14 Jan 2011 LPO Programme notes

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Principal Conductor VLADIMIR JUROWSKI Principal Guest Conductor YANNICK NÉZET-SÉGUIN Leader PIETER SCHOEMAN Composer in Residence JULIAN ANDERSON Patron HRH THE DUKE OF KENT KG Chief Executive and Artistic Director TIMOTHY WALKER

AM†

MAHLER ANNIVERSARY JTI FRIDAY SERIES

PROGRAMME £3 CONTENTS

SOUTHBANK CENTRE’S ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL Friday 14 January 2011 | 7.30pm

JAAP VAN ZWEDEN conductor LEONIDAS KAVAKOS violin

SZYMANOWSKI Violin Concerto No. 2

List of Players Orchestra History Leader Jaap van Zweden Leonidas Kavakos Programme Notes Recordings Southbank Centre Supporters Philharmonic News Administration Future Concerts

The timings shown are not precise and are given only as a guide.

(20’)

INTERVAL MAHLER Symphony No. 6 in A minor

(75’)

This evening's performance of Szymanowski’s Violin Concerto No. 2 is supported by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute as part of the Polska Music grant programme.

†

2 3 4 5 6 7 11 12 13 14 15 16

supported by Macquarie Group

CONCERT PRESENTED BY THE LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

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LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

FIRST VIOLINS Pieter Schoeman* Leader Vesselin Gellev Sub-Leader Chair supported by John and Angela Kessler

Katalin Varnagy Catherine Craig Tina Gruenberg Martin Hรถhmann Chair supported by Richard Karl Goeltz

Geoffrey Lynn Robert Pool Sarah Streatfeild Alain Petitclerc Peter Nall Galina Tanney Caroline Sharp Lisa Obert Caroline Frenkel Charlotte Scott SECOND VIOLINS Clare Duckworth Principal Chair supported by Richard and Victoria Sharp

Jeongmin Kim Joseph Maher Kate Birchall Chair supported by David and Victoria Graham Fuller

Nancy Elan Fiona Higham Nynke Hijlkema Marie-Anne Mairesse Ashley Stevens Andrew Thurgood Imogen Williamson Sioni Williams Alison Strange Peter Graham VIOLAS Andriy Viytovych Guest Principal Katharine Leek Susanne Martens Benedetto Pollani

Emmanuella Reiter-Bootiman Laura Vallejo Naomi Holt Isabel Pereira Miranda Davis Alistair Scahill Martin Fenn Sarah Malcolm CELLOS Susanne Beer Principal Francis Bucknall Laura Donoghue Santiago Sabino Carvalho + Gregory Walmsley Sue Sutherley Susanna Riddell Rosie Banks Pavlos Carvalho David Bucknall DOUBLE BASSES Kevin Rundell* Principal Tim Gibbs Co-Principal Laurence Lovelle George Peniston Richard Lewis Kenneth Knussen Joe Melvin Tom Walley

CORS ANGLAIS Sue Bohling Principal Chair supported by Julian and Gill Simmonds

Owen Dennis CLARINETS Robert Hill* Principal Katie Lockhart James Burke E FLAT CLARINET Nicholas Carpenter Principal BASS CLARINET Paul Richards Principal BASSOONS John Price Principal Emma Harding Graham Hobbs Susanna Dias CONTRA BASSOON Simon Estell Principal

FLUTES Jaime Martin* Principal Susan Thomas* Eilidh Gillespie Francis Nolan

HORNS John Ryan Principal Martin Hobbs Stephen Nicholls Gareth Mollison Richard Bissill Peter Blake Brendan Thomas Max Garrard Nicolas Wolmark

PICCOLOS Stewart McIlwham* Principal Francis Nolan

TRUMPETS Paul Beniston* Principal Anne McAneney*

OBOES Ian Hardwick Principal Angela Tennick Will Oinn Owen Dennis

TROMBONES Mark Templeton* Principal David Whitehouse Becky Smith BASS TROMBONE Lyndon Meredith Principal TUBA Lee Tsarmaklis Principal TIMPANI Simon Carrington* Principal Antoine Bedewi PERCUSSION Rachel Gledhill Principal Andrew Barclay* Co-Principal Chair supported by Andrew Davenport

Keith Millar Jeremy Cornes Sam Walton OFFSTAGE PERCUSSION Sacha Johnson Ignacio Molins HARPS Rachel Masters* Principal Helen Sharp CELESTE/PIANO John Alley

Chair supported by Geoff and Meg Mann

Daniel Newell David Hilton Joe Sharp Robin Totterdell Tom Rainer

* Holds a professorial appointment in London +

Chevalier of the Brazilian Order of Rio Branco

Chair Supporters The London Philharmonic Orchestra also acknowledges the following chair supporters whose players are not present at this concert: Caroline, Jamie and Zander Sharp The Tsukanov Family Simon Yates and Kevin Roon 2 | London Philharmonic Orchestra

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LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

Patrick Harrison

Seventy-eight years after Sir Thomas Beecham founded the London Philharmonic Orchestra, it is recognised today as one of the finest orchestras on the international stage. Following Beecham’s influential founding tenure the Orchestra’s Principal Conductorship has been passed from one illustrious musician to another, amongst them Sir Adrian Boult, Bernard Haitink, Sir Georg Solti, Klaus Tennstedt and Kurt Masur. This impressive tradition continued in September 2007 when Vladimir Jurowski became the Orchestra’s Principal Conductor and, in a further exciting move, the Orchestra appointed Yannick Nézet-Séguin its new Principal Guest Conductor from September 2008.

