Tetzlaff Trio oneppo chamber music series David Shifrin, Artistic Director February 23, 2016 • Morse Recital Hall
Robert Blocker, Dean
Oneppo Chamber Music Series
Tetzlaff Trio Tuesday, February 23, 2016 • 7:30 pm • Morse Recital Hall christian tetzlaff, violin tanja tetzlaff, cello lars vogt, piano
Johannes Brahms 1833–1897
Piano Trio No. 2 in C major, Op. 87 I. Allegro moderato II. Andante con moto III. Scherzo: Presto IV. Finale: Allegro giocoso
Antonín Dvořák 1841–1904
Piano Trio No. 4 in E minor, Op. 90, “Dumky” I. Lento maestoso II. Poco adagio III. Andante IV. Andante moderato V. Allegro VI. Lento maestoso intermission
Brahms
Piano Trio No. 1 in B major, Op. 8 (1889) I. Allegro con brio II. Scherzo: Allegro molto III. Adagio IV. Allegro
As a courtesy to the performers and audience, silence electronic devices. Please do not leave the hall during selections. Photography or recording of any kind is prohibited.
Artist Profiles
Christian Teztlaff, violin An artist known for his musical integrity, technical assurance, and intelligent, compelling interpretations, Christian Tetzlaff is recognized as one of the most important violinists performing today. From the outset of his career, Mr. Tetzlaff has performed and recorded a broad spectrum of the repertoire, ranging from Bach’s unaccompanied sonatas and partitas, to 19 th-century masterworks by Mendelssohn, Beethoven, and Brahms; and from 20 th-century concertos by Bartok, Berg, and Shostakovich, to world premieres of contemporary works. Also a dedicated chamber musician, he frequently collaborates with distinguished artists including Leif Ove Andsnes, Lars Vogt, and Alexander Lonquich, and is the founder of the Tetzlaff Quartet, which he formed in 1994 with violinist Elisabeth Kufferath, violist Hanna Weinmeister, and his sister, cellist Tanja Tetzlaff. Music occupied a central place in his family, and his three siblings are all professional musicians. Born in Hamburg in 1966, Mr. Tetzlaff began playing the violin and piano at age six, but pursued a regular academic education while continuing his musical studies. He did not begin intensive study of the violin until making his concert debut playing the Beethoven Violin Concerto at the age of 14 and attributes the establishment of his musical outlook to his teacher at the conservatory in Lübeck, Uwe-Martin Haiberg, who placed equal stress on interpretation and technique. Mr. Tetzlaff came to the United States during the 1985–86 academic year to work with Walter Levine at the University of
Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and also spent two summers at the Marlboro Music Festival in Vermont. Mr. Tetzlaff has been in demand as a soloist with most of the world’s leading orchestras and conductors, establishing close artistic partnerships that are renewed season after season. Mr. Tetzlaff has performed with the orchestras of Chicago, Cleveland, Boston, Philadelphia, New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, St. Louis, Pittsburgh, Washington, DC, and Toronto, among many others in North America, as well as with the major European ensembles including the Berlin Philharmonic, London Symphony and London Philharmonic, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Vienna Philharmonic, Rotterdam Philharmonic, and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in Amsterdam. Christian Tetzlaff was a 2010–11 Carnegie Hall Perspectives artist, an initiative in which musicians are invited to curate a personal concert series in Carnegie and Zankel Halls through collaborations with other musicians and ensembles. Mr. Tetzlaff ’s Perspectives included an appearance with the Boston Symphony during which he played concertos by Mozart and Bartók and the New York premiere of a new concerto by Harrison Birtwistle; a play/conduct performance with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s; a performance with Ensemble ACJW led by Sir Simon Rattle; a concert with the Tetzlaff Quartet; and a duo recital with violinist Antje Weithaas. He also led a professional training workshop for young violinists and pianists, culminating in a young artist concert.
