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CONTENTS
Welcome from the President of the Board......................................................4 ASO Board of Trustees...................................................................................... 5 James Ross, Music Director...............................................................................8-9 Concert 1: BEETHOVEN SYMPHONY NO. 7 (September 29-30, 2018)................................... 17-24
Alexander Kerr, violinist..................................................................................... 22-23 A Letter from the Maestro................................................................................. 25 ASO Sympatico...................................................................................................26-27 Adopt a Chair Sponsorships..............................................................................28-31 Spotlight Society.................................................................................................29 Concert 2: MENDELSSOHN SYMPHONY NO. 3 (November 3-4, 2018)................................
33-41
Tanya Anisimova, cellist..................................................................................... 38-39 Jessica Krash, composer....................................................................................40 Interview with Music Director James Ross...................................................... 42 Concerto Foundation.........................................................................................43 Sponsors of the 2018-2019 Season................................................................ 45 Symphony Orchestra League of Alexandria (SOLA)......................................46-48 Concert 3: MOZART SYMPHONY NO. 38 (February 9-10, 2019)............................................
49-54
Concert 4: RACHMANINOFF PIANO CONCERTO NO. 3 (April 6-7, 2019)............................. 57-64
Marianna Prjevalskaya, pianist.......................................................................... 62-63 ASO Concert Venues......................................................................................... 65 75th Anniversary Individual Gifts......................................................................66
ASO Supporters 2017-2018..............................................................................67-72 Past Presidents of the ASO Board of Trustees.................................................73
75th Anniversary Campaign............................................................................. 74-75 History of the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra............................................. 76-77
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Concert programming and guest artists are subject to change.
Congratulations to The Alexandria Symphony Orchestra on its 75th Spectacular Season
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Welcome from the Board of Trustees
Anne Best Rector, President I am pleased, on behalf of the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra’s Board of Trustees, to welcome our new conductor, Maestro James Ross and to welcome you to our landmark 75th season. Over the past two years, our Board of Trustees, along with a dedicated group of ASO musicians and committed community leaders led by ASO Past President Cas Hobbs, ASO Assistant Concertmaster Allison Bailey and ASO Co-Vice President Melynda Wilcox, devoted themselves to a search process that led to Jim’s selection from an original international group of 170 amazing, qualified applicants. We could not be more proud to have our 75th season and beyond led by our fifth conductor, the impressive, talented and celebrated James Ross. Thanks to his inspiring leadership and his vast knowledge of the orchestra community, our Music Committee, now co-chaired by ASO Trustee Carolyn Fuller and Jim, has put together an impressive season. This 75th season will include time-honored masterworks as well as a world premiere cello concerto and several soloists with ties to the local area. In further celebration of our 75th Anniversary, the ASO has launched a capital campaign to raise $300,000 to support our orchestra, its new conductor and our Concerto Foundation. Please review the information in this booklet and consider making a three-year pledge. Your support and the commitment of those who have already pledged are so appreciated. Over the past 75 years, the ASO has transformed from an all-volunteer orchestra to Alexandria’s largest professional arts organization, continuing its mission of providing accessible and affordable live orchestral music to our community. I am honored to be President for this remarkable season and I thank all of our subscribers, patrons and our 75th Anniversary sponsors and supporters for sharing this milestone with us. I know you join me in giving a warm Alexandria welcome to James Ross!
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2018-2019 Alexandria Symphony Orchestra
Board of Trustees Anne Best Rector, President Melynda Wilcox, Co-Vice President Judy Williams, Co-Vice President H. Arthur Sauer, Treasurer Phyllis Sintay, Secretary
Carl Behnke George Bostick Suzanne S. Brock Sally Guy Brown Miriam Browning Linda Bunce Ronal Butler
Kendra Carey Nancy Davenport Ellis Duncan Carolyn Fuller Nancy Griswold Florence King Lee Klousia
Harriett McCune Margaret Jones O’Grady Arthur Peabody, Jr. Betty Quirk James Dake Taft Susan Yonts-Shepard
Advisory Board Anne Reed, Chair Mollie Danforth Alex Deringer
Lisa Flippo Becky Siegel Elizabeth Siegel
Edward Stark Jeanne Warner Nancy Ziegler
Trustees Emeritus Dr. Joseph V. Braddock Mr. Waller T. Dudley Hon. William D. Euille Mr. Caswell O. Hobbs CAPT W. Ward Lasley USN (Ret.)
Mrs. Richard Reid Mr. James B. Singerling Jeanne Warner Donnan C. Wintermute
Concerto Foundation Board of Trustees Frank J. Quirk, Chair Charles Ballou
Miriam Browning Mary Ann Best Millard Betty Quirk
Thomas Sargeant Forrest Williams
ASO Administration
Ryan Jordan, Interim Co-Executive Director Melinda Kernc, Interim Co-Executive Director Kyle Tilman, Education Director Susan Kelly, Personnel Manager Craig Teer, Stage Manager
Alexandria Symphony Orchestra 700 N Fairfax Street, Suite 501 • Alexandria, VA 22314 www.alexsym.org • (703) 548-0885
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Standing Ovation TO
THE ALEXANDRIA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA ON ITS
75TH MONUMENTAL SEASON AND
A WARM WELCOME TO OUR MAESTRO JAMES ROSS!
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Introducing
James Ross
James Ross takes over as the new Music Director of the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra as it celebrates its 75th Anniversary, bringing with him an extensive portfolio of international experience, musical connections, and joy. He presently conducts the Orquestra Simfònica del Vallès in Catalonia, Spain, is a member of the conducting faculty at the Juilliard School at Lincoln Center, and is Orchestra Director of the National Youth Orchestra - USA at Carnegie Hall. He recently completed a vital 16-year tenure as Professor and Director of Orchestral Activities at the University of Maryland at College Park, where he became known for his ground-breaking performances. Maestro Ross has led such diverse orchestras as the Leipzig Gewandhaus, the Utah Symphony, Les Arts Florissants, the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Chicago Civic Orchestra, the Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra, the Orquesta Sinfónica de Galicia, the Binghamton Philharmonic, the KwaZulu-Natal Philharmonic, and the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center in side-by-side concerts. He has served as Music Director of the Yale Symphony Orchestra and Assistant Conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. His principal conducting teachers were Kurt Masur, Otto-Werner Mueller, Seiji Ozawa, and Leonard Bernstein whose support and cultural values became a deep source of inspiration for him.
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As a horn soloist, Ross has performed with such orchestras as the Boston Symphony, the Boston Pops, the Bavarian Radio Orchestra, the Leipzig Radio Orchestra and the Leipzig Gewandhaus. When he was awarded Third Prize in the Munich International Horn Competition in 1978, he became the first American and one of the youngest competitors ever to do so. His performances and recordings as principal horn of the Gewandhaus, including Strauss’ Four Last Songs with soprano Jessye Norman, helped him gain international recognition as an artist. As a teacher, Maestro Ross has served on the faculties of Yale University, the Curtis Institute of Music, Haverford and Bryn Mawr colleges, and taught conducting for four summers at the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music in Santa Cruz. He was Artistic Director of the National Orchestral Institute (NOI) at the University of Maryland from 2002-2012 where his leadership helped serve as an impetus for change in the orchestral landscape of the United States. He is internationally recognized for his work advancing the future of orchestras through cross-genre collaborations especially with choreographer MacArthur Fellow Liz Lerman, polymath designer-director Doug Fitch, and video artist Tim McLoraine. Maestro Ross is a native of Boston, a lover of all things Spanish, a committed questioner of concert rituals, a man who likes to move, and a fervent believer in the ongoing humanizing impact of classical music on the lives of those it touches.
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OFFICE SPACE AVAILABLE 2017
2017
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1990
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Tysons Sheraton Hotel, Mark Plaza Hotel, United Way, Morrison House Hotel
60s
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Torpedo Factory, City Hall, 3.5-mile Waterfront Alexandria
Christ Church of Alexandria, Fairlington Professional Building, Alexandria Hospital
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Congratulations to the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra on your 75th Anniversary and a warm welcome to Maestro Ross! At Home in Alexandria offers Alexandrians 55+:
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Interest groups, topical discussions, guest speakers
When needed, practical support in the home, errands and transportation provided by trained volunteers
Tel. 703.231.0824 www.athomeinalexandria.org
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JEANNE WARNER
Congratulations for 75 fabulous years. Welcome Maestro James Ross! (703) 980-9106 16
OPENING WEEKEND
BEETHOVEN SEPTEMBER 29, 2018 • 8:00 PM
Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center
SEPTEMBER 30, 2018 • 3:00 PM George Washington Masonic Memorial
James Ross, conductor Alexander Kerr, violinist PROGRAM Blessing for the 75th - mystery prelude MICHAEL TORKE
Javelin
DVOŘÁK
Romance in F minor Alexander Kerr, violin
Introduction and Rondo capriccioso
SAINT-SAËNS
Alexander Kerr, violin
INTERMISSION Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92
BEETHOVEN 17
Concert 1 • September 29 & 30
Michael Torke (b.1961) Javelin
The mid 1990s proved to be an important time for the city of Atlanta. Not only was 1994 the 50th anniversary season of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, but the city was also preparing to host the XXVI (26th) Olympiad in the summer of 1996. In commemoration of both events, the Atlanta Symphony and Atlanta Olympics Committee commissioned Michael Torke, a noted Eastman and Yale graduate, to compose a fanfare. The work, Javelin, was premiered by the ASO in 1994 and later performed at the opening ceremonies of the 1996 Summer Olympics. In composing the piece, Torke wrote:
Photo credit: Bryan Hainer
“I had three goals for this Atlanta Symphony’s anniversary piece: I wanted to use the orchestra as a virtuosic instrument, I wanted to use triads (three-note tonal chords), and I wanted the music to be thematic. I knew I would welcome swifter changes of mood than what is found in my earlier music. What came out (somewhat unexpectedly) was a sense of valor among short flashes and sweeps that reminded me of something in flight: a light spear thrown, perhaps, but not in the sense of a weapon, more in the spirit of a competition. When the word javelin suddenly suggested itself, I couldn’t help but recall the 1970s model of sports car my Dad owned, identified by that name, but I concluded, why not? Even that association isn’t so far off from the general feeling of the piece. Its fast tempo calls for 591 measures to evoke the generally uplifting, sometimes courageous, yet playful spirit.” Javelin was later recorded by the Boston Pops Orchestra on its studio album Summon the Heroes, to honor the Olympic Games.
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Concert 1 • September 29 & 30
Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904) Romance in F minor
After his opera The King and the Charcoal Burner was not well received, Antonin Dvořák sought something different and began composing his String Quartet No. 5 in F minor in a new style. The piece was also not well received, but Dvořák decided to give the slow movement, Andante con moto quasi allegretto, a second chance and revamped it into a new work called Romance in F minor for Violin and Orchestra. The movement marked Andante con moto takes the main melody and adds two new themes, making the melodies elegant and even-tempered. Romance in F minor was performed by the Provisional Theatre Orchestra in Prague in 1877 and was met with great acclaim. A version of the piece was written for solo violin and piano accompaniment and was dedicated to violinist František Ondříček who premiered Dvořák’s Violin Concerto (Op. 53) in 1883. The orchestral version was published in 1879 while the piano version was not published until 2015.
Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921) Introduction and Rondo capriccioso
In 1861, Camille Saint-Saëns took his only teaching post at École de Musique Classique et Religieuse (Niedermeyer School of Paris) in Paris. Still early on in his career, Saint-Saëns developed a reputation as a “rebel teacher,” introducing modern music to his students in a conservative school that trained young organists and choirmasters. It was during this time that Saint-Saëns met Pablo de Sarasate, a fifteen-year-old violin prodigy with whom he would collaborate throughout his career. They first collaborated on Saint-Saëns’ Violin Concerto in A major and 19
Concert 1 • September 29 & 30
then four years later on Introduction and Rondo capriccioso. The work began as a cadenza Saint-Saëns intended to include as an addition to the Violin Concerto but evolved into a more expansive, tailor-made work for Pablo de Sarasate that showcased his famed technique and beautiful tone. Introduction and Rondo capriccioso begins in a slow Andante malinconico which becomes increasingly more spirited, ending the introduction in a dazzling, brief cadenza, which begins the Rondo. The violin enters with a Spanish-inspired theme full of syncopation and flighty arpeggios. A contrasting theme is introduced by the orchestra and creates an enticing melody as the solo violin plays in 2/4 time while the orchestra plays in 6/8. The Rondo theme is brought back for a final time by an oboe leading into a flashy coda.
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 72
Beethoven had become menacingly ill in the spring of 1811 as he endured high fevers and headaches. He had just completed his Piano Concerto No. 5 “Emperor,” which he could not himself perform due to his impending deafness. His doctor advised him to seek refuge in Teplitz, a spa town in Bohemia. That winter was dedicated to finishing Symphony No. 7, but frequent trips to Teplitz caused a delay in its completion. 20
Concert 1 • September 29 & 30
Premiering in Vienna on December 8, 1813, the Seventh Symphony was performed as a benefit for soldiers who were wounded in the Battle of Hanau and dedicated to Count Moritz von Fries, an Austrian nobleman and avid arts patron. As Beethoven conducted the symphony himself, he addressed the audience saying, “We are moved by nothing but pure patriotism and the joyful sacrifice of our powers for those who have sacrificed so much for us.” The symphony was well received, in comparison to his Symphony No. 3 “Eroica,” as it was deemed much less demanding for the audience. Beethoven even commented that it was “one of the happiest products of my poor talents.” In particular, the second movement Allegretto inspired a call for an encore and was requested to be played on several occasions as a stand-alone movement. One critique of the symphony was from Friedrich Wieck, a German piano teacher, music critic, and Clara Schumann’s father, calling it “the work of a drunkard.” While this may have been exaggerated, some felt the piece to be repetitive and disorganized. Those negative thoughts may have been due to the unusual rhythms that occur in each movement. Modern musicologists Lewis Lockwood and David Wyn Jones commented “while rhythm is an element of nearly all music, here it is pushed into the foreground. And unlike in Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, where the single opening motif recurs throughout the entire work, each movement here is animated by its own distinctive rhythm… its untiring rhythmic articulation lends it an aura of a continuous celebration of joy.” Richard Wagner even praised the work as the “apotheosis of dance” in reference to the spritely rhythms.
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Alexander Kerr, violin
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Alexander Kerr’s expressive and charismatic style has made him one of the most accomplished and versatile violinists on the international music scene today. In 1996 at the age of 26, Mr. Kerr was appointed to the prestigious position of Concertmaster of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. After nine successful years at that post, he left in 2006 to assume the endowed Linda and Jack Gill Chair in Music as Professor of Violin at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. In addition to his teaching responsibilities, he maintains a busy concert schedule appearing with orchestras and in recital and chamber music performances throughout the U.S., Asia and Europe. In 2008 he began his tenure as Principal Guest Concertmaster of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and in September 2011, he assumed his role as Concertmaster of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra.
United States and Europe, working with such renowned conductors as Mariss Jansons, Riccardo Chailly, Peter Oundjian, Donald Runnicles, Robert Spano, Alan Gilbert, Jaap van Zweden and David Zinman.
Regarded by the press as a masterful virtuoso with an elegant, old-world sound, Mr. Kerr has appeared as soloist with major orchestras throughout the
An active chamber musician, Mr. Kerr has collaborated with Martha Argerich, Leif Ove Andsnes, Emanuel Ax, Joshua Bell, Yefim Bronfman, Edgar
Photo credit: Chelsea Sanders
Meyer, Truls Mørk, Menahem Pressler, Vadim Repin, Alisa Weilerstein, Kim Kashkashian and Maxim Vengerov in performances at festivals in Aspen, Santa Fe, Caramoor, La Jolla, Stavanger, and throughout Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Switzerland, Austria and the Netherlands. Mr. Kerr’s CD releases include the Dvořák Piano Quintet with Sarah Chang and Leif Ove Andsnes on the EMI label, music by Dutch composer Julius Röntgen on the NM Classics label, and the Shostakovich Romance on a series of discs including Violin Adagios and Evening Adagios released by Decca. A live DVD and CD recording of Strauss’ Ein Heldenleben with Mr. Kerr, the RCO and Maestro Mariss Jansons was released in 2005 on the RCO’s own label: RCOLive!
and with Aaron Rosand at the Curtis Institute of Music where he received his Bachelor of Music degree in 1992.
Photo credit: Chelsea Sanders
Raised in Alexandria, Virginia, and a graduate of T. C. Williams High School, Mr. Kerr began his studies at age seven with members of the National Symphony Orchestra. He went on to study with Sally Thomas at the Juilliard School 23
How do you toast 75 years of existence? How do you introduce yourself as a new conductor and leader of a storied group? What does Alexandria specifically have to do with our orchestra’s existence? These were some of the questions rummaging through my brain as we began to imagine this first concert of my music directorship. With Beethoven standing tall in the second half, like a proud redwood, it seemed that the primary goal of the first half was to get the concert airborne...like an inaugural flight at Kitty Hawk. Michael Torke’s Javelin literally arcs and slices through the sky in a musical depiction of striving that was inspired by (and commissioned for) the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta. Torke will be preceded by a short musical mystery blessing for the orchestra’s 75th Anniversary season. Our soloist for the Dvořák Romance and Saint-Saëns Introduction and Rondo capriccioso is Alexander Kerr. Alex is both a native son of Alexandria and one of the world’s pre-eminent violinists and concertmasters. He is also happily a friend since our days studying together at the Curtis Institute of Music in the mid-80s. The combination of heartfelt melancholy in the Dvořák Romance and cheeky chutzpah in the Saint-Saëns Rondo capriccioso highlights only two aspects of Alex’s multi-colored musical personality, and we consider ourselves lucky to have him here with us crowning the opening of our Anniversary season with some homegrown laurel. By the time Beethoven wrote the first chords of his Seventh Symphony, he already knew that success in his life was only achievable through Olympian striving, and then only transiently. This quality of overcoming struggle had become a feature of his music. None of Beethoven’s celebratory pieces, including this Seventh Symphony, is glib or stationary or blankly festive. It may be tall and strong, but it is hard-fought and in a way, made up not of melodies at all but of bare-boned gestures tossed around on the waves of restless rhythmic activity that make it a challenge to sit still. This boat rocks. Beethoven’s is music in the act of becoming.
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A Letter from the Maestro
Being 75 is pretty great. To be an orchestra and be 75 is rare indeed. To be the newly-named Music Director of the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra in its 75th anniversary season is a rare honour and a thrill for me. Can we celebrate this auspicious milestone with a piquant mix of old and new, of diverse voices and urges—like the surging city of Alexandria itself? We can...we will...and we are!! We welcome you. In putting together the 75th anniversary season, we mixed popular anchor pieces (chosen by polling audience and orchestra members) with a diverse range of musical voices: Beethoven tethered to a Javelin, Mendelssohn paired with a newly-minted Krash, Mozart and Dumbarton Oaks, and Rachmaninoff launched with some Reznicek. It has been a joy to construct a celebratory season made up of colorful combinations of pieces that conspire to tell wordless stories in concert, and also create an over-arching musical rainbow that points towards the future of music in Alexandria. I believe these programs are filled with some adventures, some nostalgia, a few surprises, and a great deal of fun. I am interested in the perspective shift that orchestra concerts may undergo if we open up our programming to include a wider spectrum of musics, including that of women composers. In addition to the November world premiere of Jessica Krash’s cello concerto, two of our concerts will feature short interludes dedicated to the fabulously-gifted sisters of other composers on the program; we’re calling it the “Sister Project.” Can you guess whose siblings? I’m also interested in the inherent power of the rogue, mystery piece—something that is performed without being announced in the program, but that helps further the narrative of the event and opens our ears to possibility and curiosity. All of our programs feature artists with deep connections to the greater D.C. region. Our Sunday performances at the George Washington Masonic Memorial will also feature family-friendly conductor chats at 2:15 p.m. called “As the Baton Swings” through which I look forward to introducing a few of the special features of that day’s program to any younger or generally interested audience members. Thank you for joining me and the juggernaut ASO on my maiden and its 75th voyage. We hope the journey is a good one for your spirit, and that we all catch a strong tailwind which leaves us enriched by bracing contact with vital music for our times. Right here, right now!
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Sympatico is sponsored by the
Alexandria Symphony Orchestra WWW.ASOSYMPATICO.COM
Enriching Children’s Lives through Music ASO Sympatico is a music education program provided by the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra in Alexandria City Public Schools. The inspiration for Sympatico was born out of the ASO’s commitment to education, the youth of Alexandria, and social change. In 2012, ASO staff and trustees began thinking about the best way to give back to the community of Alexandria City, while contributing to the city’s deep appreciation of the arts. After learning about numerous models for music education programs in public schools, the ASO concluded that establishing an El Sistema-inspired program would best accomplish its mission. El Sistema originated as a music education initiative in Venezuela, in which students receive high-quality music instruction at no cost to them, with the goal of social change. Today, there are El Sistema programs in 55 countries, and more than 100 El Sistema programs active in the United States. Each of the programs, including Sympatico, are guided by similar core principles: equitable access to students regardless of income, intense and high-quality music instruction, the use of an ensemble as the main learning environment, community and family engagement, and of course, social change. The ASO decided to test drive the concept of El Sistema in Alexandria City Public Schools. In 2013, two week-long music composition workshops were held at John Adams Elementary School (JAES), engaging students, teachers, and parents. These workshops brought guest musicians from around the world to the students at JAES, and culminated in students composing new music for bucket band, as well as for strings and Orff 26
instruments. The composition produced during the second workshop was premiered on stage with the ASO in a Spring 2014 concert. The initial composition workshops helped to officially launch Sympatico, and have now become a staple and highlight of Sympatico’s yearly curriculum. Since Sympatico’s official launch in 2014, the program has grown to include six unique ensembles (The Percussion Experience, XyloKids, The Mallet Machine, Cantamos, The Fiddle Factory and a new brass ensemble) with more than 130 students in grades K-5. Ensembles meet Monday through Friday, either before or after school, in addition to the music classes students already receive through JAES. Students in Sympatico continually demonstrate better school attendance, more cooperation skills, greater perseverance, and stronger Photo by P.J. Barbour confidence in themselves. Sympatico continues to work with a mission of providing students with opportunities to experience success in themselves and with others in their ensembles, their school, and their community. Today, Sympatico participates in more than 20 performances per year, both in school and in Alexandria City. Past performances include special appearances at the George Washington Masonic Memorial, the Torpedo Factory Arts Center, Alexandria City’s First Thursday festivals, the Alexandria City Council Inauguration, and the National Teachers of the Year celebrations. Sympatico ensembles have also performed alongside various performing groups and soloists, including the Alexandria Choral Society, the Virginia Bronze, National Symphony Orchestra violinist Marissa Regni, and Washington Performing Arts soprano Karin Paludan. Sympatico was the recipient of a 2016 Mayoral proclamation in recognition of its contributions and service to the youth of Alexandria City. For more information, contact Kyle Tilman, Sympatico Program Director at asosympatico@gmail.com
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ADOPT A CHAIR SPONSORSHIP ASO proudly recognizes the current Adopt a Chair sponsors: (as of printing)
• • • • • • • • • •
Principal Viola: Sponsored by Richard and Sandra Toye Cello, third chair: Sponsored by Margaret Hodges Principal Flute: Sponsored by Benjamin and Emily Tsai Principal Clarinet: Sponsored by Ann D. Corson Principal Oboe: Sponsored by Julia and Dennis Watkins Principal Bassoon: Sponsored by Suzanne S. Brock Assistant Principal Clarinet: Sponsored in Honor of Akiko Lloyd Principal Horn: Sponsored by Gerry and Diana Dreo Principal Trumpet: Sponsored by Harriett G. McCune Principal Timpani: Sponsored by Harriett G. McCune
The 2018-2019 Season marks the fourth year of the Adopt a Chair program, underwriting ten musician chairs, including eight Principals, one Assistant Principal, and one section player. “Adopt a Chair” is a signature giving program designed to provide full funding for each musician’s salary and long-term sustainable funding for our orchestra. ASO is a community supported orchestra, requiring the ongoing support of people willing to invest in the future of live music performance. As a part of the Washington, D.C. metropolitan region, ASO concert-goers demand and expect the highest quality music offered by world-class musicians. Through this program, contributors endorse and ensure that quality through multi-year sponsorships. Sponsors have an opportunity to choose a specific instrument, receive special program recognition, and receive invitations to special events where they can meet and get to know the musicians holding the chair they have sponsored. This program provides an opportunity to learn about the orchestra from the inside out and to draw a closer relationship between the players and the audience. New chair sponsorships are accepted at any time during the season!
