London Philharmonic Orchestra concert programme 21 Feb 2014

Concert programme 2013/14 season

Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor 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

JTI Friday Series Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall Friday 21 February 2014 | 7.30pm

Berlioz Overture, Le Corsaire (9’) Rachmaninoff Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini (23’) Interval Elgar Symphony No. 2 in E flat major (54’)

Programme £3 Contents 2

3 4 5 6 7 10 11 12 13 14 15 16

Welcome Brian Hart 1964–2014 About the Orchestra On stage tonight Vasily Petrenko Kirill Gerstein Programme notes LPO 2014/15 season Next concerts Annual Appeal: Tickets Please!

Orchestra news Catalyst: Double Your Donation Supporters LPO administration

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

Vasily Petrenko conductor Kirill Gerstein piano

Tonight’s concert is dedicated to the memory of Brian Hart.

* supported by the Tsukanov Family Foundation and one anonymous donor CONCERT PRESENTED BY THE LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

Welcome

Brian Hart 1964–2014

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.

It was with great sadness that we learnt of the sudden and untimely death of the Orchestra’s Transport Manager, Brian Hart, on 5 January 2014. Brian joined the London Philharmonic Orchestra in May 2013 following many years as a truck driver for the London Symphony Orchestra. Since joining the LPO, Brian had quickly become a popular and valued member of the Orchestra’s close-knit touring team, and he will be sadly missed by colleagues and players alike. We extend our deepest sympathies to his family and friends.

‘The news of Brian's death has left us all in a state of shock and great sadness. Although he had only been with us for a relatively short period of time, we had quickly come to know him as a warm-hearted and generous colleague. There was nothing you felt you couldn’t ask him to do – he was always so obliging.

Despite many long hours behind the wheel of the LPO van, Brian always had a cheery ‘good morning’ in his infectious Irish accent. His popularity was widespread around the London orchestral scene.’

Stewart McIlwham, President and Principal Piccolo, London Philharmonic Orchestra ‘Brian had quickly become a well-liked and highly valued part of the Orchestra’s on-the-road team; we will miss him very much. He was kind-hearted, generous, and extremely good company; we enjoyed many a long chat about football, especially his beloved Liverpool! The abiding memory of Brian will be of someone who was always able to make the people around him happy – no matter what the situation, there was always a smile close at hand.’

Andrew Chenery, Orchestra Personnel Manager, London Philharmonic Orchestra ‘Brian had a heart of gold and would always go out of his way to be obliging and helpful to us musicians. Nothing was too much trouble for him. He was such a lovely, friendly man, endowed with a sense of humour that was both irresistible and appealing. He will be sorely missed by all, but particularly by the community that is London's orchestral stage and transport management.’

Lennox Mackenzie, Chairman and Sub-Leader, London Symphony Orchestra

2 | London Philharmonic Orchestra

London Philharmonic Orchestra

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 orchestras in the UK. As well as its performances in the concert hall, the Orchestra also records film and video game soundtracks, has its own successful CD label, and enhances the lives of thousands of people every year through activities for schools and local communities.

The Orchestra was founded by Sir Thomas Beecham in 1932, and since then its Principal Conductors have included Sir Adrian Boult, Bernard Haitink, Sir Georg Solti, Klaus Tennstedt and Kurt Masur. Vladimir Jurowski is the current Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor, appointed in 2007, and Yannick Nézet-Séguin is Principal Guest Conductor. Julian Anderson is the Orchestra’s current Composer in Residence.

The London Philharmonic Orchestra has recorded the soundtracks to numerous blockbuster films, from Lawrence of Arabia, The Mission and East is East to Hugo, The Lord of the Rings trilogy and The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. It also broadcasts regularly on television and radio, and in 2005 established its own record label. There are now over 70 releases available on CD and to download. Recent additions include Brahms’s Symphonies Nos. 3 & 4 and Mahler’s Symphony No. 1 with Vladimir Jurowski; Vaughan Williams’s Symphonies Nos. 5 & 7 with Bernard Haitink; Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde with Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Sarah Connolly and Toby Spence; and a disc of new works by the Orchestra’s Composer in Residence, Julian Anderson.

In summer 2012 the Orchestra was invited to take part in The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Pageant on the River Thames, as well as being chosen to record all the world’s national anthems for the London 2012 Olympics.

The Orchestra is resident at Southbank Centre’s The London Philharmonic Orchestra is committed to Royal Festival Hall in London, where it gives around inspiring the next generation through its BrightSparks 40 concerts each season. 2013/14 highlights include schools’ concerts and FUNharmonics family concerts; a Britten centenary celebration with Vladimir the Leverhulme Young Jurowski including the War Composers programme; Requiem and Peter Grimes; and the Foyle Future world premieres of James Firsts orchestral MacMillan’s Viola Concerto Bachtrack.com training programme and Górecki’s Fourth 2 October 2013, Royal Festival Hall: Britten centenary concert for outstanding young Symphony; French repertoire players. Over recent with Yannick Nézet-Séguin; years, digital advances and social media have enabled and a stellar array of soloists including Evelyn Glennie, the Orchestra to reach even more people across the Mitsuko Uchida, Leif Ove Andsnes, Miloš Karadaglić, globe: all its recordings are available to download from Renaud Capuçon, Leonidas Kavakos, Julia Fischer, iTunes and, as well as a YouTube channel and regular Emanuel Ax and Simon Trpčeski. Throughout 2013 podcast series, the Orchestra has a lively presence on the Orchestra collaborated with Southbank Centre on Facebook and Twitter. the year-long festival The Rest Is Noise, exploring the influential works of the 20th century.

Find out more and get involved!

