Johannes Brahms: Concerto for Violin and Cello in a Minor, 33 Min Op
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Sakari Oramo, conductor Elina Vähälä, violin Marko Ylönen, cello Johannes Brahms: Concerto for Violin and Cello in A Minor, 33 min Op. 102 I Allegro II Andante III Vivace non troppo – Poco meno allegro – Tempo 1 INTERVAL 20 min Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 1 in C Minor, Op. 68 43 min I Un poco sostenuto – Allegro – Meno allegro II Andante sostenuto III Un poco allegretto e grazioso IV Adagio – Più andante – Allegro non troppo, ma con brio – Più allegro Interval at about 7.40 pm. The concert ends at about 9.00 pm. Broadcast live on YLE Radio 1 and the Internet (www.yle.fi/rso). 1 Johannes Brahms (1833–1897): Concerto for Violin and Cello in A Minor, Op. 102 (1887) Few concertos of the Romantic era were scored ing the Gürzenich Orchestra Cologne; over the for more than one soloist, but of those that months that followed they performed it all over were, one stands above all others: the Concerto Germany and Austria. After the Vienna per- for Violin and Cello by Johannes Brahms. formance the critic Eduard Hanslick declared It was originally to have been a concerto for Joachim “the king of all violinists”, without in cello and orchestra for Robert Hausmann, the the least belittling Hausmann, but he regard- excellent cellist in the Joachim Quartet. May- ed the concerto as the product of a great mind be Brahms just did not, after all, have quite rather than of creative inspiration. The Double enough faith in the cello as a solo instrument, Concerto thereafter received extremely few per- or maybe he wanted to recapture the mind- formances until the early decades of the 20th scape of his Violin Concerto. Whatever the century, and it is still not one of the most pop- reason, he saw the work as an opportunity to ular works by Brahms. The reason for saying patch up some personal relations and accord- it lacks inspiration is difficult to understand. ingly added a part composed expressly for the Like the other Brahms concertos, it is by nature great violinist Joseph Joachim. The Double Con- symphonic; the orchestra is a powerful coun- certo thus became an olive branch designed to terforce to the two soloists. As an architect of heal a breach that had lasted many years with large-scale form, the middle-aged Brahms was his former best friend. already a sovereign master. Joachim and Hausmann premiered the con- certo in October 1887 with Brahms conduct- Lotta Emanuelsson (abridged) Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 1 in C Minor, Op. 68 (1876) In 1868 Brahms was still only half way to com- ertheless a masterpiece in a league all of its own pleting his first symphony, and finding it very and the finest and most impressive debut sym- hard work. His agonised struggle was overshad- phony in the history of music. owed by the figure – both inspiring and daunt- In his first symphony Brahms proved him- ing – of Beethoven. After Beethoven, writing a self to be a master of not only symphonic form symphony was not just child’s play: it was, as but of symphonic drama as well. Although the Sibelius once said, more of a creed at differ- concept of programme music popular in the ent stages in life. Brahms had to come to terms 19th century never appealed to him, his C mi- with his inner convictions, for he automatically nor symphony is a sort of abstract drama acted thought symphonically. When, in 1853, he had out in music. Just as in Beethoven’s Fate Sym- shown his early piano sonatas to Robert Schu- phony, the growth in the Brahms symphony mann, the latter had called them “symphonies from the defiant C minor of the opening move- in disguise”. ment to the triumphant C major of the finale is From the moment Brahms’s Symphony no. no formal, conventional gesture; it carries true 1 was premiered in Karlsruhe in 1876, it was meaning. linked with Beethoven, and it was indeed col- oured by many conscious and unconscious as- Kimmo Korhonen (abridged) sociations with his great predecessor. It is nev- 2 3 Sakari Oramo Sakari Oramo has been Chief Conductor of the appeared at the BBC Proms, the Canary Is- Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra since Au- lands, Edinburgh and Bergen Festivals. In Oc- gust 2003. An accomplished violinist, he began tober 2005 he took the orchestra on tour to Ja- his career as co-leader of the orchestra in 1991 pan and was immediately invited back for Feb- and went on to obtain a conducting diploma in ruary 2007. the class of Jorma Panula at the Sibelius Acad- The FRSO and Oramo have recorded music emy. In January 1993 he replaced an ailing con- (for Ondine) by such Finnish composers as Ha- ductor at very short notice; the resulting con- kola, Klami, Mielck, Pingoud and Kaipainen, cert was an unprecedented success, leading to