Program Notes - Lincoln Center`s Great Performers

05-10 Europa_GP2 copy 4/22/15 3:28 PM Page 1
2014/15 GREAT PERFORMERS
The Program
Sponsored by BNY Mellon
Sunday Afternoon, May 10, 2015, at 5:00
Pre-concert lecture by Peter A. Hoyt at 3:45 in the Stanley H. Kaplan
Penthouse
Chamber Orchestras
Europa Galante
Fabio Biondi, Conductor and Violin
MOZART Symphony No. 11 in D major (1770)
Allegro
Andante
Allegro
MONZA Sinfonia in D major “La Tempesta di Mare”
Allegro
Andante
Allegro assai
SAMMARTINI Sinfonia in G major
Allegro ma non tanto
Grave
Allegro assai
Minuetto
MOZART Symphony No. 10 in G major (1770)
Allegro
Andante
Rondeau: Allegro
Intermission
Please make certain all your electronic devices are switched off.
BNY Mellon is a Proud Supporter of Great Performers.
This performance is made possible in part by the Josie Robertson Fund for Lincoln Center.
Alice Tully Hall, Starr Theater
Adrienne Arsht Stage
05-10 Europa_GP2 copy 4/22/15 3:28 PM Page 2
Great Performers
BNY Mellon is a Proud Supporter of Great Performers.
Support is provided by Rita E. and Gustave M. Hauser, The Florence Gould Foundation,
Audrey Love Charitable Foundation, Great Performers Circle, Chairman’s Council, and
Friends of Lincoln Center.
Public support is provided by the New York State Council on the Arts.
Endowment support for Symphonic Masters is provided by the Leon Levy Fund.
Endowment support is also provided by UBS.
MetLife is the National Sponsor of Lincoln Center.
Movado is a Supporter of Lincoln Center.
United Airlines is a Supporter of Lincoln Center.
WABC-TV is a Supporter of Lincoln Center.
William Hill Estate Winery is a Supporter of Lincoln Center.
For information about the 2015–16 Great Performers season, please visit
LCGreatPerformers.org.
Join the conversation: #LCGreatPerfs
We would like to remind you that the sound of coughing and rustling paper might
distract the performers and your fellow audience members.
In consideration of the performing artists and members of the audience, those who must
leave before the end of the performance are asked to do so between pieces. The taking
of photographs and the use of recording equipment are not allowed in the building.
05-10 Europa_GP2 copy 4/22/15 3:28 PM Page 3
Great Performers I The Program
SCACCIA Violin Concerto in E-flat major
Allegro
Adagio
Allegro
BRIOSCHI Sinfonia in D major
Allegro
Andante
Presto
MOZART Symphony No. 13 in F major (1771)
Allegro
Andante
Menuetto e Trio
Molto allegro
05-10 Europa_GP2 copy 4/22/15 3:28 PM Page 4
Snapshot
Great Performers
By Kathryn L. Libin
Timeframe
The symphony came to life as a genre in Italy ARTS
during the first decades of the 18th century. It
1770
seems to have stemmed from a variety of
Mozart Symphonies Nos. 10
sources, including ensemble sonatas and
and 11
Thomas Gainsborough paints
Vivaldian string concertos, but most particuThe Blue Boy.
larly from the Italian opera overture. Typically
called “Sinfonia” and unfolding in a three1771
Mozart Symphony No. 13
movement (fast/slow/fast) structure, the
The Schönbrunn Palace in
overture took advantage of the opera house’s
Austria is completed.
large and colorful orchestra and established
the habit of brilliant dynamics, structural contrasts, and special effects of all kinds.
SCIENCE
By mid-century a prolific school of symphon1770
ists based in Milan was producing hundreds
Captain James Cook arrives
of works that helped to define the symon the Australian continent.
phony and endow it with distinctive stylistic
gestures that would be widely emulated
1771
The Society of Civil Engineers
throughout Europe. The two most important
meets in London.
Milan symphonists, Sammartini and
Brioschi, became well known through many
publications. But also important was the
flow of northern composers across the Alps,
who arrived to play, to study, and to bask in IN NEW YORK
a flourishing and exciting musical culture.
