Details

About this Concert Two brothers – both rising stars – are featured alone and together in three violin masterpieces. Works inspired by water, including a world premiere by Composer in Residence Robert Rival, complete this special night. Featured Repertoire JS BACH: Concerto for Two Violins SAINT-SAËNS: Rondo capriccioso BRITTEN: Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes RIVAL: Symphony No. 2 “Water” Additional Activities Join us for Symphony Prelude at 7:15pm in the Upper Circle lobby for an informative presentation about the evening's program. Add this concert to my calendar

Additional Performances Fri, February 22, 2013 Next Landmark Classic Masters March 16, 2013 An American in Paris Thank you to our sponsors! Series Sponsor

Ticket Information $79 Dress Circle (A) $69 Terrace (B) $56 Orchestra (C) $38 Upper Circle (D) $28 Gallery (E) $20 Orchestra Front (F) Tickets subject to applicable service charges.

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Program Info

Program

BRITTEN
Peter Grimes: Four Sea Interludes, Op.33a (16’)*

J.S. BACH
Concerto for Two Violins in D minor, BWV 1043 (16’)*

SAINT-SAËNS
Introduction and Rondo capriccioso, Op.28 (10)*

INTERMISSION

RIVAL
Symphony No. 2 “Water” (World Premiere of an ESO commission) (25’)*

SARASATE
Zigeunerweisen, Op.20 (10)*

Program subject to change.
*Indicates approximate performance duration.

Program Notes

Peter Grimes: Four Sea Interludes, Op.33a
Benjamin Britten (b. Lowestoft, 1913 / d. Aldeburgh, 1976)

With the success of the 1945 opera Peter Grimes, Benjamin Britten revived English opera to a level it had not seen since the death of Henry Purcell, exactly 250 years before. Based on a part of George Crabbe’s poem The Borough, Britten and librettist Montagu Slater fleshed out the villainous character of Crabbe’s version into a man absolutely at odds with the world. It was a subject, Britten said later, “very close to my heart – the struggle of the individual against the masses. The more vicious the society, the more vicious the individual.”

The story centres around a fictional town on the east coast of England, where Grimes is a fisherman. The sea, therefore, plays an integral role in the unfolding drama, and is given special focus in the opera’s music. While serving principally as entr’actes, much of the purely orchestral music Britten wrote for the opera evokes the sea as a metaphor for the overwhelming tide of fate which no one, particularly Grimes, can escape. Following the opera’s premiere, Britten extracted this music from his score and created a stand-alone suite for the concert hall, called Four Sea Interludes and, as the opera had been published as Opus 33, the suite was labeled Op.33a. The sequence of the movements for the concert hall gives a symphonic cohesion to the suite, which begins with the shimmering Dawn. Sunday Morning is an Allegro in which a spritely and even optimistic dance is constantly intruded upon by ominous, dissonant, slightly off-rhythm accents. Moonlight is the third section, a gentle idyll in which a beautiful processional theme builds slowly in grandeur, then departs in an aura of uncertainty and resignation. The final movement is a Storm, churning and roiling menacingly, the timpani pounding out the rhythm of the waves. The central section becomes uneasily quiet, but the final moments bring back the violence and menace in their final, crashing chords.


Concerto for Two Violins in D minor, BWV 1043
Johann Sebastian Bach (b. Eisenach, Saxony, 1685 / d. Leipzig, 1750)

While employed at Prince Leopold’s court in Cöthen, Johann Sebastian Bach was largely freed from the constant need to create church music, and as a consequence it was during this time (1717-1723) that he wrote the bulk of his purely instrumental music. A decent violinist himself, it is believed Bach wrote this double concerto for Joseph Spiess and Martin Friedrich Marcus of the court orchestra. The D minor key paints the brisk tempo of the opening movement in a darker hue, the eddying music of the main idea tossed among the soloists and accompanying string orchestra.

The Largo is a surprise to many who do not think of direct, beautiful melodies from Bach. A plaintive Siciliano 12/8 tempo gently rocks this movement along, the violins weaving delicate textures around each other to warm chords from the orchestra. The final movement, in 3/4, brings back that sense of play and interplay from the first movement, set to a higher boil, with some unexpected key changes, and a pace that never flags to the final cadence.


