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Atlanta Symphony Orchestra
A founding member of the Robert W. Woodruff Arts Center
Robert Spano, Music Director
Donald Runnicles, Principal Guest Conductor
Delta classical Series Concerts
Thursday, Friday and Saturday, April 15, 16 and 17, 2010, at 8 p.m.
Lothar Zagrosek, Conductor
Midori, Violin
Franz Schreker (1878-1934)
Prelude to Die Gezeichneten (1918)
(Orchestral Reduction by George Stelluto)
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Violin Concerto in E minor, Opus 64 (1844)
I. Allegro molto appassionato
II. Andante
III. Allegretto non troppo; Allegro molto vivace
Midori, Violin
INTERMISSION
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Opus 55 (“Eroica”) (1804)
I. Allegro con brio
II. Marcia funebre: Adagio assai
III. Scherzo: Allegro vivace
III. Finale: Allegro molto
“Inside the Music” preview of the concert, Thursday at 7 p.m.,
presented by Ken Meltzer, ASO Insider and Program Annotator.
The use of cameras or recording devices during the concert is strictly prohibited.
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Atlanta Symphony Orchestra
sponsors
is proud to sponsor the Delta Classical Series
of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.
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of our organization. As a force for global good, our mission is to continuously create
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enables nonprofits to utilize many aspects of Delta's currency – our employees time and
talent, our free and discounted air travel, as well as our surplus donations. Together, we
believe we can take our worldwide communities to new heights!
Major funding for the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra is provided by the Fulton County
Board of Commissioners under the guidance of the Fulton County Arts Council.
Solo pianos used by the ASO are gifts of the Atlanta Steinway Society and in
memory of David Goldwasser. The Hamburg Steinway piano is a gift received
by the ASO in honor of Rosi Fiedotin.
The Yamaha custom six-quarter tuba is a gift received by the ASO in honor
of Principal Tuba player Michael Moore from The Antinori Foundation.
This performance is being recorded for broadcast at a later time.
ASO concert broadcasts are heard each week on Atlanta’s WABE FM-90.1 and Georgia
Public Broadcasting’s statewide network.
The ASO records for Telarc. Other ASO recordings are available on the Argo, Deutsche
Grammophon, New World, Nonesuch, Philips and Sony Classical labels.
Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta is the preferred hotel of the ASO.
Trucks provided by Ryder Truck Rental Inc.
Media sponsors: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and WSB 750 AM.
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Notes on the Program
By Ken Meltzer
Prelude to Die Gezeichneten (1918)
(Orchestral Reduction by George Stelluto)
Franz Schreker was born in Monaco on March 23, 1878, and died in Berlin,
Germany, on March 21, 1934. The opera Die Gezeichneten premiered in Frankfurt, Germany,
on April 25, 1918. The Prelude to Die Gezeichneten is scored for piccolo, three flutes, three
oboes, English horn, E-flat clarinet, two clarinets, bass clarinet, two bassoons, four horns,
three trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, snare drum, suspended cymbal, xylophone,
triangle, cymbals, bass drum, castanets, orchestra bells, tambourine, low bells, tam-tam,
piano, celeste and strings. Approximate performance time is ten minutes.
These are the first ASO Classical Subscription Performances.
F
ranz Schreker’s opera Die Gezeichneten (The Marked Ones) had its origins in 1911.
Fellow Austrian composer Alexander Zemlinsky requested Schreker to write a
libretto, based upon the tragedy of a physically unattractive man. Schreker himself had
composed music for such a tale in 1908, with his score for the pantomime Der Geburtstag
der Infantin (The Birthday of the Infanta), in turn inspired by Oscar Wilde’s 1891 fairy tale.
Zemlinsky later composed an opera based upon the Wilde story, which premiered in 1922.
But it was Schreker who set his 1911 libretto to music. The story takes place in 16th-century
Genoa. The Marked Ones refers to the opera’s three principal characters. Alviano Salvago,
a young, hunchbacked Genoese nobleman, has built an island paradise he calls “Elysium.”
