DE 3246

DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH (1906-1975)

1. Festive Overture, Op. 96 1954 (6:05)

Concerto No. 2 in F Major for Piano and Orchestra, Op. 1021957 [20:09]Andrew Litton, pianist

2. Allegro (7:03)3. Andante (7:43)— attacca (continue without pause)4. Allegro (5:23)

Symphony No. 5 in D Minor, Op. 47 1937 [47:46]5. Moderato (15:54)6. Allegretto (5:30)7. Largo (14:17)8. Finale — Allegro non troppo (12:05)

TOTAL PLAYING TIME: 73:59

Dallas Symphony OrchestraAndrew Litton, conductor/pianist

7 & W 1999 Delos Productions, Inc., P.O. Box 343, Sonoma, California 95476-9998(707) 996-3844 • (800) 364-0645 • contactus@delosmusic.comMade in USA • www.delosmusic.com

Executive Producer: Amelia S. HaygoodRecording Producer: Andrew Keener (Symphony, Overture); Ramiro Belgardt (Concerto)

Recording Engineer: John Eargle (Concerto); Jeff Mee (Symphony, Overture)

Editing: Chris Landen

Recorded May 19, 20, 1998 (Symphony, Overture); September 30, 1998 (Concerto)McDermott Hall, Meyerson Center, Dallas, TX

20-bit Digital Processing: Apogee AD-8000Digital Editing: Sonic SolutionsMonitor LoudspeakersRecording: B&W Matrix 801Postproduction: JBL 250Ti; Waveform Mach 13

Microphones: Sanken CU-41, Sennheiser MKH-20, Neumann KM-100 series, AKG C-480

Console: Soundcraft K-1

Litton photo: Steve J. Sherman

Creative Direction: Harry Pack, Tri-Arts and AssociatesGraphics: Mark Evans

Special thanks to the following members of the DallasSymphony community for their invaluable assistance onthis project: Eugene Bonelli, President and Chief Operat-ing Officer; Mark Melson, Director of Orchestra Opera-tions; Victor Marshall, Artistic Administrator; LamarLivingston, Technical Director, Meyerson Center; RonStanley, Chief Audio Engineer, Meyerson Center; JessicaStewart Freeman, Director of Public Relations; and JohnGutierrez & staff.

VIRTUAL REALITY RECORDING, VR2, and the VR2 logo are trademarks of Delos International, Inc.

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In terms of recording technology,each VR2 recording begins as a set ofmultiple stereo program pairs which

are mixed into normal two-channelstereo for current CD release, andarchived for later mixdown into sur-round sound. While the actual audioconsumer carrier of discrete surroundis a couple of years away, this stereoCD can be heard in surroundthrough Dolby Pro-Logic surroundsound decoders, which are at theheart of many home theater systems,as well as via Delos’ series of discreteDVD releases. Listen, and you willhear the difference.

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John Eargle describes VR 2 and Surround Sound

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Aquarter-century after his death at the age of 69,Dmitri Shostakovich remains something of anenigma and an ongoing subject of controversy.

For many years after his first serious run-in with the Stal-inist authorities in 1936, there were persons who believedthat he had sold out to Stalinism and its successor Com-munist régimes, embracing an active political role some-how not altogether seemly for an artist of his calibre.Other skeptics guessed that Shostakovich had chosen hishigh profile in Soviet civic affairs as a compliant route thatleft him comparatively free to pursue his own artistic vi-sion. After Soviet authorities denounced him again in a1948 resolution, however, he too was subject to govern-ment-imposed ideological restraints on his music, alongwith Prokofiev and other composers. In light of the cataclysmic political upheaval that took

place in the Russian republics ten years ago, the immedi-acy of Shostakovich’s dilemma has blurred in both focusand memory. This recording groups three major works ofwidely divergent scope and mood. Each has associationswith a significant political situation during Shostakovich’slifetime, in one case a dilemma whose resolution meantsurvival. Yet the musical solutions he chose for each com-position defy formulas. His imagination remained fertile,his personality complex, his wit incisive.

