2021/22 concert season at Brighton Dome
Concert programme
Principal Conductor Edward Gardner supported by Aud Jebsen Principal Guest Conductor Karina Canellakis Conductor Emeritus Vladimir Jurowski Patron HRH The Duke of Kent KG Artistic Director Elena Dubinets Chief Executive David Burke Leader Pieter Schoeman supported by Neil Westreich
Brighton Dome Concert Hall Saturday 23 April 2022 | 7.30pm
Magical Tales Mussorgsky (orch. Rimsky-Korsakov) Night on a Bare Mountain (12’) Glazunov Concerto for Saxophone in E flat major, Op. 109 (13’) Interval (20’) Ravel Ma mère l’Oye (Mother Goose) (28’) Ravel Boléro (14’) Finnegan Downie Dear conductor Jess Gillam saxophone
The timings shown are not precise and are given only as a guide. CONCERT PRESENTED BY THE LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA IN ASSOCIATION WITH BRIGHTON DOME
Contents 2
Welcome LPO 2022/23 season at Brighton Dome 4 Finnegan Downie Dear 5 Jess Gillam 6 London Philharmonic Orchestra 7 Leader: Pieter Schoeman 8 On stage tonight 9 Programme notes 14 Thank you 16 LPO administration
London Philharmonic Orchestra • 23 April 2022 • Magical Tales
Welcome to Brighton Dome
LPO 2022/23 season at Brighton Dome
Chief Executive Andrew Comben
We hope you enjoy the performance and your visit to Brighton Dome. For your comfort and safety, please note the following:
Welcome to our final concert of the 2021/22 season at Brighton Dome. We are thrilled to share with you details of next season: concert listings are on the opposite page, and booking opens at 10am this Monday, 25 April.
Latecomers may not be admitted until a suitable break in the performance. Some performances may contain no suitable breaks.
We are delighted that Karina Canellakis joins us for our opening concert in October, following rave reviews in her first year as LPO Principal Guest Conductor. She conducts Sibelius’s hugely popular Violin Concerto, played by Grammy Award-winning violinist Augustin Hadelich, before Beethoven’s revolutionary ‘Eroica’ Symphony. It is sure to be a thrilling start to the season.
Smoking Brighton Dome is a no-smoking venue. Interval drinks may be ordered in advance at the bar to avoid queues.
Alpesh Chauhan conducts our second concert, in which we are joined by another exciting violinist. Randall Goosby performs Bruch’s spirited Violin Concerto No. 1, between Brahms’s folk-inspired Hungarian Dances and the sweeping string melodies and autumnal colours of his Third Symphony – perfect for a November evening.
Photography is not allowed in the auditorium. Recording is not allowed in the auditorium. Mobiles and watches should be switched off before entering the auditorium.
We enter the New Year with two concerts packed with drama and storytelling. Gergely Madaras conducts an all-Tchaikovsky programme, including his enormous Fifth Symphony and a performance from Zlatomir Fung, the youngest musician ever to win First Prize at the International Tchaikovsky Competition Cello Division. And in April, Dima Slobodeniouk conducts the second UK performance of Tania León’s Stride before pianist Beatrice Rana brings the season to a dazzling close.
Thank you for your co-operation. The concert at Brighton Dome on 23 April 2022 is presented by the London Philharmonic Orchestra in association with Brighton Dome. Brighton Dome gratefully acknowledges the support of Brighton & Hove City Council and Arts Council England.
We look forward to the future with excitement and hope you will join us at Brighton Dome for what is set to be another memorable season! Book online from this Monday, 25 April, at brightondome.org or by phone on 01273 709709. Brighton Dome is managed by Brighton Dome and Brighton Festival, which also runs the annual three-week Brighton Festival in May.
LPO concerts on Marquee TV We are delighted that a selection of concerts from our 2021/22 and 2022/23 Royal Festival Hall seasons are being filmed and broadcast on Marquee TV.
brightondome.org brightonfestival.org
Concerts will be available for a limited period to watch for free without a Marquee TV subscription; however if you would like to subscribe for unlimited access to Marquee TV’s extensive range of music, opera, theatre and dance productions, you can enjoy 50% off with code LPO2022. Visit marquee.tv/LPO2022 to find out more, enjoy a free trial or subscribe.
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2022/23 concert season at Brighton Dome
Where music takes you Canellakis conducts Beethoven
Poetry and Passion
Saturday 22 October 2022 | 7.30pm
Tchaikovsky Romeo and Juliet: Fantasy Overture Tchaikovsky Rococo Variations Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 5
Sibelius Violin Concerto Beethoven Symphony No. 3 (Eroica) Karina Canellakis conductor Augustin Hadelich violin
Saturday 11 February 2023 | 7.30pm
Gergely Madaras conductor Zlatomir Fung cello*
Randall Goosby plays Bruch
Heroes and Heroines
Saturday 5 November 2022 | 7.30pm
Saturday 1 April 2023 | 7.30pm
Brahms Hungarian Dances Nos. 1, 5 and 6 Bruch Violin Concerto No. 1 Brahms Symphony No. 3
Tania León Stride Mendelssohn Piano Concerto No. 1 Sibelius Lemminkäinen Suite
Alpesh Chauhan conductor Randall Goosby violin
Dima Slobodeniouk conductor Beatrice Rana piano
*LPO Alexandra Jupin Award recipient: An annual award for an artist making their debut with the London Philharmonic Orchestra.
