Hollow Victory: Jews in Soviet Russia After the World War LEON BOTSTEIN, Conductor

Home , Kirill Kondrashin, Mikhail Svetlov (bass), Solomon Mikhoels, The Cranes Are Flying, The Idiot (opera), The Passenger (opera)

Sunday Afternoon, January 28, 2018, at 2:00 Isaac Stern Auditorium / Ronald O. Perelman Stage Conductor’s Notes Q&A with Leon Botstein at 1:00

presents Hollow Victory: Jews in Soviet Russia after the World War LEON BOTSTEIN, Conductor

MIECZYSŁAW WEINBERG Rhapsody on Moldavian Themes

MIECZYSŁAW WEINBERG Symphony No. 5 in F minor, Op. 76 Allegro moderato Adagio sostenuto Allegro Andantino

Intermission

VENIAMIN FLEISHMAN Rothschild’s Violin Yakov (Bronze): MIKHAIL SVETLOV, Bass Rothschild: AARON BLAKE, Tenor Shahkes: MARC HELLER, Tenor Marfa: JENNIFER RODERER, Mezzo-soprano

members of the BARD FESTIVAL CHORALE JAMES BAGWELL, Director

This afternoon’s concert will run approximately 2 hours and 10 minutes including one 20-minute intermission.

American Symphony Orchestra welcomes the many organizations who participate in our Community Access Program, which provides free and low-cost tickets to underserved groups in New York’s five boroughs. For information on how you can support this program, please call (212) 868-9276.

