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Concert programme lpo.org.uk

Winner of the RPS Music Award for Ensemble Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor VLADIMIR JUROWSKI* Leader pieter schoeman† Composer in Residence magnus lindberg Patron HRH THE DUKE OF KENT KG Chief Executive and Artistic Director TIMOTHY WALKER AM

JTI Friday Series Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall Friday 17 April 2015 | 7.30pm Debussy Prélude à l’après midi d’un faune (10’) Lalo Symphonie espagnole, Op. 21

(31’)

Interval Brahms Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68 (45’) Omer Meir Wellber conductor Augustin Hadelich violin Tonight’s concert is dedicated to Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos (1933–2014), who was to have conducted this evening’s performance. ‡ Supported by

* supported by the Tsukanov Family Foundation † supported by Neil Westreich CONCERT PRESENTED BY THE LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

Contents 2 Welcome 3 On stage tonight 4 About the Orchestra 5 Leader: Pieter Schoeman 6 Omer Meir Wellber 7 Augustin Hadelich 9 Programme notes 12 Future LPO concerts Recommended Recordings 13 LPO 2015/16 season 14 Supporters 15 Sound Futures donors 16 LPO administration The timings shown are not precise and are given only as a guide.

Free pre-concert event 6.00pm–6.45pm Royal Festival Hall ‘A ray of sunshine in the light French mist’: French music expert Roger Nichols explores the music of Édouard Lalo.

Welcome

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, Feng Sushi and Topolski, 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 the Visitor Experience Team at Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London SE1 8XX, phone 020 7960 4250, or email customer@southbankcentre.co.uk 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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London Philharmonic Orchestra 2014/15 season Welcome to tonight’s London Philharmonic Orchestra concert at Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall conducted by Omer Meir Wellber with Augustin Hadelich performing Lalo’s Symphonie espagnole. It was with sadness that we heard the news of the death of conductor Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos last summer. He was to have led tonight’s performance and we are grateful to Omer for stepping in. LPO Glyndebourne recording wins award We were thrilled to hear the announcement on 7 April that the Glyndebourne CD recording of Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg with the LPO conducted by Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor Vladimir Jurowski has won in the category of Best Opera for the BBC Music Magazine Awards 2015. ‘Musically,’ wrote Tim Ashley about the performance in The Guardian, ‘it was judged faultlessly for the scale of the theatre by Vladimir Jurowski, who conjured playing of mercurial clarity from the London Philharmonic Orchestra.’ classical-music.com/awards LPO at Glyndebourne As the 2014/15 season gallops at an alarming presto to its end, the Orchestra is gearing up for the next Glyndebourne season. The LPO will be playing for Bizet’s Carmen, Donizetti’s Poliuto, a double bill of Ravel’s L’Heure Espagnole and L’Enfant et les Sortileges, and Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia. General booking is now open. glyndebourne.com

On stage tonight

First Violins Pieter Schoeman* Leader Chair supported by Neil Westreich

Vesselin Gellev Sub-Leader Ilyoung Chae Chair supported by an anonymous donor

Catherine Craig Thomas Eisner Martin Höhmann Geoffrey Lynn Chair supported by Caroline, Jamie & Zander Sharp

Robert Pool Sarah Streatfeild Rebecca Shorrock Galina Tanney Robert Yeomans Ishani Bhoola Helena Smart Caroline Sharp Eugene Lee Second Violins Nicole Wilson Guest Principal Jeongmin Kim Tania Mazzetti Kate Birchall Chair supported by David & Victoria Graham Fuller

Nancy Elan Lorenzo Gentili-Tedeschi Fiona Higham Nynke Hijlkema Joseph Maher Marie-Anne Mairesse Ashley Stevens Floortje Gerritsen Dean Williamson Harry Kerr

Violas Cyrille Mercier Principal Robert Duncan Katharine Leek Susanne Martens Benedetto Pollani Emmanuella Reiter Laura Vallejo Naomi Holt Isabel Pereira Daniel Cornford Alistair Scahill Sarah Malcolm Cellos Kristina Blaumane Principal Chair supported by Bianca and Stuart Roden

Steffan Morris Francis Bucknall Laura Donoghue Santiago Carvalho† David Lale Elisabeth Wiklander Sue Sutherley Susanna Riddell Sibylle Hentschel Double Basses Tim Gibbs Principal Laurence Lovelle George Peniston Richard Lewis William Cole Tom Walley Laura Murphy Helen Rowlands

Flutes Sue Thomas* Principal

Trumpets Paul Beniston* Principal Anne McAneney*

Chair supported by Victoria Robey OBE

Chair supported by Geoff & Meg Mann

Hannah Grayson Stewart McIlwham*

Trombones Mark Templeton* Principal

Piccolo Stewart McIlwham* Principal

Chair supported by William & Alex de Winton

David Whitehouse

Oboes Ian Hardwick* Principal Jenny Brittlebank

Bass Trombone Lyndon Meredith Principal

Cor Anglais Sue Böhling* Principal

Timpani Simon Carrington* Principal

Clarinets Robert Hill* Principal Thomas Watmough

Percussion Andrew Barclay* Principal Chair supported by Andrew Davenport

Bassoons Gareth Newman Principal Emma Harding Contrabassoon Simon Estell Principal Horns David Pyatt* Principal Chair supported by Simon Robey

