VIKING PRESENTS an evening of classical music

VIKING PRESENTS

an evening of classical music

PROGRAMMEThursday 26th September 2019, 6.30pm

Cadogan Hall, London

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On behalf of everyone at Viking, I would like to offer you a warm welcome to this Viking Evening of Classical Music.

The concert showcases some of the best-loved classical pieces, from regions to which Viking ships sail, performed by the National Symphony Orchestra, and presented and conducted by Debbie Wiseman OBE.

Viking has long enjoyed an appreciation of classical music, and we are proud to partner with leading musical institutions around the world, including Classic FM in the UK and LA Philharmonic Orchestra at the Hollywood Bowl in the US. Viking guests are curious travellers who enjoy discovering new destinations through music and the arts, and just as music is an important soundtrack to many of our travels, so it is to our lives in general.

Our home for the evening is the iconic Cadogan Hall in the heart of Chelsea. With its excellent acoustics and elegant surroundings, it is one of London’s leading concert halls, and first choice for classical music.

We are very pleased to host this private concert, which will be filmed to show on board our ships, and we hope you have a wonderful evening.

Karine Hagen Executive Vice President, Viking

Welcome

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An Evening of Classical Music

RUNNING ORDER

Debbie Wiseman: Den Reisende (The Traveller)

Jean Sibelius: Karelia Suite (first and third movements)

Edvard Grieg: Peer Gynt, Suite No. 1

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Waltz from Swan Lake

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Adagio from Clarinet Concerto K622

Johann Strauss: The Blue Danube Waltz

Eduard Strauss: Bahn Frei – Make Way or Clear the Track Polka

EncoreJohann Strauss: Radetzky March

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Q&A Debbie Wiseman

One of Britain’s most successful composers and conductors, Debbie Wiseman OBE, is composer in residence for Classic FM. There are few people who have not heard a theme from one of Debbie’s films or shows. Her many credits include Wolf Hall, Father Brown and Wilde starring Stephen Fry. Nominated for two Ivor Novello awards, winner of a TRIC Award and RTS award, Debbie was honoured in the 2018 Queen’s Birthday Honours List for services to the music and film industry. In 2017, she composed the Viking signature piece of music, The Traveller, to celebrate the company’s 20th anniversary, the same year that she was honoured as the Godmother of the river ship, Viking Herja.

What do you most enjoy most about conducting the National Symphony Orchestra?

They’re such talented musicians and each one of them brings something special to the orchestra. Many of them are soloists in their own right, but when they play together they bring a unified spirit to the sound of the orchestra and always play with real commitment and passion.

Tell us about your inspiration for writing music.

My inspiration comes from the particular project I’m working on. If it’s a film or a television series then I have the characters, the story and the drama as starting points to propel me into the writing process. If it’s a stand-alone piece of music then I find inspiration from the reason I’ve been asked to compose the piece – a celebration, a commemoration, an anniversary, for example. Either way, the music has to come from my heart and it’s of paramount importance to me that I feel excited about a commission before taking it on. That way I know I can come up with what I think is the right music for each project.

Where did the inspiration/idea for The Traveller come from?

I was lucky enough to be given the opportunity of visiting Viking’s river and ocean ships and I was able to soak up the unique Viking atmosphere and use the wonderful experiences I had onboard for the creation of The Traveller.

What music do you like listening to?

While I’m on a composing project it’s impossible for me to take time out to listen to any other music as I find it too distracting! However, during the times when I’m not composing then I love Mozart, Debussy, Olivier Messiaen, John Barry, Ennio Morricone, Beethoven, Ravel, to name just a few – there’s quite a long list!

What is your favourite piece of music?

I couldn’t possibly choose one piece! There are so many that I absolutely love. The piece that probably had the most lasting impact on me, however, was Messiaen’s Turangalila Symphony, as it changed the way I viewed modern contemporary music. I also chose it as the piece that I would save on Desert Island Discs.

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NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA Artistic Director, Justin Pearson

Enjoying a national and international reputation for excellence, the National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) is admired for its versatility, and its ability to communicate and to connect with audiences with virtuosity, commitment and passion.

The NSO was founded in the 1940s, and immediately became a significant recording orchestra. More recently, the orchestra has recorded, in their entirety, more than 40 complete major classic musicals, and created an important and enduring legacy.

Based in London, the orchestra performs throughout Britain, drawing its fine players from across the country. It prides itself on the huge audiences that regularly support its concerts.

The orchestra has performed Opera Evenings with celebrated artists, including Dame Kiri Te Kanawa and Lesley Garrett, and enjoys a special relationship with chart-topping vocalists, including Alfie Boe and Katherine Jenkins. Among the many stars with whom the NSO has appeared are Dame Shirley Bassey and Sir Cliff Richard. The orchestra has also shared the stage in Hyde Park with Sir Elton John.

One of the longest established freelance orchestras working in Britain today, the NSO is also one of the most highly regarded. This busy orchestra chooses its players not only for their musical talent and technical ability, but also for their desire to give their best.

