AN EVENING WITH JOHN WILLIAMS
AN EVENING WITH JOHN WILLIAMS
A sardonic sense of humor has saved Russian sanity throughout a brutal history , and it animates the secondmovement scherzo with its insolent trills , satirical slides and crude brass outbursts . This is a rough peasant dance in the style of one of Shostakovich ’ s favorite composers , Mahler . Shrill scoring , tongue-in-cheek pizzicato strings and a tipsy solo violin leading the middle trio section suggest defiant mockery — perhaps of Stalin himself .
The magnificent third-place slow movement is as sincere and heartfelt as its predecessor was flippant . Shostakovich once said , “ The majority of my symphonies are tombstones ,” and this may be a requiem for the many Russians who died in the purges . At the Fifth ’ s premiere , audiences wept openly during this music . The strings dominate ; they seem the voices of communal mourning . In the middle section , solo woodwinds raise their plaintive voices , expressing individual loss . The music reaches an extraordinary climax of pain as the strings rise to a chorus of repeated notes , intensified by the xylophone . The great Russian soprano Galina Vishnevskaya , Rostropovich ’ s wife , described this as “ like nails being pounded into one ’ s brain .”
Now the forgotten brass and percussion race into action to launch the finale ’ s resolute march theme . First we hear much frenetic musical busyness , then a poignant reminiscence of the third movement ’ s sorrow . Music of Slavic grandeur recalls the Coronation Scene in Mussorgsky ’ s Boris Godunov . At the end , disturbing the proudly pounding timpani and pealing brass are those obsessively painful repeated notes that have dogged the entire work . “ Our business is rejoicing ; our business is rejoicing .”
Instrumentation : Two flutes , piccolo , two oboes , two clarinets , E-flat clarinet , two bassoons , contrabassoon , four horns , three trumpets , three trombones , tuba , timpani , percussion , two harps , piano , celesta and strings .
Notes by Janet E . Bedell , © 2018
TODD ROSENBERG
JOSEPH MEYERHOFF SYMPHONY HALL
Wednesday , June 13 , 2018 , 8 pm
Marin Alsop , Music Director John Williams , conductor Johannes Moser , cello
John Williams
About the Artists
Marin Alsop
For Marin Alsop ’ s bio , please see pg . 7 .
“ The Flight to Neverland ” from Hook “ A Child ’ s Tale ”: Suite from The BFG “ Out to Sea ” and “ The Shark Cage Fugue ” from Jaws “ With Malice Toward None ” from Lincoln
Three Selections from Star Wars “ The Rebellion is Reborn ” “ Rey ’ s Theme ” “ Throne Room and Finale ”
INTERMISSION Marin Alsop conducts the first half of this evening ’ s program and John Williams conducts the second half .
“ Harry ’ s Wondrous World ” from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer ’ s Stone
“ Scherzo for Motorcycle and Orchestra ” from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Suite from Memoirs of a Geisha “ Sayuri ’ s Theme ” “ Brush on Silk ” “ Chiyo ’ s Prayer ” “ Becoming a Geisha ”
Johannes Moser
“ Adventures on Earth ” from E . T . the Extra-Terrestrial The concert will end at approximately 10 pm .
John Williams
In a career spanning more than five decades , John Williams has become one of America ’ s most accomplished and successful composers for film and for the concert stage , and he remains one of our nation ’ s most distinguished and contributive musical voices . He has composed the music and served as music director for more than 100 films , including all eight Star Wars films , the first three Harry Potter films , Superman , JFK , Born on the Fourth of July , Memoirs of a Geisha , Far and Away , The Accidental Tourist , Home Alone and The Book Thief .
MAY – JUN 2018 / OVERTURE 33