CARNEGIE HALL PRESENTS
Orchestra of St. Luke’s

Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage
Sunday, March 21st, 2010 at 2:00 PM

Orchestra of St. Luke's
Christian Zacharias, Conductor and Pianist

C.P.E. BACH Symphony in E-flat Major, Wq. 179
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor

ZIMMERMANN Rheinische Kirmestänze
SCHUMANN Symphony No. 3, "Rhenish"

Program Notes:

CARL PHILIPP EMANUEL BACH (1714–1788)
Symphony in E-flat Major, Wq. 179

About the Composer

Emanuel, as he was known to the family, was the second surviving son of Johann Sebastian Bach. He was, after his father, the most prolific and the most significant member of the Bach family. He spent nearly 30 years of his life in the service of the music-loving king Frederick the Great, who was a rather good flute player and composer himself.

When Emanuel’s godfather Telemann died in 1767, freeing one of the most sought-after of musical positions (as music director in wealthy, cosmopolitan Hamburg), the younger man pursued and won the position. From that point on, his symphonies became fresher and more modern in their viewpoint. Yet the earlier works, such as the Symphony in E-flat Major from 1757, contained their share of surprises.


A Closer Listen

One of the essential features of music during the Baroque era, as represented by Emanuel Bach’s father, was a continuous rhythmic flow through each movement, representing (so the theorists of the time declared) a particular mood that dominated each one. In the middle of the 18th century, several composers began experimenting with significant changes in this plan, none more drastically or surprisingly than C. P. E. Bach. Though he might start, as here, with a traditional approach of rushing 16th-notes to carry the musical idea, he interrupts himself on several occasions to present music that is suddenly much slower. In addition, he introduces dramatic harmonic changes.

Several times, the fast-moving first movement brakes into new and unexpected material for a few seconds, then takes up essentially where it left off. A final slow idea provides a linking bridge to the second movement. This Larghetto is itself a link between the two fast movements; at the beginning it is not clear what key it is in, though G minor eventually clarifies itself. But it ends in E-flat, the key of the outer movements, and this naturally leads to the lively 6/8 close, which is the most “normal” movement of the entire symphony.



LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN (1770–1827)
Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 37

About the Work

Beethoven gave his Third Concerto the opus number 37, though he did most of the work on it in 1800, around the time of the Op. 18 String Quartets and the First Symphony, Op. 21. He withheld the concerto for three years, however, and possibly reworked it until the premiere; even then, he had not entirely written out the solo piano part (which he played himself). Audience reaction was mixed at first, though by the time it received a second performance a few years later, a review noted that it was “indisputably one of Beethoven’s most beautiful compositions.”

One anecdote links this Beethoven concerto to Mozart’s Concerto, K. 491, also in C minor. One morning during the summer of 1799, Beethoven was walking through the Augarten (an outdoor concert venue) with J. B. Cramer, one of the most brilliant pianists of his day, and they heard a performance of Mozart’s K. 491. Beethoven drew Cramer’s attention to a passage near the end of the first movement and exclaimed, “Cramer, Cramer! We shall never be able to do anything like that!” But he tried—at the corresponding place in his own C-Minor Concerto.


A Closer Listen

Much of the action of the first movement involves the gradually increasing predominance of a “knocking” motive that appears in the strings at the end of the first phrase. It completely dominates the development section, which twines other thematic ideas over the recurring staccato commentary of that rhythm. But then it almost disappears. Even the cadenza (which Beethoven wrote out) reworks almost every theme of the movement except the knocking theme.

The reason appears as the cadenza ends. Following the example of Mozart’s C-Minor Concerto, Beethoven allows the piano to play through to the end of the movement for the first time in his concertos. Now the timpani get the original knocking motive, played softly behind a wash of hushed arabesques in the piano. It seems that Beethoven invented that figure precisely for this magical instant.

The Largo comes from an entirely different expressive world, in the unusually bright key of E major—simple in outline but lavish in ornamental detail.
At the end, Beethoven finds a connection back to
C minor for the finale by seizing on two notes from the key of E (G-sharp and B) and slipping them into a rondo theme that seems to grow right out of the closing chord of the slow movement. The rondo unfolds with delightful surprises, which do not end even when we are ready for the coda to ring down the curtain: The pianist takes the lead in turning to the major for a brilliant ending with an unexpected 6/8 transformation of the theme.



