Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment Beethoven Symphony No.9, Choral SIR CHARLES MAC KERRAS Conductor

oae released It was not just accommodating Schiller’s an irreversible transformation in the entire words that took a long time, however. Although concept of what a symphony is, turning a piece the symphony was essentially composed in a of concert music designed primarily to entertain ten-month burst between April 1823 and January into a psychological journey in which, over the Beethoven 1824, there is a case for saying that Beethoven course of four movements, the listener’s emotions had been writing it for much longer – he had undergo some kind of change. !is could be Symphony No.9, Choral contemplated a D minor symphony as early as triumph over adversity, as in the death and rebirth 1812, immediately after the completion of the of the Eroica, or a passage from darkness to light SIR CHARLES MAC KERRAS Conductor Seventh and Eighth, while some of its musical as demonstrated in the famous Fifth Symphony. ideas date back even further. Not that these In the Ninth, it is a journey from a bleak and matters would have concerned the audience at the brutal void to a glorious vision of an ideal world of work’s first performance in Vienna’s Kärntnerthor love, tolerance and universal brotherhood. !eatre in May 1824; for them the excitement lay Certainly the shimmering strings which in hearing Beethoven’s first new symphony in open the first movement seem to conjure a twelve years, and they lapped it up. At the end the mood of primeval emptiness before the music applause was thunderous, and the deaf composer moves on into more combative regions. At the was turned round by the contralto soloist Caroline end, a sternly resolute theme emerges from the Unger to see hats and handkerchiefs being waved depths like a clenched fist. !e second movement riedrich von Schiller’s poem Ode to Joy could frantically all over the hall. ‘!e whole audience seems straightforwardly joyful with its playful almost have been calculated to appeal to the was impressed, crushed by the greatness of your timpani beats (spontaneously applauded at the idealistic Beethoven. Written in 1785, it lauds the work’, wrote Beethoven’s friend Anton Schindler. first performance), its interplay between the joys of fellowship, the happiness of married life, Vienna may not have always appreciated Mozart violins and its cheeky ending, but there is more the wonders of nature and the universe and the to the full, and may not always have understood than a hint of seriousness underlying it as well. eternal mystery of divine love, and as early as 1793 what Beethoven was about, but it certainly loved !e third movement is unambiguous in intent, Beethoven was considering setting it as a song. its presiding musical genius. however, a sublimely tender and beautiful set of In 1812 he attempted a ‘choral overture’ using parts !e Ninth is not, strictly speaking, variations on a tune whose deceptively simple of the text, but it was not for another decade that Beethoven’s last symphony – in 1825 he began but hymn-like nature is a Beethoven speciality, above he was to find a true home for it when he made it failed to complete another – but it is certainly a all in ‘late-period’ works. the subject of the extraordinary and revolutionary fitting summation of his mighty contribution And then the finale bursts in, startlingly finale to his Ninth and last symphony, the first to the genre’s history. His achievement had and radically. At first the orchestra reviews ever to include a choral movement. been nothing less than that of bringing about themes from all three earlier movements, with the cellos and basses seeming to debate their S C HILLER’S Ode to Joy worth in melodic phrases which deliberately mimic the style of vocal recitative. It is as if they O Freunde, nicht diese Töne! Oh friends, not these tones! are struggling to tell us something, yet it is also Sondern laßt uns angenehmere anstimmen, Rather, let us raise our voices in more pleasing a dramatically enhanced continuation of the und freudenvollere. And more joyful sounds! fragmentary, groping introductions to the finales Freude! Freude! Joy! Joy! of two earlier symphonies, the First and the !ird. Eventually, though, the orchestra hits on Freude, schöner Götterfunken Joy, beautiful spark of divinity the now-famous folksong-like theme, but after Tochter aus Elysium, Daughter of Elysium, they have played a few variations on it, another Wir betreten feuertrunken, We enter, drunk with fire, upheaval leads to the first human sounds – a bass Himmlische, dein Heiligtum! Into your heavenly sanctuary! soloist commanding us all to discard all this in Deine Zauber binden wieder Your magic reunites favour of ‘pleasing and more joyful tones’. !ese Was die Mode streng geteilt; What custom strictly divided. words are Beethoven’s, but from here to the end it Alle Menschen werden Brüder, All men will become brothers, is Schiller’s message which dominates, and as the Wo dein sanfter Flügel weilt. Where your gentle wing rests. voices take over we hear in the course of further variations on the theme a vision of Elysium that Wem der große Wurf gelungen, Whoever has had the great fortune is by turns exultant and awestruck. ‘!is gigantic Eines Freundes Freund zu sein; To be a friend’s friend, work’, Hans Keller suggested, ‘should convince Wer ein holdes Weib errungen, Whoever has won a devoted wife, even the firmest pessimist that mankind’s life has Mische seinen Jubel ein! Join in our jubilation! been worthwhile.’ Ja, wer auch nur eine Seele Indeed, whoever can call even one soul, Sein nennt auf dem Erdenrund! His own on this earth! Programme note © Lindsay Kemp Und wer’s nie gekonnt, der stehle And whoever was never able to, must creep Weinend sich aus diesem Bund! Tearfully away from this band!