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ADOPT A CHAIR RECITAL at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church JANUARY 2018
Sponsors Benjamin and Erin Tsai with Sara Stern (Flute)
Amy Horn (Horn), Sara Stern (Flute) and Sophie Kim-Cook (Piano)
To “Adopt a Chair” and for more information, call (703) 548-0885 or visit www.alexsym.org.
SPOTLIGHT SOCIETY The Spotlight Society encourages ASO aficionados to support their favorite artist, or the artists of the season, with a gift that fits their budget. Individuals can designate their gift starting at $100 and will be recognized with the program or artist they choose to support, along with others who have given to the program. Corporate gifts can also be designated starting at $250. The program does not exclude traditional guest artist sponsors who want exclusive acknowledgement of their support of a particular artist. Rather, it expands the options for donors, including supporters who might not be able to give at the level of exclusive sponsorship. To give to your favorite artist and join the Spotlight Society, call 703-548-0885 or visit www.alexsym.org. (Please indicate “Spotlight Society” in the personal note section when giving online.)
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THREE SPONSORED MUSICIAN CHAIRS In December 2016, Dr. Amy Horn (Principal Horn) retired after almost thirty years in “The President’s Own” U.S. Marine Band capping her career there by performing as a horn soloist on the band’s October 2016 tour of the southeast United States. A versatile musician and entertainer, Amy also sang and played guitar in the Marine Band’s country rock group, Free Country. She has performed with the Baltimore and National Symphonies, Washington Concert Opera, the American Pops Orchestra, Concert Artists of Baltimore, and the Washington Symphonic Brass, and regularly plays principal horn with the ASO. Amy loves to teach and share her passion for the instrument and has formed an amateur horn choir, Capital Horns, who are based at the Washington Conservatory of Music. She is adjunct faculty at George Mason University. Katherine Ceasar-Spall (Principal Oboe) moved to Maryland in 1991, where she performs with many of the ensembles in the Baltimore-Washington area. She has been the principal oboist with the Alexandria Symphony since 1992 and is also a core member of the National Philharmonic Orchestra and the Washington Chamber Symphony. She has performed frequently with Concert Artists of Baltimore, the National Symphony Orchestra, the Wolftrap Opera Company and the Baltimore Opera. From 1986 to 1992, she played oboe and English horn with the Richmond Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Ceasar-Spall is the author of Let’s Play Jazz (1983), a Spanish-English improvisation manual, published by Hansen House. She is also co-author with her husband, James Spall, of the paper “Regression Analysis as an aid in Making Oboe Reeds”, which was presented at the American Statistical Association Annual Meeting, August 1994, in Toronto, Canada. Doug Wallace (Principal Timpani) is a vibrant and energetic performer, composer, and educator with diverse experience in all areas of percussion performance and pedagogy. A graduate of the Eastman School of Music and The Juilliard School, Mr. Wallace has performed with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra, the Washington National Opera and The Wolf Trap Orchestra. He has been the Principal Timpanist with the ASO for 17 years. Mr. Wallace has also participated in many honors ensembles and festival orchestras including Tanglewood Music Center, The National Repertory Orchestra, and the International Symphony Orchestra. Mr. Wallace is currently the Director of Percussion for the American Youth Philharmonic Orchestras and is an active percussion director, clinician and sectional instructor at several nationally recognized Fairfax County Public Schools. His teaching techniques are highlighted in his method book, Percussion with Class.
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THREE CHAIRS AVAILABLE FOR SPONSORSHIP In addition to her position as the Concertmaster of the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra, Claudia Chudacoff recently completed her third one-year full-time contract as a member of the violin section of the National Symphony Orchestra. She is also the concertmaster of the National Gallery Orchestra, and in 2015 retired from her position as concertmaster of the U. S. Marine Band’s White House Chamber Orchestra, in which she served during four Presidential administrations. Prior to moving to Washington, D.C., she was the Assistant Concertmaster of the Louisville Orchestra. She has been a featured soloist numerous times with all four groups. Ms. Chudacoff performs extensively as a chamber musician, and is a sought-after chamber music coach with several area programs. In addition, she is the Director of the Chamber Ensemble of the College Park Youth Orchestra. Her primary teachers were Michael Avsharian in Ann Arbor and Sylvia Rosenberg and Zvi Zeitlin at the Eastman School of Music, where she received her Bachelor and Master of Music degrees. Marlisa del Cid Woods is a solo artist, chamber musician, and orchestral violinist. Born in Honduras, Ms. Woods was raised in the Washington, D.C. area and began studying violin at the age of four. An alumna of the National Symphony Fellowship Program, she earned her Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music. Ms. Woods is currently the Musical Director and producer of the U.S. Army Strolling Strings, and prior to her appointment, Ms. Woods served as Concertmaster of the U.S. Army Orchestra and has collaborated with the U.S. Army Bluegrass Ensemble. Ms. Woods has performed with the Cleveland Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra, Concert Artists of Baltimore, and regularly performs with the ASO. Ms. Woods has performed with the National Cathedral Baroque Orchestra, Bach Sinfonia, Apollo’s Fire, Opera Lafayette, Harmonious Blacksmith, the Vivaldi Project, and has performed as soloist and concertmaster with Washington Bach Consort. A native of Fairmont, West Virginia, Aaron Clay (Principal Bass) began his musical training at the age of 10 when he taught himself to play jazz on the electric bass. He later pursued classical training on the upright double bass prior to attending West Virginia Wesleyan College. After graduating in 1989, he was selected to join the United States Navy Band. Upon completing one enlistment with the Navy, Mr. Clay auditioned for “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band where he has been a member since 1993. Mr. Clay serves as Principal Bassist of the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra, Fairfax Symphony Orchestra, and performs with various Washington area jazz and pop groups.
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MISTY
MENDELSSOHN NOVEMBER 3, 2018 • 8:00 PM
Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center
NOVEMBER 4, 2018 • 3:00 PM George Washington Masonic Memorial
James Ross, conductor Tanya Anisimova, cellist PROGRAM BERNSTEIN
Overture to West Side Story, Three Dance Episodes from On the Town cello concerto (world premiere)
JESSICA KRASH
Tanya Anisimova, cello
INTERMISSION Symphony No. 3 in A minor, Op. 56 “Scottish”
MENDELSSOHN
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Concert 2 • November 3 & 4
Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990) Overture from West Side Story Three Dance Episodes from On the Town
Leonard Bernstein was our first all-American maestro. On the heels of celebrating his 100th birthday, we reflect upon his legacy as a composer, conductor, pianist, teacher and activist. His music pushed boundaries to question norms within the times in which composed, and the selections on tonight’s program are no exception. His first musical On the Town (1943) was a study in inclusion and rejected the too common all-Caucasian casts found on Broadway at the time. While Japanese Americans were sent to internment camps, Bernstein cast Sono Osato in the lead female role. He also chose Everett Lee as the first African-American conductor on Broadway. Bernstein’s progressive view on equality extended to his symphony—he was the first Music Director to employ women in the New York Philharmonic. He spoke out for civil rights in his music and in his personal life, marching on Selma in 1965. Bernstein’s most productive years as a composer were during his tenure at the New York Philharmonic, and West Side Story premiered just as he assumed the baton. When director Jerome Robbins first approached Bernstein and playwright Arthur Laurents about an American adaptation of Romeo and Juliet, he pictured a feud between Catholic and Jewish families, and Bernstein suggested writing an opera with the material. They couldn’t agree on how to proceed, and the first draft of East Side Story was shelved for five years until the team reunited. Laurents met Bernstein in Los Angeles after he conducted at the Hollywood Bowl in 1955, and their conversation turned to the hottest topic of the moment— rival juvenile gangs. Enter Stephen Sondheim, and the reworking of their idea into West Side Story was born. After successful tryout performances in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. a month earlier, West Side Story opened with the original Broadway cast on September 26, 1957. 34
Concert 2 • November 3 & 4
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Symphony No. 3 in A minor, Op. 56 “Scottish”
Even though this work has always been referred to as the “Scottish” Symphony in many of Mendelssohn’s letters home, he only published it as “Symphony No. 3.” Initial inspiration for the piece came when Mendelssohn first visited Britain in 1829 and toured Scotland along with his friend Karl Klingemann. Specifically, upon visiting the ruins of Holyrood Chapel at the Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh, he wrote to his family saying: “We went, in the deep twilight, to the palace where Queen Mary lived and loved. There is a little room to be seen there, with a winding staircase leading up to it. That is where they went up and found Rizzio in the little room, dragged him out, and three chambers away is a dark corner where they killed him. The adjoining chapel is now roofless; grass and ivy grow abundantly in it; and before the ruined altar Mary was crowned Queen of Scotland. Everything around is broken and moldering, and the bright sky shines in. I believe I found the beginning of my Scotch symphony there today.” Mendelssohn had an abundance of inspiration from the misty highlands and lowlands, enough to write another piece, the Hebrides Overture. Most of his time was devoted to finishing the overture, and Symphony No. 3 was put aside. He continued the symphony’s composition when he toured Italy the following year. By January of 1842, Symphony No. 3 was completed—his fifth and final symphony, but his third to be published. The public was unaware of what inspired the piece until after his death, causing a debate as to whether Mendelssohn wanted his symphony to be considered “Scottish” at all. A 35
Concert 2 • November 3 & 4
particularly stellar performance in England allowed him to dedicate the work to Queen Victoria. Interestingly, Mendelssohn couldn’t find it in him to like Scottish folk music. In his own words, “No national music for me! Infamous, vulgar, out-of-tune trash.... It is distracting and has given me a toothache already. Scottish bagpipes, Swiss cow-horns, Welsh harps, all playing the Huntsmen’s Chorus with hideously improvised variations — then their ‘beautiful’ singing in the hall — altogether their music is beyond conception. It is in pictures, ruins and natural surroundings that I find the most music.” Nonetheless, the symphony borrows from Scottish tradition. The second movement resembles melodies and rhythms from Scottish folk music, including the pentatonic scale and Scotch snap. Elements of the finale reference a Scottish folk dance. The piece is cyclical, developing and reintroducing musical material used in earlier movements.
