4MBS Festival of Classics
18th May 2008, 3pm at Qld Conservatorium Theatre, Southbank, Brisbane. Cost: Adults $30, Concession $25.
To book tickets for this concert go to 4mbsclassicfm.com.au or phone 07 3847 1717 from 9am - 5pm, 7 days per week.
Alternatively you may book through www.qtix.com.au or call 136 246.
Programme Notes:
Rossini, Gioacchino (1792-1868) Overture to “The Barber of Seville”
It was inevitable that Rossini would become a musician given his ancestry, with his father a horn player and his mother a singer. However, the less well-known fact that his father was also an inspector of slaughterhouses adds some colour to the young composer’s family history. Rossini senior was later jailed for a short time because of his pro-French sympathies during the Napoleonic revolution, and the child of this absent father was frequently left in the care of his grandmother “who was unable to effectively control the boy”. (Wikipedia)
Perhaps this impishness followed the adult Rossini through out his life. Certainly, his operas sparkle not only with the most memorable melodies but with typical Rossini wit. The Barber of Seville, was first produced on 20th February 1816 in Rome and was poorly received at first. However, the opera quickly gained popularity and remains an all-time favourite to this day.
Sibelius, Jean (1865-1957) Violin Concerto in D Minor
Like Handel, Schumann and several other composers of genius, the young Sibelius initially enrolled not in music but in law. However, he soon abandoned this course to study music, first in Helsinki, then in Berlin and finally, Vienna.
Perhaps because of the innovative style of several twentieth-century composers, notably Schoenberg and Alban Berg, Sibelius was sharply criticized by some of his contemporaries for being far too conservative. Indeed, he was even described by the critic Rene Leibowitz as “the worst composer in the world”.
Ignoring these critics, Sibelius swam against the contemporary current in the violin concerto especially, combining the best aspects of both classicism and romanticism to create a work of lasting beauty. The first version was performed in 1904, but the composer revised it substantially, making it less virtuoistic and more profound.
A final observation. Whose name is better recognised today? The name Jean Sibelius, or the name of his miserable critic?
Beethoven, Ludwig Van (1770-1827) Symphony No.7 in A Major, Op. 92
Begun in 1811 and completed in 1812, this well-loved symphony was dedicated to Count Moritz von Fried and premiered in Vienna on December 8th 1813. In four movements, the symphony continues the Haydn tradition of a slow introduction before moving into the lively Vivace of the first movement.
Beethoven regarded the symphony as “one of my best works” and it still endures as one of the most-loved pieces in the entire orchestral repertoire. Indeed, it was Wagner himself who described the Scherzo movement as “the apotheosis of the dance”. However, other listeners have been less generous. Weber took great exception to the chromatic bass line in the coda of the first movement, citing it as evidence that Beethoven “was ripe for the madhouse”. Even more scathing was the acid-tongued Beecham who exploded “What can you do with it? It’s like a lot of yaks jumping about”.
Ignoring these critics for the moment, we note that it was the exquisite second movement which inspired our own conductor, Antoni Bonetti to add a choral part to this haunting music. Captivated for years by its melancholy beauty which suggested to him a quality of supplication, Antoni chose the words of Psalm Thirteen as an appropriate text. He wrote this choral part in January 2005 just after the tragic Boxing Day Tsunami of 2004 as a special tribute to its victims. It is this version of the symphony that is presented today.
Proramme notes by Juliet Hoey
