Tea & Symphony · Mozart’s Oboe Concerto – ‘Which one?’ might be the music-lover’s response to this title. ... Biscuits at Tea & Symphony concerts kindly provided by Kambly

2 012 S E A S O N

Fri 2 March 11am

Mozart’s Oboe ConcertoTea & Symphony

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INTRODUCTION

Mozart’s Oboe Concerto

Mozart’s Oboe Concerto – ‘Which one?’ might be the music-lover’s response to this title. Oboists today play two Mozart concertos: one borrowed from fl autists and the other reclaimed from them. It’s the latter that François Leleux will perform in this morning’s concert: the concerto in C major, K314.

But there is far more oboe than Mozart’s concerto in this program. François Leleux’s history with this orchestra makes a delightful story. Visiting Sydney in 2003 with his wife Lisa Batiashvilli (here to perform the Sibelius Violin Concerto), he was invited by our own Diana Doherty to play guest principal oboe in the orchestra, a gesture that spoke volumes about his reputation as one of the fi nest oboists in the world today.

This week he returns as soloist and director in a program that is nothing less than a celebration of the oboe. It’s no surprise to turn to the orchestra list on page 10 and see that all four of the Sydney Symphony oboists are rostered on today. After all, who would want to miss such a concert? A concert that not only showcases the oboe’s strengths as soloist but as an orchestral instrument with a range of expression from plangent to brilliant. Let’s not be coy about it, this morning we get to enjoy an Oboe Extravaganza, and we are in the hands of the world’s fi nest.

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The performance of this program on Thursday 1 March at Angel Place was recorded for later broadcast by ABC Classic FM.

Estimated durations: 21 minutes, 17 minutes, 21 minutesThe concert will conclude at approximately 12.05pm.

Biscuits at Tea & Symphony concertskindly provided by Kambly

Mozart’s Oboe ConcertoFrançois Leleux OBOE-DIRECTOR

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750)Orchestral Suite (Ouverture) No.1 in C, BWV 1066OuvertureCouranteGavottes I & IIForlaneMenuets I & IIBourrées I & IIPassepieds I & II

Maurice Ravel (1875–1937) Le Tombeau de CouperinPréludeForlaneMenuetRigaudon

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791)Oboe Concerto in C, K314Allegro apertoAdagio non troppoRondo (Allegretto)

2012 season

tea & symphonyFriday 2 March | 11am

Sydney Opera House Concert Hall

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ABOUT THE MUSIC

BACHOrchestral Suite (Ouverture) No.1 in C, BWV 1066

Bach’s four orchestral suites were probably conceived, like the Brandenburg Concertos, when Bach was at Cöthen (1717–23). His prince there, a Calvinist, didn’t need elaborate church music, but he had a love for fashionable French-style instrumental music, including the collections of dance pieces known as suites. But there exist handwritten parts dating from Bach’s time as director of the Leipzig Collegium Musicum, which suggests the suites may have been revised there – the third suite, for example, takes advantage of the Collegium Musicum’s larger forces.

What we call an ‘orchestral suite’ Bach called ‘Ouvertüre’ – a French title transliterated into German. Consisting of stylised courtly dances, the suite gained its fi nal form in the late 17th century when German and French musicians added a prelude. German composers in particular developed the idea of beginning a suite with a French-style ‘operatic’ overture – distinctive for its majestic rhythms.

The grand opening of Bach’s fi rst suite with its dotted rhythms is the attention-getter – as it would have been in the theatre – followed by fast and brilliant writing dominated by virtuosic strings. What follows is not so much dance music as dance-inspired music. French baroque opera contained much dancing and dance music – musical and physical gesture went together, in a stylised art form. Dances of varied steps and hence musical measures became the staple of non-religious instrumental music in Europe, so every musical person would feel and recognise the dance metres – then admire what Bach did with them.

The instrumental colours in this orchestral suite also derive from French opera, exploiting the contrasts available from choirs of diff erent instruments. One of these is the oboe, central to this morning’s program. In the oboe we have a wind instrument that can vie with a violin; the French call it a ‘high wood’ – hautbois. Bach’s oboes don’t only reinforce the violins. Their tone colour provides the variety, and in the second bourrée, as well as parts of the overture, they play on their own with a ‘low wood’, the bassoon. Notice also how Bach ingeniously uses the strings, even once (in the second Gavotte) to suggest trumpet fanfares!

