PROGRAM NOTES
PICTURES AT AN EXHIBITION depth and a conductor who championed the works of his contemporaries . As a child , he was surrounded by music and often attended rehearsals of the London Symphony , where his father led the double bass section . Knussen shot to fame at the age of 15 when he conducted his own First Symphony with the London Symphony Orchestra , stepping in at the last minute after their music director fell ill . From then on , he had a vibrant career until his death in 2018 at the age of 66 .
In 1979 , Knussen was approached by Maurice Sendak to collaborate on a fantasy-opera adaptation of his famous book , Where the Wild Things Are . The story centers on a boy named Max who misbehaves and is sent to his room without supper . Overnight , his room transforms into a forest . When an ocean appears , Max sails off “ through night and day and in and out of weeks and almost over a year to where the wild things are .” He eventually tames the fantastical beasts and is crowned king over the magical land . After sending the wild things to bed without their supper , Max grows lonely and returns to his own room , where the forest disappears and a hot supper is waiting for him . Songs and Sea Interlude highlight Max ’ s journey of self-discovery while the music reflects all the mischief , fear , wonder , and bravado of childhood adventures .
Instrumentation Three flutes including piccolo , oboe , English horn , three clarinets including E-flat clarinet , bassoon contrabassoon , four horns , three trombones , percussion , two harp , piano , and strings .
Modest Mussorgsky
Born March 21 , 1839 in Karevo , Russia Died March 28 , 1881 in Saint Petersburg , Russia
PICTURES AT AN EXHIBITION [ 1874 ]
Modest Mussorgsky belonged to the group of five Russian composers known as the “ mighty handful ” who dedicated themselves to creating music within a Slavic context independent of Western traditions . Though he was largely a self-taught composer with a small output who died from alcoholism at the age of 42 , Mussorgsky became a revered figure in Russian music .
In the summer of 1873 , Mussorgsky ’ s good friend Viktor Hartmann , an artist and architect , died suddenly at the age of 39 .
A memorial exhibit of his drawings , paintings , and designs was organized the following year and became the inspiration for Mussorgsky ’ s musical homage , Pictures at an Exhibition . Choosing ten artworks out of the hundreds displayed , Mussorgsky depicted each one as if the listener were in the great hall , walking from one painting to the next .
Pictures was originally written for solo piano and never publicly performed during Mussorgsky ’ s lifetime . Many other composers adapted this imaginative score for full orchestra , but it wasn ’ t until Ravel ’ s version premiered in 1922 that the work achieved great acclaim . Since then , Mussorgsky and Ravel have been forever linked as co-creators of this masterwork .
The opening Promenade is a stately call and response that alludes to traditional orthodox chant . The melodic phrase of eleven irregular beats is said to reflect Mussorgsky ’ s own lopsided gate as he walked through the galleries . The first picture is of an awkward gnome that walks on deformed legs . This sinister toy is made more eerie by the hesitant celeste melody , drooping strings , and ominous brass .
The Old Castle , painted during Hartmann ’ s travels in Italy , shows a troubadour singing in front of a medieval castle . The saxophone , an uncommon instrument within the orchestra , gives the melody a mournful and exotic tone . The trumpet begins the next promenade only to fade directly into the next artwork , Tuileries . Here , the woodwinds act as children , gently taunting each other while their nannies look on .
In Cattle , the tuba conveys the cart with enormous wheels being pulled by oxen as the contrabassoon provides an arduous accompaniment . The movement begins quietly as if from a distance and gradually builds to a climax as the cart draws closer .
Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks was inspired by a costume design for young dancers of the Russian Imperial Ballet School . The drawing shows children in eggshell suits with canary-like helmets . The whimsical music is full of soft chirrups from the woodwinds and violin trills that evoke fluttering wings .
The following movement combines two portraits of Polish Jews — one rich , one poor — painted while Hartmann was in Poland . Mussorgsky sets the characters apart in his musical portrayal : Samuel is assertive and bold in the opening unison strings ; Schmuyle , the beggar , is the persistent muted trumpet . The motives then overlap in an uncomfortable dialogue .
Limoges is from Hartmann ’ s time in France . A lively marketplace is on display , full of bustle and gossip . The energetic music comes to an abrupt halt before dashing head on into the Catacombs . The brass chords echo in the mysterious underground atmosphere before hints of the promenade theme appear in the oboes , as though Mussorgsky himself is walking between the tombs , casting a glow on the skulls with his lantern .
The Hut on Hen ’ s Legs is a dramatic musical image of Baba Yaga , the witch of Russian folklore , as she rides through the air in search of children to devour .
The final movement is based on Hartmann ’ s design for a gateway into Kiev meant to commemorate Tsar Alexander II . Though the gate was never built , the architectural grandeur of the drawing lives on in the resounding brass choir , tolling bells , and cascading strings .
Instrumentation Three flutes including two piccolo , three oboes including English horn , two clarinets , bass clarinet , two bassoons , contrabassoon , alto saxophone , four horns , three trumpets , three trombones , tuba , timpani , percussion , two harps , celeste , and strings .
Musical Terms Fanfare : A short ceremonial tune usually played on brass instruments , typically to introduce something or someone important . Glissando : A continuous slide upward or downward between two notes . Troubadour : Composer and performer who wrote songs and poems of courtly love .
SEPT-OCT 2022 / OVERTURE 33