John Ryan* Principal Martin Hobbs Mark Vines Co-Principal Gareth Mollison

Keith Millar Harps Rachel Masters* Principal Lucy Haslar * Holds a professorial appointment in London † Chevalier of the Brazilian Order of Rio Branco Meet our members: lpo.org.uk/players

Chair Supporters The London Philharmonic Orchestra also acknowledges the following chair supporters whose players are not present at this concert: Sonja Drexler; Eric Tomsett; Friends of the Orchestra

London Philharmonic Orchestra | 3

London Philharmonic Orchestra

Another evening of ambition and high quality with the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Richard Fairman, Financial Times, March 2015 The London Philharmonic Orchestra is one of the world’s finest orchestras, balancing a long and distinguished history with its present-day position as one of the most dynamic and forward-looking ensembles in the UK. As well as its performances in the concert hall, the Orchestra also records film and video game soundtracks, releases CDs on its own record label, and reaches thousands of people every year through activities for families, schools and community groups. The Orchestra was founded by Sir Thomas Beecham in 1932. It has since been headed by many of the world’s greatest conductors including Sir Adrian Boult, Bernard Haitink, Sir Georg Solti, Klaus Tennstedt and Kurt Masur. Vladimir Jurowski is currently the Orchestra’s Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor, appointed in 2007. From September 2015 Andrés Orozco-Estrada will take up the position of Principal Guest Conductor. Magnus Lindberg is the Orchestra’s current Composer in Residence. The Orchestra is based at Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall in London, where it has performed since the Hall’s opening in 1951 and been Resident Orchestra since 1992. It gives around 30 concerts there each season with many of the world’s top conductors and

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soloists. Throughout 2013 the Orchestra collaborated with Southbank Centre on the year-long The Rest Is Noise festival, charting the influential works of the 20th century. 2014/15 highlights include a seasonlong festival, Rachmaninoff: Inside Out, exploring the composer’s major orchestral masterpieces; premieres of works by Harrison Birtwistle, Julian Anderson, Colin Matthews, James Horner and the Orchestra’s new Composer in Residence, Magnus Lindberg; and appearances by many of today’s most soughtafter artists including Maria João Pires, Christoph Eschenbach, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Osmo Vänskä, Lars Vogt, Barbara Hannigan, Vasily Petrenko, Marin Alsop, Katia and Marielle Labèque and Robin Ticciati. Outside London, the Orchestra has flourishing residencies in Brighton and Eastbourne, and performs regularly around the UK. Each summer it takes up its annual residency at Glyndebourne Festival Opera in the Sussex countryside, where it has been Resident Symphony Orchestra for over 50 years. The Orchestra also tours internationally, performing to sell-out audiences worldwide. 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.

Pieter Schoeman leader

Pieter Schoeman was appointed Leader of the LPO in 2008, having previously been Co-Leader since 2002.

The London Philharmonic Orchestra has recorded the soundtracks to numerous blockbuster films, from The Lord of the Rings trilogy to Lawrence of Arabia, East is East, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and Thor: The Dark World. It also broadcasts regularly on television and radio, and in 2005 established its own record label. There are now over 80 releases available on CD and to download. Recent additions include organ works by Poulenc and Saint-Saëns with Yannick Nézet-Séguin; Strauss’s Don Juan and Ein Heldenleben with Bernard Haitink; Shostakovich’s Symphonies Nos. 6 & 14 and Zemlinsky’s A Florentine Tragedy with Vladimir Jurowski; and Orff’s Carmina Burana with Hans Graf. In summer 2012 the London Philharmonic Orchestra performed as part of The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Pageant on the River Thames, and was also chosen to record all the world’s national anthems for the London 2012 Olympics. In 2013 it was the winner of the RPS Music Award for Ensemble. The London Philharmonic Orchestra is committed to inspiring the next generation of musicians through an energetic programme of activities for young people. Highlights include the BrightSparks schools’ concerts and FUNharmonics family concerts; the Young Composers Programme; and the Foyle Future Firsts orchestral training programme for outstanding young players. Its work at the forefront of digital engagement and social media has enabled the Orchestra to reach even more people worldwide: all its recordings are available to download from iTunes and, as well as a YouTube channel and regular podcast series, the Orchestra has a lively presence on Facebook and Twitter.

Touring remains a large part of the Orchestra’s life: highlights of the 2014/15 season include appearances across Europe (including Iceland) and tours to the USA (West and East Coasts), Canada and China.

