Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor for Piano and Orchestra, op. 23 (1875)

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1 Michael Stern, Music Director Nielsen ( ) Overture to Maskarade (1906) Schoenberg (b. 1980) Finding Rothko (2006) I. Orange II. Yellow III. Red IV. Wine Dvořák ( ) Concerto in B minor for Cello and Orchestra, op. 104 (1895) I. Allegro Tchaikovsky ( ) Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor for Piano and Orchestra, op. 23 (1875) I. Allegro non troppo e molto maestoso; Allegro con spirito Holst ( ) The Perfect Fool Ballet Music, op. 39 (1923) I. Introduction Dance of Spirits of Earth II. Dance of Spirits of Water III. Dance of Spirits of Fire Wagner ( ) Prelude to Act III of Lohengrin (1850) Notes on the Program by Ken Meltzer Concert Overview Carl Nielsen ( )

2 Overture to Maskarade (1906) 5 minutes Danish composer Carl Nielsen s comic opera, Maskarade, is based upon a work by the Molière of the North, Ludvig Holberg. The brief and sparkling Overture sets the stage for the intrigue and high spirits that follow. Adam Schoenberg (b. 1980) Finding Rothko (2006) 17 minutes Finding Rothko is an orchestral work by Adam Schoenberg, the Kansas City Symphony s Composer-in-Residence for the season. Music Director Michael Stern led the IRIS Chamber Orchestra in the work s 2007 world premiere. Finding Rothko s four movements Orange, Yellow, Red, Wine explore in music the wonders of paintings by American painter Mark Rothko ( ) that are housed in museums in New York, Los Angeles and Potomac, MD. Antonín Dvořák ( ) Concerto in B minor for Cello and Orchestra, op. 104 (1895), First Movement 16 minutes Czech composer Antonín Dvořák composed his Cello Concert while living in New York City, and serving as Director of the National Conservatory of Music in America. The Concerto s opening movement, the most expansive of the three, opens with the traditional orchestral presentation of the principal themes. The soloist then enters with more elaborate versions of the themes, and remains at the forefront to the conclusion. Tchaikovsky ( ) Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor for Piano and Orchestra, op. 23 (1875), First Movement 17 minutes Tchaikovsky hoped that the great Russian virtuoso, Nikolai Rubinstein, would agree to be the soloist in the premiere of his First Piano Concerto. But Rubinstein dismissed the work as worthless and unplayable. And so, perhaps the most beloved Russian Piano Concerto received its premiere in Boston, MA, on October 25, 1875, with Hans von Bülow as soloist. The Concerto s brilliant first movement features one of the most famous melodies in all of classical music (and the basis for the popular song, Tonight We Love). Gustav Holst ( )

3 The Perfect Fool Ballet Music, op. 39 (1923) 13 minutes The ballet music is the opening music to Holst s satiric opera, The Perfect Fool. In the ballet, a Magician summons the spirits of Earth, Water and Fire to assist him. Wagner ( ) Prelude to Act III of Lohengrin (1850) 3 minutes This brief, vibrant Prelude depicts the wedding celebrations for the marriage of the maiden Elsa to Lohengrin, the Knight of the Holy Grail. Carl Nielsen ( ) Overture to Maskarade (1906) 5 minutes Piccolo, 3 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, timpani, percussion and strings. Carl Nielsen s comic opera, Maskarade, is the Danish composer s setting of a libretto by Vilhelm Andersen, based upon a work by the man known as the Molière of the North, Ludvig Holberg ( ). Nielsen conducted the opera s November 11, 1906 premiere at Copenhagen s Royal Danish Theater. Since its premiere, Maskarade has remained immensely popular in Denmark, and is considered the country s national opera. The story of Maskarade takes place in Copenhagen, in the spring of The sparkling Overture sets the stage for the intrigue and high spirits that follow, as two young people meet and fall in love at a masked ball. Adam Schoenberg (b. 1980) Finding Rothko (2006) 17 minutes 2 piccolos, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, English horn, 2 clarinets, bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, contrabassoon, 2 horns, 2 trumpets, timpani, vibraphone, marimba, glockenspiel, crotales, 4 tom-toms, bass drum, 5 temple blocks, 3 suspended cymbals, tam-tams, 3 triangles, slap stick, piano/celesta and strings. Finding Rothko is an orchestral work by Adam Schoenberg, the Kansas City Symphony s Composer-in-Residence for the season. The Kansas City Symphony s Music Director, Michael Stern, led the IRIS Chamber Orchestra in Finding Rothko s January 13, 2007 world premiere, in Germantown, TN. Finding Rothko was inspired by four paintings by American artist Mark Rothko ( ). The paintings Orange [Untitled (Violet, Black, Orange, Yellow on White and Red), 1949, oil on canvas], Yellow [No. 5/No. 22, 1949, oil on canvas], Red [No. 301 (Reds and Violet over Red/Red and Blue over Red), 1959, oil on canvas] and Wine [No.

