SIBELIUS AND BRAHMS Ashkenazy and Zukerman THURSDAY AFTERNOON SYMPHONY Thursday 14 November 2013 TEA & SYMPHONY Friday 15 November 2013 SUPPORTED BY VIENNA TOURIST BOARD
DECEMBER JANUARY CLASSICAL Thibaudet plays Gershwin Jazz Inspirations SHOSTAKOVICH Jazz Suite No.1 GERSHWIN Piano Concerto in F PROKOFIEV Symphony No.5 James Gaffigan conductor Jean-Yves Thibaudet piano Variations on an English Theme HAYDN Symphony No.92 (Oxford) BRITTEN The Young Person s Guide to the Orchestra BRITTEN Violin Concerto BRAHMS Variations on a Theme of Haydn James Gaffigan conductor Vilde Frang violin Symphony in the Domain Spread your blanket under the stars and enjoy the sounds of the orchestra with your family and friends in the Domain. HOLST The Planets TCHAIKOVSKY 1812 Overture Simone Young conductor John Bell actor-narrator Sydney Philharmonia Choirs Anne-Sophie Mutter plays Mozart MOZART Violin Concerto No.2 in D, K211 Violin Concerto No.3 in G, K216 (Strassburger) Violin Concerto No.5 in A, K219 (Turkish) Anne-Sophie Mutter violin-director Tickets for these concerts on sale from Monday 2 December THURSDAY AFTERNOON SYMPHONY Thu 5 Dec 1.30pm EMIRATES METRO SERIES Fri 6 Dec 8pm GREAT CLASSICS Sat 7 Dec 2pm MONDAYS @ 7 Mon 9 Dec 7pm Pre-concert talk by Yvonne Frindle MASTER SERIES Wed 11 Dec 8pm Fri 13 Dec 8pm Sat 14 Dec 8pm Pre-concert talk by David Garrett FREE EVENT PRESENTED BY THE SYDNEY FESTIVAL Sun 26 Jan 8pm Sydney Domain SPECIAL EVENT PREMIER PARTNER CREDIT SUISSE Fri 31 Jan 8pm Sat 1 Feb 8pm Sun 2 Feb 2pm Pre-concert talk 45 minutes before each performance BOOK NOW! SYDNEYSYMPHONY.COM or call 8215 4600 Mon-Fri 9am-5pm Tickets also available at sydneyoperahouse.com 9250 7777 Mon-Sat 9am-8.30pm Sun 10am-6pm * Booking fees of $7.50 $8.95 may apply.
WELCOME On behalf of the Vienna Tourist Board, Silver Partner of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, I d like to welcome you to Vladimir Ashkenazy s fi nal performances with the orchestra this year. Vienna, the City of Music, has inspired generations of famous composers. Music is literally in the air, from inside the famed Musikverein to the memorials of Beethoven, Haydn and Schubert dotted across town. Vienna has not only been the birthplace of some of our best-loved composers, but composers from across Europe and indeed the world have decided to take residence there. Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms and Mahler are just some of the immigrated Viennese whose music now graces concert platforms everywhere. Even Sibelius, the voice of Finland, made Vienna the destination for his advanced music studies. This week, Sydney welcomes Pinchas Zukerman, a great violinist and friend and colleague of Ashkenazy, and joining them for two of the performances, cellist Amanda Forsyth. We re delighted to have helped support these concerts, making this meeting of fi ne artistic spirits a possibility, and giving you a chance to experience the immediacy and timelessness of great music in this concert with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Ashkenazy and his friends. We hope you enjoy the performance! WIENTOURISMUS/PETER RIGAUD Norbert Kettner Managing Director Vienna Tourist Board
2013 season thursday afternoon symphony Thursday 14 November 1.30pm tea & symphony Friday 15 November 11am Sydney Opera House Concert Hall Sibelius and Brahms Vladimir Ashkenazy CONDUCTOR Pinchas Zukerman VIOLIN Amanda Forsyth CELLO Johannes Brahms (1833 1897) Double Concerto in A minor for violin, cello and orchestra, Op.102 Allegro Andante Vivace non troppo INTERVAL Jean Sibelius (1865 1957) Symphony No.5 in E flat, Op.82 Tempo molto moderato Allegro moderato Vivace molto Presto Andante mosso, quasi allegretto Tranquillo Ritenuto al tempo I Allegro molto Misteriouso Largamente assai Thursday afternoon s performance will be broadcast live on ABC Classic FM. Pre-concert talk by Scott Davie on Thursday 14 November at 1.15pm in the Northern Foyer. Visit bit.ly/ssospeakerbios for speaker biographies. Estimated durations: 32 minutes (Brahms) 30 minutes (Sibelius) The performance will conclude at approximately 3.10pm (Thursday) and 12.10pm (Friday). Friday morning s concert will be performed without an interval. SUPPORTING PARTNER
LEBRECHT MUSIC & ARTS A page from the autograph score of Sibelius s Fifth Symphony, with the composer at his desk in 1915, the year the symphony was premiered. LEBRECHT MUSIC & ARTS 6 sydney symphony
INTRODUCTION Sibelius and Brahms: Ashkenazy and friends At the end of our Sibelius Festival in 2004, Vladimir Ashkenazy declared he d never heard Sibelius played better! It turned out, he said recently, to be a momentous event for everyone involved. Those fortunate enough to have witnessed this artistic highlight in the SSO s recent history will likely agree. Critic Peter McCallum went so far as to say (after the Second Symphony): It was marvellous and many of those at home abed shall think themselves accursed they were not there. It was one of those nights when listeners concentrate, he wrote, and players find a groove which draws out the sound in great gulping breaths and bounding leaps, while the conductor led with nothing more obtrusive than a noble vision of a noble work. That festival marked the renewal of Ashkenazy s relationship with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. It set the template for a series of composer festivals: Rachmaninoff (2007), Elgar (2008), and in 2009, the first year of his tenure as Principal Conductor, Prokofiev. And it set the tone for a relationship founded on vision and unobtrusive leadership and, above all, on music and music-making among friends. Today s program highlights the theme of friendship, with a concerto that was written by a composer reaching out to a friend and which, unusually for its time, featured two soloists in chamber-music intimacy. (Today those soloists are husband-and-wife pair, Pinchas Zukerman and Amanda Forsyth.) And we relive the glory of the Sibelius Festival with the Fifth Symphony. This is economical music, terse at times, yet in Ashkenazy s hands it has a nobility of sound that leads without hesitation to the jubilant and lifeaffirming conclusion. Turn to page 27 to read Bravo! musician profi les, articles and news from the orchestra. There are nine issues through the year, also available at sydneysymphony.com/bravo sydney symphony 7
At this very moment a soloist s heart is beating in time to the music at the Vienna State Opera. It s a shame you can t hear it. VIENNA HOTELS & INFO Tel. +43-1-24 555 info@vienna.info WWW.VIENNA.INFO Wiener Staatsballett, principal dancer, Olga Esina
ABOUT THE MUSIC Johannes Brahms Double Concerto in A minor for violin, cello and orchestra, Op.102 Allegro Andante Vivace non troppo Pinchas Zukerman, violin Amanda Forsyth cello In 1887 Brahms told a conductor-friend that he d had the strange notion of writing a concerto for violin and cello. Although the idea of concertos for multiple instruments had once been popular in 18th-century Paris it was practically a fad it was no longer fashionable. Brahms knew that what he had in mind was out of the ordinary. Brahms intended the Double Concerto as it s commonly known to be a conciliatory peace mission to his friend, the violinist Joseph Joachim. Nearly a decade earlier, Brahms had composed his violin concerto for Joachim, and the violinist Brahms and Joachim, 1855 Keynotes BRAHMS Born Hamburg, 1833 Died Vienna, 1897 Brahms is often thought reactionary: he valued classical forms, admired composers of the past, and his choral music is rooted in the traditions of the baroque period. Yet his musical language and way of using the orchestra clearly represents 19th-century romanticism in all its richness and emotive power. It took Brahms 15 years to compose his first symphony; he was keenly aware of the looming shadow of Beethoven. But the second symphony followed four months later in 1877, and the violin concerto soon after. Although he continued to write chamber music, his last orchestral work was the Double Concerto, completed in 1887. DOUBLE CONCERTO The Double Concerto was written during a summer holiday at Thun in the Swiss mountains and was intended as a peace offering to his estranged friend, the violinist Joseph Joachim, for whom he d written his violin concerto. The challenges presented by the unusual combination of violin and cello with orchestra resulted in a distinctive chamber music character: often delicate and intimate in effect. The concerto is in three movements, the last evoking a Hungarian gypsy spirit. It was premiered on 15 October 1887, with Brahms conducting and Joachim and Robert Hausmann, the cellist from Joachim s string quartet, as soloists. sydney symphony 9
