ALSO GUELLER DEBUTS AS PRINCIPAL GUEST CONDUCTOR • THE CPO SAYS GOODBYE TO ONE CHAIRMAN AND WELCOMES ANOTHER • THE WINTER SYMPHONY SEASON • CPO YOUTH PROGRAMMES GROW IN POPULARITY
Valentina Lisitsa Photograph: © Decca/Gilbert François
Virtuoso pianist, online sensation
Inside this issue 02
WELCOME The CPO concertmaster is off to New York
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NOTES Youth programmes, Gueller and Bailey
Issue 10, Winter 2017 05
NOTES A new chairman for the CPO
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FEATURE Youthful stars on the CPO stage
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CALENDAR Our schedule for the new concert seasons
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BOOKINGS How to book your concert tickets
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ver the years, the magic of Cape Town and its mountain has attracted millions of visitors to the city. Young musicians from all over the world are not immune to this drawcard. During the rest of this year, a dozen of the music world’s most exciting emerging and established young artists will be performing with the CPO in our June, August and November seasons. In a few years, most of these emerging young musicians, like the sensational virtuoso pianist Valentina Lisitsa, will be household names. Like those before, once they have performed in Cape Town and experienced the warmth and responsiveness of Cape Town audiences, they always want to return. Our artistic success and capacity audiences are part of a thriving concert culture and, thanks to you, Cape Town has become the hub of symphonic music on the continent. The second celebrity in our line-up is Grammy Award-winning cellist Zuill Bailey, who will perform in this year’s Gala Concert presented by the Friends of Orchestral Music (on 2 November), while Ms Lisitsa plays the Rachmaninov Paganini Variations on 16 November.
LOUIS HEYNEMAN CHIEF EXECUTIVE CAPE TOWN PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA
Apart from three busy seasons, the orchestra has been invited to the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown and will be touring with Cape Town Opera to Dubai and Hong Kong for a short season of Mandela Trilogy. We are looking forward to the year ahead and welcome our new Chairman, Derek Auret. Under his dynamic and skilful guidance, the Friends of Orchestral Music has prospered over the past few years. We know many good years under his guidance also await the CPO.
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GOODWIN IN NEW YORK
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With Patrick Goodwin as concertmaster, the CPO is in good hands for many years to come. As CEO Louis Heyneman says, “Patrick is a great violinist, a steady hand which guides the strings with surety and musicality, and we are proud to have him.”
Back in South Africa, Patrick appears as leader and orchestral soloist for operas, ballets and symphonic performances and supports guest concertmasters Farida Bacharova and Suzanne Martens. He is also a stalwart of the Cape Town Philharmonic Youth Orchestra (CPYO), where his gentle nature and patience go down so well with young violinists. Patrick was born in Windhoek, and studied with Farida Bacharova in Cape Town and Olga Kaler in Chicago, graduating with a Bachelor of Music and a Master of Music with distinction in violin performance from the University of Cape Town and DePaul University School of Music respectively. Other teachers include Robert Waters, Jürgen Schwietering and Artemisio Paganini.
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The CPO’s concertmaster is our man for all seasons
June this year sees Patrick playing with the New York Philharmonic and other musicians from around the world in what is being called a “truly global orchestra” to mark the end of the tenure of music director Alan Gilbert. The orchestra is being formed with the endorsement of the United Nations and will convey the power of music to support peace and understanding between peoples and nations by playing, for instance, for victims of an international crisis or for a global celebration.
PURE PUBLISHING is proud to be a partner of the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra.
PUBLIC & CORPORATE FUNDERS • DONATIONS IN KIND, PARTNERS & MEDIA PARTNERS
‘Patrick is a great violinist, a steady hand which guides the strings with surety and musicality, and we are proud to have him.’
Joan St Leger Lindbergh Charitable Trust
Lorenzo & Stella Chiappini Charitable & Cultural Trust
He plays as a soloist with the CPO and other orchestras, and is a chamber musician of note as a member of the Bacharova Quartet and Juliet String Quartet. He has also been a faculty member at the Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival, performing and coaching alongside distinguished local and international artists. Patrick is currently a part-time lecturer in violin and orchestral studies at the South African College of Music, University of Cape Town. Patrick performs on a fine contemporary instrument made by Joseph Curtin.
Phillip Schock Charitable & Educational Foundation
Andrew W Mellon Foundation
AV’s Gifts & Flowers
CONCERTO, ISSUE 10, 2017
Notes
THE CPO’S EXPLODING YOUTH PROGRAMMES The popularity of the CPO youth programmes is greater than ever before
With Marvin Weavers recently appointed as the CPO’s Youth Education and Development Co-ordinator; Ash-Lee Louwskieter and Odile Burden managing logistical planning and education planning/oversight of the Masidlale grassroots training project; and Faan and Kim Malan involved in the CPO Academy, the CPO’s education programmes are making excellent progress.
The CPO Music Academy More than 120 young musicians have entered the academy, the CPO’s entry level, where they are taught theory and instrumental playing. A boost of an increased amount of R220 000 this year alone, building on the donations for the fourth year, from the MAID (Make an Immediate Investment) Trust through Music Matters enabled instruments to be bought and teachers now total 20. Nearly 70 students play in the academy’s wind band, 26 of them clarinets alone. There are a further 33 youngsters who have group tuition in a training band of wind and percussion. They will progress through to the academy band and ultimately the wind ensemble.
The Masidlale Grassroots Training Project One hundred plus learners in Atlantis, Mamre, Langa, Gugulethu and Khayelitsha are taught strings and wind instruments. The focus is on fast-tracking the best students and preparing more players to start with the Cape Town Philharmonic Youth Orchestra’s (CPYO) junior ensemble. Masidlale teachers are drawn from the CPYO and include Noluvuyo Nteta, Siyathemba Nteta, and Tembisa Ntshongontshi.