On sale Monday 25 April Book online brightondome.org Ticket Office 01273 709709
London Philharmonic Orchestra • 23 April 2022 • Magical Tales
Finnegan Downie Dear conductor
performances of Don Giovanni at Nevill Holt Opera. This season he conducts Le nozze di Figaro at the Royal Swedish Opera and, further ahead, makes debuts at the Deutsche Staatsoper Berlin and the Theater an der Wien, as well as returning for new productions at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden and the Royal Swedish Opera. © Frank Bloedhorn-Finn
As Music Director of the award-winning company Shadwell Opera, Finnegan collaborates with the UK’s finest young singers and instrumentalists, bringing stagings of seminal 20th-century and contemporary works to new audiences. His performances with Shadwell Opera have received consistent acclaim in the national and international press – among them works by George Benjamin, Peter Maxwell Davies, Mark-Anthony Turnage, Schoenberg and Stravinsky. In the 2019/20 season, Shadwell Opera’s most ambitious project to date saw it tour with its orchestra and ensemble to the Mariinsky Theatre, St Petersburg, for the Russian premiere of Oliver Knussen’s Where the Wild Things Are.
Winner of the Mahler Competition 2020, Finnegan Downie Dear is increasingly recognised for his extraordinary musicianship, his command of complex scores, and his intense and mature performances. Tonight’s concert is his debut with the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Following a week conducting the Bamberg Symphony in a variety of repertoire, Finnegan won the Mahler Competition 2020, leading a final concert which included the world premiere of Miroslav Srnka’s move 04 ‘Memory Full’ and Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 with soloist Barbara Hannigan. He recently made concert debuts conducting the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Luxembourg Philharmonic, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Ensemble Resonanz, Munich Radio Orchestra, Klangforum Wien, RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, RTÉ Concert Orchestra, State Philharmonic of Košice, and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and BBC Concert Orchestra. Future symphonic engagements include concerts with the Hallé, Staatskapelle Berlin, Deutsches SymphonieOrchester Berlin, Hamburg Symphony, Camerata Salzburg, Tonkünstler Orchestra, Sinfonieorchester Basel, Tampere Philharmonic, Bamberg Symphony, RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra and the Sydney, Melbourne, Korea and Baltimore Symphony Orchestras. As much at home in the opera house as in the concert hall, Finnegan’s recent operatic engagements include his debut at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, conducting Gerald Barry’s Alice’s Adventures Under Ground. Last summer he conducted critically acclaimed
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 23 April 2022 • Magical Tales
Jess Gillam saxophone
© Robin Clewley Photography
Jess is the first ever saxophonist to be signed exclusively to Decca Classics, and both of her albums reached No. 1 in the UK Classical Music Charts. Her debut album was listed in The Times Top 100 Albums of 2019. She has been the recipient of a Classic BRIT Award, was nominated for The Times Breakthrough Award, and was awarded an MBE in The Queen’s Birthday Honours 2021 for services to music. A free spirit in style and character, Jess is an advocate for the power of music in society and passionate about inspiring and bringing joy to people through music During the recent lockdown she formed her ‘Virtual Scratch Orchestra’, inviting musicians of any standard to come together to play music virtually with her. The orchestra played music by David Bowie and The Beatles, as well as a Christmas special of Leroy Anderson’s Sleigh Ride. Over 2000 people aged 2 – 94 from around 30 countries took part, playing a huge range of instruments. Jess is a patron for Awards for Young Musicians and London Music Fund and enjoys working and performing with young musicians.
Hailing from Ulverston in Cumbria, Jess Gillam is animating the music world with her outstanding talent and infectious personality. She has been forging her own adventurous path since she shot to fame by becoming the first saxophonist to reach the finals of BBC Young Musician and the youngest ever soloist to perform at the Last Night of the BBC Proms. Passionate about inspiring and bringing joy to people through music, Jess invites audiences on journeys of musical discovery through her electrifying performances and eclectic programming. Tonight’s concert is her debut with the London Philharmonic Orchestra.
As well as performing around the world, Jess is a presenter on TV and radio. She became the youngest ever presenter for BBC Radio 3 with the launch of her own weekly show, ‘This Classical Life’. Now in its third year, the show won the prestigious ARIA Award for Best Specialist Music Show in 2020. In July 2021 Jess presented a special live edition of ‘This Classical Life’ at the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall. She has also been a guest presenter for BBC Radio 2 and co-hosted a miniseries for BBC Radio 4’s ‘Today’ programme. Keen to explore the creative output of her home county, Jess presented a series of ‘Cumbrian Chats’ on BBC Radio Cumbria. Her TV presenting appearances have included the BBC Proms and BBC Young Musician.
Jess’s infectious enthusiasm and passion for classical and non-classical music lights up every stage, and she has performed in prestigious concert halls and with world-class orchestras around the globe including the NDR Hannover, Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Minnesota Symphony Orchestra, Munich Philharmonic, Lahti Symphony Orchestra and the UK’s leading orchestras. She also enjoys touring with her newly-formed Jess Gillam Ensemble, bringing together a group of brilliant musicians who share her bold, uplifting and openminded approach. Jess has performed live at the BAFTAs to millions of viewers at home.
Jess is a Vandoren UK Artist and became the youngest ever endorsee for Yanagisawa Saxophones aged just 13.
Jess is currently Artist in Residence at the Wigmore Hall and a European Concert Hall Organisation (ECHO) Rising Star, which sees her performing at many of the top concert halls across Europe. She continues to promote her own concert series, bringing international talent to her hometown of Ulverston.
