THE 2006 NEW YEAR S CONCERT OF THE VIENNA PHILHARMONIC

Transcription

1 THE 2006 NEW YEAR S CONCERT OF THE VIENNA PHILHARMONIC Part One Eurologo and signation Caption #1 (in German): Neujahrskonzert der Wiener Philharmoniker 2006 (The 2006 New Year s Concert of the Vienna Philharmonic) Caption #2: Dirigent: Mariss Jansons (Conductor: Mariss Jansons) Caption #3: Bildregie: Brian Large (Director: Brian Large) Commentator (Ernst Grissemann) starts to speak when Captions 1/2 appear. Spoken text #1: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the New Year s Concert of the Vienna Philharmonic. Their appearance on this first day of 2006 coincides with the personal debut of their conductor: It is the first time that Mariss Jansons leads this traditional concert, a task that as the worldfamous conductor from Latvia said in an interview makes "a big dream become true". His carefully selected programme spans from works of the Strauss family to compositions by Joseph Lanner. Tribute will also be paid to a composer whose birthday anniversary is going to mark this year 2006 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. So this is a premiere and a jubilee all the same: It is the 25 th time that the so-called Golden Hall of Vienna s Musikverein is decorated with flowers from San Remo, Italy s gem on the Ligurian coast. Artfully arranged by Austrian florists and gardeners, they provide a magnificent setting for this 2006 inauguration concert, which is to start shortly with a march from the large oeuvre of Johann Strauss. After its first performance - at the gathering of a riflemen s association in Vienna - it was reported that "the masses in the auditorium

2 greeted this sparkling, truly Viennese music with sheer enthusiasm!" Ladies and gentlemen, here is Mariss Jansons, aiming as the title Auf s Korn suggests - at the audience with the music of Johann Strauss! appr. Mariss Jansons enters the room / applause CAPTION (in German): Aufs Korn, Marsch op appr. Music #1 starts (approx. duration 2'20") appr. Applause Spoken text #2: Auf s Korn a march, written by Johann Strauss. It has never been performed in the Philharmonic's New Year Concert up to this date. With the tunes of Johann Strauss s famous waltz Voices of Spring listeners will be swept away into blooming Austrian landscapes. Frühlingsstimmen, Walzer op.410 IMAGING appr. Music #2 starts (appr. duration 6'10" - 6'05") appr. Applause EXIT CONDUCTOR?? (decision during the rehearsals) Spoken text #3: Voices of Spring, as imagined by Johann Strauss. Originally written for soprano voice and orchestra, this waltz premiered in the orchestra version here at the Musikverein in Conductor then was Eduard Strauss. For his Diplomaten-Polka (Diplomats) Johann Strauss re-arranged tunes from his operetta Fürstin Ninetta. (The first polka motif was originally found in a song with which one of the protagonists introduced himself ("Ich red aristokratisch, so äußerst diplomatisch, dass keiner mich

3 versteht/my speech is aristocratic, and very diplomatic, so that nobody understands"). Here are Johann Strauss s brilliant Diplomats.) IF THERE IS NO EXIT AFTER FRÜHLINGSSTIMMEN WE WILL CUT THIS PART OF TEXT)!! Diplomaten, Polka francaise op appr. Music #3 starts (approx. duration 4'10") appr. Applause Spoken text #4: Diplomats a polka by Johann Strauss. A speaking title Eingesendet (Sent in) and brilliant music make Josef Strauss's quick polka the most enchanting letter a reader ever wrote to the editor of a newspaper. The piece was first performed for press people dancing at the popular "Concordia" ball in the ballrooms of Vienna s Sofiensäle. Joseph Strauß Eingesendet, Polka schnell op appr. Music #4 starts (approx. duration 1'50") appr. Applause - EXIT CONDUCTOR Spoken text #5: Eingesendet, a quick polka piece written by Josef Strauss. In the summer of 1867, Johann Strauss was planning a journey to Paris. Determined to appear at the World Exhibition and impress the female audiences there with his music, he wrote a polka mazurka "in praise of women" (Lob der Frauen). The elegiac character of this polka tune met with modest acclaim among female listeners in Paris, and Strauss had to wait until his next stop - in London - for the plaudits of the crowds.

