magazine of the vancouver symphony … · the wizard of oz classic movie shown with music played...

The VSO presents the Seoul Philharmonic

Nadja Salerno-SonnenbergElectrifying violinist makes her

highly-anticipated return

The Wizard of OzClassic movie shown

with music played live!

Peter Serkin plays Brahms

Renée Fleming

allegroMAGAZINE OF THE VANCOUVER SYMPHONY

MARCH 17 – APRIL 30, 2012 – VOLUME 17 – ISSUE 4

allegro 3

vso lottery / full pg / new artwork to come

allegro 3

first violinsDale Barltrop, ConcertmasterJoan Blackman, Associate ConcertmasterJennie Press, Second Assistant ConcertmasterRobin BraunMary Sokol BrownMrs. Cheng Koon Lee Chair

Jenny EssersJason Ho Akira Nagai, Associate Concertmaster EmeritusXue Feng WeiRebecca WhitlingYi Zhou Angela Cavadas ◊Nancy DiNovo ◊Ruth Schipizky ◊

second violinsBrent Akins, Principal §Nicholas Wright, Principal ∆ Karen Gerbrecht, Associate Principal Jim and Edith le Nobel Chair

Jeanette Bernal-Singh, Assistant PrincipalAdrian Shu-On ChuiDaniel NortonAnn OkagaitoAshley PlautDeAnne Eisch ◊Erin James ◊Pamela Marks ◊

violasNeil Miskey, Principal Andrew Brown, Associate PrincipalStephen Wilkes, Assistant PrincipalLawrence BlackmanEstelle & Michael Jacobson Chair

Angela SchneiderProfessors Mr. and Mrs. Ngou Kang Chair

Ian WenhamChi Ng ◊Reginald Quiring ◊Marcus Takizawa ◊

cellosPrincipal CelloNezhat and Hassan Khosrowshahi Chair

Janet Steinberg, Associate PrincipalZoltan Rozsnyai, Assistant PrincipalOlivia Blander Natasha BoykoMary & Gordon Christopher Chair

Joseph ElworthyCharles InkmanCristian Markos

bassesDylan Palmer, Principal Chang-Min Lee, Associate PrincipalDavid BrownJ. Warren LongFrederick SchipizkyChristopher Light ◊

flutesChristie Reside, Principal Nadia Kyne, Assistant Principal Rosanne WieringaMichael & Estelle Jacobson Chair

piccoloNadia KyneHermann & Erika Stölting Chair

oboesRoger Cole, PrincipalWayne and Leslie Ann Ingram Chair

Beth Orson, Assistant PrincipalKarin WalshPaul Moritz Chair

english hornBeth OrsonChair in Memory of John S. Hodge

clarinetsJeanette Jonquil, Principal Cris Inguanti, Assistant Principal Todd Cope

e-flat clarinetTodd Cope

bass clarinetCris Inguanti

bassoonsJulia Lockhart, PrincipalSophie Dansereau, Assistant Principal Gwen Seaton

contrabassoonSophie Dansereau

french hornsOliver de Clercq, PrincipalBenjamin Kinsman Werner & Helga Höing Chair

David Haskins, Associate PrincipalFourth HornWinslow & Betsy Bennett Chair

Richard Mingus, Assistant Principal

trumpetsLarry Knopp, Principal Marcus Goddard, Associate PrincipalVincent Vohradsky W. Neil Harcourt in memory of Frank N. Harcourt Chair

trombonesEloy Panizo Padron, Acting PrincipalGregory A. Cox

bass tromboneDouglas SparkesArthur H. Willms Family Chair

tubaEllis Wean, Principal §Peder MacLellan, Principal ∆

timpaniAaron McDonald, Principal

percussionVern Griffiths, PrincipalMartha Lou Henley Chair

Tony Phillipps

harpElizabeth Volpé, PrincipalHeidi Krutzen ◊

piano, celesteLinda Lee Thomas, PrincipalCarter (Family) Deux Mille Foundation Chair

orchestra personnel managerDeAnne Eisch

music librarianMinella F. LacsonRon & Ardelle Cliff Chair

master carpenter Pierre Boyard

master electricianLeonard Lummis

piano technicianThomas Clarke

*Supported by The Canada Council for the Arts

vancouver symphony orchestra

BRAMWELL TOVEY MUSIC DIRECTORKAZUYOSHI AKIYAMA CONDUCTOR LAUREATE

JEFF TYZIK PRINCIPAL POPS CONDUCTOR

PIERRE SIMARd ASSISTANT CONDUCTORMarsha & George Taylor Chair

EdWARd TOP COMPOSER-IN-RESIDENCE

§ Leave of Absence ∆ One-year Position◊ Extra Musician

*

*

4 allegro allegro 5

C O N C E R T S

9 MARCH 17, 19 Masterworks Diamond Jun Märkl conductor Peter Serkin piano

15 MARCH 21 Specials Renée Fleming with the VSO Renée Fleming soprano Sebastian Lang-Lessing conductor

20 MARCH 24, 26 Masterworks Silver Andrew Litton conductor Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg violin

24 APRIL 2 Specials The Wizard of Oz Constantine Kitsopoulos conductor

27 APRIL 12 Pacific Arbour Tea & Trumpets Lehár: The Merry Widow Pierre Simard conductor Christopher Gaze host UBC Opera Ensemble

31 APRIL 13, 14 London Drugs VSO Pops Let’s Dance Jeff Tyzik conductor Carla Heiney director/choreographer

37 APRIL 15 Specials Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra Myung-Whun Chung conductor Wu Wei sheng

42 APRIL 2O, 21, 23 Bach & Beyond Surrey Nights Dale Barltrop leader/violin

47 APRIL 21 Vancouver Sun Symphony at the Annex Songs Without Words Bramwell Tovey conductor Julia Nolan saxophone Stephanie Domingues soprano Beth Orson english horn Corey Hamm piano

53 APRIL 28, 29, 30 Musically Speaking Rogers Group Financial Symphony Sundays North Shore Classics Bramwell Tovey conductor Peter Longworth piano Richard Suart judge UBC Opera Ensemble

allegroMAGAZINE OF THE VANCOUVER SYMPHONY

MARCH 17 – APRIL 30, 2012 – VOLUME 17 – ISSUE 4

A SER IES FOR EVERY TASTECLASS ICS MA ST E RWO R KS G O L D / MA ST E RWO R KS D I AM O N D / MA ST E RWO R KS S I LV E R ON A L IGHTER NOTE M U S I CA L LY S P EA K I N G / BAC H & B EYO N D VSO POPS MATINEES TEA & TRUMPETS / SYMPHONY SU N DAYS ROAd TR IPS VS O AT T H E A N N EX / N O RT H S H O R E C L A S S I C S / S U R R EY N I G H TS K I dS RULE! TI NY TOTS / KI DS’ KONC ERTS SPEC IALS

47 BRAMWELL TOVEY

allegro 5

15 RENEE FLEMING42 VSO CONCERTMASTER dALE BARLTROP

We welcome your comments on this magazine. Please forward them to: Vancouver Symphony, 500 – 833 Seymour Street, Vancouver, BC V6B 0G4 Allegro contact and advertising enquiries: [email protected] / customer service: 604.876.3434 / VSO office: 604.684.9100 / website: www.vancouversymphony.ca Allegro staff: published by The Vancouver Symphony Society / editor / publisher: Anna Gove / contributors: Don Anderson, Sophia Vincent / art direction, design & production: basic elements design Pass it on: It’s the right thing to do! Please feel free to bring your Allegro Magazine home at the end of the concert. If you do not wish to keep it, please return it to an usher. Printed in Canada by Web

Impressions. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written consent is prohibited. Contents copyrighted by the Vancouver Symphony, with the exception of material written by contributors. Allegro Magazine has been endowed by a generous gift from Adera Development Corporation.

I N T H I S I S S U E 2 vso lottery 3 the orchestra 5 allegro staff list 6 government support 7 message from the Chairman and the President & CEO 12 vso online ordering 13 corporate campaign 19 advertise in allegro 23 vancouver symphony foundation 32 vso 2012/2013 season 34 vso gift shop 36 vso group sales 41 patrons’ circle 45 vso upcoming concerts 56 vso school of music 58 corporate partners 60 at the concert / vso staff list 63 board of directors / thanks / volunteer council

37 MYUNG-WHUN CHUNG & THE SEOUL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

20 NAdJA SALERNO-SONNENBERG

Thank you!

The Vancouver Symphony Society is grateful to the Government of Canada and the Canada Council for the Arts,Province of British Columbia and the BC Arts Council,and the City of Vancouver for their ongoing support.

The combined investment in the VSO by the three levels of government annually funds over 28% of the cost of the orchestra’s extensive programs and activities.

This vital investment enables the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra to present over 140 life-enriching concerts in 12 diverse venues throughout the Lower Mainland, attract some of the world’s best musicians to live and work in our community, produce Grammy® and Juno® award-winning recordings, participate in numerous CBC Radio broadcasts – bringing the sounds of the VSO to listeners across the country – and, through our renowned educational programs, touch the lives of over 50,000 children annually.

The Vancouver Symphony Society is grateful to the Government of Canada and the Canada Council for the Arts,Province of British Columbia and the BC Arts Council,and the City of Vancouver for their ongoing support.

allegro 7

M E S S A G E F R O M

vso chairman and vso president & CEO

ARTHUR H. WILLMS

JEFF ALEXANDER

Dear Friends,

It is that time of year when Maestro Tovey announces the VSO’s plans for the upcoming season. Subscribers have already received or will soon be receiving a beautifully designed 2012/2013 season brochure in the mail, with an invitation to renew their subscriptions and be the first to purchase tickets to the wide variety exciting specials.

The 2012/2013 classical season is filled with many wonderful works by Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Debussy, Dvorák, Elgar, Mahler, Mozart, Prokofiev, Rachmaninoff, Ravel, Stravinsky, Tchaikovsky, Vivaldi and more. Jeff Tyzik returns as our Principal Pops Conductor with tributes to Gershwin, Broadway, and Nat King Cole.

We are pleased to continue our series of concerts at the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts at U.B.C., Centennial Theatre in North Vancouver, and Bell Centre for Performing Arts in Surrey, as well as the contemporary music series at the Orpheum Annex.

And of course, the season also includes several programs for children and their families such as the Elementary School Concerts, Kids Koncerts and Tiny Tots series as part of our renowned education and community programs, experienced by over 50,000 children each year.

Whether you prefer a Masterworks Series, Symphony Sundays, Tea & Trumpets, Musically Speaking or VSO Pops, there is something in

the 2012/2013 season for every musical taste, along with the many benefits of being a VSO subscriber.

If you have not received a brochure for next season, and would like one, simply call us at 604.876.3434, pick up a copy at the box office or in the lobby, or visit our web site at www.vancouversymphony.ca.

At the VSO we work every day to fulfill our mission: to enrich the quality of life in, and bring prestige to our city, province and country through the presentation of high-quality performances of classical and popular music, and the delivery of excellent education and community programs.

We look forward to having you with us for another season of great music and inspiration, and please enjoy today’s concert.

Sincerely yours,

Arthur H. Willms Chair, Board of Directors

Jeff Alexander President & Chief Executive Officer

allegro 9

allegro 9

PETER SERKINJUN MÄRKL

JON KIMURA PARKERsaturday & monday, march 17, 19

MASTERWOR KS DIAMON D / OR PH EUM TH EATR E, 8PM

◆

Jun Märkl conductorPeter Serkin piano

WAGNER The Flying Dutchman: Overture

BRAHMS Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor, Op. 15 I. Maestoso II. Adagio III. Rondo: Allegro non troppo

INTERM ISS ION

SCHUMANN Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Op. 97, Rhenish I. Lebhaft II. Scherzo: Sehr mässig III. Nicht schnell IV. Feierlich V. Lebhaft

PRE-CONCERT TALKS free to ticketholders at 7:05pm.

VISIT THE SYMPHONY GIFT SHOP FOR CD SELECTIONS

◆

CONCERT PROGRAM

10 allegro

Jun Märkl conductorJun Märkl is Principal Conductor and Artistic Director of the MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony, and 10/11 marked his sixth and final season as Music Director of the Orchestre National de Lyon.

Highlights of his tenure in Lyon include an acclaimed Debussy cycle for Naxos, and touring to major European halls and festivals such as the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, BBC Proms, Bad Kissingen, Rheingau and Luzern and to the Salle Pleyel every season.

Born in Munich, his (German) father was a distinguished Concertmaster and his (Japanese) mother a solo pianist. Märkl studied violin, piano and conducting at the Musikhochschule in Hannover, going on to study with Sergiu Celibidache in Munich and with Gustav Meier in Michigan. In 1986 he won the conducting competition of the Deutsche Musikrat and a year later won a scholarship from the Boston Symphony Orchestra to study at Tanglewood with Leonard Bernstein and Seiji Ozawa. Soon afterwards he had a string of appointments in European opera houses followed by his first music directorships at the Staatstheater in Saarbrücken (1991-94) and at the Mannheim Nationaltheater (1994-2000).

Peter Serkin piano

Recognized as an artist of passion and integrity, the distinguished American pianist Peter Serkin is one of the most thoughtful and individualistic musicians appearing before the public today. Throughout his career he has successfully conveyed the essence of five centuries of repertoire and his performances with symphony orchestras, recital appearances, chamber music collaborations and recordings are respected worldwide.