The London Philharmonic Orchestra enjoys flourishing residencies in Brighton and Eastbourne, and performs lpo.org.uk regularly around the UK. Every summer, the Orchestra takes up its annual residency at Glyndebourne Festival facebook.com/londonphilharmonicorchestra Opera, where it has been Resident Symphony Orchestra for 50 years. The Orchestra also tours internationally, twitter.com/LPOrchestra performing concerts to sell-out audiences worldwide.

Highlights of the 2013/14 season include visits to the USA, Romania, Austria, Germany, Slovenia, Belgium, France and Spain.

The LPO are an orchestra on fire at the moment.

London Philharmonic Orchestra | 3

On stage tonight

First Violins Igor Yuzefovich Guest Leader Ilyoung Chae Ji-Hyun Lee Chair supported by Eric Tomsett

Katalin Varnagy Chair supported by Sonja Drexler

Thomas Eisner Martin Höhmann Yang Zhang Galina Tanney Caroline Frenkel Ishani Bhoola Robert Yeomans Caroline Sharp Robert Pool Anna Croad Peter Nall Kokila Gillett Second Violins Victoria Sayles Guest Principal Joseph Maher Fiona Higham Ashley Stevens Nancy Elan Emma Wragg Sioni Williams Helena Nicholls Harry Kerr Stephen Stewart Nynke Hijlkema Kate Birchall Chair supported by David & Victoria Graham Fuller

Marie-Anne Mairesse Dean Williamson

Violas Gillianne Haddow Guest Principal Gregory Aronovich Katharine Leek Benedetto Pollani Laura Vallejo Susanne Martens Isabel Pereira Daniel Cornford Sarah Malcolm Claudio Cavalletti Helen Bevin Martin Fenn Cellos Josephine Knight Guest Principal Laura Donoghue Santiago Carvalho† David Lale Gregory Walmsley Elisabeth Wiklander Sue Sutherley Susanna Riddell Tom Roff Helen Rathbone Double Basses Kevin Rundell* Principal Laurence Lovelle George Peniston Laura Murphy Thomas Walley Catherine Ricketts Helen Rowlands Charlotte Kerbegian Flutes Harry Winstanley Guest Principal Siobhan Grealy Stewart McIlwham*

Piccolo Stewart McIlwham* Principal Oboes Gareth Hulse Guest Principal Jinny Shaw Cor Anglais Sue Böhling Principal Chair supported by Julian & Gill Simmonds

Clarinets Robert Hill* Principal Emily Meredith E-flat Clarinet James Burke Bass Clarinet Paul Richards Principal Bassoons Rebecca Mertens Guest Principal Gareth Newman* Contrabassoon Simon Estell Principal Horns John Ryan* Principal David Pyatt* Principal Chair supported by Simon Robey

Martin Hobbs Mark Vines Co-Principal Gareth Mollison

Trumpets Paul Beniston* Principal Anne McAneney* Chair supported by Geoff & Meg Mann

Tom Rainer David Hilton Cornets Tom Rainer David Hilton Trombones David Whitehouse Principal Andrew Connington Bass Trombone Lyndon Meredith Principal Tuba Lee Tsarmaklis* Principal Timpani Simon Carrington* Principal Percussion Andrew Barclay* Principal Chair supported by Andrew Davenport

Andrea Santasiere Keith Millar Jeremy Cornes Harps Rachel Masters* Principal Chair supported by Friends of the Orchestra

Lucy Haslar * 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: William & Alex de Winton  Caroline, Jamie & Zander Sharp  The Sharp Family

4 | London Philharmonic Orchestra

Vasily Petrenko

© Mark McNulty

conductor

Vasily Petrenko was born in 1976 and started his music education at the St Petersburg Capella Boys Music School – the oldest music school in Russia.

He then studied at the St Petersburg Conservatoire and has also participated in masterclasses with such major figures as Ilya Musin, Mariss Jansons, Yuri Temirkanov and Esa-Pekka Salonen. Following considerable success in a number of international conducting competitions including the Fourth Prokofiev Conducting Competition in St Petersburg (2003), First Prize at the Shostakovich Choral Conducting Competition in St Petersburg (1997) and First Prize at the Sixth Cadaqués International Conducting Competition in Spain, he was appointed Chief Conductor of the St Petersburg State Academic Symphony Orchestra from 2004–07.

The 2013/14 season marks his first as Chief Conductor of the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, alongside which he maintains his positions as Chief Conductor of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra (a position he adopted in 2009 as a continuation of his period as Principal Conductor since 2006), Principal Conductor of the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain, and Principal Guest Conductor of the Mikhailovsky Theatre (formerly the Mussorgsky Memorial Theatre of the St Petersburg State Opera and Ballet), where he began his career as Resident Conductor from 1994–97.

In recent seasons, Petrenko has made critically acclaimed debuts with major orchestras including the London Philharmonic, London Symphony, Philharmonia, Russian National, Netherlands Radio Philharmonic, Czech Philharmonic, Vienna Symphony, NHK Symphony (Tokyo) and Sydney Symphony orchestras, the Rundfunk Sinfonieorchester Berlin, the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the Accademia di Santa Cecilia, and the Orchestre National de France. He has made frequent appearances at the BBC Proms, and toured with the European Union Youth Orchestra. Recent years have seen a series of highly successful North American debuts

including The Philadelphia Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the San Francisco, Boston, Chicago and St Louis symphony orchestras. Highlights of the 2013/14 season and beyond include return visits to the Rundfunk Sinfonieorchester Berlin, the Philharmonia Orchestra, the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, and the Finnish Radio Symphony, Chicago Symphony, San Francisco Symphony and Los Angeles Philharmonic orchestras; tours in Europe and Asia with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Oslo Philharmonic and Russian National orchestras; and debut performances with the WDR Sinfonieorchester Cologne.