Born in South Africa, he made his solo debut aged 10 with the Cape Town Symphony Orchestra. He studied with Jack de Wet in South Africa, winning numerous competitions including the 1984 World Youth Concerto Competition in the US. 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 has performed worldwide as a soloist and recitalist 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 Southbank Centre’s 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, Pieter has performed Arvo Pärt’s Double Concerto with Boris Garlitsky, Brahms’s Double Concerto with Kristina Blaumane, and Britten’s Double Concerto with Alexander Zemtsov, which was recorded and released on the Orchestra’s own record label to great critical acclaim. He has recorded numerous violin solos with the London Philharmonic Orchestra for Chandos, Opera Rara, Naxos, X5, the BBC and for American film and television, and led the Orchestra in its soundtrack recordings for The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

Find out more and get involved! lpo.org.uk facebook.com/londonphilharmonicorchestra twitter.com/LPOrchestra youtube.com/londonphilharmonic7

In 1995 Pieter became Co-Leader of the Orchestre Philharmonique de Nice. Since then he has appeared frequently as Guest Leader with the Barcelona, Bordeaux, Lyon, Baltimore and BBC symphony orchestras, and the Rotterdam and BBC Philharmonic orchestras. He is a Professor of Violin at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in London. Pieter’s chair in the London Philharmonic Orchestra is supported by Neil Westreich. London Philharmonic Orchestra | 5

Omer Meir Wellber conductor

Omer Meir Wellber draws enthusiastic playing from the London Philharmonic in a beautifully fluent account of Eugene Onegin.

George Hall, The Guardian, May 2014

Omer Meir Wellber was born in Be’er Sheva, Israel in 1981. In recent seasons he has made successful debuts with a number of orchestras including the Bavarian State Opera Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, RAI National Symphony Orchestra and ORF Radio Symphony Orchestra at the Wiener Festwochen, and is a regular guest conductor at the Israeli Opera, the Semperoper Dresden and at La Fenice Venice. Since 2009, he has been Music Director of the Raanana Symphonette Orchestra, founded in 1991 to help aid the integration of Jewish immigrants in Israel. This season he returned to the Bavarian State Opera for performances of Carmen plus two symphonic concerts (Akademiekonzerte). In Dresden, he will conduct a concert at the Staatskapelle and continue his Mozart/ Da Ponte trilogy at the Semperoper with The Marriage of Figaro. In the 2015/16 season Omer will conduct the premiere of the new production of Mefistofele by Boito at the Bavarian State Opera. Between 2008 and 2010 he assisted Daniel Barenboim at the Berliner Staatsoper Unter den Linden and at La Scala Milan. From 2010 to 2014, he held the position of Music Director at the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia in Valencia. In June 2013 he conducted the jubilee performance of Aida with La Fura dels Baus in the Arena di Verona to great acclaim. A DVD of the production was released by BelAir classiques in 2014. His debut at the Semperoper Dresden with Strauss’s Daphne (2010) led to a strong relationship with the opera house and the Staatskapelle Dresden. In 2014, Omer conducted Strauss’s Ariadne auf Naxos and a concert performance of Guntram, and opened a Mozart/Da Ponte trilogy with

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Così fan tutte, staged by Andreas Kriegenburg. Other engagements include performances at La Scala, the Teatro Massimo in Palermo and the Berliner Staatsoper, and he has conducted numerous symphony concerts with the Orchestre de Paris, the Filarmonica della Scala, the NDR Radiophilharmonie in Hannover, and the hr-Sinfonieorchester in Frankfurt. Omer is a Good Will Ambassador for the Israeli-based international humanitarian organisation Save a Child’s Heart, which provides lifesaving cardiac surgery and treatment for children from developing countries and a training programme for doctors and nurses from those countries. He also supports Sarab – Strings of change, a project that strives to introduce a life transforming music programme where it is needed most: among the Bedouins of the Negev, one of the poorest and most discriminated groups within Israeli society. This evening’s concert marks Omer’s debut with the London Philharmonic Orchestra; the invitation came following his acclaimed debut at the Glyndebourne Festival with the Orchestra in May 2014. omermeirwellber.com

facebook.com/OmerMeirWellber Omer’s YouTube channel: bit.ly/19Fg960

Augustin Hadelich violin

From the opening movement of the first piece ... the level of playing was superb. Mr Hadelich’s combination of rich-toned elegance and impish spontaneity was wonderful.

