St. Louis Symphony Extra - January 24, 2015

8/9/2019 St. Louis Symphony Extra - January 24, 2015

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CONCERT PROGRAMJanuary 23-24, 2015

David Robertson, conductorTimothy Myers, tromboneAmanda Stewart, trombone

Jonathan Reycraft, tromboneGerard Pagano, tromboneKate Reimann, soprano

Johanna Nordhorn, mezzo-sopranoKeith Boyer, tenor

Jeffrey Heyl, bass-baritoneSt. Louis Symphony Chorus

Amy Kaiser, director

BEETHOVEN Three Equali for Four Trombones

(1812) (1770-1827)

No. 1: Andante No. 2: Poco adagio No. 3: Poco sostenuto

Timothy Myers, trombone Amanda Stewart, trombone Jonathan Reycraft, trombone

Gerard Pagano, trombone

BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 8 in F major, op. 93 (1812)

Allegro vivace e con brio Allegretto scherzando Tempo di Menuetto Allegro vivace

INTERMISSION

BEETHOVEN Mass in C major, op. 86 (1807)

Kyrie Gloria Credo

Sanctus Agnus Dei

Kate Reimann, soprano Johanna Nordhorn, mezzo-soprano Keith Boyer, tenor Jeffrey Heyl, bass-baritone St. Louis Symphony Chorus Amy Kaiser, director


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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

These concerts are part of the Wells Fargo Advisors series.

David Robertson is the Beofor Music Director and Conductor.

Amy Kaiser is the AT&T Foundation Chair.

The St. Louis Symphony Chorus is the Linda and Paul Lee Guest Artist.

The St. Louis Symphony Chorus is underwritten in part by a grant from theEdward Chase Garvey Memorial Foundation.

The concert of Friday, January 23, is underwritten in part by a generous giftfrom Mrs. Bettie L. Gershman.

The concert of Friday, January 23, is the Thomas Peck Memorial Concert.

The concert of Saturday, January 24, is underwritten in part by a generous giftfrom Susan and Stuart Keck.

Pre-Concert Conversations are sponsored by Washington University Physicians.

Large print program notes are available through the generosity of the DelmarGardens Family and are located at the Customer Service table in the foyer.


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Ludwig van Beethoven composed the three

works on tonights program during a turbulentbut productive ve-year interval. From 1807,when he wrote the Mass in C major, to 1812,when he wrote Symphony No. 8 and the ThreeEquali for Four Trombones,he contended withchronic illness, encroaching deafness, romanticdevastation, nancial insecurity, familial strife,and abysmal depression. Few of his composi-

tions lend themselves to biographical analysisBeethoven preferred music that functioned on itsown terms, according to its own internal logicbut these real-life struggles make his achieve-ments even more extraordinary.

All three of the aforementioned works areunderappreciated. The restrained and lovely Massin C major is not nearly as famous as the monu-mental Missa solemnis.The Eighth Symphony is

overshadowed by the Seventh and Ninth sym-phonies. The Three Equali for Four Trombonesare mentioned only glancingly by Beethovenscholars, if at all. But perhaps we notice this onlybecause other works in his catalog dominate therepertory so completely. Of the top-20 worksmost frequently programmed in American con-cert halls, Beethovens Ninth, Seventh, and Fifthsymphonies are routinely ranked rst, second,and third, respectively. Such ubiquity numbs. Itdesensitizes us to his essential strangeness, trans-forms a fascinatingly awed human being into adistant icon. Buried beneath all the hype is musicthat deserves to be experienced in all its vibrantimmediacy. The Beethoven music youll hear thisevening is all remarkable in its own right, but per-haps its most valuable quality is that you dont

already know every note by heart. Listen withfresh ears. Let it astonish you.

LISTENING TO LUDWIGBY REN SPENCER SALLER

TIMELINKS

1807BEETHOVENMass in C major, op. 86

Napoleon signs peacetreaty with Russia andPrussia

1812BEETHOVENThree Equali for FourTrombones

Symphony No. 8 in Fmajor, op. 93

Napoleons forces invadeRussia in summer, retreatwith forces decimated inwinter


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rather than the intricately overlapping, almostcontrapuntal gures of the rst equale.