had advised him on technique the result was a masterpiece and a happy relationship. But in 1881 Joachim became convinced that his wife, Amalie, was having an affair. Brahms chivalrously vouched for her innocence at the cost of the friendship. A few years later the couple had divorced, and in the summer of 1887 Brahms was hoping his double concerto would rekindle the old friendship. His postcard to Joachim read: I should like to send some news of an artistic nature which I heartily hope might interest you a little. Joachim s response was enthusiastic, and Brahms wrote several times thereafter for advice on technical aspects of the work. The two men came together to rehearse the finished music. The cellist was Robert Hausmann, who played in a string quartet with Joachim, and Brahms would have accompanied them at the piano, later conducting. So it was that in September 1887 Brahms and Joachim spoke to each other for the first time in years. Perhaps this is the message behind the very beginning of the concerto: after the cello (representing Brahms?) plays a long solo, it s the violinist s turn (Joachim), except the cello joins in almost straight away, and so begins a musical journey. It s a journey with the intimacy of chamber music as well as the breadth of an orchestral sound. The story of reconciliation isn t just a sentimental interpretation; it explains some of the themes and musical gestures in the concerto. Brahms included references that he knew Joachim would recognise. In the first movement (Allegro), for example, he hints at a violin concerto by Giovanni Battista Viotti, a longer-living contemporary of Mozart. The concerto was No.22 in A minor; Joachim had been responsible for resurrecting it and it was one of his favourite concert pieces. Brahms admired the concerto too, calling it his special delight, and he d already referred to it in the violin concerto he d written for Joachim. In the Double Concerto, Brahms takes the rhythmic gestures with distinctive pairs of notes from the beginning of Viotti s concerto and gives them new harmonic and melodic shape. In another gesture that Joachim would have recognised, there are fleeting appearances in the first and third movements of a fragment of melody just three notes, F A E which acted as a musical code for Joachim s personal motto Frei, aber einsam (free but lonely). And the finale has a Hungarian flavour again, probably a deliberate choice on Brahms s part for a violinist who had grown up in Pest. Here the cello takes the lead, with a languorous gypsylike melody, and the violin answers with piquant flippancy. A portrait of Brahms from the 1880s 10 sydney symphony
In between the two fast movements is the Andante music that conveys the tranquillity and intimacy of two musicians reconciled through the healing power of music, united to build (in the words of Donald Tovey) one of the broadest melodies ever written. The surface mastery of the concerto tends to conceal the many challenges Brahms faced. How do you give equal prominence to the cello (an instrument inherently less penetrating than the violin)? How do you balance their differences in range (there is greater contrast between them than between the violin and viola in a piece like Mozart s Sinfonia concertante)? And how do you apportion the thematic material between the soloists and orchestral forces? Brahms s deep knowledge of the music of the past helped him to find a personal solution one owing more to the 18th-century concerto grosso than to the typical virtuoso solo concerto of his own time. One of his strategies involves the contrasting of solid blocks of orchestral sound with passages of great transparency. This is most evident in the finale, but also shapes the first movement in which full-bodied orchestral passages alternate with discreet accompaniment when the soloists display virtuoso skill; yet the fabric of the music is delicate and intimate. The result is a distinctive chamber-music quality. Yes, there s an orchestra on stage, but it s easy to imagine that first rehearsal: Brahms at the piano making a trio with his two friends playing violin and cello. the finale has a Hungarian flavour the cello takes the lead, with a languorous gypsy-like melody ADAPTED FROM NOTES BY YVONNE FRINDLE 2008 AND SYMPHONY AUSTRALIA 1994 Brahms s Double Concerto calls for a modest orchestra comprising pairs of flutes, oboes, clarinets and bassoons; four horns and two trumpets; timpani and strings. The SSO first performed the Double Concerto in 1950 in a concert conducted by Eugene Goossens. The soloists were violinist Ernest Llewellyn (after whom Llewellyn Hall at the Canberra School of Music is named) and cellist John Kennedy (father of Nigel Kennedy). The most recent performance was in 2011: violinist Karen Gomyo and cellist Alban Gerhardt were the soloists, with Vasily Petrenko conducting. sydney symphony 11
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Jean Sibelius Symphony No.5 in E flat, Op.82 Tempo molto moderato Allegro moderato Vivace molto Presto Andante mosso, quasi allegretto Tranquillo Ritenuto al tempo I Allegro molto Misteriouso Largamente assai The pitiless despair of Sibelius s Fourth Symphony (1911) puzzled many of its first listeners. The work seemed an unlikely sequel to the gentle radiance of the Third (1907), yet its gaze into the abyss gave way, in the Fifth, to one of Sibelius s most shining, life-affirming creations. Early in 1914 he heard Schoenberg s Chamber Symphony for the first time. This is a legitimate and valid way of looking at things, I suppose, he wrote in his diary. But it is certainly painful to listen to. Yet we know that Schoenberg s abandonment of tonality continued to fascinate Sibelius, for it suggested a next step for his own work after the Fourth Symphony. (He expressed his admiration for Schoenberg publicly at this time.) But the Fifth Symphony tells us plainly that Sibelius could not adopt another s solutions to the musical issues he confronted. While the Fifth is light to the Fourth s darkness, a progression from doubt to belief (Sibelius s admiration for Bruckner should not be forgotten here), it represents no shift in Sibelius s compositional principles; he was not a man to change his ways so swiftly. An economy of orchestral resource, the building up of musical paragraphs by the development of tiny melodic fragments, the determination to create his own solutions to the problems of harmonic language and symphonic form these were abiding features of his music from the beginning of his composing life. In fact of all the major composers of the last century he was the most solitary, methodical and purposeful in his stylistic development, taking only