The CPYO and Training Ensemble Orchestra This was launched in 2004 as part of the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra’s ongoing development and transformation plan. It is a vibrant ensemble of some 75 musicians sought after in Cape Town for corporate gigs and concerts, and its appearance in the 2017 KykNET Fiëstas televised awards concert received the highest acclaim. Its music and artistic director is Brandon Phillips, who is assisted by Chad Hendricks, the third winner of the Len van Zyl Conductors’ Competition.
The CPY Wind Band and Training Ensemble This was formed in 2003 with Paul Chandler and then Sean Kierman as the first conductors. With 55 musicians, it has also established itself as a celebrated ensemble, and one of the best of its kind for festivals, and appearances such as that at the Oude Libertas Amphitheatre were greeted with loud approval.
MARVIN WEAVERS is a product of the CPYO himself, having played viola for six years and also in the CPYO String Quartet for four years. He completed a business management diploma at the College of Cape Town last year. He was an intern with the CPO, has worked as a project administrator at Artscape and has been interim youth and education development coordinator with the CPO since December.
ASH-LEE LOUWSKIETER has been the manager of Masidlale for the last two years, having been steeped in the culture of the Moravian Church. He joined both the CPO and the Cape Town Philharmonic Wind Ensemble (CPYWE) as a trumpeter in 2009. He is a graduate of the University of Stellenbosch.
ODILE BURDEN, who joined the CPYO at the age of nine, graduated from the University of Stellenbosch and studied and performed overseas, most specifically in Oslo. She returned to South Africa to concentrate on education of young local musicians and has been involved in Masidlale since last year. She recently received her Master of Music at the University of Stellenbosch.
With 55 musicians, it has established itself as a celebrated ensemble, and one of the best of its kind for festivals, and appearances... The CPY Wind Band and Training Ensemble
BRANDON PHILLIPS, resident conductor of the CPO and the winner of the inaugural Len van Zyl Conductors’ Competition in 2010, is music director of the CPYO. His musical upbringing was steeped in the New Apostolic Church. He plays many instruments and is a graduate of UCT. He is also principal bassoon of the CPO. FAAN and KIM MALAN are seasoned music educators, having run a music academy in Kimberley, managed the SA National Youth Orchestra, and started Music Matters in Cape Town which offers services in music education, live performances, conducting, composing and arranging. They are both wind performers and specialists, and Faan is the conductor of the CPYWE. He holds a doctorate in business administration.
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Notes
GUELLER DEBUTS AS PRINCIPAL GUEST IN JUNE WHILE BECOMING CONDUCTOR LAUREATE IN HALIFAX, BERNHARD GUELLER WILL BE SPENDING MORE TIME ON THE CAPE TOWN PODIUM
ZUILL BAILEY’S COMMUNITY CONCERTS CELLIST ZUILL BAILEY KNOWS THAT COMMUNITY CONCERTS ARE THE ESSENCE OF LIFE
He plays music to people incarcerated, and lullabies to soothe infants in neonatal units. He surprises with pop-up performances of Bach, offers music appreciation in schools and even Beethoven to those living in almost perpetual darkness in deepest winter in Alaska. This is just part of what makes cellist Zuill Bailey thrive. This Grammy Award-winning cellist, who is coming to Cape Town to reprise a happy partnership with new CPO principal conductor Bernhard Gueller in the FOM gala concert on 2 November, is inspired by inspiring others.
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istory is important to Bernhard Gueller, CPO principal guest conductor since last September, for history brings ties and commitment. Since he is relinquishing his position as music director in Halifax, Canada in mid-2018 after 15 years, becoming Conductor Laureate, he will be spending more time in Cape Town. In June, August and November (for the Friends of Orchestral Music [FOM] gala with cellist Zuill Bailey) he will be on the CPO’s podium. Gueller has always maintained a home in Cape Town, and the past 15 years of his career have been rewarding. He was able to combine guest conducting in countries like America, Bulgaria, Germany and Italy as well as in South Africa, with his engagements in Halifax and his fouryear position as music director in Nuremberg. He will be missed in Halifax and the orchestra there is celebrating his achievements over the years. He has already been awarded an honorary doctorate “for his inspiring leadership of Symphony Nova Scotia and deep connection he has with Nova Scotian audiences” by Dalhousie University. His relationship with sponsors has enabled him to mount large-scale festivals for the last 12 years, introducing more and more international artists into the Canadian component. He recorded three CDs of works by Canadian composers Christos Hatzis and Tim Brady (which won the top East Coast Music award), in addition to orchestrated Schubert songs and his Third Symphony. He commissioned new works like
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Gueller and Bailey present the FOM gala concert on 2 November
‘There is something greater than life... great art, especially great music, gives us a glimpse of it...’ Sri Lankan Canadian Dinuk Wijeratne’s Tabla Concerto, and there is, of course, the fact that he conducted more than 100 performances of The Nutcracker. During his tenure, subscriptions rose by 45% and this, like our own subscription increases, bucks many international trends, which has seen people who are spoilt for choice make spontaneous on-the-night decisions. Gueller’s philosophy is simple: “There is something greater than life, that it means something to be a human… and great art, especially great music, gives us a glimpse of it here and there.” By doing a recording with cellist Peter Martens, he looks forward to closer ties to the orchestra that has been close to his heart for more than 20 years.
