CARNEGIE HALL PRESENTS
Berliner Philharmoniker

Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage
Wednesday, November 14th, 2007 at 8:00 PM

Pre-concert talk starts at 7:00 PM in Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage with Thomas Adès and Ara Guzelimian, Provost and Dean, The Juilliard School.

Berliner Philharmoniker
Sir Simon Rattle, Music Director and Conductor
Ben Heppner, Tenor
Thomas Quasthoff, Bass-Baritone

THOMAS ADÈS Tevót (United States Premiere, Commissioned by The Carnegie Hall Corporation and the Berliner Philharmoniker)
MAHLER Das Lied von der Erde

The Carnegie Hall presentations of the Berliner Philharmoniker and the Berlin in Lights festival are made possible by a leadership gift from the Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Foundation.

Major funding has also been provided by Mercedes and Sid Bass, and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, with additional support from Martha and Bob Lipp, Fundación Mercantil (Venezuela), and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Additional funding provided by Axel Springer AG, GWFF USA Inc., and the Jerome Robbins Foundation.

Program Notes:

THE CONCERT
At a Glance

Concluding with a long valediction, like Mahler’s Ninth Symphony, Das Lied von der Erde seems to feel the shiver of night descending not only on its composer—terminally ill, though still in his 40s—but on a whole culture of huge achievement and grandiloquence. Words from ancient Chinese poets, distant in time and place, come to speak, or to sing, of evening, of autumn, of memory, of death. Solitary voices, tenor and baritone, stand on the edge of a world of sound and look out. And yet this end creates conditions for renewal, as exemplified by Thomas Adès’s Tevot, which conveys orchestral drama and song on into the 21st century.

Notes on the Program
By Paul Griffiths

THOMAS ADÈS Tevot
Born March 1, 1971, in London.

Composed in 2005–06, Tevot received its world premiere in Berlin on February 21, 2007, with the Berliner Philharmoniker conducted by Sir Simon Rattle. Tonight’s performance at Carnegie Hall marks its US premiere.

Scoring: 5 flutes (with doubling on piccolos and bass flute), 5 oboes (with doubling on English horn and bass oboe), 5 B-flat clarinets (with doubling on E-flat clarinets, clarinet in A and optionally basset clarinet, and contrabass clarinet), 4 bassoons, contrabassoon, 8 horns, 5 trumpets, 3 trombones, 2 tubas, timpani and other percussion, harp, piano (=celesta), and strings.

This is effectively Adès’s second symphony, coming a decade after his Asyla and bearing a title with similar connotations. The Hebrew word tevot is the ordinary musical term for “bars”; it can also mean “words.” In the singular, as tevah, it appears just twice in the Bible in very special and similar contexts: for the ark built by Noah and for the reed basket made by Moses’s mother to float him on the Nile. These tevot are both places of safety—asyla. They are also both structures that, made of natural materials, remain firm in fluid surroundings.

Music, of course, is all fluid, and some of Tevot flows with the music of sea and air the composer had invented for his operatic version of The Tempest. But music can also be firm, and it can be assertive, as parts of Tevot certainly are: the orchestra is similar to that of The Rite of Spring, though with the percussion tilted more toward tuned instruments.

The start is tremulously quiet, as if gearing up for the larger statements that gradually come forward and consume almost the whole orchestra. Then comes a shift, to a complex, intensive canon for woodwind and percussion (a department not much used up to now), leading to a passage marked “In volo” (In flight), where leaping gestures piggyback on each other to one climax after another. Subterranean gestures of lament move more and more into the foreground before a solo trumpet breaks out, accompanied by tuned anvils and succeeded by a breathless rush toward a chorale for oboes and vibraphone. But this is not a destination; nothing is still. As the chorale develops, it embraces more and more of the orchestra, carrying the music’s thrust toward a massive, emphatically decelerated amplification of the tuned anvils’ irregular rhythm, a wild dance at once exhilarating and unsettling.

The clamor has to subside, and it does, into a polyphonic stream that picks up the lament motif, growing and subsiding into a recollection of the opening, out of which emerges an adagio for super‑high violins. Slowly descending, this scintillant material is greeted by ever new variants of an expressive rocking melody—the song of the floating tevah, perhaps, or an image of music’s power to console.

