PROGRAM NOTES CPE Bach: Sinfonietta no. 2 in E-flat major For three centuries in central Germany, music could scarcely escape the touch of the Bach clan. Cousins, nephews, sons, and grandsons – with a few ladies amongst the midst – served as keyboard artists and composers in the towns, cities, and royal houses of Europe’s heart. Best known of them all today is the unsurpassed master Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 – 1750). Even more successful at their time was his second son Carl Philip Emanuel (1714 – 1788). The family called him Emanuel; historians have dubbed him CPE Bach. By either name, he bridges the transitional time in music history between the days of the Baroque and those of Mozart, as the so-called Classical style was first coming into its own. CPE Bach spent thirty years based in Berlin as part of the musical establishment of the most powerful of Germany’s many royal houses, that of Frederick the Great of Prussia. Being a reasonably talented flutist, Frederick expected much flute music from the composers on his staff, but tolerated other works as well. This Sinfonietta (a “little symphony”) is typical of the style of the day. Its first movement is bright and sparkling, with much use of strings and harpsichord, though flutes and oboes also have their turn in the sun. The brief second movement gives plaintive solo lines to the woodwinds with languid, flowing themes for the strings. Lighter moods return for the final movement, longest of the three, with bright, dance-like melodies for all. The Sinfonietta is less intricate than JS Bach would have made it, and less hearty than Mozart. As such, it reveals how music evolved between those two generations, a period of evolution much influenced by CPE Bach.
Haydn: Cello Concerto no. 1 in C major Joseph Haydn (1732 – 1809) spent the last four decades of his life employed by the aristocratic Esterhazy family, in charge of all the music the court might require. That Haydn stayed with them for so long is proof not only of the Esterhazy’s satisfaction with him, but also his satisfaction with them. Part of that satisfaction came from the Esterhazy’s deep appreciation of music in general, and continuing interest in what
Haydn might have to entertain them, an evergrowing collection of music. During his time of employment, Haydn composed and presented at Esterhazy a massive body of work that would have occupied the entire lives of any three other composers. His entire catalog includes several thousand works, notably symphonies and string quartets, but also concertos intended for the principal players of the Esterhazy orchestra, who were widely considered amongst the best in the business. That fact meant that Haydn, too, was judged as one of the best in his field. His C-major Cello Concerto – the first of two such works – was composed in the early 1760s as a showcase for the Esterhazys principal cellist Joseph Weigl. In later decades, the manuscript disappeared and did not come to light again until 1961, when it was found in the Prague National Museum. Its rediscovery was a blessing not only to Haydn scholars, but also to gifted cellists, who have taken the work into their hearts. The work’s opening movement is bright and sunny, with the orchestra of strings, oboes, and horns presenting the basic themes before the soloist joins in, elaborating busily upon that material. By contrast, the second movement is sweet and restful, spotlighting instead the cello’s facility with long and languid phrases. For the finale, Haydn opted for perky and festive moods and nimble, fast-flowing lines for all, though especially the soloist. Two of the three movements include so-called cadenzas: utterly solo passages in which the orchestra sits out and the soloist plays on, possibly improvising. Such bravura display was considered crucial in a soloist, and Haydn supplied the opportunity. It is a work that makes the most of the cello, both its lyrical side and its ability to produce fireworks.