The Soul & Spirit of Nations

THE SOUL AND SPIRIT OF NATIONS Sunday 1 July 2018, 7.30pm Wigmore Hall, 36 Wigmore Street, London, W1U 2BP

Director: John Gilhooly The Wigmore Hall Trust Registered Charity No 1024838 www.wigmore-hall.org.uk

THE SOUL AND SPIRIT OF NATIONS Sunday 1 July 2018, 7.30pm Wigmore Hall, 36 Wigmore Street, London, W1U 2BP This concert will be live streamed to www.rcm.ac.uk/live.

Niccolò Paganini (1782–1840)

Variations on God Save the King op 9 (1829)

i ii iii iv v vi vii

6’

Tema - Andante sostenuto Variation 1 - Un poxo piu spiritoso Variation 2 - A terzine con qualita di dolcezza Variation 3 - Lento Variation 4 - Vivace Variation 5 - A Eco - Larghetto, dolce Variation 6 - Finale - Presto, energicamente

Anna Lee violin Isaac Albéniz (1860–1909)

Cataluña (Corranda) from Suite Española op 47 (1886) Capricho Catalán from España op 165 (1890)

8’

Fantasia for four violas (1907)

12’

Jack Hancher guitar York Bowen (1884–1961)

Nazli Erdogan viola Ana Teresa de Braga e Alves viola Joanna Patrick viola Marsailidh Groat Hardy viola Joseph Haydn (1732–1809)

Quartet op 76 no 3 Emperor (1797)

i ii iii iv

Allegro Poco Adagio: Cantabile Menuetto Finale: Presto

Artha String Quartet Charlotte Saluste-Bridoux violin Line Faber violin Ana Dunne-Sequi viola Silvestrs Kalnins cello

INTERVAL 20 minutes Please check that your mobile phone is switched off, especially if you used it during the interval.

24’

Bohuslav Martinů (1890–1959)

Variations on a Slovak Folksong H 378 (1959)

i ii iii iv v vi

11’

Theme. Poco andante, rubato Variation 1 - Moderato Variation 2 - Poco allegro Variation 3 - Moderato Variation 4 - Scherzo. Allegretto Variation 5 - Allegro

Kristiana Ignatjeva cello Jennifer Hughes piano Antonín Dvořák (1841–1904)

Piano Quintet in A op 81 (1887)

i ii iii iv

40’

Allegro ma non tanto Dumka: Andante con moto Scherzo: Molto vivace Finale: Allegro

Caspia Quartet Yume Fujise violin Katherine Yoon violin Duncan Commin viola Anna Litvinenko cello with Martin James Bartlett piano Would patrons please ensure that mobile phones are switched off. Please stifle coughing as much as possible and ensure that watch alarms and any other electronic devices which may become audible are switched off.

Wigmore Hall is a no-smoking venue. No recording or photographic equipment may be taken into the auditorium, nor used in any other part of the Hall without the prior written permission of the Hall Management. Wigmore Hall is equipped with a ‘Loop’ to help hearing aid users receive clear sound without background noise. Patrons can use the facility by switching their hearing aids over to ‘T’. In accordance with the requirements of City of Westminster, persons shall not be permitted to stand or sit in any of the gangways intersecting the seating, or to sit in any of the other gangways. If standing is permitted in the gangways at the sides and rear of the seating, it shall be limited to the numbers indicated in the notices exhibited in those positions.

Disabled Access and Facilities

Please contact House Management for full details

Paganini Variations on God Save the King op 9 Known for his excellent technical abilities, famed Romantic virtuoso Niccolò Paganini was not only a supremely talented performer but also an innovator of technique. His Variations on God Save the King op 9 is a prime example of this, with the theme and six variations flaunting the advanced technical skill of the performer. The initial theme itself is heavily ornamented, featuring pizzicato acciaccaturas with lavish septuplet flourishes and trills. Each subsequent variation showcases varied facets of technicality. With double notes in successive thirds and tenths, the first variation demands a large hand and ‘great certainty of intonation’, with the required lightness and fast tempo further increasing the difficulty. The second variation, bearing a character indication that demands ‘sweetness’, employs triplet figures, interspersed with double notes and bounding staccatos.