Freude trinken alle Wesen Joy all creatures drink An den Brüsten der Natur; At the breasts of nature; Alle Guten, alle Bösen All good, all bad Folgen ihrer Rosenspur. Follow her trail of roses. Küße gab sie uns und Reben, Kisses she gave us, and wine, SIR CHARLES MAC KERRAS (1925–2010) Einen Freund, geprüft im Tod; A friend, proven in death; Conductor Wollust ward dem Wurm gegeben, Pleasure was to the worm given, Sir Charles can rightly be called a legendary Und der Cherub steht vor Gott. And the cherub stands before God. figure. His career spanned an extraordinary six decades of achievement. He made his conducting Froh, wie seine Sonnen fliegen Glad, as His suns fly debut with Sadler’s Wells (now English Durch des Himmels prächt’gen Plan, !rough the Heaven’s glorious design, National Opera) in 1948 and went on to enjoy a Laufet, Brüder, eure Bahn, Run, brothers, your race, lifelong association with the company. Freudig, wie ein Held zum Siegen. Joyful, as a hero to victory. He was First Conductor of the Hamburg Opera (1966–69) and Musical Director of both Seid umschlungen, Millionen! Be embraced, millions! Sadler’s Wells (1970–77), and of Welsh National Diesen Kuß der ganzen Welt! !is kiss for the whole world! Opera (1987–92). From 1982–85 Sir Charles was Brüder, über’m Sternenzelt Brothers, above the starry canopy Chief Conductor of the Sydney Symphony Muss ein lieber Vater wohnen. Must a loving Father dwell. Orchestra: he conducted the Orchestra in the Ihr stürzt nieder, Millionen? Do you bow down, millions? opening concert of the Concert Hall of the Sydney Ahnest du den Schöpfer, Welt? Do you sense the Creator, world? Opera House in 1973, in which Birgit Nilsson Such’ ihn über’m Sternenzelt! Seek Him beyond the starry canopy! sang in the all-Wagner programme. Sir Charles Über Sternen muss er wohnen. Beyond the stars must He dwell. was Conductor Laureate of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Conductor Emeritus of the Orchestra Finale repeats the words: Finale repeats the words: of the Age of Enlightenment, Conductor Barda Photo © Clive Seid umschlungen, Millionen! Be embraced, you millions! Laureate of the Brno Philharmonic Orchestra, a period of 45 years, conducting the Orchestra at Diesen Kuß der ganzen Welt! !is kiss for the whole world! Principal Guest Conductor of the Philharmonia London’s Royal Festival Hall and at Glyndebourne Brüder, über’m Sternenzelt Brothers, beyond the star-canopy Orchestra, Conductor Emeritus of the Welsh Festival Opera. Muss ein lieber Vater wohnen. Must a loving Father dwell. National Opera and Principal Guest Conductor He was a regular guest with the Vienna Seid umschlungen, Be embraced, Emeritus of the . A specialist Philharmonic Orchestra with whom he made Diesen Kuß der ganzen Welt! !is kiss for the whole world! in Czech repertory, Sir Charles was Principal his debut in 1988 conducting Freude, schöner Götterfunken Joy, beautiful spark of divinity, Guest Conductor of the Czech Philharmonic Le Nozze di Figaro. He made his debut with the Tochter aus Elysium, Daughter of Elysium, Orchestra from 1997–2003, following his Orchestra in 2004. Freude, schöner Götterfunken. Joy, beautiful spark of divinity. life-long association with both the Orchestra and In addition to his many appearances with the many aspects of Czech musical life. He worked San Francisco Opera, he had a long association with the London Philharmonic Orchestra over with the , New York. In Europe he conducted regularly in the opera !eatre sharing the baton with Britten; the Royal AM A NDA R OOCR OFT Soprano houses of Paris, Berlin, Prague and in his native Opera House, Covent Garden for !e Cunning Amanda Roocroft studied at the Royal Australia at the Sydney Opera House. Sir Little Vixen; and Glyndebourne Festival Opera for Northern College of Music. She enjoys a close Charles made his operatic debut with the Royal Cosi fan Tutte where on June 12, 2010 he conducted relationship with the Covent Opera House, Covent Garden in 1964, where the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment in Garden, the , the Welsh he conducted 34 , including Un Ballo in what proved to be his final public performance. National Opera, the Glyndebourne Festival, Maschera, which celebrated his 50th anniversary Sir Charles received a CBE in 1974 and was Bayerische Staatsoper, , Madrid, and 80th birthday in 2005. 2002 marked Sir knighted in 1979. He was honoured with the Houston Grand Opera and the Netherlands Opera Charles’ 50th year with the Edinburgh Festival, Medal of Merit from the Czech Republic in 1996, where her roles have included Fiordiligi (Cosi fan in which he conducted Donizetti’s Maria Stuarda, made a Companion of the Order of Australia in Tutte), Countess (Le Nozze di Figaro), Donna Handel’s Jeptha and Mozart’s Gran Partita. 