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Home , Ensemble Musikfabrik, Georg Friedrich Haas, Microtonal music

georg friedrich haas: in vain

2016/17 SEASON Londonsinfonietta.org.uk [email protected] Tweet us @Ldn_Sinfonietta Or find us on Facebook, Youtube and Instagram cue the new: how to listen to the 21st Century 2016/17 SEASON : in vain Thursday 27 April 2017 7.30pm, Royal Festival Hall

Georg Friedrich Haas in vain (2000) Brad Lubman conductor Please note 20 minutes of the piece will be performed in complete darkness.

6.30pm The Clore Ballroom Royal College of Ensemble Daniel Schnyder Olympia Georg Friedrich Haas Trombone Octet Byron Fulcher director Royal College of Music Trombone Ensemble: Jonathan Hollick Robert Moseley Ross Johnson David Pitts Nicolas Kent Alec Coles-Aldridge James Bluff James Maund Andrew Crampton Free pre-concert event

We hope you enjoy the concert this evening. Please do not hesitate to approach our Duty Manager and ushers with any questions you may have. If you wish to get in touch with us following your visit, please contact the Visitor Experience Team at Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London SE1 8XX, phone 020 7960 4250 or email [email protected]. We look forward to seeing you again soon.

The London Sinfonietta is grateful to Arts Council England for their generous support of the ensemble, as well as the many other individuals, trusts and businesses who enable us to realise our ambitions.

WELCOME Georg Freidrich Haas’ in vain is recognised Remembering Nona Liddell deservedly as one of the first masterpieces of the 21st century. We are proud to be performing it London Sinfonietta Principal First again, after we gave its UK premiere in 2013. We 1970–1994 are also very pleased to invite back Brad Lubman It is with great sadness that we have heard of to our ensemble, who has led us so successfully in the death of Nona Liddell. Nona led the London past projects. Sinfonietta from her violin chair for many years. New music of such quality can still present a For all players who worked with her, she was challenge to wider audiences – not least because a hugely valued colleague. The great tradition of its lack of familiarity. Encouraging people to of this ensemble was and continues to be experience such works in concert has driven some defined to a large degree by the fiercely talented of the choices of what we have performed this musicians who are passionate about new music year, balanced with the drive to commission or and commit themselves to it. Nona Liddell is give premieres. It’s been a long-standing mission foremost amongst these. of the London Sinfonietta to introduce and embed Nona was a formidable violinist, an inspirational new music with audiences who are curious – so woman, and a vital part of the London thanks for coming tonight and continuing your Sinfonietta and will be greatly missed. journey with us. Next season we reach our 50th anniversary, “I shall never forget her love of music, her joy in and we want to welcome more of you into the the music profession, her enjoyment of touring inner circle of our work. We are always grateful and her infectious sense of fun. She was an to the Arts Council, Southbank Centre and other inspiration to everybody connected with the supporters for their investment in our programme Sinfonietta and I shall miss her greatly.” or projects. But with donations from individuals, John Constable, London Sinfonietta Emeritus we can achieve much more. Please help us make Principal next year a true celebration - more details can be found in tonight’s programme. Enjoy tonight, and let us know what you think.