Trombonists owe a great debt to Beethoven,and not just because of these equali. Despite itshuge dynamic range and coloristic versatility, the

instrument was mainly used in religious, civic,and courtly ceremonies. Beethoven was the rstcomposer to recognize the symphonic poten-tial of trombones, and he included them in thescores of his Fifth, Sixth, and Ninth symphonies.Trombones abounded at his massive funeral,and according to some sources, two of the threeequali were performed. Most of the mourners

probably couldnt hear much. Even trombones,the loudest of all nonpercussive instruments, aredrowned out when 10,000 people show up.

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVENSymphony No. 8 in F major, op. 93

PAST ENGAGEMENTS Despite being sick, lonely,

increasingly deaf, and plagued by nancial anxiet-ies, Beethoven was creatively productive in 1812.Among other achievements, he nished his Sev-enth and Eighth symphonies. Listening to them,youd never guess that he was even unhappy,much less that he was fending off thoughts ofsuicide. Beethoven had that rare ability to evokeemotions that had nothing to do with his currentstate of mind. Even at his most despairing, hecould conjure up the sound of joy. His art wasgreater than his individual suffering; it came fromthe heart, he once said, so that it might go to theheart. A heart that huge and hopeful could neverbe constrained by brute circumstance.

Like the equally sunny Sixth (Pastoral), theEighth Symphony is in F major, a generally cheer-ful key for Beethoven. As Jan Swafford explains

in his magisterial new biography, Beethoven:Anguish and Triumph,the Eighth is a sort of vaca-tion, this time into the past: a beautiful, brief,ironic look backward to Haydn and Mozart.As a teenager in his native Bonn, Beethoven wasurged by his patron Count Waldstein to make apilgrimage to Vienna and receive the spirit ofMozart at Haydns hands. The young composermet Mozart and studied with Haydn, on and

First PerformanceFebruary 27, 1814, in Vienna,Beethoven conducted,but due to his deafness,

the musicians followed theprincipal violinist

STL Symphony PremiereMarch 1, 1907, conductorunknown

Most Recent STL SymphonyPerformanceMarch 18, 2012, Louis Langreconducting

Scoring2 flutes2 oboes2 clarinets2 bassoons2 horns2 trumpetstimpanistrings

Performance Timeapproximately 26 minutes


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off, but such advice made him uneasy. On the one hand, he wanted to enterthe pantheon; on the other hand, he needed to assert his originality. Just asBeethovens looming presence would both inspire and inhibit his successorsWho can do anything after Beethoven? Franz Schubert famously gripedMozart and Haydn provoked a similar ambivalence in Beethoven. They were

his models and idols, and if he once feared that theyd already done everythingworth doing, he knew better now, as a seasoned composer of 41. He couldmake witty quotations, slyly acknowledge his musical debts, yet remain all thewhile in full command of his unique voice.

Beyond mere escapism, the Eighth exemplies the pleasures of engagingwith the past. Stylistically, it looks back to the 18th century, with its nostalgicthird-movement minuet and bucolic trio, but its sonorities are big, brash, anddecidedly contemporary. It is sometimes mildly parodic, but never mocking

or mean-spirited. The almost mechanically ticking woodwinds in the secondmovement evoke Haydns Clock Symphony, and its overall mood seemsinfused with the zany energy of Mozarts comic operas. But the symphonysbest jokes are at its own expense, as it deconstructs the very concept of crafts-manship. Consider the anarchic C-sharp that interrupts the main theme withrude bleats and blurts, wreaks tonal havoc in the nale, and then inspires stillmore mayhem in the extravagant key-wrenching coda. A carefully conceivedcelebration of chaos, its the symphonic equivalent of a Marx Brothers movie.


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LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVENMass in C major, op. 86

A SACRED OBLIGATION Early in 1807 Beethovenreceived a commission from Prince Nikolaus

Esterhzy to write a Mass in honor of his wifesname day. The composer accepted, although hehad some misgivings. Haydn, his former teacher,had written a string of exemplary Masses forthe same occasion. Johann Nepomuk Hummel,the estates Kapellmeister since 1804, had writ-ten three. Beethoven had not yet written a Mass,although his oratorio, Christus am lberge, wasmoderately successful. He began the project rightaway, then put it aside. Tormented by headaches,he spent the summer in Baden and Heiligenstadt,where he endured numerous futile and unpleas-ant treatments. He wrote the prince to excuse hisslow progress, even enclosing a letter from hisdoctor, and promised that he would nish theMass in time for Princess Maria Hermenegildsname day service on September 13: I shall hand

you the Mass with considerable apprehension,since you, most excellent prince, are accustomedto have the inimitable masterpieces of the greatHaydn performed for you.