PLEASE SWITCH OFF YOUR CELL PHONES AND OTHER ELECTRONIC DEVICES. FROM THE Music Director The Courage of Friendship: The story “Rothschild’s Violin.” He com- Composer as Jew in the Soviet Union pleted and orchestrated the work in by Leon Botstein 1944. It was a labor of love and admi- ration. But the persistence if not The historical thread running through increase in anti-Semitism after the war this concert program is the presence made any performance of the work and persecution of the Jews of Poland impossible despite Shostakovich’s advo- and Soviet Russia in the mid-20th cen- cacy. Only four years after the 1956 tury. The nearly total annihilation of start of de-Stalinization and the “thaw” the Jews that began in 1939 with the in communist Russia, a concert perfor- Nazi invasion of Poland and proceeded mance was arranged in 1960. The first with increased intensity after Hitler’s staged performance occurred in 1968 at invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941 the Leningrad Conservatory, the place had an unexpected and grim epilogue. where Fleishman had been a student In 1948 Stalin launched his post-war and Shostakovich his teacher. campaign against the surviving Jewish population in the Soviet Union. Each of Shostakovich’s relationship to the the three composers on this program Soviet regime, both under Stalin and struggled to come to terms with this after, until his death, has remained a extended period of unparalleled brutal- subject of intense scrutiny and debate. ity in the history of anti-Semitism. To what extent was he an “official” voice of the regime? Is there a subtext Veniamin Fleishman, at age 23, began of dissent beneath the frequently affir- to study with Dmitri Shostakovich. mative aesthetic surface of his works? Fleishman was both Jewish and a Soviet Amidst the controversy, one salient fact patriot. He volunteered to join in the remains beyond dispute. Shostakovich defense of Leningrad in 1941 and was was free of anti-Semitism. And that was killed early on in the siege of the city. apparent in his devotion to Fleishman’s The protracted and savage Nazi attempt memory, and in his steadfast friendship to eradicate Leningrad deeply affected with Mieczysław Weinberg, the Warsaw- Shostakovich. He was evacuated to born Jewish composer who fled east safety in the East but wrote what into the Soviet Union after the Nazi quickly became internationally his most occupation of Poland. famous symphony, the Seventh. Its pop- ularity inspired Bartók to quote it sar- Shostakovich met Weinberg during the donically in the 1945 Concerto for war. He persuaded Weinberg to move Orchestra. Shostakovich’s Seventh was to Moscow and remain in the Soviet written in response to the siege, the suf- Union. Weinberg became Shostakovich’s fering of its inhabitants and the heroism closest musical colleague and a dear of the city’s defenders. friend for the rest of his life. When Weinberg was arrested in 1953 during While in exile during the war, the height of Stalin’s anti-Jewish cam- Shostakovich also went to great paign, Shostakovich showed extraordi- lengths to get hold of Fleishman’s nary courage. He intervened with incomplete manuscript of a one-act Lavrenti Beria, the head of the KGB, to opera based on Anton Chekhov’s short seek Weinberg’s release, but to no avail. He pledged to place Weinberg’s daugh- Zionism to overcome anti-Semitism in ter under his personal protection, Europe. The solution lay not in the cre- thereby putting himself at risk. Only ation of a Jewish state in Palestine, but Stalin’s death in March 1953 secured in a socialist revolution at home after Weinberg’s release and restoration to which neither religion nor national professional life. From then on, through- identity would remain a cause of dis- out the subsequent two decades, crimination and oppression. Shostakovich encouraged and pro- moted Weinberg’s work as a composer. The sympathies of Weinberg’s parents also represented the view of most Jews It would be hard to imagine a biogra- in interwar Poland in the years in which phy that reveals the complexities and the young Weinberg grew up. In the contradictions associated with being Polish Census of 1931—completed Jewish and an artist in interwar Poland when Weinberg was 14 years old—out and in Soviet Russia before, during, and of nearly 32 million Poles, roughly ten after the Nazi defeat in 1945 more percent were Jews. Out of these 3.1 mil- vividly and subtly than that of Weinberg. lion Jews, 2.5 million identified their Weinberg’s parents were professionals primary language as Yiddish; only in the Yiddish theatre: his father was a 250,000 claimed Hebrew as their main musician and his mother an actress. They language. The large Jewish community fled to Warsaw from Kishinev (in the in Warsaw, where Weinberg came of province of Bessarabia) in response to age, represented 30 percent of the city’s the massacre of Jews in 1903 and 1905. population. Weinberg’s parents chose The Kishinev pogrom became notori- to settle in Warsaw (then part of the ous throughout the world. It was marked Russian Empire) because it was the sin- both by its startling violence and the gle largest Jewish urban center in Europe, thinly veiled, tacit consent of the Czarist and second in size only to New York. regime. It spurred mass emigration on On the eve of World War II, in 1939, the part of Jews and was easily exploited the year Weinberg graduated from the on behalf of the Zionist cause. The Warsaw Conservatory (where he dis- pogrom helped justify the idea that a played brilliance as both pianist and Jewish state in Palestine was the only composer), there were 350,000 Jews in solution to the precarious position of Warsaw. The Warsaw Jewish commu- Jews in Europe; it also lent credence to nity was exceptionally diverse, and con- those Zionists who argued that Jews in tained everything from fully assimilated the meantime should form paramilitary and well-to-do, Polish-speaking, Jewish organizations to defend themselves. inhabitants to a large Yiddish-speaking, poor, working-class population, a vocal But Weinberg’s parents were not Zion- group of Zionists and devout orthodox ists. They mirrored the views of the adherents to religion. majority of Russian Jews. They did not dream of a Jewish state in Palestine and The sheer size of the Warsaw commu- their daily language was not a rapidly nity made it possible for it to support a evolving Hebrew. They were Yiddish thriving Yiddish theater world, Yiddish speakers and ardent defenders of Yid- newspapers and journals, and publish- dish as the national language of the ing houses. Weinberg began to work as Jewish people. They were determined a musician in the Yiddish theater at age to remain in Eastern Europe and were ten. But this vital Jewish community sympathetic to socialist organizations met its tragic end at the hands of the that saw a different path from that of Nazis. Weinberg’s parents and sister perished. But Weinberg, as a vigorous as a subversive “bourgeois Jewish 20-year-old, understood that staying nationalist” who supposedly supported behind was not a promising option. the creation of a Jewish state within the Furthermore, like many non-Zionist, Soviet Union. Yiddish-oriented Jews, he admired socialism and the Soviet Union. Nonetheless, after his release Weinberg remained optimistic, prolific, and Indeed for many Jews the Soviet Union courageous. A large part of his compo- during the 1920s and even the 1930s sitional output dealt directly with Jew- seemed a potential paradise, a place— ish themes, particularly its folk her- whatever its faults—that was built on itage, its Yiddish culture, and, of course, an ideology that promised a better the suffering Jews endured. His last future, a world of equality, free of symphony, his No. 26, was a memorial superstitious religion prejudice. The to the victims of the Warsaw Ghetto. Soviet Union after 1921 offered a con- And he wrote an opera based on a trast to a Catholic and conservative, Sholom Aleichem story. Yet Weinberg’s authoritarian, independent Poland, range was astonishing. He wrote for the where anti-Semitism flourished. Fleeing movies, the radio, the circus, the the- Poland was not merely a concession ater, and the concert stage. He set texts born out of necessity. Weinberg sur- by the Polish poet Julian Tuwim (also a vived the war in Soviet Russia, and no Jew), Nikolai Gogol, G.B Shaw, and matter how poor the treatment he Mikhail Lermontov. The ASO has per- received in the post-war years was, or formed several of his works, including how extreme the danger from anti- the trumpet and cello concertos, and Semitism he lived under, he remained the 1963 Sixth Symphony that calls for loyal to the ideals of the regime and the a children’s chorus singing Yiddish promise of socialism. songs. In the current Weinberg revival, long overdue and welcome, the 1968 Early on the new Soviet regime defined opera The Passenger, which deals with Jews as a nation equivalent to the many the Holocaust, has become Weinberg’s other legally recognized national and most visible work. Weinberg’s 1985 ethnic groups in the Soviet Union. Yid- opera The Idiot, based on Dostoyevsky’s dish was deemed the language of the novel, deserves the same recognition. Jewish nation. The state supported Yid- dish publishing houses, theatres, and Weinberg’s reputation has ironically Yiddish culture and even sponsored a also suffered a bit by too close a con- revision in Yiddish orthography. Yid- nection to Shostakovich. He is quickly dish culture flourished under Soviet set aside as an imitator who was too rule until the mid-1930s, and once enthralled by his patron’s aesthetic. But again during the war and briefly there- the influence went both ways. No doubt after. The creation of the State of Israel Weinberg was in awe of Shostakovich in 1948, which the Soviets legally rec- and deeply grateful for the role he ognized, however, offered Stalin the played in his career. But in the immense chance to pursue a dream he had har- catalogue Weinberg produced are works bored for years: to pick up where Hitler that mark Weinberg’s individual style. had left off. One of his first acts was to These range from the film music for have Weinberg’s father-in-law, the great The Cranes are Flying from 1957; the Yiddish actor, Solomon Mikhoels, a 1949 Rhapsody on Moldavian Themes, prominent and popular figure, assassi- a work made possible by Weinberg’s nated. Weinberg would later be arrested childhood memories of the music from the region from which his parents affirmative music writing, and the other came; and the Fifth Symphony of a novel exploration of symphonic form, 1962, inspired by the 1961 revival of a “formalist” work that risked condem- Shostakovich’s once suppressed mod- nation as heterodox and contrary to ernist and ambitious Fourth Symphony, state ideology—one encounters con- composed in the mid-1930s. flicting strands in the life and work of a composer under Soviet rule. The final The music on this concert is therefore a irony in the life of this remarkable com- tribute to friendship: Shostakovich’s ca - poser, whose life was dominated by pacity for loyalty and his absence of prej- both his Jewish heritage and his belief udice, and the rich legacy of Weinberg’s in the potential of the Soviet Union, music, which stands as a validation of was that before his death, crippled by that friendship. The concert also puts Crohn’s disease, Weinberg converted into sharp relief the constraints and from Judaism to the Russian Orthodox possibilities surrounding the making of faith. Fleishman’s death and Weinberg’s art for all composers in a regime where conversion poign antly underscore the music was controlled through the monop- tension, terror, tragedy, and triumph that oly of the state. Through the prism of relentlessly accompanied survival as a two pieces by Weinberg—one tied to Jew in Poland and Russia during the the Soviet preference for folk-based mid-20th century.