BERND ALOIS ZIMMERMANN (1918–1970)
Rheinische Kirmestänze for 13 winds

About the Composer

The recognition of Bernd Alois Zimmermann’s significance in 20th-century music came tragically late, only after the composer took his own life at the age of 52. Zimmermann belonged to that generation of Germans whose adolescence was essentially nonexistent, whose childhood ended in enforced military service for the glorification of a state and a tyrant. A deeply religious man, Zimmermann was conscripted into the German army against his will (he once wrote in a letter that he never fired a shot at anyone during his entire period in the army). Following a period spent in a military hospital in 1942, he was able to resume intermittent studies with his teachers—Heinrich Lemacher, the leading Catholic church musician of his time, and Philipp Jarnach, himself a pupil of Busoni.

Zimmermann’s musical ideas were enriched by his wide knowledge of literature, and he frequently employed ideas drawn from medieval Catholic philosophy. This is particularly apparent in his conception of time, which saw past, present, and future as existing together in unity. One musical result of this view was his predilection for musical collage, for the quotation of musical ideas from older works embedded (sometimes obviously, sometimes very subtly) in his own.

Many of his works—particularly his opera Die Soldaten, regarded by many in Germany as the most important opera to be composed since the work of Alban Berg—are extraordinarily complex. But some of his earlier compositions are more immediately welcoming. Zimmermann once described himself as a Rhenish mixture of monk and Dionysian. If that is the case, his set of dances from the Rhineland falls into the latter category.


A Closer Listen

The composition of Rheinische Kirmestänze (“Rhine Church-Festival Dances”) occupied Zimmermann on and off for more than a dozen years. Since the work is very short (the longest of the five movements runs just over a minute and a half), and since it is among the most straightforward of his compositions, it seems likely that he simply added a movement whenever the fit moved him. European composers have produced dances throughout the history of instrumental composition. Sometimes the music is entirely original, but often it is an arrangement of pre-existing melodies. For these five dances for wind ensemble, the composer of hugely complex operas and other large works offers brief dance movements that are as transparent and light-hearted as many of his other pieces are dark and somber.



ROBERT SCHUMANN (1810–1856)
Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Op. 97, “Rhenish”

About the Composer

Schumann’s biography has many pages detailing periods of mental instability, attempted suicide, and eventual madness. But when Schumann was feeling well, he composed with energy, a richness of imagination, and a sheer speed that is little short of astonishing. His Symphony No. 3 is a case in point.

In September 1850, Schumann accepted a post in Düsseldorf and moved his family there. Almost immediately, he returned to composing for orchestra, and his work proceeded almost effortlessly. After composing a cello concerto in October, he began work on his Third Symphony. Despite the interruption of a visit to Cologne, he completed the sketch of the first movement in a week, had worked out the Scherzo by November 29, and completed the entire score by December 9.

The character of the music bespeaks a new warmth and positive outlook in Schumann’s life. It is brimming with energy and color. Though the symphony’s nickname, “Rhenish,” invites the listener to imagine all sorts of images of the mighty Rhine, Schumann himself never specified it. Nevertheless, it is clear that Schumann is at the height of his powers.


A Closer Listen

The first movement is quite likely his finest single symphonic achievement. The opening has a magnificent breadth brought about by presenting what sounds like a theme in a slow 3/2 meter that melts into a whirling waltz, apparently at double speed. Schumann’s symphonic thought is more logical and inevitable than ever before. The development section draws upon all the material that has been heard before, worked out in a grand harmonic arc. The moment of recapitulation is especially thrilling, with the four horns sounding the theme in unison along with the flutes and violins. A new idea enlivens the energetic coda.

Though called a Scherzo, the second movement suggests a slow country dance of the Ländler type, and the tunes just might be drawn from the wealth of German folk song, though they are really Schumann’s own. In its formal pattern, too, the movement is more complex, combining a simple, A-B-A design with elements of variation form and of sonata development.

The slow third movement is filled with intimate musical poetry in gentle melodic ideas; his innermost warmth fills the entire movement from beginning to end.

The fourth (really a self-sufficient introduction to the finale) is rich with the sounds of trombones in elaborate contrapuntal lines, using devices learned during Schumann’s lifelong study of Bach but distilled through his own Romantic personality into something utterly individual. The polyphonic edifice, with its learned techniques of canon, augmentation, and diminution, provides a splendid foil to the bustle and energy of the real finale, in which, before the end, palpable references to the polyphonic theme of the fourth movement—now in the major mode—and the very opening of the symphony sum up the musical world of Schumann’s Rhine valley.

—Steven Ledbetter

© 2010 Steven Ledbetter

More Information:

A fascinating program starts with a simple and lively symphony by C. P. E. Bach. Then comes a Beethoven concerto, deeper and more mature. Next there’s a jump to the 20th century, with Zimmermann’s reinvention of dances from the Rhine region, and finally back 100 years to Schumann’s glorious tribute to the place from which those dances originated.