The London Philharmonic Orchestra has been performing at Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall since it opened in 1951, becoming Resident Orchestra in 1992. It plays there around 40 times each season with many of the world’s most sought after conductors and soloists.

Concert highlights in 2010/11 include an exploration of Mahler’s symphonies and complete song cycles during the composer’s anniversary season; the premières of works by Matteo D’Amico, Magnus Lindberg and Brett Dean; a rare opportunity to hear Rossini’s opera Aureliano in Palmira in collaboration with long term partner Opera Rara; and works by the Orchestra’s new Composer in Residence, Julian Anderson.

In addition to its London season and a series of concerts at Wigmore Hall, the Orchestra has flourishing

residencies in Brighton and Eastbourne, and performs regularly around the UK. It is unique in combining these concert activities with esteemed opera performances each summer at Glyndebourne Festival Opera where it has been the Resident Symphony Orchestra since 1964.

The London Philharmonic Orchestra performs to enthusiastic audiences all round the world. In 1956 it became the first British orchestra to appear in Soviet Russia and in 1973 made the first ever visit to China by a Western orchestra. Touring continues to form a significant part of the Orchestra’s schedule and is supported by Aviva, the International Touring Partner of the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Tours in 2010/11 include visits to Finland, Germany, South Korea, Spain, France, Belgium and Luxembourg.

Having long been embraced by the recording, broadcasting and film industries, the London Philharmonic Orchestra broadcasts regularly on domestic and international television and radio. It also works with the Hollywood and UK film industries, recording soundtracks for blockbuster motion pictures including the Oscar-winning score for The Lord of the Rings trilogy and scores for Lawrence of Arabia, The Mission, Philadelphia and East is East.

The London Philharmonic Orchestra made its first recordings on 10 October 1932, just three days after its first public performance. It has recorded and broadcast

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LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

PIETER SCHOEMAN

regularly ever since, and in 2005 established its own record label. The recordings on its own label are taken mainly from live concerts given with distinguished conductors over the years including the Orchestra’s Principal Conductors from Beecham and Boult, through Haitink, Solti and Tennstedt, to Masur and Jurowski.

Recent additions to the catalogue have included acclaimed releases of Christmas choral music conducted

by Vladimir Jurowski, Bruckner’s Symphony No. 6 conducted by Christoph Eschenbach, Verdi’s Requiem conducted by Jesús López-Cobos, Holst’s The Planets conducted by Vladimir Jurowski and Elgar’s Symphony No. 1 and Sea Pictures with Vernon Handley and Janet Baker. The Orchestra’s own-label CDs are also widely available to download. Visit www.lpo.org.uk/shop for the latest releases.

‘ … a simply tremendous performance of Mahler’s 3rd Symphony … Jurowski and his players plunged us into a winter of discontent so profoundly expectant that even the inveterate coughers were silenced.’

EDWARD SECKERSON, THE INDEPENDENT, 23 SEPTEMBER 2010

The Orchestra reaches thousands of Londoners through its rich programme of community and school-based activity in Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark, which includes the offshoot ensembles Renga and The Band, its Foyle Future Firsts apprenticeship scheme for outstanding young instrumentalists, and regular family and schools concerts.

To help maintain its high standards and diverse workload, the Orchestra is committed to the welfare of its musicians and in December 2007 received the Association of British Orchestras/Musicians Benevolent Fund Healthy Orchestra Bronze Charter Mark.

There are many ways to experience and stay in touch with the Orchestra’s activities: visit www.lpo.org.uk, subscribe to our podcast series, download our iPhone application and join us on Facebook and Twitter.

4 | London Philharmonic Orchestra

In 2002, Pieter Schoeman joined the London Philharmonic Orchestra as Co-Leader. He was appointed Leader in 2008.

Born in South Africa, he made his solo debut with the Cape Town Symphony Orchestra at the age of ten. He studied with Jack de Wet in South Africa, winning numerous competitions, including the 1984 World Youth Concerto Competition in America. In 1987 he was offered the Heifetz Chair of Music scholarship to study with Eduard Schmieder in Los Angeles and in 1991 his talent was spotted by Pinchas Zukerman who recommended that he move to New York to study with Sylvia Rosenberg. In 1994 he became her teaching assistant at Indiana University, Bloomington.

Pieter Schoeman has performed as a soloist and recitalist throughout the world in such famous halls as the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Moscow’s Rachmaninov Hall, Capella Hall in St Petersburg, Staatsbibliothek in Berlin, Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles and Queen Elizabeth Hall in London. As a chamber musician he regularly performs at London’s prestigious Wigmore Hall.

As a soloist with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, he has performed Arvo Pärt’s Double Concerto with Boris Garlitsky and Benjamin Britten’s Double Concerto with Alexander Zemtsov, which was recorded and released on the Orchestra’s own record label to great critical acclaim. Last October he performed the Brahms Double Concerto with Kristina Blaumane.