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 23 April 2022 • Magical Tales
© Benjamin Ealovega
London Philharmonic Orchestra
One of the finest orchestras on the international stage, the London Philharmonic Orchestra balances a long and distinguished history with its reputation as one of the UK’s most forward-looking ensembles. As well as its concert performances, the Orchestra also records film soundtracks, releases CDs and downloads on its own label, and reaches thousands of people every year through activities for families, schools and local communities.
the Orchestra takes up its annual residency at Glyndebourne Festival Opera, where it has been Resident Symphony Orchestra for over 50 years. The Orchestra also tours internationally, performing to sell-out audiences worldwide. In 1956 it became the first British orchestra to appear in Soviet Russia and in 1973 made the first ever visit to China by a Western orchestra. The London Philharmonic Orchestra has recorded many blockbuster film scores, from The Lord of the Rings trilogy to Lawrence of Arabia, East is East, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and Thor: The Dark World. It also broadcasts regularly on television and radio, and in 2005 established its own record label. There are now over 100 releases available on CD and to download. Recent highlights include Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 11 and Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 under Vladimir Jurowski, and a commemorative box set of historic recordings with former Principal Conductor Sir Adrian Boult.
The Orchestra was founded by Sir Thomas Beecham in 1932, and has since been headed by many great conductors including Sir Adrian Boult, Bernard Haitink, Sir Georg Solti, Klaus Tennstedt and Kurt Masur. In September 2021 Edward Gardner became the Orchestra’s Principal Conductor, succeeding Vladimir Jurowski, who became Conductor Emeritus in recognition of his transformative impact on the Orchestra as Principal Conductor from 2007–21. Karina Canellakis is the Orchestra’s current Principal Guest Conductor and Brett Dean is the Orchestra’s current Composer-in-Residence.
In summer 2012 the London Philharmonic Orchestra performed as part of The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Pageant on the River Thames, and was also chosen to record all the world’s national anthems for the London 2012 Olympics. In 2013 it was the winner of the RPS Music Award for Ensemble.
The Orchestra is resident at the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall in London, where it gives around 40 concerts each season. It also enjoys flourishing residencies in Brighton, Eastbourne and Saffron Walden, and performs regularly around the UK. Each summer
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 23 April 2022 • Magical Tales
Pieter Schoeman
The London Philharmonic Orchestra is committed to inspiring the next generation of musicians, and recently celebrated the 30th anniversary of its Education and Community department, whose work over three decades has introduced so many people of all ages to orchestral music and created opportunities for people of all backgrounds to fulfil their creative potential. Its dynamic and wide-ranging programme provides first musical experiences for children and families; offers creative projects and professional development opportunities for schools and teachers; inspires talented teenage instrumentalists to progress their skills; and develops the next generation of professional musicians. The Orchestra’s work at the forefront of digital technology has enabled it to reach millions of people worldwide. Over the pandemic period the LPO further developed its relationship with UK and international audiences through its ‘LPOnline’ digital content: over 100 videos of performances, insights, and introductions to playlists, which collectively received over 3 million views worldwide and led to the LPO being named runner-up in the Digital Classical Music Awards 2020. From Autumn 2020 the Orchestra was delighted to be able to return to its Southbank Centre home to perform a season of concerts filmed live and streamed free of charge via Marquee TV.
© Benjamin Ealovega
Leader
Pieter Schoeman was appointed Leader of the London Philharmonic Orchestra in 2008, having previously been Co-Leader since 2002. He is also a Professor of Violin at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music & Dance. Pieter has performed worldwide as a soloist and recitalist in such famous halls as the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Moscow’s Rachmaninov Hall, Capella Hall in St Petersburg, Staatsbibliothek in Berlin, Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles and London’s Royal Festival Hall. As a chamber musician he regularly appears at London’s prestigious Wigmore Hall. His chamber music partners have included Anne-Sophie Mutter, Veronika Eberle, Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Boris Garlitsky, JeanGuihen Queyras, Yannick Nézet-Séguin and Martin Helmchen.
September 2021 saw the opening of a new live concert season at the Royal Festival Hall, featuring many of the world’s leading musicians including Sheku KannehMason, Klaus Mäkelä, Renée Fleming, Bryn Terfel and this season’s Artist-in-Residence, Julia Fischer. The Orchestra is delighted to be continuing to offer digital streams to selected concerts throughout the season through its ongoing partnership with Intersection and Marquee TV.
Pieter has performed numerous times as a soloist with the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Highlights have included an appearance as both conductor and soloist in Vivaldi’s Four Seasons at the Royal Festival Hall, the Brahms Double Concerto with Kristina Blaumane, and the Britten Double Concerto with Alexander Zemtsov, which was recorded and released on the LPO Label to great critical acclaim.
lpo.org.uk
Pieter has appeared as Guest Leader with the BBC, Barcelona, Bordeaux, Lyon and Baltimore symphony orchestras, and the Rotterdam and BBC Philharmonic orchestras. Pieter’s chair in the LPO is generously supported by Neil Westreich.