Jessica Krash (b. 1959) cello concerto (world premiere) Tanya Anisimova and I have been friends and chamber music partners for 20 years. Several years ago she asked me to write her a concerto. I brought drafts to her, and she showed me how to take the cello writing further, and made suggestions about the dramatic pacing, greatly improving the piece. The concerto is in sections that follow without pauses between them: 1. Overture: The beginning is like a forest, where you can hear things that you can’t see. The cello enters, calling. This becomes an allegro, moving into the daylight. 2. March-scherzo: twinkle in the eye. 3. Slow movement: made up of several sections. At first, each change 36
Concert 2 • November 3 & 4
in harmony is like a small change in lighting, a shift in the weather, a change of heart, which then arrives at what Tanya calls the “Queen of Sheba” section. This is followed by a section inspired by a gentle puff of warm breeze near a cold ocean, but then the music continues along its own way. 4. Finale: including a cadenza, punctuated by the orchestra like a Baroque recitative. In the coda, there emerges a bit of the cello “calling” from the opening, and this time the unseen voices in the woods call to us too, parting words, as the cello becomes air. James Ross and I have been friends since we were undergraduates in college, playing horn and piano recitals together. I am so thrilled and honored that he is interpreting and performing my piece. The composition of the piece was supported in part by a grant from the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County (MD). -Jessica Krash
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Tanya Anisimova, cello Internationally known musician Tanya Anisimova defies categorization. Equally at ease whether improvising with New Age legend Paul Horn or performing her own Seasons with symphony orchestra, this artist has been hailed by The Washington Post as “thoughtful and powerful,” possessing “spiritual authority,” “refined musical intelligence” and “easy mastery of her instrument.” Anisimova’s appearances include sold-out recitals at Weill Hall in Carnegie Hall; St. James’ Church, Piccadilly in London; Australian Port Fairy Festival; Morelia International Film Festival in Mexico; Sviatoslav Knushevitsky Festival in Moscow, Salurinn Hall in Reykjavik; and Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino.
early twenties she was awarded top prizes at the International Min-On Competition in Tokyo and International Shostakovich Competition in St. Petersburg, and first prize at the All-U.S.S.R. String Quartet Competition. A graduate of Yale University, Boston University, Moscow
Photo credit: Michelle Bendersky
Conservatory, and Moscow Central Music School, Tanya Anisimova was first internaBorn into a family of scientists, tionally recognized for her Tanya began improvising at the recording of her cello piano when she was five; she arrangements of J.S. Bach’s started music theory classes at Complete Violin Sonatas and six, cello at seven, and piano at Partitas. eight. At fifteen, she won first prize at the Concertino Prague Anisimova’s performances often International Competition. In her encompass standard repertoire, 38
original compositions and arrangements, and improvisations with her own vocal accompaniment. Additionally, she enjoys performing works written for her by Ezra Laderman, David del Tredici, Jessica Krash, Francis Thompson
Photo credit: Michelle Bendersky
McKay, and Gary Powell Nash. Composer-pianist Jessica Krash and Anisimova began collaborating over twenty years ago. Krash’s original music is permeated with warmth and gentle humor, and it carries Eastern European folk and American jazz influences. Having premiered a number of Jessica’s works, Anisimova is looking forward to giving the world premiere performance of Krash’s
newly composed cello concerto in November of 2018. Anisimova is a prolific composer with a constantly growing catalogue of works, frequently performed on both sides of the Atlantic. Award-winning cellists Paul Katz, Igor Gavrysh, Jacob Koranyi, and Ole Akahoshi, and internationally acclaimed pianists Ilya Itin and Daniel Grimwood, members of the Prokofiev and St. Petersburg Quartets, have enthusiastically embraced her music. In 2012, Tanya’s Caravan was selected as the favorite composition at the World Saxophone Congress in the United Kingdom. Her 2017-2018 season included world premieres of Teacher performed at U.N.A.M. in Mexico City, Sinfonietta for Guitar and Cello, in Washington, D.C., and a European premiere of Fa-Re-La for Cello and Piano at St. James’ Church, Piccadilly in London. Tanya Anisimova resides in Maryland with her husband and artist Alexander Anufriev and their dachshund Muse. 39
Jessica Krash, composer Jessica Krash is a native of Washington, D.C. and continues to find it a good place to think about worldview in music and art. She was awarded the 2010 “Wammie” for Classical Composer (Washington Area Music Association’s version of a Grammy). Her work has been presented in both traditional and experimental concerts and radio in the U.S., Europe, and Asia, including a work for dancers and saxophones on the Photo credit: Margot Schulman C & O Canal in a thunderstorm. Jessica’s new CD Past Made Present (Albany Records, 2018) was praised by the Wall Street Journal, Gramophone, and Fanfare, and was “Recording of the Month” in Voix des Arts. Her solo piano CD (Capstone Records, 2006) was listed by Tim Page in The Washington Post and Detroit News as one of the most interesting CDs of the year. Jessica has given series of lectures at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Library of Congress, and NIH on topics of music and the brain, music history, and the insights we get from dangerous, banned and provocative music. She has given several series of chamber music master classes at Strathmore. Jessica’s compositions have been commissioned by the National Gallery of Art, the National Museum of Women in the Arts, and the 21st Century Consort. She is currently composing a woodwind quintet, a violin concerto, and pieces for piano students. Jessica has directed several organizations, including the Washington chapter of the American Composers Forum, and Chamber Music Weekend at the Levine School of Music, and for over 25 years, a chamber music seminar combining amateur and professional musicians. She has her own music studio with piano, composition and theory students of all ages. Jessica has taught at the University of Maryland, George Mason University, the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences (at NIH) and the Levine School of Music. For 28 years, Jessica taught at George Washington University, where she developed and taught new courses on “dangerous music,” contemporary music, and 19th century chamber music. Jessica graduated from Harvard College, earned a Master’s degree in piano from Juilliard, and a doctorate in composition from the University of Maryland.
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As composer John Cage and probably some Taoists would have it, we don’t go into the forest (or into the concert hall) to look for anything specific; we go just to see what’s there! This program mixes American pieces written by an iconic New York figure with an inventive composer from Bethesda—a man I was lucky enough to study with, and a woman I was lucky enough to play recitals with. In this year dedicated to the hyper-celebration of Leonard Bernstein’s Centennial, it is an easy call to feature two of his best-loved pieces which, like Gershwin before him, have come to link Broadway musicals to the concert hall—On the Town and West Side Story. Although they didn’t know each other, I do believe Mr. Bernstein would have been drawn in by Jessica Krash’s unabashed and tonal writing. The survival of tonality as a musical language was a cause to which Leonard Bernstein dedicated his compositional career. Jessica’s concerto is both rhetorical and conversational in nature— conversational not just between the cello and the orchestra, but also between each phrase and the next. The notes talk to each other, ruminate and wonder about themselves. Curiosity reigns. It’s a further joy to feature the Moscow-born and American-trained cellist/composer Tanya Anisimova as soloist in Jessica’s piece. She finds Jessica’s concerto to combine qualities of “motherly love” with “the coolness of American Jazz!” When experiencing a world premiere, there’s literally no choice to but for the audience to “see what’s there.” Seeing what’s there is also the primary thrust of Mendelssohn’s Scottish Symphony, which he wrote over the thirteen years following an affecting visit to Scotland as a 20-yearold. This is music that is episodic, craggy, scenic, lonely, and full of melodies that sound like folk songs. In this music, the weather—when not outright stormy—tends to remain foggy. If you prefer sunshine, head quickly for Mendelssohn’s Italian Symphony instead. But if not, enjoy this November-like piece, and maybe get inspired to participate in Alexandria’s Scottish Christmas Walk where you may hear the echo of similar sounds in bagpipes and brogue.
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INTERVIEW WITH MUSIC DIRECTOR JAMES ROSS Q. As the ASO’s fifth Music Director, how will your approach be different from those who have come before you? A. I don’t set out to be an agent of change. I just try to bond with what a group like the ASO already is and then try to sense what it is becoming, what is latent in the life of the project, and take it for a fun ride. As a 59-year-old man, I feel like a bit of a youngster in relation to the history of the 75-year-old group, but hopefully like them, I am here to grow. As part of the Anniversary year, we will draw parallels to music or events that were taking place in 1943 when the ASO took its first breath. Q. How do you program a concert? A. I usually start with the anchor piece, or one given element of a program. Once that is decided, a narrative of what any one program might communicate (its theme) eventually becomes evident as I build various structures in my brain and try to figure out what combination of pieces could “bring out the best” in each of those pieces, how to get pieces in a variety of styles “talking to each other” even if in slightly different languages. That narrative can be as simple as an image (birds, space, exhilaration, breakup, seasons) or based on something historical (pieces written young in composer’s lives, all pieces written during or about war) or even something musical (the key of D, music in the time signature of 6/4). The programs I like best are ones which seem on paper to make no sense, but when heard together, they suddenly create a new understanding of the individual pieces in conjunction with one another. Q. Leonard Bernstein’s 100th birthday is this year. As your teacher, how did he influence you? A. Bernstein was a huge influence on me, as he was for generations of young American conductors, through the volume and variety of his gifts (playing piano, composing, writing, teaching and conducting) and the capacity he had to love people through music. He was a whirlwind, a cyclone of intensity and connection, and was only difficult if he felt he wasn’t succeeding at making every moment of contact with you a “life-changing” moment. None of us who studied with him could really approach his achievements, but rather than feel bad about that, he made each of us feel that with our own unique gifts we may be the great hope for classical music. It did not matter that he made a thousand of us feel that way, that individually special, but gave us courage to pursue our dreams and our authenticity heedlessly.
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CONCERTO FOUNDATION ENSURING THE LONG-TERM STABILITY OF THE ASO
The Alexandria Symphony Concerto Foundation was established in 2005 to create an endowment fund providing long-term financial support to the ASO. The Foundation’s goal is to build a significant capital fund, with the income from that fund providing annual income to the Symphony. The Foundation is a “supporting organization” under section 509(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and gifts made to the Foundation are tax deductible as charitable donations. As of June 2018, the Foundation had assets of $301,000 and has cumulatively donated $289,000 in support of the ASO. The following individuals contributed gifts of $5,000 or more to meet the $100,000 Challenge sponsored by Frank and Betty Quirk, which was completed in May 2007:
Anonymous C. Maxine Baustian Suzanne S. Brock Miriam and David Browning Penny and Tim Bryan Linda and Elliott Bunce Agnes and Jack Dover Gerhard and Diana Dreo Loti and Stewart Dunn Julie and Edward Dyson Anne and Caswell Hobbs
Ruth Kotler Eva and Frank Manning Mary Ann and David Millard Reae and Thomas Sargeant Molly and Jim Singerling Ann and Roy Snyder Symphony Orchestra League of Alexandria (SOLA) Judy and Forrest Williams Stuart and Robert Wineland Susan and Allan Winn
A donation or bequest to the Alexandria Symphony Concerto Foundation will go toward ensuring long-term support of the ASO. Gifts can be a specific dollar amount, a specific piece of property, a percentage of an estate, or all or part of the residue of an estate. You can also name the Foundation as a contingent beneficiary if someone named in your will is no longer living. For more information on the Concerto Foundation or making a bequest, please contact the Alexandria Symphony at 703-548-0885.