Peter Serkin’s rich musical heritage extends back several generations: his grandfather was violinist and composer Adolf Busch and his father pianist Rudolf Serkin. In 1958, at age eleven, he entered the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia where he was a student of Lee Luvisi, Mieczyslaw Horszowski and

Rudolf Serkin. He later continued his studies with Ernst Oster, Marcel Moyse and Karl Ulrich Schnabel. In 1959 Mr. Serkin made his Marlboro Music Festival and New York City debuts with conductor Alexander Schneider, and invitations to perform with the Cleveland Orchestra and George Szell in Cleveland and Carnegie Hall and with the Philadelphia Orchestra and Eugene Ormandy in Philadelphia and Carnegie Hall soon followed.

Richard Wagner b. Leipzig, Germany / May 22, 1813 d. Venice, Italy / February 13, 1883

The Flying dutchman: OvertureWagner patterned his early opera, The Flying Dutchman (1843), on the pioneering Romantic style of Carl Maria von Weber, rather than using it to make the type of innovations that would characterize his later works. A stormy voyage across the North Sea in 1839 planted in his mind the idea of a work based on the legend of the Dutch sea captain whose defiance of the Devil led to his being condemned to sail the seas eternally. Wagner adapted the story to permit the Dutchman hope of salvation, a recurring theme in his output. The vividly dramatic overture is a capsule digest of the full piece, presenting not only the principal musical themes but also a synopsis of the plot. The howling winds of a stormtossed seascape are easily heard, as are the rollicking dances of the sailors, and the tender sentiments that blossom between the Dutchman and Senta, the woman whose true love redeems his soul.

Johannes Brahms b. Hamburg, Austria / May 7, 1833 d. Vienna, Austria / April 3, 1897

Piano Concerto No. 1 in d minor, Op. 15Brahms had not yet become the sturdy conservative whom his supporters set up as the opponent of Wagner, Liszt and other revolutionary composers when in 1854, at twenty-one, he began composing a large-scale work. He eventually decided that the ideal medium for the materials was a concerto for piano and orchestra. Four years

passed before he felt sufficiently satisfied to bring it to performance. He first undertook a reading rehearsal in Hanover, Germany, on March 30, 1858. He played the piano part himself, and his close friend, violinist and composer Joseph Joachim, conducted the city’s Court Orchestra. The first public performance, involving the same artists, took place in the same city on January 22 of the following year. The somewhat puzzled reaction earned by the debut of this big, serious, fully symphonic concerto might have been expected. Not until 1865, when he played it once again in Mannheim, did it begin to find a place in the repertoire.

The vast opening movement begins with a stark orchestral introduction. The piano enters with a more resigned idea before it, too, is caught up in the emotional tumult. Contrast is provided by a warmer second theme. The sombre mood in which the movement began continues through to the final bars.

The slow second section is a serene meditation. Scarcely a ripple of darker

emotion disturbs its warm, placid surface. The concerto concludes with a big, bold rondo, lighter in tone than the preceding movements but substantial enough to fit into the overall ground-plan. Its Hungarian or gypsy flavouring anticipates the corresponding movements in several Brahms works, including the Piano Quartet in G minor.

Robert Schumannb. Zwickau, Germany / June 8, 1810 d. Endenich, Germany / July 29, 1856

Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Op. 97, RhenishIn September 1850, Schumann and his gifted wife, Clara, moved to Düsseldorf, Germany. Robert had been engaged there as the conductor of the local orchestra and chorus, his first public appointment. Enchanted with the city and the welcome opportunity of having his own orchestra to work with, he promptly began to compose again, something that recent illness had kept him from doing.

12 allegro

www.vancouverbachchoir.com

Haydn Die Schöpfung (The Creation)

MARCH 31 8pm Orpheum Theatre

M U S I C D I R E C T O R

L E S L I E D A L A

First came a cello concerto. Then in a typically rapid four weeks, he set down his impressions of his new home and its verdant setting on the banks of the Rhine river (as well as his happiness in being there) in a new symphony. This is the source of its nickname, the “Rhenish” or “Rhineland” Symphony. He conducted the premiere himself, in Düsseldorf on February 6, 1851.

It is the only one of his symphonies with five movements rather than four. This may represent a tribute to Beethoven’s Sixth, the similarly picturesque and rustic Pastoral Symphony. The opening section, a sweeping piece with a genuine sense of joy, lays claim to be his finest orchestral creation. Renowned British musicologist Sir Donald Tovey draws a parallel between it and the first movement of Beethoven’s Third, the Eroica Symphony, with which it shares the same key. Although Schumann called the second movement a scherzo, it the leisurely air of a country dance rather than the boisterous energy of a musical joke. His original title for it was Morning on the Rhine.

The first of two slow movements is a lyrical song without words, similar in character to his vocal and piano romances. The second is virtually a miniature tone poem or mood picture. It was inspired by a ceremony – the elevation of Archbishop Geissel to the office of Cardinal – that the Schumanns had witnessed the previous September at the magnificent (although at that time, unfinished) Gothic cathedral in the nearby city of Cologne. The addition of trombones to the orchestra lends it an aptly solemn, stately air. Schumann returns us to the sunlight of the Rhine valley for the vigorous and cheerful finale.

In 1853, the young Brahms visited the Schumanns in Leipzig. They gave him the greatest encouragement, and helped him to gain major attention for the first time. ■

Program Notes © 2012 Don Anderson

12 allegro

vancouversymphony.ca

Order Your VSO Tickets OnlineEasy, Secure and Convenient

Order online and print your tickets from the comfort of your own home!

To set up your online account to be able to easily log in and select your seats, call VSO Customer Service at 604.876.3434 or email [email protected]

Your sponsorship helps the VSO continue to:

• Perform over 140 concerts each year

• Reach 50,000 students through its music education programs

• Make orchestral music accessible and affordable for seniors, students and kids

“Our corporate partners help to ensure that the VSO can continue to produce world class music. I invite you to join our list of corporate supporters today.”

— Maestro Bramwell Tovey

Change the way your corporation engages in the community. From client entertaining to treating your employees to a night of symphonic music, our sponsorship opportunities allow for a company to grow its cultural economy.

• Build a relationship with a new audience while enhancing awareness of your business, products and services

• Initiate or extend cross-promotional activities and collaborations with the VSO

Our corporate relations team will work with your company to ensure that your involvement with the VSO meets and even exceeds your corporate marketing and philanthropic goals. We will work to increase your brand awareness among our over 200,000 patrons who enjoy a VSO concert each year.

And be A pArt of VAncouVer’s rich culturAl lAndscApe

Become a corporate partner

For more information on sponsorship, corporate donation and gift in kind opportunities, please contact: Ryan Butt, Development Officer, Corporate and Donor Relations604 684-9100 extension 260 or [email protected]

allegro 15

allegro 15

RENÉE FLEMING

wednesday, march 21 SPEC IALS / OR PH EUM TH EATR E, 8PM


CONCERT PROGRAM

Renée Fleming sopranoSebastian Lang-Lessing conductor

Renée Fleming with the VSOBERLIOZ Roman Carnival Overture

RAVEL Shéhérazade I. Asie II. La flûte enchantée III. L’indifférent

GOUNOd Ballet Music from Faust: III. Antique Dance: Allegretto II. Cleopatra and the Golden Cup: Adagio V. Dance of the Trojan Maidens: Moderato con anima VII. Dance of the Phryne: Allegro vivo

GOUNOd Ô Dieu ! que de bijoux ! ...Ah ! je ris de me voir si belle (Jewel Song from Faust)

I NTERM ISS ION

GORdON Night Flight to San Francisco

BERNSTEIN Overture to Candide

BELLAMY, HOWARd, WOLSTENHOLME Endlessly

COHEN Hallelujah

BENJAMIN GIBBARd Soul Meets Body

KORNGOLd Overture to Captain Blood

LEHáR The Merry Widow: Vilja – Lied

KORNGOLd Die Tote Stadt: Marietta’s Lied, Op. 12

PRESENTS

allegro 17

Renée Fleming sopranoOne of the most beloved and celebrated musical ambassadors of our time, soprano Renée Fleming captivates audiences with her sumptuous voice, consummate artistry, and compelling stage presence. Known as “the people’s diva” and named the number one female singer by Salzburger Festspiele Magazin in 2010, she continues to grace the world’s greatest opera stages and concert halls, now extending her reach to include other musical forms and media. Over the past few seasons, Ms. Fleming has hosted a wide variety of television and radio broadcasts, including the Metropolitan Opera’s Live in HD series for movie theaters and television, and Live From Lincoln Center on PBS.

A three-time Grammy winner, Ms. Fleming won the 2010 Grammy Award for Best

Classical Vocal Performance for Verismo (Decca/September 2009), a CD featuring a collection of rarely heard Italian arias. In June 2010, Decca and Mercury records released the CD Dark Hope, which features Ms. Fleming covering songs by indie-rock and pop artists.

Ms. Fleming is currently a member of the Board of Trustees of the Carnegie Hall Corporation, the Board of Sing for Hope, and the Advisory Board of the White Nights Foundation of America. In 2010, she was named the first ever Creative Consultant at Lyric Opera of Chicago.

Sebastian Lang-Lessing conductor

German conductor Sebastian Lang-Lessing is among the most versatile and cultivated musical artists of his generation. Fluent in multiple languages, interested in a wide range of repertoire, and equally experienced in orchestra culture and opera theatre, his dynamic performances have garnered praise from the international press.

In February 2010, Lang-Lessing was appointed music director of the San Antonio Symphony and began his tenure in the 2010-11 season; he is the orchestra’s eighth director in its 70-year history. He also serves as chief conductor and artistic director of the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, a post that

SEBASTIAN LANG-LESSING

allegro 17

he has held since 2004. Sebastian Lang-Lessing was awarded the Ferenc Fricsay Prize in Berlin at the young age of twenty-four, and he subsequently took up a conducting post at Hamburg State Opera.

Lang-Lessing is also well known for his rediscovery of the music of French composer Joseph-Guy Ropartz; CD releases of his symphonies with Orchestre Symphonique et Lyrique de Nancy received critical acclaim.

Hector Berlioz b. La Côte-St-André, Isère / December 11, 1803 d. Paris, France / March 8, 1869

Roman Carnival Overture, Op. 9As soon as Berlioz read the autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini, the spirited, unconventional sixteenth-century Italian goldsmith, artist and adventurer, he sensed such a deep personal affinity with him that he decided to compose an opera based on Cellini’s life. Its debut in Paris in 1838 proved a total fiasco. Six years later, Berlioz salvaged some of the score by fashioning a concert overture from two of the principal melodies: a love song (memorably transcribed for English horn), and an example of the vigorous Italian dance, the saltarello. He christened the result Roman Carnival, referring to the festive scene in the opera where the saltarello is performed.

Maurice Ravelb. Ciboure, Basses Pyrénées, France / March 7, 1875 d. Paris, France / December 28, 1937

ShéhérazadeRavel loved the Arabian Nights fables and Rimsky-Korsakov’s symphonic suite inspired by them. In 1903, he paid homage through a three-part song cycle based on poems from a large, recently published collection, entitled Shéhérazade, by Tristan Klingsor, the pen name of his friend, Arthur Justin Léon Leclère. These free-metre verses, inspired by a recent French translation of the Arabian Night stories, conjure the sights, sounds and philosophies of the east. Asia, the first and longest song, offers a dream-like journey through eastern lands. Ravel evoked them

in dazzling orchestral colours, while alternating moods of excitement and languor.

The Magic Flute, the second song, captures the stillness of a warm afternoon. A girl listens sadly to the haunting sound of a distant flute, played by her lover. The cycle concludes with a portrait of a potentially amorous, but eventually unfulfilled encounter between total strangers. Ravel scores The Indifferent One in soft, muted colours, but ones which, like the words, suggest levels of deeper, unspoken passions.

Charles-François Gounodb. Paris, France / June 17, 1818 d. Saint-Cloud, France / October 17 or 18, 1893

Ballet Music and Jewel Song from FaustGounod won his greatest successes with operas, Faust (1859) in particular. Adapted from the famous story by Goethe, about a learned doctor who sells his soul to the Devil in exchange for eternal youth and great knowledge, Gounod’s opera overflows with beautiful arias and stirring choruses. This evening you will hear the opera’s introduction; an excerpt from the richly melodic ballet suite; and the celebrated “Jewel Song,” in which the heroine, the innocent girl Marguerite, expresses her rapture upon receiving a gift of jewels.

Ricky Ian Gordonb. Oceanside, New York, USA / May 15, 1956

Night Flight to San FranciscoRicky Ian Gordon is a highly successful American composer of songs, musicals, and operas. His 2007 setting of John Steinbeck’s celebrated novel The Grapes of Wrath, for example, was hailed by Opera magazine as “a major or new American opera.” The moving text for the work which you will hear Renée Fleming perform this evening (she premiered it in 2000), is a dream-like monologue from Tony Kushner’s Pulitzer Prize-Winning play, Angels in America.

18 allegro

Leonard Bernstein b. Lawrence, Massachusetts, USA / August 25, 1918 d. New York, USA / October 14, 1990

Overture to CandideBased on a satiric tale by the eighteenth-century French author Voltaire, Bernstein’s comic operetta Candide premiered on Broadway in 1956, without much success. The sparkling overture, however, has been a concert favourite from the beginning.

Benjamin Bellamy, Dominic Howard, Christopher WolstenholmeEndlessly

Leonard CohenHallelujah

Benjamin GibbardSoul Meets BodyThese selections from Dark Hope, Renée Fleming’s 2010 “indie rock” CD, showcase her longstanding interest in popular music, and the astonishing range and versatility of her expressive talent. Regarding her purpose in making the CD, she has written, “I have always been inspired by artists who have shown musical and intellectual curiosity, especially those who have the courage to take risks.” She describes the idea of ‘dark hope’ as “an outlook that comes with maturity, an outlook of someone who’s really lived. I love the title, because its paradox immediately makes you stop and think how the two concepts fit together.”