4 Lob der Frauen, Polka Mazur op appr. Music #5 starts (approx. duration 3'50" 3'45") appr. Applause Spoken text #6: Lob der Frauen - Johann Strauss's tribute to women. Künstlerleben (Artist's Life) is generally deemed to be one of Johann Strauss's most brilliant compositions and a true masterpiece. Every time Strauss and his orchestra performed this waltz at the Paris World Exhibition they had to play several encores. In a letter to his wife Jetty Johann Strauss wrote: "People are simply crazy about Viennese music!" Künstlerleben, Walzer op appr. Music #6 starts (approx. duration 8'30" - 8'28") appr. Applause Spoken text #7: An Artist's Life, as seen by Johann Strauss. During one stay in Pavlovsk near St.Petersburg Josef Strauss was suffering of one of his fits of depression. Despite his bad condition he wrote a lively quick polka piece, conceived in a lighthearted vein and named Without Sorrows (Ohne Sorgen)! Joseph Strauß Ohne Sorgen, Polka schnell op appr. Music #7 starts (approx. duration 1'50" 1'45") appr. Applause + announcement for the intermission

5 Without sorrows! was the programmatic title of the quick polka that Mariss Jansens had chosen for the finale of Part One of his first New Year's Concert with the Vienna Philharmonic. - Escape of radio networks Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and the 250 th return of his birthday on the 27th of January this year will be paid homage to in numerous ways and on various occasions. The film "Mozart 06" is intended as a kind of prelude to that long row of documentaries and celebration performances to come. You will accompany Austrian film-maker Georg Riha on his trip across Austria and, together with him, view the landscape between Salzburg and Vienna through the lens of his camera. In magnificent takes Georg Riha shows places where Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart had stayed and which had been of distinct influence on some of his works approx. INTERMISSION PROGRAMME SPECIALS start Durations of programmes during the intermission 23'30" 22'30" 21'30"

6 Part Two: Eurovision logo and signation + Bank Austria Creditanstalt logo Caption #1 (in German): Neujahrskonzert der Wiener Philharmoniker 2006 (The 2006 New Year s Concert of the Vienna Philharmonic) Caption #2: Dirigent: Mariss Jansons (Conductor: Mariss Jansons) Caption #3: Choreographie: John Neumeier (Choreography: John Neumeier) Caption #4: Bildregie: Brian Large (Director: Brian Large) Commentator (Ernst Grissemann) starts to speak when Captions 1/2 appear. Spoken text #1: A heartfelt welcome to the listeners and viewers of the New Year's Concert 2006 with the Vienna Philharmonic! The orchestra is playing under the lead of Mariss Jansons, one of the outstanding conductors of our time and a great personality. It is Mr. Jansons' debut as conductor of the traditional concert that communicates New Year's wishes from Vienna to countries all over the world. Born in Riga, Mr. Jansons became chief conductor of the Bayerischer Rundfunk chorus and symphonic in autumn 2003 and stepped to the same position with Amsterdam's Concertgebouw Orchestra when the 2003/2004 season commenced. As guest conductor he performs with leading orchestras world-wide, but the Vienna Philharmonic have always been, in his own words, "one of his great loves". Mariss Jansons is Honorary Member of Vienna's Society of Friends of Music (Gesellschaft der

7 Musikfreunde) and Honorary Member of the Royal Academy of Music in London. In May 2004 London's Royal Philharmonic Society awarded him the title of Conductor of the Year. For the opening piece of Part Two of the 2006 Concert Mr. Jansons chose the Entry March (Einzugsmarsch) from Gipsy Baron, an operetta by Johann Strauss Mariss Jansons enters the room Einzugsmarsch aus Der Zigeunerbaron appr. Music #1 starts (approx. duration 3'00" 2'55") appr. Applause Spoken text #2: You were listening to the Entry March from Johann Strauss's operetta Gipsy Baron in the orchestra version that many many years ago had its premiere here in the main concerthall of Vienna's Musikverein. In 2006 the world celebrates the 250 th anniversary of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's birthday. For an adequate start into this "Year of Mozart" we shall hear the overture to Mozart's opera Le Nozze di Figaro! Wolfgang A.Mozart Ouvertüre zu Le Nozze di Figaro appr. Music #2 starts (approx. duration 3'30" 3'25") appr. Applause Spoken text #3: The overture to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart s opera Le Nozze di Figaro truly the work of a genius! When Josef Lanner published his waltz The Mozartists (Die Mozartisten), he insisted that the following declaration be added to the score: "Written after music by Mozart not for dancing