In 1995 Pieter Schoeman became Co-Leader of the Orchestre Philharmonique de Nice. Since then he has performed frequently as Guest Leader with the symphony orchestras of Barcelona, Bordeaux, Lyon and Baltimore as well as the BBC Symphony Orchestra. This season he has been invited to lead the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra on several occasions.

Pieter Schoeman has recorded numerous violin solos with the London Philharmonic Orchestra for Chandos, Opera Rara, Naxos, X5, the BBC and for American film and television. He led the Orchestra in its soundtrack recordings for The Lord of the Rings trilogy. He teaches at Trinity College of Music in London.

Patrick Harrison

LEADER

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JAAP VAN ZWEDEN CONDUCTOR

Netherlands Radio Philharmonic. Of the latter performance Het Parool wrote: ‘This is the first Wagner opera that van Zweden has conducted, and it already sounds as if he has spent dozens of years as a guest conductor at the Bayreuth Festival.’

Jaap van Zweden was born in 1960 in Amsterdam and began his musical life as a violinist before moving from stage to podium. He is presently Music Director of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra and the Radio Kamer Filharmonie, and Chief Conductor of the Royal Flemish Philharmonic Orchestra.

He began his violin studies at the Amsterdam Conservatory and at nineteen became the youngest concertmaster ever of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. As soloist and concertmaster, he performed under such conductors as Haitink, Dorati, Kondrashin, Bernstein, Giulini, Solti and Chailly before embarking on his conducting career in 1995. From 1996 to 2000, he held the position of Chief Conductor of the Netherlands Symphony Orchestra with whom he undertook a major tour to the USA and made his debut at Carnegie Hall.

From 2000 to 2005, he was Chief Conductor of the Residentie Orchestra of The Hague with whom he toured in Europe, Japan and South America and where he remains an honorary Guest Conductor.

Jaap van Zweden has worked with many prestigious orchestras across the globe, including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne, Orchestre National de France, Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra and Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. Aside from an extensive symphonic repertoire, opera also plays an important part in his career. He has conducted La Traviata and Fidelio with the National Reisopera, Madama Butterfly at the Netherlands Opera, and concert performances of Verdi’s Otello, Barber’s Vanessa and Wagner’s Die Meistersinger and Lohengrin at the Concertgebouw with the

Recent highlights have included highly acclaimed debuts with the Philadelphia, Cleveland and Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestras, and a tour of major European capitals and a Beethoven symphony cycle with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic. Highlights of the 2010/11 season and beyond will include his debuts with the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, Atlanta Symphony, St Louis Symphony and Tonhalle Orchester Zurich. He makes return visits to the Philadelphia, Chicago Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Hong Kong Philharmonic and London Philharmonic Orchestras as well as the Orchestre National de France. With the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic he will conduct a concert performance of Parsifal at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw and make his debut at the BBC Proms.

Jaap van Zweden has recorded the complete Beethoven Symphonies with the Residentie Orchestra, and the Brahms Symphonies with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic. With the latter, he is currently recording a Bruckner cycle for Octavia Records, with the Symphonies Nos 2, 4, 5, 7 and 9 already released to great critical acclaim. On the London Philharmonic Orchestra’s own record label he has recorded Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, and his recording of Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5 with the Royal Flemish Philharmonic was released in autumn 2008. For the Dallas Symphony Orchestra’s own record label he has released Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5 and Beethoven’s Symphonies Nos 5 and 7. In August 2010 he recorded Mozart piano concertos with the Philharmonia Orchestra and David Fray.

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LEONIDAS KAVAKOS

Yannis Bournias

VIOLIN

Leonidas Kavakos has established himself as a violinist and artist of rare quality, known at the highest level for his virtuosity, superb musicianship and the integrity of his playing. International recognition came whilst Kavakos was still in his teens. He won the Sibelius competition in 1985 and then, three years later, the Paganini Competition.

Now one of the world’s most highly regarded and sought after violinists, he has established close relationships with many of the greatest orchestras and conductors. He regularly appears at major international festivals with visiting orchestras, in chamber music and recital, and is frequently the focus of residencies with orchestras and at several of the world’s best known concert venues.

Currently Kavakos appears as soloist with the Academia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Budapest Festival Orchestra, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, La Scala Filharmonica, London Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, National Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and Tonhalle Orchestra. He works with such conductors as Pierre Boulez, Riccardo Chailly, MyungWhun Chung, Gustavo Dudamel, Christoph Eschenbach, Iván Fischer, Alan Gilbert, Valery Gergiev, Bernard Haitink, Daniel Harding, Mariss Jansons, Paavo Järvi, Vladimir Jurowski, Zubin Mehta, Anthony Pappano, Christian Thielemann and Osmo Vänskä.

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Leonidas Kavakos is also increasingly recognised as a conductor of considerable gifts and musicianship. He was Artistic Director of the Camerata Salzburg from October 2007 to September 2009, having previously been the orchestra’s Principal Guest Artist from 2002. In September 2010, he played with and conducted the Camerata Salzburg in a programme of Bach and Beethoven symphonies at the Musikverein, Vienna.

Later this season he will conduct and play with the Academia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Budapest Festival Orchestra, Houston Symphony Orchestra, Maggio Musicale and Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra.

His many distinguished chamber music partners include Gautier and Renaud Capuçon, Natalia Gutman, Emanuel Ax, Hélène Grimaud, Nicholas Angelich, Nikolai Lugansky, Elisabeth Leonskaya and Enrico Pace. He is a regular and favoured artist at the Verbier Festival.