THE Program by Peter Laki

Mieczysław Weinberg Born December 8, 1919, in Warsaw, Poland Died February 26, 1996, in Moscow, Russia

Rhapsody on Moldavian Themes Composed in 1949 Premiered on November 30, 1949, in Moscow by the All-Union Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Alexander Gauk Performance Time: Approximately 12 minutes

Instruments for this performance: 3 flutes, 1 piccolo, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 5 French horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, 1 tuba, timpani, percussion (bass drum, snare drum, tambourine, triangle, crash cymbals, glockenspiel), 1 harp, 18 violins, 6 violas, 6 cellos, and 5 double basses

During the last decade or so, a true most of his life in Moscow, composed Mieczysław Weinberg renaissance has seven operas, 22 symphonies, 17 string begun in the concert halls of the world. quartets, and more than 100 other Weinberg, who fled the Nazis from works, large and small, in just about Poland to the Soviet Union and spent every possible genre of classical music. He was a close friend and frequent duo- had been annexed by the Soviet Union piano partner of Shostakovich, who in 1940, the year after Weinberg’s flight thought the world of him. During his from Poland. lifetime, Weinberg's music was performed by the greatest musicians in the Obeying political directives was more Soviet Union and he received numerous vital than ever in 1949, one year after awards, but he never travelled abroad an infamous Party resolution had not and his work was, for many years, a only harshly denounced but physically well-kept secret outside the country. threatened the country’s most famous composers. In Weinberg’s case, the gen- Weinberg was born in Warsaw to parents eral calamity had been compounded by who were originally from Bessarabia, the an even more disastrous event involving present-day Republic of Moldova. His his immediate family: in January 1948 father was a violin player and composer his father-in-law, the famous Yiddish working for Jewish theater troupes in actor Solomon Michoels, was mur- Bessarabia before migrating to Poland, dered in Minsk on direct orders from where he and his wife raised their Stalin. It was under such historical cir- two children. With the exception of cumstances that the Rhapsody on Mol- Mieczysław, who escaped in time, his davian Themes was written. parents and his sister were murdered by the Nazis after the invasion of Poland. The Rhapsody strings together a number of folk songs from Moldavia, a country The Soviet Communist Party always that is culturally and linguistically very urged composers to use melodies from close to Romania. Most of the melodies the country’s various ethnic traditions. Weinberg used belong to the majority It was natural for Weinberg to turn to population, but the fiery final section is an Moldavia, his parents’ birthplace, which unmistakable Jewish klezmer dance tune.

Mieczysław Weinberg Symphony No. 5 in F minor, Op. 76 Composed in 1962 Premiered on October 18, 1962, in Moscow by the Moscow Symphony, conducted by Kirill Kondrashin Performance Time: Approximately 42 minutes

Instruments for this performance: 4 flutes, 2 piccolos, 2 oboes, 1 English horn, 3 clarinets, 1 E-flat clarinet, 1 Bass clarinet, 3 bassoons, 1 contrabassoon, 7 French horns, 4 trumpets, 3 trombones, 1 tuba, timpani, percussion (bass drum, snare drum, tambourine, tam-tam, triangle), 1 harp, celeste, 18 violins, 6 violas, 6 cellos, and 5 double basses Weinberg’s Fifth Symphony may be 1946. The Fourth is one of Shostakovich’s seen as the composer’s response to boldest creations, using modernistic Shostakovich’s Fourth, which was first means to convey a rather bleak artistic performed publicly in 1961, 25 years vision. That is where Weinberg took his after it was written. Weinberg had been cue (the allusion is particularly clear at familiar with the work long before the the end of the symphony), although he official premiere, as he and Shostakovich also incorporated lessons learned from had played it through on two pianos, Shostakovich's more classically ori- for an invited audience, as early as ented Fifth Symphony. Weinberg’s Fifth is written in F minor, a cheeky melody first presented by the key with traditional associations of piccolo to an accompaniment of soft gloom. It is clearly not a “triumphant” timpani strokes (suggesting some latter- work in the sense of Orthodox Com- day pipe and tabor), but even here, the munist doctrine; it is a product of the playfulness cannot be maintained indef- “thaw” under Nikita Khrushchev. initely as the tone of the music becomes Weinberg had learned from Shostakovich more strident and what seemed a joke the art of working with extremely short at first increasingly takes on the character motifs such as the trumpet motif at the of an unsettling mystery. The finale stead- beginning of the first movement, which fastly clings to a relatively slow Andan- consists of a single interval, the perfect tino tempo; there is no question of a joy- fourth. Like Shostakovich, he was able ful conclusion. The gently undulating to present such pithy material with rhythm of the music briefly changes to great dramatic force and build a com- more martial accents before settling into plex sonata movement in which a dis- the mysterious noises of the conclusion. tant, idealized world clashes head-on According to the recollections of his with brutal reality. The second move- friends, Weinberg was a very reserved ment is an extended lament in a very person who always kept his innermost slow Adagio tempo, featuring a number thoughts to himself; something of this of orchestral soloists (oboe, flute, secrecy (or shall we call it shyness?) shines cello), in which grief becomes a very through in the strangely understated personal matter. The third-movement movement that ends the most ambitious scherzo brings some relief with its symphony Weinberg had written to date.

Veniamin Fleishman Born July 20, 1913, in Bezhetsk, Russia Died September 14, 1941, in Krasnoye Selo, near Leningrad

Dmitri Shostakovich Born September 25, 1906, in St. Petersburg Died August 9, 1975, in Moscow

Rothschild’s Violin Composed by Fleishman in 1939–41, completed by Shostakovich in 1944 Premiered on June 20, 1960, in Moscow Performance Time: Approximately 40 minutes

Instruments for this performance: 3 flutes, 1 piccolo, 2 oboes, 1 English horn, 3 clarinets, 1 E-flat clarinet, 1 Bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, 1 contrabassoon, 5 French horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, 1 tuba, timpani, percussion (bass drum, snare drum, tambourine, crash cymbals, triangle, glockenspiel), 1 harp, 18 violins, 6 violas, 6 cellos, 5 double basses, chorus, and 4 vocal soloists

