LPO 12&13 March 2010 programme notes

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Principal Conductor VLADIMIR JUROWSKI Principal Guest Conductor YANNICK NÉZET-SÉGUIN Leader PIETER SCHOEMAN Composer in Residence MARK-ANTHONY TURNAGE 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 12 March 2010 | 7.30 pm

PROGRAMME CONTENTS 2 List of Players 3 Orchestra History 4 Pieter Schoeman 5 Günther Herbig 6 Imogen Cooper 7 Programme Notes 11 Recordings 12 Administration 13 Supporters 14 Brighton Dome 15 Southbank Centre 16 Future Concerts

CONCERT HALL, BRIGHTON DOME Saturday 13 March 2010 | 7.30 pm GÜNTHER HERBIG conductor IMOGEN COOPER piano RAVEL Suite: Mother Goose

(16’)

SCHUMANN Concerto in A minor for piano and orchestra

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

(31’)

INTERVAL BRAHMS Symphony 2 in D

(39’)

We regret that Hélène Grimaud is indisposed and has had to withdraw from these concerts. The London Philharmonic Orchestra is very grateful to Imogen Cooper for taking her place.

†

supported by Macquarie Group

CONCERT PRESENTED BY THE LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

Ticket Office 01273 709709 www.brightondome.org

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LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

FIRST VIOLINS Pieter Schoeman* Leader Julia Rumley Chair supported by Mrs Steven Ward

Thomas Eisner Martin Höhmann Chair supported by Richard Karl Goeltz

Geoffrey Lynn Robert Pool Sarah Streatfeild Rebecca Shorrock Toby Tramaseur Joanne Chen Kay Chappell Amanda Smith Alina Petrenko Richard Milone Peter Nall† Caroline Simms† SECOND VIOLINS Clare Duckworth Principal Chair supported by Richard and Victoria Sharp

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

Nancy Elan Nynke Hijlkema Andrew Thurgood Sioni Williams Heather Badke Sheila Law Elizabeth Baldey Caroline Frenkel Steve Dinwoodie Imogen Williamson† Linda McLaren†

VIOLAS Fiona Winning Guest Principal Robert Duncan Anthony Byrne Chair supported by John and Angela Kessler

Susanne Martens Benedetto Pollani Laura Vallejo Isabel Pereira Sarah Malcolm Karin Norlen Rachel Benjamin Rebecca Carrington† Mathias Wiesner† CELLOS Kristina Blaumane Principal Chair supported by Simon Yates and Kevin Roon

Laura Donoghue Santiago Sabino Carvalho + Gregory Walmsley Sue Sutherley Susanna Riddell Tae-Mi Song Alexandra Mackenzie Helen Rathbone† Emily Isaac† DOUBLE BASSES Kevin Rundell* Principal Laurence Lovelle George Peniston Roger Linley Kenneth Knussen Lowri Morgan David Johnson† Helen Rowlands†

FLUTES Laura Lucas Guest Principal Stewart McIlwham*

TROMBONES Mark Templeton* Principal David Whitehouse

PICCOLO Stewart McIlwham* Principal

BASS TROMBONE Lyndon Meredith Principal

OBOES Ian Hardwick Principal Angela Tennick

TUBA Lee Tsarmaklis Principal

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

CLARINETS Robert Hill* Principal Paul Richards BASSOONS Richard Skinner Guest Principal Christopher Cooper

TIMPANI Simon Carrington* Principal PERCUSSION Rachel Gledhill Principal Keith Millar Jeremy Cornes HARP Rachel Masters* Principal CELESTE Roderick Elms

CONTRA BASSOON Christopher Cooper HORNS John Ryan Principal Alec Frank-Gemmill Guest Principal Martin Hobbs Adrian Uren Gareth Mollison TRUMPETS Paul Beniston* Principal Anne McAneney* Chair supported by Geoff and Meg Mann

* Holds a professorial appointment in London +

Chevalier of the Brazilian Order of Rio Branco

† 12 March only

Chair Supporters The London Philharmonic Orchestra also acknowledges the following chair supporters whose player is not present at this concert: Caroline, Jamie and Zander Sharp

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LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

© Richard Cannon

Seventy-seven 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 2009/10 include Between Two Worlds – an exploration of the music and times of Alfred Schnittke; a Sibelius symphony cycle with Osmo Vänskä in January/February 2010; a performance of Mendelssohn’s Elijah conducted by Kurt Masur and dedicated to the 20th Anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall; and new works by Rautavaara, Philip Glass, Ravi Shankar and the Orchestra’s Composer in Residence, Mark-Anthony Turnage.

