ST JOHN’S SMITH SQUARE

PRINCIPAL SOUND 16–18 FEBRUARY 2018

Patron HRH The Duchess of Cornwall Mark Knoop Bozzini Quartet PRINCIPAL SOUND —— © Dimitri Djuric © Michael Slobodian

Following a critically Juliet Fraser acclaimed investigation of the music of Morton Feldman in 2016, Principal Sound returns for three days of concerts pairing more of his visionary music with a number of late masterpieces by Luigi Nono. FRAGMENTE STILLE Aisha Orazbayeva Bringing together some of —— contemporary music’s most respected Bozzini Quartet ensembles with the UK’s most exciting Clemens Merkel violin young talent – including St John’s Smith © Alissa Cheung violin Hugo Glendinning Square Young Artists George Barton Stéphanie Bozzini viola and Siwan Rhys – the festival offers Isabelle Bozzini cello the opportunity to be immersed in Claudia Molitor Und laß Dir jeden Tag the contemplative works of these THREE VOICES geschehen two giants of post-war music, both of A Clementi Excerpts from Otto Frammenti —— whom opened up new worlds of sonic RECEIVING THE John Lely Doubles exploration, focusing on the minutiae of Juliet Fraser soprano Nono Fragmente Stille, an Diotima Siwan Rhys piano APPROACHING individual voices, textures and sounds. Making a rare London appearance, the Explore Ensemble MEMORY Montreal-based Bozzini Quartet perform Newton Armstrong electronics Do join us for what promises to be —— Nono’s masterful response to the poetry Nicholas Moroz electronics Hölderlin alongside a quartet by Claudia an extraordinary three days. Aisha Orazbayeva violin Nono A Pierre. Dell’azzurro silenzio, Molitor inspired by lines from Rilke. Mark Knoop piano #PrincipalSound inquietum The programme is completed by a set of Schoenberg Sechs kleine Klavierstücke Op. 19 Schubert Impromptu in C minor enigmatic canons by Nono’s compatriot and Principal Sound is promoted by St John’s Smith Square Nono …..sofferte onde serene... Op. 90 No. 1 D899 near-contemporary Aldo Clementi, and the and curated by Sam Wigglesworth. Feldman Three Voices Feldman Palais de Mari clear, airy harmonies of John Lely’s Doubles. Cover photo: Luigi Nono © Graziano Arici 1983 Bryn Harrison Receiving the Approaching The festival opens with a showcase of Memory performers from across the festival, and Sat 17 February 7.00pm features works for performers and The music of Schubert occupied a very electronics. Schoenberg’s aphoristic piano special place in the musical imagination TICKETS pieces Op. 19 are framed by two works of Morton Feldman. Here Mark Knoop pairs evoking the atmosphere of Nono’s native Feldman’s last work for solo piano with a Festival Pass £40, YF £25 Venice, whilst Feldman’s Three Voices – which late Schubert impromptu. He is then joined #PRINCIPALSOUND Single Concert £15, YF £5 Juliet Fraser recently recorded to critical by Aisha Orazbayeva to perform music acclaim – sees the soloist accompanied by by Bryn Harrison, whose subtly shifting JOIN US ONLINE! Aged 30 and under? Sign up now two pre-recorded versions of herself to create textures extend Feldman’s language @StJohnsSmithSq to our Young Friends scheme (YF) the haunting, mesmeric textures. into the 21st century. /StJohnsSmithSquare to recieve £5 tickets to concerts /StJohnsSmithSquare throughout our season. Fri 16 February 7.30pm Sat 17 February 4.00pm /StJohnsSmithSquare Visit sjss.org.uk/young-friends /StJohnsSmithSquare George Barton & Siwan Rhys © Dejan Mrdja

SARÀ DOLCE TACERE —— Explore Ensemble

Linda Catlin Smith EXAUDI James Weeks director Salvatore Sciarrino Lo Spazio Inverso György Kurtág ‘An.../A...’ from Hölderlin- Gesänge No. 1 for solo baritone Nono Sarà Dolce Tacere Cage Five

Exaudi Machaut Rose, liz, printemps, verdure Linda Catlin Smith Uncertain for 8 voices © Matthew Andrews (world premiere) György Kurtág Selection from Signs, Games and Messages for solo violin Machaut Dame, je suis cils Rebecca Saunders Molly’s Song 3 – Shades of Crimson John Croft Trio (Seirēnes III) Feldman Voices and cello WHY PATTERNS? John Croft Quartet (Seirēnes IV) —— Wolfgang Rihm Quo me rapis Jenni Hogan flute A new choral work by Linda Catlin Smith, George Barton percussion setting fragments from Virginia Woolf’s Siwan Rhys piano & celesta The Years, crowns this intricate programme Clemens Merkel violin from Explore Ensemble and Exaudi which Alissa Cheung violin sets luscious Machaut chansons alongside John Cage and Rebecca Saunders. Elsewhere, E Brown Hodograph I the fractured soundworld of late Nono finds Jürg Frey Circular Music No. 4 for celesta resonances in a pair of dusky chamber works Nono ‘Hay que caminar’ soñando by John Croft, Wolfgang Rihm’s imposing Webern Variations for piano Op. 27 Quo me rapis, and fragile miniatures by Feldman Why Patterns? Feldman and György Kurtág. After their astounding performance of Feldman’s For Philip Guston in 2016, Sun 18 February 7.00pm Jenni Hogan, George Barton and Siwan Rhys return to Principal Sound to perform his mesmerising Why Patterns? Nono’s last completed work, the fragmentary violin BOX OFFICE 020 7222 1061 duet ‘Hay que caminar’ soñando, is performed by members of the Bozzini (Mon–Sat 10.00am–5.00pm) Quartet, whilst an effervescent trio by sjss.org.uk Earle Brown (commissioned by Nono for Booking fees per transaction: the Darmstadt Festival) is balanced by £2.75 phone / £1.75 online crystalline keyboard works from Webern and Jürg Frey. St John’s Smith Square Charitable Trust Smith Square, London SW1P 3HA Sun 18 February 4.00pm Registered in England Company No. 3028678 Charity No. 1045390