Alviano is unaware that other nobleman, led by Count Vitelozzo Tamare, have been abducting
young women and transporting them to “Elysium” for wild orgies. Alviano and Tamare are
both in love with the Podestà’s beautiful daughter, Carlotta Nardi, who expresses her sensual
yearning through painting. Carlotta at first proclaims her love for Alviano. Later however at
“Elysium,” Carlotta submits to Tamare. Alviano discovers them and kills Tamare. Carlotta dies,
and Alviano descends into madness.
Die Gezeichneten premiered in Frankfurt on April 25, 1918. The opera was an instant and huge
success. The preeminent German critic, Paul Bekker, compared Schreker’s achievement to the
operas of Richard Wagner. Over the next fifteen years, The Marked Ones received more than
two dozen productions in major opera houses throughout Germany and Austria.
In the early 1930s, the rise of National Socialism brought an end to performances of Schreker’s
music, and to his career as a prominent composer, teacher and conductor (Schreker’s father
was of Jewish birth). On March 21, 1934, Franz Schreker died two days before his 56th birthday,
the result of a stroke. Toward the close of the 20th century, a revival of interest in Schreker’s
compositions began. On April 10 of this year, the Los Angeles Opera launched its production
of Die Gezeichneten, the first ever in the Western hemisphere.
The Prelude to Act I of Der Gezeichneten showcases Franz Schreker’s exotic, beguiling
harmonies, lush melodic inspiration, and rich, virtuoso deployment of the orchestra. Schreker’s
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original score for Die Gezeichneten requires a huge orchestra of approximately 120 musicians.
This performance of the Prelude features a reduced orchestration by George Stelluto.
Violin Concerto in E minor, Opus 64 (1844)
Felix Mendelssohn was born in Hamburg, Germany, on February 3, 1809, and
died in Leipzig, Germany, on November 4, 1847. The first performance of the E-minor Concerto
took place at the Gewandhaus in Leipzig on March 13, 1845, with Ferdinand David as soloist
and Niels W. Gade conducting. In addition to the solo violin, the E-minor Concerto is scored
for two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, two horns, two trumpets, timpani and
strings. Approximate performance time is twenty-six minutes.
First ASO Classical Subscription Performance: February 27, 1949, James de la Fuente, Violin,
Henry Sopkin, Conductor.
Most Recent ASO Classical Subscription Performances: February 19, 21 and 22, 2009,
Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, Violin, Mei-Ann Chen, Conductor.
“Whatever comes from the heart makes me happy”
T
he genesis of Felix Mendelssohn’s E-minor Violin Concerto is memorialized in
a July 30, 1838 letter from the composer to his dear friend, Ferdinand David
(1810-1873). David, an eminent violinist, was then concertmaster of Mendelssohn’s
Gewandhaus Orchestra of Leipzig. Mendelssohn wrote from Berlin:
I am planning to begin writing out my symphony in the next few days and to
finish it in a short time, probably before leaving here. I would also like to write
you a violin concerto for next winter as well; I have one in E minor in my head,
the opening leaves me no peace ... I feel that with every piece I get further toward
being able to write what is really in my heart, and in fact that is the only rule
of conduct I have. If I am not destined for popularity I do not want to study or
struggle to win it; or if you think that is not the way to speak, let us say I cannot
study to win it. For I really cannot, and I don’t want to be able to. Whatever comes
from the heart makes me happy, in its outward effects as well ...
David was, of course, thrilled by Mendelssohn’s news. However, the progress of the Concerto
proved to be slow, as Mendelssohn tended to other obligations. In response to a letter from
David, written the following year, Mendelssohn acknowledged:
It is nice of you to press me for a violin concerto! I have the liveliest desire to write one
for you, and if I have a few propitious days, I’ll bring you something. But the task is not
an easy one. You ask that it should be brilliant, and how can anyone like me do this?
David continued to encourage Mendelssohn, and the composition of the Violin Concerto
proved to be a truly collaborative effort. The violinist repeatedly offered constructive
suggestions for modifications to the score-in-progress. In fact, it is generally believed that
David was responsible in great part for the beautiful first-movement cadenza.