Erich Wolfgang Korngoldb. Brno, Bohemia / May 29, 1897 d. Hollywood, California, USA / November 29, 1957

Overture to Captain BloodLong sneered at by classical purists for “lowering himself” to write music for films, Korngold’s lush, ultra-romantic compositions for every field in which he worked (concert hall, opera house and silver screen) have undergone major reappraisal over the last

forty years. His rousing music for Captain Blood (1935) marked his screen debut, and gave the career of swashbuckling heartthrob Errol Flynn a major boost, as well.

Franz Lehár b. Komaron, Hungary / April 30, 1870 d. Bad Ischl, Austria / October 24, 1948

The Merry Widow: Vilja – LiedThe popularity of nineteenth-century Viennese operetta continued well into the twentieth, with Lehár leading the way. His masterpiece, Die lustige Witwe (The Merry Widow, 1905), is second in popularity among operettas only to Johann Strauss, Jr.’s Die Fledermaus. The plot is typically complicated, but as usual it is little more than a coat-hanger for the music. Set in Paris, it concerns the courtship between Hanna, a wealthy widow, and the pleasure-seeking Count Danilowitsch. In this lovely aria, Hanna recounts the legend of the love between a hunter and a beautiful wood-nymph, or vilja.

“It is an intensely sad song about lost love, and how love can conquer death.”

Erich Wolfgang KorngoldDie Tote Stadt: Marietts’a Lied, Op. 12 While still an adolescent, Korngold composed operas that were produced successfully all over Europe. In 1920, the most popular of them, Die tote Stadt (The Dead City) premiered on the same day in Hamburg and Cologne. The libretto concerns Paul, a young man who has recently lost his wife, Marie. He meets a dancer, Marietta, who bears a close physical resemblance to Marie. He tries to remake her in his dead wife’s image, but without success. Marietta sings this luscious aria when she and Paul first meet. It is an intensely sad song about lost love, and how love can conquer death. ■


allegroSpeak directly to your audience: Advertise in Allegro Rates starting at only $600!ALLEGRO DEMOGRAPHICS◆ Affluent◆ Educated◆ Home Owners◆ Culturally Diverse◆ Influential

Highly targeted and highly effective, advertising in Allegro makessense for your business. Email [email protected] details and a rate kit.

ALLEGRO FACTS ◆ 5 Issues per Season◆ Each Issue Active 2 Months◆ Read by Over 200,000 People Each Year◆ Distributed at the Orpheum, Chan Centre, and ten other venues around the Lower Mainland

vancouversymphony.ca/allegro

A Canadian Youth Orchestra ExtravaganzaToronto Symphony Youth Orchestra Alain Trudel conductorVancouver Youth Symphony Orchestra Roger Cole conductorHindemith Symphonic metamorphosis of themes by C. M. WeberTchaikovsky Francesca da Rimini, op 32Tchaikovsky Capriccio italien, op. 45

*

°

*

°* °

Sunday May 20, 20122:30pm, Chan Centre for the Performing Arts at UBCCanada’s two largest Youth Orchestras, the Vancouver Youth Symphony Orchestra and the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra perform together at the Chan Centre in one exciting afternoon!

604-737-0714 vyso.com or 1.855.985.5000 ticketmaster.ca

20 allegro allegro 21

ANdREW LITTONNAdJA

SALERNO-SONNENBERG

saturday & monday, march 24, 26MASTERWOR KS SI LVER / OR PH EUM TH EATR E, 8PM

Andrew Litton conductorNadja Salerno-Sonnenberg violin

GLINKA Russlan and Ludmilla: Overture

SHOSTAKOVICH Violin Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 77 I. Nocturne: Moderato II. Scherzo: Allegro III. Passacaglia: Andante IV. Burlesque: Allegro con brio

INTERM ISS ION

PROKOFIEV Symphony No. 4 in C Major, Op. 112 I. Andante assai – Allegro eroico II. Andante tranquillo III. Moderato quasi allegretto IV. Allegro risoluto


CONCERT PROGRAM

◆

◆

allegro 21

Andrew Litton conductor

Andrew Litton is currently in his eighth season as the first American Music Director of the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra of Norway with whom he has already led several major international tours including the London Proms, several visits to the Vienna Musikverein and New York’s Carnegie Hall.

Litton also serves as the highly acclaimed Artistic Director of the Minnesota Orchestra’s Sommerfest where, thanks to his multiple talents as conductor, solo pianist and chamber musician, he has singly raised the artistic profile and public success of the festival.

Andrew Litton, a graduate of the Fieldston School, New York, received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Juilliard in piano and conducting. The youngest-ever winner of the BBC International Conductors Competition, he served as Assistant Conductor at Teatro alla Scala and Exxon/Arts Endowment Assistant Conductor for the National Symphony under Rostropovich. Andrew Litton holds an honorary Doctorate from the University of Bournemouth and is a recipient of Yale University’s Sanford Medal for his musical achievements.

Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg violin

One of the leading violinists of our time, Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg is best known for her exhilarating performances, passionate interpretations, musical depth and unique charisma.

A powerful and innovative presence on the recording scene, Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg started NSS Music in 2005. This record label continues to grow, with the most recent release being Schubert’s Echo featuring the American String Quartet released in August 2010. Additionally, Salerno-Sonnenberg has over twenty releases on the EMI and Nonesuch labels.

On the publishing front, Nadja: On My Way, her autobiography written for children discussing her experiences as a young

musician building a career, was published by Crown Books in 1989.

Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg’s professional career began in 1981 when she won the Walter W. Naumburg International Violin Competition. In 1983 she was recognized with an Avery Fisher Career Grant, and in 1988 was Ovations Debut Recording Artist of the Year. An American citizen, Ms. Salerno-Sonnenberg was born in Rome and emigrated to the United States at the age of eight to study at The Curtis Institute of Music. She later studied with Dorothy DeLay at The Juilliard School.

Mikhail Glinkab. Novospasskoye, Russia / June 1, 1804 d. Berlin, Germany / February 15, 1857

Russlan and Ludmilla: OvertureSporting melodies patterned on folk music, and scored in lavish orchestral colours, Russlan and Ludmilla established the Russian national school of opera. The wedding between Ludmilla, daughter of the grand prince of Kiev, and Russlan, a knight in the prince’s service, is disrupted when the bride is abducted by Chernomor, an evil magician. Russlan locates the magician’s castle and cuts off Chernomor’s beard, the source of his evil power, then revives Ludmilla with the help of a magic ring. Glinka sets the scene for these fanciful goings-on with the perfect curtain-raiser: brisk, compact and tuneful.

Dmitry Shostakovichb. St. Petersburg, Russia / September 25, 1906 d. Moscow, Russia / August 9, 1975

Violin Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 77Shostakovich lived through two dire artistic crises brought about by clashes between the Soviet government’s strict dictates and his need to express himself freely. The first began in 1936, when the Communist party newspaper, Pravda, published a withering critique of his opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk. He remained persona non grata until the premiere of his Fifth Symphony the following year returned him to the good graces of the bureaucrats.

22 allegro

In February 1948, at a special Communist Party congress, Shostakovich found himself back in trouble, charged with virtually the same “offences” that had been leveled against him a decade earlier. The following month, he completed Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 77, which he had begun the year before. Sensing that if he presented so personal a work during the current political climate it would cause him further trouble, he put it aside, hoping for a more appropriate time to launch it.

The death of dictator Joseph Stalin in 1953 ushered in a thaw in attitudes to artistic expression. The concerto received its belated premiere on October 29, 1955, with David Oistrakh, the violinist for whom Shostakovich had composed it, as the soloist. By then Shostakovich had revised it slightly, and had given it a new catalogue number, Op. 99, in order to conceal the date of its composition.

Reflecting the events surrounding its creation, it is a more shadowed and inward piece than Shostakovich’s only previous concerto, the first for piano (1932). For example, three of the earlier piece’s four movements are brisk and animated; that quality is reflected in only two sections of the violin work. Note too, that even they have an overlay of bitterness compared to the earlier piece, and that they are by far the briefest portions of the concerto. Violin Concerto No. 1 consists of a dreamlike yet anxious Nocturne; a bustling Scherzo; and a powerful, impassioned Passacaglia which leads, via an extended and highly demanding solo cadenza, to a raucous concluding Burlesque.

Sergei Prokofievb. Sontsovka, Ukraine / April 27, 1891 d. Moscow, Russia / March 5, 1953

Symphony No. 4 in C Major, Op. 112Prokofiev regularly re-worked materials from his compositions, and also revised several works extensively. He based the third symphony (1928), for example, on music from The Fiery Angel, an opera that had not yet been performed. In 1930, he received a commission to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the Boston Symphony

Orchestra. He responded with another symphony based on music from a stage work. This time the source was the 1929 ballet, The Prodigal Son. One of his main reasons for reworking it was his feeling that the themes had potential for greater, more satisfying development within a symphonic setting than they had in the ballet. Due partly to the ballet’s uplifting subject matter (the familiar parable from the Gospel of St. Luke), and partly to Prokofiev’s expressed wish to find a new, simpler style, the ballet marked a creative shift, moving away from the previous brashness towards an increased lyricism. So too did the symphony whose themes it shares. It also made use of music intended for, but not used, in the ballet, plus other, fully original material.

Neither the symphony’s premiere in Boston on November 14, 1930, nor the few subsequent performances, were met with anything better than indifference. Prokofiev’s strong affection for the piece led him to give it a thorough revision in 1947. By then, he had earned considerable additional experience in symphonic composition through the creation of the well-received Fifth and Sixth. In the Fourth’s revision process, he expanded the orchestration and increased the length by 50 percent. The outer movements in particular received major expansions and re-workings. This is the version you will hear at these concerts.

The first movement opens with a substantial introduction in slow tempo. This is followed by a main section made up of equal parts vigour, humour and lyricism. In the ballet, it accompanied the antics of the riotous young men who led the main character astray during his visit to the city. Prokofiev drew upon the tender music for the prodigal son’s homecoming to his loving family for the symphony’s slow, expressive second movement.

The third movement displays a subdued, at times dance-like wit. The finale offers abundant, forward-pressing energy, a slow, satirically pompous march theme, and a grandiose coda. ■


$1,000,000 or moreMartha Lou HenleyGovernment of Canada through the Department of Canadian Heritage Endowment Incentives ProgramProvince of BC through the BC Arts Renaissance Fund under the stewardship of the Vancouver Foundation

$500,000 or moreWayne and Leslie Ann IngramThe Estate of Jim and Edith le Nobel

$250,000 or moreEstate of Ruth Ellen BaldwinCarter (Family) Deux Mille FoundationChan Foundation of CanadaRon and Ardelle CliffEstate of Steve FlorisWerner (Vern) and Helga HöingMr. Hassan and Mrs. Nezhat KhosrowshahiThe Tong and Geraldine Louie Family FoundationHermann and Erika StöltingArthur H. Willms Family

$100,000 or moreEstate of Winslow W. BennettMary and Gordon ChristopherJaney Gudewill & Peter Cherniavsky in memory of their Father Jan Cherniavsky and Grandmother Mrs. B.T. RogersIn memory of John S. HodgeMichael and Estelle JacobsonS.K. Lee in memory of Mrs. Cheng Koon LeeKatherine Lu in memory of Professors Mr. and Mrs. Ngou Kang

William and Irene McEwen FundSheahan and Gerald McGavin, C.M., O.B.C.McGrane-Pearson Endowment FundEstate of John RandNancy and Peter Paul SaundersKen and Patricia ShieldsGeorge and Marsha TaylorWhittall Family Fund

$50,000 or moreAdera Development CorporationBrazfin Investments Ltd.Mary Ann ClarkEstate of Rachel Tancred RoutEstate of Mary Flavelle StewartLeon and Joan TueyIn memory of John Wertschek, Cello Section Player

$25,000 or moreJeff and Keiko AlexanderEstate of Dorothy Freda BaileyMrs. May Brown, C.M., O.B.C.Mrs. Margaret M. DuncanW. Neil Harcourt in memory of Frank N. HarcourtDaniella and John IckeMollie Massie and Hein PoulusEstate of Margot Lynn McKenziePaul MoritzMrs. Gordon T. Southam, C.M.Maestro Bramwell Tovey and Mrs. Lana Penner-ToveyAnonymous (1)

$10,000 or moreMrs. Marti BarregarKathy and Stephen BellringerMrs. Geraldine Biely

K. Taryn BrodieRobert G. Brodie and K. Suzanne BrodieDouglas and Marie-Elle CarrothersMr. Justice Edward Chiasson and Mrs. Dorothy ChiassonDr. Marla KiessChantel O’Neil and Colin ErbDan and Trudy PekarskyBob and Paulette ReidNancy and Robert StewartBeverley and Eric WattAnonymous (1)

$5,000 or moreEstate of Clarice Marjory BankesCharles and Barbara FilewychEstate of Muriel F. GilchristEdwina and Paul HellerKaatza FoundationProf. Kin LoRex and Joanne McLennanMarion L. Pearson and James M. OrrMelvyn and June Tanemura

$2,500 or moreIn memory of Lynd ForgusonStephen F. GrafJohn and Marietta HurstMr. Gerald A. NordheimerHarvey and Connie PermackRobert and Darlene SpevakowWinfred Mary (Mollie) SteeleEstate of Jan Wolf WynandAnonymous (1)

Due to space limitations, donations of $2,500 or more are listed, but every gift is sincerely appreciated and gratefully received. THANK YOU.