As promised, he arrived at the EsterhzyPalace in Eisenstadt a few days before the bigevent, score in hand. The initial signs were notpromising. Instead of getting his own room inthe palace, as he had expected, he was shunted

off to a rundown apartment in town, where heshared cramped quarters with the court secre-tary of music. Even more ominously, the choirand orchestra did not seem up to the task; fourof the ve altos did not even attend the dressrehearsal. The performance, unsurprisingly, wasdisastrous. Swafford sets the scene: Beethovengave the downbeat for the mass, bringing in the

basses on their unaccompanied and almost inau-dible Kyrie. As the underrehearsed, apathetic per-formance unfolded, the prince and princess, thecourt, and the cognoscenti alike would have beenbefuddled. What they heard was a mass com-pact, chaste, sometimes ingenuous unto child-like, with echoes of the past from Haydn backto the Renaissance yet largely unlike any othersacred music they had ever heard. If they had

First PerformanceSeptember 13, 1807, at theEsterhzy Palace, in Eisenstadt

STL Symphony PremiereThese concerts

Scoringsolo soprano, alto, tenor, bassmixed chorus2 flutes2 oboes2 clarinets2 bassoons2 horns2 trumpetstimpanistrings

Performance Timeapproximately 43 minutes


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expected a lot of Beethovenian drama, they would have been bitterly disap-pointed. At the reception afterwards, the prince made no secret of his displea-sure, demanding, But, my dear Beethoven, what is this you have done? Hewas less diplomatic in a letter to a friend a few days later: Beethovens Mass isunbearably ridiculous and detestable, and I am not convinced that it can ever

be performed properly. I am angry and mortied. It was the last commissionBeethoven would receive from the house of Esterhzy.

Beethoven hadnt intended to anger his noble audience. He simply wantedto compose a Mass that was tranquil and devotional instead of cosmic andbombastic. Unlike Haydn, who once accused him of atheism, he wasntpious, and he seldom went to church. He copied out some passages fromHaydns CreationMass by way of preparation, but the similarities betweenthe two Masses are slight. (Haydns, of course, had been a huge hit with the

Esterhzys.) Beethoven might not have pleased the prince, but he was true tothe counsel he had scrawled on a draft of the Agnus Dei, Utmost simplic-ity, please, please, please. Indeed, the beauty of the Mass resides in its manydeceptively simple details: the block harmonies of the choir, the ickering dis-sonances and sudden shifts from very loud to soft, the celestial tessitura (thosesustained spells when the contraltos are clinging to the upper reaches of theirregister sound a lot more effortless than they are). Instead of the epic scope ofMozarts and Haydns Masses, all that Holy Roman grandeur, Beethoven sethis sights on the human scale.

Program notes 2015 by Ren Spencer Saller


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DAVID ROBERTSONBEOFOR MUSIC DIRECTOR AND CONDUCTOR

A passionate and compelling communicatorwith an extensive orchestral and operatic reper-toire, American conductor David Robertson hasforged close relationships with major orches-tras around the world. In fall 2014, Robertsonlaunches his 10th season as Music Director ofthe 135-year-old St. Louis Symphony. In Janu-ary 2014, Robertson assumed the post of ChiefConductor and Artistic Director of the SydneySymphony Orchestra in Australia.

To celebrate his decade-long tenure with the

St. Louis Symphony in 2014-15, David Robertsonwill showcase 50 of the orchestras musicians insolo or solo ensemble performances through-out the season. Other highlights include a con-cert performance of VerdisAda featuring videoenhancements by S. Katy Tucker (one of a seriesof such collaborations during the season), and areturn to Carnegie Hall with a program featuringthe music of Meredith Monk.

AMY KAISERAT&T FOUNDATION CHAIR

One of the countrys leading choral directors,Amy Kaiser has conducted the St. Louis Sym-phony in Handels Messiah, Schuberts Massin E at, Vivaldis Gloria, and sacred works by

Haydn and Mozart, as well as Young PeoplesConcerts. She has made eight appearances asguest conductor for the Berkshire Choral Festi-val in Shefeld, Massachusetts, Santa Fe, and atCanterbury Cathedral. As Music Director of theDessoff Choirs in New York for 12 seasons, sheconducted many performances of major works atLincoln Center. Other conducting engagementsinclude concerts at Chicagos Grant Park MusicFestival and more than fty performances withthe Metropolitan Opera Guild. Principal Conduc-tor of the New York Chamber Symphonys SchoolConcert Series for seven seasons, Kaiser also ledmany programs for the 92nd Street Ys acclaimedSchubertiade. She has conducted over twenty-veoperas, including eight contemporary premieres.