Equally at home in the opera house, and with over 30 operas in his repertoire, Petrenko made his debuts in 2010 at Glyndebourne Festival Opera (Macbeth) and the Opera de Paris (Eugene Onegin), and in recent seasons has conducted The Queen of Spades at Hamburg State Opera, Boris Godunov at the National Reisopera, La bohème and Carmen at the Mikhailovsky Theatre, and Parsifal with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.

The 2013/14 season includes his debut at the Zurich Opera (Carmen), performances of Tosca with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, and The Flying Dutchman with the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra and at the Mikhailovsky Theatre.

Recordings with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra include a rare double-bill of Fleishman’s Rothschild’s Violin and Shostakovich’s The Gamblers; Rachmaninoff’s complete symphonies and piano concertos, along with his Symphonic Dances and The Isle of the Dead; and a critically acclaimed series of recordings for Naxos including Tchaikovsky’s Manfred (winner of the 2009 Gramophone Award for Best Orchestral Recording), the Liszt piano concertos, and an ongoing Shostakovich symphony cycle.

In October 2007 Vasily Petrenko was named Young Artist of the Year at the annual Gramophone Awards, and in 2010 he won the Male Artist of the Year at the Classical Brit Awards. He is only the second person to have been awarded Honorary Doctorates by both the University of Liverpool and Liverpool Hope University (in 2009), and an Honorary Fellowship of the Liverpool John Moores University (in 2012), awards that recognise the immense impact he has had on the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and the city’s cultural scene.

London Philharmonic Orchestra | 5

Kirill Gerstein

© Sasha Gusov

piano

The multifaceted pianist Kirill Gerstein has rapidly ascended into classical music’s highest ranks.

Reaching beyond the classical genre with his unique background in jazz, coupled with a masterful technique, musical curiosity and an energetic and expressive musical personality, he has proven to be one of today’s most intriguing musicians.

In January 2010, Kirill Gerstein was named the recipient of the Gilmore Artist Award – only the sixth pianist to have been so honoured. The Gilmore Award is given to an exceptional pianist who, regardless of age or nationality, possesses broad and profound musicianship and charisma and who can sustain a career as a major international concert artist. Kirill has since used the Award by commissioning boundary-crossing new works

by Brad Mehldau, Chick Corea and Oliver Knussen, and this season he premieres another newly commissioned work by Timothy Andres, entitled Old Friend. Kirill Gerstein was also awarded an Avery Fisher Career Grant in April 2010, and received a 2002 Gilmore Young Artist Award as well as First Prize at the 2001 Arthur Rubinstein Piano Competition in Tel Aviv.

Kirill Gerstein’s recent engagements in North America include performances with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, The Philadelphia Orchestra, and the Boston, Toronto, Montreal, Atlanta, Dallas, Baltimore, Seattle and Vancouver symphony orchestras. His festival appearances have included the Mann Music Center, Saratoga and Bravo! Vail with The Philadelphia Orchestra; Tanglewood with the Boston Symphony Orchestra; Blossom with The Cleveland Orchestra and at the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival; and recitals in Vancouver, Miami, Detroit, at UC Berkeley, Washington’s Kennedy Center and New York’s 92nd St Y. In Europe, Kirill Gerstein has worked with such prominent orchestras as the Munich, Rotterdam and Royal Philharmonic orchestras, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the Staatskapelle Dresden, the

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Tonhalle-Orchestra Zurich, the Swedish Radio Orchestra, the WDR Cologne and the Deutsches SymphonieOrchester Berlin, as well as the NHK Symphony Orchestra in Tokyo and the Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra in Caracas with Gustavo Dudamel. He has given recitals in Paris, Prague, Hamburg, at London’s Wigmore Hall and Queen Elizabeth Hall, and at the Liszt Academy in Budapest. He made his Salzburg Festival debut playing solo and two-piano works with András Schiff and has also appeared at the Verbier, Lucerne and Jerusalem Chamber Music festivals, as well as at the BBC Proms.

Highlights of the 2013/14 season include performances with the London Philharmonic, Philharmonia, Czech Philharmonic, Finnish Radio, Danish Radio, Dresden Philharmonic, Melbourne Symphony and Leipzig Gewandhaus orchestras, and the Orchestra of the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia. North American engagements include subscription debuts with the New York Philharmonic and the Minnesota Orchestra; re-engagements with The Cleveland Orchestra and the Chicago, San Francisco, St Louis, Detroit, Cincinnati and Houston symphony orchestras; and return visits to Aspen and the Grant Park Music Festival.

Named one of the Ten Best Recordings of 2010 by the New York Times, Kirill Gerstein’s first recording for Myrios Classics of recital works by Schumann, Liszt and Oliver Knussen was released in October 2010, followed by a duo recital disc with violist Tabea Zimmermann.

Born in 1979 in Voronezh, Russia, Kirill Gerstein attended one of the country’s special music schools for gifted children and taught himself to play jazz by listening to his parents’ extensive record collection.

He moved to the USA aged 14 to study jazz piano as the youngest student ever to attend Boston’s Berklee College of Music, where he also continued his classical studies. At the age of 16 he decided to focus on classical music and moved to New York City to attend the Manhattan School of Music, where he studied with Solomon Mikowsky and earned Bachelors and Masters of Music degrees. He continued his studies with Dmitri Bashkirov in Madrid and Ferenc Rados in Budapest.