Anthony Tommasini, The New York Times, December 2013

The son of German parents, Augustin Hadelich was born and raised in Italy and has been resident in New York City since 2004. He stands out as an artist through his adventurous repertoire from Paganini to Brahms, Bartók to Thomas Adès. Highlights this season in Europe include debuts with the BBC Symphony, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic and Danish National Symphony orchestras. He will be Artist-in-Residence with the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra and at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw. He returns to Japan twice, including making his debut with the NHK Symphony Orchestra. In the USA he performs with the New York Philharmonic as well as the symphony orchestras of Baltimore, Dallas, Toronto, Minnesota, Houston and Seattle. Augustin has also performed with many international orchestras including the Cleveland Orchestra, Boston Symphony, BBC Philharmonic, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg, and the SWR Stuttgart Radio Orchestra. He has collaborated with renowned conductors including Marin Alsop, Herbert Blomstedt, Andrew Litton, Sir Neville Marriner, Yan Pascal Tortelier, Edo de Waart and the late Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos. Augustin’s recordings on the AVIE label include the Gramophone Award-nominated pairing of the violin concertos of Sibelius and Adès (Concentric Paths) with Hannu Lintu conducting the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra; Histoire du Tango: violinguitar works in collaboration with Pablo Villegas; Echoes of Paris, featuring French and Russian repertoire

influenced by Parisian culture in the early 20th century; and Flying Solo, a CD of masterworks for solo violin. A recent recording of the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto and Bartók’s Concerto No. 2 with the Norwegian Radio Orchestra under Miguel Harth-Bedoya is scheduled for imminent release on AVIE. An enthusiastic recitalist, Augustin Hadelich made his debut at Wigmore Hall this season and has appeared at Carnegie Hall (New York), Kennedy Center (Washington, DC), Amsterdam Concertgebouw, De Singel (Antwerp), Louvre (Paris), Kioi Hall (Tokyo), and the chamber music societies of Detroit, Philadelphia, La Jolla, Seattle and Vancouver. Augustin was Gold Medalist of the Indianapolis International Violin Competition in 2006 and is recipient of Lincoln Center’s Martin E Segal Award (2012), an Avery Fisher Career Grant (2009) and a Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship (2011). He plays the 1723 ‘Ex-Kiesewetter’ Stradivarius violin, on loan from Clement and Karen Arrison through the Stradivari Society of Chicago. Tonight’s performance marks Augustin’s debut with the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

augustin-hadelich.com

London Philharmonic Orchestra | 7

"For me the best music in the world is the beat of the heart of someone you love. Save A Child’s Heart endeavours to heal a person’s most precious instrument, regardless of who they are, or where they come from. I feel a kinship with this very special organisation and support its inspirational mission."

Omer Meir Wellber is Good Will Ambassador for the Israeli-based international humanitarian organisation, Save a Child’s Heart, which provides lifesaving cardiac surgery and treatment for children from developing countries and a training programme for doctors and nurses from those countries. A big heart can help to save a little one - through a life-saving donation:

www.saveachildsheart.org

PALAZZETTO BRU ZANE The vocation of the Palazzetto Bru Zane – Centre de musique romantique française is to favour the rediscovery of the French musical heritage of the years 1780-1920 and obtain international recognition for that repertoire. Housed in Venice in a palazzo dating from 1695, specially restored for the purpose, the Palazzetto Bru Zane – Centre de musique romantique française is one of the achievements of the Fondation Bru. Combining artistic ambition with high scientific standards, the Centre reflects the humanist spirit that guides the actions of that foundation. The Palazzetto Bru Zane’s main activities, carried out in close collaboration with numerous partners, are research, the publication of books and scores, the organisation and international distribution of concerts, support for teaching projects and the production of CD recordings. BRU-ZANE.COM

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Programme notes

Speedread Fortune favours the brave. Writing his sensuous Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune, Claude Debussy moved far beyond the structural and harmonic principles of 19th-century music and peered into a more liberated future. Debussy’s compatriot Édouard Lalo also looked past his immediate surroundings, finding inspiration in the sun-drenched sounds of neighbouring Spain. Employing the distinctive modes and rhythms of the music of the Iberian Peninsula, Lalo’s Symphonie espagnole, a virtuoso conflation of symphony and violin concerto, began a Hispanic trend within French music. Over the country’s eastern

Claude Debussy 1862–1918

Opinions vary as to when the modern musical era began. Few, however, would contest that Debussy’s 1894 Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune was among a host of works at the starting gate. This symphonic poem, inspired by poet Stéphane Mallarmé’s ‘L’Aprèsmidi d’un faune’, announced Debussy’s talents to fin-de-siècle Paris, coming quickly on the heels of his cantata La Damoiselle élue and the String Quartet. Mallarmé had first approached Debussy with his poem about the sensual experiences of a young faun in 1890, when he thought it would make a stimulating theatre project. That was never to be realised, though the poem clearly had a lasting impact on Debussy, who continued to mull over the idea for the next four years, during which time he completed his Prélude.

border, Hamburg-born Brahms was one of many composers bravely facing the ghosts of the past, not least that of the arch-symphonist Beethoven. Having started his First Symphony in 1862, Brahms took well over a decade to complete the four-movement work. But it was entirely worth the wait, for Brahms not only managed to acknowledge his esteemed predecessors, but also strode out with humility and a stirring sense of independence.