1770
The young Mozart was undoubtedly the
Lord Dunmore, a Scottish
peer, is named governor of
most important composer of his generation
the Province of New York.
to drink at this fountain of musical ideas, and
his experiences in Italy would have a pro1771
New York Hospital is founded
found and enduring impact on his career.
with a royal charter.
—Copyright © 2015 by Lincoln Center for the
Performing Arts, Inc.
05-10 Europa_GP2 copy 4/22/15 3:28 PM Page 5
Notes on the Program
Great Performers I Notes on the Program
By Kathryn L. Libin
Symphony No. 11 in D major, K.84 (1770)
WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART
Born January 27, 1756, in Salzburg
Died December 5, 1791, in Vienna
Approximate length: 12 minutes
In January 1770 Mozart and his father, Leopold, arrived in Italy for the first
of what would be three extended tours in that country over the next three
years. In his first letter home to his sister, 14-year-old Wolfgang mimicked
the local Italian and chattered about operas they were hearing and the fun
of Carnival masquerading. Clearly, however, they were in Italy for the important purpose of introducing the young prodigy and his music to Italy, and—
perhaps more importantly—to expose him to the potent influences of
Italian music in its native theaters, halls, palaces, and churches. One of
Italy’s most versatile musical staples, employed in many different contexts,
was the symphony; Mozart brought with him a few already composed in
Salzburg, and produced others after his arrival, in rapid response to his new
surroundings. A surviving program from a Mantua concert in which Mozart
performed on January 16, 1770, shows that a single symphony could be
used to frame a program, with the first two movements opening the event,
followed by a variety of concertos, duets, arias, and improvisations, and
then closing with the symphony’s finale. By August, Mozart was able to
write to his sister that he had written “four Italian symphonies.”
The Symphony in D major, K.84, was begun in Milan at the end of January
and thus represents one of Mozart’s first attempts to emulate Italian symphonic style. Its opening Allegro, rather in the style of an Italian overture,
has well-defined thematic areas that contrast forward drive and excitement in the tonic key with serenity in the dominant key; once these
themes reach closure, there is no repeat, but instead a brief transition that
reinstates the opening and a full recapitulation. The Andante further
explores the dominant, A major, exploiting its capacity for sweetness and
suavity in the texture of violins and oboes paired in thirds. The finale is exuberant, with rollicking triplets reminiscent of opera buffa style.
05-10 Europa_GP2 copy 4/22/15 3:28 PM Page 6
Great Performers I Notes on the Program
Sinfonia in D major “La Tempesta di Mare”
CARLO MONZA
Born c. 1735, in Milan
Died December 19, 1801, in Milan
Approximate length: 6 minutes
One of Giovanni Battista Sammartini’s most accomplished students, Carlo
Monza, succeeded his teacher as organist at the ducal court chapel in Milan
and ultimately followed him as maestro di cappella there as well. Though he
wrote a number of symphonies and overtures, Monza was more prolific in his
work for church and theater, producing a large quantity of sacred music and
around 20 operas, one of which, Oreste, featured a storm at sea that relied
upon his aptitude for vivid programmatic music. The Sinfonia in D major, titled
“La Tempesta di Mare,” employs relentlessly pulsing rhythms, string tremolo,
and sudden deafening outbursts to evoke its storm in the first movement,
which links directly to the soothing, lyrical contrast of violin melody in the
Andante. The work concludes on a triumphant note with triadic horn calls bolstering the strings.