Kirill Gerstein became an American citizen in 2003 and is currently a Professor of Piano at the Musikhochschule in Stuttgart.

Programme notes

Speedread Tonight’s concert features three outwardly gregarious works by three composers who achieved celebrity during their respective lifetimes. First comes Berlioz’s dashing evocation of Byron’s corsair on the high seas. Then Rachmaninoff takes centre stage with his virtuoso Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. Finally Elgar offers his Second Symphony, with its striding

Hector Berlioz

tribute to the late King Edward VII. Yet each of these works has a more muted alter ego, as described in the disarmingly lyrical passages of Berlioz’s overture, the Dies irae motif that haunts Rachmaninoff’s pianistic showcase, and the lingering, autumnal conclusion to Elgar’s Symphony. Heard together, these works offer a diverse emotional and musical experience.

Overture, Le Corsaire

1803–69

If Berlioz has a literary equivalent, then it is Lord Byron.

Byron’s ability to describe wild landscapes and equally feral heroes, with a mixture of self-loathing and selfaggrandisement, gained him a singular position among English Romantics. The picture he created of himself as a Romantic outsider, destined for doom, might well have been the kind of artist Berlioz sought to describe in his Symphonie fantastique and tried to emulate. Yet while Berlioz’s Mémoires are heavily indebted to the poet, Byron’s verse made an even more indelible mark on his music.

Berlioz’s overture is a vivid curtain-raiser (albeit to a non-existent drama). The opening rush of strings and syncopated woodwind response in C major brilliantly describe the hurly-burly of the high seas. This is followed by contrastingly heartfelt music in A flat major, with extended melodies providing a touching portrait of the intrepid Conrad, before the overture again builds to a stormy depiction of his life at sea.

Berlioz wrote Harold in Italy, his symphonic response to Byron’s Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage, in 1834. A decade later, at the height of his fame, he penned what would become Le Corsaire. It was performed at first as La Tour de Nice, acknowledging the city in which it was composed and which had provided its maritime backdrop. Later, Berlioz changed the title to Le Corsaire rouge, after a French translation of James Fenimore Cooper’s novel The Red Rover, before it was finally published in revised form in 1852 with its Byronic title, invoking the corsair Conrad, who has shunned his fellow man and in turn been rejected by society.

London Philharmonic Orchestra | 7

Programme notes continued

Sergei Rachmaninoff

Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini Kirill Gerstein piano

1873–1943

Introduction: Allegro vivace Variation I (Precedente) Tema: L’istesso tempo Variation 2: L’istesso tempo Variation 3: L’istesso tempo Variation 4: Più vivo Variation 5: Tempo precedente Variation 6: L’istesso tempo Variation 7: Meno mosso, a tempo moderato Variation 8: Tempo I Variation 9: L’istesso tempo Variation 10: L’istesso tempo Variation 11: Moderato Variation 12: Tempo di minuetto Variation 13: Allegro Variation 14: L’istesso tempo Variation 15: Più vivo scherzando Variation 16: Allegretto Variation 17: (Allegretto) Variation 18: Andante cantabile Variation 19: A tempo vivace Variation 20: Un poco più vivo Variation 21: Un poco più vivo Variation 22: Marziale. Un poco più vivo Variation 23: L’istesso tempo Variation 24: A tempo un poco meno mosso By the 1930s, Rachmaninoff was a major celebrity. His music was regularly performed, widely published and frequently recorded. Yet he had an uneasy relationship with his fame, often accepting and then rejecting offers to tour Europe and America. Finding himself exiled from post-Revolutionary Russia and his possessions, forced to support his family, Rachmaninoff was more or less obliged to perform when he could, leading to an

increasingly peripatetic life, which moved him between Stockholm and Copenhagen, on to New York and finally to a house on Lake Lucerne in Switzerland.

It was there, in the summer of 1934, that Rachmaninoff wrote his Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, effectively forming his fifth piano concerto. The work is based on the last of virtuoso violinist Niccolò Paganini’s 24 Caprices. Rachmaninoff was not the first to use its terse little theme. Liszt, Brahms and Szymanowski, alongside other less celebrated names, had already tapped its potential and Rachmaninoff was to be succeeded by Lutosławski and Andrew Lloyd Webber, among others.

Yet Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody remains arguably the most imaginative of these, not least because of its ingenious inversion of the original theme in the 18th variation and the highly expressive use of the orchestra throughout.

Rather than opening with Paganini’s theme, Rachmaninoff begins his work with a sassy, chromatic introduction, followed by the first variation on the theme we are yet to hear. The tune proper finally appears and is played by the strings, echoing its original violin form, with the piano picking out various constituent notes, before providing more dazzling decoration. The opening ten variations form the outline of a first movement and during the seventh variation Rachmaninoff introduces a second theme, based on the plainchant Dies irae from the Requiem Mass. This motivic kernel appears in many of Rachmaninoff’s works – not least The Isle of the Dead and The Bells – chillingly reminding us that, in the midst of life, we are in death. After the tenth variation comes what is, effectively, a slow movement, completed by the glorious 18th variation in the luscious key of D flat major, before the Rhapsody closes with a challengingly virtuoso finale.

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

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Edward Elgar 1857–1934

Like Berlioz and Rachmaninoff, Elgar was hugely famous during his lifetime, first on a regional level, thanks to the success of his choral works and then, on a national and subsequently international scale due to numerous and increasingly widespread performances of his ‘Enigma’ Variations (1899). Yet for all his success, with honorary doctorates, professorships, a knighthood and the Order of Merit lavished upon him, as well as public acclaim for his sequence of ‘Pomp and Circumstance’ Marches (from 1901), Elgar was a deeply private man.