Orchestra of St. Luke's
Christian Zacharias, Conductor and Pianist
Christian Zacharias

Christian Zacharias is a remarkable musical explorer—as both a conductor and a pianist, he is known for his uncompromising individuality and thoughtful approach to concert programming. Mr. Zacharias is Artistic Director of the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra’s annual Mozart Festival, an Artistic Partner of the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra until 2012, Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, and Principal Guest Conductor of the Göteborgs Symfoniker. He launched his conducting career in 1992 with the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, and has since been a regular guest of all of the major European orchestras. In 2000, he made his US conducting debut with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and in 2006 conducted the New York Philharmonic. Since then, he has led many of the top American orchestras. In 2006, he conducted Mozart’s La clemenza di Tito at the Grand Théâtre de Genève, and in 2008 conducted Offenbach’s La Belle Hélène with the Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne.

One of the most distinguished pianists of his generation, Mr. Zacharias achieved international attention when he won the Geneva Competition in 1969, the Van Cliburn Competition in 1973, and First Prize in the 1975 Ravel Competition in Paris. He appears in chamber music recitals with partners such as the Alban Berg Quartet, the Leipzig String Quartet, Heinrich Schiff, and Frank Peter Zimmermann.

Mr. Zacharias’s award-winning recordings include Mozart fantasies, rondos, and other piano pieces (winner of the prestigious Diapason d’Or in France), and Mozart’s piano concertos with the Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, the fourth volume of which won the Diapason d’Or, Le Choc du Monde de la Musique, and a 2009 ECHO Klassik Award (the German equivalent of a Grammy). The third volume of the same series received an ECHO Klassik Award in 2008. In 2007, Mr. Zacharias was awarded the MIDEM Classical Award for Artist of the Year in Cannes.

In addition to his performing career, Mr. Zacharias regularly participates in the production of radio programs and documentary films. His films include Domenico Scarlatti in Seville, Robert Schumann—the Poet Speaks, Between the Stage and the Green Room, and Zacharias, Scarlatti, Avison et les autres.

Born in India in 1950, Mr. Zacharias studied in Germany and France and currently splits his time between London, Cologne, and Lausanne.


Orchestra of St. Luke’s

The 2009–2010 season marks the 35th year of America’s foremost chamber orchestra, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, a unique musical organization that comprises the orchestra, the chamber ensemble, and the Arts Education Program. St. Luke’s currently performs approximately 80 orchestral, chamber, and educational concerts each year, all showcasing the hallmark collaborative spirit that has garnered consistent critical acclaim for vibrant music making of the highest order.

Formed at the Caramoor International Music Festival in 1979, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s evolved from the St. Luke’s Chamber Ensemble (founded in 1974), with Ensemble members forming the orchestra’s artistic core as principal players. In addition to being presented by Carnegie Hall in its annual series, the orchestra continues a 20-year collaborative relationship with the Hall that includes participation in holiday and family concerts, concert presentations of musical theater, and special events. The orchestra is also engaged each year in a number of artistic collaborations, recently with the Mark Morris Dance Group, and John Adams’s A Flowering Tree at Lincoln Center. The orchestra just celebrated the 30th anniversary of its annual summer residency at Caramoor.

In chamber music, St. Luke’s performs annual series in three esteemed New York art institutions: The Morgan Library & Museum’s Gilder Lehrman Hall, The Brooklyn Museum, and Dia:Beacon. The St. Luke’s Arts Education Program comprises free performances for 20,000 New York City schoolchildren and yearlong, in-school residencies in several partner schools supported by professional development for teachers and curriculum materials.

The orchestra has released several critically acclaimed recordings on its own label, St. Luke’s Collection, including Mozart’s Symphonies Nos. 39 and 41, “Jupiter,” and Bach’s “Brandenburg” Concertos, performed by the St. Luke’s Chamber Ensemble. These are part of a stellar discography, numbering more than 70 recordings, that includes four Grammy Award–winning discs.

In the 2010–2011 season, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s will open The DiMenna Center for Classical Music, a state-of-the-art rehearsal, recording, and education facility for St. Luke’s and many of the city’s musical groups. Co-owned and occupied by the Baryshnikov Arts Center, the newly renovated building, located at 450 West 37th Street, will form an anchor for classical music on the west side and will be the creative and administrative home for St. Luke’s. In addition to providing acoustically superior rehearsal space for all of New York’s musical groups, the Center will offer education and outreach programs for the local community.

Visit OSLmusic.org for more information.