Yan Pascal Tortelier Leads the BSO and Pianist Orion Weiss in Grieg’s Piano Concerto, March 24-26

By -

Program also includes Ravel’s Valses nobles et sentimentales and Lutosławski’s Concerto for Orchestra

Pianist Orion Weiss joins forces with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO), under the direction of Yan Pascal Tortelier, to perform Edvard Grieg’s Piano Concerto on Thursday, March 24 at 8 p.m. and Friday, March 25 at 8 p.m. at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall and Saturday, March 26 at 8 p.m. at the Music Center at Strathmore. Also on the program are Ravel’s colorful Valses nobles et sentimentales and Lutosławski’s vibrant Concerto for Orchestra.

In 1999, when American pianist Orion Weiss was just 17 years old, he filled in for legendary pianist André Watts, who had to cancel an upcoming performance with the BSO of Shostakovich’s Piano Concerto No. 2. This debut launched Mr. Weiss’ international performing career. Recently, he was named the 2010 Young Artist of the Year by the Classical Recording Foundation. This year, he will release a recital album of Dvořák, Prokofiev and Bartók.

When the young and impressionable Grieg first heard Robert Schumann’s Piano Concerto in 1858 performed by the composer’s wife, Clara Schumann, he was enthralled by the work. Grieg’s own piano concerto was partly inspired by Schuman’s concerto and from his remarkable genius in combining Western music practices with his Norwegian folk traditions. The work has become a staple for pianists since its premiere in 1869 due to its perfect balance of lyricism and virtuosity.

Like the paintings of Monet, Ravel’s compositions veer into the dream world through his unique use of instrumentation, non-traditional harmonies and melodies. His Valses nobles et sentimentales (“Noble and sentimental waltzes”) were originally conceived as a suite for solo piano but Ravel later arranged the work for orchestra, claiming he wanted to see “clearer” orchestral sounds.

Lutosławski’s epic and large scale work, the Concerto for Orchestra was premiered in 1954 by the Warsaw Philharmonic. The work was to provide Lutosławski with international fame in the West. However, soon after the work’s premiere, he changed his compositional style completely and distanced himself from the work. The Concerto for Orchestra represents Lutosławski’s final crowning achievement in his early style: folk music fused with Western Classical tradition.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Role of Music in Opera

By -
There are numerous books on the topic, and every composer, librettist, director, singer and audience member has their opinion as to what role the music should play in an opera. In a play without music, the words ought to support the meaning behind a character's actions. However, in the case of action movies, often times the action is what tells the story and there aren't words, just images to forward the plot. We might hear music to accompany action, build tension, but the action tells the story. Musicals tend to speak until the emotion of the moment just "has" to break out in song - unless it's something like "Mama Mia" where the dialog is the rails we travel on between songs; the songs themselves, written before the concept of the musical, are the focus of the production, while the story is secondary. Operas are a different beast. The music provides emotion to the words spoken, but it also plays the role of ambience when there is only action. In &quo
Read more

Episode 210b: Joyeuse le départ

By -
Image
Podcast:  Play in new window  |  Download Subscribe:  Apple Podcasts  |  Android  |  Google Play  |  Stitcher  |  TuneIn  |  RSS Provost Cunningham has Transmigrated, but to where! What is Dr Sage going to do with his body? And how can she bring home her friends, Abigail and Erasmus, without also bring home Cunningham? What are they going to say when they find the “skeleton” she’s hiding in her closet? Cast: Eddie Louise Clark  as Dr Sage Chip Clark  as Professor Savant Justin Bremer  as the Narrator Emily Riley Piatt  as Abigail Entwhistle, Calypso & Dean Stewart Written by  Eddie Louise Theme music by  Unwoman Sound Design by  Chip Michael
Read more

The Art of String Quartets by Brian Ferneyhough

By -
Image
When an artist sets paint to canvas, there are brush strokes used for different effects. Sometimes those strokes are subtle, imperceptible; they produce works of art like the Mona Lisa . Other times the very obvious nature of the stroke is the art, as in works by Van Gogh. With some composers of music, the notes on the page are their craft. How those notes translate into an aural experience is what defines some composers as great artists. Brian Ferneyhough has a masterful command of the techniques of putting notes on the page. These techniques are sometimes so subtle, even though written in black and white, they escape detection. Some of what he attempts with his music is just that, to escape detection, to bury the framework, diverting the ear away from the structure, so only the music is heard . The subtlety is so fine it is almost imperceptible. Even though he studied at several institutions, he is considered self-taught, studying scores from Boule
Read more