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Finally, in December of 1844, Mendelssohn forwarded the score of the Violin Concerto to his
publisher. But then, the composer immediately wrote the following to David:
Today I must ask you a favor. I have sent the score of the violin concerto to
Breitkopf and Haertel and I have lately made several alterations in it with pencil,
which can be copied into the parts. I have changed a number of things in the solo
part, too, and I hope they are improvements. But I would particularly like to have
your opinion about all this before I give up the music irrevocably to the printer.
After listing several corrections for David’s review, Mendelssohn concluded, “’Thank God that
the fellow is through with his concerto!’, you will say. Excuse my bothering you, but what can
I do?”
Mendelssohn dedicated the Concerto to David, who was the soloist at the March 13, 1845
Gewandhaus premiere. Mendelssohn was recuperating from an illness at the time, and so,
Niels W. Gade served as the conductor for that highly successful first performance. The
Concerto was repeated during the subsequent Gewandhaus season. David was again the
soloist at the October 20, 1845 concert, this time with Mendelssohn on the podium.
“The heart’s jewel”
Another momentous chapter in the history of the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto occurred
a few weeks later. Robert Schumann arranged a Dresden concert for November 10, 1845.
The concert was scheduled to include the premiere of Schumann’s Piano Concerto, with
the composer’s wife, Clara, as soloist. However, when Clara suddenly took ill, Schumann
contacted Mendelssohn and David, with a request to substitute the Violin Concerto. David
had a conflicting engagement on the designated concert date, and so he sent in his place one
of his students from the Leipzig Conservatory, a 14-year-old Austro-Hungarian violinist by the
name of Joseph Joachim (1831-1907).
The concert proved to be a great triumph for Joachim, who ultimately established himself as
one of the preeminent virtuosos of all time. Throughout his long and distinguished career,
Joachim proved to be a tireless exponent of the Mendelssohn Concerto.
At his 75th birthday party, Joachim offered the following observation: “The Germans have four
violin concertos. The greatest, the one that makes fewest concessions, is Beethoven’s. The one
by Brahms comes close to Beethoven’s in its seriousness. Max Bruch wrote the richest and
most enchanting of the four. But the dearest of them all, the heart’s jewel, is Mendelssohn’s.”
The Mendelssohn E-minor remains one of the most beloved of violin concertos. The seamless,
inevitable flow of the work belies the years of struggle invested by Mendelssohn and his
worthy collaborator, Ferdinand David. The genial lyricism also tends to obscure several
innovative, even revolutionary touches. The E-minor Concerto, along with such works as the
Overture to the Incidental Music for A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1826), and the Octet for
Strings (1825), represent Mendelssohn at his zenith, a composer demonstrating the capacity
to approach, and perhaps even achieve, perfection.
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Musical Analysis
I. Allegro molto appassionato — Mendelssohn dispenses with the traditional orchestral
introduction of the Concerto’s principal themes. Instead, the soloist enters almost immediately,
playing the melody that so haunted Mendelssohn. The orchestra soon repeats the melody
in highly dramatic fashion. The oboes and first violins, followed by the soloist, play the
undulating second theme. The violin’s majestic, descending phrase leads to the introduction
by the flutes and clarinets of the beautiful closing theme, marked tranquillo. In concertos
of the 18th and 19th centuries, the solo cadenza traditionally appears toward the close of the
movement. Mendelssohn departs from convention by placing the cadenza immediately prior
to the recapitulation of the principal themes. The undulating second theme dominates the
tempestuous closing measures, leading directly to the Concerto’s slow movement.
II. Andante — After a brief and mysterious orchestral prelude, the violinist enters with the
lyrical, principal melody. The Andante is fashioned along the lines of an opera aria, with the
presentation and ultimate reprise of the melody separated by a contrasting dramatic interlude.
The concluding movement follows without pause.
III. Allegretto non troppo; Allegro molto vivace — A brief episode, featuring echoes of thematic
material from the first two movements, serves as a bridge to the principal section of the rondo
finale. A dialogue, consisting of fanfares by the brass and winds and upward flourishes by the
violin, leads to the soloist’s introduction of the rondo’s elfin, central theme. The mood of the
finale is joyous throughout, and the movement concludes in triumphant fashion, with brilliant
solo writing.
Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Opus 55 (“Eroica”) (1804)
Ludwig van Beethoven was baptized in Bonn, Germany, on December 17,
1770, and died in Vienna, Austria, on March 26, 1827. The first public performance of the
“Eroica” Symphony took place in Vienna on April 7, 1805, at the Theater an der Wien, with
the composer conducting. The “Eroica” Symphony is scored for two flutes, two oboes, two
clarinets, two bassoons, three horns, two trumpets, timpani and strings. Approximate
performance time is forty-seven minutes.
First ASO Classical Subscription Performance: October 22, 1949, Henry Sopkin, Conductor.
Most Recent ASO Classical Subscription Performance: February 8, 9 and 10, 2007,
Roberto Abbado, Conductor.
“Composed to celebrate the memory of a great man”
T
he story of Beethoven’s dedication of his Third Symphony, the “Eroica,” is one of the
most compelling in the history of concert music. In the early part of the 19th century,
many idealists, Beethoven included, viewed Napoleon Bonaparte as a staunch defender of
liberty and democratic ideals. By the spring of 1804, Beethoven had completed his Third
Symphony, which he entitled “Bonaparte.” According to Beethoven’s friend, Ferdinand Ries:
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In this symphony Beethoven had Buonaparte in mind, but as he was when he
was First Consul. Beethoven esteemed him greatly at the time and likened him
to the greatest of Roman consuls. I as well as several of his more intimate friends
saw a copy of the score lying upon his table with the word “Buonaparte” at the
extreme top of the title page, and at the extreme bottom, “Luigi van Beethoven,”
but not another word. Whether and with what the space between the two was
to be filled out, I do not know. I was the first to bring to him the intelligence that
Buonaparte had proclaimed himself emperor, whereupon he flew into a rage and
cried out: “Is he then, too, nothing more than an ordinary human being? Now
he, too, will trample on all the rights of man and indulge only in his ambition.
He will exalt himself above all others, become a tyrant!” Beethoven went to the
table, took hold of its title page by the top, tore it in two, and threw it on the
floor. The first page was rewritten and only then did the symphony receive the
title Sinfonica eroica.
Some biographers, including Maynard Solomon (Beethoven, Schirmer Books, New York,
1977), suggest that Beethoven’s actions may have also been motivated by career aspirations.
During the relevant time frame, Beethoven contemplated, and ultimately rejected, the notion
of relocating from Vienna to Paris.
With that scenario in mind, conductor Arturo Toscanini’s remarks about the “Eroica’s” first
movement offer a useful perspective: “To some it is Napoleon, to some it is Alexander, to me
it is Allegro con brio (i.e., the movement’s tempo marking).” In other words, the significance
of Beethoven’s Third Symphony, which the composer ultimately subtitled Sinfonica Eroica,
Composed to Celebrate the Memory of a Great Man, rests not with its dedicatee, but with the
revolutionary nature of the music itself.
Beethoven’s “New Road”
In 1802, Beethoven confided to his friend, Wenzel Krumpholz: “I am not satisfied with my
works up to the present time. From today I mean to take a new road.” Certainly there are
many aspects of the “Eroica” that establish a profound line of demarcation between it and
the composer’s first two symphonies — not to mention the symphonies of Beethoven’s
great predecessors, Haydn and Mozart. The extraordinary length of the opening movement,
achieved in great part by an unprecedented expansion of the development and coda sections
(as well as the transitional material between themes), is perhaps the most obvious example.
Likewise, the use of an epic funeral march is a stunning departure from the lyricism found in
most slow movements of the time.
Still, it would be incorrect to characterize the “Eroica” as a total rejection of the musical
style of Beethoven’s first two symphonies. The Symphonies in C and D already offer hints of
the rhythmic drive, pungent dynamic contrast, bold harmonic strokes and ingenious motive
development that characterize the “Eroica.” It should also be mentioned that Beethoven
creates the “Eroica’s” profoundly revolutionary atmosphere with an orchestra similar in size
and instrumentation to that of a late Haydn or Mozart Symphony.