He acknowledged this side of his personality and some feelings of self-doubt, both personal and spiritual, in his pioneering oratorio The Dream of Gerontius in 1900.

Its successors, The Apostles (1903) and The Kingdom (1906), were written during a particularly stressful period, triggering dark bouts of depression and the abandonment of the final oratorio in the trilogy, The Last Judgment. The music of these works is frequently imbued with a profound, incurable melancholy. And while that has always been acknowledged in the later Cello Concerto, premiered shortly after World War I, it is equally evident in Elgar’s two completed symphonies, addressing issues of imperial demise, as well as thoughts of an uncertain future.

Elgar had been pondering the idea of writing a symphony for a decade when he embarked on his First, which received its premiere under Hans Richter in Manchester on 3 December 1908. Its triumphant metamorphosis of the introductory funereal theme proved immensely popular, with over 80 performances of the Symphony happening in that first year, including in Vienna, St Petersburg, Leipzig and New York. The premiere of the Second Symphony followed on 24 May 1911, officially dedicated ‘to the memory of His late Majesty King Edward VII’. The music contained within, however, tells a more complex tale of faltering energies,

Symphony No. 2 in E flat major, Op. 63 1 Allegro vivace e nobilmente 2 Larghetto 3 Rondo 4 Moderato e maestoso

nightmarish horror and lingering autumnal conclusions.

Little wonder that, alongside its regal dedication, Elgar included a quote from Shelley: ‘Rarely, rarely comest thou, Spirit of Delight!’

At first, the whooping horns of the larger-than-life Allegro duly suggest a portrait of the ebullient monarch.

Yet more ethereal music follows, accompanied by the harp. It ebbs more than it flows, and it is this subdued mood that is picked up in the development section, which Elgar described to the critic Ernest Newman as being like ‘a love scene in a garden at night when the ghost of some memories comes through it; – it makes me shiver.’ The contrast between this innately subjective music and the bold gait of the first subject generates a strange if inspiring tension.

The second movement is a C minor funeral march, though it was surprisingly written before Edward VII’s death. Elements of the first movement can often be heard through the textures of this quietly noble Larghetto, before the mood turns decidedly darker in the ensuing scherzo in C major. Although Elgar said that the two middle movements ‘represented the contrast between the interior of St Mark’s in Venice and the sunlit and lively Piazza outside’, as he experienced on a trip to Italy in 1909, the result is far from picturesque.

The third movement’s lilting dance, led by the flutes and harp, gives way to a full-blooded string theme, before building to a terrifying, percussive climax.

The finale returns to the overriding tonic of E flat major, albeit calmer than the opening, swaggering Allegro.

The initial cello theme, marked ‘with dignity’, is soon undercut by less stately, chromatic figures, before a rich string melody burns through, generating a sense of noble triumph, which the brass duly salutes. Elgar then launches into a more complex development

London Philharmonic Orchestra | 9

Programme notes continued

section, with recollections of previous demons. The recapitulation then states the thematic material in heroic terms, seemingly trumping any vestigial negativity, but the Symphony’s conclusion – again summoning the ‘motto’ from the first movement – is much more reflective. It reveals the private Elgar within this most public of genres, offering resolution, of sorts, but also resignation and maybe even regret.

Programme notes © Gavin Plumley

LPO 2014/15 season now on sale Our 2014/15 season is now on sale: browse and book online at lpo.org.uk or call us on 020 7840 4242 to request a season brochure. Highlights of the new season include: •

A year-long festival, Rachmaninoff: Inside Out, exploring the composer’s major orchestral masterpieces including all the symphonies and piano concertos, alongside some of his lesser-known works (see left).

•

Appearances by today’s most sought-after artists including Maria João Pires, Christoph Eschenbach, Osmo Vänskä, Lars Vogt, Barbara Hannigan, Vasily Petrenko, Marin Alsop, Katia and Marielle Labèque and Robin Ticciati.

•

Yannick Nézet-Séguin presents masterpieces by three great composers from the AustroGerman tradition: Brahms, Schubert and Richard Strauss.

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The UK premiere of Harrison Birtwistle’s piano concerto Responses: Sweet disorder and the carefully careless, performed by Pierre-Laurent Aimard.

•

Soprano Barbara Hannigan joins Vladimir Jurowski and the Orchestra for a world premiere from our new Composer in Residence Magnus Lindberg.

•

Premieres too of a Violin Concerto by outgoing Composer in Residence Julian Anderson, a children’s work, The Pied Piper of Hamelin, by Colin Matthews, and a new piece for four horns by James Horner (a double-Oscar winner for his score to the film Titanic).

•

Legendary pianist Menahem Pressler – a founding member of the Beaux Arts Trio – joins Robin Ticciati to perform Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4.

•

Choral highlights with the London Philharmonic Choir include Stravinsky’s Requiem Canticles, Verdi’s Requiem, Rachmaninoff’s Spring and The Bells, Ravel’s Daphnis et Chloé and Janáček’s Glagolitic Mass.