Introduction and Rondo capriccioso, Op.28
Camille Saint-Saëns (b. Paris, 1835 / d. Algiers, 1921)

Zigeunerweisen, Op.20
Pablo de Sarasate (b. Pamplona, Spain, 1844 / d. Biarritz, France, 1908)

Both of these supreme showcases for violin were written for the same violinist. Pablo Martín Melitón Sarasate y Navascuéz was born four years after Paganini died, and became his successor in the violin pantheon. The greatest composers of the day wrote works for him, and he also wrote many for himself. Many of them, both his creations and those written by others, follow a pattern; they begin with a slow section designed to illustrate his supreme mastery of lyricism and expression, followed by a whirlwind cavalcade of breathtaking and breakneck virtuoso music in which a full bag of violin tricks is used.

Such is the case with the two pieces this evening. Sarasate wrote Zigeunerweisen (“Gypsy Airs”) in 1878, and premiered the work in Leipzig, and is rather loosely based on that most traditional of gypsy dances, the csárdás. Saint-Saëns had originally intended to write his first violin concerto for Sarasate, and began sketching one as far back as 1859 (Sarasate would have only been 15 at the time!), but the French composer, unsatisfied with what he had created, abandoned the plan. Four years later, he composed the Introduction and Rondo capriccioso for the Spanish virtuoso. It has established itself, like Zigeunerweisen, as a favourite vehicle for prodigious violinists since its 1863 premiere.


Symphony No. 2 “Water” (World Premiere of an ESO commission)
Robert Rival (b. Calgary, 1975)

Program note by the composer:
Some years ago my wife and I hiked the Maligne Range (Skyline) trail, situated in the Canadian Rockies near Jasper, Alberta. The breathtaking views inspired my first symphony. Visits to Pacific Rim National Park near Tofino, Vancouver Island, and Wells Gray Provincial Park in the B.C. interior, famous for its countless rapids and waterfalls, suggested a water-themed symphony.

On the day we roamed Long Beach on the Pacific it was cold, overcast, misty and drizzling: perfectly moody, a place to warm the soul but not the skin. The roar of relentlessly pounding waves; the spectacular spray as these crashed on nearby islands; a vast, desolate beach strewn with shells, driftwood, seaweed; and an uninterrupted view of a horizon painted with dark, ominous clouds—all this forms the basis of the opening sonata-form movement in which a mysterious, wave-like principal theme—the ocean’s raw force—is pitted against a glowing, undulating one—the joy provoked by its contemplation.  

We retreated into the nearby temperate rainforest where an unusual serenity overcame me. In this sanctuary the ocean’s din is muffled by lush green-saturated vegetation, a protective canopy formed by towering moss-covered trees, and the patter of rain on the forest floor. Nature’s womb. Gentle and intimate, the second movement is scored for strings alone, the principal desks forming a solo octet enveloped like a forest’s embrace by the remaining strings.

The band is in full force in the lively, dance-like finale culminating in a depiction of monumental Helmcken Falls, Canada’s fifth highest (137m). Were I to return I would surely not have the courage again to lie on my belly at the canyon’s edge, peering down at the thundering falls below.

I dedicate this symphony to my wife and thank my brother, David E. Rival, a professor researching fluid dynamics at the University of Calgary, for stimulating discussions about turbulence that found musical expression in the outer movements.

Program notes © 2012 by D.T. Baker, except as noted.

Artist Info

William Eddins, conductor

Now in his eighth season as Music Director of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, William Eddins has a captivating energy, a magnetic stage presence, and an adventurous musical curiosity that continues to propel the orchestra to unique, new and exciting achievements. His commitment to the entire spectrum of the ESO audience brings him to the podium for performances in every subscription series, as well as for a wide variety of galas and specials.

A distinguished and versatile pianist, Bill was bitten by the conducting bug while in his sophomore year at the Eastman School of Music. In 1989, he began conducting studies at the University of Southern California with Daniel Lewis, and Assistant Conductorships with both the Minnesota Orchestra and the Chicago Symphony (the latter under the leadership of Daniel Barenboim) followed.

Bill has many non-musical hobbies including cooking, eating, discussing food and planning dinner parties. He is also quite fond of biking, tennis, reading and pinball. He recently complete building a state-of-the-art recording studio at his home in Minneapolis, where he lives with his wife Jen (a clarinetist), and their sons Raef and Riley.