fitful interest in the work of his contemporaries. In Neville Cardus memorable description, Sibelius sits alone in the house of music rather away from the hearth and the logs and the company; he says little, and sometimes by his taciturnity alone he makes an impression of deep thinking. He wrote the Fifth, one of the most popular of all his works, at a time of great personal difficulty. The Great War had broken out and, as a result, Sibelius had lost access to the revenue from his German publishers, Breitkopf and Härtel. To earn some regular income he wrote a great number of salon pieces for domestic performance, and Keynotes SIBELIUS Born Hämeenlinna, 1865 Died Järvenpää, 1957 Sibelius was a force in the creation of a distinctive Finnish voice at the turn of the 20th century, and much of his music was based on themes from the Finnish folk epic, the Kalevala. His symphonies represented more abstract works; he completed seven before he stopped composing in the 1930s, and worked on an eighth. FIFTH SYMPHONY The Fifth Symphony was composed in the troubled times of World War I, but even so it is one of Sibelius s most shining, life-affirming creations. The music adopted a modest-sized orchestra and, eventually, a symmetrical structure of three movements a departure from the fourmovement classical symphony of Beethoven. The first movement which opens with an important horn call links what was originally two movements: a slow introduction and a waltz-like scherzo. The calm second movement is a set of variations on a rhythmic motif, and the final movement reverses the tempo directions of the first by beginning fast and ending slowly. Sibelius conducted the premiere of the original version on 8 December 1915: his 50th birthday. sydney symphony 13
had little time for other composing; the Fifth Symphony is his only major work of the war years. Sibelius himself conducted the symphony s first performance, at a concert given on 8 December 1915 to mark his 50th birthday. It was a jubilant event, treated almost as a national holiday, but Sibelius was unhappy with the work and revised it twice. In 1916 he joined the first two of the original four movements together, and he made further revisions before it was published in 1919. Listening Guide The symphony begins quietly with horns and timpani. The theme we hear at this point is soon elaborated into a woodwind cadenza. At its conclusion the strings enter, and we seem to be moving gradually and inexorably into the landscape of the music until we come to the vista presented by a great tolling of the brass and the announcement of a jagged syncopated theme on the strings. Now we have reached the threshold beyond which the heart of the symphony lies. A mysterious, cloudy passage for the strings over which the bassoon utters a sorrowful version of one of the main themes leads to a burnished assertion by the trumpets of the very first theme of the symphony, shortly after which, with a change of time signature from 12/8 to 3/4, the mood changes to one of dancing lightness, in which the sound of the two flutes leads us on. Soon the music gathers pace and the strings take up the dance strain with increasing excitement until the brass join in for the final, sudden, invigorating climax. The second movement is a set of variations not on a theme, but on a rhythmic pattern that Sibelius contrives to behave like a theme. The whole movement is a centre of calm, and even the passionate descending string tune that marks one of the most decisive transformations of the original idea is marked Poco tranquillo. Towards the end of the movement the brass toll out a reminiscence of their earlier, more excitable selves; this leads to a series of cloudy gestures which recall music from the earlier movement. But towards the end the mood changes to one of almost childlike serenity, which is carried through to the short, abbreviated, coda. The finale throws us into its hurly-burly almost immediately, with a whirlwind passage for the strings leading to one of the most famous of all themes in Sibelius s music, that in which, as Donald Tovey famously described it, Thor swings his hammer. It is a good example of how orchestrally conceived Sibelius s ideas are. Played on A sketch of Sibelius by Albert Engström, 1904 Sibelius sits alone in the house of music rather away from the hearth and the logs and the company; he says little, and sometimes by his taciturnity alone he makes an impression of deep thinking. NEVILLE CARDUS 14 sydney symphony
the piano the tune would mean very little, but given out on horns with a high, syncopated woodwind counterpoint, it attains a unique nobility. After some woodwind carolling and a return to the gusty sounds of the movement s opening, Sibelius prepares us for a return of the swinging horn theme. When this finally re-appears, it does so as a chorale that has to struggle through long pedal-points and changes of key before bursting into its sunset glory. These final minutes of the movement contain the richest orchestration of the whole work, but almost before we can register the fact, the symphony ends with six jubilant, adamant chords. PHILLIP SAMETZ 1995/2004 Sibelius s Fifth Symphony calls for pairs of flutes, oboes, clarinets and bassoons; four horns, three trumpets and three trombones; timpani and strings. The SSO first performed the Fifth Symphony in 1939 with Edgar Bainton conducting, and most recently in 2010, conducted by Matthew Coorey. Vladimir Ashkenazy conducted the symphony in his Sibelius festival in 2004. An economy of orchestral resource, the building up of musical paragraphs by the development of tiny melodic fragments, the determination to create his own solutions to the problems of harmonic language and symphonic form these were abiding features of Sibelius s music from the beginning of his composing life. BE THE FIRST TO KNOW. Sign up to our free e-newsletter. www.sydneysymphony.com/staytuned sydney symphony 15
MORE MUSIC BRAHMS DOUBLE CONCERTO Today s performers haven t recorded the Brahms Double Concerto, but for a classic pairing of the Double Concerto and Beethoven s Triple, you can t go past the EMI Great Recordings of the Century release featuring violinist David Oistrakh, cellist Mstislav Rostropovich and pianist Sviatoslav Richter. The Berlin Philharmonic and Herbert von Karajan accompany the Beethoven; the Cleveland Orchestra and George Szell accompany the Brahms. EMI CLASSICS 31768 (OR 55978) Or, for a pairing of the Double with Brahms s Violin Concerto both composed for Joseph Joachim try Vadim Repin and Truls Mørk with Riccardo Chailly conducting the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. DEUTSCHE GRAMMOPHON 477 7470 ASHKENAZY CONDUCTS SIBELIUS Vladimir Ashkenazy s most recent recording of Sibelius s Fifth Symphony was with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, released in 2010 with the Fourth Symphony and the ever-popular Finlandia. EXTON 282 If you re looking for the complete symphonies, these can be found in a value boxed set, together with the tone poems and violin concerto. Ashkenazy conducts the Philharmonia Orchestra; Boris Belkin is the soloist in the concerto. DECCA 473 5902 Visit www.sydneysymphony.com/shop to buy Ashkenazy s recordings with the SSO. PINCHAS ZUKERMAN Pinchas Zukerman s recent recording of the Brahms violin concerto with Alan Gilbert and the New York Philharmonic on the NYP s house label is available through itunes in a concert recording with Webern s Passacaglia and Brahms s Fourth Symphony. Pinchas Zukerman and Vladimir Ashkenazy were frequent chamber music partners during the 1990s and their recordings include the complete Schubert piano trios with cellist Lynn Harrell (who will