Tevot may owe something in its sonic invention to Adès’s experience since Asyla as an orchestral conductor. Particularly relevant, perhaps, was a concert he gave at the Aldeburgh Festival in June 2005, around the time he was starting this score. On the program were The Rite of Spring and Tchaikovsky’s “Pathétique” Symphony—works of pounding, pulsed dynamism and pure orchestral song such as one might have thought irreconcilable. Tevot could be their love child.


GUSTAV MAHLER Das Lied von der Erde
Born July 7, 1860, in Kalischt (Kalištĕ), Bohemia; died May 18, 1911, in Vienna.

Composed mainly in 1908, Das Lied von der Erde was first performed in Munich on November 20, 1911, with Sara Jane Cahier, contralto; William Miller, tenor; and the Konzertverein Orchestra conducted by Bruno Walter. It received its New York premiere at Carnegie Hall on February 1, 1922, with Mme. Cahier; Orville Harrold, tenor; and the Society of the Friends of Music conducted by Artur Bodanzky.

Scoring: 3 flutes (3rd doubling piccolo II), piccolo, 3 oboes (3rd doubling English horn), 3 clarinets, E-flat clarinet, bass clarinet, 3 bassoons (3rd doubling contrabassoon), 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion (bass drum, cymbals, glockenspiel, orchestra bells, suspended cymbals, tambourine, tam-tam, triangle), two harps, celesta, mandolin, and strings, in addition to the solo tenor and mezzo-soprano (or baritone) voices.

Created by someone conducting in the United States, composing in central Europe, and setting poems from eighth-century China, this work has strong claims on its title as “The Song of the Earth.” However, the voices singing here—those of the soloists and those also of the orchestra—are always and unmistakably Mahler’s, even if this is partly a new Mahler we encounter here. Nineteen hundred and seven, the year before he started this work, had seen his life changed. He had moved the center of his conducting activities from the court opera in Vienna to the Met in New York, which offered him a higher fee for fewer performances. Against that positive development, he had lost his elder daughter, Putzi, from diphtheria in the summer at the age of four, and he himself had been diagnosed with a heart condition. He felt himself from this point to be dying, and made in Das Lied von der Erde a great review of life—the tone is retrospective from the first—culminating in a prolonged farewell.

Also in 1907 he had been present at two important Schoenberg premieres, those of the younger composer’s First Quartet and First Chamber Symphony, and perhaps these prompted him to consider lighter, more dislocated textures. There could have been some impulse, too, from Chinese music, of which he reportedly took the trouble to listen to some early recordings before setting his Chinese poems. An East Asian tone is evoked by some use of the pentatonic scale (having five steps) and certain color effects, done with remarkable restraint and sophistication.

In their millennium-long journey from Tang-dynasty China to Mahler’s composing hut in the South Tirol, the poems underwent some changes. Mahler’s source was Die chinesische Flöte (The Chinese Flute), a small volume of 80 poems published by the German poet-orientalist Hans Bethge in 1907. Bethge, knowing no Chinese, worked from translations by Hans Heilman of versions in French by Judith Gautier and the Marquis d’Hervey de Saint-Denys. Mahler chose four poems attributed to the most celebrated Chinese poet of the period, Li Bai (also known as Li Po, or Li Tai Po), which he placed first, third, fourth, and fifth in his sequence, though no Chinese original has been traced for the third poem (ironically the most oriental in Mahler’s setting), which may have been Gautier’s invention. For his second movement, Mahler took a poem by Chang Tsi, and in his finale he combined poems by Mong Kao Jen and Wang Wei, but in every case he adapted the texts transmitted by Bethge. Even before writing any music, or in the process of writing music, he made the words his own.

As with his Ninth Symphony the following year, he drafted the work during his summer vacation at Toblach, between June and the start of September, and worked up the final score during the ensuing concert season in New York. It was only during this later process that the piece achieved its definitive title.

Mahler called his work a symphony, and must have chosen and changed the texts partly with an ear toward symphonic form. The first song, for example, has certain qualities of a sonata allegro (repeated exposition, with two contrasting thematic areas), but one abruptly curtailed; then come alternating slow movements and scherzos, followed by an adagio finale which, as in the composer’s Third Symphony and his Ninth yet to come, seems to be the inevitable destination: this finale, “Der Abschied,” is about as long as all the other movements put together. There is also another kind of symphonic dialog going on, across the vast space between the voices. Both seek escape from the world, but where the tenor’s route leads ebulliently through the neck of a bottle, the baritone (or alternatively mezzo-soprano) is singing of evening and autumn as of death.