Sinfonia in G major, J-C 39
GIOVANNI BATTISTA SAMMARTINI
Born c. 1700–01
Died January 15, 1775, in Milan
Approximate length: 10 minutes
When 18th-century English music historian Charles Burney visited Italy in
1770, he wrote, “The composers to be found at Milan are innumerable.” The
most prominent of this numerous circle was Sammartini; oboist, organist, and
maestro di cappella in at least eight churches, Sammartini wrote dozens of
symphonies, concertos, chamber works, and sacred music, as well as three
operas. He was highly thought of by the Mozarts, who met him in Milan in
1770, as well as by Burney, who heard the elderly composer conduct his own
work that July and wrote, “his fire and invention still remain in their utmost
vigor.” His symphonies became well known outside of Italy and exerted a
strong influence on such composers as Gluck, J. C. Bach, and Boccherini;
Haydn would also have known his music from frequent performances in
Vienna in the 1750s. The Sinfonia in G major, J-C 39, opens with the rousing
chords typical of the opera house and unfolds a compact sonata structure with
brisk, well-defined themes and exciting tremolo figures. A short Grave section, less a movement than a dramatic statement of dissonant chords emphasizing the dominant, leads to an Allegro in dance-like triple meter. The work
concludes with a minuet, borrowed from an earlier trio sonata, which makes
this Sammartini’s only four-movement symphony.
05-10 Europa_GP2 copy 4/22/15 3:28 PM Page 7
Great Performers I Notes on the Program
Symphony No. 10 in G major, K.74 (1770)
WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART
Approximate length: 10 minutes
Another symphony that emerged during Mozart’s early months in Italy is one
in G major, K.74, apparently composed in Rome in April 1770. Its first movement resembles that of the D-major Symphony in structure, clarity, and rhythmic energy; unusually, however, it links directly to the central Andante movement without a break in the flow of notes. A repeated G in the violins at the
close of the Allegro serves as the sustained common tone beneath a new Cmajor oboe melody in the Andante, and new triplet rhythms are smoothly
introduced. The finale is bright, cheerful, and crisply articulated, with a curiously exotic little G-minor episode that may hint at the so-called “Turkish”
style becoming popular at the time.
Violin Concerto in E-flat major
ANGELO MARIA SCACCIA
Born c. 1690, in Milan
Died September 29, 1761, in Milan
Approximate length: 10 minutes
Among the important early Milan symphonists were Angelo Maria Scaccia
and Antonio Brioschi. Scaccia was a violinist and, like his father before him,
played with the ducal theater orchestra in Milan from his youth, officially taking his father’s position in 1751. He frequently performed in large public concerts under Sammartini’s direction, and as a composer wrote both symphonies and concertos. Though one can clearly detect the style of Vivaldi in
his string writing, there is also a more modern lightness of texture and play of
thematic contrast. In the E-flat-major Violin Concerto, rhythmically energetic
Allegro movements, in which the violinist elaborates on the orchestra’s
motivic material with idiomatic figurations, frame a central Adagio featuring a
more aria-like violin solo.
Sinfonia in D major
ANTONIO BRIOSCHI
c. 1725–50
Approximate length: 12 minutes
Though Brioschi does not appear to have been a student of Sammartini’s, it
is evident that he admired and emulated him. A comparison of Brioschi and
Sammartini survives in the hand of a contemporary viol player, Cristoforo
Signorelli, who stated that Brioschi had “the good taste” of Sammartini as
well as “more active and interesting parts for all the instruments.” Brioschi
05-10 Europa_GP2 copy 4/22/15 3:28 PM Page 8
Great Performers I Notes on the Program
composed at least 50 symphonies, nearly all in three movements for string
orchestra, and all in major keys. Several of his symphonies appeared in collections with works by Sammartini that were published in London and Paris
in the 1740s. The three movements of Brioschi’s Sinfonia in D major consist
of two repeated sections and clear-cut thematic areas. In the Andante a dialogue between the first and second violins is prominent, while the first violin
dominates the vivid, fast-paced finale. Much credit for the early development
of the Classical symphony must be given to these hard-working and fluent
Milanese composers.
Symphony No. 13 in F major, K.112 (1771)
WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART
Approximate length: 10 minutes
Mozart’s Symphony in F major, K.112, originated during his second trip to Italy
and is dated November 2, 1771. Within the same month Mozart and his father
presented an orchestral concert in the home of a Viennese official stationed in
Milan, and conceivably the new symphony formed part of the program. This is
a longer, more complex work than the previous two, including large-scale
repeats in three of the movements as well as an additional Minuet and Trio. Here
Mozart makes more effective and colorful use of the winds, and his themes are
more clearly etched and articulated. The development section of the first movement, though still brief, features a striking turn to A minor and agile imitation
between the voices. The Andante, for strings alone, presents a violin melody in
B-flat major over staccato accompaniment. The conventional Minuetto and Trio
are nonetheless lively and elegant, and the finale—a swift rondo with repeated
refrains and episodes—offers a poised and satisfying conclusion.
