Mendelssohn Symphony No . 4
{ program notes
Randy Beach
Mendelssohn Symphony No . 4
Jean-Philippe Rameau
Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall
Friday , February 24 , 2017 — 8 pm Sunday , February 26 , 2017 — 3 pm
Music Center At Strathmore Saturday , February 25 , 2017 — 8 pm
Nicholas McGegan , conductor Henning Kraggerud , violin
Suite from Dardanus Ouverture Tambourins Air vif Air grave Air gai en Rondeau , " Les Niaïs de Sologne " Chaconne
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Violin Concerto No . 3 in G Major , K . 216 Allegro Adagio Rondo : Allegro
HENNING KRAGGERUD
INTERMISSION Franz Schubert Overture in the Italian Style in C Major , D . 591
Felix Mendelssohn Symphony No . 4 in A Major , opus 90 , “ Italian ” Allegro vivace Andante con moto Con moto moderato Saltarello : Presto
The concert will end at approximately 9:45pm on Friday and Saturday , and 4:45pm on Sunday .
Nicholas McGegan
As he embarks on his fourth decade on the podium , Nicholas McGegan is recognized for his probing and revelatory explorations of music of all periods . Last season marked his 30 th year as music director of Philharmonia Baroque
Orchestra and he is also principal guest conductor of the Pasadena Symphony . At home in opera houses , Mr . McGegan shone new light on close to 20 Handel operas as the artistic director and conductor at the Göttingen Handel Festival for 20 years ( 1991 – 2011 ) and on the Mozart canon as principal guest conductor at Scottish Opera in the 1990s .
Mr . McGegan ’ s 2016 – 2017 appearances include the Los Angeles Philharmonic ; two programs with Pasadena Symphony ; Baltimore , St . Louis and Toronto symphonies ; Calgary Philharmonic ; Handel and Haydn Society ; Aspen Music Festival and the Cleveland Orchestra / Blossom Music Festival .
Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra ’ s season under McGegan include a fully staged production of Rameau ’ s La temple de la gloire , Handel ’ s oratorio “ Joshua ,” and programs with guest soloists Robert Levin and Isabelle Faust . This fall , Mr . McGegan will serve a residency at Harvard as the Christoph Wolff Distinguished Visiting Scholar . He also conducts the all-Mozart semi-final round of the 2017 Van Cliburn Piano Competition .
Overseas , Mr . McGegan appears with Cappella Savaria at the Esterhazay Palace in Fertod , Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra , Scottish Chamber Orchestra and the Royal Northern Sinfonia .
Maestro McGegan ’ s prodigious discography features eight releases on Philharmonia Baroque ’ s label , Philharmonia Baroque Productions ( PBP ) including the 2011 Grammy ® Award-nominated recording of Haydn Symphonies nos . 88 , 101 , and 104 . His latest release features the first-ever recording of the newly rediscovered 300-year-old work La Gloria di Primavera by Alessandro Scarlatti , recorded live at the U . S . premiere .
English-born Nicholas McGegan was educated at Cambridge and Oxford . He was made an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire ( OBE ) and was invited to join the board of Early Music America . Other awards include the Halle Handel Prize , the Medal of Honour of the City of Göttingen and a declaration of Nicholas McGegan Day by the Mayor of San Francisco in recognition of his work with Philharmonia Baroque . In 2013 , the San Francisco Conservatory of Music awarded him an honorary degree of Doctor of Music .
Nicholas McGegan last appeared with the BSO in May 2016 , conducting Bach ’ s Mass in B minor with the Baltimore Choral Arts Society .
January – February 2017 | Overture 35