Piano Concerto No. 3 in Dd’un minor, Op. 30 Prélude à l’après-midi faune Simon Trpčeski piano 1 Allegro ma non tanto 2 Intermezzo: Adagio – 3 Finale: Alla breve

plotless form of Debussy’s music. Its initial flute gesture encompasses a destabilising tritone. Clearly no longer in a diatonic realm, we find ourselves moving towards the emancipation of dissonance. The openness of that inaugural motif plays out across the entire work, in which themes evolve freely, rising from timorous beginnings to full-blooded climaxes. Their recurrence is almost as imperceptible as Debussy’s movement between metres. And, along with the gorgeously gossamer orchestrations, these elements give an overriding impression of spontaneity – echoing the unbounded sexuality of the faun – which conceals the detailed structuring of the work. Eventually, after numerous encounters with nymphs and naiads, the faun’s afternoon comes to a quiet twilit close.

What might have proved too literal in the theatre is granted imaginative and musical freedom by the

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Programme notes continued

Édouard Lalo 1823–92

Orientalism was big business during the 19th century. With world fairs, grand exhibitions and more open trade routes, Western Europeans had ready access to the East. Yet the French did not have to look too far beyond their own borders for a dose of ‘the Other’. Spain, with its colourful Moorish past and gypsy encampments, to say nothing of seducers such as Don Juan, offered a ready source of exoticism. And so ensued numerous compositions invoking the Phrygian modes of flamenco, as well as the clack and ting of castanet and tambourine. Bizet’s Carmen might be considered the beginnings of ‘Iberomania’, though Édouard Lalo’s Symphonie espagnole had its much more successful premiere in Paris in February 1875, a month before that of the famous opera. Lalo’s sinfonia concertante, mixing elements of symphony and concerto (albeit leaning on the latter), was written for the Spanish violinist Pablo de Sarasate, who guaranteed his fame with his 1882 Fantaisie du concert based on themes from Carmen. Like Sarasate, Lalo’s ancestors came from Spain, though they had resided in Northern France and Flanders for a few centuries by the time he was born. Having trained at the Lille Conservatoire, he continued his studies in Paris, where he began to establish his career, helped by friends such as Berlioz and the prominent Orientalist painter Eugène Delacroix. But it was not until the 1870s and the premiere of the Symphonie espagnole that Lalo’s reputation was secured.

Piano Concertoespagnole No. 3 in DOp. minor, Symphonie 21 Op. 30 Simon Trpčeski piano violin Augustin Hadelich 1 2 3

Allegro manon non troppo tanto 1 Allegro Intermezzo: Adagio – molto 2 Scherzando: Allegro Finale: Alla breve 3 Intermezzo: Allegro non troppo 4 Andante 5 Rondo: Allegro

The work unfolds over five interlinked movements. The opening Allegro, in D minor, has passionate resolve, giving way to a sultrier second subject. The movement’s abrupt dynamic contrasts continue in the scurrying textures of the seguidilla-inspired Scherzando. Beginning with gruff orchestral stamps, the ensuing Intermezzo gradually reveals a seductive habañera. The brass at the start of the D minor Andante, on the other hand, sound a more Teutonic note, looking ahead to Lalo’s Wagnerian opera Le Roi d’Ys. The soloist enters with a dolorous theme here, which blooms into something sweetly nostalgic. This is all shrugged off by the fiesta-like finale, featuring a leaping alta danza. Various spirited episodes follow and there is a brief reappearance of the theme from the first movement (now cast in D major), before soloist and orchestra join together for a final dash of brilliance.

Interval – 20 minutes An announcement will be made five minutes before the end of the interval.

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Johannes Brahms 1833–97

When Beethoven died in 1827, the poet and playwright Franz Grillparzer asked the mourners at the funeral, ‘who shall stand beside him?’ That demand echoed down the century, not least for anyone who dared to write a symphony. The shadow of Beethoven’s nine totemic examples loomed large. Some composers, like Berlioz and Mendelssohn, ploughed a more programmatic furrow, while the young Brahms appeared to prevaricate, notwithstanding his two youthful serenades and the symphonic First Piano Concerto (with its nods to Beethoven’s Ninth). Having completed the D minor Concerto in 1859, Brahms began work on what would become the opening movement of his First Symphony in 1862. He chose C minor as its home key, a brave choice given its Beethovenian connotations (not least with the composer’s heroic Fifth Symphony). Brahms’s preliminary courage then failed him and it was not until the summer of 1876 that he finally completed the work. But what Brahms eventually revealed to the world in Karlsruhe that November was remarkable. Conductor and pianist Hans von Bülow described the piece as ‘Beethoven’s Tenth’, but more importantly, it was Brahms’s First. Vanquishing former demons, it paved the way for an entirely new world of symphonism. The first movement begins with a throbbing introduction in C minor, as resolute as it is imposing. More spectral music emerges from the woodwind, accompanied by pizzicato (plucked) strings, in which former harmonic and metrical stabilities evaporate. There is tension (as well as tenacity) here, unleashed in the combative exposition, with its surging theme characterised by a rising legato figure and a staccato fall. A more peaceable passage follows, moving, by means of newly aggressive music, into the mysterious development section. The allusion here to a Johann Crüger chorale, known to English churchgoers as ‘Hail to the Lord’s Anointed’, gives short-lived comfort,

Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68 1 2 3 4

Un poco sostenuto – Allegro Andante sostenuto Un poco allegretto e grazioso Adagio – Allegro non troppo, ma con brio

as the recapitulation proves just as antagonistic as the exposition. Finally, the music of the introduction returns, now underpinned by the characteristic fournote ‘fate’ rhythm of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. The move to E major in the Andante marks a decided change in mood. Although something of the subverting chromaticism of the first movement remains, it now triggers a heartfelt aria, told by a solo oboe and clarinet. Urgent sounds begin to stir, prompting a modulation to the minor, though jeopardy is brief and, more often than not, a seraphic temper persists. Bar a few chromatic excursions and breaks in the rhythmic flow, the bubblingly bucolic Allegretto likewise gives little indication of lasting unrest. The reappearance of C minor at the start of the finale, however, reawakens old anxieties. Its opening motifs have clear kinship with those of the first movement’s introduction, as does the presence of the timpani, rumbling underneath. There is a cautious (and then rather hasty) pizzicato passage and another orchestral growl, in the midst of which we perceive a hopeful rising fourth, which will eventually become the springboard to the movement’s principal theme. But first it has to shed its minor-key clothing. Another chromatic skirmish ensues, before an entirely new light is thrown on the proceedings. Over a haze of muted strings, we hear a heroic – almost Wagnerian – horn solo, inspired by music Brahms had heard in the Swiss Alps in the summer of 1868. This, at last, placates the Symphony’s impetuosity, as Brahms reveals the noble theme that will come to crown his First Symphony. Starting low in the strings, this not only acknowledges the work’s formerly pugnacious chromaticism, but also strides boldly ahead, imbuing everything with its optimism. Finally, the melody slips its moorings and launches into a thrillingly liberated coda in C major. Programme notes © Gavin Plumley London Philharmonic Orchestra | 11

The next LPO concert at Royal Festival Hall Saturday 25 April 2015 7.30pm

Wednesday 29 April 2015 | 7.30pm Rachmaninoff (arr. Butsko) Piano Works, Four Movements (arr. Jurowski) 10 Songs Symphony No. 3 Vladimir Jurowski conductor Vsevolod Grivnov tenor Rachmaninoff: Inside Out is presented in co-operation with the Serge Rachmaninoff Foundation.

lpo.org.uk/rachmaninoff

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The sound Jurowski coaxed from the LPO was exquisite. performance of The Miserly Knight Matthew Right, The Arts Desk, January 2015

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Rachmaninoff’s Spring Cantata did credit to the LPO’s Rachamininoff: Inside Out series. Hilary Finch, The Times, February 2015, 4-stars

The final concert in this year-long series

Wagner Overture, The Flying Dutchman Beethoven Symphony No. 4 Janáček Glagolitic Mass Tomáš Netopil conductor Andrea Danková soprano Karen Cargill mezzo soprano Kor-Jan Dusseljee tenor Jochen Schmeckenbecher baritone Catherine Edwards organ London Philharmonic Choir Orfeó Català Cor de Cambra del Palau de la Música Tickets £9–£39 (premium seats £65) London Philharmonic Orchestra Ticket Office 020 7840 4242 Monday–Friday 10.00am–5.00pm lpo.org.uk Transaction fees: £1.75 online, £2.75 telephone.

Recommended recordings of tonight’s works Debussy: Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune London Philharmonic Orchestra | Claudio Abbado [Classics for Pleasure] Lalo: Symphonie espagnole Maxim Vengerov | Philharmonia Orchestra | Antonio Pappano [EMI] Brahms: Symphony No. 1 London Philharmonic Orchestra | Vladimir Jurowski [LPO LPO-0043]* London Philharmonic Orchestra | Klaus Tennstedt [LPO LPO-0068]* *priced £10.99, available at lpo.org.uk/recordings

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2015/16 season at Royal Festival Hall Highlights 2015

2016

Wednesday 23 September Mahler Symphony No 7 Vladimir Jurowski conductor

Shakespeare400 In 2016 the LPO joins many of London’s other leading cultural institutions to celebrate the legacy of Shakespeare, 400 years since his death. Highlights include:

Wednesday 14 October Penderecki conducts Penderecki including UK premieres of Harp Concerto and Adagio for Strings