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Several private performances of the “Eroica” were offered in Vienna in the winter of 1804-5.
The first public concert featuring the Third Symphony occurred on April 7, 1805, at the Theater
an der Wien. While concertmaster Franz Clement (the man who was the soloist in the premiere
of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto) conducted the bulk of the program, the composer himself led
the performance of the “Eroica.”
The revolutionary character of Beethoven’s “Eroica” Symphony inspired a sense of awe, even
of disorientation, on the part of the early audiences. It’s not surprising that critical reaction
was divided. But while many questioned the attractiveness of the Third Symphony as a form
of entertainment, few could deny its power and innovation. Indeed, symphonic music would
never be the same after the “Eroica.”
Beethoven himself recognized the importance of this work in his symphonic canon. Prior
to the completion of the Ninth Symphony, Beethoven’s friend, Christoph Kuffner, asked the
composer which of the eight was his favorite. “Ah, ha!” Beethoven replied, “the ‘Eroica.’”
Kuffner responded, “I should have guessed the C-Minor (i.e., the Fifth).” “No,” Beethoven
insisted, “the ‘Eroica.’”
Musical Analysis
I. Allegro con brio — Beethoven introduces his musical “new road” in bracing fashion with
two brusque chords, out of which emerges the cellos’ statement of the opening theme.
A simple and plaintive second theme consists of three descending notes, traded among
various instruments. Finally, the woodwinds introduce a sighing motif, described by
British musicologist Sir George Grove as “a passage of singular beauty — more harmony
than melody.” An extraordinarily rich and varied development of the main themes ensues.
At the height of the drama, the oboes introduce a new, lyrical motif. The recapitulation
seems to begin when the horn, over mysterious, tremolo string accompaniment, intones
the first four notes of the opening theme. However, the passage is silenced by an orchestral
outburst that leads to the true recapitulation, introduced by the cellos (although the
horn soon returns with its own restatement). The extended coda spotlights the opening
theme, as well as a reprise of the development’s oboe motif. The conclusion of this
complex movement is simplicity itself, as two abrupt chords reprise the spirit of the work’s
opening measures.
II. Marcia funebre: Adagio assai — When Beethoven learned of Napoleon’s death in 1821,
he observed, “I have already composed the proper music for that catastrophe.” Here, the
composer was referring to the second movement of the “Eroica,” a grand funeral march. The
violins, followed by the oboes, intone the opening, minor-key theme. The violins then offer a
second theme that begins in the major key, but quickly reverts to the minor. The tragic weight
of the movement is briefly dispelled by the maggiore central section, which begins with an
ascending and descending oboe melody, leading to a pair of grand orchestral exclamations.
Soon, pathos returns with a reprise of the opening section, as the motifs are further
developed. In the poignant coda, the violins play a sotto voce statement of the opening theme
that becomes increasingly fragmented before fading to silence.
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III. Scherzo: Allegro vivace — The mood of the “Eroica” Symphony is immediately transformed
from despair to joy with the arrival of this ebullient Scherzo. Over tripping string accompaniment,
the oboes and first violins sing the playful opening theme, finally played in grand fashion by the
full orchestra. The ensuing Trio, which prominently features the horns, leads to a return of the
Scherzo’s opening. The brief coda begins softly, but quickly builds to a fortissimo conclusion.
IV. Finale: Allegro molto — According to Carl Czerny, Beethoven moved audiences to tears
through the sheer beauty and creativity of his keyboard improvisations. That extraordinary
talent serves Beethoven well in the finale of his “Eroica” Symphony, a brilliant theme and
variations movement. The finale begins with a grand orchestral introduction, followed by the
strings’ pizzicato introduction of the thirteen-note principal theme. A series of remarkably
diverse variations ensues, the third featuring the oboes introducing a melody that will return
in different guises throughout the finale. It is a melody that was a particular favorite of
Beethoven, one that makes appearances in the Contredanses, WoO 14 (1802), the “Eroica”
Piano Variations, Opus 35 (1802), and his ballet, The Creatures of Prometheus, Opus 43 (1801).