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 23 April 2022 • Magical Tales
On stage tonight First Violins
Pieter Schoeman* Leader
Chair supported by Neil Westreich
Vesselin Gellev Sub-Leader Lasma Taimina Chair supported by Irina Gofman & Mr Rodrik V. G. Cave
Minn Majoe Yang Zhang
Chair supported by Eric Tomsett
Sophie Phillips Martin Höhmann
Chair supported by Chris Aldren
Cellos
Guest Principal
Francis Bucknall Susanna Riddell Tom Roff Auriol Evans Leo Melvin Jane Lindsay Iain Ward
Kevin Rundell* Principal Hugh Kluger George Peniston Laura Murphy Adam Wynter David Johnson
Second Violins
Flutes
Tania Mazzetti Principal Chair supported by Countess Dominique Loredan
Emma Oldfield Nancy Elan Fiona Higham
Chair supported by David & Yi Buckley
Joseph Maher Clarice Curradi Eriko Nagayama Sioni Williams Harry Kerr Sheila Law Jessica Coleman Jamie Hutchinson
Violas
Richard Waters Principal
Chair supported by Caroline, Jamie & Zander Sharp
Laura Vallejo Benedetto Pollani Martin Wray Stanislav Popov Shiry Rashkovsky Jennifer Coombes Julia Kornig Charles Cross Abby Bowen
Tuba
E-flat Clarinet
Timpani
Thomas Watmough Principal
Chair supported by Roger Greenwood
Saxophones
Martin Robertson Damon Oliver
Double Basses
Alice Hall Amanda Smith Jeff Moore John Dickinson Miranda Allen Maria Fiore Mazzarini
Bass Clarinet
Paul Richards* Principal
Bozidar Vukotic
Bassoons
John McDougall Guest Principal
Emma Harding
Contrabassoon
Simon Estell* Principal
Harry Winstanley Guest Principal
Horns
Imogen Royce Clare Childs
John Ryan* Principal Nicholas Mooney
Lee Tsarmaklis* Principal
Jonathan Phillips Guest Principal
Percussion
Andrew Barclay* Principal Chair supported by Gill & Garf Collins
Feargus Brennan Emmanuel Joste Laura Bradford Stefan Beckett
Harp
Sue Blair Guest Principal
Celeste
Katherine Tinker * Holds a professorial appointment in London
Guest Principal
Piccolos
Martin Hobbs Duncan Fuller Gareth Mollison
Clare Childs Imogen Royce
Oboes
Trumpets
James Hulme
Paul Beniston* Principal Anne McAneney* Thomas Nielsen David Hilton
Guest Principal
Katherine Bryer
Cor Anglais
Sue Böhling* Principal
Piccolo Trumpet
Chair supported by Dr Barry Grimaldi
Paul Beniston*
Trombones
Oboe D’Amore Alice Munday
Mark Templeton* Principal
Clarinets
David Whitehouse
Chair supported by William & Alex de Winton
Benjamin Mellefont
Bass Trombone
Principal
Thomas Watmough
Lyndon Meredith Principal
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The LPO also acknowledges the following chair supporters whose players are not present at this concert: The Candide Trust Sonja Drexler Friends of the Orchestra Sir Simon Robey Victoria Robey OBE Bianca & Stuart Roden
London Philharmonic Orchestra • 23 April 2022 • Magical Tales
Programme notes Modest Mussorgsky 1839–81 orch. Rimsky-Korsakov
Night on a Bare Mountain 1866–74, orch 1882
With Modest Mussorgsky, it always comes back to the drink. Although untrained as a composer (he began his career as an army officer), everyone admitted that he was the most naturally gifted of the so-called ‘Mighty Handful’ of Russian nationalist composers. Yet he seemed incapable of putting his life in order, completing only a handful of works and leaving countless more in sketches. Living on the charity of bohemian friends, he adopted their lifestyle – which, since it involved a ritual known as ‘Trans-cognac-ing oneself’, hardly helped matters. Alcoholism killed him at the age of 42, and left his musical friends in a dilemma. It was the methodical Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov who decided to rescue Mussorgsky’s music. Amongst Mussorgsky’s many unfinished works, one piece in particular caught his eye. It had begun in 1866 as a piano concerto entitled ‘St John’s Eve’ – the night upon which the demons of pagan Russia, characters like Baba Yaga and Chernobog the Little Black God, break loose to wreak havoc on the summit of Mount Triglav. In 1872 Mussorgsky had adapted it as a choral scene for an opera Mlada, and dropped the piano. Two years later it had become an interlude in another unfinished opera, Sorochintsy Fair – now without chorus. This time he also gave it a peaceful ending, as a church bell heralds dawn and a clarinet sings a shepherd’s song. None of these seemed quite right; so in 1882 Rimsky re-worked the final version with his own orchestral flair. The result hardly needs description. The sense of supernatural terror it generates has made it a staple of horror films ever since. And it’s the only piece on tonight’s programme ever to have doubled as a 1970s disco anthem! Modest Mussorgsky
Programme note © Richard Bratby
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 23 April 2022 • Magical Tales
Programme notes Alexander Glazunov 1865–1936
Concerto for Saxophone in E flat major, Op. 109 1934 Jess Gillam saxophone Allegro moderato – Andante – Allegro Paris between the wars was a powerhouse of artistic innovation. For Alexander Glazunov, however – elderly, ill and far from home – it was the end of the road. The former golden boy of classical music in imperial Russia had struck an uneasy truce with the post-1917 communist regime. As head of the Leningrad Conservatoire he’d been fiercely protective of his students (who included the teenage Dmitri Shostakovich). But the new world of political directives and food shortages took its toll, and in September 1928 an exhausted Glazunov left Russia for France. He never returned. His musical imagination, however, remained as lively as ever, and in March 1932 he wrote a Saxophone Quartet for the French saxophonist Marcel Mule. Classical saxophone players around the world (then, as now, a select group) immediately sat up and paid attention. One was the German virtuoso Sigurd Raschèr, who attended a performance of the Quartet in Paris that December, and saw Glazunov acknowledge the applause – ‘a tall, lightly stooping gentleman with white hair’: Overflowing with enthusiasm, eventually even I made it into the artists’ room. I had difficulty expressing myself in a common language, so I held the master’s hand and asked simply ‘May I play for you?’ Alexander Glazunov Courtesy of the Royal College of Music, London
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 23 April 2022 • Magical Tales
Programme notes In his Concerto, he lets the saxophone sing – long, wistful, deeply Russian songs of nostalgia and exile. And he places its glowing sound against a bed of softhued velvet and silk. A string orchestra moulds itself lovingly around the saxophone’s song, occasionally rustling or catching the light.