1997 and made a Companion of Honour in the Elvira (), Desdemona (Otello), At the 2006 Edinburgh Festival he memorably 2003 Queen’s Birthday Honours. In May 2005 Amelia (Simon Boccanegra), Mimi (La Boheme), conducted the complete Beethoven symphonies. he was presented with the Royal Philharmonic Eva (Die Meistersinger), title roles in Madama In 2008, he was named Honorary President of the Society Gold Medal and in November 2005 was Butterfly, Katya Kabanova and Jenufa, Genevre Edinburgh International Festival Society. the first recipient of the Queen’s Medal for Music. (), Cleopatra (Giulio Cesare), Jenifer (!e His lifelong association with Czech music Midsummer Marriage), Tatiana () produced many milestones, including the and Ellen Orford (). Amanda won British premieres of Janácˇek’s Katya Kabanova the 2007 Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding (1951), !e Makropulos Case (1964) and From the Achievement in Opera as Jenufa for ENO. House of the Dead (1965), and his career In concert she has appeared with leading Photo © Anthony Roocroft defining Janácˇek discography with the Vienna orchestras throughout Europe and North America Philharmonic Orchestra. His vast discography with conductors including Sir , reflects his pioneering interest in performance Zubin Mehta, Mariss Jansons, , practice with the symphonies of Mozart, Sir , Daniele Gatti, Sir Beethoven and Brahms. , Sir , Sir Charles In his final season he conducted his beloved Mackerras, Valery Gergiev and Bernard Haitink. Scottish Chamber and Philharmonia Orchestras Recital engagements have included in Edinburgh and London and he returned to London’s Wigmore Hall, Queen Elizabeth three of his favourite opera houses: English Hall, the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Vienna’s National Opera for !e Turn of the Screw which he Musikverein, in Brussels, and New had last conducted in London in 1956 at the Scala York’s Lincoln Center. & ), Second Lady & JOH N MARK AINSLEY Meg (ENO), Sesto in John Mark Ainsley has appeared with the (Glyndebourne Touring Opera), Idamante world’s greatest orchestras and conductors, (Flanders Philharmonic), Margherite (Scotland including the London, Boston and San Francisco & Lyric Opera of Queensland), Ascanio in Les Symphony orchestras and the London, Berlin, Troyans for LSO with Sir , Angelina Vienna and orchestras, (Semperoper Dresden & New Zealand) and with Sir Colin Davis, Bernard Haitink, Sir Charles Scitalce in Meyerbeer’s Semiramide with Bonynge Mackerras, , Sir , (Rossini Festival in Germany). She has worked for Sir Simon Rattle and Claudio Abbado. the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Scottish His discography covers the baroque and Opera & Edinburgh Festival and sung for all the classical repertoire, the German Lied, English major Australian orchestras. In concert she has song and the American musical. His Britten performed Verdi , Dream of Gerontius, recordings include the three tenor cycles Serenade Mahler Symphony No.2, Rossini Stabat Mater, for tenor, horn and strings, Les Illuminations and , Mozart Requiem, Berlioz Roméo et Nocturne. Juliette, Beethoven Missa Solemnis, Mass in C and 2010 saw his first Captain Vere in the UK Symphony No.9. Recordings: Semiramide and in the Glyndebourne Festival production of Billy Lurline with Bonynge (Naxos), Pulcinella (Naxos), Budd. A regular guest at the Festival, he Parisina (Opera Rara) & Mozart Centenary. She was awarded the Munich Festival Prize for his was the producer and starred in Richard Bonynge’s Orfeo. He performed in the world premieres of FIONA JAN E S Mezzo-Soprano 80th Birthday Concert in 2010 in Sydney. Henze’s L’Upupa for the Salzburg Festival and Fiona has had a distinguished career in Berlin. performing extensively in both Australia and John Mark won the 2007 Royal Philharmonic Europe in opera and concert. Her repertoire Society Singer Award and is a visiting professor at includes: Adalgisa, Angelina, Donna Elvira, the Royal Academy of Music. Zerlina, Mercedes, Rosina, Sesto in both Julius Caesar and La Clemenza di Tito, Isabella, Composer, Dorabella, Annio and Mistress Quickly. Other performances include: Siebel (Victorian & Queensland Opera), Nero (Buxton Festival), Rosina (Netherlands Opera, ENO N EAL DA V IES Baritone OR C HESTRA OF T HE our musical furniture. It has even graced the Neal Davies studied at King’s College, AGE OF EN LIGHT E NME NT outstanding conducting talents of Rattle, Jurowski London and the RAM, and won the Lieder Just over two decades ago, a group of and Fischer with a joint title. But don’t ever Prize at the 1991 Cardiff Singer of the World inquisitive London musicians took a long think the ensemble has lost sight of its founding Competition. hard look at that curious institution we call the vow. Not all orchestras are the same. And there’s Neal Davies appears with the Royal Opera, Orchestra, and decided to start again from scratch. nothing quite like this one. the English National Opera, the Scottish They began by throwing out the rulebook. Put a Opera, Garsington Opera, Opera de Montreal, single conductor in charge? No way. Specialise © Andrew Mellor, 2011 Opera de Marseille, the Deutsche Staatsoper, in repertoire of a particular era? Too restricting. Berlin and the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and Perfect a work and then move on? Too lazy. The regularly with the Welsh National Opera; in Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment was born. concert with the Oslo Philharmonic ( Jansons), And as this distinctive ensemble playing BBCSO (Boulez), Cleveland and Philharmonia on period-specific instruments began to get a Orchestras (Dohnanyi), COE (Harnoncourt), foothold, it made a promise to itself. It vowed OAE (Brüggen), Gabrieli Consort (McCreesh), to keep questioning and inventing as long as the Hallé (Elder), Les Arts Florissants (Christie) it lived. Residencies at the Southbank Centre and the Orchestra and the Glyndebourne Festival didn’t numb its (Harding). He appears regularly at the Edinburgh experimentalist bent. A major record deal didn’t