perform with the SSO in 2014). DECCA 455 6852 On the Eloquence label, Zukerman plays the muchloved Lark Ascending in an all-english collection of music by Delius, Vaughan Williams and Walton. Daniel Barenboim conducts the English Chamber Orchestra. ELOQUENCE 442 8333 AMANDA FORSYTH Amanda Forsyth s father was the South African-born Canadian composer, Malcolm Forysth and she has recorded some of his music for cello, including the concerto he wrote for her. One disc is named for the concerto, Electra Rising, and includes two other Forsyth works, Valley of a Thousand Hills and 3 Vie (Three Roads), a concerto for saxophonist William Street. The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra is conducted by Grzegorz Nowak. CBC RECORDS SMCD 5180 Soaring with Agamemnon features music for cello and piano by Malcolm Forsyth, Gavin Bryars and Arvo Pärt (Spiegel im Spiegel), with Peter Longworth at the piano. The disc includes Pop s Cycle (Eclectic Suite), which sets the mood with its well-named Ripsnorter Finale. MARQUIS CLASSICS MAR 231 For more recordings by Amanda Forsyth, including recordings with the Zukerman ChamberPlayers, visit: www.amandaforsyth.com/wp/discography Broadcast Diary November December abc.net.au/classic Saturday 16 November, 8pm mahler and bruch Vladimir Ashkenazy conductor Pinchas Zukerman violin Thursday 28 November, 1.05pm wagner madness Nicholas Carter conductor Janet Webb flute Haydn, L Liebermann, Ledger, Wagner Saturday 14 December, 8pm variations on an english theme James Gaffigan conductor Vilde Frang violin Haydn, Britten, Brahms Fine Music 102.5 sydney symphony 2013 Tuesday 10 December, 6pm Musicians, staff and guest artists discuss what s in store for 2014. Webcasts Selected Sydney Symphony Orchestra concerts are webcast live on BigPond and Telstra T-box and made available for later viewing On Demand. Our next webcast: mahler and bruch From Saturday 16 November at 8pm Visit: bigpondmusic.com/sydneysymphony We recommend our free mobile app, now optimised for the ipad, if you want to watch SSO live webcasts on your mobile device. 16 sydney symphony
ABOUT THE ARTISTS Vladimir Ashkenazy PRINCIPAL CONDUCTOR AND ARTISTIC ADVISOR Vladimir Ashkenazy first came to prominence on the world stage in the 1955 Chopin Competition in Warsaw and as winner of the 1956 Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels. Since then he has built an extraordinary career, not only as one of the most outstanding pianists of the 20th century, but as a revered and inspiring artist whose creative life encompasses a vast range of activities. Conducting has formed the largest part of his musicmaking for the past 20 years, and this is his fifth season as Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor of the Sydney Symphony. He has also been Chief Conductor of the Czech Philharmonic (1998 2003) and Music Director of the NHK Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo (2004 2007), and he is Conductor Laureate of the Philharmonia Orchestra, with whom he has developed landmark projects such as Prokofiev and Shostakovich Under Stalin and Rachmaninoff Revisited. He also holds the positions of Music Director of the European Union Youth Orchestra and Conductor Laureate of the Iceland Symphony Orchestra. He maintains strong links with a number of other major orchestras, including the Cleveland Orchestra (where he was formerly Principal Guest Conductor) and Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin (Chief Conductor and Music Director, 1988 96), as well as making guest appearances with major orchestras around the world. Vladimir Ashkenazy continues to devote himself to the piano, building his comprehensive recording catalogue with releases such as the 1999 Grammy award-winning Shostakovich Preludes and Fugues, Rautavaara s Piano Concerto No.3 (which he commissioned), Rachmaninoff transcriptions, Bach s Wohltemperierte Klavier and Beethoven s Diabelli Variations. His most recent solo releases feature the music of Rachmaninoff. A regular visitor to Sydney since his Australian debut in 1969, he has conducted subscription concerts and composer festivals for the Sydney Symphony, with highlights including the acclaimed Sibelius festival of 2004 and his Rachmaninoff festival of 2007. In 2010 11 he conducted the Mahler Odyssey concerts and live recordings, and his artistic role with the orchestra includes annual international touring. Russian-born Vladimir Ashkenazy inherited his musical gift from both sides of his family: his father David Ashkenazy was a professional light music pianist and his mother Evstolia (née Plotnova) was daughter of a chorusmaster in the Russian Orthodox church. KEITH SAUNDERS sydney symphony 17
Pinchas Zukerman VIOLIN Pinchas Zukerman has remained a phenomenon in the world of music for over four decades, equally respected as violinist, violist, conductor, teacher and chamber musician. His extraordinary musicianship, prodigious technique and unwavering artistic standards are a marvel to audiences and critics. His busy annual performance schedule takes him all over North America, Europe and Asia, appearing in the 2013 14 season with such orchestras as the Vienna Philharmonic, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Budapest Festival Orchestra, Salzburg Camerata, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. As a chamber musician he appears this season with pianist Yefim Bronfman in a North American recital tour, and his ensemble, the Zukerman ChamberPlayers, will perform at the Ravinia, Verbier and Miyazaki festivals, and make their third South American tour. Over the past decade, Pinchas Zukerman has become equally regarded as a conductor, directing many of the world s top orchestras. He is in his 15th season as Music Director of the National Arts Centre Orchestra of Ottawa and has served as Principal Guest Conductor of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra since 2009. His devotion to the next generation of musicians has resulted in innovative teaching programs in London, New York, China, Israel and Ottawa. He chairs the Pinchas Zukerman Performance Program at the Manhattan School of Music, pioneering the use of distance-learning technology, and in Canada he established the NAC Institute for Orchestra Studies and Summer Music Institute. Born in Tel Aviv in 1948, he moved to America in 1962, studying at the Juilliard School with Ivan Galamian. He has been awarded the Medal of Arts and the Isaac Stern Award for Artistic Excellence, and was appointed as the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative s first instrumentalist mentor in the music discipline. His extensive discography contains more than a hundred titles and has earned him 21 Grammy nominations and two awards. Pinchas Zukerman s most recent visit to Sydney was in 2000 as part of the Olympic Arts Festival, appearing for the Australian Youth Orchestra and Musica Viva. On this visit to Australia he also performs with the Adelaide and West Australian symphony orchestras. PAUL LABELLE 18 sydney symphony