Raschèr never missed a trick: immediately after playing, he asked Glazunov for a concerto. ‘Oui – for such a musician I will write one’, replied the composer. Heart disease intervened; he was unable to begin work for over a year, during which time Raschèr subjected the 68-year-old composer (as Glazunov told a friend) to ‘attacks rather than requests’ for a concerto. But when Glazunov felt ready, he worked swiftly; he seems to have written the Concerto between March and May 1934. He sent the score to Raschèr and later coached him prior to the world premiere, which took place in Nyköping, Sweden, on 26 November 1934.
The Concerto is in a single movement, with a reflective central section and (once the singing is done) an increasingly brilliant solo cadenza that leads into a dancing, leaping fugal finale. The old master allows himself a few reminiscences, but also delights in the potential of the instrument, and in the energy and skill of the young artists who’d tempted him out of retirement. It would be his final orchestral work and it goes out on an exuberant and optimistic high. Despite everything, that’s just the kind of composer he was.
Glazunov was a Russian romantic composer of the old school, and while he was certainly aware of Paris’s jazz scene, he knew himself too well to try and be something that he wasn’t. As a teenage prodigy in the 1880s, he’d learned the secret of musical colour from Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov; handling woodwind instruments the way Fabergé’s jewellers crafted gold and enamel.
Programme note © Richard Bratby
Interval – 20 minutes An announcement will be made five minutes before the end of the interval.
OFFSTAGE Our weekly podcast, LPO Offstage, takes a look behind-the-scenes of the LPO, bringing you closer than ever to the world of orchestral music. Hosted by award-winning saxophonist and presenter YolanDa Brown, delve deep into the world of the LPO. Find LPO Offstage free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Acast, or wherever you listen.
lpo.org.uk/podcast
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 23 April 2022 • Magical Tales
Programme notes Maurice Ravel 1875–1937
Ma mère l’Oye (Mother Goose) 1908–10, orch. 1911
Prélude – Danse du Rouet et Scène – Pavane de la Belle au bois dormant – Les entretiens de la Belle et de la Bête – Petit Poucet – Laideronnette, Impératrice des Pagodes – Le jardin féerique ‘Ravel was my favourite [among my father’s friends] because he used to tell me marvellous stories. I would sit on his knee and indefatigably he would begin “Once upon a time”’. Mimie Godebski’s adult recollections revealing lifelong bachelor Ravel’s unerring affinity with children and childish things relate directly to the conception of the suite Ma mère l’Oye (‘Mother Goose’). In the summer of 1908 the composer had presented the nine-year-old Mimie and her younger brother Jean with a tiny but exquisite ‘Pavane de la Belle au bois dormant’ (‘Pavane of the Sleeping Beauty’) for piano duet. His intention was that they would play it, but it proved too difficult, and when the death of his father took the composer back to Paris that autumn, any intended further work was temporarily halted; it was not until the spring of 1910 – the same time that he was working on the ballet Daphnis et Chloé – that Ravel completed it as a five-movement suite on subjects borrowed from old fairytales by the Comtesse d’Aulnoy, Marie Leprince de Beaumont and Charles Perrault (whose collection Contes de ma mère l’Oye provided the title). He still harboured hopes that the Godebski children would give the first public performance, but although they played it to him in private, the premiere was eventually given in Paris by two other child pianists, Jeanne Leleu and Geneviève Durony.
dreaming fairytale stories as she sleeps and finally being awoken at dawn by Prince Charming, and was presumably grafted on afterwards since it entailed not only the addition of linking passages, an atmospheric ‘Prélude’ and a ‘Danse du Rouet’ (‘Spinning-Wheel Dance’) but also a slight reordering of the original movements. These themselves remain intact, however, their naive charm and sensitivity somehow only heightened by the deft sophistication of Ravel’s orchestration. After the ‘Pavane’ comes the Satie-esque ‘Les entretiens de la Belle et de la Bête’ (Dialogues of Beauty and the Beast), with Beauty represented by a clarinet, the Beast by a contrabassoon and their moment of reconciliation by a harp glissando and glistening violin harmonics. ‘Petit Poucet’ depicts a diminutive character (his English equivalent would be ‘Hop o’ my Thumb’) laying a trail of breadcrumbs through the woods, only to see his waymarkers eaten by birds; the trail can be heard meandering its way through the music on the strings, and the birds are unmistakable. ‘Laideronnette, Impératrice des Pagodes’ (‘Little ugly one, Empress of the Pagodas’) conjures its oriental flavour through the use of the pentatonic scale – like Debussy and others, Ravel had been influenced by hearing a Javanese gamelan at the Paris Exhibition of 1889 – and the score ends with ‘Le jardin féerique’ (‘The fairy garden’), depicting Prince Charming’s arrival in the ballet, but in its original guise surely a burst of radiant nostalgia for childhood.