Andrew Burke Chief Executive

Tell us what you think We’re eager to know your thoughts on tonight’s concert and would be very grateful if you could fill in our short online survey. It’s very simple and only takes about 5 minutes. Take the survey by visiting: https://culturecounts.cc/s/2wYZPP in vain (2000) The light intensity in the concert hall during in articulation – unfailingly refers listeners to the vain is annotated in the score and ranges from sound and form, allowing in-between tones to “concertlighting as for podium and lectern” to become audible once again. “complete darkness”. It is the music played in In the “normal” tempered intonation, the piece darkness that puts not only the audience and sets out with individual (high) tones that go almost the performer in an unusual position, but above unnoticed. The denser the sound becomes, the all the . The vocals must be easy to more the counter-world emerges with the natural memorise, everything played must be controlled series of partials and intervals, which increasingly aurally by the performers, and it is futile to expect contract as the pitch rises. Like his , an invisible conductor to perform his usual tasks. two harmonic starting points are contrasted. On When the light gradually fades, only minutes after one hand – extracts of pure series. On in vain begins, quick, downward lines starting the other hand – chords in the tempered piano from the outset cease, while soft, lying tones mood made of thirds, fourths, and fifths. The remain, dodging each other by way of quarter- difference between these two tone systems blur tone intervals. The music dips into the pitch-black after the end of the second dark phase with a darkness of the night, finds its bearings anew, and renewed acceleration in tempo and an increasing gropes its way forward. density in sound. Right at the transition to this Georg Friedrich has said of microtonality: second and final dark phase, a combination of “ has no tradition. Until late in enter. the 20th century, all writing microtonal Large sections of in vain are characterised by music had to begin anew every time. Even today, descending pitch levels and near the end, an using microtones is considered out of the ordinary. extended accelerando withdraws into itself. You need to justify the use of tones from outside Extensive processes with gradual transformations, the tempered system.” deceptive spiral formations – both in pitch and This lack of familiarity is often the starting point time structures – and the “return to situations for Haas’ compositions. Not that he claims to have deemed to be overcome” (Haas) are the reinvented microtonality – quite the contrary. principle form. The of numbers is He allows the experiences of varying harmonic also significant in the size of orchestration (24 concepts by , Alois Hába, instruments) and in the microtonal 24:25 interval. and to flow into his Over and beyond construction, Georg Friedrich compositions. Similarly, Haas does not intend Haas tends to cultivate Alois Hábas’ ideal concept to ‘improve’ the tempered system by moving of form, described as “free rambling without toward the obvious pleasurable qualities of pure thematic context”. Interestingly, Haas does not intonation. refer to contemporaries such as Tristan Murail as the source of instrumented overtone series, but His music makes audible the differences between rather to the repetitive sevenths of . the ‘usual’ and the ‘possible’, bringing what is buried under our listening habits to our attention. © Bernhard Günther The reduction noticeable in his music – the absence of ordinary melodies, the melting away of rhythm in acceleration and deceleration, the limitation to few pitch levels and modes of Georg Friedrich Haas in the score rather than through immediate sensual perception. I hope that in my music, intuition and rational control are balanced”, he explains. He first aroused interest with his 1996 chamber opera Nacht, which like his second chamber opera Die schöne Wunde, received its world premiere at the Festival. Georg Friedrich Haas has composed numerous further operas since then; Melancholia – based on the eponymous novel by Jon Fosse – was premiered at the Opéra National de in 2008 and subsequently at several other opera houses. He continued his collaboration with Jon Fosse for Morgen und Abend (2016), which was commissioned by the Royal Opera House in

© Substantia Jones London and the Deutsche Oper Berlin. Bluthaus (2011), Thomas (2013) and KOMA (2016), with librettos by Händl Klaus, deal with existential topics COmposer and were each premiered at the Schwetzinger “Two things were clear to me from an early age: SWR Festspiele, sparking lively discussion among the twelve tones that a piano can produce per audiences and critics alike. are too few for me. I need smaller intervals, Highlights during recent years included the finer nuances. And I want to compose expressive, world premieres of dark dreams with the Berlin emotional music which moves and takes hold of Philharmonic under Sir Simon Rattle (US premiere people,” says Georg Friedrich Haas of his work. at Carnegie Hall), the Concerto Grosso No. 1 for 4 Born in 1953, he grew up in a mountain village alphorns and orchestra (hornroh modern alphorn in the region of western quartet, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, and was already exposed to new music as a Susanna Mällki) and Concerto Grosso No. 2 for student through his music teacher, the composer ensemble and orchestra (BBC Scottish Symphony Gerold Amann. MacDowell Professor of Music Orchestra, Ilan Volkov), as well as during the at in New York since 2013, 2014/15 season the world premiere of his String Georg Friedrich Haas now moves geographically Quartet No. 8 given by the JACK Quartet, and Wien between two poles. He sees himself as being Modern’s focus on Georg Friedrich Haas’ music. integrated in the traditions of the Viennese In 2016/17 Georg Friedrich Haas was composer School through his teachers Gösta Neuwirth, in residence at the Huddersfield Contemporary Ivan Eröd and in particular , and Music Festival, and wrote the new ensemble work at the same time takes the aesthetic freedom of Release for the opening of the Elbphilharmonie American composers such as , John Hamburg, premiered in January by the Ensemble Cage and as an important point of Resonanz. In summer 2017 Georg Friedrich Haas reference for musical expression that goes beyond will be composer in residence at the Suntory Art ideologies. Foundation’s Summer Festival where a new violin concerto composed for Miranda Cuckson will However, according to the composer a specific receive its world premiere. technique can only be a means to an end and he refuses to be compositionally pigeonholed: “I don’t © Karsten Witt Musik Management trust relationships that become apparent only Georg Friedrich Haas BRAD LUBMAN In addition, he has worked with some of the most important European and American ensembles for contemporary music, including the , London Sinfonietta, , Ensemble MusikFabrik, Asko|Schönberg Ensemble Amsterdam, Ensemble Resonanz, Los Angeles Philharmonic New Music Group, Chicago Symphony MusicNOW, and and Musicians. Following his debut with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra at the start of the autumn, the 2016/17 season particularly focuses on projects celebrating Steve Reich’s 80th birthday at prestigious venues including Carnegie Hall,