Jack Liebeck – Violin Jack Liebeck plays the solo violin in The Traveller. He possesses “flawless technical mastery” and a “beguiling silvery tone” (BBC Music Magazine). Over the past 25 years, Jack has worked with major international conductors and orchestras, and has featured in a multitude of recordings including Dvorak (Sony) which won Jack Classical Brit Young Artist of the Year 2010 and his acclaimed Bruch concerto series with BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and Martyn Brabbins for Hyperion. Jack is the artistic director of his own festivals Oxford May Music, the DESY Humboldt Science and Music Series in Hamburg, and Alpine Classics in Grindelwald, Switzerland. Jack Liebeck is managed worldwide by Percius.

Michael Whight – Basset Clarinet Michael Whight plays the solo basset clarinet in the Mozart Clarinet Concerto. Michael has a varied career as a soloist, chamber and orchestral player, recording engineer and producer, conductor and teacher. A former principal clarinetist with the Philharmonia Orchestra and Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, he has also been guest principal with all the London orchestras as well as the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Göteborg Symphony Orchestra and Chamber Orchestra of Europe. Among his over 200 orchestral recordings are Stravinsky’s Ebony Concerto with Robert Craft and the Philharmonia Orchestra, the concerto by Christopher Gunning and the Mozart Concerto which he directed from the basset clarinet with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA RECORDING DEN REISENDE (THE TRAVELLER)

AT ABBEY ROAD STUDIOS, APRIL 2017

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Jean Sibelius: Karelia Suite (first and third movements)

Karelia is a region of forests and lakes that lies across both Finland and Russia. In 1893, when Jean Sibelius penned his musical tableau, Karelia was a centre of Finnish nationalism, and Karelia Suite is a set of musical pictures describing historical events, dating from 1293. It consists of three brief movements. The first, Intermezzo, describes the people of Karelia rising up against oppression by the Lithuanians.

It begins quietly with the horns sounding a rallying call, that is then taken up by the trumpets, building to a forceful march before fading into quiet uncertainty again. The third and final movement, Alla Marcia, is a jaunty quick march echoing the ideas of the first movement but this time full of triumph, and finishing with a brilliant flourish on the piccolo.

EDVARD GRIEG: Peer Gynt, Suite No. 1

This work of Norway’s best-loved composer premiered in 1876 in Christiana (now Oslo). Henrik Ibsen wrote his allegorical drama Peer Gynt in 1874 and asked his friend and compatriot Edvard Grieg to compose music for the play. The beginning melody is perhaps one of the most famous in the western canon. Grieg extracted two suites from Peer Gynt.

Each suite is in four movements. The first suite opens with the Prelude to Act IV, Morning. The second movement is Ase’s Death, a lament, simple yet poignant. The third movement, Anitra’s Dance comprises a seductive melody. The suite ends with one of Grieg’s most popular melodies In the Hall of the Mountain King.

Pyotr Tchaikovsky: Waltz from Swan Lake

One of the great romantic ballets of all time, Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake premiered at Moscow’s Bolshoi Theatre in 1877. At the time, it received a less than favourable reception, but it wasn’t long before Swan Lake became a central part of the Russian ballet repertoire. The tale of the tragic fate of the young lovers, Odette and Prince Siegfried, has true dramatic impact. The music displays Tchaikovsky’s familiar gifts

of unforgettable melody, rhythmic vitality and magical instrumental colours. In the waltz from Act II, Tchaikovsky introduces a series of lyrical listing themes, including a fine trumpet solo, before the dance ends in an energetic coda. The foremost quality most often attributed to the Swan Lake score is its symphonic nature, an innovation for the genre.

PROGRAMME NOTES

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Johann Strauss: The Blue Danube Waltz

The most iconic of all waltzes, and unofficial Austrian national anthem, On the Beautiful Blue Danube (full title) is an almost mandatory encore at Vienna’s traditional New Year concerts. Strauss composed The Blue Danube in 1867, and it premiered in the same year in Vienna. Originally written as a choral piece for the Vienna Men’s Choral Association, Strauss later adapted it for orchestra. The waltz begins

with bustling strings and a romantic horn call (melodic forecast), a response by winds before the first melody fully emerges. In total, there are five melodies with a beautiful coda. One glorious melodic strain follows another in a sequence that becomes giddier and giddier to the end. The Blue Danube never fails to sweep listeners into its magical flow.

Eduard Strauss: Bahn Frei! (Make Way! or Clear the Track) Polka

Of Eduard Strauss’ many polkas – the dance form on which he was to stamp his own genius – Bahn Frei! (Make Way!) belongs to the polka schnell (quick polka) variety. Sprightly, spirited delightful and deft, Bahn Frei! imitates the sounds of a railway train, still something of a novelty in 1869 when the polka was written.

The main theme gallops along with almost ecstatic high spirits. The brief middle section, composed of variants of the main material, is also vivacious and full of cheer. The opening theme returns to close this joyous piece with a flourishing finish. A perennial favourite of many orchestras, especially around New Year.