Artist Profiles
Tetzlaff ’s highly regarded recordings reflect the breadth of his musical interests and include solo works, chamber music, and concertos ranging from Haydn to Bartok. His recent recordings include the complete Bach Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin for the Musical Heritage and Haenssler labels; Szymanowski’s Violin Concerto No. 1 with the Vienna Philharmonic/ Pierre Boulez for Deutsche Grammophon; the Schumann and Mendelssohn violin concertos with Frankfurt Radio Orchestra/ Paavo Järvi for Edel Classics; Jorg Widmann’s Violin Concerto, written for Mr. Tetzlaff, with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra/Daniel Harding for Ondine; the two Shostakovich violin concertos with the Helsinki Philharmonic/ John Storgaards for Ondine; and the Berg Lyric Suite and Mendelssohn Quartet, Op. 13 with the Tetzlaff Quartet for the Cavi Music label. The three Brahms piano trios, with cellist Tanja Tetzlaff and pianist Lars Vogt, were released in the spring of 2015, also on the Ondine label. Christian Tetzlaff currently performs on a violin modeled after a Guarneri del Gesu, made by the German violin maker Peter Greiner. In honor of his artistic achievements, Musical America named Mr. Tetzlaff its Instrumentalist of the Year in 2005. Tanja Teztlaff, cello Cellist Tanja Tetzlaff has developed an extensive repertoire including standard works of classical solo and chamber music for cello, as well as compositions from the 20 th and 21 st centuries. In 2011, a recording of cello concertos by Rihm and Toch was
released by NEOS. For her performance of the Rihm concerto, she was named outstanding soloist. Tanja Tetzlaff studied with Bernhard Gmelin in Hamburg and with Heinrich Schiff at the Mozarteum in Salzburg. After having participated successfully in many international competitions, Tanja has performed with world-renowned orchestras, including the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, Bayerische Rundfunk, Orchestra of Konzerthaus Berlin, Royal Flandern Orchestra, Orquesta Nacional de España, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Orchestre de Paris, and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. She has collaborated with conductors including Lorin Maazel, Daniel Harding, Philippe Herreweghe, Sir Roger Norrington, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Dimtri Kitajenko, Paavo Järvi, Michael Gielen, and Heinz Holliger. Chamber music plays a significant part in Tanja’s career. She gives regular recitals in renowned concert series and festivals such as the Heidelberger Frühling and the festivals in Bergen and Edinburgh, and she is a regular guest at the Heimbach Festival. Her chamber music partners include some of the world’s foremost musicians, including Lars Vogt, Leif Ove Andsnes, Alexander Lonquich, Antje Weithaas, Florian Donderer, Baiba and Lauma Skride, and her brother Christian, with whom she founded the Tetzlaff Quartet. Together with Florian Donderer, she organizes a concert series at the Sendesaal Bremen.
Artist Profiles
The Tetzlaff Quartet’s latest CD for Cavi Music featured works of Berg and Mendelssohn, and the Brahms Trios with Christian Tetzlaff and Lars Vogt were released by Ondine in 2015. With her duo partner, pianist Gunilla Süssmann, Tanja is a regular guest at prominent concert series in Scandinavia and Germany. The duo have recorded a CD featuring the works of Sibelius, Grieg, and Rachmaninov, released by Cavi Music, in addition to a recording of the Brahms cello sonatas. Tanja Tetzlaff plays a cello by Giovanni Baptista Guadagnini, made in 1776. Lars Vogt, piano Lars Vogt has established himself as one of the leading musicians of his generation. Born in the German town of Düren in 1970, he first came to public attention when he won second prize at the 1990 Leeds International Piano Competition and has enjoyed a varied career for nearly twenty-five years. His versatility as an artist ranges from the core classical repertoire of Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann, and Brahms, to the romantics Grieg, Tchaikovsky, and Rachmaninoff, through to the dazzling Lutoslawski concerto. Lars Vogt is now increasingly working with orchestras as a conductor and directing from the keyboard. His recent appointment as music director of the Royal Northern Sinfonia at the Sage, Gateshead beginning in the 2015–2016 season reflects this new development in his career.
During his prestigious career, Lars Vogt has performed with many of the world’s great orchestras including the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Berlin Philharmonic, Vienna Philharmonic, London Philharmonic, London Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, Dresden Staatskappelle, NHK Symphony, and Orchestre de Paris. He has collaborated with some of the world’s most prestigious conductors, including Sir Simon Rattle, Mariss Jansons, Claudio Abbado, and Andris Nelsons. His special relationship with the Berlin Philharmonic has continued with regular collaborations following his appointment as their first ever Pianist in Residence in 2003–2004. Recent highlights in North America include appearances with the Philadelphia and Cleveland Orchestras, New York and Los Angeles Philharmonics, the Chicago, Toronto, St. Louis, Cincinnati, National, Houston, and Atlanta symphonies, Minnesota Orchestra and the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa; a recital at New York’s 92 nd Street Y; and duo recitals with violinist Christian Tetzlaff in New York, Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, Montreal, Atlanta, St. Paul, and Quebec City. Lars Vogt enjoys a high profile as a chamber musician and in June 1998, founded his own chamber festival , known as Spannungen, in the village of Heimbach near Cologne. The concerts take place in an Art Nouveau hydro-electric power station, and its huge success has been marked by the release of ten live recordings on EMI. Other chamber projects include recitals with Ian Bostridge at the Edinburgh Festival and with Klaus Maria Brandauer in Vienna, and trio recitals with Christian
Artist Profiles
and Tanja Tetzlaff in Paris, Berlin, Salzburg, and Zurich. Lars Vogt is a passionate advocate of making music an essential life force in the community. In 2005 he established a major educational program named Rhapsody in School, which brings his colleagues to schools across Germany and Austria, thereby connecting children with inspiring world-class musicians. Lars Vogt is also an accomplished and enthusiastic teacher and in 2013 was appointed Professor of Piano at the Hannover Conservatory of Music, succeeding Karl-Heinz K채mmerling, his close friend and former teacher. As an EMI recording artist, Lars Vogt made fifteen discs for the label, including the Hindemith Kammermusik No. 2 with the Berlin Philharmonic/Claudio Abbado, and the Schumann, Grieg, and the first two Beethoven concertos with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra/Sir Simon Rattle. Recent recordings include solo works of Schubert for Cavi Music; Mozart concerti with the Salzburg Mozarteum Orchestra for Oehms; a solo Liszt and Schumann disc on the Berlin Classics label; and Mozart sonatas with Christian Tetzlaff for Ondine.
