"As long as the Austrians have their brown beer and little sausages, they will never revolt."
~ Ludwig van Beethoven
~ Ludwig van Beethoven
Tuscon Symphony Orchestra
Classic Series Concert - 6 & 8 December 2019
José Luis Gomez, conductor
Sean Chen, piano
PROGRAM
Estévez: Mediodía en el Llano
Saint-Saëns: Piano Concerto No. 2
Beethoven: Symphony No. 5 in C Minor
Estévez: Mediodía en el Llano
Saint-Saëns: Piano Concerto No. 2
Beethoven: Symphony No. 5 in C Minor
REVOLUTIONARY
Ludwig
van Beethoven is arguably the single most influential and
inspirational composer in Western music history. He set fire to art music as courtly entertainment, in favor of expression of individual and societal struggles and triumphs. He helped ignite the search for new meaning to the most fundamental questions of human existence, during a time of political revolt. Powerfully moved by the Enlightenment principles of reason over dogma, and democracy over
oligarchy, Beethoven celebrated the triumph of the French Revolution,
initially dedicating his Third Symphony to the Emperor Napoleon
Bonaparte as a great champion of Enlightenment ideals, only to tear the
dedication from his score, as Bonaparte's military rampages belied a
democracy-choking lust for wealth and political power.
WALLS OF JERICHO
A true musical revolutionary in his own time; driven, determined, stubbornly individualistic, bold, innovative, improvisatory and relentlessly creative, Beethoven pushed himself, even at the pinnacles of success, to discover and explore new vistas that were only made possible by his lofty achievements. How many of us would be willing to set aside, rather than attempt to repeat, our greatest accomplishments, but instead forge ahead to pursue creative projects so visionary as to be little understood until one hundred years later? That is where Beethoven's spirit took him in his last five piano sonatas and final six string quartets. Muss es sein? Must the honest quest for greater understanding of the world and of the self be endless? Es muss sein! Yes, it must be! That is Beethoven's answer.
THE BIG BIRTHDAY
In celebration of his 250th birthday next year, the Tucson Symphony Orchestra is performing the full cycle Beethoven's nine symphonies. The path, so far, that Maestro José Luis Gomez has led the TSO through these masterworks, is direct, highly energetic, and exciting to experience. In his odd (numbered) symphonies -- 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 -- Beethoven wanted to shake his listeners to the core, as if to say, "Let the riots in the streets become the guidance of your Soul!" The music was often fast, loud, and percussive, with exaggerated dynamic changes and offbeat accents -- revolutionary! We, on the other hand, have taken all of Beethoven's music under a microscope, dissected it, and listened, over and over, to renditions recorded in sound proof studios, discovering many hidden details and previously unrealized splendor along the way. Have we lost anything in these processes? Yes. The revolution!
THE FIFTH SYMPHONY
This weekend we have arrived at the literal centerpiece. Beethoven's Fifth Symphony is the single most popular and most performed orchestral work in history -- and every note is worth every penny. The genius of its conception, its revolutionary formal structures, and the ingenuity of the whole composition, spinning out from a tiny 4-note kernel or motif, into one half-hour of deep dives, high drama, and the triumph of an indomitable spirit, remain as fresh today, as it was 211 years ago.
WALLS OF JERICHO
A true musical revolutionary in his own time; driven, determined, stubbornly individualistic, bold, innovative, improvisatory and relentlessly creative, Beethoven pushed himself, even at the pinnacles of success, to discover and explore new vistas that were only made possible by his lofty achievements. How many of us would be willing to set aside, rather than attempt to repeat, our greatest accomplishments, but instead forge ahead to pursue creative projects so visionary as to be little understood until one hundred years later? That is where Beethoven's spirit took him in his last five piano sonatas and final six string quartets. Muss es sein? Must the honest quest for greater understanding of the world and of the self be endless? Es muss sein! Yes, it must be! That is Beethoven's answer.
THE BIG BIRTHDAY
In celebration of his 250th birthday next year, the Tucson Symphony Orchestra is performing the full cycle Beethoven's nine symphonies. The path, so far, that Maestro José Luis Gomez has led the TSO through these masterworks, is direct, highly energetic, and exciting to experience. In his odd (numbered) symphonies -- 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 -- Beethoven wanted to shake his listeners to the core, as if to say, "Let the riots in the streets become the guidance of your Soul!" The music was often fast, loud, and percussive, with exaggerated dynamic changes and offbeat accents -- revolutionary! We, on the other hand, have taken all of Beethoven's music under a microscope, dissected it, and listened, over and over, to renditions recorded in sound proof studios, discovering many hidden details and previously unrealized splendor along the way. Have we lost anything in these processes? Yes. The revolution!
THE FIFTH SYMPHONY
This weekend we have arrived at the literal centerpiece. Beethoven's Fifth Symphony is the single most popular and most performed orchestral work in history -- and every note is worth every penny. The genius of its conception, its revolutionary formal structures, and the ingenuity of the whole composition, spinning out from a tiny 4-note kernel or motif, into one half-hour of deep dives, high drama, and the triumph of an indomitable spirit, remain as fresh today, as it was 211 years ago.