ADAPTED FROM NOTES BY DAVID GARRETT ©2012

The Sydney Symphony first performed Bach’s Orchestral Suite No.1 in 1939, in a concert conducted by Malcolm Sargent. Our most recent performance of the suite in a subscription concert was in 1970, conducted by Ezra Rachlin. The suite also turns up in programming for suburban, regional and schools concerts during the 1970s, but our records suggest that we haven’t performed it since then – a reflection, perhaps, of how symphony orchestras began to avoid much of the baroque repertoire following the rise of the early music movement.

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH German composer (1685–1750)

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MAURICE RAVEL French composer (1875–1937)

RAVEL Le Tombeau de Couperin

The French critic André Suarès, writing in 1925, stressed that ‘nothing could be more objective than the art of Ravel, or more deliberately intended to be so. If music is capable of painting an object without fi rst revealing the painter’s feeling towards it, then Ravel’s music achieves this more than any other. We have to go back to the 18th century, to the divertissements of Couperin and Rameau, to encounter a similar inclination.’

In Le Tombeau de Couperin it is Ravel himself who takes us back to the 18th century. The music isn’t a pastiche, however, but an anachronistic tribute that proclaims Ravel’s affi nity with the French baroque masters in his conception of music as diversion, his taste for ‘artifi ce’, and his preference for emotionally disengaged dance forms.

In his title Ravel revived the 17th-century French literary and musical tradition of the tombeau (literally ‘tomb’ or ‘tombstone’) – originally poetry written to commemorate a mentor or colleague. The earliest musical tombeaux were by lutenists, but the genre was quickly adopted by French harpsichordists: Louis Couperin and D’Anglebert both commemorated their teacher Chambonnières with tombeaux for the harpsichord, while in the next generation François Couperin (1668–1733) honoured the tradition with his Apothéoses of Corelli and Lully.

Ravel’s tombeau was conceived towards the end of 1914, when the composer wrote to Lucien Garban (of Durand publishers): ‘I’m beginning two series of piano pieces: fi rst, a French suite – no, it’s not what you think – the Marseillaise doesn’t come into it at all, but there’ll be a forlane and a jig; not a tango though…’

The sketches for the ‘French suite’, largely completed, were set aside on the outbreak of World War I, and it was not until 1917 that they emerged as Le Tombeau de Couperin – Ravel’s last work for solo piano, each of its six movements dedicated to the memory of a friend who had died in the war. The work’s musical tribute is cast more broadly: ‘…not so much,’ said Ravel, ‘to Couperin himself as to 18th-century French music in general.’

Ravel prepared for the composition of Le Tombeau by transcribing a forlane from François Couperin’s Concerts royaux. The buoyant rhythms and refrain structure of his own Forlane reveal their origins in the vigorous 16th-century Italian dance as heard through 18th-century French ears. But the melody and acid harmonies are all Ravel’s. Similarly, the fl owing Menuet is more like Ravel’s own Menuet antique than any by Couperin, for all the antique mood established by its modal harmonies and classically balanced phrases.

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It was the concept of the French Baroque suite – each dance with its specifi ed character and set tempo – rather than its musical style that emerged in Le Tombeau. And the apparent contradiction of a suite of dances dedicated to the memory of fallen comrades is perfectly resolved, although the muted gracefulness of the music suggests serenity, even resignation, rather than melancholy.

Shortly after Marguerite Long gave the fi rst performance in 1919, Ravel orchestrated four of the movements – Prélude, Forlane, Menuet and Rigaudon – omitting the Fugue and the pianistic Toccata that had concluded the original suite. The scoring is light – pairs of winds (including piccolo and cor anglais), two horns, trumpet, harp and strings – preserving the translucence, simplicity and restrained mood of the original.

