Haydn in a Practice Room

carthage music department presents

Haydn in a Practice Room Student Recital by

William Dowell featuring

Ryan Boren, piano

Tuesday, April 19, 2022 | 7:30 p.m. | Recital Hall

program Cello Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Hob. VIIb/1 Franz Joseph Haydn I. Moderato (1732-1809) II. Adagio III. Allegro molto Cello Sonata No. 3 in A Major, Op. 69 I. Allegro ma non tanto II. Allegro molto III. Adagio cantabile - Allegro vivace Hungarian Rhapsody, Op. 68

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

David Popper (1843-1913)

program notes Cello Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Hob. VIIb/1 Lost for nearly two centuries, Franz Joseph Haydn’s Cello Concerto No. 1 in C Major remains in a state of flux. In its rediscovery and modern interpretations, performances of Haydn are torn between the “Romanticization” seen in previous performers and the historically informed performance practice (HIIP) that has grown around interpretations of Baroque and Classical works. Even as the concerto established itself among the standard cello repertoire, it is the duty of each performer to mediate the conflict between the historical and the personal.

Structurally, Haydn’s first cello concerto remains dutifully connected to the formal traditions of the Baroque and early Classical concerti. With all three movements following a ritornello form, the soloist maintains a regular dialogue with the orchestra. The orchestra introduces the primary theme and returns to transition each movement through its larger modulations, while the cellist interjects with its interpretation of the theme along with more virtuosic showmanship. This virtuosity becomes one of these points of contention, as the performer must balance showcasing bouts of technical excellence while maintaining a sense of tastefulness. However, the orchestra already provides a framework for these flourishes, with the violins often setting an example with performance of these passages earlier in the concerto.

These previous displays do not diminish the virtuosity displayed in the soloist, instead heightening it through comparisons of the violins’ agility with that of the cello in its upper registers.

This repetition of motives–a staple of the ritornello form–is immediately apparent in the first movement. The orchestra not only introduces the primary themes of the movement, but foreshadows the harmonic shift from C to G major. It is in the second solo episode, where the cello is able to break away from the established ritornello, with striking string crossings as the ensemble shifts into A minor. Of course, the soloist’s primary opportunity to break away from the orchestra is through the movement’s closing cadenza. An opportunity for the soloist to use the movement’s thematic material to dazzle the audience, this cadenza freely uses themes seen in the third solo episode as the soloist ascends up the fingerboard.

The second movement continues with a ritornello form and harmonic shift from the tonic key (F major), to the dominant key (C major), then relative minor key (D minor), and then finally returning to the original key. Linking the various keys is a serene melodic theme that floats through the orchestra. 32nd notes trail off, creating a sense of improvisation throughout the movement. Scalelular passages allow the soloist to glide into the upper registers of the cello and float within the melodic line. Like the first movement, the second ends with a cadenza in which the cello juxtaposes the 32nd and 16th notes with tripletized 16th notes, introducing greater rhythmic variety to close the movement.

program notes Rounding out the concerto is a lively third movement. Fully embracing a sense of virtuosic showmanship, the soloist flies through the upper registers of the cello with flurries of scales and string crossings. While the ritornello form still maintains a sense of unity between the three movements, the third movement provides a few surprises to keep the audience on their toes. Harmonically, this surprise comes into the modulation into E minor instead of the relative minor of C major, A minor. Not only a harmonic break from the traditional harmonic structure of tonic-dominant-relative minor-tonic, but also provides the cello to accentuate the clarity of its high E. Closing the concerto is one last surprise with the lack of a cadenza. The soloist instead continues to fly through the concerto before giving the last few bars to the orchestra. While the balance between personal virtuosity and historical style opens interpretive possibilities to the performer, it is the traditions and subversions of earlier forms that allows the concerto to enrapture audiences.

Cello Sonata No. 3 in A Major, Op. 69 Beethoven’s compositional output is often divided into three periods: an early period that contains his early quartets, sonatas and symphonies; a middle period–also called the “Heroic” period–that begins approximately with the “Eroica” Symphony and ends at around 1812; and a late period that contains many of Beethoven’s more experimental works, including his late quartets and ninth symphony. The Cello Sonata No. 3 in A Major showcases the evolution of Beethoven’s compositional style in the middle period through its shifting instrumental emphasis between the piano and the cello.

