Hereford
	String
	Orchestra

RECENT CONCERT

Leominster Priory, 16^th July 2003

 

This year is the bicentenary of the birth of Hector Berlioz. To mark the occasion we shall be playing one of his popular opera overtures.

Hector BERLIOZ (1803-1869) Overture: Béatrice et Bénédict

Berlioz was born at Côte-Saint André, Isère, France, the son of a doctor. His father encouraged his interest in music by teaching him the flute, but wished him to study medicine. The boy enlarged his musical abilities by learning the guitar and studying music theory. In 1821 he entered the École de Médecine in Paris, but he found the work so distasteful that he left the college to take up music, against his parents' wishes. He was accepted as a pupil by Lesueur in 1823, and immediately set to work composing choral music, including an opera and an oratorio. He continued his studies at the Conservatoire from 1826. In his private life his various emotional entanglements led to some of his greatest music, such as the Symphonie fantastique.

Berlioz composed a wide range of orchestral and choral works, including three operas, at least 29 choral works, many songs, concert overtures, large orchestral pieces and compositions for other musical groups.

The opera Béatrice et Bénédict, based on Shakespeare's Much ado about nothing, is perhaps more Berlioz than Shakespeare, as it retains the gist of the romantic comedy but omits the saturnine intrigue of Don John against Claudio and Hero. Nevertheless it contains much brilliant music, reflecting the sparkle and comedy of the developing relationship between the two "lovers". The overture consists of tunes taken from elsewhere in the opera: the opening Allegretto scherzando is the accompaniment to the final love duet and the Andante is Béatrice's aria "Il m'en souvient".

Although the opera is now rarely performed, the overture remains a brilliant and popular item of the concert repertoire.

 

Johannes BRAHMS (1833-1897) Violin Concerto in D Op 77

Allegro non troppo

Adagio

Allegro giocoso, ma non troppo

We are delighted to welcome back Thomas Bowes as our soloist tonight.

Brahms' Violin Concerto was written for his lifelong friend Joseph Joachim. It was composed at a summer retreat at Portschach on the Wothersee. There Brahms also wrote his mellow and lyrical Second Symphony, in the same key of D major. In writing this concerto, Brahms collaborated to some extent with Joachim, though he did not adopt all the violinist's suggestions. He did, however, leave Joachim to compose his own cadenza in the first movement.

The first movement opens with an unusually long tutti section, which is eventually broken into by the flourishing entry of the solo violin. Only later does the violin restate and embellish the opening themes. Dark tones make themselves felt in the development section, but overall, the mood is one of confident tranquillity.

The slow movement begins with a long oboe solo of great beauty, reinforcing the spirit of unhurried calmness. The solo violin takes over, with an exquisitely embellished version of the oboe theme. The second subject, in F sharp minor, introduces a note of human yearning, but tranquillity is restored in the recapitulation, when the oboe theme briefly returns, accompanied this time by delicate tracery on the solo violin.

The spirit of robust exuberance pervades the final movement, which is in sonata-rondo form. A "Hungarian-style" main theme is stated (at the outset this time) by the solo violin. After that, two main themes are explored, one typically robust, and the other gentler in character. A short written-out cadenza precedes the final faster section, where Brahms cleverly transforms the rhythm to hurry the concerto to a joyous conclusion.

Programme note by Finchley Chamber Orchestra

These notes were supplied through the Programme Note Bank of Making Music, the National Federation of Music Societies.

 

Antonín DVORÁK (1841-1904) Symphony No 8 in G Op 88

Allegro con brio

Adagio

Allegretto grazioso molto vivace

Allegro ma non troppo

Dvorák's first four symphonies were not published until after the last five, which originally appeared (not in chronological order) as numbers 1 to 5. When it came to providing a complete catalogue of his works, all the symphonies were renumbered from 1 to 9, in order of composition. The G major symphony thus started life as No 4 and is now recognised as No 8.

In terms of popularity, this symphony is second only to the New World Symphony, No 9. In his seventh symphony Dvorák had attempted to emulate his close friend Brahms and write "a symphony which will shake the world!" This was a profoundly serious and sombre work in D minor. The G major symphony, by contrast, is Bohemian through and through, a pastoral work awash with lyricism and full of tunes redolent of Dvorák's beloved homeland, with its many rural sights and sounds. Dvorák completed it in November 1889 and dedicated it to the Bohemian Academy. He himself conducted the first performance in Prague in February 1890. It was published by Novello in London two years later.

The first movement opens with a singing, rather melancholy tune for the cellos and wind which reappears only once, immediately before the recapitulation. Otherwise the musical argument is easily followed. The first main theme, played by the flute, is heard just after a little cadenza. The second main theme is played by flute and clarinet over an accompaniment of triplet figures in the second violins. Both are in a cheerful vein and get the symphony off to an optimistic start.

The slow movement is full of bird calls and rustic revelry. It consists of a pastoral theme to which other musical material is added to paint the most charming of country scenes. Then follows an amiable Bohemian scherzo with a waltz-like trio.

The finale is prefaced by a stirring fanfare on trumpets, echoed by the timpani. Then follows a set of variations on a rather childlike theme, but one that is undeniably Bohemian in character. The tempo quickens and the movement builds up into an exciting climax for full orchestra, bringing this delightful symphony to a thunderous conclusion.

Programme note by Euan Fairbairn