Amanda Forsyth CELLO Known for her warm, resonating sound and effortless technique, JUNO Award-winning cellist Amanda Forsyth has performed as a soloist and chamber musician in more than 45 countries in North and South America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, New Zealand and Australia, appearing with leading orchestras in world-renowned concert halls and festivals. She holds the post of principal cello with the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa and each season appears with the NACO as a soloist; in 2014 she will perform the Double Concerto for viola and cello by her father, Malcolm Forsyth. Concerto highlights include appearances with the Mariinsky Orchestra in St Petersburg with Valery Gergiev conducting, and with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra in Munich. She has also appeared with the Orchestre National de Montpellier, the Colorado Symphony in Denver, the San Carlo Orchestra in Naples, and in Russia with the Moscow Virtuosi, in performances filmed for national television. This year she also toured the United States as soloist with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and returned to the Miyazaki Festival for the third time as soloist with the Festival Orchestra and in chamber music concerts. As a founding member of the Zukerman ChamberPlayers, she has toured South America several times, performs in the United States and throughout Europe, and has appeared in Israel, Jordan and New Zealand. This year the Zukerman ChamberPlayers gave concerts in Taiwan, China and Japan as well as in Santa Monica and Scottsdale, and for Villa Musica in Germany. In the 2012 13 season she also performed in recital at Ravinia, in Seville for Placido Domingo s festival, and in Toronto, Princeton, Philadelphia and West Palm Beach. This is Amanda Forsyth s Sydney Symphony Orchestra debut; on this visit to Australia she also appears with the Adelaide and West Australian symphony orchestras. Amanda Forsyth performs on a rare 1699 Italian cello by Carlo Giuseppe Testore. MISHA BYALIK sydney symphony 19
MUSICIANS Vladimir Ashkenazy Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor supported by Emirates Andrew Haveron Concertmaster Dene Olding Concertmaster Jessica Cottis Assistant Conductor supported by Premier Partner Credit Suisse FIRST VIOLINS Dene Olding Concertmaster Sun Yi Associate Concertmaster Kirsten Williams Associate Concertmaster Lerida Delbridge Assistant Concertmaster Fiona Ziegler Assistant Concertmaster Julie Batty Jenny Booth Marianne Broadfoot Brielle Clapson Sophie Cole Amber Davis Georges Lentz Nicola Lewis Alexander Norton Léone Ziegler Rebecca Gill Andrew Haveron Concertmaster Alexandra Mitchell SECOND VIOLINS Kirsty Hilton Marina Marsden Emma Jezek A/ Associate Principal Emily Long A/ Assistant Principal Shuti Huang Stan W Kornel Benjamin Li Nicole Masters Philippa Paige Biyana Rozenblit Maja Verunica Alexandra D Elia* Elizabeth Jones* Kelly Tang Maria Durek Emma Hayes VIOLAS Roger Benedict Tobias Breider Anne-Louise Comerford Justin Williams Assistant Principal Robyn Brookfield Sandro Costantino Jane Hazelwood Graham Hennings Stuart Johnson Justine Marsden Felicity Tsai Leonid Volovelsky Amanda Verner CELLOS Catherine Hewgill Leah Lynn Assistant Principal Kristy Conrau Fenella Gill Timothy Nankervis Elizabeth Neville Christopher Pidcock Adrian Wallis David Wickham James sang-oh Yoo DOUBLE BASSES Kees Boersma Alex Henery Neil Brawley Principal Emeritus David Campbell Steven Larson Richard Lynn David Murray Benjamin Ward FLUTES Emma Sholl Carolyn Harris Janet Webb Rosamund Plummer Principal Piccolo OBOES Diana Doherty Shefali Pryor David Papp Alexandre Oguey Principal Cor Anglais CLARINETS Lawrence Dobell Francesco Celata Christopher Tingay Craig Wernicke Principal Bass Clarinet BASSOONS Matthew Wilkie Fiona McNamara Noriko Shimada Principal Contrabassoon HORNS Robert Johnson Geoffrey O Reilly Principal 3rd Rachel Silver Euan Harvey Brendan Parravicini Ben Jacks Marnie Sebire TRUMPETS David Elton Paul Goodchild Anthony Heinrichs TROMBONES Scott Kinmont Nick Byrne Christopher Harris Principal Bass Trombone Ronald Prussing TUBA Steve Rossé TIMPANI Richard Miller Mark Robinson Assistant Principal PERCUSSION Rebecca Lagos Colin Piper HARP Louise Johnson Bold = Principal Italics = Associate Principal * = Guest Musician = SSO Fellow Grey = Permanent member of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra not appearing in this concert To see photographs of the full roster of permanent musicians and find out more about the orchestra, visit our website: www.sydneysymphony.com/sso_musicians If you don t have access to the internet, ask one of our customer service representatives for a copy of our Musicians flyer. The men of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra are proudly outfitted by Van Heusen. 20 sydney symphony
SYDNEY SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA Vladimir Ashkenazy Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor PATRON Her Excellency Professor Marie Bashir AC CVO JOHN MARMARAS Founded in 1932 by the Australian Broadcasting Commission, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra has evolved into one of the world s finest orchestras as Sydney has become one of the world s great cities. Resident at the iconic Sydney Opera House, where it gives more than 100 performances each year, the SSO also performs in venues throughout Sydney and regional New South Wales. International tours to Europe, Asia and the USA have earned the orchestra worldwide recognition for artistic excellence, most recently in the 2012 tour to China. The Sydney Symphony Orchestra s first Chief Conductor was Sir Eugene Goossens, appointed in 1947; he was followed by Nicolai Malko, Dean Dixon, Moshe Atzmon, Willem van Otterloo, Louis Frémaux, Sir Charles Mackerras, Zdeněk Mácal, Stuart Challender, Edo de Waart and Gianluigi Gelmetti. David Robertson will take up the post of Chief Conductor in 2014. The orchestra s history also boasts collaborations with legendary figures such as George Szell, Sir Thomas Beecham, Otto Klemperer and Igor Stravinsky. The Sydney Symphony Orchestra s awardwinning education program is central to its commitment to the future of live symphonic music, developing audiences and engaging the participation of young people. The orchestra promotes the work of Australian composers through performances, recordings and its commissioning program. Recent premieres have included major works by Ross Edwards, Liza Lim, Lee Bracegirdle, Gordon Kerry and Georges Lentz, and the orchestra s recordings of works by Brett Dean have been released on both BIS and Sydney Symphony Live. Other releases on the Sydney Symphony Live label, established in 2006, include performances with Alexander Lazarev, Gianluigi Gelmetti, Sir Charles Mackerras and Vladimir Ashkenazy. In 2010 11 the orchestra made concert recordings of the complete Mahler symphonies with Ashkenazy, and has also released recordings of Rachmaninoff and Elgar orchestral works on the Exton/Triton labels, as well as numerous recordings on the ABC Classics label. This is the fifth year of Ashkenazy s tenure as Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor. sydney symphony 21
