Piano concert no.2 in B flat Major
(OPUS 83)
Brahms (1833 - 1897)
1. Allegro non troppo
2. Allegro appassionato
3. Andante
4. Allegretto grazioso
(Soloist - Andrew Aarons)
"I have written a tiny piano
concerto with a tiny little wisp of a scherzo!"
So wrote Brahms in July 1881 to one of his friends when
informing him of the completion of his second piano
concerto. The truth was rather different as, to this
day, the concerto remains one of the longest, grandest
and most demanding in the repertoire. Brahms' attempt
to play down the significance of the concerto is perhaps
understandable considering the reception given to his
first piano concerto over twenty years earlier. His
first piano concerto had taken five years to complete
and had been through incarnations as a two-piano sonata
and a symphony before he settled on its final form.
The poor reception it received hurt the young composer
deeply. However, he need have had no such concerns about
the reception his second concerto would receive.
By 1881, Brahms was a well-established composer with
several major works - including two symphonies and a
violin concerto - to his credit. Brahms himself was
the soloist in the first performance of the B flat major
piano concerto which was given in Budapest on 9th November
1881 with the Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra conducted
by Alexander Merkel. It was an immediate success and
Brahms performed the work again on a successful tour
which took him to Austria, Germany and The Netherlands.
Like it's predecessor, the second concerto was several
years in the making. In 1878 Brahms toured Italy, visiting
Rome, Naples and Sicily. He was captivated by the graceful
warmth of the country and on returning home he sketched
the themes which would form the basis of the concerto.
He put aside these early sketches until he returned
to Italy in the spring of 1881 when he set to work in
earnest and the concerto was completed on 7th July.
If the first concerto was the work of a young composer
trying to find his musical voice, the second was the
work of a master. His first piano concerto and violin
concerto were initially both criticised for being too
symphonic, but the second piano concerto is even more
so - a fact emphasised by Brahms' use of a four movement
structure instead of the concerto's customary three
movements. One commentator even went so far as to describe
it as "a symphony with piano obbligato". However,
both public and critics reacted favourably this time.
The concerto begins with a horn melody with an answering
phrase on the piano. The piano introduces an element
of tension before the full orchestra powerfully restates
the opening theme which forms the basis of the dramatic
development that is to follow. The second movement is
Brahms' "tiny little wisp of a scherzo" -
the powerful opening indicates that it is to be anything
but! The graceful third movement opens with a haunting
melody for solo 'cello. Moments of drama come and go
but the movement retains its general character and ends
with a feeling of tranquillity. The finale is a cheerful
rondo which begins with a delightful skipping melody.
The momentum is maintained, even through the quieter
passages, before the concerto ends with a powerful orchestral
crescendo.
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Pavane pour une infant defunte
Ravel (1875 - 1937)
Maurice Ravel was born in Ciboure in
the Basque region of France. His mother was a Basque
who had spent much of her youth in Madrid. It is therefore
perhaps not surprising that Ravel became fascinated
with Spain, something which is reflected in much of
his music. The Pavane is one such work although, according
to the composer, it had nothing to do with the death
of a Spanish princess - he had chosen the title simply
because he liked the sound of it! He later added that
the music could suggest a princess dancing, perhaps
hinting at a solemn dance which was a court custom in
Spain at times of royal mourning.
The work started life in 1899 as a piano solo, but he
later orchestrated it and this version was first performed
in Paris in 1910. It is solemn and tranquil in character
throughout, and Ravel makes best use of his skill in
the subtle use of orchestral colour.
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The Firebird suite (1919)
Stravinsky (1882 - 1971)
1. Introduction - The Firebird and its Dance - Variation
of the Firebird
2. The Princesses' Round Dance (Khorovod)
3. Infernal Dance of King Kastchei
4. Berceuse
5. Finale
Igor Stravinsky was born in Oranienbaum.
He went to St. Petersburg University in 1901 to study
law, but spent much of his time pursuing his musical
interests. His big break as a composer came in 1909
when two of his orchestral works, "Fireworks"
and "Scherzo Fantastique", were performed
at a concert in St. Petersburg. In the audience was
the impresario Serge Diaghilev, who was planning the
1910 season for his Ballets Russes company in Paris.
He had approached Anatol Liadov to compose a ballet
based on the Russian legend of "The Firebird",
but Liadov had failed to deliver. Diaghilev now approached
the then unknown Stravinsky to compose the music. The
ballet was an instant success and brought the composer
worldwide fame.
The story of The Firebird sees Prince Ivan lost in the
forest of King Kastchei, an ogre who captures anyone
he finds in his forest and turns them to stone. Ivan
comes across the Firebird sitting in a magic tree. Enchanted
by her beauty, he captures her but is persuaded to release
her in exchange for one of her golden feathers which
will protect him against Kastchei's magic. Ivan comes
to Kastchei's magic garden where he sees 13 princesses,
prisoners of the ogre, dancing a Round or Khorovod.
He joins them in the garden and falls in love with one
of the princesses. However, Kastchei suddenly appears,
accompanied by his army of monsters, and starts to work
his evil magic. Ivan counters Kastchei's magic with
the Firebird's feather while the Firebird herself drives
the ogre's army into a frenzied dance at the end of
which they all fall into a deep sleep. The Firebird
then leads Ivan to a casket in which he finds an egg
containing Kastchei's soul. Ivan smashes the egg thereby
destroying Kastchei's enchanted realm and returning
his stone captives to life. The story ends with general
rejoicing to celebrate both the triumph over the ogre
and the marriage of Ivan and his princess.
The original 1910 ballet music required massive orchestral
forces. Stravinsky retained these forces when in 1911
he produced a suite featuring five extracts from the
ballet. In 1919, he revised the score of the suite so
that it could be performed with more 'conventional'
orchestral forces. He returned to the suite again in
1945 to produce a third version which added two additional
movements and three linking passages. It is the 1919
suite which is performed tonight. The Introduction begins
with the lower strings creating a menacing portrayal
of Kastchei's realm before the Firebird's appearance
sees the musical colour change. The princesses' Khorovod
is delicate and graceful. The Infernal Dance begins
with a sudden chord after which Stravinsky unleashes
the full forces of his orchestra in a wild, driving,
rhythmic frenzy. The dance ends, as it began, with a
fortissimo chord which is followed by a few moments
of tranquillity. The Berceuse which follows is a gentle
lullaby as the Firebird works her magic to send the
powers of evil to sleep. This leads directly and almost
imperceptibly into the triumphant Finale with its famous
melody introduced by the solo horn.
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