While Bailey’s career may take him to some of the best orchestras and venues (he does up to 100 a year) particularly in the Americas, it’s his devotion to educational outreach and community engagement that drives him as an artist. His dedication to communities everywhere is being filmed for a documentary over the next three years, beginning at the Grammy Awards. Thanks to the busy schedule that keeps him on the road nearly 300 nights a year, he saw the awards as “a night out” and celebrated it in Los Angeles with his 14-year-old son, Mateo. Concerto performances, solo recitals, chamber music and recordings keep him busy, and he visits schools and gives master classes at university, working at all levels to make music accessible everywhere. Bailey has just been appointed director of the Center of Arts Entrepreneurship at the University of Texas in El Paso. This new initiative is designed to help musicians develop careers in the 21st century. He also directs the Young Artist Development Series with Johns Hopkins University and the Peabody School of Music. Then, of course, he is artistic director of four festivals: in El Paso, Alaska, Mesa and Washington. “When I was a child, there was music in the schools but, even so, the Kennedy Center’s National Symphony Orchestra musicians came to my school and introduced
When his name was announced as the winner of the solo category for classical music, “it was simply a dream come true”. The Grammy was awarded for his performance in a work written for him, ‘Tales of Hemingway’ by Michael Daugherty.
me to the beautiful world of classical music,” he says. “That changed my life, for I learned first-hand what makes the most beautiful music sound the way it does and how it speaks to the audience. With diminishing music in the schools, it is our role to take music to schoolchildren today.” Bailey adds: “I decided that all the artists who are invited to my festivals must come for a residency, not only to give concerts but to become part of the community, to build audiences and build relationships, and this always results in capacity audiences.”
‘It is like passing the torch to the next generation. It makes complete human beings of the musicians and shows the audience that life is to be celebrated.’
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Notes
CHANGES AT THE TOP
THE CPO SAYS FAREWELL TO BEN RABINOWITZ AND WELCOMES IN NEW LEADERSHIP AS CHAIRMAN DEREK AURET TAKES OVER
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ith the handing over of the reins as chairman by Ben Rabinowitz to Derek Auret, the CPO would like to acknowledge the commitment and dedication with which he has served the organisation. Ben Rabinowitz was appointed a director six months after the founding of the CPO, taking over the position as chair from Wilmot James in 2009. Says CEO Louis Heyneman: “His personal generosity is a byword in Cape Town, and he also opened many doors to other funders. He has been an inspiration to us all, a diplomatic leader in good and challenging times, and we thank him.” A legal graduate of UCT and Oxford, he has been semi-retired from the property industry since 2005. He initiated the successful campaign to save Oudekraal from property development, helped save Princess Vlei and led the campaign by SEAFA to save the Sea Point beach front for the community. He has received the Mayor’s Medal for Philanthropy, the Inyathelo Award for Lifetime Philanthropy jointly with his late wife Shirley, the Paul Harris Fellow Award from the Rotary Club of Sea Point, the Spectemur Agendo Award from SACS, and in 2013 the UCT President of Convocation Medal. He is currently also on the board of the Cape Town Concert Series, LEAP Science & Maths Schools, (and the Cape) Jewish Seniors’ Association,
and is a trustee of the Ben and Shirley Rabinowitz Cricket Trust, the Ben and Shirley Rabinowitz Foundation, and Duet and CPO Endowment Trust. Ben Rabinowitz was immediately asked to join the Board of Patrons, where he joins Ton Vosloo, a man whose own dedication to the CPO from day one has been phenomenal. Ton’s influence has resulted in major gifts and loans, and without him the CPO would have had a harder time surviving in some of the years gone by. His contribution as a philanthropist to the arts was recently acknowledged by a lifetime award made at the 2017 Fiestas. Ton became managing director of Naspers in 1984 and chairman in 1992. Under his leadership Naspers grew to a large, international media company. He retired as non-executive chair in 2015.
AURET’S VISION SOARS Derek Auret, former diplomat and businessman, was elected chairman of the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra Board in March to succeed Ben Rabinowitz. Louis Heyneman is delighted with Auret’s appointment. “I have been privileged to work with Mr Auret on the board since 2014, when he joined it, bringing expertise from the business world to the table. He was responsible for the Marketing Committee of the board and a member of its Human Resources Committee. His interest in music also stands him in good stead, and he has been running the Friends of Orchestral Music (FOM), also since 2014, taking the CPO’s main support organisation to another level. We are confident that the CPO will remain in steady and committed hands.”
society. My vision and my job is to sustain the CPO as the foremost orchestra on the continent, to develop its diversity while maintaining international standards and being representative of South Africa, and to entrench its international reputation. This will require generous support and sustained funding and I know that South Africa’s corporations, all levels of government and all concertgoers, especially those who do business in Cape Town and benefit directly or indirectly from its presence, will continue with their support. The orchestra is, at once, a tourist drawcard and an element, as in international cities, that sets Cape Town apart.” Derek Auret, a graduate of both the University of Stellenbosch and the University of Pretoria in economics, administration, politics, political science and international politics, spent two decades in the South African Foreign Service, holding various positions at home and abroad such as special envoy with the rank of ambassador, Deputy Director-General of Foreign Affairs for Africa and the Middle East, and Chief Director: Americas, Middle and Far East and Australasia, when he negotiated formal relations between South Africa and a number of Asian countries including China. He was also involved in negotiations concerning the independence of Namibia and the then Rhodesia, establishing relations with a number of African and
Middle Eastern countries and negotiated the peace initiative in Mozambique between FRELIMO and RENAMO. He then became chairman of the Western Cape Provincial Public Service Commission, chairman of the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board, and finally founding chief executive of the Casino Association of South Africa (CASA) until his retirement in 2012.