BEHIND THE SCENES Sydney Symphony Orchestra Board John C Conde ao Chairman Terrey Arcus am Ewen Crouch am Ross Grant Jennifer Hoy Rory Jeffes Andrew Kaldor am David Livingstone Goetz Richter Sydney Symphony Orchestra Council Geoff Ainsworth am Andrew Andersons ao Michael Baume ao Christine Bishop Ita Buttrose ao obe Peter Cudlipp John Curtis am Greg Daniel am John Della Bosca Alan Fang Erin Flaherty Dr Stephen Freiberg Donald Hazelwood ao obe Dr Michael Joel am Simon Johnson Yvonne Kenny am Gary Linnane Amanda Love Helen Lynch am David Maloney David Malouf ao Julie Manfredi-Hughes Deborah Marr The Hon. Justice Jane Mathews ao Danny May Wendy McCarthy ao Jane Morschel Greg Paramor Dr Timothy Pascoe am Prof. Ron Penny ao Jerome Rowley Paul Salteri Sandra Salteri Juliana Schaeffer Leo Schofield am Fred Stein oam Gabrielle Trainor Ivan Ungar John van Ogtrop Peter Weiss ao HonDLitt Mary Whelan Rosemary White Sydney Symphony Orchestra Staff MANAGING DIRECTOR Rory Jeffes EXECUTIVE TEAM ASSISTANT Lisa Davies-Galli ARTISTIC OPERATIONS DIRECTOR OF ARTISTIC PLANNING Peter Czornyj Artistic Administration ARTISTIC ADMINISTRATION MANAGER Eleasha Mah ARTIST LIAISON MANAGER Ilmar Leetberg RECORDING ENTERPRISE MANAGER Philip Powers Education Programs HEAD OF EDUCATION Kim Waldock EMERGING ARTISTS PROGRAM MANAGER Mark Lawrenson EDUCATION COORDINATOR Rachel McLarin CUSTOMER SERVICE OFFICER Amy Walsh Library Anna Cernik Victoria Grant Mary-Ann Mead ORCHESTRA MANAGEMENT DIRECTOR OF ORCHESTRA MANAGEMENT Aernout Kerbert ORCHESTRA MANAGER Chris Lewis ORCHESTRA COORDINATOR Georgia Stamatopoulos OPERATIONS MANAGER Kerry-Anne Cook PRODUCTION MANAGER Laura Daniel PRODUCTION COORDINATOR Tim Dayman PRODUCTION COORDINATOR Ian Spence SALES AND MARKETING DIRECTOR OF SALES & MARKETING Mark J Elliott SENIOR SALES & MARKETING MANAGER Penny Evans MARKETING MANAGER, SUBSCRIPTION SALES Simon Crossley-Meates MARKETING MANAGER, CLASSICAL SALES Matthew Rive MARKETING MANAGER, WEB & DIGITAL MEDIA Eve Le Gall MARKETING MANAGER, DATABASE & CRM Matthew Hodge GRAPHIC DESIGNER Lucy McCullough CREATIVE ARTWORKER Nathanael van der Reyden MARKETING COORDINATOR Jonathon Symonds ONLINE MARKETING COORDINATOR Jenny Sargant Box Office MANAGER OF BOX OFFICE SALES & OPERATIONS Lynn McLaughlin BOX OFFICE SYSTEMS SUPERVISOR Jacqueline Tooley BOX OFFICE BUSINESS ADMINISTRATOR John Robertson CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVES Karen Wagg Senior CSR Michael Dowling Katarzyna Ostafijczuk Tim Walsh COMMUNICATIONS HEAD OF COMMUNICATIONS & SPONSOR RELATIONS Yvonne Zammit PUBLIC RELATIONS MANAGER Katherine Stevenson COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR Janine Harris DIGITAL CONTENT PRODUCER Kai Raisbeck FELLOWSHIP SOCIAL MEDIA OFFICER Caitlin Benetatos Publications PUBLICATIONS EDITOR & MUSIC PRESENTATION MANAGER Yvonne Frindle DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT Caroline Sharpen HEAD OF CORPORATE RELATIONS Jeremy Goff HEAD OF MAJOR GIFTS Luke Andrew Gay DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Amelia Morgan-Hunn DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR Sarah Morrisby BUSINESS SERVICES DIRECTOR OF FINANCE John Horn FINANCE MANAGER Ruth Tolentino ACCOUNTANT Minerva Prescott ACCOUNTS ASSISTANT Emma Ferrer PAYROLL OFFICER Laura Soutter HUMAN RESOURCES HEAD OF HUMAN RESOURCES Michel Maree Hryce 22 sydney symphony
SYDNEY SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA PATRONS Maestro s Circle Peter Weiss ao Founding President & Doris Weiss John C Conde ao Chairman Geoff Ainsworth am Tom Breen & Rachael Kohn In memory of Hetty & Egon Gordon Andrew Kaldor am & Renata Kaldor ao Vicki Olsson Roslyn Packer ao Penelope Seidler am Mr Fred Street am & Mrs Dorothy Street Westfield Group Brian & Rosemary White Ray Wilson oam in memory of the late James Agapitos oam Sydney Symphony Orchestra Corporate Alliance Tony Grierson, Braithwaite Steiner Pretty Insurance Australia Grou p John Morschel, Chairman, ANZ Chair Patrons 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 01 Roger Benedict Principal Viola Kim Williams am & Catherine Dovey Chair 02 Lawrence Dobell Principal Clarinet Terrey Arcus am & Anne Arcus Chair 03 Diana Doherty Principal Oboe Andrew Kaldor am & Renata Kaldor ao Chair 04 Richard Gill oam Artistic Director, Education Sandra & Paul Salteri Chair 05 Catherine Hewgill Principal Cello The Hon. Justice AJ & Mrs Fran Meagher Chair 06 Kirsty Hilton Principal Second Violin Corrs Chambers Westgarth Chair 07 Robert Johnson Principal Horn James & Leonie Furber Chair 08 Elizabeth Neville Cello Ruth & Bob Magid Chair 09 Colin Piper Percussion Justice Jane Mathews ao Chair 10 Emma Sholl Associate Principal Flute Robert & Janet Constable Chair 11 Janet Webb Principal Flute Helen Lynch am & Helen Bauer Chair 10 11 For information about the Chair Patrons program, please call (02) 8215 4619. Sydney Symphony Orchestra Vanguard Vanguard Collective Justin Di Lollo Chair Kees Boersma Marina Go David McKean Amelia Morgan-Hunn Jonathan Pease Seamus R Quick Members Centric Wealth Matti Alakargas Stephen Attfield Damien Bailey Mar Beltran Evonne Bennett Nicole Billet David Bluff Kees Boersma Andrew Bragg Peter Braithwaite Blake Briggs Andrea Brown Helen Caldwell Hilary Caldwell Hahn Chau Alistair Clark Matthew Clark Benoît Cocheteux Paul Colgan George Condous Juliet Curtin Justin Di Lollo Alistair Furnival Alistair Gibson Sam Giddings Marina Go Sebastian Goldspink Tony Grierson Louise Haggerty Rose Herceg Philip Heuzenroeder Paolo Hooke Peter Howard Jennifer Hoy Scott Jackson Justin Jameson Aernout Kerbert Tristan Landers Gary Linnane Paul Macdonald Kylie McCaig Rebecca MacFarling David McKean Hayden McLean Amelia Morgan-Hunn Phoebe Morgan-Hunn Taine Moufarrige Nick Nichles Tom O Donnell Kate O Reilly Fiona Osler Archie Paffas Jonathan Pease Jingmin Qian Seamus R Quick Leah Ranie Michael Reede Paul Reidy Chris Robertson Benjamin Robinson Emma Rodigari Jacqueline Rowlands Katherine Shaw Randal Tame Sandra Tang Adam Wand Jon Wilkie Jonathan Watkinson Darren Woolley Misha Zelinsky sydney symphony 23
PLAYING YOUR PART The Sydney Symphony Orchestra gratefully acknowledges the music lovers who donate to the orchestra each year. Each gift plays an important part in ensuring our continued artistic excellence and helping to sustain important education and regional touring programs. Donations of $50 and above are acknowledged on our website at www.sydneysymphony.com/patrons Platinum Patrons: $20,000+ Brian Abel Robert Albert ao & Elizabeth Albert Geoff Ainsworth Terrey Arcus am & Anne Arcus Tom Breen & Rachael Kohn Sandra & Neil Burns Mr John C Conde ao Robert & Janet Constable Michael Crouch ao & Shanny Crouch James & Leonie Furber Dr Bruno & Mrs Rhonda Giuffre In memory of Hetty & Egon Gordon Mr Andrew Kaldor am & Mrs Renata Kaldor ao D & I Kallinikos Helen Lynch am & Helen Bauer Vicki Olsson Mrs Roslyn Packer ao Paul & Sandra Salteri Mrs Penelope Seidler am G & C Solomon in memory of Joan MacKenzie Mrs W Stening Mr Fred Street am & Mrs Dorothy Street Peter Weiss ao & Doris Weiss Westfield Group Mr Brian & Mrs Rosemary White Kim Williams am & Catherine Dovey Ray Wilson oam in memory of James Agapitos oam Gold Patrons: $10,000 $19,999 Doug & Alison Battersby Alan & Christine Bishop Ian & Jennifer Burton Copyright Agency Cultural Fund Edward & Diane Federman Nora Goodridge Mr Ross Grant Mr Ervin Katz James N Kirby Foundation Ms Irene Lee Ruth & Bob Magid The Hon. Justice AJ Meagher & Mrs Fran Meagher Mrs T Merewether oam Mr John Morschel Mr John Symond Andy & Deirdre Plummer Caroline Wilkinson Anonymous (1) Silver Patrons: $5000 $9,999 Stephen J Bell Mr Alexander & Mrs Vera Boyarsky Mr Robert Brakspear Mr David & Mrs Halina Brett Mr Robert & Mrs L Alison Carr Bob & Julie Clampett Ewen Crouch am & Catherine Crouch Ian Dickson & Reg Holloway Dr C Goldschmidt The Greatorex Foundation Mr Rory Jeffes Judges of the Supreme Court of NSW J A McKernan R & S Maple-Brown Justice Jane Mathews ao Mora Maxwell Mrs Barbara Murphy Drs Keith & Eileen Ong Timothy & Eva Pascoe William McIlrath Charitable Foundation Mr B G O Conor Rodney Rosenblum am & Sylvia Rosenblum Estate of the late Greta C Ryan Manfred & Linda Salamon Simpsons Solicitors Mrs Joyce Sproat & Mrs Janet Cooke Michael & Mary Whelan Trust June & Alan Woods Family Bequest Anonymous (2) Bronze Patrons: Presto $2,500 $4,999 Mr Henri W Aram oam The Berg Family Foundation in memory of Hetty Gordon Mr B & Mrs M Coles Mr Howard Connors Greta Davis The Hon. Ashley Dawson-Damer Firehold Pty Ltd Stephen Freiberg & Donald Campbell Vic & Katie French Mrs Jennifer Hershon Gary Linnane Robert McDougall Renee Markovic James & Elsie Moore Ms Jackie O Brien J F & A van Ogtrop In memory of Sandra Paul Pottinger In memory of H St P Scarlett David & Isabel Smithers Marliese & Georges Teitler Mr Robert & Mrs Rosemary Walsh Mr & Mrs T & D Yim Anonymous (1) Bronze Patrons: Vivace $1,000 $2,499 Mrs Antoinette Albert Andrew Andersons ao Mr & Mrs Garry S Ash Dr Francis J Augustus Sibilla Baer Richard and Christine Banks David Barnes Mark Bethwaite am & Carolyn Bethwaite Allan & Julie Bligh Dr & Mrs Hannes Boshoff Jan Bowen Lenore P Buckle M Bulmer In memory of RW Burley Ita Buttrose ao obe Mr JC Campbell qc & Mrs Campbell Dr Rebecca Chin Dr Diana Choquette & Mr Robert Milliner Mr Peter Clarke Constable Estate Vineyards Debby Cramer & Bill Caukill Mr John Cunningham SCM & Mrs Margaret Cunningham Lisa & Miro Davis Matthew Delasey Mr & Mrs Grant Dixon Colin Draper & Mary Jane Brodribb Malcolm Ellis & Erin O Neill Mrs Margaret Epps Paul R Espie Professor Michael Field AM Mr Tom Francis Mr James Graham am & Mrs Helen Graham Warren Green Anthony Gregg Akiko Gregory Tony Grierson Edward & Deborah Griffin Richard Griffin am In memory of Dora & Oscar Grynberg Janette Hamilton Mrs & Mr Holmes The Hon. David Hunt ao qc & Mrs Margaret Hunt Dr & Mrs Michael Hunter Irwin Imhof in memory of Herta Imhof Michael & Anna Joel In memory of Bernard M H Khaw Mr Justin Lam Mr Luigi Lamprati Mr Peter Lazar am Professor Winston Liauw Dr David Luis Peter Lowry oam & Dr Carolyn Lowry oam Dr David Luis Deirdre & Kevin McCann Ian & Pam McGaw Matthew McInnes Macquarie Group Foundation Mrs Toshiko Meric Henry & Ursula Mooser Milja & David Morris Mrs J Mulveney Origin Foundation Mr & Mrs Ortis Dr A J Palmer Mr Andrew C Patterson 24 sydney symphony
Dr Natalie E Pelham Almut Piatti Robin Potter TA & MT Murray-Prior Dr Raffi Qasabian Michael Quailey Ernest & Judith Rapee Kenneth R Reed Patricia H Reid Endowment Pty Ltd Dr John Roarty oam in memory of Mrs June Roarty Robin Rodgers Lesley & Andrew Rosenberg Julianna Schaeffer Caroline Sharpen Dr Agnes E Sinclair Mrs Judith Southam Mrs Karen Spiegal-Keighley Catherine Stephen John & Alix Sullivan The Hon. Brian Sully qc Mildred Teitler Kevin Troy John E Tuckey In memory of Joan & Rupert Vallentine Dr Alla Waldman Miss Sherry Wang Henry & Ruth Weinberg The Hon. Justice A G Whealy Ms Kathy White in memory of Mr Geoff White A Willmers & R Pal Mr & Mrs B C Wilson Dr Richard Wing Mr Robert Woods In memory of Lorna Wright Dr John Yu Anonymous (12) Bronze Patrons: Allegro $500 $999 Mrs Lenore Adamson David & Rae Allen Michael Baume ao & Toni Baume Beauty Point Retirement Resort Richard & Margaret Bell Mrs Jan Biber Minnie Biggs Mrs Elizabeth Boon Mr Colin G Booth Dr Margaret Booth Mr Peter Braithwaite Mr Harry H Brian R D & L M Broadfoot Dr Miles Burgess Pat & Jenny Burnett Eric & Rosemary Campbell Barrie Carter Mr Jonathan Chissick Mrs Sandra Clark Michael & Natalie Coates Coffs Airport Security Car Park Jen Cornish Dom Cottam & Kanako Imamura Degabriele Kitchens Phil Diment am & Bill Zafiropoulos Dr David Dixon Elizabeth Donati The Dowe Family Mrs Jane Drexler Dr Nita Durham & Dr James Durham John Favaloro Ms Julie Flynn & Mr Trevor Cook Mrs Lesley Finn Mr John Gaden Vivienne Goldschmidt Clive & Jenny Goodwin Ms Fay Grear In Memory of Angelica Green Mr Robert Green Mr & Mrs Harold & Althea Halliday Mr Robert Havard Roger Henning Sue Hewitt In memory of Emil Hilton Dorothy Hoddinott ao Mr Joerg Hofmann Mr Angus Holden Mr Kevin Holland Bill & Pam Hughes Dr Esther Janssen Niki Kallenberger Mrs Margaret Keogh Dr Henry Kilham Chris J Kitching Aron Kleinlehrer Anna-Lisa Klettenberg Mr & Mrs Giles T Kryger The Laing Family Sonia Lal Dr Leo & Mrs Shirley Leader Margaret Lederman Mrs Erna Levy Sydney & Airdrie Lloyd Mrs A Lohan Mrs Panee Low Melvyn Madigan Barbara Maidment Helen & Phil Meddings David Mills Kenneth Newton Mitchell Ms Margaret Moore oam & Dr Paul Hutchins am Helen Morgan Chris Morgan-Hunn Mr Darrol Norman Mr Graham North Dr Margaret Parker Dr Kevin Pedemont Dr John Pitt Mrs Greeba Pritchard Mr Patrick Quinn-Graham Miss Julie Radosavljevic Renaissance Tours Dr Marilyn Richardson Anna Ro Mr Kenneth Ryan Mrs Pamela Sayers Garry Scarf & Morgie Blaxill Peter & Virginia Shaw Mr & Mrs Shore Mrs Diane Shteinman am Victoria Smyth Doug & Judy Sotheren Ruth Staples Mr & Mrs Ashley Stephenson Margaret Suthers The Taplin Family Dr & Mrs H K Tey Mrs Alma Toohey & Mr Edward Spicer Judge Robyn Tupman Mrs M Turkington Gillian Turner & Rob Bishop Mr & Mrs Franc Vaccher Prof Gordon E Wall Ronald Walledge In memory of Denis Wallis The Wilkinson Family Evan Williams am & Janet Williams Audrey & Michael Wilson Dr Richard Wingate Dr Peter Wong & Mrs Emmy K Wong Geoff Wood & Melissa Waites Mrs Robin Yabsley Anonymous (24) List correct as of 1 October 2013 To find out more about becoming a Sydney Symphony Patron, please contact the Philanthropy Office on (02) 8215 4625 or email philanthropy@sydneysymphony.com DO YOU HAVE A STORY TO TELL? Learn how, with the people who know books and writing best. Faber Academy at ALLEN & UNWIN T (02) 8425 0171 W allenandunwin.com/faberacademy sydney symphony 25
SALUTE PRINCIPAL PARTNER GOVERNMENT PARTNERS The Sydney Symphony Orchestra is assisted by the Commonwealth Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body The Sydney Symphony Orchestra is assisted by the NSW Government through Arts NSW PREMIER PARTNER PLATINUM PARTNERS EDUCATION PARTNER MAJOR PARTNERS GOLD PARTNERS SILVER PARTNERS THE LEADING SCHOOL FOR TODAY S MUSIC INDUSTRY REGIONAL TOUR PARTNERS MARKETING PARTNER Fine Music 102.5 26 sydney symphony
ORCHESTRA NEWS NOVEMBER 2013 Photo: Keith Saunders HELLO CELLO Assistant Principal cellist Leah Lynn is at one with her instrument. Like many of our musicians, Assistant Principal cellist Leah Lynn has a very close relationship with her instrument. Most of the time, it s like an extension of my body, she says, it s a comfortable and symbiotic relationship. Running around after three kids with her husband Richard, who plays double bass in the orchestra, sometimes leaves less than the ideal amount of time to practise. If life has been busy and I ve had too little time with my cello, the symbiotic sense is lost. It can feel like I m holding some kind of strange thing it can feel a bit alien. A few years ago, the orchestra purchased a 1901 Vincenzo Sannino cello, an acquisition made possible through our Instrument Fund; Leah was the very happy recipient of this magnificent Italian cello. I ve now got this new and expressive language of colour and timbre available to me. It has a sonority with which I can express myself so much better [than before]. The sound [of the Sannino] is just so close to my ideal sound, to what s in my head. I think all music starts in the your head. When I was younger, I often thought quite naively that if I was to loose a sense, I would least mind losing my hearing, because I ve got the music in my head It s an extension of my body already; I can see it, and I can hear it. For the first few years in the job, says Leah, there s no amount of preparation that compares with the experience of repeating a piece, and what that brings to your bank of skills. Although I heard the words many times as a younger professional about needing experience, I don t think I quite understood what that meant, what experience really can bring. Having been in the orchestra for over 15 years, I feel like I ve reached a different point of reference. It s not that the music still always feels fresh, but most pieces you just take a different approach to. The only pieces that will ever feel tired to me are ones that I really dislike. For everything else, I just try to change and hopefully improve my perspective each time. For more information about donating to the instrument fund, contact Luke Gay at luke.gay@sydneysymphony.com or (02) 8215 4625.