Imaginative programming and a commitment to new music are at the heart of the Orchestra’s activity, with regular commissions and world première performances.

In addition to its London season, 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 it 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

‘This pulsating concert was the best possible advertisement for the rest of Osmo Vänskä’s Sibelius cycle ... If any musical event this season has a better Finnish than this, I’m a Norseman.’

RICHARD MORRISON, THE TIMES, 29 JANUARY 2010

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LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

PIETER SCHOEMAN LEADER

the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Tours in 2009/10 include visits to Germany, Australia, France, China, the Canaries and the USA. 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 extensively 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 Orchestra also enjoys strong relationships with the major record labels and in 2005 began reaching out to new global audiences through the release of live, studio and archive recordings on its own CD label. Recent additions to the catalogue have included acclaimed releases of early Britten works conducted by Vladimir Jurowski; Mahler’s Symphony 6 under the baton of Klaus Tennstedt; Tchaikovsky’s Symphonies 1 and 6 conducted

by Vladimir Jurowski; Sir Thomas Beecham recordings of Mozart, Delius and Rimsky-Korsakov from the 1930s; a CD of John Ireland’s works taken from his 70th Birthday Concert in 1949; and Dvo˘rák’s Requiem conducted by Neeme Järvi. The Orchestra’s own-label releases are available to download by work or individual track from its website: www.lpo.org.uk/shop.

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 and join us on Facebook.

4 | London Philharmonic Orchestra

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

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 Edouard 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 and Benjamin Britten’s Double Concerto, which was recorded for the Orchestra’s own record label. Most recently he also played concertos with the Wiener Concertverein and Orchestre Philharmonique de Nice.

In 1995 Pieter Schoeman became Co-Leader of the Orchestre Philharmonique de Nice. During his tenure there he performed frequently as Guest Leader with the symphony orchestras of Barcelona, Bordeaux, Lyon, Baltimore and the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

A frequent guest of the BBC Symphony Orchestra in London, Pieter Schoeman returned in October 2006 to lead that orchestra on a three week tour of Seoul, Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.

Pieter Schoeman has recorded numerous violin solos with the London Philharmonic Orchestra for Chandos, Opera Rara, Naxos, 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.

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GÜNTHER HERBIG CONDUCTOR

orchestras including the London Symphony, Philharmonia and Royal Philharmonic Orchestras. Since then he has conducted most of the major European orchestras and has also toured Japan, South America and Australia many times.

Günther Herbig has established himself as a prominent conductor in the international music world, in particular building a strong career in America from 1979. Because of the political situation in East Germany, Günther Herbig’s first opportunity in the West came quite late – he was invited to be Principal Guest Conductor of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra in 1979. After being Music Director of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra from 1984 for six years, he became Music Director of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra for five years – a position he gave up in 1994 to enable him to work in Europe more often. He continues to live in Michigan.

Since moving to the USA in 1984, he has appeared with all the great American orchestras: the New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, Boston Symphony, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Los Angeles Philharmonic and San Francisco Symphony Orchestras. With the Detroit Symphony Orchestra he has toured America several times, receiving high praise for their many performances in New York’s Carnegie Hall and, in 1989, they toured Europe with Gidon Kremer as soloist to great critical acclaim. With the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, he has toured the Far East and in spring 1991 Europe, his 37th international orchestra tour.

From 1990 to 1997 he was visiting Professor of Conducting at Yale University, with a one week masterclass each term.

In western Europe, he started his career in Britain in 1979 when he was invited to become Principal Guest Conductor of the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra. It was only in 1984, after he had left East Germany, that he was able to conduct regularly in western Europe. Very quickly he was invited by the other major British

In 2001 he became Chief Conductor of the Saarbrücken Radio Symphony Orchestra for three years and succeeded in rebuilding the Orchestra and bringing it up to a higher level. Several concerts were shown on French and German television, and he renewed the contract until 2006. Unfortunately subsidies to all the German Radio Orchestras were substantially cut in 2005, so Mr Herbig was unable to renew his contract after 2006.