8 but as a dedication to the devotees of the immortal master." Don't some of the tunes sound familiar to you? Joseph Lanner Die Mozartisten, Walzer op appr. Music #3 starts (approx. duration 8'50" 8'48") appr. Applause Spoken text #4: The Mozartists - a waltz by Josef Lanner, quoting Mozart's operas The Magic Flute and Don Giovanni. The next programme item is a gallop that consists of motifs from Johann Strauss's Cinderella (Aschenbrödel) ballet. Josef Bayer had arranged them after the composer's death and had given to the new piece the name Liebesbotschaft (Love Message). It has never been performed in the Philharmonic's New Year Concert up to this date. Liebesbotschaft Galopp appr. Music #4 starts (approx. duration 2'00") appr. Applause EXIT CONDUCTOR Spoken text #5: Its publication came rather late, but the music - vivacious and full of surprising effects - soon appeared in the standard repertoire of military bands. And now curtains up for the soloists of the Hamburg Ballet, dancing in the choreography of John Neumeier, one of the world's most soughtafter ballet artists. The ideal venue for a piece like Johann Strauss's New Pizzicato Polka is Vienna's Theater an der Wien, a place of historic importance where, for instance, Beethoven's opera Fidelio had its first stage performance.

9 (PLEASE MIND THAT RADIO IS POSSIBLY OFFERING A DIFFERENT TEXT VERSION!!!) Initially, Johann Strauss had used this delicate composition in his operetta Fürstin Ninetta (Princess Ninetta): in a dance scene with children first (where it was called Bébé-Polka) and then for an interlude. With some delay the work entered also the programmes of the concerthalls. Neue Pizzicato Polka, op.449 BALLET appr. Music #5 starts (approx. duration.3'30" 3'26") appr. Applause Spoken text #6: The New Pizzicato Polka, written by Johann Strauss. It was a usual practice among the composers of dance music to work selected motifs from operas and art songs into the accompaniments for quadrille dancings. Johann Strauss did just the same: The second of his Artists Quadrilles (Künstlerquadrille) includes, among others, tunes from works by Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Weber, Chopin, Meyerbeer and, of course, Mozart. Künstlerquadrille, op appr. Music #6 starts (approx. duration 5'10" 5'05") appr. Applause Spoken text #7: The Artists Quadrille, composed by Johann Strauss. Marie Christine, Princess Regent of Spain and a great admirer of the arts, had made great efforts to acquaint people in Madrid with Viennese music. Gratefully Johann Strauss dedicated his Spanish March to her. In return he

10 received the Great Cross of the Order of Isabel the Catholic. Spanischer Marsch, op appr. Music #7 starts (approx. duration 4'40" 4'39") appr. Applause EXIT CONDUCTOR Spoken text #8: After the Spanish March, by Johann Strauss it's time for a grand waltz - and time for a grand ballet performance. The companies of Vienna's State Opera and Volksoper and the soloists from the Hamburg Ballet are getting in line for the waltz Du und Du (You and You) by Johann Strauss. They will dance a choreography by John Neumeier. The scene has changed: We find ourselves in the Epstein Palais, recently renovated and now partly open to the public. The architecture of this magnificent house at Vienna's Ringstrasse is a work of Theophil Hansen, who also built the Musikverein building where today's concert takes place. The elegant rooms of the Bel Etage provide an ideal setting. (PLEASE MIND THAT RADIO IS POSSIBLY OFFERING A DIFFERENT TEXT VERSION!!!) You were listening to the Spanish March, by Johann Strauss. Motifs from his new operetta Die Fledermaus (The Bat) were the material that Johann Strauss worked into a waltz of outstanding quality. But no one in Vienna realised what a gem this piece actually was, possibly not even Strauss himself, who - like in so many cases remained sceptical about his waltz You and You (Du und Du). However, the premiere of the operetta at the Theater an der Wien turned out a major success. Du und Du, Walzer op BALLET appr. Music #8 starts (approx. duration 6'50" 6'48')