‘BIG BEN’ STEPS DOWN Ben Rabinowitz noted at the board meeting that he has stepped down when the orchestra is in a good place. He commented: “These successes were due to excellent governance, and the responsibility, leadership and ethics displayed by a committed board which bodes well for the future.” He added that they were also due to: • •
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• For Auret, becoming chairman is an honour and he looks forward to taking the CPO to the next level. “Cape Town is privileged to have an orchestra that is very highly rated both here and abroad. It is committed to entertaining South Africa’s diverse audiences with the finest music representing both international artistry, as well as the cream of our own multicultural
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a management team of energy, dedication and skills the support of existing donors for their renewed commitment and new donors for seeing how much the CPO adds to the cultural mosaic of the city business development where an expanded donor base will result in prolonged sustainability usually sold-out houses and an increasing subscription base brought about by branding and constant communication youth development where passion for the young pays huge dividends in our quest for complete transformation community and schools audiences where families support their own FOM, whose committee works indefatigably to offer support, soirees and sponsorships collaborations which have brought new audiences to the symphony and above all, a great orchestra, its musicians and visiting artists which prove time and again that the CPO is Africa’s premier orchestra.
You can read more about the directors and patrons at www.cpo.org.za
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RISING STARS A galaxy of musical talent is on the rise all over the world, and we are grateful for the opportunity to witness their stellar performances when they perform in Cape Town this year
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une is a regal month, with not one, but two Queen Elisabeth International Piano Competition laureates playing in Cape Town. Lukáš Vondrácek, Grand prize winner in 2016, opens the season with Rachmaninov Piano Concerto no 3, followed by Liebrecht Vanbeckevoort, who was a laureate in 2007, when he was just 22. He will play Gershwin Piano Concerto in F, both under the direction of Bernhard Gueller. Vondrácek is no stranger to Cape Town, having played here three times, the second as a result of his 2012 UNISA International Piano Competition win. Called “the greatest piano talent of our times” by the Stuttgarter Zeitung,
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Vondrácek had opened many doors with his Queen Elisabeth Competition win. It also gave him, as he says, “a serious love for Belgian audiences.” Since then, he has been flitting around the world, from Mexico to Poland, Belgium to Berlin, Hong Kong to the Canary Islands, and performed with the Radio Symphony Orchestra in the impressive Philharmonic. An endearing trait about this fine young pianist is his sense of normality. In Mexico, he loved the local flavours; lobster and crab tacos, mezcal, margaritas; and he loved the super friendly Mexican people. In Belgium and Germany, it was the beer. He is just one of many talented young musicians Cape Town is welcoming in 2017.
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Feature
This year, however, the CPO has notched up what must be a record number of soloists in their teens and twenties
CPO PINPOINTS THE STARS OF THE FUTURE
THE QUEEN ELISABETH COMPETITION
Over the last century, one of the most striking points about the orchestra in Cape Town has been its ability to spot the stars of the future and engage the young and gifted on the way up. Think Lukáš Vondrácek, who first appeared with the CPO in 2003 when he was a teenager; then there was Nigel Kennedy and conductor Piero Gamba when he was young enough to be called Pierino. The CPO was proud to give a platform to 12-year-old Qden Blaauw, a young player called “dramatic” by Lang Lang, several of its youth orchestra musicians like Jeffrey Armstrong, Jordan Brooks and Shannon Thebus; and has over the years been involved in concerto competitions and festivals for young people. This year, however, the CPO has notched up what must be a record number of soloists in their teens and twenties.
Photographs: Simon Fowler, Marie Staggat, Jorge Cueto, Hans George Fischer, Irene Kim, Marnix De Paepe. Queen Elisabeth Credit: Neftali / Shutterstock.com
The Queen Elisabeth Competition was established in 1937 as the Eugène Ysaÿe Competition by Queen Elisabeth of the Belgians and the Belgian violinist/ composer Ysaÿe. There are now four competitions – for piano, violin, voice and composition. Winners over the years have included Emil Gilels and Vladimir Ashkenazy (piano), David Oistrakh and Vadim Repin (violin) and in composition our own Hendrik Hofmeyr.
These include: •
Violinist Erzhan Kulibaev, 30, is an exciting young Kazak musician with extreme skill, talent and passion. Already a prize winner of Enescu, Demidovski, Lisbon, Novosibirsk, Hindemith, Buenos Aires and Wieniawski International Violin competitions, he has worked with conductors such as Ashkenazy and Gergiev.
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In concert, Sophie Pacini, 25, scales the heights of the piano repertoire; she is hailed by critics as one of the most distinguished artists of her generation, and she was not yet 20 years old when Martha Argerich championed her as one of the most brilliant rising stars in the piano firmament. What is impressive is her virtuosity, intelligent approach and her sheer talent. She draws listeners into her unique and personal experience of the music, making it instantly accessible.
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Daniel Kharitonov, 18, an ambitious and indisputably talented teenager, gave a triumphant performance, which far outstripped any other his concert management had heard at the Tchaikovsky International Competition in 2015. Wherever he appears, he charms the audiences with powerful, compelling and moving performances, full of young refreshing ferocity, heroic bravery and darting energy. On hearing the first note by trumpeter Lucienne Renaudin Vary, 18, you are transported to a different world. Her tone is beautifully effortless,
Opposite page: Daniel Kharitonov. This page, from the top: Violinist Erzhan Kulibaev, pianist Sophie Pacini, cellist Alexey Stadler, trumpeter Lucienne Renaudin Vary, pianist Daniel Kharitonov, pianist Lukáš Vondrácek and pianist Liebrecht Vanbeckevoort.
poised and crafted with complete care and musicianship, a real pleasure to listen to, not least because she is still so young. If she can captivate listeners in this way at only 18, the sky is the limit. Plus, she is equally accomplished in classics and jazz. •
Alexey Stadler, 25, plays with firm control and the kind of tactile, honeyed tone capable of bringing listeners to their knees. He is a remarkably selfassured performer with impressive nonchalance and impeccable intonation. With Gergiev, Petrenko, Ashkenazy and Janowski on his CV, it’s no wonder that his reputation is growing fast for orchestral performances and festivals such as St Petersburg’s White Nights.