Kavakos has a distinguished catalogue of recordings. In 2009 his recording of Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto coupled with the Mendelssohn Piano Trios with Enrico Pace and Patrick Demenga on Sony Classical was named ECHO Klassik Best Concerto Recording of a 19th Century Work. Together with the Camerata Salzburg, also on Sony, he has recorded live Mozart’s five Violin Concertos and Symphony No. 39. In 1991, he won the Gramophone Award for the first recording ever of the original version of Sibelius’s Violin Concerto (1903/04) on BIS. On ECM, he has released recordings of sonatas

by Enescu and Ravel with pianist Péter Nagy and a recording of works by Bach and Stravinsky.

Leonidas Kavakos plays the ‘Abergavenny’ Stradivarius of 1724.

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PROGRAMME NOTES

SPEEDREAD With mountain landscapes and militaristic marches, Szymanowski and Mahler paint vivid pictures of the wider world. Out of the murky hum of Szymanowski’s plush idiom, he conjures a mysterious and ultimately triumphant concerto. It is imbued with urban sophistication and the landscape of his beloved Tatra Mountains. Monumental scenery is likewise depicted in

Karol SZYMANOWSKI

Mahler’s Sixth Symphony, yet the persistent onslaught of a terrifying march quashes any sense of hope. Unlike Szymanowski’s concerto, Mahler’s symphony has a highly pessimistic worldview. Its hammer blows of fate and the longing of its lyrical passages summon up the darkness and cruelty of the human condition.

VIOLIN CONCERTO NO. 2, OP. 61 LEONIDAS KAVAKOS violin

1882-1937

Having honed a highly individual musical language, Szymanowski was honoured by the Warsaw Conservatoire when he was offered a job (albeit briefly) late in life. ‘Let our music be national in its Polish characteristics’, he said, ‘but not falter in striving to attain universality. Let it be national, but not provincial.’

Szymanowski’s expansive idiom, embracing the fin de siècle and the stark objectivity that came in its wake, didn’t always find favour. During his time at the Conservatoire, he received harsh criticism, both as a composer and as a teacher.

The Conservatoire’s loss in 1932 was Szymanowski’s gain. Relieved of his post, he was again able to compose and to travel. Continually drawn to French culture, Paris seemed a fitting destination. There he met up with his friend Paweł Kochański, for whom he had written Mity (‘Myths’, 1915) and the First Violin Concerto (1916).

Having brought sketches for a new concerto, Szymanowski and Kochański journeyed back to the composer’s retreat in Zakopane, high in the Tatra

Mountains. There, Kochański assisted with the trickier elements of violin technique and worked on the cadenzas.

This period of collaboration proved to be a happy final chapter in both the violinist’s and composer’s careers.

Having bought the villa at Zakopane to help with his persistent tuberculosis, illness returned and finally got the better of Szymanowski in 1937. Kochański died of cancer in January 1934 shortly after the première performance of the Violin Concerto in Warsaw in October 1933. The concerto was Szymanowski’s last major work, followed only by a short choral piece and two mazurkas for piano.

Conceived as one seamless movement, though divided into separate parts, the concerto is an intensely emotional work. Against a mumble of piano and clarinets, the soloist enters with a bluesy theme, which evolves throughout this lush and rhapsodic movement.

A more pugnacious militaristic character comes

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PROGRAMME NOTES

through, accompanied by snare drum with a choppy and driven response from the soloist. A bruising climax in the orchestra, led by horns and strings, with a jarring trumpet, prefaces a hushed interchange of solo instruments. After the return of the insistent march, the soloist unfolds a long cadenza. At first regimented, with quick-fire harmonics and pizzicato displays, it becomes increasingly lyrical.

‘Kavakos’s violin-playing has always been astoundingly virtuosic and blazingly insightful …'

Guardian

The ensuing march is an abrupt break from this breezy pastoral. Clarifying the textures, with strident and choppy rhythms, it is a virtuosic showcase for soloist and orchestra alike. The solo violin is more introspective, though the tap of percussion pushes onward. Although no less lyrical, the final section is more detached, as a clarinet weaves its way around the violin. The call of a solo horn and flute, played in counterpoint with the soloist, recalls the idyllic cadenza. Building to a huge climax, the march finally bursts through and ends the work exultantly.

LEONIDAS KAVAKOS violin ENRICO PACE piano Sunday 16 January 7.30 pm WIGMORE HALL Prokofiev Violin Sonata No. 1 in F minor Op. 80 Auerbach 24 Preludes for violin and piano Op. 46 (a selection) Korngold Suite ‘Much Ado about Nothing’ Op.11 Schubert Fantasy in C D934 £15 £20 £25 £30 INTERVAL 20 minutes An announcement will be made five minutes before the end of the interval.

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Wigmore Hall, 36 Wigmore Street, London, W1U 2BP. Director: John Gilhooly Registered Charity No. 1024038

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PROGRAMME NOTES

Gustav MAHLER

SYMPHONY NO. 6 IN A MINOR Allegro energico, ma non troppo | Scherzo: Wuchtig | Andante moderato | Finale: Allegro moderato

1860-1911

Mahler’s Fifth Symphony closes with a burst of false hope. Its glorious conclusion (echoing the bright hurrah of the First Symphony) leaves the audience uplifted. Yet those who have listened closely will know that its message is more equivocal. That darker language comes to the fore in the Sixth Symphony, which is bleak, brusque and terrifying. Mahler allows us brief havens, as if high in the mountains of his adopted Austria, but they are illusions of what might have been. Persistently couched in stark A minor, we are battered by the symphony’s aggressive tragedy.