The register of the instrument is exploited in the fourth variation which features rapid pizzicato passages in the upper register, accompanied by staccato bow in the lower register. The fifth variation features an echo effect, achieved through contrasting dynamic indications. Finally, the sixth variation presents bounding arpeggios further complicated by the positioning of the left hand. Providing the soloist with seemingly endless possibilities to dazzle with virtuosic technique, it is understandable that this piece remains a favourite with artists and audiences.

Albéniz Cataluña (Corranda) from Suite Española op 47 Following his study at the conservatories in Leipzig (1876) and Brussels (1879), Isaac Albéniz returned to Madrid to pursue a career as a performer. In 1883 the composer moved to Barcelona to study with Felipe Pedrell (1841–1922), a leading figure in the development of nationalist Spanish music. Composed for solo piano, Albéniz’s Suite Española (1886) is a prime example of Pedrell’s influence.

Originally consisting of only four pieces; Granada, Cataluña, Sevilla and Cuba, additional pieces, such as Cádiz and the well-known Asturias, were added to the suite by the editor Hofmeister for the work’s republication in 1911. Regarding the original four pieces, each reflects the musical style and character of the different regions in Spain, with the first title referring to the geographical location and the second to the musical form or dance native to the region. Cataluña, the second of the suite, is one of the few works inspired by Albéniz’s Catalonian heritage (the composer was born in Camprodon), also bearing a dedication to his mother. For this Spanish corranda, written in a lively 6/8 metre, Albéniz combines a Spanish melody with the rhythmic pattern of the triple metre courante dance of the late Renaissance/Baroque era. In his writing for piano, Albéniz most notably succeeds in reflecting the strumming-motion and sounds of the Spanish guitar. Interestingly it is not the original piano version but the guitar transcriptions of these works that are the most well-known today, becoming staples of 20th-century guitar repertoire.

Albéniz Capricho Catalán from España op 165 Having established a sterling reputation for himself as pianist-composer in Spain by the mid-1880s, Albéniz undertook tours to Paris and London. In London he enjoyed an active career as a pianist of note, often using the concert platform to promote contemporary Spanish repertoire. His España Suite for piano op 165 (1890) was premiered at Steinway Hall in June 1890. The simplicity of texture and technical demand of these ‘six album leaves’ has led to some scholars arguing that Albéniz had pedagogical intentions for the piece. However, elegant in its simplicity, Albéniz’s use of rhythm and subtle harmonies in these ‘musical postcards’ most accurately reflect the character of Spain. Like his Suite Española, Albéniz’s España seamlessly transitioned from its original piano form, becoming a favoured guitar transcription. Capricho Catalán, the fifth movement, is composed in a tripartite structure, with the main theme almost exclusively constructed of parallel thirds. Long melodic lines are spun over a constant off-beat accompaniment. The middle section presents new melodic material, breaking away from the major key heard in the opening, presenting reminiscences of the main theme before the first section is repeated.

York Bowen Fantasia for four violas Like Mozart and Brahms, composer and pianist York Bowen particularly admired the timbre of the viola, which he considered to be far superior to that of the violin.

His artistic partnership with Lionel Tertis, famed violist, with whom he frequently performed, resulted in numerous significant compositions for viola. As the first Professor of Viola at the Royal Academy of Music, Tertis influenced numerous composers such as Arnold Bax, Arthur Bliss and Frank Bridge, to write for the viola. However, Tertis’s unique collaboration with York Bowen, as both composer and performer, proved to be particularly fruitful. From 1905 to 1907, York Bowen wrote four major works featuring the viola, including a Viola Concerto in C minor, significantly contributing to the expansion of the viola repertoire catalogue.

Composed at Tertis’s request in 1907, York Bowen’s Fantasia for four violas (Fantasie Quartet for Four Violas) is one of the works that displays the instrument’s brilliance. This single movement work draws its title from the ‘phantasy-mania’ sweeping England at the time. With an arch-form structure (ABACBA) York Bowen’s Fantasia perfectly encapsulates structure of the Cobbett Competition Phantasy: a work ‘free from the conventions of sonata-form’ with multiple sections featuring changing tempi and rhythm, with a ‘continuous flow throughout’, lasting under 12 minutes. Written in a Romantic style, infused with British individuality, York Bowen’s Fantasia features chromaticism, relying heavily on melodic and rhythmic imitation. Despite the limitations of writing for four violas, the composer achieves a remarkable range of colours and textures through his use of register and voicing, as well as contrasting tempi.