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‘The rehearsals and performance are invaluable learning experiences, informing the composer what to do.’
THE CPO WELCOMES IN NEW YOUNG COMPOSERS The CPO is featuring the works of a record number of young composers this year It’s not peculiar to South Africa that the minute people hear ‘contemporary composition’ they think Stockhausen and say: ‘oh no!’ But that’s so far from the truth. Peter Klatzow, perhaps South Africa’s pre-eminent living composer, was recently the subject of an article in the prestigious British publication, Musical Times, which was entitled: “Klatzow reinvented: from modernist non-tonal activist to tonal art-music champion”. That says it all!
This commission, sponsored by FOM, heralds a path for the future Klatzow’s 70th birthday was celebrated by the CPO two years ago with a programme dedicated to his works. In any event, today’s new works are on the whole more
melodic and accessible than much that was written 50 years ago and they reflect the times in which they were written in many cases. The CPO has a duty to perform works not by established composers like Bongani Ndodana-Breen (Ingrid Jonker’s poems were set and sung by Goitsemang Lehobye with the CPO in 2015), Roelof Temmingh (his Piano Concerto this December) and John Simons (Seeing Stars in June). By giving young composers an opportunity to have their works played by a professional symphony orchestra, the CPO is adding to the repertoire. The result has been exciting. Last year, Sean Crawford and Christo Jankowitz had two works performed, sponsored by SAMRO; in 2014 Adrian More’s Piano Concerto was premiered by François du Toit, its dedicatee. This year we will also see two new works by young composers, one by Kristi Boonzaaier called ‘n Aand op Simonsberg (November) and that same month, a new work by Antoni Schonken in the Friends of Orchestral Music (FOM) concert on 2 November. This commission, sponsored by FOM, heralds a path for the future. FOM will commission a young South African to write orchestral work for each annual FOM/CPO Gala Concert. Says FOM chairman Derek Auret: “Our goal is to encourage young South African composers to contribute to the existing rich body of work that South Africans have created and are still creating. We hope that this initiative will encourage composers and provide an opportunity for them to showcase their creative talents.” The adjudication panel will comprise composers Peter Klatzow and Hendrik Hofmeyr, and conductor Bernhard Gueller.
For these composers, having their works performed by the CPO is a great honour. Here are comments from a few.
SHAUN CRAWFORD Crawford is a South African-born composer of film music and symphonic works. “The CPO premiere of my Overture last year was an absolute gift for which I am so grateful. I think when an orchestra decides to premiere a composer’s work, it marks the point at which young composers can trust that they are indeed serious composers, capable of writing engaging work both to play and to be heard. The rehearsals and performance are invaluable learning experiences, informing the composer what to do differently and better the next time round. It’s the moment where one’s musical thoughts are converted into sound by the best players in the country and it’s a privilege to behold.”
CHRISTO JANKOWITZ Another young composer whose work was performed last year, Jankowitz says: “Writing orchestral music these days seems to be an impractical endeavour for composers who live in a world where arts funding and the value of art is seemingly ever on the decrease and regarded as being ‘out of fashion’ by ‘style-Nazis’ who consistently try to ‘force’ a composer’s legitimacy as relating only to work produced within a certain ‘approved’ aesthetic paradigm. Having one’s work played by the CPO confirms that there is still a place in this society for composers who write tradition-inspired music and this spurs the composer to go on creating.” He adds: “It gives us hope that we do not labour in vain. It is most likely one of the most valuable learning experiences for any composer and contributes tremendously towards the composer’s development as an artist.”
ANTONI SCHONKEN Schonken, a winner of the SAMRO Overseas Scholarship for Young Composers, is very excited to collaborate with the CPO. He says: “I have always been fascinated and enchanted by how the orchestra seems to emit a kind of magical energy in performance. The opportunity to compose for an orchestra of CPO’s calibre is an immense privilege, and a unique opportunity to contribute to a rich body of South African orchestral music. My recent works have had strong messages, and it has been very exciting to collaborate with musicians in vocalising my ideas about life and love, politics, and darker matters. I hope to give the audience a deeply meaningful and inspiring work of art.” From left to right: Shaun Crawford, Christo Jankowitz and Antoni Schonken.
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The details were correct at the time of going to print. The Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra reserves the right to alter programmes and replace conductors and/or soloists as may become necessary, but will endeavour to give notice of such changes in the media.
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JUNE
WINTER 2017
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JUNE
8 PM | CITY HALL 8 PM | CITY HALL CONDUCTOR BERNHARD GUELLER SOLOIST LUKÁŠ VONDRÁČEK (PIANO)
CONDUCTOR BERNHARD GUELLER SOLOIST SOLOIST PHILIPPE GRAFFIN (VIOLIN)
FRANCK LE CHASSEUR MAUDIT SCHUMANN SYMPHONY NO. 4 IN D MINOR RACHMANINOV PIANO CONCERTO NO. 3 IN D MINOR
LIADOV BABA-YAGA, OP. 56 BRAHMS VIOLIN CONCERTO IN D RACHMANINOV SYMPHONY, NO. 1 IN D MINOR Violinist PHILIPPE GRAFFIN has an indisputable reputation for his interpretations of the French repertoire and has a special affection for the works of British composers. Graffin was invited to make his first recording by Yehudi Menuhin. His rich discography now includes over 30 concertos including many world premieres. His recording of the three Saint-Saëns concertos was the first volume of Hyperion’s ‘Romantic Violin’ series. He has championed the concerto of the Afro/English composer ColeridgeTaylor, making its first recording and performing it at the BBC Proms. His latest release is of the Britten and Delius concertos for Dutton Epoch. In demand as a teacher, Graffin, gives masterclasses around the world and is a professor at the Paris Conservatoire National Supérieur and at the Brussels Conservatoire Royal.