The impact on Mahler’s own nerves was marked. His wife Alma, though often unreliable, gives a vivid account of the piece’s first performance in Essen.

‘None of his works moved him so deeply at its first hearing as this. We came to the last rehearsal, the dress rehearsal – to the last movement with its three blows of fate. When it was over, Mahler walked up and down in the artists’ room, sobbing, wringing his hands, unable to control himself.’

Seeing some premonition in the finale’s three staggering hammer blows, Mahler cut the third for fear of its repercussions; all three will be performed this evening. However bizarre that fear may now seem, Mahler’s symphony is a terrifying bridge between the 19th and 20th centuries. Speaking with the philosophical pessimism of the former, it projects something of the horrors of the latter. Yet at its centre, as in all his works, is a very brilliant genius, railing, Prometheus-like, against the world.

The opening movement begins with martial tones. A chugging march with the snap of the snare drum introduces a bold theme. However chromatic the writing becomes, the bass line remains doggedly

immovable. After the march spirals away, a second linking ‘motto’ burns through: an A major chord turning sharply to A minor, underpinned with stony timpani.

This motif haunts the later movements. After a brief chorale-like passage in the woodwind, the violins depart from the tragic shackles of before and stride out with a luxurious and romantic theme.

The development section has no truck with such lyricism and returns us to the snappy rhythms of the opening, now given a more macabre note by trilling woodwind and xylophone. The persistent drumming lends unrelenting forward motion. Suddenly, Mahler seizes us away from this deathly procession and we find ourselves high in the mountains. Cowbells sound against a shimmer of celesta and tremolo strings, though even here that ominous turn from major to minor plays in the horns. A hopeful passage emerges, with a broad rising theme (first on the oboe, then a solo horn and solo violin). As quickly as that is established, however, Mahler throws us back into the hurly burly of the march (albeit in a distant key). When the march returns proper, it is more ferocious, although that rising romantic theme sounds with equally renewed conviction. Slowly Mahler moves towards his conclusion. He vacillates between major and minor, swinging through other unrelated tonalities, before settling on a surprisingly dazzling coda.

That ebullient close is immediately swept aside by the brusque Scherzo. Clearly echoing the opening movement, it underlines a persistently bleak mood.

Mahler positioned the Andante as the second movement in performance, but Jaap van Zweden has chosen to return to Mahler’s original published order.

With screaming woodwind, braying horns and the jangle of xylophone, Mahler unfolds a macabre dance.

The trio, marked ‘old fashioned’, stutters and stumbles

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PROGRAMME NOTES

through changing metres. The occasional knock of the timpani threatens under the surface, making for a nervy exchange. The scherzo finally overrides this faltering music and carps at its naivety. Although a final return to the trio suggests some resilience, it is now rather ironic.

Soured by the scherzo (and another sharp change from minor to major), the movement ends sullenly.

The Andante is a welcome relief after the ferocious machinations of the preceding movements. Written in E flat major, far away from the overriding barren A minor, this is achingly subjective music. A cor anglais lends a sadder note and the romance turns into a lonely elegy. Longing and regret pour out of the confluence of these thematic lines, conspiring in full-blooded outbursts in the strings. Despite a brief view of the mountains (again with the distant jangle of cow bells), all is finally tranquil and resigned.

The finale is a vast summation of what has gone before.

Against the metallic shimmer of harp and celesta, the first violins utter a yearning theme, but a statement of the major-minor motto dams their intent immediately.

The setting is decidedly murky, with snatches of themes heard against an ominous melee of sounds. A choralelike theme comes through in the brass and lower woodwind – a preface to the motto. Mahler launches into another ghastly march in which the whole orchestra conspires. A brief, almost celebratory passage surfaces, yet like all the hopeful music in this last movement, it is a mirage, summoned out of the misty waste of forgotten fragments. The cowbells sound once more against eerie harp harmonics and celesta, as if in a nightmare. These strands unite and build to the first hammer blow – a deafening punch to the stomach.

Horror is unleashed and the music becomes increasingly aggressive. The second hammer blow sneaks in after a calmer period, though likewise unleashes a torrent, including a last-gasp statement of the yearning theme from the opening of the finale. This is brutally cut down by one last hammer blow, underpinning the majorminor motto. A lifeless coda seeks to reconstruct the energy once more, but a final and vicious statement of the motto motif brings the symphony to a sinister close. Š Gavin Plumley, 2010

LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA RECORDING ARCHIVE The New Year may be a good time to sort through your collection of London Philharmonic Orchestra recordings. If seasonal gifts or indulgent shopping have resulted in a shelf space problem, we would be delighted to help out by taking any recordings you now feel you could part with.

Last year we received some splendid windfalls from two generous supporters, whose gifts have filled in some of the gaps in our Recording Archive but there is still quite a long way to go. So, if you have any recordings that you think may be of interest, please get in touch with Gillian Pole at the London Philharmonic Orchestra, 89 Albert Embankment, London SE1 7TP.