© Stephanie Berger Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Philharmonies in and Paris and Cal Performances. Brad Lubman continues his collaborations with the COnductor Symphony Orchestras of the WDR and Danish Brad Lubman, American conductor and composer, National, as well as the Orquestra Sinfónica do has gained widespread recognition for his Porto, while the highlight of the season will be his versatility, commanding technique and insightful residency at the Grafenegg Festival in Austria. Here interpretations over the course of more than two he can be seen in his double role as conductor decades. and composer in several concerts and will lead the Composer Conductor Workshop “Ink Still Wet”. He is much in demand with major orchestras in Europe and the USA and has been successful Brad Lubman is founding Co-Artistic and Music in building up regular partnerships with several Director of the NY-based Ensemble Signal. Since well-known orchestras and ensembles such its debut in 2008 the ensemble has performed over as the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, 100 concerts and co-produced nine recordings. NDR Symphony Orchestra, WDR Symphony Their recording of Reich’s Music for 18 Musicians Orchestra and Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester on harmonia mundi was awarded a Diapason Berlin, Danish National Symphony Orchestra d’or in June 2015 and appeared on the Billboard and Orquestra Sinfónica do Porto. Alongside his Classical Crossover charts. He is also Associate busy schedule in , he is also frequently Professor of Conducting and Ensembles at the asked to conduct some of the world’s leading Eastman School of Music in Rochester, as well orchestras, including the Orchestre Philharmonique as on the faculty at the Bang-on-a-Can Summer de Radio France, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Institute. Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Orchestra del His own music has been performed in the United Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Barcelona Symphony States and Europe and can be heard on his first Orchestra and the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. portrait CD, insomniac, on John Zorn’s label Tzadik. He has also recorded for Harmonia Mundi, Nonesuch, AEON, BMG/RCA, Kairos, Mode, NEOS, and Cantaloupe. © Karsten Witt Musik Management LONDON SINFONIETTA Philippa Davies /piccolo Resident at Southbank Centre and Artistic David Cuthbert flute/piccolo/bass Associate at Kings Place, with a busy touring Melinda Maxwell schedule across the UK and abroad, London Mark van de Wiel * Sinfonietta’s core is 18 Principal Players, Jordan Black clarinet/bass representing some of the best musicians in the world. John Orford bassoon*

soprano/tenor saxophone* Simon Haram Holding a leading position in education work, the Alex Wide horn London Sinfonietta believes that arts participation Elise Campbell horn is transformational to individuals and communities, Byron Fulcher trombone* and new music is relevant to people’s lives. This Douglas Coleman trombone belief is enacted through primary and secondary Alexandra Wood violin school concerts across the UK and interactive Joan Atherton violin* family events, as well as the annual London Miranda Fulleylove violin Sinfonietta Academy, an unparalleled opportunity Steve Burnard for young performers and conductors to train with Richard Waters viola our Principal Players.

Tiim Gill * The London Sinfonietta has also broken new cello Sally Pendlebury ground by creating Steve Reich’s Clapping Music Enno Senft double bass* app for iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch, a participatory Alex Neal percussion rhythm game that has been downloaded over Oliver Lowe percussion 160,000 times worldwide. Most recently, a disc Helen Tunstall harp* of Sir ’s music was released Antoine Francoise piano on NMC Recordings and topped the classical Ric Mountjoy lighting designer music chart, we produced eleven vinyl records *London Sinfonietta Principal Player in collaboration with artist Christian Marclay, and were thrilled to collaborate with Norwegian The London Sinfonietta is one of the world’s saxophonist, Marius Neset on his award-winning leading contemporary music ensembles. Formed album Snowmelt. in 1968, the group’s commitment to making new music has seen it commission over 350 works and Cue the New: How to Listen to the 21st Century premiere many hundreds more. Our ethos today is The 21st century is now 17 years old and has to constantly experiment with the art form, working produced some astounding music: works of with the best composers, conductors and players beauty, complexity and drama that deserve to be whilst collaborating with musicians from alternative listened to, not just heard. In 2016/17, the London genres and artists from different disciplines. We Sinfonietta presents a season of opportunities, are also committed to challenging perceptions, performing commissions and premieres that speak provoking new possibilities and stretching our for the best musical inventions of our time. audiences’ imaginations, often working closely with them as creators, performers and curators of the events we stage.