Spring, rather, is the season in which the tenor delights, the spring he evokes in his first song, with a lyrical change from the vociferousness that is almost forced upon him by the heavy orchestration, and again in his third, “Der Trunkene im Frühling.” Yet even here death is present, defined by defiance. “Dark the state of living, and of death!” goes the refrain of the opening song, heard three times in different minor keys. And the tenor’s other two songs, exotic and humorous, are touched with the same clouds.

But it is the other singer who stands at the work’s heart: alone (“Der Einsame im Herbst”), removed from the thrill of sensual pleasure (“Von der Schönheit”), and on the point of departure (“Der Abschied”), a departure that will last an eternity.

Copyright © 2007 by The Carnegie Hall Corporation

Berliner Philharmoniker
Sir Simon Rattle, Music Director and Conductor
Sir Simon Rattle was born in Liverpool in 1955. He studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London. From 1974 to 1977, he was assistant conductor of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and the Bournemouth Sinfonietta. Thereafter, he worked mainly with orchestras in Great Britain. In 1979, he debuted in the US with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, whose principal guest conductor he was from 1981 to 1994. In 1980, Rattle was appointed principal conductor and artistic advisor to the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO), and was the orchestra’s principal conductor from September 1980 to summer 1998. Besides the CBSO, Simon Rattle conducted the leading orchestras of the US and Europe. Since his first appearance at the Glyndebourne Festival in 1977 directing Janáček’s Cunning Little Vixen, Simon Rattle has conducted opera on a regular basis. In the framework of the Salzburg Easter Festival, Simon Rattle has directed the Berliner Philharmoniker in stage productions of Beethoven’s Fidelio, Mozart’s Così fan tutte, Benjamin Britten’s Peter Grimes, and Mozart’s Idomeneo.

Even before taking up his post as Chief Conductor, Simon Rattle enjoyed a 15- year collaboration with the Berliner Philharmoniker. His concert programs cover a broad spectrum, ranging from Bach and Rameau to classical figures such as Beethoven, Haydn, Mozart, and Brahms, to contemporaries like Adès, Berio, Boulez, Grisey, Gubaidulina, Lindberg, and Turnage. Simon Rattle’s programming attests to his uncommonly wide-ranging repertoire. Sir Simon Rattle, who was knighted in 1994 by the Queen of England, has received many distinctions in recognition of his artistic activities. In 1996, he was awarded the Shakespeare Prize by the Toepfer Foundation in Hamburg, and in 1997, he received the Albert Medal of the Royal Society of Arts. Since taking up his appointment as Artistic Director of the Philharmoniker in September 2002, he has broken new ground with the orchestra with the educational program Zukunft@Bphil. For his commitment, he was awarded the Comenius Prize in 2004, and he also received the Schiller Special Prize from the city of Mannheim in May 2005.

BERLINER PHILHARMONIKER
The Berliner Philharmoniker was founded in 1882 as a self-governing body and has long been considered one of the world’s finest orchestras. Its current chief conductor and artistic director is Sir Simon Rattle, who took up his appointment in September 2002. The orchestra gave its first concert on October 17, 1882, under the conductor Ludwig von Brenner, who was chosen by the musicians themselves.

The concert agent Hermann Wolff took over the management of the orchestra in 1887 and signed up the conductor Hans von Bülow, who went on to turn the Berliner Philharmoniker into one of the leading orchestras in Germany. Under Arthur Nikisch (1895–1922) its repertory grew to include works by Bruckner, Tchaikovsky, Mahler, Strauss, Ravel, and Debussy. On Nikisch’s death, the then 36-year-old Wilhelm Furtwängler took over as principal conductor. At the end of the Second World War, Leo Borchard became the orchestra’s principal conductor, but, following his tragic death in August 1945, when he was accidentally shot by an American patrol, the young Romanian conductor Sergiu Celibidache became artistic director.

Furtwängler was able to resume his old post as chief conductor following his denazification in 1952. When he died in 1954, the players chose Herbert von Karajan as their permanent conductor and artistic director. During the decades that followed, Karajan worked with the orchestra to develop a unique tonal quality and performing style that made the Berliner Philharmoniker famous all over the world. In October 1989 the players appointed Claudio Abbado their new principal conductor.