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MAHLER RECORDINGS ON THE LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA’S OWN RECORD LABEL LPO-0012 Klaus Tennstedt conducts Mahler’s Symphony No. 1 and Songs of a Wayfarer with Thomas Hampson ‘... a stirring account, with his tight control causing Mahler’s climactic outbursts – both joyous and nostalgic – to hit home potently ... The LPO’s lead bassist tackling Mahler’s minor-key overhaul of ‘Frère Jacques’ is fittingly melancholic, while the finale is packed with energy and bracing inevitability.’

CLASSIC FM MAGAZINE

LPO-0044 Klaus Tennstedt conducts Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 ‘This live version of the Resurrection is frequently startling – extremely expansive but exciting, dramatic and highly charismatic …The playing and singing are excellent, and the recording, made by the Music Performance Research Centre, is near-faultless.’

GRAHAM RICKSON, THE ARTS DESK, 22 MARCH 2010

LPO-0033 Jaap van Zweden conducts Mahler’s Symphony No. 5 ‘He unfolds the drama of the first movement with a sure grasp of the need for subtle variations of tempo … the finale is a joyous, life-affirming rondo that lifts the spirits.’

MICHAEL KENNEDY, THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH, 10 AUGUST 2008

LPO-0038 Klaus Tennstedt conducts Mahler’s Symphony No. 6 ‘This live recording of a 1983 performance of Mahler’s Sixth Symphony might not be at the cutting edge of modern digital technology, but musically it sweeps away everything before it.’

CLASSIC FM MAGAZINE

The recordings may be downloaded in high quality MP3 format from www.lpo.org.uk/shop. CDs may also be purchased from all good retail outlets or through the London Philharmonic Orchestra: telephone 020 7840 4242 (Mon-Fri 10am-5pm) or visit the website www.lpo.org.uk

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SOUTHBANK CENTRE

WELCOME TO SOUTHBANK CENTRE We hope you enjoy your visit. We have a Duty Manager available at all times. If you have any queries please ask any member of staff for assistance.

Eating, drinking and shopping? Southbank Centre shops and restaurants include: Foyles, EAT, Giraffe, Strada, YO! Sushi, wagamama, Le Pain Quotidien, Las Iguanas, ping pong, Canteen, Caffè Vergnano 1882, Skylon, Concrete and Feng Sushi, as well as cafes, restaurants and shops inside Royal Festival Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall and Hayward Gallery.

If you wish to get in touch with us following your visit please contact Kenelm Roberts, our Head of Customer Relations, at Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London SE1 8XX or email customer@southbankcentre.co.uk or phone 020 7960 4250.

We look forward to seeing you again soon.

A few points to note for your comfort and enjoyment: PHOTOGRAPHY is not allowed in the auditorium LATECOMERS will only be admitted to the auditorium if there is a suitable break in the performance RECORDING is not permitted in the auditorium without the prior consent of Southbank Centre. Southbank Centre reserves the right to confiscate video or sound equipment and hold it in safekeeping until the performance has ended MOBILES, PAGERS AND WATCHES should be switched off before the performance begins

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We would like to acknowledge the generous support of the following Thomas Beecham Group Patrons, Principal Benefactors and Benefactors: Thomas Beecham Group Mr & Mrs Richard & Victoria Sharp Julian & Gill Simmonds The Tsukanov Family Simon Yates & Kevin Roon

Guy & Utti Whittaker

Commander Vincent Evans Mr Daniel Goldstein Mrs Barbara Green Oliver Heaton Peter MacDonald Eggers Mr & Mrs David Malpas Andrew T Mills Mr Maxwell Morrison Mr Michael Posen Mr & Mrs Thierry Sciard Mr John Soderquist & Mr Costas Michaelides Mr & Mrs G Stein Mr & Mrs John C Tucker Howard & Sheelagh Watson Mr Laurie Watt Mr Anthony Yolland

Principal Benefactors Mark & Elizabeth Adams Jane Attias Lady Jane Berrill Desmond & Ruth Cecil Mr John H Cook Mrs Sonja Drexler Mr Charles Dumas David Ellen

Benefactors Mrs A Beare Dr & Mrs Alan Carrington CBE FRS Marika Cobbold & Michael Patchett-Joyce Mr & Mrs Stewart Cohen Mr Alistair Corbett Mr David Edgecombe

Garf & Gill Collins Andrew Davenport David & Victoria Graham Fuller Richard Karl Goeltz John & Angela Kessler Mr & Mrs Makharinsky Geoff & Meg Mann Caroline, Jamie & Zander Sharp Eric Tomsett

Mr Richard Fernyhough Ken Follett Michael & Christine Henry Mr Glenn Hurstfield Mr R K Jeha Mr & Mrs Maurice Lambert Mr Gerald Levin Sheila Ashley Lewis Wg. Cdr. & Mrs M T Liddiard OBE JP RAF Mr Frank Lim Paul & Brigitta Lock Mr Brian Marsh John Montgomery Edmund Pirouet Mr Peter Tausig Mrs Kazue Turner Lady Marina Vaizey Mr D Whitelock Hon. Benefactor Elliott Bernerd Hon. Life Members Kenneth Goode Mrs Jackie Rosenfeld OBE

The generosity of our Sponsors, Corporate Members, supporters and donors is gratefully acknowledged.