While conducting has been his principal pursuit, he continues to perform as pianist, organist and harpsichordist. He has conducted the ESO from the keyboard on many occasions, and in 2007, joined then-ESO concertmaster Martin Riseley and cellist Yo-Yo Ma in Brahms' Piano Trio No. 1 at a gala concert celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Winspear Centre. In 2008, he conducted Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess for Opéra de Lyon, leading to repeat performances in Lyon, London and at the Edinburgh International Festival in 2010. Other international highlights include a 2009 tour of South Africa, where Bill conducted three gala concerts with soprano Renée Fleming and the kwaZulu-Natal Philharmonic Orchestra. On May 8, 2012, Bill made his Carnegie Hall debut conducting the ESO at a memorable concert featuring four Canadian soloists, and music by three Canadian composers alongside Martinů's rarely-performed Symphony No. 1.

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Nikki Chooi, violin

Laureate of the 2012 Queen Elisabeth Violin Competition, Canadian violinist Nikki Chooi is the 1st prize winner of the 2009 Irving M.Klein International String Competition in San Francisco, and was awarded the “Special Prize” at the XIII Tchaikovsky International Violin Competition. He is also a recipient of the 2012 Canada Council "Emerging Artists" Grant, 2008 Sylva Gelber Foundation Grant, 1st prizewinner of the 2004 l'Orchestre symphonique de Montréal Standard Life Competition, and Grand Award Winner of the 2004 Canadian National Music Festival. Mr. Chooi has performed as soloist with the Montréal Symphony, the Montréal Chamber Orchestra, the National Arts Centre, National Orchestra of Belgium, the Calgary Philharmonic, the Victoria Symphony, Sinfonia Toronto, the Santa Cruz Symphony, the Winnipeg Symphony, and the Highland Park Strings. In 2009, he embarked on a European tour with violist Roberto Diaz and pianist Robert MacDonald as part of Curtis on Tour. He has attended the National Arts Centre Young Artist Program, and the Juilliard School’s Starling-Delay Symposium. In summer of 2013, Mr. Chooi will attend his third consecutive residency at the Marlboro Music Festival.

Nikki Chooi gratefully acknowledges the support of the Canada Council of the Arts, CBC Radio, and the Victoria Foundation. As winner of the Canada Council Musical Instrument Bank Competition, he used the 1729 Guarneri del Gesu (2009-2012) and currently uses the 1700 "Taft" Stradivari. Mr. Chooi was born in 1989 in Victoria, B.C. He began violin studies at the age of four at the Victoria Conservatory, and at age fourteen was accepted into the Academy Program for Gifted Musicians at Mount Royal University in Calgary. In 2012, he obtained his Bachelor of Music from the Curtis Institute of Music and was awarded the Milka Violin Artist Prize upon graduation. Nikki is currently pursuing graduate studies at the Juilliard School of Music.

Mr. Chooi last appeared with the ESO in September 2008.

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Timothy Chooi, violin

Canadian born violinist Timothy Chooi is currently enrolled at the Curtis Institute of Music studying with Ida Kavafian. At the age of 16, Chooi captured the 2010 Grand Prix of the 71st l'Orchestre symphonique de Montréal Standard Life Competition. He has since played with l'Orchestre symphonique de Montréal again under Kent Nagano. In 2010, Chooi won the ''Special Violin Prize'' at the 2010 Yehudi Menuhin International Violin Competition in Oslo, Norway.  Chooi was the winner of the Morningside Musicbridge Competition in Calgary, Vancouver's Musical Society Club Competition, and winner of the Canada Council for the Arts Instrument Bank 2012. In 2011 Mr. Chooi gave his debut recital at the ''Next'' Series at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, along with recitals at the Orford Arts Centre, Montréal Chamber Music Festival, Banff Centre of the Arts and the Vancouver Winter Chamber Music Festival. He was invited to perform at the 30th Anniversary Celebration concert for the Vancouver Recital Series in 2010 at the Orpheum Theatre in Vancouver, Canada. Chooi maintains a close relationship with CBC Radio-Canada and his performances have been regularly recorded and broadcasted across the country.

In 2012-2013, Timothy Chooi will debut with the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Toronto Phillharmonia, Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra, Highland Park Symphony in Chicago, Place des Arts Recital Series in Montréal, Northern Arts Cultural Centre in Northern Canada, Ottawa ChamberFest, and at the Music in the Morning Series in Vancouver. In the 2013-2014 season, he will be performing and debuting with the Santa Barabara Symphony, Orchestra London (Canada), Orford Arts Academy Orchestra, Victoria Symphony Orchestra, and the National Arts Centre Orchestra (NACO) with Pinchas Zukerman. As the winner of the Canada Council Musical Instrument Bank Competition 2012, Timothy is currently using the 1729 Guarneri del Gesu.

This is Mr. Chooi’s debut with the ESO.