* * *A prolific composer by nature, Shostakovich habitually

worked on several compositions at once. The year hewrote Festive Overture, 1954, was no exception. He wasbusy in January with final touches on his Concertino forTwo Pianos, Op.94, which he had completed just beforethe end of December. The première took place on January20, 1954. By April he had completed incidental music forthe Soviet filmmaker Grigori Kozintsev’s Hamlet. Anotherfilm score, Seven Rivers, Op.95, followed during the sum-mer. By autumn he had completed the Festive Overture forthe occasion of the 37th anniversary of the October Revo-lution. It was published as Op. 96.The official ceremonial purpose of this sparkling, five

minute concert opener only partially explains its opti-mistic atmosphere. Festive Overture is an unusually attrac-tive work, with no shadows that demand internalsoul-searching. In that respect it is in striking contrast tothe stern demeanor of most of Shostakovich’s works. Mu-sicologist Ian MacDonald has suggested that the unchar-acteristic giddiness may also have been part of prolonged(if discreet) celebration following the death of JosephStalin in March 1953.

Like the Concertino for Two Pianos, Op.94, com-posed a year earlier, the Festive Overture is alivewith an unforced laughter that can only reflect itscomposer’s relief over not having Stalin to worryabout any more.

A brilliant brass fanfare announces that the occasion is

NOTES ON THE PROGRAM

a happy one, before the winds take off on a madcap chasethat eventually involves every section of the orchestra.For listeners familiar with the dark and sardonic side ofShostakovich, Festive Overture will come as a startling sur-prise, for it is as melodic and upbeat as Bernstein’s Can-dide Overture.

The Piano Concerto No. 2, Op. 102 is an eerie reminder ofthe duality of Shostakovich’s existence during the mostfrigid period of the cold war. Some confusion surroundingits opus number — it was originally published as Op.101and is now known as Op.102 — seems to reflect that am-bivalence; so too does the lighter character of the piece incomparison to the weighty work that occupied the com-poser at the same time he was writing the Concerto.Shostakovich’s two major achievements in 1957 were

this Concerto and the Eleventh Symphony, Op.103. Thelatter is subtitled “The Year 1905,” a reference to the Nar-odnik uprising against the Tsar that year. It was writtenon the occasion of the fortieth anniversary of the 1917Bolshevik revolution. Coming barely a year on the heelsof the brutal massacre in Budapest’s Parliament Squarein October 1956, the Eleventh Symphony struck somelisteners as having an alternate agenda beyond its pur-ported programmatic title. Ironically, 1956 had otherwise been a year of compara-

tive relaxation in the Soviet world, one that has since beencalled the “second thaw.” Stalin had been dead for threeyears. Many intellectuals who had been exiled to Siberiafor “rehabilitation” were released back to the western part

of the Soviet Union that year. Still, relations between eastand west were strained.How then are we to interpret a Concerto with a decid-

edly lighthearted cast; one that almost makes fun of itself,employs a chamber-like orchestra and seems to be atpains to avoid any profound discussion? One answer liesin its dedicatee: the composer’s son Maxim, who wasthen 19 and a budding young pianist and conductor. Theelder Shostakovich composed the Concerto as a vehiclefor his son to secure admission to the Moscow Conserva-tory. That accounts at least in part for its youthful spiritand irrepressible energy. Shostakovich may also havebeen using this small-scale work as a psychologicalbreather before embarking on the large and emotionallyweighty Eleventh Symphony.A sprightly march for woodwinds opens the piece. The

piano enters in octaves, a characteristic ploy inShostakovich’s keyboard music. Snare drum enhances themusic’s military snap. Sensing fun, strings jump into thefray, and the momentum starts to build. The themes arefoursquare, quasi-tonal, and rhythmically steady. Despitethe initial emphasis on transparent piano texture, themovement is not without technical demands, requiringsome powerful parallel octaves and flashy passage work.It builds to a gorgeous climax. The first arpeggios wehave heard for piano usher in a cadenza rather like a neo-classical two-part invention. A presto coda recaptures themarch tune to conclude the movement. What emotional depth this concerto has is concentrated

in the slow movement. Woodwinds, brass and percussion

are silent for the duration of this Andante, which openswith muted strings in a restrained chorale-like introduc-tion. Both Chopin and Rachmaninoff seem to nod approv-ingly through the shapely, poignant phrases ofShostakovich’s piano part; it is an unexpected and wel-come contrast to the brazen outer movements. Moving at-tacca [without pause] to the finale, Shostakovichrecaptures the frenetic energy of his first movement. Rein-troducing full orchestra, he launches a fun-loving rompthat borders on perpetual motion, despite frequent metricswitches. A catchy segment in 7/8 for which the concertois best known adds to the excitement. The pianist opens aPandora’s box of technical wizardry, driving the concertoto a brilliant close.