Shostakovich called Veniamin Fleishman the Nazi invasion of Russia, he enlisted his favorite student at the Leningrad in the Red Army. A few weeks later he Conservatory. At his teacher’s sugges- was killed. tion, Fleishman was working on a one- act opera based on Chekhov’s short Shostakovich took it upon himself to story “Rothschild's Violin” (he himself complete his student’s unfinished pro- had written the libretto) when, following ject. Evacuated from Leningrad to Kuibyshev, he went to considerable I’m dying.” As soon as she has made trouble to obtain Fleishman’s manu- this tragic announcement, the Jewish script and finished the orchestration in band next door strikes up a merry tune. 1944. However, because of its Jewish Then the band leaves and Rothschild, subject matter, the opera could not be staying behind by himself, plays a sad performed for many more years. It was song on his flute. played in concert in Moscow in 1960, but the staged premiere had to wait Throughout the opera Fleishman super- until 1968, when it was produced by imposes simultaneous events on one the Experimental Studio of Chamber another, as when Marfa reminisces Opera under the artistic direction of about the child she and Yakov lost 50 Solomon Volkov. years ago, while Yakov, who doesn’t even seem to remember, is thinking of The opera’s title character is a dirt-poor losses of a very different kind (mone- Jewish musician in a small provincial tary ones). Meanwhile the klezmer town in Russia who inherits the violin band resumes its practice. Dissatisfied at the end of the story from an equally with his musicians, Shahkes sends penniless Christian coffin-maker named Rothschild to Yakov’s house to request Yakov Ivanov (who, as it happens, (or, rather, to demand) that the coffin- plays in the town’s Jewish orchestra). maker come right away to help out the Chekhov’s story shows how dire indi- group. But when Rothschild appears, gence almost kills all human feeling in interrupting Yakov’s meditations about Yakov, who only undergoes a spiritual how he mistreated his wife for 50 transformation at death’s door. Yakov’s years, he receives an extremely un- life philosophy may be summed up in the friendly welcome and leaves in a famous line “Life is all loss, only death is hurry. The ensuing, extremely ani- gain.” Having quarreled endlessly with mated orchestral interlude shows him Rothschild the flute player, Yakov ends pursued by nasty street urchins shout- up bequeathing his fiddle, his only prized ing “Jew! Jew!” as they pursue him possession, to the young Jew. with their dogs.

Fleishman showed an excellent theatri- Yakov’s transformation takes place in cal sense in dramatizing Chekhov’s nar- his third and final solo scene. Revisiting rative. He eliminated all secondary the willow tree by the river where he sat characters and retained only the four with Marfa when they were young, he essential ones: Yakov; Rothschild; suddenly remembers everything and, in Shahkes, the leader of the Jewish band; the culminating scene of the opera, dis- and Yakov’s wife, Marfa. Right at the covers where his life went wrong. beginning of the opera he created a When Rothschild reappears, begging lively ensemble with the band rehears- him to come play in the orchestra that ing, Yakov chastising Rothschild for can’t do without him, Yakov gifts him playing a merry tune sadly, Rothschild his fiddle, and Rothschild immediately screaming back, and bandleader Shahkes begins to play his sad tune on it. The vainly trying to keep peace. As Yakov powerful orchestral postlude drives storms out, we follow him back to the home the transcendent significance of porch of his house, where he sings his first Yakov’s act. monologue about all the losses in life. Peter Laki is visiting associate profes- Marfa appears and, without any intro- sor of music at the Bard College Con- duction, says to her husband: “Yakov, servatory of Music. THE Artists

LEON BOTSTEIN, Conductor RIC KALLAHER RIC Leon Botstein has been music director and principal conductor of the Ameri- can Symphony Orchestra since 1992. He is also music director of The Orchestra Now, an innovative training orchestra composed of top musicians from around the world. He is co-artistic director of Bard SummerScape and the Bard Music Festival, which take place at the Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College. He has been president of Bard College since 1975. He is also conductor laure- ate of the Jerusalem Symphony Orches- tra, where he served as music director from 2003–11. This year he will assume artistic directorship of the Hyperion in fall of 2018 is a CD of Graffeneg Academy in Austria. music by Ferdinand Ries with The Orchestra Now. Mr. Botstein is also active as a guest conductor whose recent appearances Mr. Botstein is the author of numerous include the Mariinsky Orchestra in St. articles and books, including The Com- Petersburg, Russia, and the Los Angeles pleat Brahms (Norton), Jefferson’s Philharmonic. He has made numerous Children (Doubleday), Judentum und recordings with the London Symphony Modernität (Bölau), and Von (including a Grammy-nominated record- Beethoven zu Berg (Zsolnay). He is ing of Popov’s First Symphony), the also the editor of The Musical Quar- London Philharmonic, NDR-Hamburg, terly. For his contributions to music he and the Jerusalem Symphony Orches- has received the award of the American tra. Many of his live performances with Academy of Arts and Letters and Har- the American Symphony Orchestra are vard University’s prestigious Centen- available online. His recording with the nial Award, as well as the Cross of ASO of Paul Hindemith’s The Long Honor, First Class from the govern- Christmas Dinner was named one of ment of Austria. Other recent awards the top recordings of 2015 by several include the Bruckner Society’s Julio publications, and his recent recording Kilenyi Medal of Honor for his inter- of Gershwin piano music with the pretations of that composer’s music, Royal Philharmonic was hailed by and the Leonard Bernstein Award for The Guardian and called “something the Elevation of Music in Society. In special…in a crowded field” by Music - 2011 he was inducted into the Ameri- web International. Forthcoming from can Philosophical Society. AARON BLAKE, Tenor MATTCLARK MADISON Komische Oper Berlin and Minnesota Opera as Tamino in Die Zauberflöte; Utah Opera where he will return this season as Rinuccio in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi; Tulsa Opera as Nadir in Bizet’s Les Pecheurs de Perles; Dallas Opera as Romeo in Gounod’s Romeo et Juliette; Opera Orchestra of New York in Donizetti’s Parisina d’Este; Washing- ton National Opera in Donizetti’s Anna Bolena opposite Sondra Radvanovsky; and the Metropolitan Opera where he debuted opposite Plácido Domingo in Verdi’s La traviata.