Ravel produced his customary orchestration in 1911, but then, in answer to a commission from a Parisian theatre, followed it up with the expanded ballet score (nearly twice the length of the suite) that we hear tonight. The scenario featured the famous Beauty pricking her finger,
Programme note © Lindsay Kemp
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 23 April 2022 • Magical Tales
Programme notes Maurice Ravel 1875–1937
Boléro 1928
Ravel’s famous Boléro came about by accident. Around the beginning of 1928, he was asked by the dancer and choreographer Ida Rubinstein to orchestrate some pieces from Albéniz’s piano suite Iberia, for a ballet to be called Fandango. In the summer, after a successful tour of north America, he was about to settle down to the task when he discovered that the rights to an orchestral version of Iberia were not available. With time now short, he decided to write an original score, still in the Spanish idiom that (perhaps thanks to his Basque mother) came so naturally to him – but one that would require little invention other than in orchestration. He wrote a long melody in the dance rhythm of the bolero, placed it over a mechanically repeated side-drum rhythm and an unchanging alternation between two bass notes, so that any harmony would be merely colouristic, and shaped the work as a continuous crescendo created primarily through instrumentation. The resulting ballet, re-titled Boléro, was premiered at the Paris Opéra in November 1928, and was an immediate success. And to Ravel’s surprise, this ‘piece for orchestra without music’, as he once called it, also became popular in concert halls all over the world.
height, the melody is heard straight through, A–B, with the B section extended by the work’s single, seismic change of key. Programme note © Anthony Burton
Simple though it is, Ravel’s plan is carried out with great imagination. The bolero melody is presented in an A–A–B–B pattern, with a change of scoring for each segment. Initially, it is mostly assigned to a series of solo instruments, including such exotics as the recently revived oboe d’amore (mezzo-soprano oboe) and two sizes of saxophone. The first time it is given to more than one instrument, it is scored for flute and muted trumpet in octaves; but a little later piccolo, flute, horn and celeste present it in exactly parallel major chords, as if on an organ mixture stop; and as the buildup continues, it is more freely doubled in streams of parallel chords. Meanwhile, the accompaniment also becomes fuller, with the bolero rhythm appearing in different sections of the orchestra. Then, as the crescendo approaches its
Maurice Ravel in 1925
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London Philharmonic Orchestra • 23 April 2022 • Magical Tales
Thank you We are extremely grateful to all donors who have given generously to the LPO over the past year. Your generosity helps maintain the breadth and depth of the LPO’s activities, as well as supporting the Orchestra both on and off the concert platform.
Artistic Director’s Circle
Anonymous donors Mrs Aline Foriel-Destezet Mrs Christina Lang Assael In memory of Mrs Rita Reay Sir Simon & Lady Robey OBE
Orchestra Circle
The Candide Trust William & Alex de Winton Aud Jebsen Mr & Mrs Philip Kan Neil Westreich The American Friends of the London Philharmonic Orchestra
Principal Associates An anonymous donor Richard Buxton Gill & Garf Collins In memory of Brenda Lyndoe Casbon In memory of Ann Marguerite Collins Hamish & Sophie Forsyth The Tsukanov Family
Associates
Anonymous donors Mrs Irina Andreeva In memory of Len & Edna Beech Steven M. Berzin Ms Veronika BorovikKhilchevskaya Irina Gofman & Mr Rodrik V. G. Cave The Lambert Family Charitable Trust Countess Dominique Loredan Mr & Mrs Makharinsky George Ramishvili Stuart & Bianca Roden Julian & Gill Simmonds In memory of Hazel Amy Smith Deanie & Jay Stein
Gold Patrons
An anonymous donor Chris Aldren David & Yi Buckley David Burke & Valerie Graham David & Elizabeth Challen
In memory of Allner Mavis Channing Sonja Drexler The Vernon Ellis Foundation Peter & Fiona Espenhahn Marie-Laure Favre-Gilly de Varennes de Beuill Mr Roger Greenwood Malcolm Herring John & Angela Kessler Dame Theresa Sackler Scott & Kathleen Simpson Eric Tomsett Andrew & Rosemary Tusa The Viney Family Guy & Utti Whittaker
Silver Patrons
Mrs A Beare The Rt Hon. The Lord Burns GCB Bruno De Kegel Jan & Leni Du Plessis Ulrike & Benno Engelmann Simon & Meg Freakley Pehr G Gyllenhammar The Jeniffer & Jonathan Harris Charitable Trust Catherine Høgel & Ben Mardle Wg. Cdr. & Mrs M T Liddiard OBE JP RAF Sofiya Machulskaya Mrs Elizabeth Meshkvicheva The Metherell Family Andrew Neill Peter & Lucy Noble Marianne Parsons Tom & Phillis Sharpe Laurence Watt Grenville & Krysia Williams
Bronze Patrons
Anonymous donors Michael Allen Dr Manon Antoniazzi Julian & Annette Armstrong Roger & Clare Barron Mr Philip Bathard-Smith Sir Peter Bazalgette Mikhail Noskov & Vasilina Bindley Mr Bernard Bradbury Sally Bridgeland In memory of Julie Bromley Desmond & Ruth Cecil Mr John H Cook Howard & Veronika Covington John & Sam Dawson