Tax creditable gifts of cash, securities and planned gifts are all gratefully received by the Vancouver Symphony Foundation, and your gift is enhanced by the availability of matching funds from the Federal Government.

Please call Leanne davis at 604.684.9100 extension 236or email [email protected] to make a gift or learn more about the naming opportunities that are available to honour a family member, celebrate the memory of a loved one or simply recognize your generosity.

Support the Power of Music We extend our sincere thanks to these donors, whose gifts will ensure the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra remains a strong and vital force in our community long into the future:

Ensure the VSO’s future with a special gift to the Vancouver Symphony Foundation, established to secure the long term success of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra.

allegro 23

vancouver symphony foundation



monday, april 2SPEC IALS / OR PH EUM TH EATR E, 8PM

Constantine Kitsopoulos conductor

The Wizard of OzCOME IN COSTUME to Oz with the Orchestra! Follow the yellow brick road to the Orpheum to watch this beloved classic, beautifully restored in full colour, on the big screen with live music performed by the VSO. Dress up as your favourite character for the Wizard of Oz as you’ve never seen (or heard) it before!

CONCERT PROGRAM

SCENES FROM THE WIZARD OF OZ

allegro 25

Constantine Kitsopoulos conductor

Constantine Kitsopoulos has made a name for himself as a conductor whose musical experiences comfortably span the worlds of

opera and symphony, where he conducts in such venues as Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall and Royal Albert Hall, and musical theater, where he can be found leading orchestras on Broadway. Mr. Kitsopoulos is in his sixth year as music director of the Queens Symphony Orchestra and continues as General Director of Chatham Opera, which he founded in 2005.

Mr. Kitsopoulos has also continued to show his ability and interest in performing new works and conducting a wide variety of genres. He conducted the Red Bull Artsehcro, an orchestra consisting of students from the top conservatories and university music programs in the country, in a concert at Carnegie Hall. In addition to his orchestral and classical commitments, Mr. Kitsopoulos is much in demand as a theatre conductor, both on Broadway and nationwide, and was Conductor and Musical Director of the Tony ©

-nominated musical A Catered Affair. ■

CONSTANTINE KITSOPOULOS

allegro 27

allegro 27

CHRISTOPHER GAZEPIERRE SIMARd


thursday, april 12PAC I FIC AR BOU R TEA & TRUMPETS / OR PH EUM TH EATR E, 2PM

TEA & TRUMPETS SERIES SPONSOR

CONCERT PROGRAM

Pierre Simard conductorChristopher Gaze hostUBC Opera Ensemble

Lehár: The Merry WidowACT I Introduction, Pontevedro in Paree (Solos/Chorus) Duet (Valencienne, Camille) A Highy Respectable WifeAuftrittslied (Danilo) I’m Off to Chez MaximeFinale Act I (Chorus) Ladies Choice! Young Lovers All, Awake! Come Away to The Ball

ACT II Introduction, Tanz and Vilja-Lied (Anna) ViliaMarch-Septet Wie die Weiber man behandelt (You’re Back Where You First Began)Duet & Romanze (Valencienne, Camille) Red as the Rose of MaytimeFinale Act II (Grisettes) There Once were Two Royal Children

ACT III (Solos/Chorus) Eh, Voila Les Belles GrisettesDuet (Anna, Danillo) Lippen Schweigen (Love Unspoken)Finale Ja, das Studium der Weiber (You’re Back Where You First Began – reprise) TEA & COOKIES Don’t miss tea and cookies served in the lobby one hour before each concert, compliments of Tetley Tea and LU Biscuits.

28 allegro

Pierre Simard conductor

This is Pierre Simard’s second season as Assistant Conductor of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. He is also Artistic Director of both the Vancouver Island Symphony (BC) and the Orchestre Symphonique de Drummondville (QC). Having served as Associate Conductor with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, he also performs as guest conductor with major orchestras in Milwaukee, Toronto, Ottawa (National Arts Centre), Victoria, Hamilton, Okanagan, Hot Springs (AR), Trois-Rivières, Québec’s Les Violons du Roy and Montreal’s Orchestre Métropolitain. Pierre Simard was awarded the Canada Council’s Jean-Marie Beaudet Award in Conducting, recognizing his work on a national scale. He is also grantee of the Québec Music Council, the Québec Arts Council and the Montreal Mayor’s Foundation.

A passionate defender of orchestral repertoire, Pierre Simard devotes himself to reinventing the concert form, combining his fresh ideas, fantasy and humour with music. Holder of a Master’s Degree in Conducting from the Peabody Institute and five Conservatory Prizes from the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal, Pierre Simard studied with Raffi Armenian, Frederik Prausnitz, JoAnn Falletta and Marin Alsop.

The VSO’s Assistant Conductor position is made possible with the support of the Canada Council for the Arts.

Christopher Gaze host

Best known as Artistic Director of Vancouver’s Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival, Christopher Gaze has performed in England, the USA and across Canada. Born in England,

he trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School before coming to Canada in 1975 where he spent three seasons at the Shaw Festival. He moved to Vancouver in 1983 and in 1990 founded Bard on the Beach which he has since nurtured to one of the most successful not-for-profit arts organizations in North America, with attendance exceeding 91,000. In addition to performing and directing for Bard, Christopher’s voice is heard regularly in cartoon series, commercials and on the radio. Aside from Tea & Trumpets, he also hosts Vancouver Symphony’s popular Christmas concerts.

As an Olympic ambassador, Christopher was honoured to run with the Olympic flame for the 2010 Games. A gifted public speaker, Christopher frequently shares his insights on Shakespeare and theatre with students, service organizations and businesses.

UBC Opera Ensemble The University of British Columbia Opera Ensemble was founded by Canadian lyric coloratura Nancy Hermiston in 1995. Beginning with a core of seven performers, Ms. Hermiston has built the program to a 70-member company, now performing three main-stage productions at UBC every season, seven Opera Tea Concerts, and several engagements with local community partners. The Ensemble’s mission is to educate young gifted opera singers preparing them for international careers. Past main-stage productions have included Le Nozze di Figaro, Die Zauberflöte, Die Gärtnerin aus Liebe, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Robert Ward’s The Crucible based on the Pulitzer Prize winning play by Arthur Miller, Gianni Schicchi, Suor Angelica, La Bohème, Dido and Aeneas, The Merry Widow, The Bartered Bride, Manon, Eugene Onegin, Florence Lady with the Lamp, Dreamhealer, Falstaff and the Western Canadian Premiere of Harry Somer’s Louis Riel. In the 2010-2011 Season, the Ensemble presented Mozart’s Don Giovanni, and Benjamin Britten’s Albert Herring, in the renewed Old Auditorium and Massenet’s Cendrillon in the Chan Center. ■

UBC OPERA ENSEMBLE

allegro 31

allegro 31

Jeff Tyzik conductorTom Arntzen, vocalistRebecca Shoichet, vocalistCarla Heiney director/choreographerDancers: Stephen Edward Sayer Chandrea Roettig Patricio Touceda Alex Dugdale

Let’s dance!

BERNSTEIN/PERESS “West Side Story”

STRAUSS II Blue Danube Waltz

ARR. TYZIK Charleston/Shimmy

ARR. TYZIK Kiss of Fire

ARR. TYZIK Sway

GLIERE Russian Sailors Dance

ARR. TYZIK 50’s Medley (Blue Suede Shoes, I’ve Got a Woman, Johnny B. Good, Twistin’ the Night Away)

INTERM ISS ION

ARR. TYZIK Swing Dance Medley

SAINT-SAëNS Bacchanale From “Samson And Delilah”

ARR. TYZIK Fever

ARR. WILLIAMS Tango

ARR. TYZIK Cute/Sing Sing Sing

ARR. TYZIK I’ve Had the Time of My Life from “Dirty Dancing”

friday & saturday, april 13, 14LON DON DRUGS VSO POPS / OR PH EUM TH EATR E, 8PM

VSO POPS RADIO SPONSOR


VSO POPS SERIES SPONSOR APRIL 13 CONCERT SPONSOR

CONCERT PROGRAM

◆

●

◆

◆

◆ ●

●

Eva LuceroF.J. AbayaCatherine Abaya

BRAMWELL TOVEY WITH THE VSO

pick up your FREE brochure in the lobby or visit the vso online at vancouversymphony.ca VSO Customer Service 604.876.3434

the VSO’s bold, spectacular2012/2013 Season!

MIDORI

JON KIMURA PARKER

BARRY DOUGLAS

JOHN PIzzARELLIBRAMwELL TOVEY & MEMBERS OF THE VSOKAREN GOMYO

The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and Music Director Bramwell Tovey present the exhilarating 2012/2013 Season!

The 2012/2013 Season is a celebration of great music-making, featuring acclaimed classical and Pops artists, extraordinary classical masterpieces, the very best in concerts for children and families, matinees, concerts throughout the Lower Mainland – and of course, your Vancouver Symphony Orchestra!

pick up your FREE brochure in the lobby or visit the vso online at vancouversymphony.ca VSO Customer Service 604.876.3434

20122013vs

o se

ason

subscriptions o n - s a l e n ow

the VSO’s bold, spectacular2012/2013 Season!

ISABEL BAYRAKDARIAN ALoNDRA DE LA pARRA

34 allegro

Jeff Tyzik conductor

Grammy® Award winner Jeff Tyzik is recognized as one of America’s most innovative pops conductors. Tyzik is known for his brilliant arrangements, original programming, and engaging rapport with audiences of all ages. Now in his 17th season as Principal Pops Conductor of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Tyzik also currently serves as Principal Pops Conductor of the Oregon Symphony and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra.

A native of Hyde Park, New York, Tyzik began his life in music at nine years of age, when he first picked up a cornet. He studied both classical and jazz throughout high school, and went on to earn both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Eastman School of Music, where he studied composition/arranging with Radio City Music Hall’s Ray Wright and jazz studies with the great band leader Chuck Mangione, both of whom profoundly impacted him as a musician.

Tyzik currently serves on the Board of Managers of the Eastman School of Music,

and as a board member of the Hochstein School of Music and Dance. He lives in Rochester, New York, with his wife Jill.

Carla Heiney director/choreographer

Among many of her accomplishments, Carla Heiney has choreographed for Fox’s hit T.V. show, “So You Think You Can Dance” Season 6. She is founder of LindyCentral.com, which hosts a variety of classes & workshops specializing in the vintage dance era. During the summer of 2010, Carla taught several sessions at the prestigious Google Danceplex and even choreographed a routine for Google employees.

Carla is the 2010 National Jitterbug Champion, 2008 Camp Jitterbug Champion, 2008 Canadian Swing Dance Champion & 2008 & 2009 International Lindy Hop Champion. She is also the 2007 National Jitterbug Champion, 2007 American Lindy Hop Champion, & 2006 US Open Showcase Champion. She has also won the US Open Lindy Showcase division with in 2001, 2002, 2004 and the US Open Strictly Lindy division in 2003. She is a 6-time American Lindy Hop Champion and the 2005 World Lindy Hop Champion in the Improvisational division.

Carla has worked with great artists such as Aretha Franklin, Jeff Tyzik, B.B. King, Erich Kunzel, Nell Carter, and Rita Moreno. She has appeared on ABC’s revival of the TV show “Dance Fever” in 2003 and was a featured dancer using Motion Capture technology in the 2004 Feature Film “The Polar Express.” ■

CARLA HEINEYJEFF TYZIK

Specially selected CDs including classics and current best-sellers. Unique giftware, books and musically themed items.

Open 1 hour prior to concert, during intermission & post concert.

Your purchases support the Vso. Staffed by VSO Volunteers.

VSO Gift ShopVISIT US IN THE ORPHEUM LOBBY ON THE ORCHESTRA LEVEL

allegro 37


DISCOUNTS AND PREFERRED SEATING!

LET OUR GROUP ENTERTAIN YOUR GROUP!Great Classics, swingin’ Pops, concerts for children and families – the VSO’s 2011/2012 Season offers all this and more! Don’t miss extraordinary guest artists like Chris Botti, Yevgeny Sudbin, Jeffrey Kahane, Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg and many more, in a Spring season filled with musical treasures.

Call Katherine at 604.684.9100 ext 252 for more information about Group Sales discounts.

YEVGENY SUDBIN

Contact Group Sales at 604.684.9100 ext 252or [email protected]

vancouversymphony.caKatherine Houang, Group Sales & Special Ticket Services

POWER& PassionTHE THRILLING 2011/2012 SEASON

allegro 37

MYUNG-WHUN CHUNG

sunday, april 15 SPEC IALS / OR PH EUM TH EATR E, 7:30PM

Myung-Whun Chung conductorWu Wei sheng

Seoul Philharmonic OrchestraRAVEL Ma Mere l’Oye I. Pavane de la Belle au bois dormant (Pavane of the Sleeping Beauty) II. Petit Poucet (Tom Thumb) III. Laideronnette, Impératrice des pagodes (Laideronnette, Empress of the Pagodas) IV. Les Entretiens de la Belle et de la Bête (Conversations of Beauty and the Beast) V. Le Jardin féerique (The Enchanted Garden)

UNSUK CHIN Šu for Chinese Sheng and Orchestra

INTERM ISS ION

TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Op. 74, Pathetique I. Adagio - Allegro non troppo II. Allegro con grazia III. Allegro molto vivace IV. Finale: Adagio lamentoso

CONCERT PROGRAM

PRESENTS

VISIT ThE SYMPHONY GIFT SHOP foR CD SELECTIoNS

THE SEOUL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA IS SPONSORED BY HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY

◆

◆

allegro 39

Myung-Whun Chung conductorMyung-Whun Chung began his musical career as a pianist, making his debut with the Seoul Philharmonic at the age of seven. In 1974 he won the second prize at the Tchaikovsky piano competition in Moscow. In 1979, after completing his musical studies at the Mannes School and at the Juilliard School in New York, he became Carlo Maria Giulini’s assistant at the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and two years later he was named Associate Conductor.