Corporate Members Appleyard & Trew llp AREVA UK British American Business Brown Brothers Harriman Charles Russell Destination Québec – UK Diagonal Consulting Lazard Leventis Overseas Man Group plc Québec Government Office in London Corporate Donor Lombard Street Research In-kind Sponsors Google Inc Heineken The Langham London Lindt & Sprüngli Ltd Sela / Tilley’s Sweets Villa Maria

Trusts and Foundations Allianz Cultural Foundation The Andor Charitable Trust Ruth Berkowitz Charitable Trust The Boltini Trust Borletti-Buitoni Trust Britten-Pears Foundation The Candide Charitable Trust The John S Cohen Foundation The Coutts Charitable Trust The Dorset Foundation The D’Oyly Carte Charitable Trust Dunard Fund The Equitable Charitable Trust The Eranda Foundation The Ernest Cook Trust The Fenton Arts Trust The Foyle Foundation The Jonathan & Jeniffer Harris Trust Capital Radio’s Help a London Child The Idlewild Trust The Emmanuel Kaye Foundation The Leverhulme Trust Maurice Marks Charitable Trust The Michael Marks Charitable Trust Marsh Christian Trust

UK Friends of the FelixMendelssohn-Bartholdy Foundation The Mercers’ Company Adam Mickiewicz Institute Paul Morgan Charitable Trust Maxwell Morrison Charitable Trust Musicians Benevolent Fund The R K Charitable Trust Serge Rachmaninoff Foundation The Reed Foundation The Rubin Foundation The Seary Charitable Trust The Samuel Sebba Charitable Trust Sound Connections The Steel Charitable Trust The Bernard Sunley Charitable Foundation The Swan Trust John Thaw Foundation The Underwood Trust Garfield Weston Foundation Youth Music and others who wish to remain anonymous.

London Philharmonic Orchestra | 13

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PHILHARMONIC NEWS

The Band The London Philharmonic Orchestra’s community fusion ensemble for young musicians from South London gave its first performance with its new Musical Director Paul Griffiths on 4 December on the Clore Ballroom, Royal Festival Hall.

Each term the group composes its own music alongside members of the London Philharmonic Orchestra. This term however, the different songs performed were crafted from the initial ideas of individual Band members.

Budding composers Oscar, Caroline, Onyinye and Liam all put their names to their own pieces, Members of The Band at their performance at the Clore Ballroom on 4 December which were then developed, orchestrated and embellished by the group. One other piece, Gustav, was composed by Adopt a Class is generously supported by The Coutts the group as a whole, inspired by the music of Gustav Charitable Trust, The Equitable Charitable Trust, Faraday, Mahler whose anniversary the Orchestra is celebrating Capital Radio's Help a London Child and The Bernard this year.

Sunley Charitable Foundation.

If you know any young, talented musicians from South London, please encourage them to get in touch at www.lpo.org.uk/theband The Band is generously supported by The Mercers’ Company.

Adopt a Class The special needs project Adopt a Class culminated in an end of term sharing session at Spa School in Southwark on 29 November. The children aged 12 and 13 performed on glockenspiels and djembes to the rest of the school and their parents. Leading the session was workshop leader, Tina Pinder, supported by George Peniston on the double bass.

The pupils, who all have autism, showed their progress on the programme by demonstrating their ability to play loud and soft and fast and slow through a number of songs that linked to their school themes – the weather, animals and Africa. Spa School looks forward to continuing their sessions in the spring term.

14 | London Philharmonic Orchestra

Playing for charity We’d like to thank members of our brass and percussion sections and singers from the London Philharmonic Choir who spent a chilly evening at Waterloo Station in early December treating passing Christmas shoppers and commuters to a selection of festive music. Thanks also to members of staff who shook the buckets and raised a total of £1,777.20 for Save the Children.

The Orchestra on Tour After a successful tour to Spain, Germany, France and Belgium with Vladimir Jurowski in early November, the Orchestra and Jurowski were delighted to visit a sunny Turkey, Macedonia and Bulgaria in early December for a concert in Istanbul, its first ever performance in Macedonia and a concert at the National Palace of Culture in Sofia, Bulgaria. They were joined during the tour by Turkish pianist Hüseyin Sermet, Macedonian pianist Simon Trpčeski and French pianist Hélène Grimaud. The London Philharmonic Orchestra’s next ventures overseas will take the players to Madrid in February and Bologna, Dijon and Paris in March.

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ADMINISTRATION

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

GENERAL ADMINISTRATION

ORCHESTRA PERSONNEL

ARCHIVES

Martin Höhmann Chairman Stewart McIlwham Vice-Chairman Sue Bohling Simon Carrington Lord Currie* Jonathan Dawson* Anne McAneney George Peniston Sir Bernard Rix* Kevin Rundell Sir Philip Thomas* Sir John Tooley* The Rt Hon. Lord Wakeham DL* Timothy Walker AM †