Photo © Susie Ahlburg Festival and has recorded for the major labels. iron out its quirks. Instead, the OAE examined Engagements include Don Alfonso for the musical notes with ever more freedom and resolve. Welsh National Opera, a tour of with Les That creative thirst remains unquenched. Arts Florissants, Death of Klinghoffer with the Informal night-time performances are redefining English National Opera, and Charpentier’s David concert formats. Searching approaches to varied et Jonathas with the Aix-en-Provence Festival and repertoire see the OAE working frequently with William Christie. symphony and opera orchestras. New generations of exploratory musicians are encouraged into its ranks. Great performances now become recordings on the orchestra’s own CD label. It thrives internationally: New York and Amsterdam court it; Birmingham and Bristol cherish it.

In its 25th season, the OAE is part of Photo © Eric Richmond T HE NE W COMPA NY Spanish renaissance music with Harry Bicket and !e New Company chamber choir was Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with the Orchestra formed in 1990 with members drawn from the of the Age of Enlightenment under Sir Charles best of London’s international chamber choirs. Mackerras (from which this recording was made). !e choir appears in a number of guises: a small Recordings have included Schubert songs chamber ensemble of 12 for the renaissance for Hyperion, Jane Eaglen singing Bellini under repertoire; a choir of 30 for works of the baroque Sir Mark Elder with the Orchestra of the Age of period; and as an opera chorus. Enlightenment and an a capella disc for Classic One distinctive feature of the choir is that FM called Sacred Voices which includes Tallis’s it prefers the challenge and flexibility of working 40-part motet Spem in Alium. SIR CHARLES MAC KERRAS Conductor with a wide range of conductors. For that reason, In 2004 !e New Company performed the permanent element of the choir is the singers, Mozart’s Requiem with the Monte Carlo AMA NDA ROOCR OFT Soprano rather than the conductor. Philharmonic Orchestra in Monte Carlo. FIONA JAN E S Mezzo-Soprano !e choir’s repertoire is extremely varied !e choir performs regularly at festivals in J O H N MARK A I NSLEY Tenor ranging from Schubert songs, film music, the the UK and abroad and was a regular guest at NEAL DAV IES Baritone baroque and classical choral repertoire, to Brazilian ’s Gregynog Festival in folk songs and opera. Its opera performances Wales – the last programme for which was Bach’s ORC HESTRA OF T HE A GE OF ENLIGHT E NME NT include the first UK performances of Rossini’s St John Passion with Lorna Anderson, Catherine THE NEW COMPA NY Ermione with the OAE under Sir Mark Elder at Wynn Rogers, John Mark Ainsley and Stephen the Queen Elizabeth Hall, London and the first Roberts under the baton of Shane Fletcher. R E COR D E D LIV E F R OM UK performance of Mozart’s forgotten opera Der !e New Company continued its long T HE EDI N BURGH INTERN AT I ONAL FESTI V A L Stein der Weisen at London’s Hampstead Festival. association with Harry Bicket in a performance ON 26 A UGUST 1994 !e choir made its Proms debut with of Haydn’s Der Jahreszeiten in Snape in 2008 and Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with the Orchestra a return to the 2009 BBC Proms for Handel’s of the Age of Enlightenment and Frans Brüggen Samson with !e English Concert. and was invited back to perform the first ever Proms performance of Handel’s Jephtha with Sir and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra. In 1994 the choir made its Edinburgh International Festival debut to critical acclaim with two concerts, an a capella programme of O R C HESTRA O R C HESTRA