Both the Second Piano Concerto and the Festive Overtureprovide a pyschological counterweight to the mightySymphony No. 5 in D Minor, Op. 47, which is the heart ofthis recording. Shostakovich was the greatest symphonistthe 20th century produced. His contribution is importantnot only because he left fifteen examples (more than anyother symphonist of his stature), but also because they aremusically so substantive. There are striking parallels toBeethoven in Shostakovich’s career. Among the most star-tling is the role that a Fifth Symphony played in each oftheir output. In both cases, the Fifth is considered to be apivotal work, one that delineated a major shift in hismusic. Shortly before the première of this symphony onNovember 21, 1937, Shostakovich wrote in an article:

The theme of my symphony is the development ofthe individual. I saw man with all his sufferings asthe central idea of the work, which is lyrical inmood from start to finish; the finale resolves thetragedy and tension of the earlier movements on ajoyous, optimistic note.

Listeners familiar with the background of the BeethovenFifth Symphony will immediately sense a kinship.Beethoven’s symphony deals with the struggle againstFate, in which man emerges triumphant in the finale. An-other characteristic the works share is their unification bya concise musical motto that recurs in almost every move-ment. In Beethoven it is the famous “fate knocking at thedoor” that opens the symphony; in Shostakovich it is anemphatic series of iambs (short-long) answered by ashorter-note-value anapest (short-short-long) rhythm.Shostakovich composed his Fifth Symphony on the

heels of a major musical and political setback: JosephStalin’s adverse reaction to Shostakovich’s opera, LadyMacbeth of the Mtsensk District, and the subsequent attackin Pravda (which has been attributed to Stalin himself) inJanuary 1936. The following year, 1937, was the twentiethanniversary of the October Revolution. For that occasion,Shostakovich composed his Fifth Symphony. The newwork reinstated him to official good graces. With thissymphony, Shostakovich responded successfully toStalin’s political directive for music with a mission. Hecomposed, as it were, a Soviet symphony; this was thepiece that won governmental approval, becoming

Shostakovich’s passport to official rehabilitation. Thesymphony also did a considerable amount to enhanceShostakovich’s reputation outside the Soviet Union. Andyet, in spite of its surface compliance with the party line,it is still a work of passion and heartfelt emotion, manag-ing to be personal without sacrificing power. The angularleaps of the opening iamb/anapest statement sound likehammer blows, with the upper and lower strings incanonic dialogue. They establish tension and strain thatShostakovich sustains throughout the first movement.Even the lovely second theme, entrusted largely to thewoodwinds, echoes the sinewy opening in its wide leaps.The degree to which the Fifth Symphony remained per-

sonal to the composer emerges in his later writings.Solomon Volkov’s Testimony: The Memoirs of DmitriShostakovich, first published in 1979, includes the follow-ing remarkable passage:

I discovered to my astonishment that the manwho considers himself its greatest interpreter [theRussian conductor Yevgeny Mravinsky] does notunderstand my music. He says that I wanted towrite exultant finales for my Fifth and SeventhSymphonies but I couldn’t manage it. It never oc-curred to this man that I never thought about anyexultant finales, for what exultation could therebe? I think that it is clear to everyone what hap-pens in the Fifth. The rejoicing is forced, createdunder threat, as in Boris Godunov. It’s as if some-one were beating you with a stick and saying,

“Your business is rejoicing, your business is re-joicing,” and you rise, shaky, and go marching off,muttering, “Our business is rejoicing, our busi-ness is rejoicing.”

What kind of apotheosis is that? You have to be acomplete oaf not to hear that. [The author Alexan-der Alexandrovich] Fadeyev heard it, and hewrote in his diary, for his personal use, that the fi-nale of the Fifth is irreparable tragedy. He musthave felt it with his Russian alcoholic soul.

Shostakovich’s trenchant and bitter remarks imply a layerof irony in the finale that encourages thoughtful listening.Even those who know the Fifth Symphony well are likelyto hear it with fresh ears in the context of these remarks. While the two outer movements have become the best

known, the inner two better reflect Shostakovich’s emerg-ing style. The scherzo (marked Allegretto) a quasi-Schubert-ian country dance tinged with Mahlerian satire, shows thedry, sardonic side of Shostakovich’s personality to perfec-tion. And the slow movement, a showcase for the stringsection, embodies the tragedy and poetry inherent in thehuman condition. The Fifth Symphony is usually re-garded as the window looking into Shostakovich’s mid-dle period, but its music has such consummate maturitythat it more than foreshadows the rich masterpieces thatwould follow during and after the Second World War.