Mr. Blake has appeared with The Ora- The recipient of a 2017 George London torio Society of New York in Carnegie Foundation Award, Aaron Blake has Hall. In the current season he returns to earned international recognition for his the Metropolitan Opera for Les Contes creation of the role of Timothy Laughlin d’Hoffmann and The Merry Widow. in Gregory Spears’ Fellow Travelers. He will recreate his portrayal of Timothy Recently Mr. Blake made a critically Laughlin in Fellow Travelers with the acclaimed debut with the New York Prototype Festival for the piece’s New City Opera in Péter Eötvös’ operatic York premiere. Debuts are scheduled as adaptation of Tony Kushner’s Angels in Alfredo in La Traviata with Wichita America. He has performed leading Grand Opera and a role debut as Can- roles with Cincinnati Opera as Don dide with the Atlanta Symphony-Alliance Ottavio in Don Giovanni, Pan in La Theater in a production celebrating the Calisto, and Tamino in Die Zauberflöte; Leonard Bernstein centennial.

MARC HELLER, Tenor

Recently Marc Heller made a wildly successful New York City Opera debut as Enrico in Respighi’s La Campana Sommersa. Last season he also performed as Turiddu and Canio in Cavalleria Rusticana/Pagliacci at Opéra-Théâtre de Metz Métropole, and as Don José in Carmen at the Bolshoi Theatre. He has also added Otello to his repertoire and has sung it at the Gran Teatre del Liceu, Barcelona; Hungarian State Opera; and Theater Erfurt, Germany. Upcoming engagements include Aida with Opera Columbus and Theater Magdeburg, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with the STEPHEN SHADRACH . Die The Dead Little , , opposite (Erda). Oft- Plateé with the Los , and Die Walküre Un Ballo in , , at the Hessisches Götterdämmerung at the Lithuanian Parsifal Siegfried Patience Lysistrata and returned to sing , (Ortrud), (Ortrud), Roméo et Juliette in Brazil, and Don Alvaro in Ernani with Lyric Opera of Chicago, . In 2005 she made a critically repeated roles include Mrs. Grose in (Waltraute), (Waltraute), and Lohengrin ety of Washington, D.C. in excerpts from excerpts in D.C. Washington, of ety Angeles Philharmonic; and several Flower maiden in Opera Pacific, and Seattle Opera; a Man Walking Women Other Wagnerian credits include acclaimed debut at the Teatro Colón acclaimed in debut at the Teatro Walküre Buenos Aires as Fricka in operas, including including operas, orchestral concerts with the Wagner Soci- Wagner the with concerts orchestral then followed with singing all Verdi roles Staatstheater in Wiesbaden. Mr. Heller made his Metropolitan National National Opera in Vilnius (Lithuanian premiere), Gustavo in Maschera La Forza del Destino Opera debut opposite Plácido Domingo Plácido opposite debut Opera Dun’s Tan of premiere world the in First Emperor Tybalt in Anna Netrebko and Roberto Alagna in the HD simulcast. t , a , Le for . for Palm Turando fa . In 2015 Falstaff Hansel Hansel & ů Mezzo-soprano with Opera Jen and Mrs. Lovett Der Freischütz Der ; with Chautauqua ; and reprised Amneris reprised and ; with Dallas Opera. Il trovatore and later in Cyrano de Bergerac in Karlsruhe, Germany. Having Germany. Karlsruhe, in with the New Jersey Festival

with Theater Magdeburg, at the Magdeburg, Theater with Lulu with Utah Opera, a signature role signature a Opera, Utah with Enemies, A Love Story

King King Roger Aida Le nozze di Figaro Sweeney Todd Sweeney Aida JENNIFER RODERER, With New York City Opera, Ms. Roderer Ms. Opera, City York New With has performed in a diverse array of and Opera Roanoke, among others. among Roanoke, Opera and Opera, Phoenix Symphony, Tulsa Opera, Tulsa Symphony, Phoenix Opera, pany pany of Philadelphia, New York City she has also performed with Opera Com- Opera with performed also has she Gretel in Roanoke Roanoke and the Witch in Alfano’s Alfano’s debut at the Metropolitan Opera in In 2017 Jennifer Roderer made her house her made Roderer Jennifer 2017 In Kát’a Kabanová Spoleto Festival USA as Kabanicha in Ms. Roderer recently made debuts with debuts made recently Roderer Ms. ered in the Metropolitan Opera where she cov- she where Opera Metropolitan the Beach Opera and joined the roster of opera Ben Moore and Nahma Sandrow’s new Sandrow’s Nahma and Moore Ben she created the role of Shifrah Puah in in in Azucena in Orchestra. Other performances include tival; with Syracuse Opera as Marcellina as Opera Syracuse with tival; Roanoke and Crested Butte Music Fes- role she has also performed with Opera with performed also has she role Opera as Mistress Quickly in Quickly Mistress as Opera with with the Pacific Mr. Symphony, Heller the the DomStufen Festival in Erfurt, and in the past few seasons in Minsk, Oviedo, Minsk, in seasons few past the in performed the of role in Calaf performed in such roles as Max in in Max as roles such in Theater Erfurt and Jean de Leyden in in Leyden de Jean and Erfurt Theater Prophète several several new productions internationally Royal Royal Albert Hall, and made debuts in Pyramids at Giza, at Utah Opera, and in and Opera, Utah at Giza, at Pyramids in in Mr. Heller reprised the roles of Radames of roles the reprised Heller Mr. and Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg, de Philharmonique Orchestre The Turn of the Screw (Toledo Opera, Ruth in The Pirates of Penzance (Lyric Lyric Opera of Kansas City, and Lorin Opera of Kansas City, Indianapolis Maazel’s Chateauville Foundation) and Opera, and Opera a la Carte).

