Download Program Notes: Beethoven`s Fifth

Program Notes: Beethoven’s Fifth
Notes on the Program by Ken Meltzer
Mothership (2011)
Mason Bates was born in Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania, on January 23, 1977. The
first performance of Mothership took
place at the Sydney Opera House in
Sydney, Australia, on March 20, 2011, with
Michael Tilson Thomas conducting the
YouTube Symphony.
Instrumentation: Mothership is scored for
piccolo, three flutes, three oboes, English horn,
E-flat clarinet, two clarinets, bass clarinet, two
bassoons, contrabassoon, four horns, three
trumpets, two trombones, bass trombone, tuba,
timpani, percussion (three players), laptop, harp,
piano, and strings.
Duration: 9 minutes
This energetic opener imagines the orchestra as
a mothership that is ‘docked’ by several visiting
soloists, who offer brief but virtuosic riffs on
the work’s thematic material over action-packed
electro-acoustic orchestral figuration.
The piece follows the form of a scherzo with
double trio (as found in, for example, the
Schumann Symphony No. 2). Symphonic
scherzos historically play with dance rhythms in a
high-energy and appealing manner, with the ‘trio’
sections temporarily exploring new rhythmic
areas. Mothership shares a formal connection
with the symphonic scherzo but is brought to
life by thrilling sounds of the 21st Century — the
rhythms of modern-day techno in place of waltz
rhythms, for example.
Recorded by the London Symphony Orchestra
under Michael Tilson Thomas, Mothership
received its world premiere at the Sydney Opera
House and the YouTube Symphony on March 20,
2011, and it was viewed by almost two million
people live on YouTube.
—Mason Bates
http://www.masonbates.com/work/workmothership.html
§
Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche (Till
Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks), Opus 28
(1895)
Richard Strauss was born in Munich,
Germany, on June 11, 1864, and died in
Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, on
September 8, 1949. The first performance
of Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche took
place in Cologne, Germany, on November
5, 1895, with Franz Wüllner conducting
the Gürzenich Orchestra.
Instrumentation: Till Eulenspiegel is scored
for piccolo, three flutes, three oboes, English
horn, two clarinets, E-flat clarinet, bass clarinet,
three bassoons, contrabassoon, four horns,
three trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani,
large ratchet, snare drum, cymbals, field drum,
triangle, bass drum, and strings.
Duration: 15 minutes
The legendary prankster Till Eulenspiegel
(whose last name translates as “Owl Glass” or
“Owl’s Mirror”) may have been an actual person.
But others believe that Till Eulenspiegel, who
delighted in revealing the foibles of the rich and
powerful, was a purely mythical figure created to
entertain the laborer and peasant, as well as those
members of the privileged class who enjoyed a
laugh at their own expense.
Till’s adventures were published in book form and
circulated throughout Europe. Eulenspiegel was
well known and adored by 19th-century German
schoolchildren, including Richard Strauss.
As an adult, Strauss first conceived of an operatic
setting of Till’s misadventures, and began to
sketch a libretto in June of 1893. However, the
lack of success of Strauss’s first operatic effort,
Guntrum (1894), may have encouraged the
composer to present his musical vision of Till in
purely orchestral fashion. Strauss completed the
miraculous score, described by the great 20thcentury German conductor Wilhelm Furtwängler
as “a stroke of genius, worthy of Beethoven,” on
May 6, 1895. The premiere took place that year
in Cologne on November 5, with Franz Wüllner
leading the Gürzenich Orchestra.
Till Eulenspiegel is based upon two central
themes, introduced at the outset of the work.
The violins play the first, somewhat plaintive,
theme. The second, one of the most famous horn
passages in orchestral music, is a puckish sevenmeasure staccato figure that twice hesitates, prior
to bursting forth in its mischievous totality. The
two themes reappear in various forms throughout
a rather free orchestral rondo, contrasting with
material depicting Till’s numerous pranks. The
closing portion of the work depicts Till’s arrest,
trial, sentence, and execution. According to
legend, Till Eulenspiegel continued to torment his
enemies even after his death. The work’s raucous
conclusion suggests that the prankster’s spirit
indeed lives on.
§
“Escapades” from Catch Me If You Can
(2002)
John Williams was born in New York City
on February 8, 1932.
Instrumentation: “Escapades” is scored for solo
alto saxophone, piccolo, two flutes, two oboes,
Program Notes: Beethoven’s Fifth
English horn, two bassoons, four horns, three
trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani,
percussion (three players), harp, piano/celesta,
and strings.