Notes on the Program
johannes brahms Piano Trio No. 2 in C major, Op. 87 Brahms’ second trio in C major begins with a resolute melody in octaves in the violin and cello. This boldness characterizes much of the approximately thirty-minute piece. Perhaps the sense of self-assurance in Brahms’ musical materials reflects a newfound self-assurance in his own life — Brahms finished the second piano trio in 1882, during a period when he had finally received international acclaim as a composer. Of the trio, he wrote to his publisher, “You have not yet had such a beautiful trio from me and very likely have not published its equal in the last ten years.” The first movement, Allegro moderato, adopts the sonata form of the classical style rejected by Dvořák ten years later in his E minor trio. However, this is not without carefully considered quirks in each phrase. Brahms often sets the piano rhythmically against the unified strings, creating an ambiguity of meter that gives the music a sense of relentless drive. When all three instruments come together in a grand unison at the end of the movement, the movement comes to a decisive stop. The second movement, a theme and variations marked Andante con moto, again opens with the violin and cello linked in octaves, with syncopated accompaniment in the piano. Brahms takes particular care to treat every aspect of his theme as potential for variation. This is evident when, by the fourth variation, for example, the piano’s syncopated accompaniment from the beginning of the movement has become a theme in itself to be varied.
The third movement, a fidgety scherzo, begins again with the strings locked together in octaves. A brief but magical moment of sunlight bursts from this shadowy agitation. In the finale, Allegro giocoso, Brahms emphasizes the contrast between the unified strings and the piano. Throughout the movement, they engage in a back-and-forth dialogue, playfully exchanging melodic and accompaniment roles. antonin dvoŘák Piano Trio No. 4 in E minor, Op. 90, “Dumky” Dvořák completed the Trio in E minor in 1891 while a professor at the Prague Conservatory. Less than a year later, he would temporarily relocate to New York City to direct the new National Conservatory, a short-lived project that aimed to create an institutional home for the “national musical spirit” of the Americas. Dvořák was a natural choice for this position: by this point in his distinguished career, his music had long showed an affinity for and sensitivity to the traditional music of his native Bohemia. The Trio in E minor is perhaps the apotheosis of the composer’s love for folk music. The trio’s subtitle, “Dumky,” is the plural form of dumka, a Slavic folk song or epic ballad characterized by sudden shifts from contemplative and somber to exuberantly joyful. Dvořák’s trio features six dumky, which seem to alternate in affect and intensity throughout the approximately thirty-minute composition. Rich with contrast and ripe with dramatic narrative, the Trio in E minor is an example
Notes on the Program
of chamber music that breaks away from the sonata form (in which an exposition of musical material is followed by a development section, then a recapitulation), an architectural style that informed much of the chamber music from the 18th and 19th centuries. Dvořák’s form instead is dictated by the folk songs themselves: the Lento maestoso, for example, fluctuates unpredictably among scenes of anguish, elation, and tender calm. But once each of these unexpected moments begins, their arrival retrospectively seems inevitable. This music is that of storytelling around a fire: intertwining memory and fairytale as all folklore does, celebrating simple, rustic mirth. johannes brahms Piano Trio No. 1 in B major, Op. 8 (1889) Brahms was only twenty-one years old when he completed the first draft of his first Piano Trio in 1854. He would later publish a substantially revised version of the work in 1889, the version being performed tonight. The years of 1853 and 1854 were an inspiring period for Brahms: he left his native Hamburg to tour Germany with Hungarian violinist Eduard Reményi. On this trip, he meet the virtuoso violinist Joseph Joachim, who was later the dedicatee of his violin concerto, and introduced the young composer/pianist to the Schumanns. Brahms’ impression on the Schumanns was apparently so profound that Clara Schumann recorded in her diary, “Here is one of those who comes as if sent straight from God.”
The trio’s unabashedly romantic first movement is followed by a whispered, scuttling scherzo. This second movement becomes increasingly agitated. Moments of delicate lyricism float atop a frenzied scampering until, almost suddenly, a gentle lullaby emerges and becomes charged with the impassioned energy of the first movement. The third movement, Adagio, begins with the same serene chord that ended the scherzo; but now, the strings respond with a hushed, dolcissimo melody. After such sustained intensity in the prior two movements, Brahms chooses here to create space — this is music that floats, rather than constantly striving for ascent. A brief effervescence melts back into tranquility. The finale, Allegro molto agitato, begins and ends in B minor, with a brief episode in B major that recalls the first movement. Two themes seem to battle for dominance — one grim and ominous in the minor mode, the other sweet and optimistic in the major. In the end, it is the minor-mode material that triumphs, making the Trio in B major one of the few large chamber works to begin in a major key and end in its parallel minor. — Katherine Balch
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