The year 2000 marked his return to Paris as Music Director of the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France. His love for Italy has been at the basis of his extensive work there for many years, including, from 1997 to 2005, his position as Principal Conductor of the Santa Cecilia Orchestra in Rome.

An exclusive recording artist for Deutsche Grammophon since 1990, many of his numerous recordings have won international prizes and awards. Recent releases include Messiaen’s La transfiguration de Notre Seigneur Jésus-Christ and Des canyons aux étoiles with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France.

Wu Wei sheng

Wu Wei is an avant-garde sheng soloist. He has helped to develop the four thousand year old ancient instrument into an innovative force in contemporary music, through the creation of new techniques, expanding the repertoire and integrating different styles and genres. His achievements have been

WU WEI

allegro 39

recognized with the German folk prize, the Global Root award.

Among forthcoming highlights are, the French premiere of Unsuk Chin’s Su (Concerto for Chinese Sheng and Orchestra) in Paris with the Radio France Philharmonic Orchestra under Myung-Whun Chung, and a tour of the work with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra and Myung-Whun Chung to Europe, Canada and the USA.

Wu Wei has given world premieres of more than 150 works (including 10 concertos for sheng) by composers such as John Cage, Unsuk Chin, Toshio Hosokawa, Jörg Widmann, Guus Janssen, Enjott Schneider, Qin Wenchen, Tan Dun, Chen Qigang, Guo Wenjing and Huang Ruo.

Wu Wei studied sheng at Shanghai Music Conservatory, becoming the soloist of the Shanghai Traditional Chinese Orchestra, before completing his studies in Berlin at the Hanns Eisler Academy of Music with a DAAD scholarship.

Maurice Ravelb. Ciboure, Basses Pyrénées, France / March 7, 1875 d. Paris, France / December 28, 1937

Ma Mère l’Oye (Mother Goose) SuiteRavel’s music mirrors the face he showed to the world: cool, dapper, sophisticated. Yet beneath this façade beat a heart that yearned for the innocence and simplicity of youth. This nostalgia took concrete form in Mother Goose, a delicate suite of five miniatures for piano duet inspired by fairy tales. He composed it between 1908 and 1910, and prepared this arrangement for small orchestra in 1911.

The opening Pavane of the Sleeping Beauty sets the once-upon-a-time scene in gentle, pastel hues. This mood continues in the second section. The tiny boy Hop-o’-my-thumb (known in English as Tom Thumb), lost in the forest, discovers to his dismay that birds have eaten up the trail of breadcrumbs he left to help find his way back home. Animation enters in the third section, spiced with a far eastern accent. Laideronnette (Little Ugly One), Empress of the Pagodas, takes her bath, accompanied by a gamelan-like orchestra of instruments made from nuts and shells. Next, Beauty and the Beast converse.

She sings a warm, airy clarinet waltz; he growls coarsely via the contrabassoon, making a rare solo appearance. The final section, The Fairy Garden, bids a wistful farewell to the land of enchantment as it rises to a shimmering, radiant climax.

Unsuk Chinb. Seoul, Korea / July 14, 1961

Šu, for Chinese sheng and orchestraIn 1985, Unsuk Chin moved to Europe. For three years, she took composition lessons with György Ligeti, who encouraged her to look beyond the aesthetics of the current avant-garde. Since then, she has lived and worked in Berlin. Her music is modern in language, but lyrical and non-doctrinaire in communicative power. Her compositions have been performed at numerous festivals and concert series in Europe, the Far East, and North America. She has been composer-in-residence with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra since 2006. Her opera Alice in Wonderland is available on DVD, and the Violin Concerto and Rocaná were released in an Analekta recording with Viviane Hagner and the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal conducted by Kent Nagano.

She composed the one-movement concerto Šu (named after an ancient Egyptian symbol for air) for the sheng player Wu Wei, who has done much to transform this ancient mouth organ into a modern performance instrument. He premiered the piece in Tokyo in 2009.

The composer describes how she came to write for the sheng: “I’ve been fascinated by the instrument for many decades, but my interest in writing a concerto was sparked when I heard Wu Wei for the first time, as he introduced me to the great virtuosic possibilities and multi-faceted nature of this instrument…Unlike its Korean and Japanese counterparts, the Chinese sheng – which is more than 4000 years old – has been developed into a modernised and highly versatile instrument… At times, it can sound like electro-acoustic music and the instrument is capable of the eeriest of sounds and of explosive power.”


Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky b. Kamsko-Votkinsk, Russia / May 7, 1840 d. St. Petersburg, Russia / November 6, 1893

Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Op. 74, PathétiqueTchaikovsky believed himself the victim of a cold, implacable fate. In the last three of his six symphonies, he depicted his struggle against it. In the sixth, his greatest work (which could be taken as his last will and testament), fate reigned supreme.

He conducted the premiere himself, in St. Petersburg on October 28, 1893. It met with a puzzled reaction, especially regarding the unprecedented act of concluding a symphony with a slow movement. Nine days later Tchaikovsky was dead, perhaps by suicide. The second performance took place at his memorial service, and made a much deeper impression than the first.

According to Tchaikovsky’s brother, Modest, on the day after the premiere, the composer was still searching for an appropriate title for the piece. Modest suggested “pathétique,” a French word of Greek origin that is commonly used in Russian. The composer inscribed this immediately on the score. Translating it into English simply as “pathetic” reduces the original word’s undercurrent of passion and suffering.

“The explosive start of the development heralds many pages of mounting hysteria.”The symphony opens with a slow, mournful introduction. The expansive exposition

section contrasts a restless first subject with a consoling second. The explosive start of the development heralds many pages of mounting hysteria. It is crowned by a passage of slow, stern grandeur, where the trombones and tuba sound like nothing so much as funeral orators.

“...the mood is thrown off kilter, with disturbing, bittersweet results.”At first, the next movement, a waltz, promises graceful contrast. But with five beats to the bar instead of the usual three, the mood is thrown off kilter, with disturbing, bittersweet results.

The third movement begins as a dynamic scherzo. Gathering momentum, it appears to become a blazing march of triumph, sweeping all before it. Yet this is not the only possible way of looking at it. David Brown, author of an authoritative, four-volume biography of Tchaikovsky, comments, “...this march is, in fact, a deeply ironic, bitter conception – a desperate bid for happiness so prolonged and vehement that it confirms not only the desperation of the search, but also its futility.”

The symphony’s slow, anguished finale confirms this view. Despite repeated protests, resignation becomes complete. A quiet stroke on the tam-tam announces fate’s victory; the music sinks back into the dark depths of the orchestra where it began. ■


“Toni is an exceptional violinist and teacher. It has been a privilege to study with her.”

TONI STANICK VIOLIN STUDIOVIOLINPOWER

VOLUME 1LIVE PERFORMANCES 2007 to 2009

DVD

Quebec City CMC Final, Vancouver Women’s Musical SocietyBurnaby Clef Society, Jericho Tennis Club

design and video editing Aaron Grainphotograph Carol Comfort

dupilcating Aidan Loginswww.ToniStanick.ca

Toni Stanick Violin Studio - DVD Cover [2009.11.28].indd 1 12/2/2009 12:08:21 PM

VIOLIN STUDIOfor highly motivated students

www.tonistanick.ca

Soo Young Kim, MMus Juilliard, Assistant Principal 2nd Violin, Seoul Philharmonic

TONI STANICK

allegro 41

patrons’ circle

For more information about the patrons’ circle and the exclusive benefits associatedwith this program, please contact Leanne Davis at 604.684.9100 extension 236 or email [email protected]

PLATINUM BATON $50,000 and aboveDr. Peter and Mrs. Stephanie ChungJemini FoundationGrenville Thomas

GOLD BATON $25,000—$49,999Michael Audain, O.C., O.B.C. and Yoshiko KarasawaMary and Gordon Christopher Foundation*Heathcliff Foundation*Mr. Gerald McGavin, C.M., O.B.C. and Mrs. Sheahan McGavin*Jane McLennanMichael O’Brian Family FoundationMr. Alan and Mrs. Gwendoline PyattMr. Ronald N. and Mrs. Janet SternArthur H. Willms Family*

MAESTRO’S CIRCLE $10,000—$24,999Larry and Sherrill Berg Mrs. Joyce E. ClarkeThe Christopher Foundation (Education Fund)Mrs. Margaret M. Duncan Martha Lou Henley*Werner (Vern) and Helga Höing*Lagniappe FoundationMeriem FoundationMr. Brian W. and Mrs. Joan MitchellMollie Massie and Hein Poulus*Maestro Bramwell Tovey and Mrs. Lana Penner-Tovey*Gordon YoungAnonymous* (1)Anonymous (1)

CONCERTMASTER’S CIRCLE $5,000—$9,999Dr. and Mrs. J. AbelJeff and Keiko Alexander*Ann Claire Angus FundDave CunninghamHillary HagganIn Memory of John Hodge*Diane HodginsKaatza Foundation*Dr. Marla Kiess*Robert H. Lee, C.M., O.B.C. and Lily LeeThe Lutsky FamiliesKenneth W. and Ellen L. Mahon*Mrs. Irene McEwen*Dr. Katharine MirhadyJohn Hardie Mitchell family foundationJoan and Michael RileyMs. Nina RumenMr. Ken and Mrs. Patricia Shields* Thomas and Lorraine SkidmoreRick and Denise Turner

Mr. Fred Withers & Ms. Kathy JonesBruce Munro WrightAnonymous (2)

PRINCIPAL PLAYER $2,500—$4,999Mr. and Mrs. Francesco AlongiKathy and Stephen Bellringer*Gerhard & Ariane BruendlDr. and Mrs. CameronMarnie Carter*Joan and Darryl ChambersJanis and Bill ClarkeEdward Colin and Alanna NadeauMr. and Mrs. G. A. CooperIan and Frances DowdeswellCharles and Barbara Filewych*Drs. B. Forster and K. MaysonYuri FulmerJon and Lisa GreyellAlasdair and Alison HamiltonHeather HolmesJohn and Daniella Icke*Olga IlichGordon and Kelly JohnsonProf. Kin Lo*Mr. and Mrs. Herbert Menten*Andrè and Julie MolnarHugh and Joan MorrisMrs. Dorothy NairneChristine NicolasChantel O’Neil and Colin Erb*Mrs. Lorraine Redmond, in loving memory of Mrs. M. QuastMr. and Mrs. Maurice A. RodenBernard Rowe and Annette StarkDorothy ShieldsWallace and Gloria ShoemayDr. Peter and Mrs. Sandra Stevenson-MooreMel and June Tanemura*George and Marsha Taylor*Mr. and Mrs. David H. TrischukLeon and Joan Tuey*Beverley and Eric Watt*Michael and Irene WebbDr. and Mrs. Edward YeungAnonymous* (1)Anonymous (1)

PATRON $1,500—$2,499Gordon and Minke ArmstrongThe Honourable Jack Austin and Ms. Natalie FreemanMr. R. Paul and Mrs. Elizabeth BeckmannRoberta Lando Beiser*Betsy Bennett*Dr. and Mrs. J. Deen BrosnanMrs. May Brown, C.M., O.B.C.*Mr. Peter Cherniavsky*

Mr. Justice Edward Chiasson and Mrs. Dorothy Chiasson*Gerry and Barbara ClowDoug and Anne CourtemancheLeanne Davis and Vern GriffithsBarbara J. DempseyErik and Debbie Dierks*Count and Countess Enrico and Aline DobrzenskySharon F. DouglasDarren Downs and Jacqueline HarrisMiryam and Rafael FilosofMs. Judy GarnerMrs. San GivenMr. Brian GuskoDr. Donald G. HedgesIn Memory of Betty HowardJohn and Marietta Hurst*Michael and Estelle Jacobson*D.L. Janzen in memory of Jeannie KuyperHerbert JenkinC.V. KentHank and Janice KetchamMr. Hassan and Mrs. Nezhat Khosrowshahi*Drs. Colleen Kirkham & Stephen KurdyakSherry and Alex KlopferUri and Naomi KoletJudi and David KorbinDon and Lou LaishleyRobert M. LedinghamBill and Risa LevineMrs. Maria LoganHugh and Judy LindsayNancy and Frank Margitan Mrs. Pamela Metal M. Lois MilsomNancy MorrisonDal and Muriel RichardsDr. Bill and Ruthie RossDr. Robert S. Rothwell*Mrs. Joan ScobellDavid and Cathy ScottDr. Earl & Mrs. Anne ShepherdMrs. Mary Anne SigalRandall Takasaki L. ThomGarth and Lynette ThurberDr. Johann Van EedenNico & Linda Verbeek* Michael WilliamsDr. Brian WilloughbyEric and Shirley WilsonMilton and Fei WongDr. I.D. WoodhouseAnonymous (9)

* Members of the Patrons’ Circle who have made an additional gift to the VSO’s endowment campaign, for which we are most thankful.

The Vancouver Symphony is grateful for the generosity shown by the following individuals and foundations, whose annual investment in the VSO has helped this orchestra reach new heights and garner national and international recognition.