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CORPORATE PARTNERSHIP with the
ASO
Corporate partnership sustains our programs and outreach, strengthens our local community and, in return, offers benefits to our corporate partners. Corporate giving can extend to any of programs offered to individual donors as well as provide unique group and marketing opportunities.
EXAMPLES OF ASO CORPORATE PARTNERSHIP • Advertise in our souvenir program book, distributed all season at both venues • Host a “Night at the Symphony” with group tickets and a reception • Present a guest artist • Sponsor ASO Sympatico
• Sponsor an event from a fundraiser to a main-series concert to the Alexandria Birthday Celebration • Adopt a chair of a specific instrument (three-year commitment) • Join our Spotlight Society with a gift $250 or more
CORPORATE PACKAGES CAN BE INDIVIDUALLY TAILORED TO MAXIMIZE YOUR BENEFITS AND MARKETING EXPOSURE.
Contact the ASO at (703) 548-0885 to create your package or to learn more about corporate partnership opportunities. 44
SPONSORS
OF THE 2018-2019 ASO SEASON With gratitude, we acknowledge the following foundations, corporations, and individuals for their sponsorship of our 2018-2019 season:
Caudron Megary Blackburn Wealth Management Domaine Carneros (Napa Valley, CA) Dominion Energy Everly-Wheatley Funeral Home Fidelity Investments Marietta Jemison, Keller Williams John Marshall Bank New Target, Inc. Parkfairfax Community Renner & Company, CPA Simpson Properties, LLC The Virginia Florist Woodbine Rehabilitation & Healthcare
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Symphony Orchestra League of Alexandria The Symphony Orchestra League of Alexandria (SOLA) is comprised of a dedicated group of volunteers who serve as a major source of financial support for the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra (ASO). The members of SOLA are integral to the success of the ASO by hosting a number of fundraising events throughout the year. Highlights of the upcoming season include SOLA Uncorked IX, a fabulous wine and cheese tasting in the Fall and the 32nd Annual Symphony Ball. If you are not a member of SOLA, we would like to invite you to join us as we help the ASO celebrate its 75th Anniversary. In addition to our fundraising events, host a number of enjoyable social activities throughout the year, including general meetings and the annual Spring Luncheon. Also, on March 24, 2019, SOLA and the ASO will co-sponsor the 43rd annual Mary Graham Lasley Scholarship Competition for college level music students. This event is held at the Northern Virginia Community College (Alexandria Campus). If you would like more information about joining SOLA, please contact our Membership Chair, Claire Schwab at cschwab@claireschwab.com or one of our co-Presidents. We welcome new members who wish to contribute toward the ongoing achievements of the ASO!
Phyllis Sintay SOLA Co-President (703) 472-3563
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Genevieve Moorhouse SOLA Co-President (703) 401-5902
Symphony Orchestra League of Alexandria (SOLA) 2018-2019 Membership
Sue and David Aland Barbara Bankert Leef Smith and Paul Barnes Mason and Clark Bavin Susan and Carl Behnke Shirley and Charles Bisselle Bertha and Joe Braddock Suzanne Brock Rosann and Michael Brodie Miriam and David Browning Marcia and Jim Buchanan Hilda Burcher Ronal Butler and Martha Lloyd Jan Campbell Jane Hughes Carlson Susan Knighton and Dave Cavanaugh Teddye and Bill Clayton Harlene and Bill Clayton Jolanta Coleman Donna Cramer Betty Cranwell Meaghan Curry and Anthony Jamberdino Carola Czernik Mollie Danforth and Steve Colangelo Rebecca Davies Pat and George Day Sandra and Nicholas Fleischman Yolande Frommer Rosa Fullerton Amy and Bill Furr Patricia Gill
Barbara Glover Sue and Marty Goodhart Gila Harris Janet Hawkins and David Wormser Ann and Michael Hobbs Margaret Hodges Jenny Indelicato Erwin Jacobs Ann D. Corson-Jaeger Barb Jonas Ann Kavaljian Jacque and Ed Knight Adron Krekeler and Becky Mahood Ruth Kupperschlag Patricia Laane Ward Lasley Kit Leider Doris Lindsey Isin Ludlow David Magsumbol Eva Manning Ann and James McCrery Harriett McCune Cassie and Shawn McLaughlin Susan Montague Genevieve Moorhouse and Joshua Compton Michele and Richard Moorhouse Suzanne and James Morrison Daisy Moseley Melinda Mount Diane Murphy Margaret and Bill O’Grady Kate Patterson
Carla Pinto Annmarie Pittman Anne Best Rector and Tim Allen Fran and Gant Redmon Carol Reese Helen Reid Jane and Connie Ring Lori and Rusty Ring Nancy Rowe Jo-Ann and Robert Royer Anna Russi Ilona Savage Patti Schmid Claire and Ted Schwab Janet Shipko Phyllis Sintay Ann and Roy Snyder Ann and Glenn Spitler Emma-Jo and Bob Staton Jennifer Van Goethem Joan Vogel Sharon and Ken Walker Trudie Williams Laura Withers Margaret Wohler Margherita Woods Susan Yonts-Shepard
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Mary Graham Lasley Scholarship Competition In its 43rd year, the Mary Graham Lasley Scholarship Competition, sponsored by the Symphony Orchestra League of Alexandria and supported by the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra, encourages collegelevel musicians to pursue classical music careers. In the 1980s, the late Mary Graham Lasley was a major figure in the musical world of Metropolitan Washington, D.C. and was active on the boards of the Washington Opera Guild, the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra, and the Alexandria Symphony Guild, the predecessor of SOLA. Her friends and family established a trust in tribute to her many contributions. The 2019 competition will take place March 24, 2019, on the Alexandria campus of the Northern Virginia Community College. An awards ceremony and reception will follow the competition. 2018 Mary Graham Lasley Scholarship Competition Winners First Place: Sahun Hong (piano). Peabody Conservatory of Music, Johns Hopkins University Second Place: Morgan Short (harp), University of North Carolina Third Place: Ryo Usami (violin), New England Conservatory of Music, Boston Honorable Mention: Rebecca Barnett (viola), University of Maryland Visit www.alexsym.org/education/lasley-scholarship for more information.
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MARVELOUS
MOZART FEBRUARY 9, 2019 • 8:00 PM
Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center
FEBRUARY 10, 2019 • 3:00 PM George Washington Masonic Memorial
James Ross, conductor PROGRAM J.S. BACH
Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 Concerto in E-flat Major
STRAVINSKY
Symphony No. 1 “Classical”
PROKOFIEV
INTERMISSION Symphony No. 38 in D Major, K. 504 “Prague”
MOZART
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Concert 3 • February 9 & 10
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) Brandenburg Concerto No. 1
During the mid 1710s, Johann Sebastian Bach was experiencing one of his most prolific periods of composition, coinciding with his appointment as Kapellmeister (Music Director) of Köthen, which he held for six years. He had been appointed by Prince Leopold of Anhalt-Köthen, a musician himself who allowed Bach considerable flexible creativity. During this time, Bach focused mainly on secular instrumental music, composing sonatas, concertos and symphonies. The Brandenburg Concertos, now recognized as one of his most important works, was written for and dedicated to Christian Ludwig-Margrave of Brandenburg. The work was heavily inspired by the concerto grossos of Italian composer Antonio Vivaldi, featuring a combination of unused material and music from Bach’s pre-existing works, mostly his cantatas. Concerto No. 1 was written around 1721, cast in three movements and features three oboes, two horns and a violin as solo instruments.
Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) Concerto in E-flat Major “Dumbarton Oaks” The late 1930s marked an important pivot point for Igor Stravinsky, both personally and professionally. A Paris-based composer for almost twenty years, he began gaining greater connections in the United States, resulting in new commissions and teaching appointments. One such commission (brokered by Stravinsky’s composition teacher Nadia Boulanger) came via Robert Bliss, a noted American diplomat and philanthropist. Bliss requested a chamber piece to commemorate his 30th wedding anniversary, which would be premiered at his home in Washington D.C., commonly known as “Dumbarton Oaks.” One of the largest houses in the District, “Dumbarton Oaks” hosted many elite events, state functions and chamber music concerts. The property became known for its magnificent gardens, a feature that 50
Concert 3 • February 9 & 10
greatly inspired Stravinsky when he visited in 1937. Stravinsky faced many difficulties during the commission, as his daughter fought a terminal battle with tuberculosis. He also became ill himself and was not able to conduct the world premiere, instead enlisting Nadia Boulanger. Stravinsky did eventually conduct the work when Robert Bliss and his wife celebrated their golden anniversary in 1957. The Concerto in E-flat Major “Dumbarton Oaks” consists of three movements played without pause. The work is reflective of the composer’s neo-classical period (1920-1951), drawing heavy inspiration from J.S. Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos.
Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953)
Symphony No. 1 “Classical” in D major, op.25 Sergei Prokofiev displayed an aptitude for music from a young age, nurtured especially by his mother’s love and passion for the art. Already showing great talent as a pianist, a young Prokofiev began taking both piano and composition lessons from Reinhold Glière, who stressed more traditional techniques of structure and style. This contributed to Prokofiev’s noted arrogance during his college years at the St. Petersburg Conservatory, as he often pointed out and kept detailed statics about errors made by other students. By the time he first graduated in 1909, Prokofiev had become a favorite of the local contemporary music scene, and was later asked to perform the Russian premiere of Arnold Schönberg’s Drei Klavierstücke (Three Piano Pieces). He also garnered the attention of music critic Alexander Ossovsky, whose connections offered Prokofiev several new performing opportunities throughout Europe. During this time, and coinciding with World War I and the beginning the Russian Revolution, Prokofiev again returned to the St. Petersburg Conservatory to avoid the military draft. Historians noted a transition in his compositional personality during this time from a very direct 51
Concert 3 • February 9 & 10
modern style shown in many of his early piano pieces to a more mature lyrical style, beginning with his first Violin Concerto and continuing through the composition of Symphony No. 1. The initial ideas for the Classical Symphony can be traced back to Prokofiev’s disdain for the critics of modernist style, which inspired him—some say out of pure vitriol—to compose new music that would challenge listeners with more conservative tastes but structured within traditional symphonic idioms. He based the work largely on the Classical-era symphonies of Joseph Haydn and also forced himself to compose without the use of the piano, believing that the piano was unconsciously forcing him to restrict his musicality, as he yearned for a freer lyrical style. Symphony No. 1 in D major premiered in Petrograd (formerly St. Petersburg) on April 21, 1918, conducted by Prokofiev himself. The first movement, Allegro, combines the traditional sonata form with more uncommon Classical-era practices, such as extreme upper register lines in the strings and woodwinds, the use of natural harmonics, and varying rhythmic complexity. A slow lyrical melody opens the second movement, Larghetto, balanced with an alternating counterpoint featuring pizzicato strings. The score gives way to several short majestic sections, featuring unexpected key changes followed by the return of the opening material which slowly dies away. The third movement, Gavotte, is a very short section, inspired by Baroque-style dance suites contrasting with the common minuet of Haydn’s day. Much like the first movement, its rhythmic phrasing challenges conventions, but the structure allows the listener to still “feel the beat.” As the Gavotte fades away, the high energy Finale takes over. Moving along at a rapid pace, the orchestration remains fairly full throughout, focusing on the orchestra’s ability to execute extreme dynamic shifts and complex technical passages. The piece ends with a rapid ascending flourish, mirroring the end of movement one. 52
Concert 3 • February 9 & 10
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) Symphony No. 38 “Prague” in D major, K. 504
The city of Prague had developed fond affection for the music of Mozart, in stark contrast to other places in northern Europe. Two of Mozart’s operas, Die Entführung aus dem Serali (Abduction from the Seraglio) and Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro), received rave reviews there, and the success convinced Mozart to travel to Prague and see the reception of the works in person. Shortly afterwards, on January 19, 1787, he gave the premiere of Symphony No. 38, which was given the nickname “Prague Symphony,” although its direct connection to the city of Prague remains up for discussion to this day. The work was not meant specifically for the visit to Prague—perhaps it connected to London as he was planning a trip there in 1786. It features several new directions in his orchestral catalogue. The work is cast in three movements, unusual for the time, as “normal” works of the genre in Germany and Austria had four movements: fast, slow, a minuet, and fast. Mozart decided against writing a minuet and went with a more Italian style of symphonic form. This may be due to his association with Prague native Josef Mysliveček, who wrote all his symphonies in three movements, or it may be due to Mozart’s operas not being as successful in Vienna. However, the piece’s strongest Prague connection might be in its innovative and elaborate writing for winds and brass, as Bohemia was known for having some of the most talented woodwind players of the day. The score has several segments where no strings play at all—one of the many reasons Mozart is known for questioning the status quo.