Cameron & Kathryn Doley David Ellen Christopher Fraser OBE Virginia Gabbertas MBE David & Jane Gosman Mr Gavin Graham Mrs Dorothy Hambleton J Douglas Home The Jackman Family Mr & Mrs Ralph Kanza Jamie & Julia Korner Rose & Dudley Leigh Drs Frank & Gek Lim Nicholas & Felicity Lyons Geoff & Meg Mann Harriet & Michael Maunsell Marianne Parsons Dr Wiebke Pekrull Mr Gerald Pettit Mr Roger Phillimore Gillian Pole Mr Michael Posen Mr Christopher Querée Sir Bernard Rix Mr Robert Ross Priscylla Shaw Patrick & Belinda Snowball Charlotte Stevenson Mr Robert Swannell Joe Topley Tony & Hilary Vines Mr & Mrs John C Tucker Mr & Mrs John & Susi Underwood Marina Vaizey Jenny Watson CBE Mr John Weekes Christopher Williams
Principal Supporters
Anonymous donors Dr R M Aickin Mr Mark Astaire Sir John Baker Tessa Bartley Mr Geoffrey Bateman Mrs Julia Beine Mr Anthony Boswood Dr Anthony Buckland Dr Carlos Carreno Mr Julien Chilcott-Monk Mr & Mrs Stewart Cohen David & Liz Conway Mr Alistair Corbett Andrew Davenport Mr Simon Douglas Mr B C Fairhall Mr Richard Fernyhough Mrs Janet Flynn Mrs Ash Frisby
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Jason George Mr Stephen Goldring Mr Daniel Goldstein Mr Milton Grundy Prof. Emeritus John Gruzelier Nerissa Guest & David Foreman Michael & Christine Henry Mark & Sarah Holford Ivan Hurry Per Jonsson Alexandra Jupin & John Bean Mr Ian Kapur Ms Kim J Koch Richard & Briony Linsell Paul & Brigitta Lock Mr Peter Mace Nicholas & Lindsay Merriman Andrew T Mills Simon & Fiona Mortimore Mrs Terry Neale John Nickson & Simon Rew Mr James Pickford Michael & Carolyn Portillo Mr David Russell Colin Senneck & the Hartley and District LPO Group Mr John Shinton Nigel Silby Mr Brian Smith Martin & Cheryl Southgate Mr & Mrs G Stein Dr Peter Stephenson Mr Ian Tegner Dr June Wakefield Howard & Sheelagh Watson Joanna Williams Roger Woodhouse Mr John Wright
Supporters
Anonymous donors Ralph & Elizabeth Aldwinckle Alexander & Rachel Antelme Julian & Annette Armstrong Lindsay Badenoch Mr Mark Bagshaw & Mr Ian Walker Mr John Barnard Mr John D Barnard Damaris, Richard & Friends Mr David Barrett Diana Barrett Mr Simon Baynham Harvey Bengen Nick & Rebecca Beresford Mr Paul Bland Mr Keith Bolderson Mr Andrew Botterill
Julian & Margaret Bowden & Mr Paul Michel Richard & Jo Brass Mr & Mrs Shaun Brown Mr Alan C Butler Lady Cecilia Cadbury Mrs Marilyn Casford Miss Yousun Chae Alison Clarke & Leo Pilkington J Clay Mr Joshua Coger Mr Martin Compton Mr Martin Connelly Mr Stephen Connock Miss Tessa Cowie Mr David Davies Mr Roderick Davies Mr David Devons Anthony & Jo Diamond Miss Sylvia Dowle Patricia Dreyfus Mr Andrew Dyke Mr Declan Eardly Mrs Maureen Erskine Mr Peter Faulk Mr Joe Field Ms Chrisine Louise Fluker Mr Kevin Fogarty Mr Richard France Mr Bernard Freudenthal Mrs Adele Friedland & Friends Will Gold Mrs Alison Goulter Mr Andrew Gunn Mr K Haines Mr Martin Hale Roger Hampson Mr Graham Hart Mr & Mrs Nevile Henderson The Jackman Family Martin Kettle Mr Justin Kitson Ms Yvonne Lock Mrs Sally Manning Belinda Miles Dr Joe Mooney Christopher & Diane Morcom Dame Jane Newell DBE Oliver & Josie Ogg Mr Stephen Olton Mari Payne Mr David Peters Nadya Powell Ms Caroline Priday Mr Richard Rolls Mr Richard Rowland Mr & Mrs Alan Senior Tom Sharpe Mr Kenneth Shaw
London Philharmonic Orchestra • 23 April 2022 • Magical Tales
Thank you
Ruth Silvestre Barry & Gillian Smith Mr David Southern Ms Mary Stacey Mr Simon Starr Mrs Margaret Thompson Philip & Katie Thonemann Mr Owen Toller Mrs Rose Tremain Ms Mary Stacey Ms Caroline Tate Mr Peter Thierfeldt Dr Ann Turrall Michael & Katie Urmston Dr June Wakefield Mr Dominic Wallis Mrs C Willaims Joanna Williams Mr Kevin Willmering Mr David Woodhead
Corporate Donors
Hon. Benefactor
Tutti
Elliott Bernerd
Hon. Life Members Alfonso Aijón Kenneth Goode Carol Colburn Grigor CBE Pehr G Gyllenhammar Robert Hill Mrs Jackie Rosenfeld OBE Laurence Watt
Thomas Beecham Group Members Chris Aldren David & Yi Buckley Gill & Garf Collins William & Alex de Winton Sonja Drexler The Friends of the LPO Irina Gofman Roger Greenwood Dr Barry Grimaldi Mr & Mrs Philip Kan John & Angela Kessler Countess Dominique Loredan Sir Simon Robey Victoria Robey OBE Bianca & Stuart Roden Caroline, Jamie & Zander Sharp Julian & Gill Simmonds Eric Tomsett Neil Westreich Guy & Utti Whittaker
Barclays CHANEL Fund for Women in the Arts and Culture Pictet Bank
LPO Corporate Circle Leader freuds Sunshine
Principal Berenberg Bloomberg Carter-Ruck French Chamber of Commerce Lazard Russo-British Chamber of Commerce Walpole
Trialist Allianz Musical Insurance Ogilvy UK Sciteb
Preferred Partners Gusbourne Estate Lidl Lindt & Sprüngli Ltd OneWelbeck Steinway
In-kind Sponsor Google Inc
Trusts and Foundations
The Boltini Trust Borrows Charitable Trust Boshier-Hinton Foundation The Candide Trust Cockayne – Grants for the Arts The London Community Foundation The David Solomons Charitable Trust The D’Oyly Carte Charitable Trust Dunard Fund Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation
The Fidelio Charitable Trust Foyle Foundation Garrick Charitable Trust The Leche Trust Lucille Graham Trust John Horniman’s Children’s Trust John Thaw Foundation The Idlewild Trust Kirby Laing Foundation The Marchus Trust Adam Mickiewicz Institute PRS Foundation The Radcliffe Trust Rivers Foundation The R K Charitable Trust Romanian Cultural Institute Rothschild Foundation RVW Trust Schroder Charity Trust Scops Arts Trust Serge Rachmaninoff Foundation Sir William Boreman’s Foundation Souter Charitable Trust The Stanley Picker Trust The Thomas Deane Trust The Thriplow Charitable Trust The Vaughan Williams Charitable Trust The Victoria Wood Foundation The Viney Family The Barbara Whatmore Charitable Trust The William Alwyn Foundation and all others who wish to remain anonymous. The LPO would also like to acknowledge all those who have made donations to the Play On Appeal and who have supported the Orchestra during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Board of the American Friends of the LPO We are grateful to the Board of the American Friends of the London Philharmonic Orchestra, who assist with fundraising for our activities in the United States of America:
Simon Freakley Chairman Jay Goffman Alexandra Jupin William A. Kerr Kristina McPhee Natalie Pray Damien Vanderwilt Elizabeth Winter Victoria Robey OBE Hon. Director Jenifer L. Keiser, CPA, EisnerAmper LLP
LPO International Board of Governors Natasha Tsukanova Co-Chair Martin Höhmann Co-Chair Mrs Irina Andreeva (Russia) Steven M. Berzin (USA) Veronika Borovik-Khilchevskaya (Cyprus) Marie-Laure Favre Gilly de Varennes de Bueil (France) Aline Foriel-Destezet (France) Irina Gofman (Russia) Countess Dominique Loredan (Italy) Olivia Ma (Greater China Area) Olga Makharinsky (Russia) George Ramishvili (Georgia) Victoria Robey OBE (USA) Jay Stein (USA)
London Philharmonic Orchestra • 23 April 2022 • Magical Tales
London Philharmonic Orchestra Administration Board of Directors Victoria Robey OBE Chairman Martin Höhmann* President Dr Catherine C. Høgel Vice-Chairman Mark Vines* Vice-President Kate Birchall* David Buckley David Burke Bruno De Kegel Deborah Dolce Elena Dubinets Tanya Joseph Hugh Kluger* Al MacCuish Tania Mazzetti* Stewart McIlwham* Jamie Njoku-Goodwin Andrew Tusa Neil Westreich Simon Freakley (Ex officio – Chairman of the American Friends of the London Philharmonic Orchestra) *Player-Director
Advisory Council Martin Höhmann Chairman Christopher Aldren Dr Manon Antoniazzi Roger Barron Richard Brass Helen Brocklebank YolanDa Brown Simon Callow CBE Desmond Cecil CMG Sir Alan Collins KCVO CMG Andrew Davenport Guillaume Descottes Cameron Doley Christopher Fraser OBE Lord Hall of Birkenhead CBE Jonathan Harris CBE FRICS Marianna Hay MBE Amanda Hill Rehmet Kassim-Lakha Jamie Korner Geoff Mann Clive Marks OBE FCA Stewart McIlwham Andrew Neill Nadya Powell Sir Bernard Rix Victoria Robey OBE Baroness Shackleton Thomas Sharpe QC Julian Simmonds
Barry Smith Martin Southgate Chris Viney Laurence Watt Elizabeth Winter
Finance
General Administration
Jean-Paul Ramotar Finance and IT Officer
Frances Slack Finance Director Dayse Guilherme Finance Manager
Elena Dubinets Artistic Director David Burke Chief Executive Chantelle Vircavs PA to the Executive
Education and Community Talia Lash Interim Education and Community Director
Concert Management
Rebecca Parslow Education and Community Project Manager
Roanna Gibson Concerts Director
Hannah Foakes Tilly Gugenheim Education and Community Project Co-ordinators
Graham Wood Concerts and Recordings Manager Fabio Sarlo Glyndebourne and Projects Manager
Development Laura Willis Development Director
Grace Ko Tours Manager
Scott Tucker Development Events Manager
Alison Jones Concerts and Recordings Co-ordinator Matthew Freeman Recordings Consultant Andrew Chenery Orchestra Personnel Manager
Felix Lo Orchestra and Auditions Manager
Greg Felton Digital Creative Kiera Lockard Marketing Assistant
Archives Philip Stuart Discographer Gillian Pole Recordings Archive
Professional Services Charles Russell Speechlys Solicitors Crowe Clark Whitehill LLP Auditors Dr Barry Grimaldi Honorary Doctor
Mr Simon Owen-Johnstone Hon. Orthopaedic Surgeon
Kirstin Peltonen Development Associate
Marketing Kath Trout Marketing and Communications Director Mairi Warren Marketing Manager Rachel Williams Publications Manager
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Sophie Harvey Digital and Residencies Marketing Manager
Rosie Morden Individual Giving Manager
Nick Jackman Campaigns and Projects Director
Freddie Jackson Assistant Stage Manager
Ruth Haines (née Knight) Press and PR Manager
Mr Chris Aldren Honorary ENT Surgeon
Priya Radhakrishnan Georgia Wiltshire Development Assistants
Laura Kitson Stephen O’Flaherty Stage Managers
Gavin Miller Sales and Ticketing Manager
Siân Jenkins Corporate Relations Manager
Anna Quillin Trusts and Foundations Manager
Sarah Thomas Martin Sargeson Librarians
Harrie Mayhew Website Manager
London Philharmonic Orchestra 89 Albert Embankment London SE1 7TP Tel: 020 7840 4200 Box Office: 020 7840 4242 Email: admin@lpo.org.uk lpo.org.uk Cover photo James Wicks 2021/22 season identity JMG Studio Printer John Good Ltd