CONCERT PROGRAM

Dale Barltrop leader/violin

BACH Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 in G Major, BWV 1048 I. Allegro II. Andante III. Allegro

MENDELSSOHN String Symphony (Sinfonia) No. 13 in C minor

BACH Violin Concerto No. 2 in E Major, BWV 1042 I. Allegro II. Adagio III. Allegro assai

INTERM ISS ION

MENDELSSOHN Octet in E-flat Major, Op. 20 I. Allegro moderato ma con fuoco II. Andante III. Scherzo: Allegro leggierissimo IV. Presto

friday & saturday, april 20, 21BAC H & BEYON D / C HAN C ENTR E FOR TH E PER FORMI NG ARTS AT U BC, 8PM


CONCERT PROGRAM

THE PRESENTATION OF THE BACH & BEYOND SERIES IS MADE POSSIBLE, IN PART, THROUGH THE GENEROUS ASSISTANCE OF THE CHAN CENTRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA.

monday, april 23SU R R EY N IGHTS / BELL PER FORMI NG ARTS C ENTR E, 8PM

The VSO’s Surrey Nights Series has been endowed by a generous gift from Werner and Helga Höing.

◆

◆

DALE BARLTROP

allegro 43

Dale Barltrop leader/violin

Hailing from Brisbane, Australia, Dale Barltrop has performed across North America, Europe and Australia. He had served as Principal Second Violin in the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra for six years prior to his appointment with the Vancouver Symphony. During this time, Barltrop appeared regularly as soloist with the SPCO, including a series of baroque concerts under his direction and a performance of his own orchestration of Schubert’s Rondo in B minor.

Barltrop is a regular artist at the Mainly Mozart Festival in San Diego and the Festival Mozaic in San Luis Obispo. He has also performed at the Yellow Barn, Kneisel Hall, Swannanoa and Tanglewood music festivals, Music in the Vineyards and the New York String Orchestra Seminar. As a soloist, Barltrop has performed with the Bloomington Symphony, Maryland Chamber Orchestra, University of Maryland Symphony and back home with the Queensland Orchestra and Queensland Pops Orchestra. He served as associate concertmaster of the Akron Symphony Orchestra and 1st violinist of the Verklärte Quartet, which won the grand prize at the 2003 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition.

Barltrop moved to the United States in 1998 to attend the University of Maryland as a student of Gerald Fischbach and the Guarneri Quartet. He continued his studies at the Cleveland Institute of Music with William Preucil. Barltrop has a keen interest in teaching and has served on the faculty of the National Orchestral Institute and worked regularly with the Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphonies. In addition to playing the violin, Dale loves to travel and enjoys swimming, running, hiking and skiing.

Johann Sebastian Bachb. Eisenach, Germany / March 21, 1685 d. Leipzig, Germany / July 28, 1750

Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 in G Major, BWV 1048Bach arrived in the German town of Anhalt-Cöthen in 1717, to take up the position of Director of Music to Prince Leopold. This enlightened young monarch loved

instrumental music more than any other kind, and Bach was only too happy to provide him with many outstanding examples. In 1719, the Prince sent Bach to Berlin. During Bach’s visit, he made the acquaintance of Christian Ludwig, Margrave (or ruler) of Brandenburg, a town in Prussia. That gentleman asked Bach to send him some examples of his music. Bach assembled a set of six concertos for various instruments, revised and polished them, and sent them off to Brandenburg, a lavish dedication attached. That inscription has earned them the nickname Brandenburg Concertos. The Margrave showed little interest in them, alas. They passed, probably unplayed, into a library in Berlin following his death. They were published for the first time in 1850, in an edition marking the centenary of Bach’s birth. Bach scored Concerto No. 3 for an orchestra of strings, divided into nine parts. The vigorous, richly textured opening movement and the sprightly, dance-like finale are separated by two chords. Bach probably intended them as a guideline for a brief improvisation to introduce the finale.

Felix Mendelssohnb. Hamburg, Germany / February 3, 1809 d. Leipzig, Germany / November 4, 1847

String Symphony (Sinfonia) No. 13 in C minorMendelssohn played a major role in reviving the reputation of Bach. In 1829, for example, when he was 20, he conducted the first performance of the St. Matthew Passion in the 79 years since Bach’s death.

He ranked second only to Mozart in the annals of child prodigies. In 1950, the manuscripts of his previously unknown symphonies (or sinfonias) for strings were discovered in the State Library of East Berlin. He composed them between 1821 and 1823, his twelfth and fourteenth years. Additional compositions from that immensely productive period included concertos, a string quartet, piano quartets, and a piano sextet.

The attractive and progressively more assured sinfonias may have come into being as composition exercises requested by his teacher, Carl Friedrich Zelter. If so, they far transcend any purely educational purpose. Reflecting Zelter’s taste for older music, the

44 allegro

sinfonias frequently incorporate Baroque-period practices such as counterpoint, the simultaneous presentation of two or more independent musical lines. No. 13 has just one movement. Whether Mendelssohn planned to make it part of a larger work is unknown. It opens with a stately introduction in slow tempo, and continues with a vigorous, intricately textured section that adopts another prominent Baroque form, the fugue.

Johann Sebastian BachViolin Concerto No. 2 in E Major, BWV 1042No direct evidence is available to place Bach’s violin concertos at a particular time in his career. In terms of style and activities, however, the six years he spent in the German town of Anhalt-Cöthen seem the most likely period. He was a skillful violinist, although he was far better known as an organist. Carl Philipp Emanuel, the most famous of his sons, stated: “In his youth, and until the approach of old age, he played the violin cleanly and penetratingly.” Bach wrote exceptionally well for the violin because as Carl continues, “He understood to perfection the possibilities of all

stringed instruments.” Many Bach concertos exist in arrangements featuring a variety of solo instruments. He transcribed this glowing Violin Concerto in E Major for harpsichord. The outer sections bustle with energy. The most remarkable portion is the slow second movement, an especially beautiful creation with the character of a vocal aria.

Felix MendelssohnOctet in E-flat Major, Op. 20 The beautifully polished Octet for Strings (1825) and the magical overture to Shakespeare’s romantic comedy, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1826), announced Mendelssohn’s full maturity. The octet is true chamber music, not a symphony in disguise. Each of the eight parts is a separate and indispensable component of the whole (although he does grant the first of the four violins especially brilliant status). This sets it apart from the similarly scored but conceptually different series of double quartets that Louis Spohr had begun to create two years earlier. The octet’s textures regularly display numerous imaginative and intricate combinations, without ever growing dense or heavy. It remained Mendelssohn’s own favourite among his youthful works.

The first movement, quite the longest of the four, balances energy and warmth. A melancholy andante follows, the principal theme cast in the lilting style of a siciliano. Mendelssohn told his sister Fanny that the third movement, a quiet yet exhilarating scherzo, was inspired by a stanza from Goethe’s Faust:

Trails of cloud and mist brighten from above; Breeze in the foliage and wind in the reeds – And everything is scattered.

Fanny wrote of it, “Everything is new, strange, yet so attractive, so sympathetic. One feels so close to the spirit world, so lightly drawn up into the sky, one might even wish for a broomstick, the better to follow the mischievous host.” A finale that outshines the previous movements for textural ingenuity and sheer exuberance concludes the octet. ■


EdwINA HELLER February 14, 1914 – January 4, 2012

MILTON K. wONg, C.M., O.B.C. February 12, 1939 – December 31, 2011

Edwina Heller and Milton Wong were both avid supporters of the VSO for over 60 and 40 years respectively. Their desire for our community to experience great music is a testament to their generosity, making our city a better place in which to live and work.

Individually, and with their families, their contributions to the VSO and the arts community have made a significant impact, for which we will forever be grateful.

Vancouver Symphony Society

In Memoriam

CHRIS BOTTI

YEVGENY SUDBIN

BRAMWELL TOVEY

Chris Botti with the Vso! WEDNESDAY, MAY 2 Pierre Simard conductor Chris Botti trumpet The one and only Chris Botti makes his highly-anticipated return to the Orpheum to perform with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra! His last VSO performance – a sold-out concert in 2010 – had audiences leaping to their feet for multiple standing ovations.

essential Brass with allen VizzuttiFRIDAY & SATURDAY, MAY 11 & 12Jeff Tyzik conductor Allen Vizzutti trumpetInternationally-acclaimed as one of the world’s very best trumpet players, Allen Vizzutti makes his much-anticipated return to the VSO, performing an eclectic concert that includes Carnival of Venice, Aventure Español, selections from Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, and more!

YeVgenY sudBin! SATURDAY, SUNDAY & MONDAY, MAY 26, 27 & 28 Kazuyoshi Akiyama conductor Yevgeny Sudbin pianoMOzART The Magic Flute: Overture MOzART Piano Concerto No. 24 DEBUSSY L’isle joyeuse DEBUSSY La Mer

last night oF the ProMs WEDNESDAY, MAY 30 Bramwell Tovey conductor Vancouver Bach ChoirLast Night of the Proms is a traditional concert celebrating the last night of the BBC Promenades series of concerts in London’s Royal Albert Hall, a beloved concert series that began in 1895. Maestro Bramwell Tovey and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra proudly uphold that tradition in a fun and fantastic concert featuring Pomp & Circumstance, Rule Britannia, Jerusalem, and much more!

BraMwell toVeY’s the inVentorSATURDAY & MONDAY, JUNE 9 & 11Bramwell Tovey conductorMaestro Bramwell Tovey’s spectacular opera The Inventor opened at the Calgary Opera in January 2011 to critical acclaim. The VSO presents the concert version of this new opera, featuring the original cast and, of course, Maestro Tovey conducting.

Full concert listings and tickets at: vancouversymphony.caor call 604.876.3434

UPCOMING CONCERTS highlights of the next issue of allegro...

VANCOUVER BACH CHOIR

ALLEN VIzzUTTI

allegro 47

allegro 47

BRAMWELL TOVEY

CONCERT PROGRAM

Bramwell Tovey conductorJulia Nolan saxophoneStephanie Domingues sopranoBeth orson english hornCorey hamm piano

Songs Without WordsJEFFREY RYAN Brazen, Concerto for Saxophone (World Premiere)

EDWARD TOP Songs of an Egyptian Princess (World Premiere)

IN TERM ISS ION

RODNEY SHARMAN Songs without Words

JORDAN NOBLES Idée Fixe, Piano Concerto (World Premiere)

saturday, april 21VANCOUVER SU N SYMPHONY AT TH E AN N EX / OR PH EUM AN N EX, 8PM


CONCERT PROGRAM

SYMPHONY AT THE ANNEX SERIES SPONSOR

FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR THIS SERIES PROVIDED BY

◆

▲

◗

◆

◗

▲

●

●


Bramwell Tovey conductor

Grammy® Award winning conductor Bramwell Tovey is acknowledged around the world for his artistic vision and depth, and his warm, charismatic personality. Tovey’s career as a conductor is uniquely enhanced by his extensive work as a composer and pianist, lending him a remarkable musical perspective. His tenures as music director with the Vancouver Symphony, Luxembourg Philharmonic and Winnipeg Symphony Orchestras and as Principal Guest Conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl have been characterized by his expertise in operatic, choral, British and contemporary repertoire.

Mr. Tovey, who is entering his twelfth season as Music Director of the Vancouver Symphony, celebrated his 100th concert this past July as a guest conductor of the New Philharmonic. He is founding host and conductor of the New York Philharmonic’s Summertime Classics series at Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center. In 2008, the New York and Los Angeles Philharmonics co-commissioned him to write a new work, Urban Runway, which has been played across Canada, the US and in Australia. He was awarded the Best Canadian Classical Composition Juno® Award in 2003 for his Requiem for a Charred Skull.

An esteemed guest conductor, Mr. Tovey has worked with orchestras in the United States and Europe including the City of Birmingham, London Philharmonic, London Symphony and Frankfurt Radio orchestras. In North America, Mr. Tovey has made guest appearances with the orchestras of Baltimore, Philadelphia, St. Louis, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Seattle and Montreal as well as ongoing performances with Toronto, where his trumpet concerto, Songs of the Paradise Saloon commissioned by the TSO, received its premiere in December of 2009 as a preview of his first full-length opera The Inventor which was commissioned and premiered by Calgary Opera in January 2011. During the summer of 2011 he debuted with the Cleveland Orchestra at the Blossom Festival and the Boston Symphony at Tanglewood and made a return visit to the Philadelphia Orchestra,

this time in their summer series in Saratoga, NY. This season he will guest conduct the Melbourne, Western Australia (Perth) and Sydney Symphony orchestras in Australia.

Tovey has been awarded honourary degrees, including a Fellowship from the Royal Academy of Music in London, honourary Doctorates of Law from the universities of Winnipeg and Manitoba, and Kwantlen University College, as well as a Royal Conservatory of Music Fellowship in Toronto. He is a member of the Order of Manitoba. In 1999, he received the M. Joan Chalmers National Award for Artistic Direction, a Canadian prize awarded to artists for outstanding contributions in the performing arts.

Julia Nolan saxophone

Julia Nolan maintains an active performing schedule committed to promoting new works for saxophone. She has commissioned works by many Canadian composers including Stephen Chatman, Keith Hamel, Robert Pritchard, Nicolas Scherzinger, Jacquie Leggatt, Hope Lee, Fred Stride, Neal Currie, Alain Mayrand, Alan Matheson, and now Jeffrey Ryan.

Julia Nolan studied with Dr. Eugene Rousseau at Indiana University and has had study sessions with Claude Delangle (Paris Conservatory) and Dr. Frederick Hemke (Northwestern University).

Of her compact disc recording of Paule Maurice’s Tableaux de Provence as soloist with the CBC orchestra (CBC SM5135) under the direction of Mario Bernardi, Bob Kerr, host of CBC’s Off the Record praised Julia Nolan as “a brilliant and mellifluous sounding soloist.”