Günther Herbig has recorded more than 100 works, some of them with the East German orchestras with which he was associated prior to moving to the West in 1984. Since then he has made recordings with several of the London orchestras, the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra and the Saarbrücken RSO. Günther Herbig began his musical training with Hermann Abendroth at the Franz Liszt Academy in Weimar. He continued his studies with Hermann Scherchen and was one of only a few students chosen for intensive study with Herbert von Karajan, with whom he worked for two years. In 1972 he became General Music Director of the Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra and from 1977 held the same position with the Berlin Symphony Orchestra until 1984 when he resigned and moved to America.

He is famed for his conducting of the 19th century German repertoire and in 2001 the Edinburgh International Festival decided to present a marathon ‘Homage to Beethoven’ concert inviting Mr Herbig to conduct. The programme was to be a repeat of that which took place at the Theater an der Wien in Vienna on 22 December 1808 when Beethoven presented and conducted the première of five new compositions. This three hour programme comprised the Pastoral Symphony, Ah! Perfido, the Gloria from the C major Mass, the Piano Concerto 4, the Symphony 5, the Sanctus from the C major Mass and the Choral Fantasia.

The Edinburgh programme was broadcast on BBC Television.

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IMOGEN COOPER PIANO

Sussie Ahlburg

Vienna, Rotterdam, Prague and London’s Wigmore and Queen Elizabeth Halls.

Recognised worldwide as a pianist of virtuosity and poetic poise, Imogen Cooper has established a reputation as one of the finest interpreters of the classical repertoire. She has dazzled audiences and orchestras throughout her distinguished career, bringing to the concert platform her unique musical understanding and lyrical quality.

In the 2009/10 season Imogen Cooper’s engagements include performances with the Toronto and Cincinnati Symphony Orchestras and solo and chamber recitals in the USA, the UK and Belgium. She also continues her long term relationships as a player/director of the Northern Sinfonia and Britten Sinfonia. During 2008 and 2009 she performed solo works from Schubert’s last six years as part of the International Piano Series in London. Last season her engagements included concerts with the Philadelphia Orchestra and Simon Rattle, Boston Symphony and Colin Davis, Mahler Chamber Orchestra and Robin Ticciati, and a tour with the London Symphony Orchestra and Daniel Harding.

Imogen Cooper has had a widespread international career and has appeared with the New York Philharmonic, Vienna Philharmonic, Gothenburg Symphony, Royal Concertgebouw, Leipzig Gewandhaus, Dresden Staatskapelle and NHK Symphony Orchestras.

She has also undertaken tours with the Camerata Salzburg, and Australian and Orpheus Chamber Orchestras. She has played with all the major British orchestras including the Philharmonia with Christoph Eschenbach and the London Phiharmonic Orchestra with Mark Elder at the BBC Proms. Her recital appearances have taken her to New York, Chicago, Paris,

6 | London Philharmonic Orchestra

As a supporter of new music, Imogen Cooper has premièred two works at the Cheltenham International Festival: Traced Overhead by Thomas Adès (1996) and Decorated Skin by Deirdre Gribbin (2003). In 1996, she also collaborated with members of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra in the première of the quintet, Voices for Angels, written by the ensemble’s viola player, Brett Dean.

Imogen Cooper is a committed chamber music player and performs regularly with the Belcea Quartet. As a Lieder recitalist, she has had a long collaboration with Wolfgang Holzmair. They have performed recitals in many major venues including Vienna, Paris and London, and have made several recordings for Philips, the most recent release being a disc of Lieder settings of poems

by Eichendorff. She also performs frequently with the cellist Sonia Wieder-Atherton. Their recordings include a CD set of Brahms’s Sonatas and works by Bach on RCA. Wolfgang Holzmair and Sonia Wieder-Atherton both feature in the box set Imogen Cooper and Friends which encompasses solo, chamber and Lieder works for Philips. She has also recorded four Mozart Concertos with the Northern Sinfonia for Avie, a solo recital at the Wigmore Hall on the Wigmore Live label and her current series of Schubert recitals in London is being recorded and released to great critical acclaim under the title Schubert Live by Avie.

Imogen Cooper received a CBE in the Queen’s New Year Honours in 2007 and was the recipient of an award from the Royal Philharmonic Society in 2008.