Ravel makes much of the contrast between woodwinds and strings, often passing the melodies between the two sections, but the winds are given prominence from the very beginning, with a breathless succession of rapidly articulated notes for the oboe. The orchestration takes advantage, too, of the enhanced capabilities of Erard’s double-action harp, and the feeling of perpetual motion in the Prélude is brought to a close with ravishing trills swept up in a harp glissando. The trumpet (reserved for subtle eff ect in Ravel’s orchestration) adds brilliance to the exuberant opening of the fi nal movement (a vigorous Provençal Rigaudon), balancing the prominence of woodwind and strings in the preceding movements.

Thus transformed, Le Tombeau de Couperin has been claimed by many to surpass the original in its ingenuity and variety – a tribute also to its composer’s infallible ear for instrumental colour.

YVONNE FRINDLE ©1999/2008

The first performance of the orchestral version of Ravel’s Tombeau de Couperin was given on 28 February 1920 by the Pasdeloup Orchestra conducted by Rhené-Baton. The Sydney Symphony first performed it in 1951 under Eugene Goossens and most recently in 2008 in an all-Ravel program conducted by Gianluigi Gelmetti.

…preserving the translucence, simplicity and restrained mood of the original.

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W.A. MOZART Austrian composer (1756–1791)

MOZART Oboe Concerto in C, K.314

The music of this concerto is more often heard, these days, played on the oboe than on the fl ute, so it is easy to forget that for years this piece was known only as the Flute Concerto in D. Scholars were aware that Mozart, in spring or summer 1777, had composed a concerto for the oboist Ferlendi (or Ferlendis), who had recently joined the Salzburg Court Orchestra. The following year, in Mannheim, Mozart described how his new friend Friedrich Ramm, the leading virtuoso oboist of the day, had played his ‘oboe concerto for Ferlendis’ fi ve times. Obviously Mozart had been pleased with his oboe concerto, particularly as Ramm played it. But the work was long thought to be lost.

In 1920 the musicologist and conductor Bernhard Paumgartner discovered in the library of the Salzburg Mozarteum a set of orchestral parts for a concerto in C major for oboe by Mozart, which was obviously an oboe version of his D major fl ute concerto. The familiar fl ute version had been prepared in 1778 to fulfi l the commission of a Dutch amateur, De Jean, for two fl ute concertos. Most probably Mozart had composed one (the Flute Concerto in G, K.313) then, pressed for time, adapted the oboe concerto.

Paumgartner edited a published edition of the Oboe Concerto in 1948, and supported it with an article in the Mozart Yearbook (1950). Closer examination confi rmed that the Flute Concerto in D is the oboe concerto in disguise: it does not use the full range of notes available on the fl utes of Mozart’s day, and the range of the violin part in the orchestra also points to the likelihood of transposition from a C major original.

Those who, observing the idiomatic mastery of the oboe in the quartet Mozart composed for Ramm (K.370), regret that Mozart did not provide Ramm with a concerto as well, are forgetting that Ramm was probably perfectly satisfi ed with the concerto originally composed for Ferlendis: this one! The C major concerto is now central to the oboe repertoire, programmed more frequently than nearly any other oboe concerto, and it is the fl ute version which is in danger of being neglected.

In either form the concerto is a deft and refi ned essay in the classical style, with a galant manner. There are many ingenious and witty touches, such as the mock-serious cadence fi gure with repeated notes and a descending arpeggio which the soloist later extends. Donald Tovey fi nds opera buff a malice from the second violins, and tuttis crowded with contrapuntal and operatic life – typical

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Mozartian concerto writing, in other words, but never drawing attention to its skill.

The second movement, an Adagio in F major, is mainly a lyrical cantilena for the soloist, framed by what Tovey calls quasi-heroic gestures from the orchestra. A character in an opera by Mozart gives the feeling of the lively Rondo: four years later Mozart returned to a variant of the theme presented by the soloist, in the aria Welche Wonne, welche Lust (Oh what pleasure, oh what joy!), sung by Blonde, the pert English servant girl in The Abduction from the Seraglio. In the second episode of the Rondo, fi rst and second violins chase one another in a passage in three-part canonic counterpoint, worthy of the ingenuity of an improvising organist, and underpinned by a pedal note on the horns. That’s how it looks on the page – organ is the last thing the hearer would think of. Entertainment and the opportunity for virtuoso display is the keynote here.