London Philharmonic Orchestra 2014/15 season

Rachmaninoff: Inside Out A year-long exploration of the composer’s life and music Friday 3 October 2014 The Isle of the Dead | Piano Concerto No. 1 (original version) | Symphonic Dances

Wednesday 29 October 2014 Piano Concerto No. 3 | Symphony No. 2

Friday 7 November 2014 Piano Concerto No. 4 (final version)

Friday 28 November 2014 Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini

Wednesday 3 December 2014 Symphony No. 1

Wednesday 21 January 2015 The Miserly Knight

Saturday 7 February 2015 Three Russian Songs | Spring

Wednesday 11 February 2015 Piano Concerto No. 2 | The Bells

Friday 13 February 2015 Piano Concerto No. 4 (original version)

Wednesday 25 March 2015 Piano Concerto No. 1 (final version)

Wednesday 29 April 2015 Four Pieces | Ten Songs | Symphony No. 3 lpo.org.uk

10 | London Philharmonic Orchestra

Next LPO concerts at Royal Festival Hall

Wednesday 26 February 2014 | 7.30pm

Wednesday 19 March 2014 | 7.30pm

Brahms Double Concerto for violin and cello Bruckner Symphony No. 2

Mozart Symphony No. 38 (Prague) R Strauss Burleske J S Bach Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor, BWV 1052 R Strauss Death and Transfiguration

Vladimir Jurowski conductor Julia Fischer violin Daniel Müller-Schott cello

Saturday 1 March 2014 | 7.30pm Julian Anderson Alleluia Beethoven Symphony No. 9 (Choral) Vladimir Jurowski conductor Emma Bell soprano Anna Stéphany mezzo soprano John Daszak tenor Gerald Finley baritone London Philharmonic Choir

David Zinman conductor Emanuel Ax piano

Wednesday 26 March 2014 | 7.30pm Poulenc Organ Concerto Berlioz Les nuits d’été Saint-Saëns Symphony No. 3 (Organ) Yannick Nézet-Séguin conductor Sarah Connolly mezzo soprano* James O’Donnell organ This concert is supported by Palazzetto Bru Zane – Centre de musique romantique français.

Friday 7 March 2014 | 7.30pm JTI Friday Series Dvořák Scherzo capriccioso Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 Mahler Blumine Shostakovich Symphony No. 1

* Sarah Connolly has replaced Anna Caterina Antonacci for scheduling reasons.

Free pre-concert discussion 6.00–6.45pm | Royal Festival Hall William McVicker and guests discuss the restoration of the Royal Festival Hall organ.

Ilyich Rivas conductor Simon Trpčeski piano

Friday 14 March 2014 | 7.30pm JTI Friday Series Mendelssohn Violin Concerto Bruckner Symphony No. 3 (1889 Nowak edition) Stanisław Skrowaczewski conductor Benjamin Beilman violin

Booking details 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

Free pre-concert performance 6.00–6.45pm | Royal Festival Hall Musicians from the LPO join students from London Music Masters’ innovative music education programme, the Bridge Project, for a musical celebration.

Southbank Centre Ticket Office 0844 847 9920 Daily 9.00am–8.00pm southbankcentre.co.uk Transaction fees: £1.75 online, £2.75 telephone No transaction fee for bookings made in person

London Philharmonic Orchestra | 11

Annual Appeal 2013/14: Tickets Please!

Do you remember the first time you saw an orchestra live?

Every year the London Philharmonic Orchestra’s schools’ concerts allow over 16,000 young people to see the Orchestra live. Six out of ten children attending the concerts will be experiencing an orchestra for the very first time.

Gregory Walmsley

Then: aged 10

Now: LPO Cellist

I began playing the cello when I was nine. The first orchestral concert I went to see was the London Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Sir Georg Solti when I was 10. Little did I imagine I would be a member of the LPO one day! Who knows, your £9 donation to Tickets Please! might inspire an LPO member of the future...

Tickets for the concerts cost £9. However, for some of the most disadvantaged schools in south London this amount remains a barrier to attending. Whether you want to help one child (£9), three children (£27), donate a row of seats in the stalls (£108), or allow a whole class to attend (£270), you can help us to fill our concert hall and allow many children to enjoy their first orchestral experience.

Visit lpo.org.uk/ticketsplease, where you can select the seats you wish to donate, or call 020 7840 4212 to donate over the phone.

Donate £9 at lpo.org.uk/ticketsplease 12 | London Philharmonic Orchestra

#ticketsplease

Orchestra news

New Principal Guest Conductor The London Philharmonic Orchestra is delighted to announce the appointment of Andrés Orozco-Estrada as its new Principal Guest Conductor, effective from September 2015. He becomes Principal Guest Conductor Designate when the tenure of Canadian Yannick Nézet-Séguin, who has been in the role since 2008, ends at the end of the current season.

Colombian-born Orozco-Estrada first worked with the London Philharmonic Orchestra in November 2013, conducting a major tour of Germany, and made his Royal Festival Hall debut with the Orchestra on 29 January 2014.

Thirty-six-year-old Orozco-Estrada already holds the position of Music Director of the Tonkünstler Orchestra in Vienna. In the 2014/15 season he will become Music Director of the Houston Symphony Orchestra and Chief Conductor of the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra.

We look forward to a long and fruitful partnership with Andrés Orozco-Estrada, and many more successful concerts to come.

The Rest Is Noise wins Sky Arts Award We are delighted at the recent news that The Rest Is Noise, Southbank Centre’s 2013 festival of 20thcentury music, was awarded the South Bank Sky Arts Classical Award.

As the major orchestral partner of The Rest Is Noise, the London Philharmonic Orchestra dedicated our entire 2013 programme to chronologically charting some of the most influential works of the 20th century, whilst exploring the political and social contexts that gave rise to these great pieces. It was a truly exciting project to be a part of and we are thrilled with the news of the award.

New CD release: Jurowski conducts Brahms Just released on the LPO Label is a CD of Brahms’s Symphonies Nos. 3 & 4 conducted by Vladimir Jurowski.

This CD completes Jurowski’s survey of Brahms’s four symphonies – his first disc, of Symphonies Nos. 1 & 2 (Feb 2010), received great critical acclaim including BBC Music Magazine’s ‘Disc of the Month’ and the recommended version of Symphony No. 2 by BBC Radio 3’s ‘Building a Library’.

