PROGRAM NOTES
SEASON OPENING CONCERT
ABOUT THE ARTIST Itzhak Perlman
Undeniably the reigning virtuoso of the violin , Itzhak Perlman enjoys superstar status rarely afforded a classical musician . Beloved for his charm and humanity as well as his talent , he is treasured by audiences throughout the world who respond not only to his remarkable artistry , but also to his irrepressible joy for making music .
Having performed with every major orchestra around the globe , Perlman was granted a Presidential Medal of Freedom — the Nation ’ s highest civilian honor — by President Obama in 2015 , a Kennedy Center Honor in 2003 , a National Medal of Arts by President Clinton in 2000 , and a Medal of Liberty by President Reagan in 1986 . Perlman has been honored with 16 Grammy ® Awards , four Emmy Awards , a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award , and a Genesis Prize .
In 2021-22 , Perlman brings his new program entitled “ An Evening with Itzhak Perlman ,” capturing highlights of his career through multi-media elements intertwined with performance , to San Francisco , Seattle , East Lansing , West Palm Beach , Ft . Myers , and Tallahassee . Perlman recently launched a series of classes with Masterclass . com , the premier online education company that enables access to the world ’ s most brilliant minds .
ABOUT THE PROGRAM
BY AARON GRAD
Johann Sebastian Bach
Born March 21 , 1685 in Eisenach , Germany Died July 28 , 1750 in Leipzig , Germany
VIOLIN CONCERTO NO . 2 IN E MAJOR , BWV 1042 [ C . 1730 ]
In 1723 , after six years of working for a musically inclined prince , Bach landed a prestigious church job in Leipzig . He was consumed at first by the enormous task of writing and rehearsing sacred music for weekly services ( as well as training the young choristers who would sing it ), but over time he reclaimed enough leisure time to take on a side job leading the Collegium Musicum , a group of talented amateurs who performed at a local coffee house .
Bach reveled in the opportunity to present instrumental music again . He dusted off old scores from earlier jobs , and he also created a whole new body of compositions for large ensemble , including his two surviving violin concertos from around 1730 .
Bach ’ s greatest inspiration for his violin concertos came from the Italian master of the form , Antonio Vivaldi . When Bach started his E-major concerto with three chords and a pause , for instance , he was rehashing a stock opening that can be found in some two dozen of Vivaldi ’ s concertos . Where Bach excelled was in taking such simple material on unimaginable journeys through surprising keys and sophisticated counterpoint , all while making the most of the violin ’ s technical capabilities . As his son and onetime Collegium member C . P . E . Bach later wrote , “ From his youth up to fairly old age ,…[ Bach ] played the violin purely and with a penetrating tone and thus kept the orchestra in top form , much better than he could have from the harpsichord . He completely understood the possibilities of all stringed instruments .”
Instrumentation Harpsichord and strings .
Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Born May 7 , 1840 in Kamsko-Votkinsk , Russia Died November 6 , 1893 in Saint Petersburg , Russia
ROMEO AND JULIET , FANTASY-OVERTURE [ 1869 , REVISED 1880 ]
When the young and insecure Tchaikovsky was trying to find his place in the Russian music community , he sought out Mily Balakirev , an influential composer and critic best known today as the ringleader of “ The Russian Five .” After conducting an early score of Tchaikovsky ’ s , Balakirev took the budding composer under his wing . He proposed that Tchaikovsky should write a new orchestral overture based on Shakespeare ’ s Romeo and Juliet , and he even went so far as to outline a particular way the themes should be organized . Tchaikovsky sought feedback from Balakirev on the work-inprogress in 1869 , and after the premiere the next year he honored him with the score ’ s dedication .
The Romeo and Juliet , Fantasy-Overture , as it became known after an 1880 revision , features three main themes , representing Friar Laurence , the struggle between the Montagues and the Capulets , and Romeo and Juliet ’ s love . The “ Friar Laurence ” music , in a hymn-like setting , fills the slow introduction , while the faster “ struggle ” material serves as the primary theme for the ensuing body of the overture , its bellicosity emphasized by crashing cymbals .
The contrasting theme that represents “ love ” is an early example of Tchaikovsky ’ s special talent for concocting timeless melodies , drawing on his deep affection for Viennese symphonies and Parisian ballets . Such cosmopolitan influences would eventually separate Tchaikovsky from the die-hard nationalists who made up “ The Five ,” and he remained an outsider in Russian music even while crafting some of the greatest symphonies and ballets his country would ever produce .
Instrumentation Two flutes , piccolo , two oboes , English horn , two clarinets , two bassoons , four horns , two trumpets , three trombones , tuba , timpani , percussion , harp , and strings .
SEP-OCT 2021 / OVERTURE 13