David Robertson conductedthe Met Opera debut ofJohn Adamss The Death of

Klinghofferin October 2014.

Amy Kaiser and the St. LouisSymphony Chorus travel toCarnegie Hall to performwith the Symphony andDavid Robertson in March.

MICHAEL

TAMMARO


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TIMOTHY MYERS

Timothy Myers has held the St. Louis Sympho-nys Mr. and Mrs. William J. Orthwein PrincipalTrombone Chair since 1997. Myers joined theSymphony in 1983. He has appeared with theSymphony as a soloist on both trombone andeuphonium, most recently in the ChristopherRouse Trombone Concerto. Myers has appearedas both soloist and as artist-faculty at the AspenMusic Festival and School. Myers has performedwith the Chicago Symphony, Atlanta Symphony,and the Minnesota Orchestra and has given anumber of solo recitals in the Midwest. He has

also toured with the Summit Brass, and hasappeared with the Bay Brass. He has a great inter-est in new music and has premiered many solotrombone works for St. Louis audiences.

Timothy Myers is married to Symphony FirstViolin Dana Edson Myers. They have two sons,Peter and Henry, who are both accomplishedcellists. The Myers family also sponsors a youngMongolian cellist, Nomin Zolzaya.

AMANDA STEWART

Amanda Stewart joins the St. Louis Symphonyafter serving as Principal Trombone of the SanAntonio Symphony, a position she held from2004 to 2014. Born in Oakland, Maryland,she began playing the trombone at the age of

six. Her studies started with Harold Hudnalland continued with Keith Jackson, professorof trombone and euphonium at West VirginiaUniversity. She received her bachelor of musicdegree from the Juilliard School in 2004, study-ing with Joseph Alessi.

Stewart has been a guest artist at the Inter-national Womens Brass Conference, the Big XIITrombone Conference held at Texas Tech Uni-versity, and at Trombone Days, held annually atBaylor University. On the international scene, shetoured Germany with the Christian brass groupEurobrass, and in summer 2006 she taught andperformed at the Seoul Trombone EnsembleSummer Music Festival in South Korea.

Timothy Myers mostrecently performed as asoloist with the Symphony

in February 2003.

Amanda Stewart is in herfirst season as a memberof the St. Louis Symphony.

DilipVishwanat

Dilip

Vishwanat


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KEITH BOYER

In 2013 Keith Boyer made his Carnegie Hall debutas Horace Adams in the St. Louis Symphony pro-duction of Peter Grimes. Boyer collaborated with

a world class cast, which included his son Garrettas Peter Grimess Apprentice, under the directionof David Robertson. Boyer was named the BestMale Opera Singer by the St. Louis Post Dispatchon The Go! List 2014. To put a cap on that year,Boyer performed the Brindisi duet from La tra-viatato a sold out house on New Years Eve, againunder the direction of Robertson.

Boyer made his solo debut with the St. LouisSymphony in 2010 singing Schuberts Mass No. 6with guest conductor Nicholas McGeegan. In a2011 concert featuring Christine Brewer, he sangthe brief tenor solo in Prayers of Kierkegaard. Thefollowing year he had the unique experience ofworking with Grammy winning conductor ArnieRoth in the concert Final Fantasy: Distant Worlds.

JEFFREY HEYL

Jeffrey Heyl is a native of St. Louis, where hemakes his home with his wife Margret and theirfour children. Heyl holds degrees from the East-man School of Music, the Hartt School of Music,and the University of Iowa. He is presently theDirector of Music at Green Trails United Method-

ist Church, adjunct faculty at Lindenwood Uni-versity and Urshan College, a faculty member atthe Community Music School, and has his ownprivate voice studio.

In 2012 Heyl performed Beethovens Sym-phony No. 9 with the St. Louis Philharmonic,and Carmina burana with the Nashville Ballet.He is presently principal bass with Bach at the

Sem at Concordia Seminary. He has sung as asoloist with the St. Louis Symphony and Chorusin Robert Kapilows Summer Sun, Winter Moon,Handels Israel in Egypt, Beethovens Fidelio,and Brittens Peter Grimes. In 2009 Jeffrey Heylaccomplished a long-cherished goal of perform-ing Schuberts Die Winterreise.

Ketih Boyer lives just southof St. Louis with his wifeAmanda and their three sons.