Violins Violas Double Basses Clarinets CAT HERIN E MAC KINTOSH Leader JAN SC HLAPP PET ER B U C K O KE C O LIN L A WSON SUS A N B RISCOE NICOLA CLEM I NSON E LIZABET H B RAD LEY G ARY B R ODIE CARO LIN E CHURC H I L L R A C HEL STOTT MARK HOR N JAN E BOOTH MARC ASHLEY COOPER MART I N K ELLY AMA NDA MACNA M ARA MARGARET A R C HIBALD FIONA DUNCA N L E ON K I N G PAUL SHERM A N NANCY E LAN C O LIN K I TCHIN G ANDREW CRUIC K S HAN K JAM E S E LLIS NIC H O LAS LOGIE Trumpets ROSE M ARY E LLISON SIMON WHISTLER S T E P HEN K EAVY MARGARET FAULT LESS Flutes JAM E S G HIGI L UIGI D E FILIPPI L I S A B EZNOSIUK MIC HAEL L AIRD JENNI F ER GODSON Cellos NEIL MCLAREN (+ P I CCOL O ) R A C HEL ISSERLIS TIMOTH Y MASON JUD I T H TREGGO R (+ P I CCOL O ) PIERRE JO UBERT G ABRIEL AMHERST J O A NNE CLEM E NTS Trombones SUE K I NNERS LEY H ELEN GOUGH R I C HARD CHEET HAM MARS HALL MARC U S TIMOTH Y MERTON PET ER THO RLEY ANN MONNI N G TON SUS A N SHEPPARD Oboes ANTH ONY L EGGETT PAM ELA MUN K S R I C HARD TUNNI C LIFFE ANTH ONY ROB SON J O A NNA PARKER MARILYN SANSOM R I C HARD E ARLE ANDREW ROBERTS CHERRY FO RBES CLARE SALAM A N JAN E DOWNER JILL SAM UEL C O LIN WEIR CAT HERIN E WEISS O R C HESTRA Also available on the oae released label:

Bassoons ANDREW WATTS FELIX WARNOCK FRANCE S E U STA C E N O EL R AIN BIRD

Horns ANDREW CLARK MART I N L A W RENCE J O H N PES KETT ROGER MONTG OMERY ANTH ONY CHID ELL

Percussion G E O RGE L A WN NIC H O LAS ORM R OD C O LIN BOYLE ROBERT HOWART H Director CHO IR OF T HE ENLIGHT E NME NT

Timpani “‘Not all orchestras are the same,’ runs the message on the cover, JANOS K E S ZEI and it’s true: this is the second recording in about as many weeks of Monteverdi’s masterwork… and clearly the superior.” ***** the independent

sigcd237. Available at oae.co.uk