DAVID GARRETT ©2002

The Sydney Symphony first performed Mozart’s concerto K314 in its flute version in 1946 – the orchestra’s principal flute, Neville Amadio, was soloist. We first performed the oboe version in 1954 with Eugene Goossens conducting and his brother Léon as soloist, and most recently in 2008, with conductor Lothar Zagrosek and soloist Diana Doherty. (Our most recent performance of the concerto in the flute version was in 2004, with soloist Jacques Zoon and conductor Christopher Franklin.)

Proud sponsor of theSydney Symphonyin their 80th yearof timeless entertainment

…never drawing attention to its skill.

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ABOUT THE ARTIST

UW

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ALFrançois Leleux

OBOE

Recognised as the best oboist of his generation, François Leleux enjoys an international career performing a wide-ranging repertoire with leading orchestras and conductors, and at leading venues and festivals.

At 18 he was appointed Principal Oboe at Opéra de Paris. Three years later he won the solo position in the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, a position he held until 2004. He now divides his time between solo appearances, playing-directing, chamber music, recitals and concerts with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, which he joined as Principal Oboe in 2003. He is also a professor at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Munich.

He is committed to expanding the oboe’s repertoire, and has had many works written for him by composers such as Nicolas Bacri, Thierry Pécou, Gilles Silvestrini, Eric Tanguy, Thierry Escaich, Albert Schnelzer, Giya Kancheli and Michael Jarrell. He has also made his own transcriptions of arias from Mozart’s Don Giovanni and The Magic Flute, which he has recorded with Camerata Salzburg.

François Leleux is a dedicated chamber musician, performing regularly all over the world with the wind octet Ensemble Paris-Bastille and the sextet Les Vents Français. His recital partners include harpist Isabelle Moretti and his wife, violinist Lisa Batiashvili.

His discography includes chamber music with Lisa Batiashvili, violist Lawrence Power and cellist Sebastian Klinger; Bach with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe; Mozart with Camerata Salzburg, and most recently a Richard Strauss recording including the Oboe Concerto with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and conductor Daniel Harding, and Serenade for Winds with Paris-Bastille.

When he visited Australia with Lisa Batiashvili in 2003, François Leleux was invited to perform with the Sydney Symphony as guest principal oboe. We’re delighted to welcome him back as a soloist.

www.francoisleleux.com

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MUSICIANS

Vladimir AshkenazyPrincipal Conductor and Artistic Advisor supported by Emirates

Dene OldingConcertmaster

Nicholas CarterAssociate Conductor supported by Premier Partner Credit Suisse

To see photographs of the full roster of permanent musicians and find out more about the orchestra, visit our website: www.sydneysymphony.com/SSO_musiciansIf you don’t have access to the internet, ask one of our customer service representatives for a copy of our Musicians flyer.

FIRST VIOLINS Vesa-Matti Leppanen* Concertmaster

Kirsten Williams Associate Concertmaster

Katherine Lukey Assistant Concertmaster

Brielle ClapsonSophie Cole Jennifer Hoy Georges LentzDene Olding Concertmaster

Sun Yi Associate Concertmaster

Fiona Ziegler Assistant Concertmaster

Julie Batty Jennifer Booth Marianne BroadfootAmber Davis Nicola Lewis Alexandra MitchellAlexander NortonLéone Ziegler

SECOND VIOLINS Kirsty Hilton Claire Herrick*Shuti Huang Benjamin Li Nicole Masters Emily Qin°Marina Marsden Emma West Assistant Principal

Susan Dobbie Principal Emeritus

Maria Durek Emma Hayes Stan W Kornel Emily Long Philippa Paige Biyana Rozenblit Maja Verunica

VIOLASRoger Benedict Anne-Louise Comerford Justine Marsden Felicity Tsai Tobias Breider Robyn Brookfield Sandro Costantino Jane Hazelwood Graham Hennings Stuart Johnson Leonid Volovelsky