Haydn String Quartet in C major op 76 no 3 Emperor Haydn’s Emperor Quartet is one of several vaguely propagandistic works composed during this period, and the third of his last set of quartets. Composed at the request of Viennese aristocrat Joseph Erdödy, the work draws its nickname from the Emperor’s hymn Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser (God Preserve Emperor Franz) composed by Haydn in 1797. Though several accounts exist as to how Haydn came to write this patriotic tune, it is certain that his work provided a suitable anthem for a nation in dire need of one. The anthem, regarded as a parallel to England’s own God Save the King, was unveiled at the birthday celebration of the Habsburg Emperor Francis II (1768–1835), held at the Burgtheater, Vienna. The anthem immediately proved popular. Though numerous composers have written variations to Haydn’s melody, the best set was written by the composer himself in the second movement, Poco Adagio: Cantabile, of his String Quartet in C major.

The first movement is delightfully exuberant, employing a recurring eight-note rhythm. The opening theme also presents an acronym for the anthem G-E-F-C (K).

Written in G major, in the second movement Haydn includes four variations, which remain true to the anthem’s elegant melody. Limiting the first variation to only two instruments, the second violin plays the theme unaltered, accompanied by a filigree on the first violin. The cello plays the theme in the second variation, supported by the second violin and viola, whilst the first violin provides decorative flourishes. The theme moves to the viola in the third variation and finally to the violin, in the fourth variation, slightly reharmonised. This movement is followed by an uplifting minuet and trio. The quartet ends with a dramatic presto Finale, written in sonata form.

INTERVAL Please check that your mobile phone is switched off, especially if you used it during the interval.

Martinů Variations on a Slovak Folksong H 378 In 1959, composer Bohuslav Martinů was living in Switzerland as the guest of Paul Sacher. Although he was suffering from cancer at this point, Martinů continued composing works. His Variations on a Slovak Folksong would be one of the last pieces that he would write. Martinů based the theme for his variations on the Czech folk song Kde bych ja veděla (If I had known). Although one can only speculate, the inclusion of this song does bear some significance when considering the composer’s personal circumstance. Following a brief introduction, the theme is presented by the cello, incorporating descending intervals of semitones and fourths, supported by sustained chords in the piano. Most fittingly, the opening rhythm of a quaver followed by a dotted crotchet, reflects the speech rhythm of the Czech language as ‘the first syllable receives a double accent’, further contributing to the work’s nationalist character. The lament-esque singing

character of the folk song melody is emphasised by the indication cantabile in the cello part. Although the theme is only heard in its entirety in the introduction, reminiscences occur throughout the work, mostly towards the end of each variation. Ascending staccato intervals played by the right hand coupled with the quaver-crotchet rhythm first presented in the theme, result in a syncopated feel, however, the entire work is riddled with rhythmic complexity. Contrasting to the excitement of the first two variations, the third variation has a profound melancholy character, before moving to an Allegretto scherzo in the fourth variation. The final variation presents a derivative of the theme, in asymmetrical rhythms. This dramatic climax is the fastest of the variations, also employing the highest register and loudest dynamics.

Dvořák Piano Quintet in A major no 2 op 81 The piano quintet is one of the first mediums that Czech composer Antonin Dvořák explored in the early days of his career. In late 1872, a three-movement quintet was premiered, however the composer was so displeased with the work that he destroyed the manuscript. 15 years later in 1887, plagued by this earlier quintet, Dvořák borrowed a copy of the original score from a friend attempting to revise the work, however, the work proved unsalvageable (this work was published posthumously as his opus 5). Still, inspired by the medium, Dvořák abandoned this earlier work to write his enigmatic Piano Quintet in A major in a timespan of just seven weeks. Premiered in Prague in 1888, the work is dedicated to professor Bohdan Neureuther.