Musicologist Kathryn L. Libin teaches music history and theory at Vassar
College.
—Copyright © 2015 by Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Inc.
05-10 Europa_GP2 copy 4/22/15 3:28 PM Page 9
EMILE ASHLEY
Meet the Artists
Great Performers I Meet the Artists
Fabio Biondi
Born in Palermo, Italy, Fabio Biondi was introduced early on to pioneers of a new approach to Baroque music, which expanded his
musical vision and changed the direction of his career. At age 16, he
was invited by the Musikverein in Vienna to perform Bach’s violin
concertos. Since then, he has performed with ensembles including
Cappella Real, Musica Antiqua Wien, Il Seminario Musicale, La
Chapelle Royale, and Les Musiciens du Louvre Grenoble, all specializing in the performance of Baroque music using original technique
and instruments.
In 1990 Mr. Biondi founded Europa Galante, an ensemble that within
a few years became an internationally renowned and award-winning
ensemble of Baroque music. Mr. Biondi’s musical development, oriented toward both the universal repertoire and the rediscovering of
minor composers, includes three centuries of music. His varied
discography includes Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, Corelli’s Concerti Grossi,
the oratorios, serenatas, and operas of Scarlatti, Handel’s operas, the
18th-century Italian violin repertoire (Veracini, Vivaldi, Locatelli, and
Tartini), and sonatas by Bach, Schubert, and Schumann.
Mr. Biondi collaborates as a soloist and conductor with many orchestras, including Santa Cecilia in Rome, the Hallé and European Union
Baroque Orchestras, and the Rotterdam, Zurich, and Norwegian
chamber orchestras, among others. Mr. Biondi also performs in duo
with piano, harpsichord, and fortepiano in venues around the world,
including Cité de la Musique in Paris, Hogi Hall in Tokyo, National
Auditorium of Music in Madrid, and London’s Wigmore Hall.
05-10 Europa_GP2 copy 4/22/15 3:28 PM Page 10
Great Performers I Meet the Artists
Europa Galante
Europa Galante was created in 1990 by Fabio Biondi to draw international attention to a new and definitive Italian presence in the interpretation of music from
the Baroque and Classical eras on original instruments. Its repertoire ranges from
the operas of Handel (Poro) and Vivaldi (Bajazet) and the oratorios of Scarlatti
to the great instrumental works of the 18th century. The ensemble has a varying structure and often performs chamber music such as the string sonatas of
17th-century Italian composers, including Castello, Legrenzi, and Farina.
Europa Galante performs in the world’s major performance venues, including
Teatro alla Scala in Milan, the National Academy of St. Cecilia in Rome, Suntory
Hall in Tokyo, Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Royal Albert Hall in London, the
Musikverein in Vienna, Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall in New York, and the
Sydney Opera House. In addition to the U.S., Europa Galante has toured
Australia, Japan, Canada, Israel, and South America, and often collaborates
with the Ente Santa Cecilia in Rome to recover and restore 18th-century Italian
operas, such as Caldara’s La Passione di Gesù Cristo and Leo’s Sant’Elena al
Calvario. The ensemble performs regularly at the Alessandro Scarlatti Festival
in Palermo and has given the world premieres of the serenata Clori, Dorino e
Amore, Massimo Puppieno, Il trionfo dell’onore, and La principessa fedele.
Europa Galante’s recordings have been honored with Diapason d’Or awards,
Record of the Year nominations in Spain, Canada, Sweden, France, and
Finland, and Grammy nominations. It has recorded more than 50 discs for
Opus 111, Virgin Classics, and most recently, Glossa Music. Its most recent
recordings include Chiara’s Diary, the story of Vivaldi’s greatest pupil, and
Vivaldi: The Farewell Concertos, both on Glossa Music.
