven’t recovered from the impact of that first Allegro.” The concerto was published a few years later, in 1870,
inscribed to Wieniawski’s dear friend
Pablo de Sarasate; however, the composer may have started to work on the
piece as early as 1856. Today this concerto remains one of the greatest violin
concertos of the Romantic Era, and has become a part of the standard repertoire
for violinists worldwide. The great violinist David Oistrakh said: “Wieniawski’s works, like Paganini’s compositions,
accompany the violinist along the entire artistic journey.” This is because the concerto’s
moving harmonies, dazzling embellishments and beautiful melodies, combined with
a demanding technique from the soloist and exposing the composer’s Slavic
temperament, remain equally soothing as well as impressive, creating many
memorable moments for both the performer and the audience, especially from its opening
movement or the finale written in the ‘gypsy style.’ Concerto No. 2 well
reflects Wieniawski’s individual style – a combination of deep poetry and musical
exuberance of technical perfection, combined with a bright virtuosity of the
violin solo part. No wonder that Anton Rubinstein called Wieniawski “without
a doubt the greatest violinist of his time.” As such, he was one of the
greatest influences to the whole The first movement (Allegro moderato) opens with an orchestral tutti, a lyrical theme that leads to passionate violin passages. The second theme, which runs through all parts of the Concerto, contributes to creating its organic integrity. The solo violin passages skillfully blend within the orchestral sound until they take the lead and advance forward. The solo cadenza gives to the violinist an opportunity to demonstrate the ability for virtuoso improvisation, until the concluding tutti creates a bridge for the vibrant second movement (Romance). Opening with one of Wieniawski’s most beautiful melodies, this rhapsodic movement flows through a series of graceful exchanges between the violin and orchestra. In the middle of this section, dramatized intonations of the secondary theme of the first movement come back to life. Another brilliant solo cadenza introduces the Rondo finale, a dazzling violin showpiece of a Hungarian gypsy cast. The composer himself referred to the program concept of the finale: “I really wanted to paint a small village scene: an evening summer and the villagers have gathered on the village square and want to dance; general merriment, joking and laughter.” Following wonderful melodies, that recall several motifs from Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsodies, the final appearance of the first movement’s secondary theme leads to a fiery finale. Notes by Predrag Gosta Symphony No. 9
in D minor, Op. 125 "Choral" Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven was one of seven children born to Johann van Beethoven and Maria Magdalena
Keverich. His musical talent was recognized very early, and he received his
first piano lessons from his father, who tried to push his career as a child
prodigy. Later Beethoven continued studies with Tobias Pfeiffer and Christian
Gottlob Neefe in Symphony No. 9, also known as “Choral” Symphony, is undoubtedly
one of Beethoven’s best known works. Throughout history, it has become a symbol
of freedom, a celebration of humanity and a landmark of musical history. The
symphony owes its fame to “Ode to Joy”, a luxurious musical setting of Schiller’s poem, which today
remains one of the most recognized melodies of all times. The union between music and text is so perfect that one might
conclude that in setting the poem, Beethoven’s inspiration served him really
well. But history tells us a bit of a different story: the composer struggled with
the musical ideas for several years, until he was able to finally put them
together. Although he wanted to incorporate choral voices within the symphony, how
to do this was a voyage of discovery for him. The piece was completed in
January of 1824, but the first sketches date from as early as 1813. Initially, the
Finale was to be orchestral only, but
it was obvious that Beethoven needed another medium to express his musical
thoughts and his inner feelings. His personal life at the time was a handful:
he struggled with finances, relationships, lawsuits, and most importantly with
ongoing hearing problems, which had impacted him so badly that, by the time his
final symphony was finished, he seemed to have been completely (or almost
completely) deaf. One can only imagine what kind of frustration this must have
been for him: the ear is every musician’s most important asset – the loss of
hearing can be nothing less than one of the biggest curses. Symphony No. 9 premiered at Vienna Kärtnetor
Theater on Among all of the nine symphonies, the “Choral” Symphony stands
out not only as one of Beethoven’s best, but also as one of his most controversial
works. Notwithstanding the disagreement among music scholars as to
whether Beethoven was a Classical or a Romantic composer, being the composer’s
last symphony (he died two years later), the ninth is obviously written in a
very Romantic style. In addition, the circumstances of how it originated led to
the creation of a phenomenon known as “The Curse of the Ninth.” Many other famous
composers, including Franz Schubert,
Antonín Dvořák, Anton Bruckner and Gustav Mahler, all died after they
composed only nine symphonies.All controversy aside, however, Symphony
No. 9, with its “Ode to Joy,” remains one of Ludwig van Beethoven’s most
beloved, well known, and often performed works – together with his Symphony No.
5, the “Moonlight” Sonata, and bagatelle for piano, Für Elise. Notes by Predrag Gosta
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