Although no actual folk melodies are included, Dvořák infused the work with Czech nationalism by composing melodies in a folk style and incorporating folklike characteristics such as the quick alteration of major and minor modes, and rhythmic displacements. The first movement opens with a lyric expressive melody played by the cello. However, this tranquillity is quickly interrupted by the transformation of the theme. For the second and third movements Dvořák draws inspiration from folk ‘forms’. In the second movement, the composer juxtaposes exhilarating passages against the backdrop of a dumka, a Slavonic (originally Ukranian) ballad featuring a melancholic cast and nostalgic reminiscences. The third movement, Furiant (referring to the Bohemian folk dance with alternating metres), is in fact more a Scherzo, yet the placement of this movement after the dumka remains true to its original purpose, namely to break away from the melancholy of the preceding movement. The final movement Allegro is written in Sonata-form, and features a fugue in the development section, building up to joyful secular chorale near the end. Praised for its balance of five instruments, the work is widely regarded as one of the finest piano quintets ever written. © Melissa Gerber

Anna Lee South Korean violinist Anna Lee started learning the violin at the age of six. In 2002, she moved to the UK and studied with Lutsia Ibragimova for two years before being accepted into the Yehudi Menuhin School with a full scholarship under the tutelage of Natasha Boyarsky. Notable performances include playing at Wigmore Hall, Menuhin Hall, Brighton Dome, Mozart’s Violin Concerto no 4 with the Munich Kammerphilharmonie and taking part in solo recitals at the Kumho Arts Hall in Seoul, South Korea. She completed her Bachelor of Music degree at the Royal College of Music with first class Honours. She is continues her studies on the Masters of Performance course with Radu Blidar. Anna plays a violin made by Joseph Rocca (1848) and gratefully acknowledges its loan from the RCM. Anna is an RCM Scholar supported by the Ian Stoutzker Prize, the Lydia Napper Award and the Royal College of Music.

Jack Hancher Jack Hancher is an award winning classical guitarist who studied at the Royal College of Music where he graduated with first class honours in 2016. He is currently studying for a Masters of Performance with Gary Ryan and Chris Stell, supported generously by The Derek Butler Trust. Jack was accepted onto the International Guitar Foundation (IGF) Young Artists Platform and performed at King’s Place in October 2017. As part of the scheme he will perform at Bridgewater Hall, Manchester and Sage Gateshead. Jack won the RCM Guitar Award 2014 and this resulted in a concert at RCM as part of the ‘Best of the Best’ concert series. In 2015 he played with his duo partner at Kings Place at the IGF Aspire Stage Concert and St Jude on the Hill Prom Series. He has played abroad including performances in Ronda and La Herradura, Spain, and at the Conservatorio di Musica Giuseppe Verdi in Turin, Italy.

Nazli Erdogan, Ana Teresa de Braga e Alves, Joanna Patrick and Marsailidh Groat Hardy The four Royal College of Music violists performing York Bowen’s Fantasia have formed especially for this concert. Nazli Erdogan is studying for her Masters of Performance with Andriy Viytovych. She is a Leverhulme Arts Scholar and recipient of the Help Musicians UK Postgraduate Award. Nazli has featured as a soloist in Wigmore Hall and Forbidden City Hall (Beijing). Nazli joined the Kandour Quartet and has performed in the opening and closing ceremonies of the Sochi International Film Festival & Awards. Ana Teresa de Braga e Alves is pursuing a Masters of Performance studying with Andriy Viytovych. Ana is a scholar supported by the Hilary Fabian Award, the George Thornton Award, Help Musicians UK Postgraduate Award and St Marylebone Education Foundation Scholarship. Ana will continue her studies at the RCM for an Artist Diploma as the Mills Williams Junior Fellow. Joanna Patrick is in her final undergraduate year studying with Simon Rowland-Jones and Annette Isserlis. She was a prizewinner in the 2018 Concerto Competition and the 2016 June Emerson Chamber Music Prize. Joanna has played with Florilegium and the BBC Symphony Orchestra, as well as the LSO String Experience programme. As a chamber musician she has played in Herkulesaal, Munich, the Queen's Gallery in Buckingham Palace, and King's Place. Marsailidh is an RCM scholar on the Master of Performance course studying with Andriy Viytovych. She is generously supported by the Derek Butler Trust. This year Marsailidh was awarded the RCM Unaccompanied Bach Prize.