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PROGRAMME NOTES

SPEEDREAD Ravel made an exquisite ballet score, Mother Goose, in 1911 by orchestrating some piano duets he had composed on the subject of fairy tales. The suite of five movements from it begins with the dance of sorrowing courtiers after the Sleeping Beauty’s mishap with a spindle. Then birds devour Hop-o’-my-Thumb’s trail of crumbs, tiny creatures entertain a spellbound oriental princess, Beauty meets the Beast, who turns into a prince, and finally the fairy garden wakes to a radiant day.

Schumann composed his rhapsodic Piano Concerto for his pianist wife. The poetic first movement, by turns wistful and passionate, is based mainly on a single theme. Next comes a graceful intermezzo with an

Maurice RAVEL

eloquent theme for cellos in the middle section. A dancing theme derived from the first movement launches the more virtuosic third, which brings the concerto to a joyful conclusion.

Brahms’s Second Symphony is the sunniest of his four.

Begun when Brahms was staying at a lakeside resort in the summer of 1877, it has a predominantly genial character. The first movement is imbued with the spirit of the waltz and the country Ländler. The following slow movement is more introspective. The delicate third consists of variations on two themes. A robust spirit characterises the finale, which ends with a splendid blaze of trumpets and trombones. © Eric Mason

SUITE: MOTHER GOOSE Pavane de la Belle au bois dormant | Petit Poucet | Laideronnette, Impératrice des Pagodes | Les Entretiens de la Belle et la Bête | Le Jardin féerique

1875-1937

Under the title of Ma Mère l’Oye (Mother Goose) Ravel composed five piano duets in 1908 for the son and daughter of some friends, taking as his starting point the illustrations in a book of fairy stories by Charles Perrault, Mme d’Aulnoy and Mme Leprince de Beaumont. In response to a commission for a ballet he orchestrated the pieces in 1911-12, adding a prelude and spinning-wheel dance and some interludes. We hear the original five pieces in their orchestral dress, some of the most exquisitely sensuous music that this master orchestrator ever devised. Ravel had the rare gift of being able to think himself into the world of fairytale fantasy without the least condescension, and here he achieved his intention to evoke what he called ‘the poetry of childhood’.

The first piece refers to the story of the Sleeping Beauty, who has suffered her mishap with the spindle and

fallen into that long magical sleep. The music, a mere 20 bars long, uses the cool, graceful measures of an old dance, the pavane, to represent the sorrowing courtiers.

Petit Poucet tells the sad story of Hop-o’-my-Thumb.

Having left a trail of breadcrumbs so as to find his way back through the forest, he discovers that the birds have eaten them. The string line, soon joined by woodwind, suggests his meandering route. There is no mistaking the cuckoo and other birds as they set to work on the crumbs. The child’s growing dismay is musically indicated by the number of beats in the bar increasing bar by bar from two to five.

Laideronnette (Little Ugly) was a spellbound princess who found herself in the land of the Pagodas, not in this case oriental temples but tiny people with bodies made of crystal and porcelain. While she took a bath, they

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PROGRAMME NOTES

played music on instruments made from walnut and almond shells. Ravel clearly delights here in conjuring some picturesque chinoiserie out of pentatonic scales.

marry him, whereupon he is transformed (harp glissandos) into a prince (violin solo) ‘more beautiful than the God of Love’.

The following dialogue between Beauty and the Beast begins with a gentle waltz. Beauty is quietly dancing when she is interrupted by the gruff contra-bassoon voice of the Beast. The two musical elements combine as she listens to his entreaties. Eventually she agrees to

Finally comes The Fairy Garden, a musical impression in serene four-part writing of the magical garden stirring from its slumber and slowly waking to the radiant day.

Robert SCHUMANN 1810-1856

From his teens onwards Schumann wanted to compose a piano concerto. During his student days he made a start on two, but nothing came of either, probably because he felt unable as yet to handle the orchestra with sufficient skill. However, the wish persisted and in 1833 he wrote to his future father-in-law, Friedrich Wieck, about a proposed concerto in A minor, the naming of the key suggesting that he must at least have sketched out some ideas. Six years later his love for Clara Wieck had blossomed, and her growing fame as a concert pianist gave him the incentive to take up the idea of a concerto again. ‘It is going to be a hybrid of symphony, concerto and grand sonata’, he wrote to her.

‘I cannot write a concerto for virtuosos and have to think of something else.’