MIKHAIL SVETLOV, Bass

Britten, and Chaliapin Festivals, and he has appeared with the London, Detroit, and Houston Symphony Orchestras; Berlin Philharmonic; Royal Scottish Orchestra; State Symphony Orchestra of Russia; RAI Orchestra; and Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

Mr. Svetlov has been featured in all the main bass roles in operas including Boris Godunov, Luisa Miller, Mac- beth, I Puritani, Faust, Tosca, La Forza del Destino, Nabucco, L’Amore dei tre Re, Bluebeard’s Castle, and Verdi’s Requiem, among dozens of others. His discography includes the world pre- Mikhail Svetlov has performed at miere of Rachmaninoff’s The Miserly Teatro Carlo Felice, Arena di Verona, Knight and Serov’s Judith on Le Chant Royal Albert Hall, Teatro Colón in du Monde, for which he received a Tel- Buenos Aires, and Teatro alla Scala erama Award; Shostakovich’s The with the Bolshoi Theatre. He has per- Gamblers on Delta Music; Prokofiev’s formed with the Metropolitan, New Betrothal in a Monastery on BMG York City, San Diego, Houston Grand, Classics; Shostakovich’s 14th Sym- Florida Grand, Baltimore, Atlanta, phony on Virgin Classics; Stravinsky’s Santa Fe, New Zealand, and Hamburg Histoire du Soldat on Koch Interna- State operas; and with Deutsche Oper tional Classics, for which he received a Berlin, Bayerische Staatsoper, L’Opéra Grammy nomination; Boris Godunov de Montréal, and Ópera de Bellas on Deutsche Gramophone; Tchaikovsky’s Artes. Festival performances include The Maid of Orleans for BBC Video; the Wexford, Salzburg, Bregenz, Gas- and Boris Godunov for the Met Live taad, Holland Park Opera, Edinburgh, in HD.

AMERICAN SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

Now in its 56th season, the American in 1992, creating thematic concerts Symphony Orchestra was founded in that explore music from the perspec- 1962 by Leopold Stokowski, with a tive of the visual arts, literature, reli- mission of making orchestral music gion, and history, and reviving rarely accessible and affordable for everyone. performed works that audiences would Music Director Leon Botstein expanded otherwise never have a chance to hear that mission when he joined the ASO performed live. The orchestra’s Vanguard Series con- Many of the world’s most accom- sists of multiple concerts annually at plished soloists have performed with Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. ASO the ASO, including Yo-Yo Ma, Deborah has also performed at the Richard B. Voigt, and Sarah Chang. The orchestra Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at has released several recordings on the Bard College in Bard’s SummerScape Telarc, New World, Bridge, Koch, and Festival and the Bard Music Festival. Vanguard labels, and many live perfor- The orchestra has made several tours of mances are also available for digital Asia and Europe, and has performed in download. In many cases these are the countless benefits for organizations only existing recordings of some of the including the Jerusalem Foundation rare works that have been rediscovered and PBS. in ASO performances.

BARD FESTIVAL CHORALE

The Bard Festival Chorale was formed its members have distinguished careers in 2003 as the resident choir of the as soloists and as performers in a vari- Bard Music Festival. It consists of the ety of choral groups; all possess a finest ensemble singers from New York shared enthusiasm for the exploration City and surrounding areas. Many of of new and unfamiliar music.

JAMES BAGWELL, Director, Bard Festival Chorale

James Bagwell maintains an active conducting a number of major orches- international schedule as a conductor of tras across the country, including the choral, operatic, and orchestral music. San Francisco and Seattle Symphonies. He was most recently named associate conductor of The Orchestra Now and Mr. Bagwell has trained choruses for a in 2009 was appointed principal guest number of major American and inter- conductor of the American Symphony national orchestras, including the New Orchestra, leading them in concerts at York Philharmonic; Los Angeles Phil- both Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. harmonic; San Francisco, NHK (Japan), From 2009–15 he served as music direc- and St. Petersburg symphonies; and the tor of The Collegiate Chorale, with Budapest Festival, Mostly Mozart Fes- whom he conducted a number of rarely tival, American Symphony, Cincinnati performed operas-in-concert at Carnegie Symphony, Cincinnati Pops, and Indi- Hall, including Bellini’s Beatrice di anapolis symphony orchestras. Since Tenda, Rossini’s Möise et Pharaon, and 2003 he has been director of choruses Boito’s Mefistofele. He conducted the for the Bard Music Festival, conducting New York premiere of Philip Glass’ and preparing choral works during the Toltec Symphony and Golijov’s Oceana, summer festival at The Richard B. both at Carnegie Hall. His perfor- Fisher Center for the Performing Arts mance of Kurt Weill’s Knickerbocker at Bard College. Holiday at Alice Tully Hall was recorded live for Gaslight Records and is the Mr. Bagwell conducted some 25 pro- only complete recording of this musi- ductions as music director of Light cal. Since 2011 he has collaborated with Opera Oklahoma. At Bard SummerScape singer and composer Natalie Merchant, he has led various theatrical works, most notably The Tender Land, which music director of The Dessoff Choirs in received glowing praise from The New New York, who under his leadership York Times, The New Yorker, and made numerous appearances at Carnegie Opera News. From 2005–10 he was Hall in addition to their regular season.

AMERICAN SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA Leon Botstein, Conductor

VIOLIN I CELLO Liam Burke TUBA Gabrielle Fink, Eugene Moye, Benjamin Baron, Kyle Turner, Concertmaster Principal Bass Clarinet Principal Ragga Petursdottir Annabelle Hoffman Yukie Handa Sarah Carter BASSOON TIMPANI Ashley Horne Maureen Hynes Marc Goldberg, Benjamin Herman, Diane Bruce Alberto Parrini Principal Principal Patricia Davis Diane Barere Maureen Strenge Wende Namkung Gilbert Dejean, PERCUSSION Katherine Livolsi- BASS Contrabassoon Jonathan Haas, Landou John Beal, Principal Principal Mara Milkis Jordan Frazier HORN Kory Grossman Nazig Tchakarian Jack Wenger Zohar Schondorf, Charles Descarfino Louis Bruno Principal Javier Diaz VIOLIN II Richard Ostrovsky David Smith Matthew Beaumont Suzanne Gilman, Kyle Hoyt Principal FLUTE Chad Yarbrough HARP Robert Zubrycki Yevgeny Faniuk, Sara Cyrus Victoria Drake, Yana Goichman Principal Shelagh Abate Principal Lucy Morganstern Karla Moe Steven Sherts, Dorothy Strahl Diva Goodfriend, Assistant CELESTE Alexander Vselensky Piccolo Elizabeth Wright, Philip Payton Keith Bonner TRUMPET Principal Ming Yang Carl Albach, OBOE Principal PERSONNEL VIOLA Alexandra Knoll, John Dent MANAGER Mark Holloway, Principal John Sheppard Matthew Dine Principal Erin Gustafson Carolyn Schoch Shelley Holland- Melanie Feld, ASSISTANT Moritz English Horn TROMBONE CONDUCTOR Sally Shumway Richard Clark, Zachary Schwartzman Adria Benjamin CLARINET Principal Jennifer Herman Todd Palmer, Principal Bradley Ward ORCHESTRA Elise Frawley Shari Hoffman, Jeffrey Caswell, Bass LIBRARIAN E-flat Clarinet Trombone Marc Cerri