CELLOSCatherine Hewgill Timothy NankervisChristopher Pidcock Rachael Tobin°Leah Lynn Assistant Principal

Kristy ConrauFenella Gill Elizabeth NevilleAdrian Wallis David Wickham

DOUBLE BASSESKees Boersma David Campbell Alex Henery Neil Brawley Principal Emeritus

Steven Larson Richard Lynn David Murray Benjamin Ward

FLUTES Janet Webb Carolyn HarrisEmma Sholl Rosamund Plummer Principal Piccolo

OBOESDiana Doherty Shefali Pryor David Papp Alexandre Oguey Principal Cor Anglais

CLARINETSLawrence Dobell Christopher Tingay Francesco Celata Craig Wernicke Principal Bass Clarinet

BASSOONSMatthew Wilkie Fiona McNamara Noriko Shimada Principal Contrabassoon

HORNSGeoffrey O’Reilly Principal 3rd

Jenny McLeod°Ben Jacks Robert Johnson Lee BracegirdleEuan Harvey Marnie Sebire

TRUMPETSPaul Goodchild David Elton John Foster

TROMBONESRonald Prussing Scott Kinmont Nick Byrne Christopher Harris Principal Bass Trombone

TUBASteve Rossé

TIMPANIRichard Miller Mark Robinson Assistant Principal

PERCUSSIONRebecca Lagos Colin Piper

HARP Louise Johnson HARPSICHORDNeal Peres Da Costa*

Bold = PrincipalItalics = Associate Principal* = Guest Musician° = Contract Musician† = Sydney Symphony FellowGrey = Permanent member of the Sydney Symphony not appearing in this concert

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Founded in 1932 by the Australian Broadcasting Commission, the Sydney Symphony has evolved into one of the world’s fi nest orchestras as Sydney has become one of the world’s great cities.

Resident at the Sydney Opera House, the Sydney Symphony also performs in venues throughout Sydney and NSW. International tours have earned the orchestra worldwide recognition for artistic excellence, most recently in the 2011 tour of Japan and Korea.

The Sydney Symphony’s fi rst Chief Conductor was Sir Eugene Goossens, appointed in 1947; he was followed by Nicolai Malko, Dean Dixon, Moshe Atzmon, Willem van Otterloo, Louis Frémaux, Sir Charles Mackerras, Zdenek Mácal, Stuart Challender,

Edo de Waart and Gianluigi Gelmetti. The orchestra’s history also boasts collaborations with legendary fi gures such as George Szell, Sir Thomas Beecham, Otto Klemperer and Igor Stravinsky.

The Sydney Symphony’s award-winning education program is central to its commitment to the future of symphonic music, and the orchestra promotes the work of Australian composers through performances, recordings and commissions.

The Sydney Symphony Live label has captured performances with Alexander Lazarev, Gianluigi Gelmetti, Sir Charles Mackerras and Vladimir Ashkenazy. The orchestra has also released recordings with Ashkenazy on the Exton/Triton labels, and numerous recordings for ABC Classics.

THE SYDNEY SYMPHONY

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Sydney Symphony Board

John C Conde ao ChairmanTerrey Arcus amEwen CrouchRoss Grant

Jennifer HoyRory JeffesAndrew KaldorIrene Lee

David LivingstoneGoetz RichterDavid Smithers am

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SYDNEY SYMPHONY PATRONS

Maestro’s CirclePeter Weiss am – Founding President & Doris WeissJohn C Conde ao – ChairmanGeoff Ainsworth am & Vicki AinsworthTom Breen & Rachael KohnIn memory of Hetty & Egon GordonAndrew Kaldor & Renata Kaldor aoRoslyn Packer aoPenelope Seidler amMr Fred Street am & Mrs Dorothy StreetWestfield GroupRay Wilson oam in memory of the late James Agapitos oam

Sydney Symphony Leadership EnsembleDavid Livingstone, CEO, Credit Suisse, AustraliaAlan Fang, Chairman, Tianda GroupMacquarie Group FoundationJohn Morschel, Chairman, ANZAndrew Kaldor, Chairman, Pelikan Artline