Principal guest conductor of the CPO and music director of Symphony Nova Scotia since 2002, BERNHARD GUELLER has long impressed audiences with the excitement he brings to the podium. Called “a poet of phrasing”, “electrifying” and “thrilling” and noted for his “genius for underlining the momentum of a phrase”, his interpretations have been hailed as inspiring, dramatic and passionate. His CD of works by Canadian composer Tim Brady won Canada’s prestigious East Coast Music Award; a CD of orchestrated Schubert lieder was recently released. Recent collaborations include with violinists Joshua Bell and James Ehnes, and with singer Johan Botha. The winner of the grand prize of the Queen Mathilde Prize in the 2016 Queen Elisabeth International Piano Competition, LUKÁŠ VONDRÁČEK has been amazing audiences across Europe and the world since he was four. His debut at the age of 15 in 2002 with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra and Vladimir Ashkenazy was followed by a major US tour in 2003. His natural and assured musicality and remarkable technical ability have long marked him out as a gifted and mature musician. He has worked with many leading conductors and orchestras.
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8 PM | CITY HALL
CONDUCTOR BERNHARD GUELLER SOLOIST LIEBRECHT VANBECKEVOORT (PIANO) GERSHWIN AN AMERICAN IN PARIS GERSHWIN PIANO CONCERTO IN F BARBER ADAGIO FOR STRINGS BERNSTEIN SYMPHONIC DANCES FROM WEST SIDE STORY With teachers such as Menahem Pressler, the pianist LIEBRECHT VANBECKEVOORT is a Steinway artist, and one of the leading new generation of pianists in Belgium. His prize at the 2002 Queen Elisabeth International Piano Competition led to an international breakthrough, and he has since performed worldwide from Europe to America, Asia and in Durban. Since 2014, he has been guest professor at the LUCA School of Arts in Leuven and the following year was appointed artistic director of the festival Klassiek Leeft Meesterlijk in Knokke-Heist, an international summer festival focusing on the rich repertoire of chamber music. He has released six CDs.
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JUNE 8 PM | CITY HALL CONDUCTOR BERNHARD GUELLER SOLOIST LUIS MAGALHÃES (PIANO) JOHN SIMON SEEING STARS PROKOFIEV PIANO CONCERTO NO. 3 IN C FRANCK SYMPHONY IN D MINOR Described as possessing a “wonderfully full sound” (American Record Guide) and a “polished, refined technique” (Allmusic.com), LUIS MAGALHÃES has achieved critical acclaim as both a soloist and a chamber musician. He has played extensively across Europe, North and South America, Africa and Asia, and is a Yamaha International Artist. His recording with Peter Martens, featuring the complete cello sonatas of Beethoven, was awarded a coveted South African Music Award (SAMA) in 2011, while violin recordings have received glowing reviews in The Strad. He is a co-founder of the Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival and of the biannual Stellenbosch International Piano Symposium.
Photographs by: Irene Kim, Marco Borggreve.
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Calendar
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CONCERTO, ISSUE 10, 2017
Spring Symphony Season 2017
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07
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SEP
CONDUCTOR BERNHARD GUELLER SOLOIST LUCIENNE RENAUDIN VARY (TRUMPET)
CONDUCTOR CONRAD VAN ALPHEN SOLOISTS MARINA GRAUMAN (VIOLIN), GEORGE STEVENS (BARITONE)
Summer Symphony Season 2017
8 PM | CITY HALL 8 PM | CITY HALL MOZART OVERTURE, LA NOZZE DI FIGARO HUMMEL CONCERTO FOR TRUMPET IN E GERSHWIN SUMMERTIME BEETHOVEN SYMPHONY NO. 3 IN E-FLAT, “EROICA”
HENDRIK HOFMEYR “THE ELEMENTS”, A SYMPHONY SIBELIUS VIOLIN CONCERTO IN D MINOR BORODIN SYMPHONY NO. 2 IN B MINOR
“Wunderkind LUCIENNE RENAUDIN VARY stands out because of her exceptional virtuosity and her amazing maturity,” according to Victoires de la Musique Classique, 2013. At the age of 11, Lucienne (born in 1999) won her first prizes in major French competitions and since then has won first prize at every competition she has entered. Her first album, on the Warner label, is due for release later this year. Apart from her appearances in France, she has performed widely from Moscow to Germany and Finland, and recently made her English debut with the London Chamber Orchestra and Vladimir Ashkenazy. She is also an accomplished jazz musician.
MARINA GRAUMAN began her violin studies
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14
AUG
at five. In 2012, she graduated with honours from the St Petersburg Conservatoire, and now studies at the Hanns Eisler Hochschule in Berlin. She has been winning international awards since 2004. A lecturer in vocal studies at the SA College of Music, baritone GEORGE STEVENS returned to his native South Africa after a successful career in Germany, where he had been a permanent member of the Staatstheater Bremen before establishing a freelance career for the next six years. He is known for his versatility and dramatic acuity.
SEP
8 PM | CITY HALL 8 PM | CITY HALL CONDUCTOR BERNHARD GUELLER SOLOIST DANIEL KHARITONOV (PIANO)
CONDUCTOR CONRAD VAN ALPHEN SOLOIST ALEXEY STADLER (CELLO)
WAGNER OVERTURE, TANNHÄUSER TCHAIKOVSKY PIANO CONCERTO NO. 1 IN B-FLAT MINOR DVORAK SYMPHONY NO. 8 IN G
WILHELM GROSZ “SERENADE” SCHUMANN CELLO CONCERTO IN A MINOR R. STRAUSS “ALSO SPRACH ZARATHUSTRA”
Born in the Russia, DANIEL KHARITONOV emerged as one of the brightest talents of the 15th Tchaikovsky International Competition in 2015 at the age of 16 when he won third prize. He made a successful debut with the Mariinsky Orchestra under Valery Gergiev in 2013, and has since performed regularly with it in Russia, China and Italy. He has participated in festivals such as Stars of the White Nights, Stars on Baikal and regularly works with the Spivakov International Charity Foundation in Moscow. In 2013, he gave an electrifying performance at Carnegie Hall in part of the Musical Olympus International Festival’s gala concert and has also appeared at the Annecy Classic and Crescendo festivals in France. Other prizes include the Nutcracker International Television Contest for Young Musicians in 2010.