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As a city, Alexandria exhibits a special confluence and clash of the new with the old. Torpedo factories become modern art galleries. Gadsby’s Tavern hosts slave-traders and founding fathers in one era, then Robert E. Lee, abolitionists, and civil rights leaders in later eras. How do we represent that clash of old and new in music? Our first crossera conversation starts with the First Brandenburg Concerto of Bach. This 300-year-old chamber concerto features a trio of oboes, a duo of horns, and a piccolo violin in a rich orchestral tapestry that references the worlds of hunting and court dancing. Fast forward to 1938: When commissioned to write a work celebrating the opening of the Dumbarton Oaks Museum in Georgetown, Igor Stravinsky took the Brandenburg Concertos as his model. “Dumbarton Oaks” Concerto in E-flat major owes much to Bach and to Baroque physical gestures generally—albeit filtered through an occasionally jarring 20th-century harmonic prism that is unafraid of dissonance, emotional awkwardness, and irony. The second half reverses the direction of the conversation by giving Prokofiev’s Classical Symphony the opening gambit in juxtaposition with Mozart’s Prague Symphony, both in D major. Where Prokofiev makes some fun of the classical form of a symphony, it is done with a great deal of ribbing enthusiasm for a bygone language of orchestral writing. Mozart, on the other hand, is busy in the Prague Symphony stretching forward by blurring the boundaries between symphony and opera. The specter of Mozart’s opera in vitro Don Giovanni—its characters and its darkness—seems to emerge eerily throughout the Prague Symphony with disquiet just below its surface. The middle movement is Mozart’s single greatest orchestral andante and just cries out for operatic text setting. So Prokofiev reaches backwards while Mozart reaches forward. Maybe their fingers touch?
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SEASON FINALE
RACHMANINOFF APRIL 6, 2019 • 8:00 PM
Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center
APRIL 7, 2019 • 3:00 PM
George Washington Masonic Memorial
James Ross, conductor Marianna Prjevalskaya, pianist PROGRAM Overture to Donna Diana
REZNICEK
Symphony No. 1 in B-flat Major, Op. 38 “Spring”
SCHUMANN
INTERMISSION Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30
RACHMANINOFF
Marianna Prjevalskaya, piano
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Concert 4 • April 6 & 7
Emil Nikolaus von Reznicek (1860-1945) Overture to Donna Diana Austrian composer Emil Reznicek is not a household name, but he actually wrote four symphonies and at least 14 operas with Donna Diana being one of his earliest compositions. Written in Prague in 1894, it was an instant success across Germany with many performances and was even conducted by Gustav Mahler. Unlike Rachmaninoff, who fled to America during harsh political conditions, Reznicek spent his 80s in war-ridden Berlin. Approximately 80 of his compositions were confiscated by the Reich Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda, and only 14 were returned when the war ended. He died at the age of 85 shortly before the end of the World War II. Despite Reznicek’s tragic end, Donna Diana is a comic opera based on the Spanish play El desdén con el desdén (Disdain for Disdain) by Augustín Moreto y Cavana. Princess Diana is sought after by three suitors, two of whom give her unending admiration. The third, Prince Carlos, uses his indifference to win Diana. ***This overture was used as the theme for a radio and TV show called Sergeant Preston of the Yukon, which aired between 1947 and 1958.
Robert Schumann (1810-1856) Symphony No. 1 in B-flat Major, Op. 38 “Spring” Newly married to Clara in the fall of 1840, Robert Schumann did not do much symphonic composition until his new bride encouraged him to do so. As stated in her diary, “it would be best if he composed for orchestra; his imagination cannot find sufficient scope on the piano... His compositions are all orchestral in feeling...My highest wish is that he should compose for orchestra—that is his field! May I succeed in bringing him to it!” 58
Concert 4 • April 6 & 7
She must have been successful since his first symphony was born by the spring of 1841. Clara claimed that Adolf Böttger’s poem Frühlingsgedicht (Spring Poem) inspired the nickname “Spring Symphony.” A letter to Wilhelm Taubert, friend and musical colleague, shows how Schumann wanted his symphony performed. “If only you could breathe into your orchestra, when it plays, that longing for spring! It was my main source of inspiration when I wrote the work in February 1841. I should like the very first trumpet call to sound as though proceeding from on high and like a summons to awaken. In the following section of the introduction, let me say, it might be possible to feel the world turning green; perhaps. . . a butterfly fluttering; and in the Allegro the gradual assemblage of everything that belongs to spring. However, it was only after I had completed the composition that these ideas came to my mind.” The four-movement symphony originally had names for each movement: “Spring’s Awakening,” “Evening,” “Merry Playfellows,” and “Spring’s Farewell.” Although they were removed before the piece was published, they help describe what Schumann had in mind. The symphony is the first major orchestral work to require the use of three timpani and unusual tuning between movements. Like many of Schumann’s compositions, he uses themes from previous material, in this case from his piano cycle Kreisleriana, quoted in the fourth movement of the symphony. The Spring Symphony premiered in March 1841 with the famed Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, conducted by Felix Mendelssohn and received wide acclaim.
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Concert 4 • April 6 & 7
Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873 – 1943) Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30
Due to the political distress leading to the Russian Revolution, Rachmaninoff moved his family from Moscow to Dresden, Germany in 1906. While there, he was invited to perform and conduct with the Boston Symphony Orchestra in the United States and completed his Piano Concerto No. 3 on September 23, 1909 to be performed during his visit. Much to his dismay, Rachmaninoff began his U.S. tour with three months of daily performances and little down time with 26 performances—19 as pianist and seven as conductor. Deprived of quality time with his wife and young children, homesickness was often a burden. However, touring was the only way to promote his new music in addition to it being his main source of income. Piano Concerto No. 3 was first performed on November 28, 1909 with Rachmaninoff as soloist with the (then named) New York Symphony Society and a few months later with the New York Philharmonic, conducted by none other than Gustav Mahler. New York music critics hailed it as one of the most interesting piano concertos in recent years and commended it for its “essential dignity and beauty.” Responding to critics about the length, Rachmaninoff revised the concerto, but not enough to make much of a difference in the overall length. The shortened version did make the piece more programmable for concerts, shaving off only 10 minutes, but many argued it impaired its artistic value. Since the end of the 20th century, most Piano Concerto No. 3 performances are of the unedited original version. 60
Concert 4 • April 6 & 7
This highly respected concerto is notorious for being one of the most demanding for soloists, technically and musically, among Romantic concertos. “Rach. 3,” as it’s known among pianists, was originally dedicated to friend and pianist, Josef Hofman, who was ultimately too intimidated to perform it saying, “it wasn’t for him.” Virtuosic cadenzas and large intervals came naturally to Rachmaninoff as his hands were extremely large. It is speculated he had Marfan Syndrome, a genetic disorder that affects connective tissues which gave him an incredible 12-inch hand span. After the end of the Russian Revolution, Rachmaninoff and his family left Russia in 1918. Finding a home first in New York City, and with such a demanding schedule performing and conducting, he could only complete six more works, including his Symphony No. 3. By 1943, he relocated to Beverly Hills, California due to health issues and ultimately died from advanced melanoma.
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Marianna Prjevalskaya, piano Praised by critics as “a grand pianist” (Il Cittadino, Italy), Marianna Prjevalskaya has appeared with major orchestras such as the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, National Lithuanian Symphony Orchestra, and collaborated with renowned conductors such as Ion Marin, Roberto Trevino, Carlos Prieto, David Danzmayr. As a recitalist, Marianna performed in venues such as the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Accademia Santa Cecilia in Rome, Teatro Goldoni of Florence, Minato Mirai Hall in Yokohama, Weill Hall in New York. Her debut at Weill Hall was praised by Frank Daykin as “one of the major piano recitals of the season” and “a stunning display of mature pianism” (New York Concert Review, New York). Spanish critic Santi Riu complimented Marianna as a “virtuoso, impetuous, passionate and mature pianist of great musicality” (Diario Segre, Spain), and Tim Smith was “consistently impressed by Prjevalskaya´s beauty of expression“, and asserts that she is a “pianist who has moved well beyond the hone62
the-technique phase and can concentrate entirely on making music” (The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore). Marianna was a gold medalist of the 2014 New Orleans International Piano Competition, the 2013 World Piano Competition in Cincinnati, and the 2011 Jaén International Piano Competition, and top prize winner of the 2013 European Piano Competition in Normandy, 2012 Panama, 2010 Sendai, 2008 Jose Iturbi and 2007 Paderewski International Piano Competitions. Her first CD was released by Naxos in 2012; her most recent album dedicated to Rachmaninoff was released in June 2016 by Fanfare Cincinnati, and was
praised by critics in the U.S. and in Spain. Jaime Pantín writes in Codalario magazine that “her polyphonic transparency is astonishing, and her execution is of impeccable precision, clarity, virtuosity and beauty of sound.” Gary Lenco from Audiophile Audition magazine praises her for “intelligent virtuosity” and considers that “she certainly displays her capacity to make tone, evoking any number of erotic possibilities in the music, rife with harmonic color. She indulges in a rubato natural both to Chopin and Rachmaninov.” And Tim Smith writes in the Baltimore Sun that: “she tackles both [works] with disarming technical assurance, all the while revealing a keen ear for subtleties of tempo and dynamics. Each work becomes a poetic novel, the ‘chapters’ filled with fascinating detail and leading up to a richly satisfying summation.”
United States where she joined the Toradze Piano Studio at Indiana University. She also holds Artist Diploma and Master of Music from Yale School of Music, where she studied with Boris Berman. Currently Marianna is a doctoral candidate at Peabody Conservatory of Music where she studied with Boris Slutsky. She offered master classes in Colorado, Spain, Tulane University and at the New Orleans Piano Institute, and served as an adjudicator at the Open Piano Competition in London in 2012, Albacete National Piano Competition in Spain in 2014 and at the New Orleans International Piano Competition in 2016.