BARD FESTIVAL CHORALE James Bagwell, Director

TENOR BASS CHORAL CONTRACTOR Mark Donato Blake Burroughs Nancy Wertsch Sean Fallen Steven Moore John Kawa Brian Mummert ASO BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Dimitri B. Papadimitriou, Chair Shirley A. Mueller, Esq. Thurmond Smithgall, Vice Chair Debra R. Pemstein Eileen Rhulen Miriam R. Berger Michael Dorf HONORARY MEMBERS Rachel Kalnicki Joel I. Berson, Esq. Jack Kliger L. Stan Stokowski

ASO ADMINISTRATION

Lynne Meloccaro, Executive Director James Bagwell, Principal Guest Conductor Oliver Inteeworn, General Manager Zachary Schwartzman, Assistant Conductor Brian J. Heck, Director of Marketing Richard Wilson, Composer-In-Residence Nicole M. de Jesús, Director of Development James Bagwell, Artistic Consultant Sebastian Danila, Library Manager Alice Terrett, Marketing Associate Carissa Shockley, Operations Assistant

AMERICAN SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA PATRONS

Ticket sales cover less than a quarter of the expenses for our full-size orchestral concerts.

The American Symphony Orchestra Board of Trustees, staff, and artists gratefully acknowledge the following individuals, foundations, corporations, and government agencies who help us to fulfill Leopold Stokowski’s avowed intention of making orchestral music accessible and affordable for everyone. While space permits us only to list gifts made at the Friends level and above, we value the generosity and vital support of all donors.

MAESTRO’S CIRCLE PATRONS Joanne and Richard Mrstik Jeanne Donovan Fisher Anonymous (3) James and Andrea Nelkin The Frank & Lydia Bergen The Amphion Foundation Anthony Richter Foundation Joel I. and Ann Berson David E. Schwab II and Ruth New York City Department Connie S. P. Chen Schwartz Schwab of Cultural Affairs (DCA) The Elgar Society Dr. and Mrs. Thomas P. New York State Council on Karen Finkbeiner Sculco the Arts (NYSCA) Gary M. Giardina Janet Zimmerman Segal Open Society Foundations Arthur S. Leonard Joseph and Jean Sullivan Dr. Pamela F. Mazur and Siri von Reis STOKOWSKI CIRCLE Dr. Michael J. Miller Anonymous Shirley A. Mueller CONTRIBUTORS The Faith Golding Patricia E. Saigo Anonymous (3) Foundation, Inc. Gary Arthur Rachel and Shalom Kalnicki SUSTAINERS Jeffrey Caswell Dimitri B. and Rania Anonymous (4) Roger Chatfield Papadimitriou Veronica and John Elliott Forrest Mr. and Mrs. Richard E. Frankenstein Max and Eliane Hahn Wilson Stephen M. Graham Ashley Horne IBM Corporation Adnah G. and Grace W. BENEFACTORS Doug B. Jones Kostenbauder Anonymous Erica Kiesewetter Dr. Coco Lazaroff The David & Sylvia Patricia Kiley and Edward Nancy Leonard and Teitelbaum Fund, Inc. Faber Lawrence Kramer Jeanne Malter Steve Leventis Peter A. Q. Locker Laura Harris Bruce Smith and Paul Stephen J. Mc Ateer Linda Herskowitz Castellano Christine Munson Penelope Hort Gertrude Steinberg Kurt Rausch and Lorenzo Hudson Guild, Inc. Suzanne Steinberg Martone Sara Hunsicker Susan Stempleski Roland Riopelle and Leslie George H. Hutzler Hazel C. and Bernard Strauss Kanter Jewish Communal Fund Robert Sweeney Harriet Schon José Jiménez Margot K. Talenti Martha and David Schwartz Ronald S. Kahn Theodore and Alice Ginott Alan Stenzler Robert and Susan Kalish Cohn Philanthropic Fund Michael and Judith Thoyer Dr. Roses E. Katz Catherine Traykovski Mr. and Mrs. Jon P. Tilley Robert and Charlotte Kelly Susan and Charles Tribbitt Patricia Ross Weis Robert Keohane Mr. and Mrs. Jack Ullman David Kernahan Janet Whalen SUPPORTERS Irving and Rhoda Kleiman Victor Wheeler Anonymous (13) Caral G. and Robert A. Klein Donald W. Whipple American Express Gift Peter Kroll Larry A. Wehr Matching Program Dr. Carol Lachman Leonard and Ellen Zablow Bernard Aptekar Shirley Leong Alfred Zoller Marian D. Bach Linda Lopez John and Joanne Baer William Lubliner FRIENDS The Bank of America Joyce F. Luchtenberg Anonymous (4) Charitable Foundation Alan Mallach Madelyn P. Ashman Reina Barcan Elizabeth Mateo Rudolph Baker Carol Kitzes Baron Carolyn McColley Stephen Blum Ruth Baron Alan B. McDougall Mrs. A. Peter Brown Mary Ellin Barrett Sally and Bruce McMillen Diane Bruce and John Dr. Robert Basner Clifford S. Miller Sinclair David C. Beek and Gayle Myra Miller Joan Brunskill Christian Phyllis and Stanley Mishkin Stephen J. and Elena Chopek Simone Belda Lucy M. and Martin L. Nancy L. Clipper Yvette Bendahan Murray Robert Cohen Adria Benjamin Kenneth Nassau Concerts MacMusicson Daniel and Gisela Berkson Michael Nasser Patricia Contino Mona Yuter Brokaw Karen Olah Lois Conway Stephen M. Brown Clarence W. Olmstead, Jr. Judy Davis Marjorie Burns and Kathleen F. Heenan Thomas J. De Stefano Moshe Burstein Mather Pfeiffenberger Susanne Diamond CA Technologies Roger and Lorelle Phillips Ruth Dodziuk-Justitz and Richard C. Celler David R. Pozorski and Anna Jozef Dodziuk Barbara and Peter Clapman M. Romanski Barton Dominus Bette Collom and Anthony Anita Randolfi Jonathan F. Dzik Menninger Wayne H. Reagan Lee Evans Laura Conwesser Leonard Rosen and Phyllis Anne Stewart Fitzroy Michael and Frances Curran Rosen ExxonMobil Foundation William Diggs Jack Rosenthal and Holly Donald W. Fowle Herbert and Mary Donovan Russell Christopher H. Gibbs Paul Ehrlich Rochelle Rubinstein Goldman, Sachs & Co. Richard Farris Michael T. Ryan Robert Gottlieb Lynda Ferguson Henry Saltzman Michael and Ilene Gotts Martha Ferry Peter Lars Sandberg Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Jeffrey F. Friedman Nina C. and Emil Scheller Greenberg Helen Garcia Joe Ruddick and Mary Lou John Hall Ann and Lawrence Gilman Schemp Donald Hargreaves June O. Goldberg Sharon Schweidel Andrée Hayum Diva Goodfriend-Koven Gerald and Gloria Scorse John Helzer Gordon Gould Margret Sell Robert Herbert Greenwich House, Inc. Georgi Shimanovsky Diana F. Hobson John L. Haggerty Christopher Hollinger Cyma Horowitz Nancy Lupton Dr. and Mrs. Herbert C. Drs. Russell and Barbara Dr. Karen Manchester Schulberg Holstein Richard and Maryanne The Honorable Michael D. Theresa Johnson Mendelsohn Stallman Ginger Karren John D. Metcalfe Paul Stumpf Robin Katz Mark G. Miksic Madeline V. Taylor Peter Keil Alex Mitchell Renata and Burt Weinstein Kaori Kitao David Morton David A. Wilkinson Pete Klosterman Michael Nassar Ann and Doug William Frederick R. Koch Leonie Newman Kurt Wissbrun Seymour and Harriet Koenig Sandra Novick Dagmar and Wayne Yaddow Mr. and Mrs. Robert LaPorte Jane and Charles Prussack Lawrence Yagoda David Laurenson Bruce Raynor Mark and Gail Zarick Walter Levi Martin Richman Judd Levy Catherine Roach List current as of José A. Lopez John Roane January 17, 2017 Patricia Luca Dr. and Mrs. Arnold Rosen Sarah Luhby Leslie Salzman