Lynn Kraus, Sydney Office Managing Partner, Ernst & YoungShell Australia Pty LtdJames Stevens, CEO, Roses OnlyStephen Johns, Chairman, Leighton Holdings,and Michele Johns

01 Roger Benedict Principal Viola Kim Williams am & Catherine Dovey Chair

02 Lawrence Dobell Principal Clarinet Anne Arcus & Terrey Arcus am Chair

03 Diana Doherty Principal Oboe Andrew Kaldor & Renata Kaldor ao Chair

04 Richard Gill oam Artistic Director Education Sandra & Paul Salteri Chair

05 Jane Hazelwood Viola Veolia Environmental Services Chair

06 Catherine Hewgill Principal Cello Tony & Fran Meagher Chair

07 Elizabeth Neville Cello Ruth & Bob Magid Chair

08 Colin Piper Percussion Justice Jane Mathews ao Chair

09 Shefali Pryor Associate Principal Oboe Rose Herceg Chair

10 Emma Sholl Associate Principal Flute Robert & Janet Constable Chair

For information about the Directors’ Chairs program, please call (02) 8215 4619.

Directors’ Chairs

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ORCHESTRA NEWS | JANUARY–FEBRUARY 2012

The oboe section of the Sydney Symphony makes for an interest-ing study in lineage: Shefali Pryor (Associate Principal) is a former student of Alexandre Oguey (Prin-cipal Cor Anglais), who, in turn, is married to Diana Doherty (Prin-cipal Oboe), whose former student was David Papp (Second Oboe). Simple!

Those close relationships, says Shefali, have a three-fold positive impact on the oboe section: ‘We all have a very similar concept of sound, which is vital in a section. And having a strong rapport trans-lates into a fabulous sense of cama-

raderie. It’s so much fun to make music with people whose company you also enjoy – the oboe section really feels like a family. And even though I’ve graduated from the role of student, I continue to learn from all my colleagues.’

When Shefali won her first job (Second Oboe) with the orches-tra, making the transition from student to colleague was tricky. ‘It did pose some challenges, because the teacher / student line was blurred.’ But taking a year out to study overseas ‘made it easier to renegotiate that paradigm’.

Ironically there was a degree

of regret about later securing the Associate Principal position (a promotion, in effect). ‘I had – and still have – such a great friend-ship with Diana. And always really enjoyed playing second oboe to her, playing with an old friend who I really know and understand. But now I’m glad for the extra responsibility that comes with playing Associate Principal. It really developed my playing, and my personality. The more I expect from myself, the more I’m able to achieve.’

‘If I could offer one piece of advice to my younger self, it would be to “be braver”. I was quite shy and retiring as a student, and that translated into my playing; I was a little afraid to give it my all, in case my “all” was wrong. But I now know that there’s no right or wrong in music. Diana has been a great inspiration to me in that regard – she just puts it all out there, wears her heart on her sleeve when she plays. And I believe that musicians’ person-alities are very much reflected in their playing.’

The Associate Principal Oboe Chair is supported by Rose Herceg

If I could offer one piece of advice to my younger self, it would be to ‘be braver’.

SHEFALI PRYOR Good relationships, says Associate Principal Oboe Shefali Pryor, make for great music-making.

The family that plays together…

Your SayI wanted to thank you for the Sydney Symphony Brass Ensemble’s very moving tribute to Japan during your visit here [Nov 2011]. The audience was tremendously moved and emotional. I have lived in Japan for over 20 years and I was ever so proud to be an Australian here, sharing the incredible spirit of solidarity your musicians displayed. Best wishes for a stable and peaceful 2012.Melanie Brock I would like to congratulate the Sydney Symphony, concertmaster Dene Olding and conductor Mark Wigglesworth for the thrilling performance of Lutosławski’s Symphony No.4 [Oct 2011]. I had enjoyed the piece in recordings, but the impact of this live performance was far greater.