– Laurie Shulman © 1999

Andrew Litton became Music Director of the Dallas Sym-phony Orchestra in 1994, following a highly successful six-year tenure as Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor ofBritain’s Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra. As ConductorLaureate of the Bournemouth Symphony, he won the 1997Grammy© for best choral recording of Walton’s Belshazzar’sFeast with baritone Bryn Terfel. Also nominated for a 1997Grammy© was Mr. Litton’s recording of the 1812 Overtureand other great Tchaikovsky works, the first in an enterpris-ing series of recordings with the Dallas Symphony on theDelos label.When appointed to the Dallas Symphony, Mr. Litton was

the first American in a decade, and one of the youngest ever,to head a major American orchestra. He has embarked on anambitious program, strongly supported by the Dallas com-munity, to significantly raise the orchestra’s internationalstanding in anticipation of its centennial celebrations in theyear 2000. The Dallas Symphony made its first European tourunder Mr. Litton’s direction in 1997, including a concert atLondon’s Royal Albert Hall as the only American orchestra toparticipate in the 1997 BBC Proms.Mr. Litton’s dynamic leadership on the podium and in the

community is attracting new and younger audiences. A Dal-las Symphony multimedia television series for children,“Amazing Music,” is being distributed internationally. TheDallas Symphony is featured in a number of PBS TelevisionSpecials, including the music of Bernstein, Barber, andBeethoven and “Happy Birthday, George Gershwin,” a cen-tennial salute with Mr. Litton as host, conductor, and pianist.Mr. Litton’s over 40 CDs include the Rachmaninov Sym-

phonies with the Royal Philharmonic and the completeTchaikovsky Symphonies with the Bournemouth Symphony.He has conducted some 100 orchestras worldwide, includingthe Chicago Symphony, the Philadelphia Orchestra, all theprincipal orchestras of GreatBritain, the Orchestre National deFrance, the Tokyo Philharmonic,the Moscow State Symphony, theLeipzig Gewandhaus, and in the1999/2000 season he makes twoappearances with the New YorkPhilharmonic. His opera credits, inaddition to the Royal OperaCovent Garden premiere of Porgy and Bess, include the Metro-politan Opera Eugene Onegin, the English National Opera Fal-staff and Salome, the Los Angeles Opera Tosca, the WelshNational Opera Billy Budd, and the Music Directorship of aBregenz Festival (Austria) new production of Porgy and Bess.Upon completion of his Juilliard studies Mr. Litton became

Exxon/Arts Endowment Assistant Conductor of the NationalSymphony Orchestra. The University of Bournemouthawarded Mr. Litton an Honorary Doctor of Music Degree inrecognition of his work in Great Britain, for which he and theBournemouth Symphony also received the Royal Philhar-monic Society’s Award. Born in New York City, he presentlyresides in Dallas, Texas.

ARTIST INFORMATION

The Dallas Symphony OrchestraANDREW LITTON, Music Director and ConductorThe Louise W. and Edmund J. Kahn MusicDirectorship

Keri-Lynn Wilson, Associate Conductor (8)

Scott Yoo, Assistant Conductor (7)

FIRST VIOLINSEmanuel Borok, Concertmaster/ Michael L. Rosenberg ChairDavid Kim (7, 9)Jan Mark Sloman (1)Motoi Takeda (2)Diane KitzmanMiyo KonoArkady FominBruce WittrigMary ReynoldsAndrew SchastRonald Hudson Maria SchleuningSusan AgerMelvin Baer (8)Joan DavisSarah HardestyRonald NealKristin Jutras

SECOND VIOLINSDelmar Pettys, PrincipalBarbara K. and Seymour R. Thum ChairAlexandra Adkins Shtarkman (5)Sho Mei Pelletier (5)Bing WangBruce PattiDaphne VolleShu LeeHeidi Trevor ItashikiAndrzej KapicaWilliam ScobieJanet CherryLauren CharbonneauDawn StahlerKay BuchbinderLuba Daneman (8)Michelle DeShazo (8)