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© Xingkun Yang London Sinfonietta would like to 2009 Susan Grollet in memory of Tim Gill cello (supported by Sir thank the following organisations Mark Grollet Stephen Oliver QC) and individuals for their support: 2010 Lucy de Castro & Nick Morgan Enno Senft double bass (supported 2017 Paul & Sybella Zisman by Anthony Mackintosh) TRUSTS AND FOUNDATIONS Art Mentor Foundation Lucerne, Helen Tunstall harp LEAD PIONEERS David Hockings percussion Arts Council England, The Barbara John Bird Whatmore Charitable Trust, The Boltini John Constable Emeritus Principal Robert Clark & Susan Costello piano (supported by John Bird) Trust, British Council, Britten-Pears Régis Cochefert Foundation, The John S Cohen David Sheppard Sound Intermedia Anthony Mackintosh (supported by Penny Jonas) Foundation, Cockayne – Grants for Belinda Matthews the Arts, The D’Oyly Carte Charitable Ian Dearden Sound Intermedia Stephen Morris (supported by Penny Jonas) Trust, The Embassy of the Kingdom Antonia Till of the Netherlands, Ernest Cook LONDON SINFONIETTA COUNCIL Trust, Ernst von Siemens Music ARTISTIC PIONEERS Paul Zisman chairman Foundation,The Fenton Arts Trust, Anton Cox Andrew Burke Harold Hyam Wingate Foundation, John Hodgson Régis Cochefert Help Musicians UK, Hinrichsen Nicholas Hodgson Ian Dearden Foundation, Idlewild Trust, John Walter A. Marlowe Annabel Graham Paul Ellerman Foundation, Jerwood Julie Nicholls Alistair Mackie Charitable Foundation Simon Osborne Belinda Matthews The Leverhulme Trust, Ruth Rattenbury Jonathan Morton The London Community Foundation, David & Jenni Wake-Walker Matthew Pike The Mercers’ Company, Norwegian Margarita Wood Sally Taylor Composers Fund, The Nugee CREATIVE PIONEERS Keith Motson secretary Foundation, Performing Arts Fund NL, Ian Baker PRS for Music Foundation, The RVW LONDON SINFONIETTA STAFF Ariane Bankes Andrew Burke Chief Executive Trust, The Swiss Arts Council Pro Andrew Burke Helvetia, Swiss Cultural Fund UK Keith Motson General Manager Jeremy & Yvonne Clarke Elizabeth Davies Head of Finance CORPORATE PARTNERS Rachel Coldicutt Natalie Marchant Concerts & Lark (Group) Limited Dennis Davis Projects Manager Patrick Hall Grace Ko Concerts & Touring HONORARY PATRONS Chris Heathcote John Bird Administrator Andrew Hunt Sean Watson Participation and Sir Harrison Birtwistle Frank & Linda Jeffs Alfred Brendel KBE Learning Officer Philip Meaden Joanne McIntosh Head of Andrew Nash ENTREPRENEURS Development Strategy (maternity Sir Vernon Ellis Frances Spalding cover) Annabel Graham Paul Iain Stewart Sam Delaney Individual Giving Penny Jonas Mark Thomas Assistant Anthony Mackintosh Fenella Warden Vicky Trigle Trusts, Foundations & Robert McFarland Jane Williams Corporate Partnerships Assistant Michael & Patricia McLaren-Turner Plus those generous Lead, Artistic Rosanna Haas Marketing Manager Sir Stephen Oliver QC and Creative Pioneers who prefer to Niamh Collins Marketing Assistant Matthew Pike remain anonymous, as well as our Adam Flynn Administration and Nick & Claire Prettejohn loyal group of Pioneers. Recordings Officer Paul & Sybella Zisman PRINCIPAL PLAYERS Anastasia Megally Cassar Surrey The London Sinfonietta Council Michael Cox flute (supported by University Placement Trainee Michael & Patricia McLaren-Turner) Sinfonietta Circle Gareth Hulse oboe LONDON SINFONIETTA 1972 Robert McFarland AMBASSADORS 1973 Dennis Davis Mark van de Wiel clarinet (supported Anthony Macintosh 1976 Patricia McLaren-Turner by Régis Cochefert) Robert McFarland 1978 Walter A. Marlowe John Orford bassoon Sir Stephen Oliver QC 1980 Mark Thomas Simon Haram saxophone 1981 Michael McLaren-Turner Michael Thompson horn (supported FREELANCE AND CONSULTANT 1982 Rosemary Gent by Belinda Matthews) STAFF 1984 Robert Clark & Susan Costello Byron Fulcher trombone Hal Hutchison Concert Manager 1986 Stephen Williamson Alistair Mackie Lesley Wynne Orchestra Personnel 1991 Régis Cochefert & Thomas Jonathan Morton violin 1 (supported Manager Ponsonby by Paul & Sybella Zisman) Lindsay Wilson Projects Manager 1999 Penny Jonas Joan Atherton violin 2 (supported by Tony Simpson Lighting Designer 2001 Ruth Rattenbury Robert Clark & Susan Costello) Maija Handover sounduk Public Paul Silverthorne viola (supported by Relations Nick & Claire Prettejohn)

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