Wednesday 3 February Dvorˇák Overture, Otello

Saturday 31 October Bruckner Symphony No. 5 Stanisław Skrowaczewski conductor Friday 6 November A celebration of Mexican orchestral music Alondra de la Parra conductor JTI Friday Series

Wednesday 10 February Sibelius The Tempest (extracts) Friday 15 April Prokofiev Romeo and Juliet (extracts) JTI Friday Series Saturday 23 April Anniversary Gala Concert Including: Verdi Otello and Falstaff (extracts) Music from Britten, Mendelssohn and Walton Vladimir Jurowski conductor Simon Callow director Booking now Tickets from £9.00 Ticket office 020 7840 4242 lpo.org.uk

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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 The Tsukanov Family Foundation Neil Westreich William and Alex de Winton Simon Robey Victoria Robey OBE Bianca & Stuart Roden Julian & Gill Simmonds* Anonymous Garf & Gill Collins* Andrew Davenport Mrs Sonja Drexler David & Victoria Graham Fuller Mrs Philip Kan* Mr & Mrs Makharinsky Geoff & Meg Mann Caroline, Jamie & Zander Sharp Eric Tomsett John & Manon Antoniazzi John & Angela Kessler Guy & Utti Whittaker * BrightSparks patrons. Instead of supporting a chair in the Orchestra, these donors have chosen to support our series of schools’ concerts.

Principal Benefactors Mark & Elizabeth Adams Desmond & Ruth Cecil Mr John H Cook David Ellen Mr Daniel Goldstein Drs Frank & Gek Lim Peter MacDonald Eggers Dr Eva Lotta & Mr Thierry Sciard Mr & Mrs David Malpas Mr Michael Posen Mr & Mrs G Stein Mr & Mrs John C Tucker Mr & Mrs John & Susi Underwood Lady Marina Vaizey Laurence Watt Grenville & Krysia Williams Mr Anthony Yolland Benefactors Mrs A Beare David & Patricia Buck Mrs Alan Carrington Mr & Mrs Stewart Cohen Mr Alistair Corbett Georgy Djaparidze Mr David Edgecombe Mr Timothy Fancourt QC Mr Richard Fernyhough Tony & Susan Hayes Michael & Christine Henry Malcolm Herring J. Douglas Home

Ivan Hurry Mr Glenn Hurstfield Per Jonsson Mr Gerald Levin Wg. Cdr. & Mrs M T Liddiard OBE JP RAF Paul & Brigitta Lock Mr Peter Mace Ms Ulrike Mansel Robert Markwick Mr Brian Marsh Andrew T Mills Dr Karen Morton Mr & Mrs Andrew Neill Tom & Phillis Sharpe Martin and Cheryl Southgate Mr Peter Tausig Simon Turner Howard & Sheelagh Watson Des & Maggie Whitelock Christopher Williams Bill Yoe and others who wish to remain anonymous Hon. Benefactor Elliott Bernerd Hon. Life Members Kenneth Goode Carol Colburn Grigor CBE Pehr G Gyllenhammar Mrs Jackie Rosenfeld OBE

The generosity of our Sponsors, Corporate Members, supporters and donors is gratefully acknowledged: Corporate Members Silver: Accenture AREVA UK Berenberg British American Business Carter-Ruck Bronze: Appleyard & Trew LLP BTO Management Consulting AG Charles Russell Speechlys Leventis Overseas Preferred Partners Corinthia Hotel London Heineken Lindt & Sprüngli Ltd Sipsmith Steinway Villa Maria In-kind Sponsors Google Inc Sela / Tilley’s Sweets Trusts and Foundations Angus Allnatt Charitable Foundation Ambache Charitable Trust Ruth Berkowitz Charitable Trust The Bernarr Rainbow Trust

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The Boltini Trust Borletti-Buitoni Trust Britten-Pears Foundation The Candide Trust The Peter Carr Charitable Trust, in memory of Peter Carr The Ernest Cook Trust The Coutts Charitable Trust The D’Oyly Carte Charitable Trust Dunard Fund The Equitable Charitable Trust Fidelio Charitable Trust The Foyle Foundation Lucille Graham Trust The Jeniffer and Jonathan Harris Charitable Trust Help Musicians UK The Hinrichsen Foundation The Hobson Charity The Idlewild Trust Kirby Laing Foundation The Leche Trust London Stock Exchange Group Foundation Marsh Christian Trust The Mayor of London’s Fund for Young Musicians Adam Mickiewicz Institute The Peter Minet Trust The Ann and Frederick O’Brien Charitable Trust

Office for Cultural and Scientific Affairs of the Embassy of Spain in London Palazzetto Bru Zane – Centre de musique romantique française The Austin and Hope Pilkington Trust Polish Cultural Institute in London PRS for Music Foundation The Radcliffe Trust Rivers Foundation The R K Charitable Trust RVW Trust Serge Rachmaninoff Foundation Romanian Cultural Institute Schroder Charity Trust Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation The David Solomons Charitable Trust Souter Charitable Trust The Steel Charitable Trust The John Thaw Foundation The Tillett Trust UK Friends of the Felix-MendelssohnBartholdy-Foundation The Viney Family Garfield Weston Foundation The Barbara Whatmore Charitable Trust Youth Music and others who wish to remain anonymous