She is a member of the Krystalos Quartet, who performed as quartet in residence for Stamford International Music Festival. Marsailidh also plays with the Street Orchestra of London.

Artha String Quartet Charlotte Saluste-Bridoux, Line Faber, Ana Dunne-Sequi and Silvestrs Kalnins The Artha String Quartet comprise four award-winning RCM musicians. The quartet has performed in the Britten Theatre, Tate Modern and the Chipping Campden Festival. The quartet has worked with Alina Ibragimova (Chiaroscuro Quartet), Pablo de Pedro Cano (English Chamber Orchestra), Magnus Ericsson (Oslo Conservatoire), Peter Herresthal (Oslo Philharmonic Concertmaster), Ilmar Gavilán (Harlem Quartet) and Yuri Zhislin (Rosamunde Quartet). The Quartet has been invited to be the resident chamber ensemble for the Musethica course in Zaragoza and each member is a regular of other chamber music festivals such as IMS Prussia Cove, Santander Festival, Musica Mundi Chamber Music Festival, Summer Academy Voksenåsen in Oslo, East Neuk Festival and Manchester Quartet Week.

Earlier this year the quartet was awarded the Helen Just & Susan Connell Prize and the Sacconi Quartet Prize. Charlotte Saluste-Bridoux is an RCM Foundation Scholar supported by a Carole and Geoff Lindey Award; Ana Dunne-Sequi is an RCM Foundation Scholar supported by the Doctor Knobel Fund and the Henry Wood Trust; and Silvestrs Kalnins is an ABRSM Scholar.

Kristiana Ignatjeva Latvian cellist Kristiana Ignatjeva is a scholar at the Royal College of Music studying for a Masters of Performance with Melissa Phelps. She is supported by the ABRSM EU Postgraduate Scholarship Award, the Countess of Munster Musical Trust and the Stephen Bell Charitable Trust. She has participated in masterclasses with Jérôme Pernoo, Torleif Thedéen, Hans-Jørgen Jensen, Raphael Wallfisch, Natalie Clein and Johannes Goritzki. Kristiana was recently awarded the Muriel Taylor Scholarship (2016) and first prize and Unaccompanied Bach Prize at the RCM Violoncello Competition (2018, 2017 and 2015). Kristiana has taken part in the Sitka Cello Seminar where she was the recipient of the Gloria Miner Fellowship. She has given recitals in Wigmore Hall, Royal Festival Hall, Royal Albert Hall and Cadogan Hall. This season Kristiana gave performances of Haydn’s C major concerto with the London Mozart Players and has been selected for the Countess of Munster Recital Scheme. She is a member of the Arcos String Quartet. Kristiana has also taken part in London Symphony Orchestra and English National Opera experience schemes. Kristiana plays on an Italian cello by Matteo Goffriller kindly loaned by the Royal College of Music, London.

Jennifer Hughes Jennifer Hughes is a collaborative pianist specialising in the repertoire for piano and strings. Based in London and Cambridge, she has performed across Europe at venues including Wigmore Hall, Cadogan Hall, Bridgewater Hall, Oslo Opera House, St John’s Smith Square, St James’s Piccadilly and broadcast live on BBC Radio 3. She has also appeared at festivals in Italy, Sweden, Norway, Russia and China as well as across the UK. She recently released a disc Ireland, Delius & Bax: Cello Sonatas with Lionel Handy (Lyrita). Jennifer is duo coach for the String Faculty at the Royal College of Music. She has also accompanied and coached students at Aldeburgh Young Musicians, New Virtuosi International Mastercourse, Festival Quattro Corde and Voksenåsen Summer Academy. She studied with Hilary Coates as a DfES Scholar at Wells Cathedral School and later graduated with Bachelor and Masters degrees from the RCM where she studied with John Blakely and Roger Vignoles. Jennifer also held the Gilbert and Eileen Edgar Junior Fellowship in piano accompaniment at the RCM.