Another two years elapsed, by which time he had brought out his First Symphony, and in May 1841 he completed what is now the first movement of the concerto but was then entitled Fantasie for Piano and Orchestra. Clara tried it out at a Leipzig rehearsal in August, but the work was not heard in public and no publisher could be found for it. In June and July 1845 Schumann composed two more movements and

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© Eric Mason

CONCERTO IN A MINOR FOR PIANO AND ORCHESTRA, OP. 54 IMOGEN COOPER piano Allegro affettuoso | Intermezzo: Andantino grazioso | Allegro vivace

appended them to the Fantasie to form the concerto we now have. Clara was the soloist in all the early performances, the first of which took place in Dresden and the second at a Leipzig Gewandhaus concert on New Year's Day 1846, when Mendelssohn conducted.

Writing in his magazine, Neue Zeitschrift für Musik, in 1839 Schumann had complained of a comparative dearth of new piano concertos. ‘We must await’, he declared, ‘the genius who will show us in a newer and more brilliant way how orchestra and piano may be combined, how the soloist, dominant at the keyboard, may unfold the wealth of his instrument and his art, while the orchestra, no longer a mere spectator, may interweave its manifold facets into the scene.’ If it was Brahms who fully achieved this, Schumann's own concerto went some way towards realising his ideal.

The pianist’s imperative call to arms opens the proceedings, after which woodwind and horns gently announce the wistful eight-bar theme which is to supply the main substance of the virtually monothematic first movement. The piano repeats the theme and continues it lyrically with string support.

Instead of a new theme for second subject Schumann

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PROGRAMME NOTES

repeats the first, now given a new character by being transposed into bright C major. Solo clarinet and oboe take up the tune while the piano adds decorations, and the exposition ends with a brisk tutti on a motive first heard in the continuation of the first subject. The development section begins in A flat with an Andante espressivo in 6/4 time involving poetic ruminations by piano and clarinet, but the piano breaks out by returning to its initial challenge, which leads to a passionate variation of the original theme. After the recapitulation, which ends with a surprising shift into B flat, there comes the composer's own piano cadenza; he was taking no risk of a pianist spoiling his concerto by inserting an empty show of virtuosity. The coda puts the theme to new use as an Allegro molto in 2/4 time.

Not for nothing is the Intermezzo marked grazioso. Cast in ternary form, it begins and ends with a little F major theme that seems to delight in its simplicity. The middle section brings an eloquent soaring and dipping

theme in C major for the cellos. At the end the first movement's theme is briefly recalled to link the Intermezzo with the A major finale, whose dancing first subject is derived from the same tune.

This is another sonata-form movement, this time requiring a good deal more keyboard virtuosity although still putting it to expressive use. The second subject is a tiptoeing theme in an unusual rhythmic layout. Schumann begins the development with a fugal treatment of the first theme, but abandons this for a blithe new tune introduced by the oboe. All this material is reviewed in the liveliest manner with new melodic ideas appearing amid the piano’s bold arpeggios and lilting arabesques, and there is one more transformation of the concerto’s opening theme in the joyful coda. © Eric Mason

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

Johannes BRAHMS

SYMPHONY 2 IN D, OP. 73 Allegro non troppo | Adagio non troppo | Allegretto grazioso | Allegro con spirito

1833-1897

Brahms realised that for a composer like himself, who needed to work within the disciplines of classical sonata form, it was no light matter to follow Beethoven. But after his long-awaited First Symphony was launched in 1876 the floodgates opened and he composed his three other symphonies within the next decade. He began the

Second Symphony in the summer of 1877 at Pörtschach, a village by the Wörthersee in the Austrian province of Carinthia, and work went so well that Hans Richter was able to conduct the first performance the following December in Vienna. It went straight to the hearts of the Viennese, so much so that the third movement was

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PROGRAMME NOTES

repeated. Alpine sunshine seemed to have inspired its genial character, which led some people to call the symphony Brahms’s Pastoral.

cellos respectively take over the two elements, both of which go through much variation with a few interruptions of a more vigorous nature.

It is the longest of the four symphonies but does not seem a note too long, so satisfying are its proportions and so cheerful its mood and temperament. The first movement is imbued with the spirit of the Viennese waltz and its country cousin, the Ländler. It opens without preamble, establishing the key of D major with a three-note bass figure (the germ cell of the whole symphony) and a beautiful horn melody with a charming reply from the woodwind. The violins have the second main theme in the first group, after which the required modulation ushers in the second subject, another lovely tune ‘sung’ (the marking is cantando) by cellos and violas. A forceful new string theme and a vigorous rhythmic pattern derived from the opening bass figure complete the basic material. The development is mainly concerned with the first group of themes. After the recapitulation a horn solo supported by the strings introduces a coda that dwells tenderly on the opening theme.