Since the publicity for this concert emphasised the Mozart and Dvorák pieces, I wanted to assure you that, as much as I enjoyed hearing the excellent performances of those well-known works, the chance to hear the Lutosławski was the reason that I bought the tickets.Anthony Henderson The visiting conductors and soloists last year were wonderful. In recent months two British conductors Mark Wigglesworth and Jonathan Nott brought new freshness to old favourites like Dvorák and Schubert. And having Brett Dean’s brilliant and

complex violin concerto brought to this town in such a dazzling way by Frank Peter Zimmermann rounded out the year’s programs wonderfully. Alex Kan Wow! What a great concert today [Signature Sounds, Dec 2011]. The orchestra was on fire, Zimmermann was consummate and Jonathan Nott was brilliant to watch. Please can we have more of Jonathan Nott in the future if you can lure him down here? He was so expressive it reminded me of Louis Frémaux, who was always a joy to watch.Alexander Stitt

Welcome to the Sydney Symphony’s 2012 season, and to Bravo! a new feature of our program books. Bravo! is our way of staying in touch with you, offering insights into our behind-the-scenes activities, musician profiles, and the latest news and views about the Sydney Symphony.

This year offers a tremendous variety of perform-ances. I’m particularly looking forward to presenting stellar artists such as violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter in her Australian debut, young Australian saxophonist Amy Dickson and jazz trumpeter Chris Botti. We also welcome back conductors such as David Robertson, Donald Runnicles and young Russian firebrand Tugan Sokhiev.

The Sydney Symphony is going from strength to strength under the inspiring leadership of Vladimir Ashkenazy, with international tours and remarkable cycles of music by Mahler, Prokofiev and Rachmani-noff. 2012 promises to be another great year of music-making. Outstanding performances are built on the excitement of connection between musicians and audience – and we look forward to you being a part of these in this our 80th anniversary year.

RORY JEFFES

From the Managing Director

Complimentary Concert in Vienna.

When you fly First or Business Class to Vienna.

emirates.com/au

500 international awards and over 115 destinations worldwide including 29 in Europe. To learn more, visit sydneysymphony.com/emirates.

Brett Dean

We like to hear your comments, questions and stories about theSydney Symphony. Please write to us at Bravo! Reply Paid 4338,Sydney, NSW 2001, or email [email protected] note that letters may be edited for length.

Harold in Italy 1834. Niccolò Paganini, violinist extraordinaire, had taken pos-session of a marvellous, century-old Stradivarius viola, but he had nothing to play on it. So he approached the French composer Hector Berlioz and asked him to write a viola concerto.

Berlioz recalled it this way: ‘No sooner was the first section completed than Paganini wanted to see it. At the sight of all the viola’s rests in the Allegro, he exclaimed: “This won’t do!…I must be playing the whole time.” …Now realising that my scheme could not suit him, I thought of writing a series of orchestral scenes in which the solo viola would be involved like a character…By placing it amid poetic recollections of my wanderings in the Abruzzi, I intended to turn the viola into a sort of melancholy dreamer in the style of Byron’s Childe Harold. Hence the title of the symphony…’

The result is a strange hybrid: it’s a symphony, but with a viola soloist, and a narrative that contains not one incident from Byron’s poem. The viola-hero – introduced at the beginning with his own motto theme – wanders through the mountains, encoun-ters pilgrims, witnesses a lover’s serenade and (finally) a frenetic orgy of brigands.

Fireworks and Fantasy with Roger Benedict, viola

Thursday Afternoon Symphony Thu 22 March | 1.30pm

Emirates Metro Series Fri 23 March | 8pm

Great Classics Sat 24 March | 2pm Sydney Opera House

The ScoreEducation Focus

THE NEXT GENERATIONEach year the Sydney Symphony Fellowship program takes some of Australia’s most talented young musicians under its wing to help them achieve their dreams. We talk to four.

Every year, hundreds of instru-mentalists graduate from tertiary institutions across Australia hoping to join an orchestra. But as 2012 Sydney Symphony Fellow Neil Thompson explains, ‘There’s lots that can’t be taught at univer-sity.’ And this violist knows that only a handful – the best of the best – will ever enter the profes-sion. ‘The Fellowship gives me the chance to ask the pros every ques-tion I can think of. Even though I’ve done casual work with a few of the orchestras, that’s not really the time or place to be asking. But I’m sure the SSO musicians will be anticipating my questions.’