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South African-born Dutch conductor CONRAD VAN ALPHEN is artistic director and chief conductor of Sinfonia Rotterdam. He is also a frequent guest conductor in Russia, Germany, Holland and South Africa and has taken the Russian National Orchestra and his own Sinfonia Rotterdam on several international tours. His many CDs have received excellent reviews internationally. One of the finest young cellists of his generation, ALEXEY STADLER caused one sensation after another after his recent debuts at BBC Proms under Vasily Petrenko, with San Francisco Symphony and Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana, both with Vladimir Ashkenazy. He received several awards, including the national titles Young Talent (2008, 2009 and 2010) and Hope of Russia (2008, 2009). He has released two CDs.
09 NOV
8 PM | CITY HALL CONDUCTOR MARTIN PANTELEEV SOLOIST SOPHIE PACINI (PIANO) SMETANA OVERTURE, THE BARTERED BRIDE CHOPIN PIANO CONCERTO NO. 1 IN E MINOR BRAHMS SYMPHONY NO. 1 IN C MINOR As associate conductor of the Philharmonia of the Nations orchestra, founded by Leonard Bernstein and Justus Frantz, MARTIN PANTELEEVhas performed more than 1 000 concerts in Europe, Asia and America. In 2008, he took the Sofia Festival Orchestra on an American tour, followed by one in 2011 with the CPO, whose principal guest conductor he was from mid-2012 for four years. In 2014, he made his debut as conductor of the Royal Philharmonic. He was chief conductor of the Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra in his native Bulgaria and former Chief Guest Conductor of the CPO. Since making her concert debut in 2000, the young German-Italian violinist SOPHIE PACINI has appeared in many renowned concert halls across Europe. She released her first recording, on the Warner label, of solo works by Beethoven and Liszt. Named as the 2015 ECHO Klassik Newcomer of the Year, she also received the Prix Groupe Edmond de Rothschild. Musikfest Bremen’s Deutschlandfunk Förderpreis described her as “one of the greatest talents of her generation”. In 2011, Martha Argerich invited her to give a recital as part of the Martha Argerich Project in Lugano.
CONCERTO, ISSUE 10, 2017
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NOV
THURSDAY 8 PM | CITY HALL CONDUCTOR MARTIN PANTELEEV SOLOIST ERZHAN KULIBAEV (VIOLIN) ENESCO RUMANIAN RHAPSODY NO. 1 IN A GLAZUNOV VIOLIN CONCERTO IN A MINOR CHAUSSON “POÉME” TCHAIKOVSKY SYMPHONY, NO. 1 IN G MINOR, “WINTER DREAMS” ERZHAN KULIBAEV is firmly establishing himself as one of the most exciting and gifted young concert soloists. He started to play violin at the age of six and graduated from the Central Special Music School of Moscow State Conservatory Tchaikovsky. From 2004, he studied at the Queen Sofia High School of Music in Madrid. He is currently studying with Pierre Amoyal at the Mozarteum in Salzburg. He has recorded a CD of chamber pieces by Józef Krogulski and Józef Nowakowski for the Fryderyk Chopin Institute in Warsaw, winning best album award from Gramophone last December. He has won prizes at several international competitions, including First at the Manhattan, Demidovski, Lisbon, Novosibirsk, Hindemith, BuenosAires ones. He also won prizes at the Wieniawski and Enescu International Violin competitions.
NOV
8 PM | CITY HALL
CONDUCTOR MARTIN PANTELEEV SOLOIST VALENTINA LISITSA (PIANO)
30 NOV
8 PM | CITY HALL CONDUCTOR BRANDON PHILLIPS SOLOIST DAVID ALADASHVILI (PIANO)
TCHAIKOVSKY MARCHE SOLENNELLE “CORONATION MARCH” RACHMANINOV RHAPSODY ON A THEME OF PAGANINI SHOSTAKOVICH SYMPHONY NO. 10 IN E MINOR
KRISTI BOONZAAIER ‘N AAND OP SIMONSBERG BEETHOVEN PIANO CONCERTO NO 3 IN C MINOR BRAHMS SYMPHONY NO. 3 IN F
An undisputed internet star through YouTube since 2007, VALENTINA LISITSA’S unconventional approach has also established her as a concert pianist in demand with the world’s leading orchestras. Born in the Ukraine – she studied in Kiev – the North American-based pianist has performed with orchestras like the Rotterdam Philharmonic and Chicago Symphony. Conductors with whom she has collaborated include Paavo Järvi, Vasily Petrenko, Yannick Nézet-Séguin and Lorin Maazel. A spectacular recital in London’s Royal Albert Hall before an audience of 8 000 in June 2012 set the seal on her international breakthrough and she records for Decca. Her YouTube channel has 250 000 subscribers and more than 115 million hits, something unparalleled in the world of classical music.