Sound Futures Donors By May 2015 we aim to have raised £1 million which will be matched pound for pound by Arts Council England through a Catalyst Endowment grant. This will create a £2 million endowment fund supporting our Education and Community Programme, our creative programming and major artistic projects at Southbank Centre. We are grateful to the following donors for their generous contributions to our Sound Futures campaign. For a full list of those who have given to this campaign please visit lpo.org.uk/soundfutures.

Masur Circle Arts Council England Dunard Fund Victoria Robey OBE Emmanuel & Barrie Roman The Underwood Trust Welser-Möst Circle William & Alex de Winton John Ireland Charitable Trust The Tsukanov Family Foundation Neil Westreich Tennstedt Circle Richard Buxton Kirby Laing Foundation Simon Robey Bianca & Stuart Roden Simon & Vero Turner The late Mr K Twyman Solti Patrons Ageas John & Manon Antoniazzi Georgy Djaparidze Mrs Mina Goodman and Miss Suzanne Goodman Mr James R D Korner Robert Markwick & Kasia Robinski The Rothschild Foundation Haitink Patrons Dr Christopher Aldren Mark & Elizabeth Adams Mrs Pauline Baumgartner Lady Jane Berrill Mr Frederick Brittenden David & Yi Yao Buckley Mr Clive Butler Gill & Garf Collins Mr John H Cook Bruno de Kegel Mr Gavin Graham

The Lady Foley Karima & David G Mr Daniel Goldstein Mr Derek B Gray Mr Roger Greenwood Mr J Douglas Home Honeymead Arts Trust Mrs Dawn Hooper Rehmet Kassim-Lakha Mr Geoffrey Kirkham Peter Leaver Wg Cdr & Mrs M T Liddiard OBE JP RAF Drs Frank & Gek Lim Peter Mace Mr David Macfarlane Geoff & Meg Mann Dr David McGibney Michael & Patricia McLaren-Turner John Montgomery Rosemary Morgan Paris Natar Mr & Mrs Andrew Neill Mr Roger H C Pattison The late Edmund Pirouet Mr Michael Posen Sarah & John Priestland Mr Christopher Queree Mr Alan Sainer Pritchard Donors Tim Slorick Ralph and Elizabeth Aldwinckle Lady Valerie Solti Michael and Linda Blackstone Timothy Walker AM Conrad Blakey OBE Laurence Watt Dr Anthony Buckland Mr R Watts Business Events Sydney Christopher Williams Lady June Chichester John Childress & Christiane Wuillamie Peter Wilson Smith Victoria Yanakova Paul Collins Mr Anthony Yolland Mr Alistair Corbett Mr David Edgecombe And all other donors who wish to David Ellen remain anonymous Mr Timothy Fancourt QC Moya Greene Mrs Dorothy Hambleton Tony and Susie Hayes Catherine Høgel & Ben Mardle Mrs Philip Kan Rose and Dudley Leigh Lady Roslyn Marion Lyons Miss Jeanette Martin Duncan Matthews QC Diana and Allan Morgenthau Charitable Trust Dr Karen Morton Mr Roger Phillimore Ruth Rattenbury The Reed Foundation Sir Bernard Rix David Ross and Line Forestier (Canada) Carolina & Martin Schwab Tom and Phillis Sharpe Dr Brian Smith Mr & Mrs G Stein Dr Peter Stephenson Miss Anne Stoddart TFS Loans Limited Lady Marina Vaizey Jenny Watson Guy & Utti Whittaker

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Administration

Board of Directors Victoria Robey OBE Chairman Stewart McIlwham* President Gareth Newman* Vice-President Dr Manon Antoniazzi Richard Brass Desmond Cecil CMG Vesselin Gellev* Jonathan Harris CBE FRICS Dr Catherine C. Høgel Martin Höhmann* George Peniston* Kevin Rundell* Julian Simmonds Mark Templeton* Natasha Tsukanova Timothy Walker AM Laurence Watt Neil Westreich

Chief Executive

Education and Community

Digital Projects

Timothy Walker AM Chief Executive and Artistic Director

Isabella Kernot Education Director

Alison Atkinson Digital Projects Director

Alexandra Clarke Education and Community Project Manager

Matthew Freeman Recordings Consultant

Amy Sugarman PA to the Chief Executive / Administrative Assistant Finance David Burke General Manager and Finance Director David Greenslade Finance and IT Manager

Lucy Duffy Education and Community Project Manager

Public Relations Albion Media (Tel: 020 3077 4930)

Richard Mallett Education and Community Producer