With the appointment of Sir Simon Rattle, the orchestra succeeded in introducing a number of important innovations. The orchestra’s change of status to a charitable foundation (the Stiftung Berliner Philharmoniker) has created new opportunities and ensured the economic future of a body of players that currently has 129 full-time members. The foundation is supported by the generosity of its principal sponsor, Deutsche Bank. Central to this support is the orchestra’s education program Zukunft@BPhil, which was set up at the time of Sir Simon Rattle’s appointment and is intended to ensure that the orchestra reaches a broader and above all younger audience.

Ben Heppner, Tenor
Ben Heppner is recognized worldwide as the finest dramatic tenor today. He excels in the most challenging roles and is acclaimed around the world for his beautiful voice, intelligent musicianship, and sparkling dramatic sense. His performances on the opera stage, in concert with the world’s leading orchestras, in the most prestigious recital venues, and on recordings have set new standards in his demanding repertoire.

Mr. Heppner has 25 concert appearances throughout Europe and North America in the current season. He recently joined the Philharmonic Orchestra of La Scala and Riccardo Chailly on a North American tour culminating at Carnegie Hall and performed Sibelius songs with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Esa-Pekka Salonen in Los Angeles, Paris, and London. Mr. Heppner will be singing Elgar’s Dream of Gerontius with the Boston Symphony conducted by Sir Colin Davis on November 19.

Earlier this month, Mr. Heppner joined the Berliner Philharmoniker for Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde at the Berlin Philharmonie and will also be performing the song cycle with the orchestra at Symphony Hall in Boston. He recently sang in recital at Grand Théâtre de Genève and will be appearing at Baltimore’s Shriver Hall in December. Mr. Heppner returns to the Metropolitan Opera in March for performances of Tristan und Isolde with James Levine, which will be simulcast to movie theaters throughout North America and the United Kingdom. He finishes the season singing his first staged performances of the title role in Siegfried with Sir Simon Rattle and the Berliner Philharmoniker at the Aix-en-Provence Festival.

Mr. Heppner’s career highlights include leading roles in Tristan und Isolde at the Berlin State Opera, Die Meistersinger with the Paris Opera, Lohengrin with the Bavarian State Opera, and Otello at the Metropolitan Opera, opening its season in 2004–05. Since his debut with the Metropolitan Opera he has been heard in the title role of Idomeneo, Laca in Jenůfa, and Ghermann in The Queen of Spades, among many other roles. Mr. Heppner has an extensive discography and is an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Thomas Quasthoff, Bass-Baritone
German bass-baritone Thomas Quasthoff is recognized as one of the most remarkable singers performing today. Since making his US debut at the Oregon Bach Festival with Helmuth Rilling, he has sung with the New York Philharmonic and many other major American orchestras. In recital, he has performed at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and the Kennedy Center, and has made appearances at the Ravinia, Tanglewood, and Mostly Mozart festivals.

In Europe, Mr. Quasthoff regularly appears with the most distinguished orchestras under such eminent conductors as Sir Simon Rattle, Claudio Abbado, Bernard Haitink, and Daniel Barenboim. Much in demand as a recitalist, he frequently sings in the major recital halls in Berlin, Vienna, Salzburg, Paris, Amsterdam, and London.

A frequent guest at Carnegie Hall, Mr. Quasthoff opened the 2001–02 concert season with the Berliner Philharmoniker led by Claudio Abbado. During the 2006–07 season, he was one of Carnegie Hall’s Perspectives artists. Mr. Quasthoff returns to Carnegie Hall later this season to appear with the Boston Symphony and in recital with Ian Bostridge and Dorothea Röschmann.

In April 2003 Thomas Quasthoff made his first staged opera appearance as Don Fernando in Fidelio with Sir Simon Rattle conducting the Berliner Philharmoniker in Salzburg. Since then he has sung the role of Amfortas in a highly acclaimed production of Wagner’s Parsifal at the Vienna State Opera with both Donald Runnicles and Sir Simon Rattle conducting.

Since 1999, Mr. Quasthoff has been an exclusive Deutsche Grammophon artist. He has won three Grammys for his DG recordings, including the best vocal performance award for his first album with the label, Mahler’s Des Knaben Wunderhorn with Anne Sofie von Otter and the Berliner Philharmoniker conducted by Claudio Abbado,

The subject of numerous articles in the national press, Mr. Quasthoff has been profiled on the CBS news programs 60 Minutes and 60 Minutes Two as well as on the NBC Nightly News with Tom Brokaw. Mr. Quasthoff’s biography was recently published in Europe, and a translated version will be available in the US this year.