Duration: 13 minutes
The movie Catch Me If You Can (2002), directed
by Steven Spielberg, is based upon the true story
of Frank Abagnale, Jr. (b. 1948). Before reaching
the age of 20, Abagnale successfully impersonated
an airline pilot, doctor, and lawyer, and scammed
people throughout the world out of millions of
dollars. After serving time in prison, Abagnale
began to assist the federal government. Today,
Abagnale continues to work with the FBI, and
runs a financial fraud consulting company.
In the movie, Leonardo DiCaprio plays the role
of Frank Abagnale, Jr., while Tom Hanks is Carl
Hanratty, the FBI agent in constant pursuit. The
action of Catch Me If You Can takes place in the
late 1960s and early 1970s. John Williams evokes
the era, and the action of film, with a jazzy film
score. His concert work, “Escapades,” featuring a
solo alto saxophone, as well as prominent solos for
vibraphone and string bass, includes music from
the complete film score. “Escapades” opens with
the movie’s Main Theme, a delicious evocation
of the movie’s synthesis of intrigue and humor.
Recollections (Father’s Theme) is an affecting
portrait of Abagnale’s troubled family life.
“Escapades” concludes with The Float, lively and
virtuoso music.
§
Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Opus 67
(1808)
Ludwig van Beethoven was baptized in
Bonn, Germany, on December 17, 1770,
and died in Vienna, Austria, on March 26,
1827. The first performance of the Fifth
Symphony took place at the Theater an der
Wien in Vienna on December 22, 1808,
with the composer conducting.
Instrumentation: The Symphony No. 5 is scored
for piccolo, two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets,
two bassoons, contrabassoon, two horns, two
trumpets, three trombones, timpani, and strings.
Duration: 31 minutes
Beethoven’s immortal Fifth Symphony is a
work that continues to astonish listeners with
its elemental power, taut drama, and, above all
else, a sense of absolute inevitability. And yet,
there was nothing inevitable about the process
of the Symphony’s creation. The composition
of the Fifth Symphony took place over a span of
approximately four years, 1804-1808. During
that time, Beethoven wrote and rewrote passages,
filling sketchbook upon sketchbook with ideas for
the Symphony.
Beethoven finally completed his Fifth Symphony
in the spring of 1808. The work received its
premiere at a December 22, 1808 concert,
sponsored by the composer, and held at the
Theater an der Wien. Beethoven served as both
conductor and pianist in a marathon program,
featuring almost four hours of his music.
Perhaps a music lover who had access to a time
machine might choose this concert as his first
destination. Imagine the opportunity to witness
Beethoven performing several of his greatest
masterworks! By all accounts, however, the
event was far from a triumph. A lack of sufficient
rehearsal time, coupled with Beethoven’s
failings as a conductor, led to performances that
were haphazard at best, and disasters at worst.
Further, the audience endured this marathon
concert—held in the dead of winter—in an
unheated theater.
Today, of course, the Beethoven Fifth maintains
its status as one of the greatest and most popular
Symphonies. However, the extraordinary power
and revolutionary nature of the Beethoven Fifth at
first inspired confusion, awe, and even fear on the
part of some music lovers. In his Memoirs, Hector
Berlioz recalled an 1828 performance of the
Beethoven Fifth in Paris, attended by one of the
young composer’s teachers at the Conservatoire,
Jean-François Le Sueur. The following day, Le
Sueur, while acknowledging the emotional impact
of the Beethoven Fifth, added: “All the same, such
music ought not to be written.” Berlioz replied:
“Don’t be afraid, dear master, there will never be
too much of it.”
The Fifth Symphony’s furious opening movement
(Allegro con brio) begins with a proclamation of
the famous “short-short-short-long” motif—the
seed from which the entire work will grow (Anton
Schindler quoted the composer as describing
this passage in the following manner: “Thus fate
knocks at the door!” The authenticity of this
quote has long been a subject of dispute). The
second movement (Andante con moto) is in the
form of variations on two themes, the latter
incorporating the central four-note motif. The
third-movement scherzo (Allegro) moves to a
breathtaking transitional passage, in which the
timpani softly repeats the four-note motif. The
first violins intone echoes of the Scherzo, as the
orchestra moves inexorably to the glorious finale
(Allegro), which follows without pause. Now, the
four-note motif is transformed into a triumphant
celebration. A quiet reprise of the scherzo
resolves to the work’s glorious, presto conclusion,
where all is bathed in the brightest sunlight.