As the third of five cello sonatas, Op. 69 is often considered the point at which the cello achieves parity with the piano. The first two sonatas often placed the cello in a subordinate role, with the works sometimes referred to as a piano sonata with cello sonata. However, the melodic material in Op. 69 is regularly shared through a musical dialogue between the cello and piano, with cello often leading the melodic development throughout the sonata. This increased importance of the cello is felt immediately in the first movement with the cello showcasing the primary melodic theme unaccompanied. While both the piano and cello return to this motive, it is the cello’s renditions of the motive that mark the major formal shifts in the sonata. In addition to the greater attention to the cello’s melodic line, the cello is also given the ability to serve as the baseline for the piano’s runs. While older sketches of the sonata often put the cello in between the piano’s bass line and high pitched accompaniment, the finished edition gives the cello multiple opportunities to ground the ensemble with its low C and G string notes. In both melody and harmony, the cello is able to be fully present in the sonata.

Of course, the piano still serves a pivotal role in this chamber work. Opening the brisk and slightly sinister scherzo, the piano trades quick remarks with the cello as the duo flies through the A minor melody. The cello retakes control with a series of double stops in a new key of A major, but quickly returns to supporting the piano with a series of rumbling eight notes as the piano responds with notes of its own. While the first movement had the cello often signaling the shifting harmonies, the piano takes on that role as the second movement shifts back into its original A minor key. The repetition of the A minor and A major motives allow both instruments to maintain a brisk dialogue accentuated with syncopated entrances and flickering grace notes.

The third movement showcases the parity between the two instruments, with the piano showcasing the opening melody of the E-major Adagio cantabile section while the cello transitions into the brisk Allegro vivace with the central melody in A-major. The dialogue between the two instruments begin to merge into one melodic line as the sixteenth note lines of the piano and cello join together in rapid ascensions. Like the first movement, the third maintains a clear sonata form with the primary theme serving as a tool to explore new harmonies in the development. The coda repeats an opening of the primary theme as the pianists right hand flies through a Besides the constant dialogue between the piano and cello, it is the virtuosity of the cello part that unifies the sonata. While previous Beethoven quartets and symphonies highlighted the cello as a melodic solo instrument, the sonata regularly sends the cello flying into its upper registers. From the brisk scalelular passages of the first and third movement to the repetition of the second movement’s motive up an octave, the cello revels in its upper register along with its low notes.

Op. 69 showcases the intensity and captivating power of an ensemble that is given an opportunity to highlight both each member as a soloist and as chamber musician. By moving beyond the accompanimental roles given to the cello in previous Beethoven sonatas, Op. 69 builds a musical dialogue that flows through the entire piece that flows seamlessly from one

program notes instrument to the next.

Hungarian Rhapsody, Op. 68 The connection between David Popper and Franz Liszt encompassed the professional, the personal, and the musical. After Popper’s failed marriage–with Liszte’s protege– and his resignation from his orchestral position, Liszt appointed him as a faculty member of the National Hungarian Royal Gallery of Music. Musically, Liszt’s influence permeates through Popper’s Hungarian Rhapsody in both form and musical content.

Structurally, Popper’s Hungarian Rhapsody relies on the verbunkos form, which consists of multiple pairings of slow and fast sections and was one of the forms Liszt relied on with structuring his own rhapsodies. Opening the piece is an Andante maestoso piano entrance, whose crisp dotted-rhythms immediately confirm the accepted Hungarian style. As a showpiece, Hungarian Rhapsody allows the cello to enter with its own cadenza that starts in its lower register before flying into a series of higher and higher arpeggiated ascents that end with a harmonic D. The cello then jumps into a lyrical melody that shifts from a joyous D-major into a dramatic B-minor line. As the cello enters its second cadenza, it brings the underlying sense of improvisation to the forefront as it invokes the style of Roma music. The B-flats and C-sharps create a mysterious D harmonic minor until the cello jumps into a flurry of chromatic notes ending with a piercing high A. A second Andante sends the duo through a transitory dance, whose dotted-rhythms begin to foreshadow the upcoming Allegretto. The dance intensifies from D-minor into F-minor, before falling back into an unsure A. Another A sends the ensemble into a joyful Allegretto with a theme seen in both Brahms’ Hungarian Dance No. 15 and Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 12. The brisk dotted-rhythms are juxtaposed with indulgent eighth-note descents in the cello that almost completely disrupt the preexisting tempo. However, the tempo soon steadies as the cello flies into a breakneck Presto.

This Presto sends the cello jumping from scalalular descents into chordal double stops, constantly demanding both precise control and striking intensity. A rising and falling dynamic line keeps the cello and audience on edge as it colors the constant string of sixteenth-note runs. Eventually, the cello settles down as it transitions into an Adagio.

Liszt’s presence continues to permeate in the shared theme of this rhapsody’s Adagio and Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 8. Improvisatory grace notes give way and surround a series of falling thirds in the cello before preparing into a climactic Allegro vivace. This finale fully showcases Liszt’s influence on Popper through a combination of themes from Liszt’s Hungarian rhapsodies. From overall form to the finale, Liszt’s rhapsodies permeate through Popper’s cello showpiece.

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