Now in its 11th year, the Fel-lowship program is a world leader in orchestral training and has been supported since 2011 by Premier Partner Credit Suisse. Through intense training and mentoring, the Fellows develop their orches-tral technique and musicianship, while preparing for life as a profes-sional musician.

This year’s Fellows come from all corners of the country.

‘Growing up in Emerald, I hadn’t even heard a French horn until I went to university,’ explains Sharn McIver. ‘But I heard Barry Tuckwell, who’s a legend, in a masterclass and switched to horn from trumpet straight away; my embouchure [the shape of the mouth] and sound quality immediately improved.’ Now, just four years later, Sharn has been selected for the Fellowship. ‘This is the real deal. I know I need a serious, professional mindset to work alongside the Sydney Sym-phony musicians.’

Clarinettist Rowena Watts and bassoonist Melissa Woodroffe so valued the Fellowship in 2011 that they applied again this year. ‘The variety of opportunities offered to the Fellows is just invaluable. I’m an “old hand” now,’ jokes Melissa, ‘but I’m so looking forward to playing more chamber music, and working in the orchestra again.’

Clockwise from top left: Rowena Watts, Sharn McIver, Melissa Woodroffe, Neil Thompson.

Visit sydneysymphony.com/fellowship to find out when you can hear the 2012 Fellows in concert.

CODANEW FACES ON STAGE

Over the new year we welcomed three new musicians to the Sydney Symphony: Alexander Norton as a member of the First Violins; Christopher Pidcock in the Cellos; and David Elton, who comes to us from the West Australian Symphony Orchestra as our new Principal Trumpet. Among new contracts, Adam Szabo and Tara Houghton have been appointed to the Cellos and Violas respectively.

Musicians who win their audition for a permanent place in the orchestra join us on what’s known as a ‘trial’ – a period of three months to a year, during which musician and orchestra determine whether there’s a good fit of musicianship and style for the section.

STUDENTS TURNING PROFESSIONAL

You might recognise three of the names above from our Fellowship program. Alexander Norton was a violin Fellow in 2006; Adam Szabo and Tara Houghton were in last

year’s Fellowship program. Their achievement of a place in the orchestra is a common one for program alumni – oboist David Papp is another musician who joined us after his Fellowship year.

Among other recent Fellowship and Sinfonia alumni achievements: Francesco Lo Surdo, a 2010 horn Fellow, has been awarded a trial with the WASO, and Lisa Bucknell, a Sinfonia violist in 2010 and 2011, is heading to London to take up a position with the Southbank Sinfonia, an orchestra of young, emerging professionals.

NEW SOUTH WALES – ONE BIG MUSIC CLASSROOM

On Friday 17 February the first of our Meet the Music professional learning seminars will be streamed to regional conservatoriums, using the Sydney Opera House’s connected classroom network.

By harnessing technology in this way, the 400 teachers and students from Sydney will be joined by teachers and students from all over New South Wales – not just as observers but able to participate and ask questions of their own.

In this first session, composers Matthew Hindson, Peter Sculthorpe and Barry Conyngham will be talking about their music.

Find out more about our Education and Artist Development programs: sydneysymphony.com/education

BRAVO EDITOR Genevieve Lang sydneysymphony.com/bravo

NEW PARTNER

We’re delighted to welcome Roses Only as a Silver Partner.

CONCERT AT ST JAMES’

The Chanterelle Quartet will give a free lunchtime concert at St James’ King St on Wednesday 29 February at 1.15pm – performing music by Bach and Mozart’s String Quartet in D, K575.

NEW FACES OFF STAGE

We recently welcomed two very small newcomers to the orchestra family. Congratulations to cellists Kristy Conrau and Elizabeth Neville, on the arrival of Asha and Louis respectively.

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE TRUSTMr Kim Williams AM (Chair)Ms Catherine Brenner, Rev Dr Arthur Bridge AM, Mr Wesley Enoch, Ms Renata Kaldor AO, Mr Robert Leece AM RFD, Ms Sue Nattrass AO, Dr Thomas (Tom) Parry AM, Mr Leo Schofi eld AM, Mr Evan Williams AM

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