Woodwind, horns and strings are given the delicate third movement, a set of rhythmically ingenious variations on two themes: a blithe tune and a chattering one for strings which is the same tune speeded up and in a different rhythm.

The slow movement is more introspective. Like the first it presents its main theme at once, in this case really two related themes in combination, one for cellos and the other, less prominent, on bassoons. Violins and

Beethoven’s influence may be detected in the finale, not so much in specific similarities as in the robust, unbuttoned spirit of the music. It is as if the rural life of Pörtschach had drawn the same response from Brahms as the peasant festivities had from Beethoven in his Pastoral Symphony. The movement opens with a swinging tune, introduced sotto voce by the strings and extended joyfully by the whole orchestra. There are derivations from and references back to the symphony’s opening ideas throughout this finale, as for example in the accompaniment to the second subject – a glowing tune on violins and violas – and in the triplets of the middle section. Trumpets and trombones make a splendid effect in the coda, which ends the symphony in a blaze of sunshine. © Eric Mason

The London Philharmonic Orchestra Recording Archive Many thanks to those kind supporters who have donated recordings to the London Philharmonic Orchestra Recording Archive. There are still many holes in our Archive so we would like to encourage any possible donors to delve into their own collections to see if they have any recordings which might fill in some of the gaps. Please contact Gillian Pole at the London Philharmonic Orchestra, 89 Albert Embankment, London SE1 7TP if you would like to make a donation.

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RECORDINGS ON THE LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA’S OWN RECORD LABEL

LPO-0043 Vladimir Jurowski conducts Brahms’s Symphonies 1 and 2 ‘This pair of budget-priced CDs on the LPO’s own label demonstrate how, in the right hands, the first two symphonies can thrill and delight … exquisite wind playing …genuinely exciting …’

GRAHAM RICKSON, THE ARTS DESK, 22 FEBRUARY 2010

LPO-0045 Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts Brahms’s A German Requiem with Elizabeth Watts, Stéphane Degout and the London Philharmonic Choir NEW RELEASE

LPO-0011 Eduard van Beinum conducts Arnold, Mahler, Beethoven, Brahms and Elgar ‘The immediacy of the performances is electrifying. You’ll search hard to find a fresher approach to Mahler’s Songs of a Wayfarer, or the precision van Beinum gets from Beethoven’s Leonore No. 1 and Brahms’s Haydn Variations.’

KENNETH WALTON, THE SCOTSMAN, 16 JANUARY 2006

The recordings may be downloaded in high quality MP3 format from www.lpo.org.uk/shop. They 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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ADMINISTRATION

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

GENERAL ADMINISTRATION

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

*Non-Executive Directors

Alison Atkinson Digital Projects Manager Julius Hendriksen Assistant to the Chief Executive and Artistic Director FINANCE David Burke General Manager and Finance Director David Greenslade Finance and IT Manager

THE LONDON PHILHARMONIC TRUST

Joshua Foong Finance Officer

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 Simon Yates

CONCERT MANAGEMENT

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 Horwath Clark Whitehill LLP Auditors Dr Louise Miller Honorary Doctor

Roanna Chandler Concerts Director Ruth Sansom Artistic Administrator Graham Wood Concerts, Recordings and Glyndebourne Manager Alison Jones Concerts Co-ordinator Hattie Garrard Tours and Engagements Manager Camilla Begg Concerts and Tours Assistant Matthew Freeman Recordings Consultant ORCHESTRA PERSONNEL

EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY PROGRAMME Matthew Todd Education and Community Director Anne Newman Education Officer Isobel Timms Community Officer

Gillian Pole Recordings Archive INTERN

Richard Mallett Education and Community Producer

LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

DEVELOPMENT Emma O’Connell Development Director Nick Jackman Charitable Giving Manager Phoebe Rouse Corporate Relations Manager Sarah Tattersall Corporate Relations and Events Manager Melissa Van Emden Corporate Relations and Events Officer Anna Gover Charitable Giving Officer

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

Photographs of Ravel, Schumann and Brahms courtesy of the Royal College of Music, London.