Born to a musical family, Marianna benefited from early lessons with her mother from age six, her principal mentor for more than eleven years. She continued her studies at the Royal College of Music in London with Irina Zaritskaya and Kevin Kenner. In 2003 Marianna moved to the 63
As April and showers break upon our region, as crocuses pop and houses hit the market, spring is now here. Robert Schumann celebrated the latent arrival of spring in 1841 by taking inspiration in the incredible outburst of songs and happiness from his previous year including his wedding, after much ado, to pianist and super-musician Clara Wieck. His Spring Symphony is chock full of musical quotes from previous works and at least one quote from a poet friend—“Im tale geht der Fruhling auf”— which provides the principal rhythmic gesture for the piece as well as its opening trumpet/horn call from on high. Oddly, an offhand transition in the slow movement also gives birth to the main theme of Schumann’s friend Brahms’ Third Symphony, which Brahms didn’t end up writing until some forty years later! An echo of things to come...A seed planted. If the promise of renewal is part of what Schumann represents, the Rachmaninoff Third Piano Concerto is a powerful work in full bloom from a composer whose soul knew more winters than springtimes. The struggle between the composer side (fundamentally creative) and the pianist/performer side (fundamentally re-creative) of Rachmaninoff’s intertwined psyche is somehow embodied in this most frighteningly challenging of concertos. Our piano soloist for the Rachmaninoff, Marianna Prjevalskaya, doesn’t write her own music but lives that of others with complete musical abandon. Moscow-born, Marianna grew up in La Coruña, on the northwestern coast of Spain (called the “Coast of Death”), from whence she first connected to the nostalgic, wayfaring soul of her great Slavic compatriot. As an electric tone-setter for this final concert, we kick off with a piece better known by ear than by name. For some, Donna Diana Overture conjures Sergeant Preston of the Yukon. For others like me, it’s a memory of WCRB radio station in Boston. But hopefully for all of you, it will become a joyful memento of this 75th anniversary season.
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ASO Concert Venues Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center • Complimentary concert parking is provided by the ASO in the Beauregard Street garage, located across East Campus Lane from the Schlesinger Center. We highly encourage all our patrons to park in this location, as parking is restricted on campus. • Our Will Call pickup and On-Site Box Office sales begin 90 minutes prior to the start of each performance in the lobby of the Schlesinger Center. • Restrooms and drinking fountains are available to the right of the lobby on the first floor, and to the right of the Seminar Room on the second floor. • An elevator is available for your convenience and is located around the corner from the restrooms. • Concessions are sold in the lobby during intermission – choose from a variety of wines, sodas, snacks and bottled water.
George Washington Masonic Memorial • Complimentary concert parking is provided by the ASO in the north parking lot with an entrance directly to the concert hall. • All patrons should enter the Memorial on the parking lot side of the building, where the handicap ramp can be found as well. This entrance is the closest one to the concert hall and can be accessed without stairs. • Our Will Call pickup and On-Site Box Office sales begin 90 minutes prior to the start of each performance. • An elevator is available for your convenience. Please note that the elevator runs slowly, and we encourage you to arrive early if you intend to use it. • Concessions are sold in the lobby during intermission – choose from a variety of sodas, snacks, and bottled water.
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75
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ANNIVERSARY INDIVIDUAL GIFTS
DIAMOND ($15,000+)
Suzanne S. Brock Cas and Anne Hobbs Dr. and Mrs. William O’Grady Frank and Betty Quirk Anne Best Rector and Timothy Allen David W. and Melynda Dovel Wilcox
PLATINUM ($10,000+)
GOLD ($5,000+)
Susan and Carl Behnke Kendra Carey David and Miriam Browning Ellis Duncan Linda Bunce Steve and Anne Reed Ronal Butler and Martha Lloyd Arthur Sauer Nancy Davenport Becky and Jerry Siegel Carolyn Fuller Phyllis Sintay Harriett Glover McCune Ralph Shepard and Susan Yonts-Shepard
SILVER ($3,000+)
Tom and Sally Guy Brown Jan and Hugh Campbell Rita and Dennis Meyer Helen Reid Nancy Ziegler
BRONZE ($1,000+)
CAPT Fred Dunning, Jr. USN (Ret.) Mr. & Mrs. Edward Dyson Lisa and Brian Flippo John and Jeanne Warner Pat and George White Rance Willis
UNDER $1,000 Mrs. T. Sills Bunn Betty Cranwell Elaine Dauphin Waller Dudley Helene Dyson Michael Fogarty
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Donald and Cora Fosdick James Grossman Raymond and Irene Husson Michael Levin Wilson Malcolm Joann Marsh
Susan Merritt Nelsen Bowman and Pamela Miller Jane Perkinson Barbara and Michael Raizen Mary Kate Roberts Janet Shipko
ASO Supporters 2017-2018 Includes contributions made to the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra and the Symphony Orchestra League of Alexandria from July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2018.
Foundations, Government, and Corporate Support
ACT Community Foundation Lois Herr Family Foundation Alexandria Commission for the Arts MacRae Family Foundation Alexandria Times Marietta Jemison, Alexandria Kiwanis (Keller Williams) Amazon Smile The Maple Tree Fund Bittersweet Catering Mary & Daniel Loughran Foundation Burke and Herbert Bank McEnearney Associates, Inc. Chadwicks Myron Mixon’s Pitmaster Charles Delmar Foundation National Endowment for the Arts Cheesetique N.E.T. (Networking & Engineering Clarke & Sampson Technologies, Inc.) Coldwell Banker New Target Concerto Foundation NOVA Community College Connection Newspapers Paul M. Angell Foundation Conn-Selmer Redmon, Peyton & Braswell, L.L.P. D’Addario Foundation Richard S. Reynolds Foundation Donnan Wintermute, (Coldwell Rotary Club of Alexandria Banker) Rucker Properties Ellis Duncan, Runningbrooke Foundation (Coldwell Banker Global Luxury) Simpson Commercial Real Estate Entergy Corp. Society Fair Freddie Mac SOLA (Symphony Orchestra Kelly Green, florist League of Alexandria) Goodwin House, Inc. Taqueria el Poblano Harry Braswell, Inc. Theodore H. Barth Foundation IBM Corporation TSALT Jeanne Warner, Unalane Foundation (Sotheby’s International Realty) Virginia Commission for the Arts John D. Kling II, DDS The Virginia Florist KBR Foundation Vola’s Dockside Grill Kostizka and Wicks Wells Fargo Advisors Landini Brothers Wells Fargo Foundation
Gifts were given in Memory or in Honor of the following as of June 30, 2018: In Honor of ASO Sympatico In Memory of Darla Cherie Ellis In Memory of Elliott Bunce In Memory of Paul Frank In Memory of T. Sills Bunn In Honor of Kim Allen Kluge
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Conductor’s Baton Circle (over $20,000)
Suzanne S. Brock Linda Bunce Harriett Glover McCune
Conductor’s Circle ($10,000-$19,999)
Miriam & David Browning Ronal Butler & Martha Lloyd Darla Cherie Ellis Ralph Shepard & Susan Yonts Shepard David W. & Melynda Dovel Wilcox Platinum Circle ($5,000-$9,999) Carl & Susan Behnke Nancy Davenport CAPT Fred S. Dunning, Jr. USN (Ret.) Carolyn Fuller Mr. & Mrs. Caswell O. Hobbs Ann D. Corson & B. Jon Jaeger Dr. & Mrs. William P. O’Grady Mr. & Mrs. Frank Quirk Anne Best Rector & Timothy Allen H. Arthur Sauer Mr. & Mrs. Jerry Siegel Mrs. Robert Wineland Golden Circle ($2,500-$4,999) Dr. & Mrs. Joseph V. Braddock Mr. & Mrs. Hugh Campbell Teresa Guzman & Antontio Cafoncelli Margaret Hodges Mr. & Mrs. Charles Holden Mr. & Mrs. Edward Knight Ellen LaBelle Jennifer Miller Richard & Michelle Moorhouse
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Mr. & Mrs. Joseph Paslawski Mr. & Mrs. Gant Redmon Anne & Steve Reed Mr. & Mrs. Carlyle C. Ring Lucy Thomson & Arthur Peabody, Jr. Richard & Sandra Toye Emily & Benjamin Tsai CDR, USN (Ret.) Kenneth & Sharon Walker Dennis & Julia Watkins Linda Windsor
Patron’s Circle ($1,000-$2,499) Kari Baumann Tom Brady Sally & Lawrence Brodie Amoret Bell Bunn Kendra Carey Mrs. John Davies Ellis Duncan Lisa & Brian Flippo Barbie Frank Deborah A. Hall Dave & Amy Hawkins Adron Krekeler & Rebecca Mahood Florence King Stanley & Gail Krejci Mrs. Kirk Lindsey Shawn & Cassie McLaughlin Rita & Dennis Meyer Mrs. Richard Reid Roddy Ring Eugene Steuerle & Marguerite Scheflen Claire & Theodore Schwab Elizabeth & John Siegel Phyllis Sintay Edward Stark & Christine Corcoran-Stark Clyde Gary Sydow The Hon. & Mrs. John Warner Mr. & Mrs. Forrest Williams Donnan C. Wintermute Nancy Ziegler
Donors ($500-$999) Arthur & Jeanne Hoenicke Bailey Mr. & Mrs. Joseph Bankert Bruce Batten & Currie Smith Clark & Mason Bavin Mr. & Mrs. James Bracco Tom Bradley & Judith Starr Ken & Meredith Brown Michael Brown & Kirsten Knapp Mr. & Mrs. Thomas Brown, Jr. Gincy & Nick Carosi William & Teddye Clayton Nicholas F. & Victoria A. Coward Meaghan Curry & Anthony Jamberdino Elaine Dauphin
Donors ($500-$999)
Mr. & Mrs. George Day Louise F. Dovel Yvonne E. Duvall Mr. & Mrs. Edward Dyson Ken & Rochelle Gray Phyllis Haney Mr. & Mrs. Stephen Hayes Courtney Hengerer William & Julie Howard Raymond & Irene Husson Richard Jones & Christine Cheevers Margaret Kenna Taylor Kiland Janet E. King Richard & Barbro Laaken Sheryl Lambson Laura & Thomas Lawler Mary Carol Mason Craig Miller & Lisa Brock Bowman & Pamela Miller John Quakenboss Michaela & Robert Robinson Frank Ryan William H. & IIona Savage Maureen Sullivan Mr. & Mrs. Stetson Tinkham Patricia & George White
Sustainers ($100-$499) Anonymous Dr. Leonard Bachman Charles W. & Suzanne S. Ballou Diana Banat Walter & Roberta Barbee Barbara Beckwith Margaret Benghauser Shirley & Charles Bisselle George & Becky Bostick Bruce Boyd Paul Brinkman & Lisa Jacobs Zita & Herb Brooks Hilda Burcher Reba Burns Howard Burris Sandra Byrne Susanna Carey
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Sustainers ($100-$499)