Johann Strauss: Radetzky March

Johann Strauss senior, like his son, was both composer and conductor. He wrote Radetzky March in 1848 in honour of Austrian Field Marshal Radetzky, a war hero. Festive and jubilant, the Radetzky March was first performed before an audience of Austrian officers, who at once began clapping rhythmically and stomping their feet. This tradition, with a light rhythmic

clapping during the first iteration of the melody followed by thunderous clapping during the second, is kept alive today by audience members. It has been a long-standing tradition of the Vienna Philharmonic to conclude every New Year’s concert with the work. Radetzky March is generally considered to be one of the greatest pieces in the march vein.

Viking Evening of Classical Music

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Debbie Wiseman: Den Reisende (The Traveller)

Debbie Wiseman wrote The Traveller to celebrate Viking’s 20th anniversary in 2017. She recorded it with the 75-piece National Symphony Orchestra at the iconic Abbey Road studios. Here, Debbie shares a little of her creative process, and the inspiration for this beautiful score.

“It starts with the violins very, very high and then the flute comes in, like a bird call. The idea behind the opening piece is pure inspiration from having been on the river ship. You wake up early in the morning and look out at the sunlight glistening on the water, and it is so calm and beautiful. Then the journey really gets going as we set sail and the harp comes in. Our solo violinist, who is the traveller in the piece, starts playing the melody and is suddenly on his journey.

I had so much inspiration from actually going on the river and ocean ships and experiencing the adventure of it all, the spirit of it all, and the beauty of it all. I wanted a solo instrument to be at the centre of the piece that suggests our traveller, and the orchestra can then be everything around it. So I chose a solo violin.

The violin leads the orchestra, it is very lyrical and very expressive. I imagined my traveller standing up and playing his solo and experiencing all the exciting trips he goes on

and the orchestra being his adventures. The melody you hear on the violin allows the piece to play beautifully, and flow like a river. There is a moment in the middle of the piece that breaks off from everything orchestral and lets the brass speak – this is when you hear the Viking horns. The clarion call of the brass is to take you to sea. The trumpets join and then everybody comes in and you’re off to sea. Actually, I wrote that the moment I came back from visiting Viking Sea because I wanted something that had real presence and weight, and of course brass instruments are the key to that.

At the end, the traveller has completed his journey and experienced all these adventures. You hear the instruments joining in, these travellers together. There are harmonies in the music; the clarinet and the violin join together as friends. Everybody joins in, feeling enriched because they’ve been on this lovely journey together. It ends quietly, taking you back to where you started. It’s a circle.”

IMAGES FROM TOP TO BOTTOM: DEBBIE WISEMAN AND TORSTEIN HAGEN AT THE RECORDING OF THE TRAVELLER AT ABBEY ROAD STUDIOS, APRIL 2017

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“I like listening to music with melody, and Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto K622 is certainly my favourite piece of music. I find the second movement particularly moving. It gives me a feeling of being both lonely and content at the same time.”

Torstein HagenChairman, Viking Cruises

Given the very substantial works – operas, concertos, symphonies and chamber music left to us by Mozart, it is hard to believe that this genius died at the untimely age of thirty-five.

His Clarinet Concerto is the last major work he fully completed. For those who imagine, listening to the Requiem, that Mozart spent his last few months in darkness, contemplating his own demise, this concerto’s sunny nature does not reflect inward contemplation. Instead, it is a reflection of a man who loved people and enjoyed life to the full, right up until the last minute.

The concerto arose from the friendship between Mozart and the unquestioned clarinet virtuoso of the time, Anton Stadler. Mozart’s family objected to the gambling, drinking, free-talking Stadler who had borrowed a considerable sum of money from the composer, a debt that remained unpaid at Mozart’s death.

That being said, Stadler’s musical skill and ingenuity was prodigious, performing on an instrument that was something of a “novelty”. In the late 18th century, the clarinet was still not universally used and Mozart, who loved its sound, included it in only a few of his scores. Stadler participated in performances of Mozart’s works from about 1784, and later inspired two of the composer’s most magnificent late masterpieces, the Quintet for clarinet and string quartet and the Clarinet Concerto.

It has long been known that both these works were written for an extended clarinet, with extra low notes in the lower register. Stadler called this a “bass clarinet,” but today we call it a “basset clarinet”.

Unfortunately, the original manuscript of the concerto is lost. Nor have any 18th-century basset clarinets survived. It may well have been an instrument that no one but Stadler played, even then. Therefore, both the music and the instrument have both been reconstructed so that Mozart’s original intentions may be heard.

Our soloist, Michael Whight, will be performing on a “basset” clarinet for tonight’s performance.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Adagio from Clarinet Concerto K622

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To find out more about our award-winning journeys, call 020 8780 7900 or visit vikingcruises.co.uk

Listening to the Viking Classical Trio perform tranquil compositions every day of your journey. Viewing the works of expressionist painter Edvard Munch, accompanied by live classical music. Experiencing the emotion of the Catalan rumba, Portuguese fado and Italian opera in captivating performances both ashore, and on board your award-winning Viking ship.

Join us on a journey of discovery. One where you can immerse yourself in each destination, its music, art and culture. We look forward to welcoming you on board.

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VIKING PRESENTS an evening of classical music

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