Lincoln Center’s Great Performers
Initiated in 1965, Lincoln Center’s Great Performers series offers classical and
contemporary music performances from the world’s outstanding symphony
orchestras, vocalists, chamber ensembles, and recitalists. One of the most
significant music presentation series in the world, Great Performers runs from
October through June with offerings in Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall,
Alice Tully Hall, Walter Reade Theater, and other performance spaces around
New York City. From symphonic masterworks, lieder recitals, and Sunday
morning coffee concerts to films and groundbreaking productions specially
commissioned by Lincoln Center, Great Performers offers a rich spectrum of
programming throughout the season.
05-10 Europa_GP2 copy 4/22/15 3:28 PM Page 11
Great Performers
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Inc.
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (LCPA) serves three primary roles: presenter of artistic programming, national leader in arts and education and community relations, and manager of the Lincoln Center campus. A presenter of
more than 3,000 free and ticketed events, performances, tours, and educational activities annually, LCPA offers 15 programs, series, and festivals including American Songbook, Great Performers, Lincoln Center Festival, Lincoln
Center Out of Doors, Midsummer Night Swing, the Mostly Mozart Festival,
and the White Light Festival, as well as the Emmy Award–winning Live From
Lincoln Center, which airs nationally on PBS. As manager of the Lincoln
Center campus, LCPA provides support and services for the Lincoln Center
complex and the 11 resident organizations. In addition, LCPA led a $1.2 billion
campus renovation, completed in October 2012.
Lincoln Center Programming Department
Jane Moss, Ehrenkranz Artistic Director
Hanako Yamaguchi, Director, Music Programming
Jon Nakagawa, Director, Contemporary Programming
Jill Sternheimer, Acting Director, Public Programming
Lisa Takemoto, Production Manager
Charles Cermele, Producer, Contemporary Programming
Kate Monaghan, Associate Director, Programming
Claudia Norman, Producer, Public Programming
Mauricio Lomelin, Associate Producer, Contemporary Programming
Julia Lin, Associate Producer
Nicole Cotton, Production Coordinator
Regina Grande, Assistant to the Artistic Director
Luna Shyr, Programming Publications Editor
Olivia Fortunato, House Seat Coordinator
05-10 Europa_GP2 copy 4/22/15 3:28 PM Page 12
ANA DE LABRA
Great Performers I Meet the Artists
Europa Galante
Fabio Biondi, Conductor and Violin
Violin I
Fabio Ravasi
Elin Gabrielsson
Beatrice Scaldini
Violin II
Andrea Rognoni
Rosella Borsoni
Giancarlo Ceccacci
Viola
Diego Mecca
Cello
Alessandro Andriani
Bass
Patxi Montero
Oboe
Guido Campana
Aviad Gershoni
Horn
Anneke Scott
Joseph Walters
Harpsichord
Andrea Perugi
Theorbo
Giancgiacomo Pinardi
05-10 Europa_GP2 copy 4/22/15 3:28 PM Page 13
The Table is Set
A
merican Table Café and Bar by
Marcus Samuelsson in Alice Tully Hall
is a great dining option available to Lincoln
Center patrons, along with Lincoln
Ristorante on Hearst Plaza, indie food &
wine in the Elinor Bunin Munroe Film
Center, ‘wichcraft in the David
Rubenstein Atrium, The Grand Tier in the
Metropolitan Opera house, the new
Lincoln Center Kitchen in Avery Fisher
Hall, and the Espresso Bar, also in Avery
Fisher.
Marcus Samuelsson, the youngest chef
ever to be awarded a three-star review
by The New York Times and the winner
of the James Beard Award for both
“Rising Star Chef” (1999) and “Best
Chef: New York City” (2003), crafted
the menu along with long-time associate
Nils Noren, MSG’s Vice President of
Restaurant Operations. American Table
Cafe and Bar by Marcus Samuelsson
serves food that celebrates the diversity
of American cuisine, drawing on influences and regions from across the
country. Dishes on the menu, which is
offered for both lunch and dinner,
include Smoked Caesar Salad, Shrimp
Roll, and Chocolate Cardamom Panna
Cotta. The bar features a cocktail menu
designed by consulting master mixologist, Eben Klemm, as well as a selection
of reasonably-priced wines.
