Program ONe HuNdRed TweNTieTH SeASON Chicago Symphony orchestra riccardo muti Music director Pierre Boulez Helen Regenstein Conductor emeritus Yo-Yo ma Judson and Joyce Green Creative Consultant Global Sponsor of the CSO Thursday, November 18, 2010, at 8:00 Saturday, November 20, 2010, at 8:00 Sunday, November 21, 2010, at 3:00 Tuesday, November 23, 2010, at 7:30 Sir andrew Davis Conductor Vladimir Feltsman Piano Turnage Texan Tenebrae Commissioned by the Canary Islands Music Festival for the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra United States premiere Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, Op. 58 Allegro moderato Andante con moto— Rondo: Vivace VlAdiMiR FelTSMAN InTermISSIon Vaughan Williams Symphony No. 9 in e Minor Moderato maestoso Andante sostenuto Scherzo: Allegro pesante Andante tranquillo First Chicago Symphony Orchestra performances CSO Tuesday series concerts are sponsored by United Airlines. Steinway is the official piano of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. This program is partially supported by grants from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency, and the National Endowment for the Arts. CommenTS by PHilliP HuSCHeR mark-anthony Turnage Born June 10, 1960, Grays, Essex, England. Texan Tenebrae ark-Anthony Turnage, who death of Anna Nicole Smith a good Mis no stranger to controversy, subject for an opera?” 78.2 percent surprised even some of the people of the respondents said yes. who know his music best when he It was Turnage’s first opera, announced that he was writing an Greek, completed in 1988, that opera about Anna Nicole Smith, began to attract international the American model and celebrity attention for the composer, and who died in 2007 of an appar- it also made headlines because of ent drug overdose, following the the violence of its theme (an urban death of her twenty-year-old son, a updating of the Oedipus myth, lengthy lawsuit over her husband’s with “Eddy” fighting the sphinx of estate, and a dispute over the Margaret Thatcher’s conservatism); paternity of her newborn daughter. the occasional obscenity of its hard- Complicated and lurid stories have hitting libretto; and its eclectic long been the mainstay of opera, musical style, with touches of jazz, and, in recent years, more and more soul, and football songs. Turnage’s contemporary subjects, sometimes roots in popular music are also practically lifted from the pages of particularly strong in the Miles the tabloids, have made their way Davis–influenced Some Days, the to the opera house. When London’s first piece of his that the Chicago The Guardian conducted a poll last Symphony played, under Bernard February, asking “Is the life and Haitink’s baton, in 1997. (Miles ComPoSeD FIrST PerFormanCe three trumpets, two 2009 January 21, 2010, Santa Cruz trombones, two soprano de Tenerife, by the lPO saxophones, tubular bells, Commissioned by the vibraphone, triangle, güiro, Canary islands Music These are the first CSO bass drum, tenor drum, Festival for the london performances, u.S. premiere suspended cymbal, tam-tam, Philharmonic Orchestra, harp, celesta, piano, strings the Royal Concertgebouw InSTrumenTaTIon Orchestra, and the Chicago three flutes, three oboes, aPProxImaTe Symphony Orchestra two clarinets and bass PerFormanCe TIme clarinet, two bassoons and 9 minutes contrabassoon, four horns, 2 and Stravinsky were Turnage’s two performed here by the Orchestra biggest obsessions when he was under Haitink in 2007. in his teens, and each helped to Texan Tenebrae is an orchestral shape his own emerging voice as a fantasy on material from Turnage’s composer.) Jazz and classical music new opera Anna Nicole, which cohabitate in many of Turnage’s will be given its premiere by the major works, particularly pieces Royal Opera House at Covent such as Scorched, a work for jazz trio Garden in February, conducted and orchestra that the CSO played by Antonio Pappano, with Eva- in May 2009. Maria Westbroek in the title role. Trained at the Royal College of (Turnage’s librettist is Richard Music and a student, in the broad- Thomas, who was one of the est sense of the word, of Oliver creators of Jerry Springer: The Knussen, John Lambert, Gunther Opera.) Texan Tenebrae unfolds in Schuller, and Hans Werner Henze, a single span of slow music, dark Turnage became the Chicago and tragic in tone. The Texan of the Symphony’s Mead Composer-in- title is Anna Nicole, who was born Residence in 2006. During his Vickie Lynn Hogan in the small four seasons with the Orchestra, town of Mexia (the town motto is Chicagoans heard several major “a great place, no matter how you new works by Turnage, includ- pronounce it”) near Houston, in ing No Let Up, commissioned 1967. Tenebrae, the Latin word for by the MusicNOW series; From darkness or shadows, refers to the All Sides, Turnage’s first work for Holy Week services of penitence dance, premiered by the CSO and and lamentation. After the tolling Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, bells that open the piece, Turnage with choreography by Jorma Elo; introduces his main theme—music and Chicago Remains, a tribute to that is associated with Anna our city’s powers of reinvention Nicole in the opera—which is and our architectural modern- based on a melody from Mahler’s ism—it was inspired by a Chicago Kindertotenlieder—songs on the River boat cruise—that was first death of children. 