MARKETING

Photograph on the front cover

by Benjamin Ealovega.

Kath Trout Marketing Director

Programmes printed by Cantate.

Frances Cook Publications Manager

Sarah Thomas Librarian

Heather Barstow Marketing Co-ordinator

Michael Pattison Stage Manager

Valerie Barber Press Consultant (Tel: 020 7586 8560)

12 | London Philharmonic Orchestra

Philip Stuart Discographer

Jo Langston Marketing

Samantha Kendall Box Office Administrator (Tel: 020 7840 4242)

Ken Graham Trucking Instrument Transportation (Tel: 01737 373305)

Edmund Pirouet Consultant

Alec Haylor Education and Community Assistant

Andrew Chenery Orchestra Personnel Manager

Hannah Tucker Assistant Orchestra Personnel Manager

ARCHIVES

†Supported by Macquarie Group

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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 Mrs Steven Ward Simon Yates & Kevin Roon

Guy & Utti Whittaker

Mr Daniel Goldstein Mrs Barbara Green Mr Ray Harsant Oliver Heaton Peter MacDonald Eggers Mr & Mrs David Malpas Andrew T Mills Mr Maxwell Morrison 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 Andrew Davenport Mrs Sonja Drexler Mr Charles Dumas David Ellen Commander Vincent Evans

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 Mr Richard Fernyhough Ken Follett

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

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 Ms Sarah Needham Mr & Mrs Egil Oldeide Edmund Pirouet Mr Michael Posen 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 British American Business Charles Russell Destination Québec – UK Diagonal Consulting Lazard Leventis Overseas Man Group plc Québec Government Office in London Corporate Donors Lombard Street Research Redpoint Energy Limited In-kind Sponsors Heineken Lindt & Sprüngli Ltd Sela Sweets Ltd Villa Maria Education Partners Lambeth City Learning Centre London Borough of Lambeth Southwark EiC

Trusts and Foundations Adam Mickiewicz Institute Allianz Cultural Foundation The Andor Charitable Trust The Bernard Sunley Charitable Foundation Borletti-Buitoni Trust The Candide Charitable Trust The John S Cohen Foundation The Coutts Charitable Trust The D’Oyly Carte Charitable Trust Dunard Fund The Emmanuel Kaye Foundation The Equitable Charitable Trust The Eranda Foundation The Ernest Cook Trust The Fenton Arts Trust The Foyle Foundation Garfield Weston Foundation The Henry Smith Charity The Idlewild Trust John Lyon’s Charity John Thaw Foundation The Jonathan & Jeniffer Harris Trust The Sir Jules Thorn Charitable Trust

Lord Ashdown Charitable Settlement Marsh Christian Trust Maurice Marks Charitable Trust Maxwell Morrison Charitable Trust The Michael Marks Charitable Trust Musicians Benevolent Fund Paul Morgan Charitable Trust The R K Charitable Trust Ruth Berkowitz Charitable Trust The Samuel Sebba Charitable Trust Serge Rachmaninoff Foundation Sound Connections Stansfield Trust UK Friends of the FelixMendelssohn-BartholdyFoundation The Underwood Trust and others who wish to remain anonymous.

London Philharmonic Orchestra | 13

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BRIGHTON DOME CHIEF EXECUTIVE ANDREW COMBEN

Ticket Office 01273 709709 www.brightondome.org

The concert at Brighton Dome on 13 March 2010 is presented by the London Philharmonic Orchestra with assistance from Brighton Dome.

WELCOME TO BRIGHTON DOME We hope you enjoy the performance and your visit to Brighton Dome. For your comfort and safety, please note the following:

LATECOMERS may not be admitted until a suitable break in the performance. Some performances may contain no suitable breaks.

Brighton Dome gratefully acknowledges the support of Arts Council England and Brighton & Hove City Council.

Brighton Dome is managed by Brighton Dome and Festival Ltd which also runs the annual three-week Brighton Festival in May. www.brightonfestival.org

SMOKING Brighton Dome is a no smoking venue.

INTERVAL DRINKS may be ordered in advance at the bar to avoid queues.

FUTURE CONCERTS AT BRIGHTON DOME The dates of the London Philharmonic Orchestra’s concerts in Brighton Dome during the 2010/11 season will be announced in May.

PHOTOGRAPHY is not allowed in the auditorium.