Caspia Quartet Yume Fujise, Katherine Yoon, Duncan Commin and Anna Litvinenko BBC Introducing Classical Artist Yume Fujise is in her final undergraduate year studying with Mark Messenger and supported by the Soirée d’Or Scholar Foundation, Hattori Foundation, Lee Abbey Award, Henry Wood Accommodation Award, Talent Unlimited and Mr & Mrs Rin Kei Mei. Yume has won the RCM Violin and Concerto competitions. In 2017 Yume performed Brahms’ Violin Concerto under the baton of Maxim Vengerov. Yume plays an Antonio Stradivarius ‘ex –Kreutzer’ (1731) violin, loaned to her by Florian Leonhard Fine Violins. Katherine Yoon is a first year undergraduate studying with Itzhak Rashkovsky on a full scholarship supported by the Dolly Knowles Charitable Trust Award and an ISH Award. Katherine has received masterclasses from Andras Keller, Alina Ibragimova and Dmitri Berlinsky. Recent appearances include Wigmore Hall and Konzerthaus Berlin. Katherine plays on a violin by Matteo Goffriller (c1700), kindly loaned to her by the RCM. Duncan Commin is a third year undergraduate studying with Yuri Zhislin. He has participated in masterclasses with Michael Kugel and Tabea Zimmerman. Duncan has played with Covent Garden Soloists Productions and Russian Virtuosi of Europe. Duncan is looking forward to participating in masterclasses with Nobuko Imai in Santander as well as continued performances in the west end as part of TriOperas playing alongside Vasko Vassilev. Anna Litvinenko completed her bachelor’s degree at The Juilliard School, and is now finishing her postgraduate studies with Richard Lester at the RCM, where she is Rose Williams Scholar. Anna has appeared as a soloist with the Miami Symphony and New World Symphony orchestras. Her studies have been made possible with the support of the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation. Anna was recently awarded a J William Fulbright grant to continue her studies at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague.

Martin James Bartlett Martin James Bartlett is a fourth year undergraduate at the Royal College of Music studying with Professor Vanessa Latarche. He is an RCM Foundation Scholar supported by the Terry Hitchcock Scholarship. Martin won BBC Young Musician of the Year in 2014 and since then, he has performed with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Tokyo Symphony Orchestra. In June 2016 he performed at Her Majesty The Queen's 90th Birthday thanksgiving service, which was broadcast live on BBC One. In the 2018/19 season Martin will participate in the Verbier Festival Academy. He has been invited to participate in the Bad Kissingen Klavier Olympiad, and Sir Andras Schiff has invited him to participate in a public masterclass at the Salzburg Mozartwoche. Last season, Martin was soloist with Bernard Haitink and the RCM Symphony Orchestra playing Mozart Piano Concerto no 24 K 491.

IN THE LOCKED ROOM & THE LIGHTHOUSE Monday 2 and Tuesday 3 July 2018, 7pm Britten Theatre, Royal College of Music, Prince Consort Road, London, SW7 2BS Stephen Unwin director Michael Rosewell conductor Hannah Wolfe designer Huw Watkins and David Harsent In the Locked Room Peter Maxwell Davies The Lighthouse Acclaimed theatre director Stephen Unwin joins forces with Michael Rosewell for two thrilling and mysterious operas by Huw Watkins and Peter Maxwell Davies.

Prepare yourselves for a gripping psychological drama in RCM alumnus Huw Watkins’ In the Locked Room. Described by the composer as 'inward-looking and reflective, grappling with deep emotion', this one-act opera explores the power of the mind and its influence on a person’s actions.

In Maxwell Davies’ chamber opera, three lighthouse keepers mysteriously disappear from a remote Scottish Isle on a windy and rain-lashed night in 1900.

What unfolds is based on a chilling and haunting real-life account found in Craig Mair’s book A Star for Seamen: The Stevenson Family of Engineers.

Please note that this production may not be suitable for children under the age of 12. £10, £20, £30, £40, £50 RCM Box Office 020 7591 4314 | www.rcm.ac.uk/events