3 Ludwig van Beethoven Born December 16, 1770, Bonn, Germany. Died March 26, 1827, Vienna, Austria. Piano Concerto no. 4 in g major, op. 58 n December 17, 1808, a substantial program—long even OViennese paper announced a by the generous standards of the concert to be given by Ludwig van nineteenth century—were three Beethoven at the Theater an der movements from the Mass in C, Wien five days later: “All the pieces the concert aria Ah! perfido, and are of his own composition, entirely improvisations at the keyboard by new, and not yet heard in public.” the composer. Although Beethoven’s publicist “There we sat from 6:30 till fudged that last detail ever so 10:30,” the composer J.F. Reichardt slightly, the list of world premieres later recalled, “in the most bitter lined up for one evening is aston- cold, and found by experience that ishing: both the Fifth and Sixth one might have too much even symphonies; the Choral Fantasy; of a good thing.” What should and this work, Beethoven’s fourth have been the greatest night of piano concerto. (Those who didn’t Beethoven’s career was ruined by like too much new and unfamiliar too much music and too little heat. music at one sitting surely stayed The performances were no doubt home that night.) To round out this wretched, for rehearsals had gone ComPoSeD moST reCenT aPProxImaTe 1805–early 1806 CSo PerFormanCeS PerFormanCe TIme November 30, 2008; 34 minutes FIrST PerFormanCeS Orchestra Hall; Murray private: March 1807, Vienna, Perahia, pianist; bernard CSo reCorDIngS the composer as soloist Haitink conducting 1942 with Artur Schnabel, pianist, and Frederick Stock public premiere: July 16, 2010; Ravinia conducting, RCA december 22, 1808, Vienna, Festival; Jorge Federico the composer as soloist Osorio, pianist; James 1963 with Van Cliburn, Conlon conducting pianist, and Fritz Reiner FIrST CSo conducting, RCA PerFormanCe InSTrumenTaTIon 1972 with Vladimir November 4, 1892; solo piano, one flute, two Ashkenazy, pianist, and Auditorium Theatre; Ferrucio oboes, two clarinets, two Sir Georg Solti conducting, busoni, pianist; Theodore bassoons, two horns, two london Thomas conducting trumpets, timpani, strings 1983 with Alfred brendel, CaDenzaS pianist, and James levine by beethoven conducting, Philips 4 badly. For one thing, Beethoven this concerto in G major, and surely had so annoyed the members of most members of the audience were the Theater an der Wien orchestra surprised that he went straight to the previous month that they now the keyboard and started to play. insisted that he sit in the anteroom Anyone who troubled to buy a whenever he wasn’t needed at the ticket to this concert would have keyboard and wait for the concert- known that a concerto begins with master to check with him between a long orchestral exposition that movements. Beethoven was so gives you all the tunes before the desperate to see this concert take soloist begins. But Beethoven had place that he agreed. (It promised begun to examine every conven- him both wide exposure and a tion he inherited, to rethink every nice profit.) choice a composer could make. Not surprisingly, there wasn’t He realized that the only way enough time for the orchestra to to call greater attention to the learn so much challenging new soloist’s first line was to do some- music. Reichardt remembered that thing unexpected. In his Violin “it had been found impossible to Concerto, first performed several get a single full rehearsal for all the months before, he had made the pieces to be performed, every one of wait almost interminable and then them filled with the greatest diffi- sneaked the violinist in, so that if culties.” The Choral Fantasy, which you weren’t paying attention you Beethoven composed at the very missed it altogether. And here, he last moment (inexplicably thinking caught his audience completely the concert lacked a blockbuster off guard again by starting with finish), was scarcely rehearsed at the piano. It’s a brilliant trick—so all. When it broke down completely perfectly handled that it has hardly during the performance, Beethoven ever been imitated—and Beethoven started it over again from the quickly follows one masterstroke beginning, making a very long with another—the orchestra enters evening even longer. six bars later in the unexpected key By all reports, Beethoven was of B major.