Interdisciplinary works are a new area of interest. Works commissioned by Nolan for saxophone in this genre include: Keith Hamel’s WindoW for saxophone and interactive computer; Robert Pritchard’s Strength for saxophone and video; and Dorothy Chang’s Beyond and through… for saxophone and dancer, created especially for Julia Nolan and Kathryn Ricketts, collaborators in improvised music and dance/movement for the past five years.

allegro 49

Stephanie Domingues soprano

Upcoming Canadian soprano, Stephanie Domingues made her European debut in Freiberg, Germany as Mademoiselle Silberklang in Der Schauspieldirektor. She has performed in the Canadian Opera Company’s production of Turandot, Queen of Spades and Die Zauberflöte and in the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre for the opening of the Four Seasons Center for the Performing Arts in Toronto, Ontario. She has also performed in the prestigious Luminato Festival Concert Series at Roy Thomson Hall in Toronto, Ontario.

Stephanie was chosen to train and performed under full sponsorship at the prestigious Tanglewood Institute in the Young Artist Vocal Program studying with celebrated performers and teachers such as Phyllis Curtin, Sharon Daniels and Simone Estes. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Toronto where she studied under the tutelage of Lorna MacDonald. In September 2011, Stephanie joined the University of British Columbia’s Opera Ensemble where she is a Master of Music candidate studying with Nancy Hermiston.

Beth Orson english horn

Beth Orson has played Assistant Principal Oboe and English Horn with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra since 1990. She has taught on the faculties of the UBC School of Music and the Vancouver Academy of Music for many years and joined the faculty of the National Youth Orchestra of Canada in 2008.

As a chamber musician, Ms. Orson often performs with the Turning Point Ensemble and in recital at the University of British Columbia. Principal Oboe of the NY Symphonic Ensemble from 1988-2005, she completed 19 tours to Japan with this renowned chamber orchestra, performing in every major concert hall in Japan, often as soloist.

Ms. Orson has recorded for CBC Records, Deutsche Grammophon, Essay, New World, Parnassus and Technics Records. A graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory and winner of the Oberlin Concerto Competition, Ms. Orson’s principal teachers were Laurence Thorstenberg, James Caldwell, and Elaine Douvas.

Corey Hamm piano

Corey Hamm has commissioned, premiered and recorded over one hundred solo, chamber and concerto works, collaborating with the composers in each case. He has given over thirty performances of Frederic Rzewski’s hour long solo piano epic The People United Will Never Be Defeated!, including one for Rzewski himself.

Hamm is pianist with the new music ensembles The Nu:BC Collective and Hammerhead Consort, the second of which were winners of the National Music Competition and Sir Ernest MacMillan Foundation Chamber Music Award.

Dr. Hamm is Assistant Professor of Piano and Chamber Music at the University of British Columbia where he is also Director of The UBC Contemporary Players. He was winner of the 2009 Killam Award for

STEPHANIE DOMINGUESJULIA NOLAN COREY HAMMBETH ORSON


Teaching Excellence. He has also been on the Piano Faculty of The Summer Institute for Contemporary Performance Practice (SICPP, or Sick Puppy!) at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, and is Co-Director of The Young Artist Experience (YAE). Corey is also in demand for masterclasses and juries in North America, Asia, and Europe. Dr. Hamm’s beloved teachers include Lydia Artymiw, Marek Jablonski, Stephane Lemelin, Ernesto Lejano, and Thelma Johannes O’Neill.

Notes on Tonight’s ConcertThe VSO chamber orchestra performs four exciting, new compositions of Vancouver composers with four Vancouver soloists. Jeffrey Ryan revisits an old love, the saxophone, to create a dynamic new work. Edward Top delves into a nebulous journey of a young Egyptian Princess. Rodney Sharman explores the rich sounds of the English Horn and its parallels to youth. Jordan Nobles surrenders to the grand, augmented chord on the piano. Take a plunge into the refreshing music composed in the home city of the VSO!

Jeffrey Ryan Composer Laureate of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestrab. Toronto, Ontario / 1962

Brazen, Concerto for Saxophone (World Premiere)In my high school concert band, I played alto saxophone. In fact it was the first instrument I really learned how to play. In Grade 13, I wrote an alto saxophone duet, which I performed with the band teacher on the annual Music Night concert. But somehow in my professional career, the opportunity to write for the saxophone never came my way, aside from its inclusion in one band piece. So when saxophonist Julia Nolan approached me about writing a concerto for her, I jumped at the chance.

While thinking about the instrument and scouting around for inspiration, I came across a reference to the Brazen Age, one of the Ages of Man in Greek mythology. A piece about Greek mythology didn’t interest me, but the word “brazen” stuck. It can mean simply “made of brass” which was certainly appropriate for a saxophone piece. But no one thinks of that when they hear that word. They think of its other meaning: “bold and shameless”. They think “Brazen Hussy”. This provided me with the perfect character for the solo music: bold and brash, sexy and seductive, calculating and manipulative. A single-reed Eve Harrington surrounded by strings and metallic percussion.

Brazen was commissioned by Julia Nolan, and supported in part by the BC Arts Council.

Program Notes © 2012 Jeffrey Ryan

Siemon Edward TopComposer-in-Residence of the VancouverSymphony Orchestrab. Ommen, Overijssel, Holland / January 1, 1972

Songs of an Egyptian Princess For Soprano and chamber orchestra (World Premiere)Songs of an Egyptian Princess is composed from an excerpt of a play called True Mummy, written by local playwright and my good friend Tom Cone. The songs are narrations

allegro 51

by a young Egyptian Princess about her brief life, premature death, and the “re-purposing” of her ashes as varnish for a Turner painting. This composition attempts to portray primordial emotions of fear and anxiety; these nebulous feelings are made even more poignant through the innocent voice of the child Princess.

I have composed musical references, archetypes that represent what the Princess goes through in each song: her head bound in linen, a procession, playing hide and seek, preparation for mummification, taken by grave robbers and shipped to England, burnt in a London warehouse. These references are absorbed by slowly moving spheres of portentous strings harmonies, whilst harp and percussion carry out tinkling garlands within a static modal framework.

The melodies of the Princess, a soprano, are expanded by shadow players. These are instrumental doubles that anticipate and extend the pitches of the soloist. The doubles are a solo violin (later cello), piccolo and a harp, instruments accompanying the Princess to the afterlife. This technique of vocal expansion creates the suggestion of endless melodic lines that grow from the orchestral accompaniment into the vocalist, who in her turn then passes them back to the orchestra.

Program Notes © 2012 Edward Top

Dr. Rodney SharmanFormer Resident Composer with theVancouver and Victoria Symphony Orchestrasb. Biggar, Saskatchewan / May 24, 1958

Songs without Words For English Horn and chamber orchestraSongs without Words was written during my composer residency with the Victoria Symphony Orchestra, funded in part through the Canada Council for the Arts. The piece is dedicated to Victoria’s excellent English Horn player, Russell Bajer. I am delighted that Beth Orson is giving the second performance tonight with my home orchestra and Maestro Tovey.

The piece traces the arc of life in four movements: Cradle Song, Hopscotch,

Simple Song, and Funeral March. The first and second movement are joined, as are the third and fourth. There are cadenzas at the ends of the second and fourth movements.

The English Horn is not only a solo melodic instrument in the piece, it is sometimes a basis for orchestral lattice work above the instrument’s rich and soulful sound. In more lyrical sections, the orchestra accompanies sparingly, as one does with middle voices. In Romantic music the English horn is conventionally used to portray young love, the pastoral, melancholy, and loss. There is, I think, something to this; more than any other instrument, it evokes (at least to me) imaginary landscapes, shepherds, youth—and youth’s passing.

Program Notes © 2012 Rodney Sharman

Jordan Nobles Composer b. Surrey, British Columbia / 1969

Idée Fixe Concerto for Piano and Orchestra (World Premiere)An idée fixe is a ‘fixed idea’, a preoccupation of mind that persists and resists attempts to leave or modify it.

I have, in my work, a number of recurring musical ideas, which, although I love them, I try to push away and think of new and different ones. They always come back however and hover in the periphery of my mind’s eye. Chief among them is the augmented chord. I have used an augmented triad more times then I care to admit. I love its symmetry, how it is always a minor second away from any minor or major chord, and I love using it to pivot to a new harmony.

This piece is about not fighting the fixed idea but letting it happen whenever it wishes. It starts with an augmented chord and never looks back. It is a complete surrender to that which will not go away. I can no longer resist.

The piece is dedicated, with thanks, to Corey Hamm whose invaluable assistance made it possible. ■

Program Notes © 2012 Jordan Nobles

allegro 53

allegro 53



CONCERT PROGRAM

saturday, april 28MUSICALLY SPEAKI NG / OR PH EUM TH EATR E, 8PM

Bramwell Tovey conductorpeter Longworth pianoRichard Suart baritone (playing “The Judge”)UBC opera Ensemble

WALTON Crown Imperial

IRELAND Piano Concerto in E-flat Major I. In tempo moderato II. Lento espressivo III. Allegro

INTERM ISS ION

GILBERT AND SULLIVAN Trial by Jury

◆

◆

sunday, april 29ROGERS GROU P FI NANC IAL SYMPHONY SU N DAYS / OR PH EUM TH EATR E, 2PM

monday, april 30NORTH SHOR E C LASSICS / C ENTEN N IAL TH EATR E, 8PM

MUSICALLY SPEAKINGVIDEO SCREEN SPONSOR

SYMPHONY SUNDAYS SERIES SPONSOR

◗

◗

◗

54 allegro

Bramwell Tovey conductor

For a biography of Maestro Tovey, please refer to page 48.

Peter Longworth piano

Pianist Peter Longworth has established himself as one of the most sought after performers of his generation. Equally comfortable as soloist and chamber musician, he has performed in cities around the world.

Mr. Longworth is a founding member of the Duke Piano Trio, which has performed throughout the United States and Canada, and he has appeared in collaboration with many of today’s finest instrumentalists. He can be heard on a recent recording of the complete Brahms violin and piano sonatas with violinist Mark Fewer.

Born in 1964 in London, Mr. Longworth began his piano studies in Brussels. He studied at Northwestern University with Arthur Tollefson and at the University of Michigan with Eckhart Sellheim and after a year at the Banff Centre for the Fine Arts, he completed his studies at the Royal Conservatory with Marek Jablonski, Leon Fleisher and Marc Durand. Mr. Longworth was a finalist in the International Busoni Piano Competition in Italy.

Richard Suart baritone (playing “The Judge”)

Richard Suart was born in Lancashire, and studied at St John’s College, Cambridge, and the Royal Academy of Music. He began his operatic career with the English Music Theatre Company and Opera Factory, and is now much sought after, particularly in music theatre, contemporary opera and, of course, as a comedian in the more standard repertoire.

He has enjoyed a long association with Diva Opera for whom he has appeared as Dr. Bartolo, Gianni Schicchi and Dulcamara; he has also directed and appeared in three operettas for the company, Trial by Jury, Die Fledermaus and Cox and Box in the UK, the Channel Islands, Switzerland and France.

Current and most recent engagements include Mr. Walter Afterlife in the Holland Festival and with L’Opéra National de Lyon, Playing Away in Bregenz and St Pölten, French Ambassador Of thee I Sing, General Snookfield Let Them Eat Cake and Barabaskin Paradise Moscow at Opera North and in Bregenz, Baron Zeta The Merry Widow, Lesbo Agrippina at ENO, The Mayor Jenufa for Opera Holland Park and Lord Chancellor Iolanthe with the San Francisco Symphony.

UBC Opera EnsembleFor a biography of UBC Opera Ensemble, please refer to page 28.

Sir William Waltonb. Oldham, England / March 29, 1902 d. Ischia, Italy / March 8, 1983

Crown ImperialWalton’s stirring coronation marches, Crown Imperial (1937) and Orb and Sceptre (1953) link him strongly to fellow Englishman Sir Edward Elgar’s tradition of pomp and circumstance. He added to it his own touches of brilliance and sophistication. Crown Imperial was commissioned by the BBC, to be performed at the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth (later the Queen Mother). It was premiered at the coronation service in London’s Westminster Abbey on May 12, Sir Adrian Boult, conducting. The outer panels are based on a sturdy processional theme that builds in volume and fervour to a pair of magnificent climaxes. A memorable, flowing melody representing a more subdued manner of rejoicing appears in between.

RICHARD SUARTPETER LONGWORTH

56 allegro

John Ireland b. Bowdon, England / August 13, 1879 d. Rock Mill, England / June 12, 1962

Piano Concerto in E-flat Major Ireland created a distinctive catalogue of music (orchestral pieces, songs and choral works, chamber music and piano solos) that made him one of the foremost British composers of his generation. Much of it bears descriptive titles (The Forgotten Rite, Legend, etc.), since evoking atmosphere, born of his deep interest in such things as Celtic mysticism and the distant past, was one of his foremost concerns.

His non-descriptive works, such as the Piano Concerto, are equally intriguing. He composed it in 1930, and dedicated it to a young pianist, Helen Perkin. He had become closely acquainted with her while she was

studying at the Royal College of Music in London, where he taught. She gave the concerto’s premiere at a Proms concert on October 2, with Sir Henry Wood conducting. It was Ireland’s longest work to date, and the warmth of its reception enhanced his reputation (at the age of 51) from a creator of poetic miniatures to a new, more ambitious composer who could work successfully in large-scale forms. The concerto is substantial in size, and it displays structural ingenuity by recalling thematic materials between the movements. It was quickly taken up by numerous prominent soloists, Artur Rubinstein and Clifford Curzon among them, and remained the preeminent British piano concerto for several decades.