and the debut release of Launis’s opera Aslak his appointment as Associate Chief Conductor Hetta. His disc of works by Magnus Lindberg, as of autumn 1994. and the Bartók disc by Warner Classics have In spring 2008 Oramo resigned from his received great international acclaim. His disc 10-year term as Music Director of the City of (Ondine) of Symphonies 3 and 5 by Nordgren Birmingham Symphony Orchestra but contin- won the French Académie Charles Cros award, ues as the orchestra’s Principal Guest Conduc- while the recording by Mr Oramo, the FRSO tor. In autumn 2008 he took over as Chief Con- and Lisa Batiashvili of the Violin Concertos by ductor of the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Magnus Lindberg and Jean Sibelius was hon- Orchestra. He is also Principal Guest Conduc- oured with a MIDEM Classical Award in 2008. tor of the Ostrobothnian Chamber Orchestra The most recent distinction came from the and of Kokkola Opera in Finland. New York Times, which chose the FRSO’s disc Mr Oramo has conducted many of the of works for orchestra by Magnus Lindberg as world’s leading orchestras, such as the Berlin, Record of the Year 2008. New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Oslo Phil- Sakari Oramo received an Honorary Doc- harmonics, the Orchestre de Paris, the Cleve- torate in summer 2004 from the University land and Minnesota Orchestras, the Concertge- of Central England in Birmingham. In sum- bouw Orchestra, the NHK Symphony and the mer 2008 he was awarded the prestigious El- Frankfurt RSO. The next few years will include gar Medal in recognition of his work to further visits to the Boston and Gothenburg Sympho- the reputation of Elgar and his music, and in ny Orchestras, the Staatskapelle Dresden and 2009 he was honoured with a British OBE for the Orchestre de Paris. In April 2010 he toured his services to music. Europe with the European Chamber Orchestra. With the FRSO Mr Oramo has toured to Vi- enna, Prague, Germany and Switzerland and Elina Vähälä Having made her debut with the Lahti Sym- in the United States, with the Minnesota Or- phony Orchestra when she was only 12, Eli- chestra, the Colorado and Oregon Sympho- na Vähälä was later chosen by conductor Osmo nies and other orchestras, and in chamber rep- Vänskä as the orchestra’s “Young Master Solo- ertoire at the Spoleto USA, Gilmore, El Paso, ist”. She has appeared with all the major Finn- Four Seasons Chamber Music and other festi- ish orchestras and around the world with the vals. She has been a visiting teacher in Venezue- English Chamber Orchestra. la’s El Sistema and the soloist with the Simón Since giving her debut New York recital in Bolívar Youth Orchestra, and in 2008 she was 1999, Vähälä has had regular solo engagements 2 3 invited to perform at the Nobel Peace Prize cer- In 1998 she also attended classes given by Ana emony and concert. Her disc of Haydn violin Chumachenco in Munich. concertos with the Virtuosi di Kuhmo was re- Vähälä has been Professor of the violin at leased in February 2009. the Hochschule für Musik in Detmold, Ger- Born in the United States and raised in Fin- many since October 2009. She is a founding land, Vähälä started to play the violin at the member of the Violin Academy sponsored by age of three. She studied under the guidance the Finnish Cultural Foundation and plays an of Zinaida Gilels, Ilja Grubert and Pavel Ver- Antonio Stradivari violin of 1678 on loan from nikov at the Kuhmo Violin School and received that Foundation. her diploma from the Sibelius Academy in 1999. Marko Ylönen Marko Ylönen was one of the finalists in the na- A keen chamber musician, Ylönen was Artis- tional Turku Cello Competition when he was tic Director of the Korsholm Music Festival in only 15. In 1990 won the second prize in the 2003, 2008 and 2010. Since autumn 2009 he Nordic Cello Competition and later was a laure- has been Professor of chamber music at the Si- ate in the Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow. belius Academy. In 1996 he won the first prize in the Concert Among the works in Ylönen’s discography Artist Guild Competition in New York. are both modern concertos and traditional rep- Ylönen has performed as a soloist and a ertoire, on the Ondine, BIS and Finlandia la- chamber musician in Finland and other Euro- bels. His most recent releases are a disc of two pean countries, Japan, Australia, New Zealand short cello pieces by Sibelius (Lahti Symphony and America. He is a regular soloist with all the Orchestra, cond. Osmo Vänskä, BIS), the Cel- professional Finnish orchestras and abroad has lo Concerto by Peteris Vasks (Tampere Philhar- appeared with such leading orchestras as the monic, John Storgårds, Ondine) and the Cello Camerata Salzburg, the English Chamber Or- Concerto by Joonas Kokkonen (FRSO, Sakari chestra, the Prague Chamber Orchestra and the Oramo, Ondine).