LIGHTENING BOLT OF REVOLT
Listening to José speak, and listening to this firecracker rendition of Beethoven's Fifth, I declare the revolution back on! The opening Allegro con brio was rapid -- faster, I would guess, than any of these players had had previously performed it. Beyond the tempo, the breathing spaces -- the fermati and points of retreat from emphasis -- were squeezed for any and all extra momentum they could provide to the pathos at hand. The music is relentlessly energetic, and so was this interpretation. The coolest aspects of the music -- its motivic and thematic inventiveness, high dynamic and emotional contrasts, and fist-to-the-jaw formal surprises, found new life in this rendition. The first movement Coda, or final section, infamous for crashing through the anticipated final cadence, opens with a long, driving repeated note figure that was first worked out, and paired with the second theme, in the Development section. And here, as in the development, that relatively serene second theme has again been transformed and subsumed into the furious fervor of repeated note madness. The final surging passages synthesize into their own new themes. That drive and energy, climbs without rest, only briefly surveying the vista attained, before pulling back into full, heavy strides to finish the first chapter of this epic. The big payoff for José's frenetic pacing of this opening act of the drama, arrived in the coda, as the music gloriously grew beyond its own boundaries, all of that energy soared through the concert hall to the heavens. Wow.
The 2nd movement, Andante con moto, is a richly melodic theme with variations, and one that manages a highly purposeful dramatic dialogue of its own. The answer statements to its lyrical elements are often broad and hammering, yet timed for surprise. As well, a couple of completely unpredictable new themes arrive, seemingly improvised from little left over accompanimental tidbits along the way, adding breadth, depth, and some respite from this music's insuperable intensity. One of the great strengths of the TSO is its woodwinds. Beethoven's Fifth is certainly string, horn, and percussion-heavy writing. And yet Lipay (flute), Barford (oboe), Brignoli (clarinet), Bryant (bassoon), and their cohorts wonderfully brought Beethoven's masterly wind sonority combinations to life; sounds I never tire of hearing.
In terms of execution, the 3rd and 4th movements stood out -- certainly an accomplishment, as José stayed true to his method of driving, fast and focused. The one clear exception, which I absolutely loved, was a pronounced slowing for the pianissimo, pizzicato / chamber-music-like arrangement of the 3rd movement march theme -- which dissolves into nothingness for almost half a minute -- until it crescendos into the blaze of the 4th movement's explosion of an opening. Maybe José's love of opera guided his oh-so-delicate handling of this famously ultra-dramatic setup and lead-in to the grand finale. And that finale, pushed to emotional extremes, including a gloriously blistering final coda, lived up, I think, to every desire of Maestro Gomez and the orchestra, to bring us not Beethoven the Romantic, though he inspired a century of Romantics, but Beethoven the Classical Era revolutionary. Bravi tutti! Thank you all for this gift.
Listening to José speak, and listening to this firecracker rendition of Beethoven's Fifth, I declare the revolution back on! The opening Allegro con brio was rapid -- faster, I would guess, than any of these players had had previously performed it. Beyond the tempo, the breathing spaces -- the fermati and points of retreat from emphasis -- were squeezed for any and all extra momentum they could provide to the pathos at hand. The music is relentlessly energetic, and so was this interpretation. The coolest aspects of the music -- its motivic and thematic inventiveness, high dynamic and emotional contrasts, and fist-to-the-jaw formal surprises, found new life in this rendition. The first movement Coda, or final section, infamous for crashing through the anticipated final cadence, opens with a long, driving repeated note figure that was first worked out, and paired with the second theme, in the Development section. And here, as in the development, that relatively serene second theme has again been transformed and subsumed into the furious fervor of repeated note madness. The final surging passages synthesize into their own new themes. That drive and energy, climbs without rest, only briefly surveying the vista attained, before pulling back into full, heavy strides to finish the first chapter of this epic. The big payoff for José's frenetic pacing of this opening act of the drama, arrived in the coda, as the music gloriously grew beyond its own boundaries, all of that energy soared through the concert hall to the heavens. Wow.
The 2nd movement, Andante con moto, is a richly melodic theme with variations, and one that manages a highly purposeful dramatic dialogue of its own. The answer statements to its lyrical elements are often broad and hammering, yet timed for surprise. As well, a couple of completely unpredictable new themes arrive, seemingly improvised from little left over accompanimental tidbits along the way, adding breadth, depth, and some respite from this music's insuperable intensity. One of the great strengths of the TSO is its woodwinds. Beethoven's Fifth is certainly string, horn, and percussion-heavy writing. And yet Lipay (flute), Barford (oboe), Brignoli (clarinet), Bryant (bassoon), and their cohorts wonderfully brought Beethoven's masterly wind sonority combinations to life; sounds I never tire of hearing.
In terms of execution, the 3rd and 4th movements stood out -- certainly an accomplishment, as José stayed true to his method of driving, fast and focused. The one clear exception, which I absolutely loved, was a pronounced slowing for the pianissimo, pizzicato / chamber-music-like arrangement of the 3rd movement march theme -- which dissolves into nothingness for almost half a minute -- until it crescendos into the blaze of the 4th movement's explosion of an opening. Maybe José's love of opera guided his oh-so-delicate handling of this famously ultra-dramatic setup and lead-in to the grand finale. And that finale, pushed to emotional extremes, including a gloriously blistering final coda, lived up, I think, to every desire of Maestro Gomez and the orchestra, to bring us not Beethoven the Romantic, though he inspired a century of Romantics, but Beethoven the Classical Era revolutionary. Bravi tutti! Thank you all for this gift.
~ Steven Gendel
HEAR IT -- Humanity's Expressive Artists Reveal & Illuminate Truth
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