11 appr. Applause Spoken text #9: Du und Du - motifs from the operetta Die Fledermaus, turned into a waltz by Johann Strauss. During his walks in the beautiful gardens of Pavlovsk, in Russia, Johann Strauss found the inspiration for a brilliant polka, which he named Im Pawlowsk-Walde (In the Woods of Pavlovsk). Nine months later, in Vienna, this piece was premiered under the name Im Krapfenwald l in the Volksgarten danceroom under the lead of Eduard Strauss. Im Krapfenwaldl, Polka francaise op appr. Music #9 starts (approx. duration 3'50") appr. Applause Spoken text #10: Im Krapfenwald l - polka francaise, written by Johann Strauss. Its new name is an allusion to a popular inn in the Vienna Woods where Viennese people used to go and dine on weekends. With the next piece our programme gains in speed and vigor: Composer of the Furioso Polka was Johann Strauss, and its place of origin was once more Russia. Furioso, Polka quasi Galopp, op appr. Music # 10 starts (approx. duration 2'10" 2'15") appr. Applause EXIT CONDUCTOR Spoken text #11: Furioso a polka quasi gallop, by Johann Strauss.

12 Telephone is the name of a polka francaise that Eduard Strauss once wrote for the ball of engineers and technicians in the rooms of the Musikverein building. What an annoying invention a telephone can be: Just listen to this. Eduard Strauß Telephon, Polka francaise op.165 FUNNY ACT appr. Music #11 starts (approx. duration 3'10"-3'15") appr. Applause Spoken text #12: Telephone, a polka by Eduard Strauss. For his Lagoon waltz Johann Strauss had picked the finest waltz tunes from his operetta A Night in Venice. The piece had its premiere here in this concertroom, conductor was Johann Strauss himself. Lagunen Walzer, op appr. Music #12 starts (approx. duration 7'20" 7'19") appr. Applause Spoken text #13: The Lagunen Waltz, composed by Johann Strauss. The last item on the official programme list of this New Year's Concert with the Vienna Philharmonic is a quick polka, which Johann Strauss dedicated to the "noble Hungarian nation" - Eljen á Magyar! It was in the Redoute building in Pest where this piece was performed for the very first time. Eljen á Magyar!, Polka schnell op.332

13 appr. Music #13 starts (approx. duration 2'20" 2'15") appr. Applause CONDUCTOR LEAVES AND RE-ENTERS THE ROOM A FLOWER BOUQUET IS HANDED OVER Spoken text #14: Eljen á Magyar! by Johann Strauss. Strauss's fervent salute to Hungary was the finale piece of the official programme of Vienna's salute to the world at the beginning of a new year. Cheers for Mariss Jansons and his successful debut as conductor of this traditional concert with the Vienna Philharmonic. The flower bouquet he receives from the hands of a representative of Vienna's gardeners and florists is to express their thanks for a great performance. Our thanks should also go to the city of San Remo, which for the 25 th time in series added to the spendor of this magnificent concertroom with loads of flowers. Mariss Jansons and the Vienna Philharmonic have toured many countries together. Their last journey, in March last year, led them to New York. How close their relations are is seen from the fact that Mr. Jansons accepted the offer to conduct the orchestra during the opening of their own ball at the Musikverein next year. Today, we shall have the pleasure to hear them with a first encore the Bandits Gallop by Johann Strauss. Additional text, if needed: After the premiere of Strauss's comic operetta Prince Methusalem critics would unanimously complain that there was no exciting "earmark" piece in the entire score. Strauss reacted immediately and in his usual way: He picked motifs of the operetta and composed them into a quick-time polka the Bandits Gallop. Banditen Galopp, op.378 FUNNY ACT appr. Music #14 starts / Encore #1 (approx. duration

14 2'20" 2'25") appr. Applause CONDUCTOR LEAVES THE ROOM Spoken text #15: The Bandits Gallop, by Johann Strauss, was the first encore in this New Year's Concert And now - everyone ready for a little quiz? There is no prize offered, but try to answer the question: What is the title of the next encore? An der schönen blauen Donau, Walzer op appr. Music #15 starts / Encore #2 (approx. duration 9'10" 9'05") + NEW YEAR WISHES appr. Applause EXIT CONDUCTOR Spoken text #16: The Blue Danube waltz no doubt the most popular work in the long row of Strauss waltzes. With the tunes of Johann Strauss Father s Radetzky March the Vienna Philharmonic, Mariss Jansons and the team of the Austrian broadcaster ORF bid you farewell. We wish you a happy new year! Vater Radetzky Marsch, op appr. Music #16 starts / Encore #3 (approx. duration 3'00") appr. Applause Roller with credits appr. BANK AUSTRIA CREDITANSTALT logo Eurologo and signation appr. End of the broadcast