Marcus Samuelsson’s recently published memoir, Yes, Chef, chronicles his
remarkable journey from being orphaned
at age three in his native Ethiopia to his
adoption by a family in Göteborg,
Sweden, where he first learned to cook
by helping his grandmother prepare
roast chicken. He went on to train in
top kitchens in Europe before arriving in
New York, first taking the reins at
Aquavit. He has won the television
competition Top Chef Masters on Bravo
Marcus Samuelsson
as well as top honors on Chopped All
Stars: Judges Remix. His current New
York restaurant, the wildly successful
Red Rooster, is located in his home
base of Harlem.
American Table Cafe and Bar seats 73
inside, plus more space outside on the
Alice Tully Hall Plaza. Diller Scofidio +
Renfro, the designers of the critically
acclaimed Alice Tully Hall, have transformed the glass-walled space with
lounge-like furniture in warm, rich colors,
a long communal couch, tree-trunk
tables, and lighting that can be dimmed
to adjust the mood. The design—an
eclectic reinterpretation of Americana—
draws its inspiration from the cafe’s
culinary focus. Call 212.671.4200 for
hours of operation.
05-10 Europa_GP2 copy 4/22/15 3:28 PM Page 14
Learn More, Take the Tour
B R I A N S TA N T O N
LINCOLN CENTER, THE WORLD’S
LEADING PERFORMING ARTS
CENTER, is a premiere New York
destination for visitors from around
the globe. Did you know that tours of
its iconic campus have made the Top
Ten Tour list of NYC&CO, the official
guide to New York City, for two
year’s running? All tour options offer
an inside look at what happens on
and off its stages, led by guides with
an encyclopedic knowledge of
Visitors get a concert preview at rehearsal
Lincoln Center, great anecdotes, and
a passion for the arts. The daily one-hour Spotlight Tour covers the Center’s history along
with current activities, and visits at least three of its famous theaters. Visitors can now also
explore broadcast operations inside the Tisch WNET-TV satellite studio on Broadway, and
see Lincoln Center’s newest venue, the Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center, home to the
largest Plasma screen in the nation on public display.
Want more? A number of specialty tours are available:
RADIO CITY MUSIC HALL & LINCOLN CENTER COMBO TOUR Experience two of
New York City’s “must-see” attractions with one ticket. This package combines the Music
Hall’s Stage Door tour of its Art Deco interior—which might include meeting a world-famous
Radio City Rockette—with Lincoln Center’s Spotlight Tour, where a sneak peak at a rehearsal
happens whenever possible.
ART & ARCHITECTURE TOUR Lincoln Center’s 16-acre campus has one of New York
City’s greatest modern art collections, with paintings and sculpture by such internationally
acclaimed artists as Marc Chagall, Henry Moore, and Jasper Johns. The tour not only
examines these fine art masterworks, it also explores the buildings and public spaces of
visionary architects like Philip Johnson, as well as the innovative concepts of architects
Diller Scofidio+ Renfro with FXFOWLE, Beyer Blinder Belle, and Tod Williams Bille Tsien,
designers of the campus’ $1.2 billion renovation.
Inside the David H. Koch
For more information, click on LincolnCenter.org/Tours.To book a
tour, call (212) 875.5350, email [email protected], or
visit the Tour and Information Desk in the David Rubenstein
Atrium at Lincoln Center, located on Broadway between 62nd and
63rd Streets. –Joy Chutz
Theater
B R I A N S TA N T O N
EVEN MORE TOUR OPTIONS Lincoln Center offers Foreign
Language Tours in five languages: French, German, Italian,
Japanese, and Spanish, in addition to American Sign
Language tours. Visitors with a special interest in jazz can take
the Jazz at Lincoln Center Tour of the organization’s gorgeous
venues at the Times Warner Center, the only facilities created
specifically for the performance of jazz music. And Group Tours
of more than 15 people get a discount.