Music plays a special part in the lives of many New York residents. The American Symphony Orchestra gratefully acknowledges the support of the following government agencies that have made a difference in the culture of New York:

New York State Council on the Arts with The City of New York the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo The Honorable Bill De Blasio, Mayor and the New York State Legislature NYC Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the New York City Council KEEP US ON POINT! SUPPORT THE ASO

Since 1962 the American Symphony Orchestra has done something incredible: present the widest array of orchestral works, performed at exceptional levels of artistry—and offered at the most accessible prices in New York City. Be they rare works or beloved masterpieces, no other orchestra dares to present the same depth of repertoire every single season.

But the ASO has urgent need of your support. Production costs for full-scale, orchestral concerts are ever increasing, while public philanthropy for the arts has decreased at an alarming rate. As always, we keep to our mission to maintain reasonable ticket prices, which means ASO depends even more than most other orchestras on philanthropic contributions.

That’s why we must call on you—our audiences, artists, and community partners who cannot imagine a world without opportunities to hear live Schubert, Strauss, Elgar, or Bernstein.

Every dollar counts. Please donate at any level to safeguard the ASO’s distinctive program- ming now and ensure another season!

ANNUAL FUND Annual gifts support the Orchestra’s creative concert series and educational programs. In appreciation, you will receive exclusive benefits that enhance your concert-going experience and bring you closer to the Orchestra.

SUSTAINING GIFTS Make your annual gift last longer with monthly or quarterly installments. Sustaining gifts provide the ASO with a dependable base of support and enable you to budget your giving.

MATCHING GIFTS More than 15,000 companies match employees’ contributions to non-profit organizations. Contact your human resources department to see if your gift can be matched. Matching gifts can double or triple the impact of your contribution while you enjoy additional benefits.

CORPORATE SUPPORT Have your corporation underwrite an American Symphony Orchestra concert and enjoy the many benefits of the collaboration, including corporate visibility and brand recognition, employee discounts, and opportunities for client entertainment. We will be able to provide you with individually tailored packages that will help you enhance your marketing efforts. For more information, please call 646.237.5022.

HOW TO DONATE Make your gift online: americansymphony.org/support

Please make checks payable to: American Symphony Orchestra

Mail to: American Symphony Orchestra 263 West 38th Street, 10th Floor New York, NY 10018

For questions or additional information: Nicole M. de Jesús, Director of Development, 646.237.5022 or [email protected]. ASO’S 2017–18 VANGUARD SERIES AT CARNEGIE HALL

Thursday, March 1, 2018 Intolerance

Leon Botstein, Conductor Daniel Weeks, Tenor Serena Benedetti, Soprano Hai-Ting Chinn, Mezzo-soprano Matthew Worth, Baritone Carsten Wittmoser, Bass-baritone Bard Festival Chorale

In post-Fascist Italy, Luigi Nono attempted to reverse the darkness of Mussolini and rescue art from being the handmaiden of the state. His one-act opera Intolleranza speaks out against dictatorship. It follows a migrant worker travelling home as he gets caught up in a political protest, is tortured in prison, and escapes to fight for a world without war.

Luigi Nono – Intolleranza Shop

TTaake Home a Piece of HistHistorryy

Visit the Carnegie Hall Shop on the Blaavatnikvatnik Family First Tier (second ﬂoor) of Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage or the Shop Kiosk on the Parterre level of Zankel Hall. Shop anytime at carnegiehall.org/shop.