VIOLASEllen Rose, PrincipalThe Pollock Family ChairBarbara Hustis (5)Kay GardnerValerie Dimond (4)John GeiselPamela AskewMitta AngellThomas DemerDavid SywakDavid SchultzLionello ForzantiCaroline ClaytonPaul Tullis (8)

CELLOSChristopher Adkins, PrincipalFannie and Stephen S. Kahn ChairYuri Anshelevich (5)Peter Steffens Charles JacotJohn MyersMichael CorenMerle ClaytonMildred McShane Janet NathanDaniel LevineMitchell Maxwell (8)Laurie Arnold (8)

BASSESClifford Spohr, Co-PrincipalTom Lederer, Co-PrincipalRoger Fratena (5)Elizabeth Patterson GirkoDwight ShambleyPaula Holmes FlemingAlan Yanofsky Nicolas TsolainosJean-Ettienne Lederer (8)

FLUTESJean Weger Larson, PrincipalHarvey BoatrightDeborah Baron (6)PICCOLODeborah Baron

OBOESEric Barr, Principal,Nancy P. and John G. Penson Chair

David Matthews (5)Willa Henigman (3, 6)

ENGLISH HORNDavid Matthews

CLARINETSStephen Girko, Principal Mr. and Mrs. C. Thomas May, Jr. ChairPaul Garner and Eb Clarinet (5)Harold Nogle, Jr.Christopher Runk

BASS CLARINETChristopher Runk

BASSOONSWilfred Roberts, PrincipalIrene H. Wadel and Robert I. Atha ChairScott WalzelPeter Grenier (6)

CONTRABASSOONPeter Grenier

HORNSGregory Hustis, PrincipalHoward E. Rachofsky ChairKarl Pituch (7)James London (5, 8)David BatteyPaul CapehartRobin RabyJan Paulsen (10)William Scharnberg (10)

TRUMPETSJeffrey Curnow, PrincipalDiane and Hal Brierley ChairRichard Giangiulio, Co-PrincipalBert TruaxThomas Booth (6)Timothy Anderson (10)Rick Bogard (10)Jeff A. Dee (10)Chris D. Oliver (10)Edward Rogers (10)

TROMBONESJohn Kitzman, PrincipalPhilip Graham

Darren McHenry

BASS TROMBONEDarren McHenry

TUBAMatthew GoodMark Wolf

TIMPANIKalman Cherry, PrincipalDouglas Howard (6)

PERCUSSIONDouglas Howard, PrincipalRonald Snider (6)Daniel FlorioBrad Wagner (8)

HARPSusan Dederich-Pejovich, Principal

PERSONNEL MANAGERMichael Coren

CONTRACTOR OF MUSICIANSWilfred Roberts

CHIEF LIBRARIANKaren Schnackenberg

ASSOCIATE LIBRARIANMark Wilson

STAGE MANAGERJohn Gutierrez

STAGE TECHNICIANCarl Wong

1. Principal Associate Concertmaster

2. Associate Concertmaster 3. One Year Appointment4. Leave of Absence5. Associate Principal6. Assistant Principal7. (Concerto only)8. (Symphony and Overture only)9. Concertmaster (Concerto only) 10. (Overture only)

PERSONNEL FOR THIS RECORDING

ALSO AVAILABLE IN VR2 AND SURROUND SOUND WITH ANDREW LITTON CONDUCTING THE DALLAS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

SHOSTAKOVICH – Symphony No.8 in C Minor, Op. 65 • DE 3204(DDD)

MAHLER: – Symphony No. 2 “Res-urrection” with DSO chorus • DE 3237 (DDD)

A COPLAND PROFILE: Music ofAaron Copland – The Red Pony •Music for the Theatre • Symphonyfor Organ and Orchestra • WayneMarshall, organ • DE 3221 (DDD)

TCHAIKOVSKY – 1812 festivaloverture with chorus • TheVoyevoda • Moscow: corona-tion cantata • The SleepingBeauty (arr. Andrew Litton) •DE 3196 (DDD)

DAYFUL OF SONG: Music ofGeorge Gershwin – Dayful ofSong • Cuban Overture •Promenade • Rhapsody in Blue• Lullaby • An American inParis • Andrew Litton, piano •DE 3216 (DDD)

DALLAS SPACE SPECTACULAR– Strauss: Thus Spake Zarathus-tra • Holst: The Planets • Avail-able on CD: DE 3216 (DDD) &DVD: DV 7003

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