RECORDING is not permitted in the auditorium.

MOBILES, PAGERS AND WATCHES should be switched off before entering the auditorium.

Thank you for your co-operation.

Date for your diary IMOGEN COOPER RECITAL Corn Exchange, Brighton Dome Friday 24 September at 7.30pm Tickets £18, £15 (£10 concs)

Download London Philharmonic Orchestra recordings from www.lpo.org.uk/shop It’s easy to take the London Philharmonic Orchestra with you wherever you go! Visit our downloads site to choose the works (or even single movements) you’d like to buy, and download high quality MP3s to your computer for transfer to an MP3 player or CD. With regular additions of new recordings with conductors from Beecham to Jurowski you’ll always have a selection of great music to choose from.

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SOUTHBANK CENTRE international international p iano s eries piano series S pring 2010 2010 Spring

CHIEF EXECUTIVE ALAN BISHOP

WELCOME TO SOUTHBANK CENTRE

ONE O ONE OF FT THE HE WORLD’S WORLD’S MOST MOST SIGNIFICANT S I NIFICANT PLATFORMS PLATFORMS FOR SOLO PIANO RECITALS

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: MDC music and movies, Foyles, EAT, Giraffe, Strada, wagamama, Le Pain Quotidien, Las Iguanas, ping pong, Canteen, Caffé Vergnano 1882, Skylon and Feng Sushi, as well as cafes, restaurants and shops inside the Royal Festival Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall and Hayward Gallery.

Photo: Yevgeny Sudbin © Clive Barda

If you wish to get in touch with us following your visit please contact our Head of Customer Relations at Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London SE1 8XX, by phone on 020 7960 4250 or by email at 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

TUE 16 MAR 2010

THU 29 APR 2010

Yundi

Pascal Rogé

THU 25 MAR 2010

WED 26 MAY 2010

Yevgeny Sudbin

Andreas Haefliger

WED 14 APR 2010

TUE 8 JUN 2010

Nikolai Demidenko

Paul Lewis

tickets 0 tickets 0844 844 8 847 47 9 9929 929 www.southbankcentre.co.uk w ww.southbankcentre.co.uk

London Philharmonic Orchestra | 15

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FUTURE CONCERTS AT SOUTHBANK CENTRE’S ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL

Wednesday 17 March 2010 | 7.30pm

Saturday 17 April 2010 | 7.30pm

Wagner Lohengrin, Prelude to Act 1 Brahms Violin Concerto Bartók Concerto for Orchestra

Turnage Texan Tenebrae (UK première) Glass The Four Seasons (European première) Górecki Symphony 3 (Symphony of Sorrowful Songs)

Ludovic Morlot conductor Anne-Sophie Mutter violin

Marin Alsop conductor Robert McDuffie violin Joanna Woś soprano

FREE Pre-Concert Event 6.00pm | Royal Festival Hall A performance by children from St Luke’s Primary School in Lambeth marking the culmination of their composition project, inspired by this evening’s repertoire.

FREE Pre-Concert Event 6.15pm | Royal Festival Hall Marin Alsop introduces the evening’s programme.

This concert is supported by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute as part of POLSKA! YEAR.

Ludovic Morlot and Anne-Sophie Mutter Robert McDuffie and Joanna Woś

Saturday 10 April 2010 | 7.30pm Handel Music for the Royal Fireworks Prokofiev Violin Concerto 1 Stravinsky Fireworks Beethoven Symphony 7

Wednesday 21 April 2010 | 7.30pm Ives The Unanswered Question Bernstein Symphony 2 (Age of Anxiety) Shostakovich Symphony 5

Yannick Nézet-Séguin conductor Lisa Batiashvili violin

Marin Alsop conductor Nicolas Hodges piano

Yannick NézetSéguin and Lisa Batiashvili Marin Alsop and Nicolas Hodges

Wednesday 14 April 2010 | 7.30pm Verdi Dances (Ballabili) from ‘Otello’ Dvo˘rák Cello Concerto Richard Strauss Aus Italian

TO BOOK

Gianandrea Noseda conductor Enrico Dindo cello

London Philharmonic Orchestra Ticket Office 020 7840 4242 | www.lpo.org.uk Mon-Fri 10am-5pm; no booking fee

Tickets £9-£38 / Premium seats £55

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

16 | London Philharmonic Orchestra