The first movement opens with music that is exceptionally warm and lyrical in character. Ireland added energy, colour and even more ardent expressivity as the movement unfolds to a stirring conclusion. He placed his poetic side on full display in the dreamy second movement. Solo passages for flute, violin, and horn increase the movement’s chamber-like intimacy. Timpani enter for the first time in the concerto to pave the way for the finale that follows on without a pause. This concluding movement predated the similarly jazz-flavoured finale of the piano concerto that Maurice Ravel would complete in 1931. Ireland leavened it with passages of a reflective nature.

Sir William Schwenk Gilbertb. London, England / November 18, 1836 d. London, England / May 29, 1911

AND

Sir Arthur Sullivanb. London, England / May 13, 1842 d. London, England / November 22, 1900

Trial by JuryIt was an unlikely partnership: Sullivan, a sociable, easygoing composer nurtured on Bach and Mendelssohn, eager to take his place among the great creators of religious oratorios and serious symphonic works; and

Gilbert, a high-strung, often jealous writer whose talents were forged in the irreverent worlds of the London stage and popular press. They were very different men, yet somehow they sparked each other to give of their best. It’s unlikely they would have reached as high a creative level individually as they did when they pooled their talents.

They were introduced in 1869 by a friend of Sullivan’s, the composer Frederic Clay. Author tried to impress composer with his wit, alas only irritating him in the process – hardly an auspicious beginning to their relationship! Two years passed before theatre manager John Hollingshead persuaded them to collaborate on a Christmas play, Thespis; or The Gods Grown Old. It enjoyed only a modest success and vanished quickly. Gilbert and Sullivan then went their separate ways, Sullivan to compose incidental theatre music, an oratorio, The Light of Life, and numerous hymn tunes, including Onward, Christian Soldiers and Nearer, My God to Thee.

Meanwhile, another London impresario, Richard D’Oyle Carte, was looking for a short operetta to share a double bill with Jacques Offenbach’s La Périchole. Recalling Thespis, he persuaded Gilbert and Sullivan to work together again. Gilbert suggested a comic libretto he had written a few years before, but for which he had had no luck in finding a composer. Sullivan loved it and wrote the score in short order. Premiering at London’s Royalty Theatre on March 25, 1875, Trial by Jury ran for 131 performances and won G&S their first triumph.

The satirical view it takes of British legal procedures (Gilbert had come to know the authentic article while acting as a lawyer in his younger days) set a precedent of tone for much that would follow in the G&S canon. It also included musical parodies of French and Italian opera composers who were popular at the time, especially Vincenzo Bellini. ■



The Vancouver Symphony gratefully acknowledges the generosity of the following Corporations, Foundations, and Government Agencies that have made a financial contribution through sponsorship and/or a charitable donation for the 2011/2012 season.

vancouver symphony partners

SERIES SPONSORS

CONCERT AND SPECIAL EVENT SPONSORS

IMPORTANT:For Usage below 1-1/2” wide

KINGSWOOD CAPITAL CORPORATION

KINGSWOOD CAPITAL CORPORATION

VANCOUVERSYMPHONYVOLUNTEERS

allegro 59

$150,000+TELUS

Vancouver Sun

$50,000+City of Burnaby Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services

Goldcorp Inc.

Jemini Foundation

$40,000+BMO Harris Private Banking

CIBC

Industrial Alliance Pacific

PwC

RBC Foundation

$30,000+Borden Ladner Gervais LLP

HSBC Bank Canada

London Drugs

Pacific Arbour Retirement Communities

YVR–Vancouver Airport Authority

$20,000+Air Canada

Best Buy

Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP

The Chan Endowment Fund of UBC

Chan Foundation of Canada

Concord Pacific Group Inc.

David T.K. Ho Enterprises

Eminata Group

Ernst & Young LLP

Holland America Line Inc.

Polygon Homes Ltd.

Rogers Group Financial

Spectra Energy

TD Bank Group

Tiffany & Co.

Tom Lee Music

Vancouver Symphony Volunteers

Wall Financial

Wesbild Holdings Ltd.

$10,000+BA Blacktop Ltd.

Canadian Western Bank

Canron Western Constructors Ltd.

Corus Entertainment

Craftsman Collision Ltd.

Heritage Office Furnishings

Keir Surgical

Kingswood Capital Corporation

KPMG

Park Royal Shopping Centre

Peter Kiewit Infrastructure Co.

Raymond James Ltd.

Teck Resources Limited

$5,000+Allied Holdings Group

Anthem Properties Group Ltd.

Commonwealth Insurance Company

Deloitte & Touche LLP

Farris, Vaughan, Wills & Murphy LLP

Genus Capital Management

Graphic Angel Design

Grosvenor

Harris Rebar

Hatch Mott MacDonald

Haywood Securities Inc.

Lazy Gourmet Inc.

LMS Reinforcing Steel Group

Macdonald Development Corporation

Marin Investments Limited

McElhanney Consulting Services Ltd.

MMM Group Limited

Dr. Tom Moonen Inc.

Michael O’Brian Family Foundation

PCL Constructors Westcoast Inc.

ScotiaMcLeod

SOCAN Foundation

Stantec

Stikeman Elliott LLP

Terus Construction Ltd.

The Titanstar Group of Companies

The James and Kathleen Winton Foundation

Xibita

$2,500+Central 1 Credit Union

Concord National Inc.

Ethical Bean Coffee

Gateway Casinos

LU Biscuits

McCarthy Tétrault

Norburn Lighting & Bath Centre

Anonymous (1)

$1,000+ABC Recycling Ltd.

Armtec

B&B Contracting Ltd.

Bing Thom Architects Foundation

Domaine Chandon

Encore Software Inc.

The Hamber Foundation

HUB International Insurance Brokers

Lantic Inc.

The Simons Foundation

Tala Florists

West Coast Reduction Ltd.

Anonymous (1)

EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM SPONSORS AND PARTNERS

PREMIER EDUCATION PARTNER

MEDIA PARTNERS

JEMINIfoUNDATIoN

For more information about vso corporate partners programs please contact:

Jennifer Polci at 604.684.9100 extension 239 or email [email protected]

60 allegro

at the concert

CoNCERT CoURTESIESFor your enjoyment, and the enjoyment of others, please remember concert etiquette. Talking, coughing, leaning over the balcony railings, unwrapping cellophane-wrapped candies, and the wearing of strong perfume may disturb the performers as well as other audience members.

LATECoMERSUshers will escort latecomers into the auditorium at a suitable break in the performance chosen by the conductor. Patrons who leave the auditorium during the performance will not be re-admitted until a suitable break in the performance.

hEARING-ASSIST SYSTEMSHearing-impaired patrons may borrow complimentary Sennheiser Infrared Hearing System headsets, available at the coat-check in the Orpheum Theatre only, after leaving a driver’s licence or credit card.

CELL phoNES, pAGERS, DIGITAL WATChESPlease turn off cell phones and ensure that digital watches do not sound during performances. Doctors and other professionals expecting calls are asked to please leave personal pagers, telephones and seat locations at the coat-check.

CAMERAS, RECoRDING EqUIpMENTCameras and audio/video recording equipment of any kind are strictly prohibited in all venues and must be left at the coat-check in the main lobby. Under no circumstances may photographs, video recordings or audio recordings be taken during a performance.

SMoKINGAll venues are non-smoking.

pRoGRAM, GUEST ARTISTS AND/oR pRoGRAM oRDER ARE SUBJECT To ChANGE.

vancouver symphony administration 604.684.9100Jeff Alexander, President & Chief Executive Officer

Finance & Administration: Mary-Ann Moir, Vice-President, Finance & AdministrationDebra Marcus, Director of Information Technology & Human ResourcesAnn Surachatchaikul, AccountantRay Wang, Payroll Clerk & IT Assistant

Marketing, Sales & Customer Service: Alan Gove, Vice-President, Marketing & SalesShirley Bidewell, Manager of Gift Shop & Volunteers Estelle and Michael Jacobson Chair

Stephanie Fung, Marketing Projects Manager Anna Gove, Editor & Publisher, Allegro MagazineKatherine Houang, Group Sales & Special Ticket ServicesKenneth Livingstone, Database ManagerJaime Moore Hirsbrunner, Marketing Assistant & Assistant to the President and CEOCameron Rowe, Director of Audience & Ticket Services

Customer Service Representatives: Christine Fraser, Customer Service Supervisor Jeff Cancade Jenny Jung Anthony SoonOdessa Cadieux-Rey Shawn Lau Karl VenturaJason Ho Thalia McWatt Lauren Watson

Development: Leanne Davis, Vice-President, Chief Development OfficerHoori Barkh, Lotteries Assistant William Brennan, Development Coordinator Ryan Butt, Development Officer, Corporate & Donor Relations Ann Byczko, Development Officer, Annual GivingCurtis Pendleton, Senior Development Officer, Individual GivingJennifer Polci, Director, Corporate & Major GiftsDaniel Zomparelli, Development Assistant

Artistic Operations & Education: Joanne Harada, Vice-President, Artistic Operations & EducationDeAnne Eisch, Orchestra Personnel ManagerAaron Hawn, Digital Projects Coordinator & Library AssistantVacant, Education Manager Ken & Patricia Shields Chair

David Humphrey, Operations Manager Karen Jeffery, Artistic Operations Assistant & Assistant to Maestro ToveyMinella F. Lacson, Librarian Ron & Ardelle Cliff Chair

Pearl Schachter, Artistic Operations & Education Assistant

The Stage Crew of the Orpheum Theatre are members of Local 118 of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees.

The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra is a proud member of

allegro 63

allegro 63

vancouver symphony society board of directors

vso school of music society

Ronald Laird Cliff, C.M., ChairMarnie CarterCharles Filewych

Board of Directors Gordon R. Johnson, ChairThomas BeswickHein Poulus, Q.C.Gerry SayersPatricia Shields

Executive Committee Arthur H. Willms, Chair President (Ret.), Westcoast Energy

Larry Berg, Vice Chair President & CEO Vancouver International Airport Authority

Colin Erb, Treasurer Partner, Deloitte & Touche LLP

Dave Cunningham, Secretary VP Government Relations, TELUS

Alan Pyatt, Member-at-Large Chairman, President and CEO (Ret.) Sandwell International Inc.

Joan Chambers Partner, Blakes

Dr. Peter Chung Executive Chairman, Eminata Group

Michael L. Fish President, Keir Surgical

vancouver symphony volunteer council 2011/2012Chair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Anne JanmohamedVice-Chair/Treasurer . . . Sheila FoleySecretary. . . . . . . . . . . . Nancy WuImmediate Past Chair. . . Estelle Jacobson

Scheduling Concerts (all venues) . . . Shirley BidewellGift Shop . . . . . . . . . . . . Barbara Morris Helen DubasLotteries in Malls . . . . . . Gloria DaviesReception Shifts. . . . . . . Gloria DaviesTea & Trumpets . . . . . . . Shirley Featherstone Marlene Strain

Special Events Symphony of Style 2011 . . . Nancy Wu Anne Janmohamed Holland America Luncheon 2011 . . . . . . . . . . Sheila Foley

Education & Community Musical Encounters . . . . . . . Isabella MorrowHospitality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Maria EstropeScholarship . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pat Hoebig

Membership Volunteer Hours . . . . . . . . . Angelina Bao

Lindsay Hall Executive Vice-President and CFO Goldcorp Inc.

Diane Hodgins Director, Century Group Lands Corporation

John Icke President and CEO Resinco Capital Partners

Olga Ilich President, Suncor Development Corporation

Julie Molnar Director, The Molnar Group

Gordon R. Johnson Partner, Borden Ladner Gervais

Hein Poulus, Q.C. Partner, Stikeman Elliot

Michael E. Riley, CA Corporate Director Partner (Ret.), Ernst & Young

Patricia Shields Education Consultant

Denise Turner Executive Vice-President TitanStar Group of Companies

Michael Webb SVP, Human Resources HSBC Bank Canada

Fred Withers Chief Development Officer Ernst & Young

Bruce Wright Managing Partner Goodmans Vancouver Office

Musician Representatives Christie Reside, Principal Flute

Aaron McDonald, Principal Timpani

Honorary Life Vice-Presidents Ronald Laird Cliff, C.M. Nezhat Khosrowshahi Gerald A.B. McGavin, C.M., O.B.C.Ronald N. Stern

John IckeJudi KorbinHein Poulus, Q.C.

Arthur H. WillmsTim Wyman

Manager, Gift Shop and Volunteer Resources Shirley Bidewell Tel 604.684.9100 ext 240 [email protected]

Assistant Gift Shop ManagerMichelle Beldi

George TaylorMarsha Walden

AdministrationJeff Alexander President & CEO

Shaun Taylor Executive Director

Edwin Kwong Business Manager & Office Administrator

vancouver symphony foundation board of trustees

Louise Ironside Registrar & Communications Coordinator

Lindy Gray Front Desk Administrator

The Symphony

Sampler

A customizable 4-ticket package is the perfect way to sample the Symphony, or add even more great concerts to your schedule: choose from a wide range of specially-selected concerts, with choices ranging from the great classics to jazz, Broadway, and more. Order your Symphony Sampler today! Order online and you can even print the Gift Certificates at home!

SAMPLE THE SYMPHONY FOR AS LOW AS $99 FOR FOUR TICKETS!

Details online at vancouversymphony.ca/sampleror call 604.876.3434

$994 TICKETS FOR AS LOW AS

magazine of the vancouver symphony … · the wizard of oz classic movie shown with music played...

Documents