Jeffrey Heyl is a member ofthe Bluefield College FacultyHall of Fame.


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Amy KaiserDirector

Leon Burke IIIAssistant Director

Gail HintzAccompanist

Susan Patterson

Manager

Nick BearyAnnemarie Bethel-PeltonPaula N. BittleJerry BolainJoy BolandMichael Bouman

Richard F. BoydKeith BoyerDaniel P. BrodskyBuron F. Buffkin Jr.Leon Burke IIICherstin ByersAlyssa Claire CallaghanPeggy CantrellLeslie Caplan

Victoria CarmichaelMark P. CereghinoSteven ChemtobJessica Klingler CissellRhonda Collins CoatesTimothy A. ColeDerek DahlkeLaurel Ellison Dantas

Deborah DawsonZachary K. DevinMary C. DonaldDaniel ElfanbaumStephanie M. EngelmeyerJamie Lynn ErosStephen ErosLadd Faszold

Rio FebrianHeather FehlAlan FreedMark FreimanAmy Telford GarcsAmy GatschenbergerLara GerassiMegan GlassSusan GorisKaren S. Gottschalk

Tyler GreenSusan H. HagenClifton D. HardyNancy J. HelmichEllen HenschenJeffrey E. HeylLori HoffmanMatthew S. Holt

Allison HoppeHeather Lynn HumphreyKerry H. JenkinsMadeline KaufmanPatricia KofronElena KorpalskiPaul KunnathDebby LennonGregory C. Lundberg

Gina MaloneAlicia MatkovichPatrick MattiaDaniel MayoRachael McCreeryCelia McManusScott MeidrothTamara Miller-Campbell

Jei MitchellBrian MulderJohanna NordhornDuane L. OlsonNicole OrrHeather McKenziePatterson

Susan Patterson

Brian PezzaShelly Ragan PickardJason PloschSarah Jane PriceValerie ReichertKate ReimannGregory J. RiddlePatti Ruff RiggleMichelle Suzanne RoseTerree Rowbottom

Nathan RugglesPaul N. RunnionCrissy SaalbornMark Anthony SaundersMark V. ScharffKurtis ShoemakeJohn William SimonCharles G. Smith

Shirley Bynum SmithAdam StefoJames David StephensMaureen TaylorMichelle D. TaylorRobyn Danielle TheisonDeWayne TrainerPamela M. TriplettDavid R. Truman

Greg UpchurchRobert ValentineKevin VondrakSamantha Dane WagnerNancy M. WaltherKeith WehmeierNicole C. WeissDennis Willhoit

Paul A. WilliamsMary Murphy WissingerKate YandellSusan Donahue YatesCarl S. ZimmermanDaniel Zipperer

ST. LOUIS SYMPHONY CHORUS 2014-2015LINDA AND PAUL LEE GUEST ARTIST


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AUDIENCE INFORMATION

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morning Coffee Concerts open 9am;all other concerts open 2 hours prior toconcert through intermission.

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A service charge is added to alltelephone and online orders.

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If you cant use your season tickets,

simply exchange them for anotherWells Fargo Advisors subscriptionconcert up to one hour prior to yourconcert date. To exchange your tickets,please call the Box Ofce at 314-534-1700 and be sure to have your tickets

with you when calling.

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Any group of 20 is eligible fora discount on tickets for selectOrchestral, Holiday, or Live at PowellHall concerts. Call for pricing.

Special discount ticket programs areavailable for students, seniors, and

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FM radio headsets are available atCustomer Service.

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prohibited during the concert. Patronsare welcome to take photos before theconcert, during intermission, and afterthe concert.

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All those arriving after the start of the

concert will be seated at the discretionof the House Manager.

Age for admission to STL Symphonyand Live at Powell Hall concerts

varies, however, for most events therequired age is ve or older. All patrons,regardless of age, must have their owntickets and be seated for all concerts.

All children must be seated with anadult. Admission to concerts is at thediscretion of the House Manager.

Outside food and drink are notpermitted in Powell Hall. No food ordrink is allowed inside the auditorium,except for select concerts.

Powell Hall is not responsible for

the loss or theft of personal property.To inquire about lost items, call314-286-4166.

POWELL HALL RENTALS

Select elegant Powell Hall for your nextspecial occasion. Visit: stlsymphony.org.Click About Us, then Hall Rental formore information.


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MET BAR

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St. Louis Symphony Extra - January 24, 2015

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