Evalyn Carter Karen Coda Gwen Cohen Dorothy & David Crabb Betty Cranwell Janet Crisler Vince Crisler Robert & Teri Culbertson William Diehm Elizabeth DiGregorio Suzanne & Randolph Dingwell Earl Donaldson Daniel & Mary Taylor Dose Jim & Joyce Draper Waller Dudley Jim Dulicai Marc Eaton & Brooksie Koopman Katherine Edwards William Elwood Bob & Helen Fall Cathy Fick Laura Peebles & Ellen Fingerman Adrien Finlay Barbara Fisher Andrea Flax Nicholas & Sandra Fleischmann Michael W. Fogarty Michele M. Franco J. Robert & Maureen M. Franks Richard Gilfillan Priscilla & Michael Goodwin Wiley & Caryl S. Grant James Grossman Jon Hakken Lawrence Hall Dak Hardwick Gila Harris Sid & Amy Hatcher James Hauhart Michael E. & Ann Reed Hobbs Holly & Morris C. Hoven, Jr. Patrick & Sally Hunnicutt Lindalyn Hutter Erwin Jacobs David Johnson & Scarlett Swan Barbara G. Jonas
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Sustainers ($100-$499)
William Jordan James Keightley Richard H. & Melissa Keiser Gayla Keller Kathleen & Edward Kelly Mike & Louise Kenny Melinda Kernc Brenda King Edgar P. & Rosemary Kley John & Lee Klousia Andrea Lacey Robert Larke Anne Ledyard Karen Leider Steve Lestalic Michael Levin Glenn Lewis W. Pless & Mary P. Lunger Patricia Macgowan & T. Whittier Warthin Jessi Macleod Ethelmary Maddox David Magsumbol John & Rosemary Maloney Marion Mangus Rebecca & Christopher Manthey Joann Marsh Samuel Mason Derek Mattioli Lynette Matz Libby McClary Michael McCormick Rene Menjivar Susan Merritt Nelsen Lois Miller Susie Miller Robert Montague, III Mr. & Mrs. Robert Latane Montague, IV Susan Montague Temple & Marty Moore Genevieve Moorhouse & Joshua Compton Gloria Morote Suzanne & James Morrison Ken & Lisa Mountcastle Jose-Luis Novo
Sustainers ($100-$499)
Friends ($1-$99)
Robert & Susan Orttung Laura Osman Alan & Laura Paez Katharine Patterson Elizabeth Peabody Greg Perett & Diane Beyer-Perett Jane Perkinson Geraldine Prefontaine Herbert H. & Barbara Quarmby Nancy Rettig Lisa Ring Beth & Jim Roberts Cindy Roscoe Mary Ellen Rotondo Victoria Sanchez Pamela & David Sand Elizabeth Schepps Sherry Schiller Patti Schmid Paul Schultz Jennifer Maloney & Peter Seka Janice Shack-Marquez Janet Shipko Tim Shrum Joel Sickler Alison Silberberg Alex & Ivy Sinaiko Margaret Smith Roger Smith Gregory Stieber Cecilia & Shawn Stroud Bianca Warner Sandra Welch Dorothy Wheeler Michael & Priscilla Wiener Nancy & Marcus Williams Rance Willis Susan & Allan Winn Laura Withers Margherita Woods David Wormser & Janet Hawkins Madeleine Wyss Laura Zabriskie
Sue & David Aland Cynthia Anderson Kate Armstrong Marlyn Aycock Candace Beane John Berry Joel Boblasky Misty Boyd Jayson Braude Jim & Marcie Buchanan Louise Buchanan Jill Canfield Jan Carlson Jane Hughes Carlson Susan & Dave Cavanaugh Harlene & Bill Clayton Mollie Danforth & Steve Colangelo Jolanta Coleman Liz Connelly Fyiad Constantine Brian & Paula Coupe Donna Cramer Betty Cranwell Carola Czernik Debi Deimling Alice DeKany Ashley Delamater Mary Denison Sue Dikeman Helene Dyson Joan Ferrell Lori Fischetti Yvonne & Brian Folkerts Donald & Cora Fosdick Gerry Frank Constance Frogale Yolanda Frommer Rosa Fullerton Ronald & Jeanne Garant Jeffrey Gathers Patricia Gill Stevie & Gardner Gillespie Barbara Glover Nancy Hall-Berens Nicole & Robert Hamilton Marjorie Harris
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Friends ($1-$99)
George Hastings Elizabeth Hickey Elizabeth Holland Ben Hutchens Jenny Indelicato Deborah Johnston Jacqueline Jones Ryan Jordan Ann Kavaljian Suzanne King Sarah Koch Ruth Kupperschlag Patricia Laane Ward Lasley W. Matthew Leroux Thomas & Sheila Leslie Mari Lou Livingood Isin and George Ludlow Wilson Malcolm Eva Manning Bob Martini Martha Martin Claride W. Mayo Ann & James McCrery Matt Mckinney Anita & Robert McSwain India Mertins Harry Meyers Robert & Vivian Miller Alexandra Miller Virginia Mittauer Sarah Morrison Daisy Moseley Melinda Mount Diane Murphy Amanda Neet Elizabeth & William Newell Veronica Nolan Shelley O’Brien Carla Pinto Annmarie Pittman Barbara & Michael Raizen Stacy Rausch Lori & Rusty Ring Mary Kate Roberts John Ross
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Friends ($1-$99) Jacqueline Roundtree Nancy Rowe Jo-Ann & Robert Royer Anna Russi Mark Schraf Elaine Schwartz Carolann Sharp Joel Sickler Irwin & Joan Singer Jessica & Chris Singerling Bonnie Williams & Robert A. Skelly Ann & Roy Snyder Anna Souza Ann & Glenn Spitler Emma-Jo & Bob Staton Matthew J. Stensrud Nina Tisara Dorothy Uhlir Jennifer Van Goethem Nancy & Bob Van Tine Bension Varon Jonathan Vecchi Joan Vogel Ginger Vuich Howard & Meredith Wade Jerry Wagner Betsy Weissman Marianne Weitz Steven & Kathy Wilcox Richard B. & Suzanne N. Willett Trudie Williams Eleanor Wilson Cynthia E. Wilson Cecily & Stephen Winchell Amanda & Michael Wittman Brett & Margaret Wohler Rong Zhu Cindy Ziegler
PAST PRESIDENTS of the ASO Board of Trustees
1980 1980 - 1981 1981 - 1982 1982 - 1983 1983 - 1984 1984 - 1985 1985 - 1986 1986 - 1987 1987 - 1988 1988 - 1989 1989 - 1990 1990 - 1991 1991 - 1992 1992 - 1993 1993 - 1994 1994 - 1995 1995 - 1996 1996 - 1997 1997 - 1998 1998 - 1999 1999 - 2000 2000 - 2001
Helen Reid Argyle Crump Argyle Crump Sumner Moore William Arnold William Arnold Muriel Freeman Grady Frank Grady Frank Helen Reid Stanley Krejci Stanley Krejci Joseph Braddock Joseph Braddock William Jarrett Elliott Bunce Elliott Bunce Patrick Anderson Patrick Anderson Patricia Lewis Patricia Lewis
to
2018
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Patricia Lewis Julie Dyson Julie Dyson Stanley Krejci Julie Dyson Mark Wilkoff Jim Singerling Grady Frank Grady Frank Michael Fogarty Cas Hobbs Ronal Butler Ronal Butler Ronal Butler Ronal Butler Ronal Butler Anne Rector Anne Rector
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Join us as we celebrate
75 YEARS!
Your multi-year pledge will ensure the ASO continues to serve the community through concerts, programs, and community outreach.
GIVE NOW! Text ASO75Years to 7039914171 to contribute to the 75th Campaign.
THE IMPACT OF
GOAL OF
$300,000 BY 2021 $235,000 PLEDGED AS OF
AUGUST 31 2018
YOUR GIFT
The 75th Anniversary Campaign provides for the ASO’s future by... • • • • • 74
Introducing the new Music Director Initiating new artistic projects Expanding community outreach Growing the Concerto Foundation Celebrating the 75th Anniversary through special events and appearances
WHY GIVE TO THE ALEXANDRIA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA? 25% REVENUE FROM TICKET SALES 75% REVENUE FROM CONTRIBUTIONS
ASO’S ANNUAL INCOME
Your gift will keep live orchestral music in Alexandria for another 75 years! For more information and to contribute to the Anniversary Campaign, please contact us. ASO is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
EIN: 54-0805937
703.548.0885 www.alexsym.org 700 N. Fairfax Street Suite 501 Alexandria, VA 22314
Alexandria.Symphony
@Alex_Symphony 75
History of the
Alexandria Symphony Orchestra The Alexandria Symphony Orchestra was founded during World War II. President Roosevelt asked all Americans for sacrifices to free more of the nation’s capacity and resources to help the war efforts. In spite of the war and necessary sacrifices, Alexandria came together as a community. During this time, in 1943, a young music teacher, Miss Lucie Neale Landen, recruited 40 amateur musicians to play orchestral music together. A few years after founding the “Alexandria Civic Orchestra,” Landen moved to California, where she spent more than 40 years as a high school orchestra teacher. The Alexandria Symphony Orchestra was officially incorporated in 1954 with an annual budget of $1,200. Dr. Wendell Margrave, Director of the Washington Musical Institute, took over the baton in 1948 and led the orchestra until the mid 1960s. In 1966, as demand for a more formal programming schedule arose, the orchestra hired George Washington University professor Dr. George Steiner as Music Director. Under Steiner’s influence, the ASO introduced its first subscription series, performed at Albohm Auditorium on the campus of T.C. Williams High School. He also started the “Lollipop” children’s educational concerts.
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In 1976, the ASO strengthened its dedication to education with the introduction of the Mary Graham Lasley Scholarship Competition. Now in its 43rd year and co-sponsored with the
Symphony Orchestra League of Alexandria (SOLA) since its founding in 1981, the annual event promotes the ASO’s commitment to nurturing young talent and creativity by encouraging college-level musicians to pursue careers in classical music. Besides co-sponsoring the competition, SOLA is dedicated to fundraising and volunteer support for the ASO. In 1988, Kim Allen Kluge was chosen to succeed Dr. Steiner. Under Kluge’s direction during the 1990s, the ASO became a professional orchestra. In partnership with the City of Alexandria, the ASO significantly expanded its programs and concerts in the schools and began performing in the Alexandria Birthday Celebration concert on the waterfront each July. In 2001, the ASO gave the inaugural concert at the Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center, now its primary venue. In the Schlesinger era, the ASO emerged as a leader of the Washington, D.C. inter-arts movement forging artistic partnerships with many of the region’s leading cultural institutions including the Smithsonian Institution, the National Gallery of Art, the Washington Ballet, the Choral Arts Society of Washington, and the Shakespeare Theatre. At Schlesinger, the ASO has performed with many of the world’s leading musicians including Midori Gotō, Peter Serkin, Nadja SolernoSonnenberg, Richard Stoltzman, Garrick Ohlsson, Yefim Bronfman, Lynn Harrell, Sarah Chang, Elizabeth Pitcairn and Branford Marsalis. In 2012, the ASO took its education program in an exciting new direction, led by the vision and support of Linda Bunce and the late Elliott Bunce. Sympatico, a program based on the El Sistema model of social change through music education, was launched at John Adams Elementary School. This fall, in partnership with the Alexandria City Public Schools, Sympatico will launch the school year with six ensembles serving over 130 students. In the spring of 2018, the ASO completed a two-year international search selecting James Ross as its fifth Music Director. Ross was chosen from among 170 applicants. ASO audiences, musicians and Trustees rated the candidates following each concert, and this valuable feedback influenced the final selection. 77
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A proud sponsor of the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra’s 2018-2019 season. 87
L IVE M U S IC MOV ES YO U
INSIDE & OUT.
Enjoy performances in Old Town ranging from the ASO’s 75th Anniversary Season to a new portside music series coming in Spring 2019.
VisitAlexandriaVA.com
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