4 9 (White and Black on Wine), 1958, oil on canvas], are housed in museums in New York City, Los Angeles and Potomac, MD. Mr. Schoenberg comments: The indelible beauty of Rothko s work lies in its luminosity and ability to captivate the imagination. I hope I have managed to capture the essence and spirit of his work in this piece. Antonín Dvořák ( ) Concerto in B minor for Cello and Orchestra, op. 104 (1895), First Movement 16 minutes In addition to the solo cello, the Concerto is scored for piccolo, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 3 horns, 2 trumpets, 2 trombones, bass trombone, tuba, timpani, triangle and strings. From , Czech composer Antonín Dvořák served as Director of the National Conservatory of Music in America, in New York City. Dvořák s responsibilities at the National Conservatory involved teaching composition classes and conducting orchestral rehearsals. During his stay in America, Dvořák was also active as a composer. His most famous work from this period is the Symphony No. 9, Opus 95 ( From the New World ). The magnificent Cello Concerto also dates from the New York years. Dvořák started composition of his Cello Concerto in New York City on November 8, 1894, completing the final score on June 11, The Concerto premiered in Queens Hall in London on March 19, After reviewing the score, one of Dvořák s friends a man by the name of Johannes Brahms exclaimed: Why on earth didn t I know one could write a violoncello concerto like this? If I had only known, I would have written one long ago! The Concerto s opening movement (Allegro) begins with the orchestra s introduction of the principal melodies (Dvořák confessed to a friend that he was always greatly moved by the lyrical second theme). The soloist enters with more elaborate versions of the themes. The soloist remains center stage for the remainder of the movement, capped by dazzling passagework, and a martial setting of the opening theme. Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ) Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor for Piano and Orchestra, op. 23 (1875), First Movement 17 minutes In addition to the solo piano, the Concerto is scored for 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 4 horns, 2 trumpets, 3 trombones, timpani and strings. Tchaikovsky composed his First Piano Concerto in the span of approximately seven weeks, completing it on January 2, Three days after putting the finishing touches on the work, Tchaikovsky played his new Concerto for Nikolai Rubinstein head of the Moscow Conservatory, and a superb concert pianist. Tchaikovsky, then a professor at the

5 Conservatory, hoped that Rubinstein would agree to be the soloist in the Concerto s premiere. But Rubinstein dismissed the Concerto as worthless and unplayable. As it turned out, one of the most beloved Russian piano concertos received its first performance on October 25, 1875 not in Tchaikovsky s homeland, but in Boston, Massachusetts! The Concerto is in three movements. The first by far the longest of the three opens with one of the most beloved episodes in all of concert music (Allegro non troppo e molto maestoso). This famous sequence is, in fact, the introduction to the central portion of the opening movement (Allegro con spirito), whose first theme is based upon a Ukraine folk melody. Gustav Holst ( ) The Perfect Fool Ballet Music, op. 39 (1923) 13 minutes Piccolo, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, English horn, 2 clarinets, bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, contrabassoon, 4 horns, 4 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, bass drum, cymbals, tam-tam, tambourine, sleigh bells, xylophone, celeste, harp and strings. Gustav Holst one-act comic opera, The Perfect Fool, premiered at London s Covent Garden on May 14, The libretto, authored by the composer, tells the story of a beautiful princess and her many suitors. Holst used this fairy tale as the basis for a satire of the popular operas of the time by such composers as Verdi, Wagner and Gounod. While Holst s opera is infrequently performed, the ballet that serves to open the work is a staple of English concert music. In the ballet, a Magician summons the Spirits of Earth, Water and Fire to assist him to woo the Princess. The ballet s melodic and orchestral brilliance recalls the spirit of Holst s orchestral masterpiece, The Planets (1916). Richard Wagner ( ) Prelude to Act III of Lohengrin (1850) 3 minutes 3 flutes, 3 oboes, 3 clarinets, 3 bassoons, 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, cymbals, tambourine, triangle and strings. The brief and very lively (Sehr lebhaft) Prelude to Act III of Wagner s Lohengrin portrays the celebrations attending the wedding of Elsa and Lohengrin, the Knight of the Holy Grail.