Priced £9.99, the new CD is also available from lpo.org.uk/shop, the LPO Ticket Office (020 7840 4242) and all good CD retailers. Alternatively you can download it from iTunes, Amazon and others, or stream via Spotify.

Spring tours Earlier this month the Orchestra, along with Glyndebourne Festival Opera soloists and chorus under Sir Mark Elder, took Britten’s Billy Budd to New York for four performances at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

The cast included Jacques Imbrailo as Billy Budd, Brindley Sherratt as Claggart and Mark Padmore as Captain Vere. The production received rave reviews in the press, with the New York Times critic describing it as ‘one of the most memorable performances I have seen in opera’.

Still to come this spring are visits to Paris to perform Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées under Vladimir Jurowski on 2 March, following the Royal Festival Hall performance the previous evening (see page 11); Dortmund with Yannick Nézet-Séguin and pianist Nicholas Angelich; and Moscow with Jurowski for performances of Britten’s War Requiem and Beethoven’s Violin Concerto with soloist Lisa Batiashvili.

London Philharmonic Orchestra | 13

Catalyst: Double Your Donation

The London Philharmonic Orchestra is building its first ever endowment fund, which will support the most exciting artistic collaborations with its partner venues here in London and around the country.

Thanks to a generous grant pledge from Arts Council England’s Catalyst programme, the Orchestra is able to double the value of all gifts from new donors up to a maximum value of £1 million. Any additional gifts from existing generous donors will also be matched.

By the end of the campaign we aim to have created an endowment with a value of £2 million which will help us work with partners to provide a funding injection for activities across the many areas of the Orchestra’s work, including: • More visionary artistic projects like The Rest Is Noise at Southbank Centre • Educational and outreach activities for young Londoners like this year’s Noye’s Fludde performance project • Increased touring to venues around the UK that might not otherwise have access to great orchestral music To give, call Development Director Nick Jackman on 020 7840 4211, email support@lpo.org.uk or visit www.lpo.org.uk/support/double-your-donation.html

Catalyst Endowment Donors Masur Circle Arts Council England Emmanuel & Barrie Roman The Sharp Family The Underwood Trust Welser-Möst Circle John Ireland Charitable Trust Tennstedt Circle Simon Robey The late Mr K Twyman Solti Patrons Anonymous Suzanne Goodman The Rothschild Foundation Manon Williams & John Antoniazzi Haitink Patrons Lady Jane Berrill Moya Greene Tony and Susie Hayes Lady Roslyn Marion Lyons Diana and Allan Morgenthau Charitable Trust Ruth Rattenbury

14 | London Philharmonic Orchestra

Sir Bernard Rix TFS Loans Limited The Tsukanov Family Foundation Guy & Utti Whittaker Pritchard Donors Anonymous Linda Blackstone Michael Blackstone Jan Bonduelle Richard and Jo Brass Britten-Pears Foundation Lady June Chichester Lindka Cierach Mr Alistair Corbett Mark Damazer David Dennis Bill & Lisa Dodd Mr David Edgecombe David Ellen Commander Vincent Evans Mr Daniel Goldstein Ffion Hague Rebecca Halford Harrison Michael & Christine Henry Honeymead Arts Trust John Hunter

Ivan Hurry Tanya Kornilova Howard & Marilyn Levene Mr Gerald Levin Wg. Cdr. & Mrs M T Liddiard OBE JP RAF Dr Frank Lim Geoff & Meg Mann Ulrike Mansel Marsh Christian Trust John Montgomery Rosemary Morgan John Owen Edmund Pirouet Mr Michael Posen John Priestland Tim Slorick Howard Snell Stanley Stecker Lady Marina Vaizey Helen Walker Laurence Watt Des & Maggie Whitelock Christopher Williams Victoria Yanakova Mr Anthony Yolland

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 Anonymous William and Alex de Winton Simon Robey The Sharp Family Julian & Gill Simmonds Garf & Gill Collins Andrew Davenport Mrs Sonja Drexler David & Victoria Graham Fuller Mr & Mrs Makharinsky Geoff & Meg Mann Caroline, Jamie & Zander Sharp Eric Tomsett Jane Attias John & Angela Kessler Guy & Utti Whittaker Manon Williams & John Antoniazzi Principal Benefactors Mark & Elizabeth Adams Lady Jane Berrill Desmond & Ruth Cecil Mr John H Cook David Ellen

Commander Vincent Evans Mr Daniel Goldstein Don Kelly & Ann Wood Peter MacDonald Eggers Mr & Mrs David Malpas Mr Maxwell Morrison Mr Michael Posen Mr & Mrs Thierry Sciard Mr & Mrs G Stein Mr & Mrs John C Tucker Mr & Mrs John & Susi Underwood Lady Marina Vaizey Grenville & Kyrsia Williams Mr Anthony Yolland Benefactors Mrs A Beare David & Patricia Buck Mrs Alan Carrington Mr & Mrs Stewart Cohen Mr Alistair Corbett Mr David Edgecombe Mr Richard Fernyhough Ken Follett Michael & Christine Henry Malcolm Herring Ivan Hurry Mr Glenn Hurstfield Mr R K Jeha

Per Jonsson Mr Gerald Levin Sheila Ashley Lewis Wg. Cdr. & Mrs M T Liddiard OBE JP RAF Dr Frank Lim Paul & Brigitta Lock Mr Brian Marsh Andrew T Mills John Montgomery Mr & Mrs Andrew Neill Martin and Cheryl Southgate Professor John Studd Mr Peter Tausig Mrs Kazue Turner Howard & Sheelagh Watson Mr Laurie Watt 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