The entire Finale closes in thrilling fashion, with a headlong rush into a Presto coda, featuring
yet another version of the “Prometheus” melody.
lothar zagrosek, Conductor
G
erman conductor Lothar Zagrosek began his
musical career as a member of the Regensburg
Cathedral choir. He studied conducting with Hans Swarovsky,
Istvàn Kertész, Bruno Maderna and Herbert von Karajan.
After first posts as general music director in Solingen and in
Krefeld-Mönchengladbach, he was appointed chief conductor
of the Austrian Radio Symphony Orchestra in Vienna.
Lothar Zagrosek
Subsequently, he spent three years at the helm of the Paris
Opera (1986-89), during which period he was also chief guest
conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra. From 1990-92, Lothar Zagrosek was general
music director of the Leipzig Opera. Since 1995, he is associated with the Junge Deutsche
Philharmonie as first guest conductor and artistic advisor. From 1997 to 2006, Lothar Zagrosek
was General Music Director of the Stuttgart State Opera. During his highly successful tenure,
this company obtained the critics’ award “Opera Company of the Year” five times, he himself
was named “Conductor of the Year,” twice. Since the 2006-07 season, he has been serving as
chief conductor of the Konzerthausorchester Berlin.
His work as an internationally acclaimed opera conductor has led him to the state operas of
Vienna and Hamburg, the Bavarian State Opera in Munich, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Semperoper
Dresden, the Théâtre de la Monnaie in Brussels, London Royal Opera House Covent Garden and
the Glyndebourne Festival. Lothar Zagrosek also has worked with major international orchestras
such as the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, the Berlin Philharmonic, Munich Philharmonic,
all major German radio orchestras, Vienna Symphony, London Philharmonic, Orchestra
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dell’Accademia di Santa Cecilia, Orchestre National de France, Montreal Symphony and NHK
Symphony Orchestra Tokyo. He appeared at prestigious festivals such as Wiener Festwochen,
Berliner Festwochen, the London Proms, the Munich Opera Festival and the Salzburg Festival,
and is a regular guest at the festivals for contemporary music in Donaueschingen, Berlin,
Brussels and Paris. In spring 2009, Lothar Zagrosek embarked on a highly successful tour of
Great Britain (including three concerts in London) with the Konzerthausorchester Berlin.
Midori, Violin
I
n the 2009-10 season, violinist Midori blends an
ambitious international performance schedule
with innovative community engagement initiatives, both at
home and abroad. Her itinerary includes seven recital tours,
including dates in Dublin, Budapest, San Francisco, Toronto,
Baltimore and Tokyo; numerous concerto appearances with
such partners as Sir Colin Davis and the LSO, Leonard Slatkin
with the Detroit Symphony, and the Bayerischer Rundfunk
with Mariss Jansons; her third all-new music tour; and an
International Community Engagement Program in Mongolia.
Midori
Midori continues to devote a substantial amount of time to several community-directed
initiatives she has established to address an issue she believes to be of crucial and ever-growing
importance: access. Midori feels passionately that people must have access to a variety of
great music, regardless of their age, race, social class, geographic location, or financial means.
In 2007, Midori was designated an official U.N. Messenger of Peace by Secretary-General Ban
Ki-moon, who cited her community engagement work as a model of exemplary commitment to
worldwide goals shared by the U.N.
The first organization she founded to tackle this issue was Midori & Friends, started in 1992, in
response to serious cutbacks in music education in New York City schools; over the last 17 years,
over 160,000 children have benefitted from this program. Midori & Friends provides comprehensive
music education (including instrument instruction and general music instruction), workshops and
concerts to children who might not otherwise have the opportunity for involvement in the arts.
The foundation is now partnered with numerous public schools in New York City. Midori performs
at many of the schools, and so do other musicians representing a range of musical genres, from
jazz players to African drummers to Chinese flutists and more. Midori & Friends also presents an
all-day children’s music festival annually in New York City.
Midori has also founded a similar organization in Japan, Music Sharing. Based in Tokyo, Music
Sharing was established in 2002 to raise cultural awareness and to contribute to a well-rounded
education for children in Japan and other Asian countries.
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