Education Highlight Love music. Will travel. Kamikaze kookaburras. Cake and cookies from the Country Women s Association. All in a day s work for our SSO Fellows when they took to the road to join in the music-making at the Moorambilla Festival in September. The festival s a celebration of music which brings local communities together, and gives rural kids the opportunity to be involved in a large-scale musical event, says clarinet Fellow Som Howie. The heart of the festival was hosted at Coonamble, seven hours drive northwest of Sydney. Some of the schools involved have only ten students enrolled, so without Moorambilla, it s unlikely those kids would have the chance to sing in a large choir or music ensemble. Our Fellows, alongside other professional and amateur ensembles from Sydney, worked with local groups, sharing their passion and expertise. Events culminated in an enormous combined gala performance. Horn Fellow Brendan Parravicini found it a moving experience: When we were accompanying the children s choir, made up of hundreds of kids, I felt humbled to share in such a special occasion. Ask a Musician I absolutely loved the sound of the Wagner tubas in the Orchestral Adventure concert, writes one concert-goer. They look like a euphonium given the once-over by Salvador Dali! Wagner tubas are the brainchild of Richard Wagner, who was searching for a bridge in the sound between the horns and trombones at the time of composing his Ring cycle. SSO horn player Marnie Sebire is often called on to play this notoriously unwieldy instrument: Let s just say it s interesting to play! Despite the name, Wagner tubas are normally assigned to the horn section, rather than tuba players; the shape of the instrument might be very different to the horn, but the mouthpiece used is identical. Wagner tubas have a few inherent flaws; often the notes don t centre. On the horn, we can move our right hand around in the bell to alter the intonation, but we lose that advantage when the bell is pointing straight up. Instead the player has to alter the shape of their embouchure. We re always lipping up or down to get the notes in tune. Few composers use the instrument Richard Strauss in some of his symphonic tone poems, Stravinsky in The Rite of Spring, Wagner of course but every orchestra will own a set of four. We need the instruments there for us to practise on and keep familiar, says Marnie. The SSO is currently investigating the purchase of a new set, at a cost of about $40,000. Challenges aside, Marnie says the sound of the Wagner tuba is one of the most honest and honourable. They have a rich, warm and resonant sound. When you ve got a good quartet playing, it s something very special. Have a question about music, instruments of the inner workings of an orchestra? Ask a Musician at yoursay@sydneysymphony.com or by writing to Bravo! Reply Paid 4338, Sydney NSW 2001 Photo: Ken Butti Our Education Partner Tenix recently gave three aspiring young Australian musicians the chance to travel to Sydney for the inaugural Tenix Sydney Symphony Orchestra Experience Day. Seventeenyear-old Grace Halloway (right) made the trip from Kingsley in Perth to take part in a private bassoon lesson with SSO principal Noriko Shimada (left). With Madeline Baker (clarinet) and Murphy Guo (piano) from Victoria, Grace also enjoyed lunch with the SSO s Fellows, a personalised Sydney Opera House tour with our Assistant Conductor Jessica Cottis, and a concert by the orchestra.
Photo: Ben Symons Philanthropy Focus JP ON THE VANGUARD JP (Jonathan Pease) was one of the first to join the SSO s Vanguard Collective. When Development Manager Amelia Morgan-Hunn was interviewed for her job in 2010 she pitched us the idea of SSO Vanguard. It got us excited, and needless to say, she got the job! One of the first to join Amelia on this initiative was Jonathan Pease, JP to everyone. With a 20-year background in marketing and advertising for the biggest guns in town, JP jumped at the chance to do something for the greater cultural good. I love art. I love music. I think without art and music around you, everything becomes extremely transactional and boring. I don t want to live in a world without either. When Amelia invited me to be involved, it was a no-brainer. The Sydney Symphony Orchestra Vanguard encourages young philanthropists to discover and enjoy classical music by taking it into unexpected spaces. We want a new audience to fall in love with music, says JP. And we re doing that by taking the orchestra out of the Opera House, giving it a twist, and making it more relevant for a Gen X Y demographic. These are people who don t have a season pass, and who may never go to the Opera House for a performance. The main thing is that people don t know what they don t know. If you say to someone who s never seen the SSO, Do you like this sort of music? Are you into it? they ll probably say No. But bring them to Vanguard to a car park in Kings Cross, or a warehouse in Surry Hills to witness the SSO playing our sort of music, and they walk away saying, Wow. I really love that. I haven t brought anyone to Vanguard who hasn t loved it and wanted to come back. In addition to the car park and the warehouse, Vanguard has hosted events in a basement and a brewery, and has raised over $45,000 to fund three yearlong places in the SSO s Sinfonia mentoring orchestra for talented young musicians. We re going to continue to push it, do new and creative things. The next one might be in an aircraft carrier, laughs JP, or maybe we ll launch the SSO blimp! Watch the skies Visit sydneysymphony.com/ vanguard for more information or contact Amelia Morgan-Hunn: amelia.morgan-hunn@ sydneysymphony.com or (02) 8215 4663. The Score Dancing with Britten Our final set of concerts for the year offers Variations on an English Theme : music for the English, music by an Englishman, and music celebrating variation technique sometimes all three at once! And at the centre of the program is Britten s Violin Concerto, which will also see the Australian debut of young Norwegian violinist, Vilde Frang. Those who ve heard Vilde Frang play know she s a leading musician of her generation. She was discovered by Mariss Jansons at the age of 13, and last year made her debut with the Vienna Philharmonic at the Lucerne Festival, at which she received the 2012 Credit Suisse Young Artists Award. It s less well-known that she studied ballet for many years and dreamed of being a choreographer. Maybe it s appropriate then that her current musical focus is the Britten a concerto that ends with a Passacaglia, a massive set of dance variations. The concerto begins with a sense of impending doom (it was composed in 1939) but also has a wonderful intensity to it. And the Passacaglia introduces the variation form that Britten loved so much (think Young Person s Guide to the Orchestra), making for an expansive and virtuosic finale. Ideal music for a violinist with dancing in her bones; ideal music for a violinist with multifaceted sound and a maturity that belies her youth. Variations on an English Theme Master Series 11, 13, 14, December 8pm Photo: Sussie Ahlburg