Trusts and Foundations

Silver: AREVA UK Berenberg Bank British American Business Carter-Ruck Thomas Eggar LLP

Angus Allnatt Charitable Foundation Ambache Charitable Trust Ruth Berkowitz Charitable Trust The Boltini Trust Borletti-Buitoni Trust Britten-Pears Foundation The Candide Trust The Ernest Cook Trust The Coutts Charitable Trust The D’Oyly Carte Charitable Trust Dunard Fund Embassy of Spain, Office for Cultural and Scientific Affairs The Equitable Charitable Trust Fidelio Charitable Trust The Foyle Foundation J Paul Getty Junior Charitable Trust 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 Leverhulme Trust Marsh Christian Trust

Bronze: Lisa Bolgar Smith and Felix Appelbe of Ambrose Appelbe Appleyard & Trew LLP Berkeley Law Charles Russell Leventis Overseas Preferred Partners Corinthia Hotel London Heineken Lindt & Sprüngli Ltd Sipsmith Steinway Villa Maria In-kind Sponsors Google Inc Sela / Tilley’s Sweets

The Mayor of London’s Fund for Young Musicians Adam Mickiewicz Institute The Peter Minet Trust Maxwell Morrison Charitable Trust The Ann and Frederick O’Brien Charitable Trust Palazzetto Bru Zane – Centre de musique romantique française Polish Cultural Institute in London PRS for Music Foundation The R K Charitable Trust Serge Rachmaninoff Foundation The Samuel Sebba Charitable Trust Schroder Charity Trust Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation The David Solomons Charitable Trust The Steel Charitable Trust The John Thaw Foundation The Tillett Trust Sir Siegmund Warburg’s Voluntary Settlement Garfield Weston Foundation The Barbara Whatmore Charitable Trust Youth Music and others who wish to remain anonymous London Philharmonic Orchestra | 15

Administration

Board of Directors Victoria Sharp Chairman Stewart McIlwham* President Gareth Newman* Vice-President Richard Brass Desmond Cecil CMG Vesselin Gellev* Jonathan Harris CBE FRICS Dr Catherine C. Høgel Martin Höhmann* George Peniston* Sir Bernard Rix Kevin Rundell* Julian Simmonds Mark Templeton* Natasha Tsukanova Timothy Walker AM Laurence Watt Dr Manon Williams * Player-Director Advisory Council Victoria Sharp Chairman Christopher Aldren Richard Brass Sir Alan Collins KCVO CMG Andrew Davenport Jonathan Dawson Christopher Fraser OBE Lord Hall of Birkenhead CBE Clive Marks OBE FCA Stewart McIlwham Baroness Shackleton Lord Sharman of Redlynch OBE Martin Southgate Sir Philip Thomas Sir John Tooley Chris Viney Timothy Walker AM Elizabeth Winter American Friends of the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Inc. Jenny Ireland Co-Chairman William A. Kerr Co-Chairman Kyung-Wha Chung Alexandra Jupin Dr. Felisa B. Kaplan Jill Fine Mainelli Kristina McPhee Dr. Joseph Mulvehill Harvey M. Spear, Esq. Danny Lopez Hon. Chairman Noel Kilkenny Hon. Director Victoria Sharp Hon. Director

Richard Gee, Esq Of Counsel Jenifer L. Keiser, CPA, EisnerAmper LLP

Orchestra Personnel

Public Relations

Andrew Chenery Orchestra Personnel Manager

Albion Media (Tel: 020 3077 4930)

Chief Executive

Sarah Holmes Sarah Thomas Librarians (job-share)

Archives

Timothy Walker AM Chief Executive and Artistic Director Finance David Burke General Manager and Finance Director

Christopher Alderton Stage Manager Julia Boon Assistant Orchestra Personnel Manager

Philip Stuart Discographer Gillian Pole Recordings Archive Professional Services

David Greenslade Finance and IT Manager

Development

Charles Russell Solicitors

Nick Jackman Development Director

Crowe Clark Whitehill LLP Auditors

Concert Management

Katherine Hattersley Charitable Giving Manager

Dr Louise Miller Honorary Doctor

Roanna Gibson Concerts Director Graham Wood Concerts and Recordings Manager Jenny Chadwick Tours Manager Tamzin Aitken Glyndebourne and UK Engagements Manager Alison Jones Concerts and Recordings Co-ordinator Jo Cotter PA to the Chief Executive / Tours Co-ordinator Education and Community Isabella Kernot Education Director Alexandra Clarke Education and Community Project Manager Lucy Duffy Education and Community Project Manager Richard Mallett Education and Community Producer

16 | London Philharmonic Orchestra

Helen Searl Corporate Relations Manager Molly Stewart Development and Events Manager Sarah Fletcher Development and Finance Officer Rebecca Fogg Development Assistant Marketing Kath Trout Marketing Director Mia Roberts Marketing Manager Rachel Williams Publications Manager Samantha Kendall Box Office Manager (Tel: 020 7840 4242) Libby Northcote-Green Marketing Co-ordinator Digital Projects Alison Atkinson Digital Projects Manager Matthew Freeman Recordings Consultant

London Philharmonic Orchestra 89 Albert Embankment London SE1 7TP Tel: 020 7840 4200 Fax: 020 7840 4201 Box Office: 020 7840 4242 Email: admin@lpo.org.uk lpo.org.uk The London Philharmonic Orchestra Limited is a registered charity No. 238045.

Photograph of Rachmaninoff courtesy of the Royal College of Music, London.

Front cover photograph © Patrick Harrison.

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