The multi-talented BRANDON PHILLIPS, resident conductor of the CPO since 2015, music director and artistic administrator of the Cape Town Philharmonic Youth Orchestra and principal bassoon of the CPO was the inaugural Len van Zyl Conducting Competition winner in 2010, spending time with the Philadelphia Orchestra and with Victor Yampolsky as a result. Since then, he has been invited to conduct around the country, and has become established as a conductor of ballet as well. He teaches conducting, adjudicates at competitions and teaches conducting privately. In 2012, Phillips received a prestigious award from the Minister of Arts and Culture Ivan Meyer for “outstanding achievements by the youth”.
virtuoso born for the stage”, began taking piano lessons at age 11, and four years later was accepted into the prestigious Tbilisi Special Music School where he earned Georgia’s Presidential Scholarship for Piano Performance. In 2007, he was invited to join the pre-college division of The Juilliard School in New York City. He graduated from Juilliard with a Bachelor of Music in 2012 and a Master’s in 2014. He has appeared with orchestras and in recital across Europe and America and gave his Carnegie Hall debut in 2010. He is involved in musical outreach to young people internationally through his not-for-profit organisation, Young for Young. Interpretations of works by Scriabin and Schumann on his debut CD Opus 13 were called “elegant and atmospheric” by The New York Times.
Photographs: Simon Fowler, Marie Staggat, Hans George Fischer, Jorge Cueto, © Decca/Gilbert François
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DAVID ALADASHVILI, hailed as a “sensitive
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CONCERTO, ISSUE 10, 2017
Bookings
Dates to Diarise NATIONAL ARTS FESTIVAL Grahamstown Conductor Bernhard Gueller Soloist Luis Magalhães (piano) Mozart Le Nozze di Figaro overture | Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor | Franck Symphony in D minor | South African premiere performance FOM GALA 8 pm | City Hall Conductor Bernhard Gueller Soloist Zuill Bailey (cello) Antoni Schonken New Work | Reznicek Overture, Donna Diana | Saint-Saëns Cello Concerto, No. 1 in A minor | Massenet Thaïs Meditation | Sibelius Symphony No. 2 in D
Cape Town City Hall SEATING PLAN & PRICES 8 pm | Endler Hall, Stellenbosch Conductor Johan de Villiers Soloists Magdalene Minnaar (soprano), Minette du Toit-Pierce (mezzo-soprano), Given Nkosi (tenor), *Bass to be announced Libertas Choir | Mendelssohn Elijah HUBERTE RUPERT MEMORIAL CONCERT 8 pm | Endler Hall, Stellenbosch Conductor Brandon Phillips Soloists Roelof Temmingh (piano) Kristi Boonzaaier ‘n Aand op Simonsberg | Temmingh Piano Concerto | Brahms Symphony No. 3 in F
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Book at Computicket/Artscape Dial-A-Seat 021 421 7695 from 12 October
CONCERT ETIQUETTE More and more people have been telling us that the behaviour of a few concertgoers has spoilt a wonderful experience for them. We hope, therefore, you won’t mind a few guidelines about what to do, or not, in the concert hall •
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Dress as casually as you like, although we draw the line at bikinis in summer. You are welcome to really dress up. We would love to see more long dresses and tuxedos, but we are realistic about the lack of air-conditioning in the City Hall! Try not to arrive late, which is becoming harder to do as traffic jams increase in number and size. It is disconcerting for the musicians concentrating on the music and the conductor’s directions to see, from the corners of their eyes, someone sneaking in and not always as surreptitiously as possible! Front of House will ask you to wait outside until a break between concert works. And once in, try not to leave. It’s disruptive to others. Cough into your sleeve if you really need to cough. It’s always those quiet moments that are ruined! Unwrap your sweets before you enter the hall – a sweet unwrapped excruciatingly slowly just ekes out the pain for everyone! Turn off cell phones. If you have been the recipient of a conductor’s glare or the reason why a conductor has stopped and started again you will know why! What’s more, copyright restrictions don’t allow videos to be taken. Illuminated screens, texting and tweeting are also distracting to fellow concertgoers. Please don’t talk while the musicians are playing, conduct too wildly yourself or even tap the
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beat loudly. We all want to tap or sing along but the person next door may not agree! Clapping after any movement but the final one spoils the flow for the audience, even though we welcome an enthusiastic reception. If you’re not sure when a piece ends, check your programme for the movements. If you’re still not sure, keep an eye on the conductor—when the piece is over, he will turn to the audience. Rather let those last notes waft than clap too soon. Please don’t bring beverages into the concert hall – of course we will turn a blind eye to bottled water in the hot summer months, while we hope a refurbished City Hall will include air conditioning!
With these few tips, we are sure that you will enjoy the concert experience even more. Maybe one day we will be able to emulate what some concert presenters do overseas and set aside seats at the back of concert halls to allow tweeting… but not quite yet!
Turn off cell phones. If you have been the recipient of a conductor’s glare or the reason why a conductor has stopped and started again you will know why
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HOW TO BOOK Pre-concert talks before most symphony concerts at 19:15, open to ticket holders. Dress rehearsals usually at 11am on concert days. All renewals must be made through Artscape Dial-A-Seat on 021 421 7695. New subscriptions and single seat bookings from Dial-A-Seat or any Computicket outlet 0861 915 8000/ www.computicket.com Renewal of subscriptions for the Winter Season must be made from 1 May until 22 May after which all seats not renewed or notice of retention given will be made available for general sale; new subscriptions and single seat sales are also open from 1 May. Renewal of subscriptions for the Spring Season must be made from 27 June until 11 July, after which all seats not renewed or notice of
retention given will be made available for general sale; new subscriptions and single seat sales open on 18 July. Renewal of subscriptions for the Summer Season must be made from 21 September until 5 October, after which all seats not renewed or notice of retention given will be made available for general sale; new subscriptions and single seat sales open on 12 October. Subscribe, save 20% (30% for members of FOM). Single seats from R230 to R90 (platform, unreserved). Students and senior citizens R90 if still available 30 minutes before concert at the door.
For more information, visit www.cpo.org.za, call 021 410 9809 or email us at info@cpo.org.za.