Timothy Walker AM † Chief Executive and Artistic Director

Andrew Chenery Orchestra Personnel Manager

Edmund Pirouet Consultant

Sarah Thomas Librarian

Philip Stuart Discographer

Michael Pattison Stage Manager

Gillian Pole Recordings Archive

*Non-Executive Directors

Roanna Chandler Concerts Director

THE LONDON PHILHARMONIC TRUST Pehr Gyllenhammar Chairman Desmond Cecil CMG Richard Karl Goeltz Jonathan Harris CBE FRICS Dr Catherine C. Høgel Martin Höhmann Angela Kessler Clive Marks OBE FCA Victoria Sharp Julian Simmonds Timothy Walker AM † Laurence Watt AMERICAN FRIENDS OF THE LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA, INC. We are very grateful to the Board of the American Friends of the London Philharmonic Orchestra for its support of the Orchestra’s activities in the USA. PROFESSIONAL SERVICES Charles Russell Solicitors Crowe Clark Whitehill LLP Auditors Dr Louise Miller Honorary Doctor

Alison Atkinson Digital Projects Manager FINANCE David Burke General Manager and Finance Director David Greenslade Finance and IT Manager CONCERT MANAGEMENT

Ruth Sansom Artistic Administrator

Camilla Begg Assistant Orchestra Personnel Manager Ken Graham Trucking Instrument Transportation (Tel: 01737 373305)

89 Albert Embankment London SE1 7TP Tel: 020 7840 4200 Fax: 020 7840 4201 Box Office: 020 7840 4242

DEVELOPMENT Nick Jackman Development Director Harriet Mesher Charitable Giving Manager

Graham Wood Concerts, Recordings and Glyndebourne Manager

Phoebe Rouse Corporate Relations Manager

Alison Jones Concerts Co-ordinator

Sarah Tattersall Corporate Relations and Events Manager

Jenny Chadwick Tours and Engagements Manager Jo Orr PA to the Executive / Concerts Assistant

Melissa Van Emden Corporate Relations and Events Officer Elisenda Ayats Development and Finance Officer

Matthew Freeman Recordings Consultant

MARKETING

EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY PROGRAMME

Kath Trout Marketing Director

Fiona Lambert Education and Community Consultant

Ellie Dragonetti Marketing Manager

Anne Findlay Education Officer Isobel Timms Community Officer Richard Mallett Education and Community Producer

LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

www.lpo.org.uk Visit the website for full details of London Philharmonic Orchestra activities.

The London Philharmonic Orchestra Limited is a registered charity No. 238045.

Photograph of Szymanowsi courtesy of Lebrecht Music and Arts and of Mahler courtesy of the Royal College of Music, London.

Photograph on the front cover

by Patrick Harrison.

Programmes printed by Cantate.

Helen Boddy Marketing Co-ordinator Frances Cook Publications Manager Samantha Kendall Box Office Administrator (Tel: 020 7840 4242) Ed Weston Intern Valerie Barber Press Consultant (Tel: 020 7586 8560)

†Supported by Macquarie Group

London Philharmonic Orchestra | 15

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FUTURE CONCERTS AT SOUTHBANK CENTRE’S ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL

MAHLER ANNIVERSARY Wednesday 19 January 2011 | 7.30pm Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5 (Emperor) Mahler Symphony No. 5

Barlines – FREE Post-Concert Event Level 2 Foyer at Royal Festival Hall An informal discussion with Vladimir Jurowski following the evening’s performance.

Yannick Nézet-Séguin conductor Nicholas Angelich piano

Vladimir Jurowski and Melanie Diener Yannick NézetSéguin and Nicholas Angelich

Saturday 22 January 2011 | 7.30pm

MAHLER ANNIVERSARY Saturday 29 January 2011 | 7.30pm Ligeti Lontano Bartók Violin Concerto No. 1 Mahler Das klagende Lied (original version)

Franck Symphony in D minor Fauré Requiem Yannick Nézet-Séguin conductor Sally Matthews soprano Gerald Finley bass baritone London Philharmonic Choir Barlines – FREE Post-Concert Event Level 2 Foyer at Royal Festival Hall An informal discussion with Yannick Nézet-Séguin following the evening’s performance.

Vladimir Jurowski conductor Barnabas Kelemen violin Melanie Diener soprano Christianne Stotijn mezzo soprano Michael Koenig tenor Christopher Purves baritone London Philharmonic Choir

Friday 4 February 2011 | 7.30pm Brahms Double Concerto for violin and cello Brahms Symphony No. 1 Sally Matthews and Gerald Finley

Wednesday 26 January 2011 | 7.30pm Peter Eötvös Shadows (UK première of the orchestral version) Liszt Piano Concerto No. 2 Zemlinsky Lyric Symphony Vladimir Jurowski conductor Alexander Markovich piano Melanie Diener soprano Thomas Hampson baritone 6.15pm–6.45pm | FREE Pre-Concert Event Royal Festival Hall Surrey University music lecturer Jeremy Barham discusses Mahler, fin-de-siècle Vienna and the avantgarde generation.

16 | London Philharmonic Orchestra

Kurt Masur conductor Anne-Sophie Mutter violin Daniel Müller-Schott cello

TO BOOK

Tickets £9-£38 | Premium seats £55 London Philharmonic Orchestra Ticket Office 020 7840 4242 | www.lpo.org.uk Mon-Fri 10am-5pm; no booking fee Southbank Centre Ticket Office | 0844 847 9920 www.southbankcentre.co.uk/lpo Daily, 9am-8pm. £2.50 telephone / £1.45 online booking fees; no fee for Southbank Centre members