CAL PERFORMANCES PRESENTS PROGRAM Saturday, November 9, 2013, 8pm Johann David Heinichen (1683–1789) Selections from Concerto Grosso in G major, First Congregational Church SeiH 213 Entrée — Loure Menuet & L’A ir à L’Ita lien Apollo’s Fire The Cleveland Baroque Orchestra Heinichen Concerto Grosso in C major, SeiH 211 Jeannette Sorrell, Music Director Allegro — Pastorell — Adagio — Allegro assai Francis Colpron, recorder Kathie Stewart, traverso PROGRAM Debra Nagy, oboe Olivier Brault, violin Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750) “Brandenburg” Concerto No. 3 in G major, BWV 1048 Bach “Brandenburg” Concerto No. 4 in G major, BWV 1049 Allegro — Adagio — Allegro Allegro — Andante — Presto Olivier Brault, violin Bach “Brandenburg” Concerto No. 5 in D major, Francis Colpron & Kathie Stewart, recorders BWV 1050 Allegro Affettuoso The Apollo’s Fire national tour of the “Brandenburg” Concertos is made possible by Allegro a generous grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. Jeannette Sorrell, harpsichord Apollo’s Fire’s CDs, including the complete “Brandenburg” Concertos, are for sale in the lobby. Olivier Brault, violin The artists will be on hand to sign CDs following the concert. Kathie Stewart, traverso INTERMISSION Cal Performances’ 2013–2014 season is sponsored by Wells Fargo. 16 CAL PERFORMANCES CAL PERFORMANCES 17 PROGRAM NOTES PROGRAM NOTES a mountaintop experience: extraordinary power to move, delight, and cap- Concerto No. 5 requires from the harpsi- performing concertos for the virtuoso bands of europe tivate audiences for 250 years. But what is it that chordist a level of speed in the scalar passages gives them that power—that greatness that we that far exceeds anything else in the repertoire. n march 1719, Johann Sebastian Bach, Likewise, the Prince of Köthen, for whom all intuitively sense? One has to train for this piece the same way one IKapellmeister to the Prince of Köthen, Bach had actually written and performed the To start with, most of Bach’s instrumenta- trains for an athletic event. Also, the unusual travelled to Berlin on an errand to purchase “Brandenburgs” originally, had first offered tions are unique and daring. (Ten solo string role of the harpsichord in this Concerto—start- a two-manual harpsichord. Always on the his Kapellmeister job to someone else, before players? Harpsichord as a solo instrument in a ing off playing basso continuo easy( ), then play- lookout for career opportunities, he took out settling for Bach. His first choice was Johann concerto?!) He also uses both texture and form ing solo melodies in dialogue with the flute and time while in Berlin to perform for a certain David Heinichen. But Heinichen had bigger in unprecedented ways, blending the solo con- violin (moderately difficult), then getting carried Margrave Christian Ludwig of Brandenburg. fish to fry. certo and group concerto (concerto grosso) forms. away into virtuoso scales (very difficult), and fi- The Margrave was so delighted with Bach’s play- Heinichen, like Handel, studied in Italy Concertos Nos. 4 and 5 feature primarily one nally leaving the others in the dust as one con- ing that he commissioned Bach to write several where he learned the latest musical styles. (Bach solo instrument (violin and harpsichord, respec- templates the universe in a huge solo cadenza pieces for him. Two years later, the Margrave never had the opportunity to do this. Instead, he tively), but also feature groups of solo instru- (mountaintop experience)—makes this piece a received a beautifully bound manuscript, dedi- walked 250 miles on foot to study for a few weeks ments in contrast. unique emotional experience each time one cated to him, and containing the six magnificent with the great German organist Buxtehude.) In addition, the contrapuntal complexity of plays it. pieces which Bach called Six Concerts à plusieurs While in Venice, the young Heinichen met the Bach’s compositional textures (far exceeding the What makes the “Brandenburgs” so great, d’instruments. Elector of Dresden, who was vacationing there as concertos of Vivaldi) is surely one of the qualities in the end, is best understood through Bach’s We know them as the “Brandenburg” were many German princes. Dresden was a great that makes us feel we hear something new and words as a teacher of how to play basso continuo: Concertos, but they were not, in fact, composed artistic capital of Europe—second only to Venice different each time we listen. He also achieves “The aim and reason of the basso continuo, as of specifically for the Margrave. Rather, these are itself. And the orchestra of the Dresden palace extraordinary textural variety: for example, the all music, should be none else but the glory of six individual pieces that Bach had written was famous for its virtuosity. So when the Elector slow movement of No. 4 is a poetic and rhetori- God and the refreshing of the mind.” at various times for use with his orchestra at offered Heinichen the post of Kapellmeister in cal dialogue between the trio of soloists and the Heinichen’s concertos for Dresden are fas- Köthen. Being a busy man and a practical one, Dresden, Heinichen jumped. But this left the full ensemble. By contrast, the slow movement cinating counterparts to the “Brandenburgs.” he simply collected six concertos which repre- door open for Bach to get the job in Köthen. of No. 5 take us into a chamber music environ- Like the “Brandenburgs,” Heinichen’s pieces are sented his best work, and copied them out for The Prince of Köthen kept a small but ment, where the pool of light centers on the showcases for individual stars of the ensemble the Margrave. Apparently the Margrave did not excellent orchestra of eight to eleven musi- three soloists alone; here, the music unfolds with and groups of soloists as well. The Dresden have the musical personnel necessary to perform cians. We believe that Bach composed the haunting, expressive individuality and a timeless orchestra, for whom Heinichen was writing, these works; thus, he never used the score, nev- “Brandenburgs” for this ensemble, during his sense of measured order. was larger than Bach’s ensemble in Köthen. er sent Bach a fee, and never thanked him. So years as Kapellmeister in Köthen. The fact that Above all, there is a sense of exhilara- Heinichen’s pieces sometimes include up to five much for the Margrave. he composed these concertos at different times tion that all of us feel from performing the soloists, and often consist of suites featuring dif- Today, it is shocking to think that Bach’s for different occasions means that they have “Brandenburgs.” Some of that is due to sheer ferent soloists in each movement. His writing miraculous “Brandenburg” Concertos could extremely diverse instrumentation (each one virtuosity: the featured solo instrument(s) in shows great variety, and each of his concertos is ever have been so unappreciated. But in Bach’s requires a different group of players). This also each piece requires a level of virtuosity that is individually crafted, containing three, four or lifetime, he was nowhere near as successful or demonstrates that the six concertos were never literally athletic. For example, there is that exu- five movements. Heinichen builds up thematic popular a composer as his German colleagues intended to be performed as a set. To perform berant celebration of democracy in music: the material in the Allegro movements from a suc- Telemann or Heinichen—not to mention all six is impractical from the point of view of Concerto No. 3, where each individual string cession of tiny, contrasting motives—a tech- Handel. Bach spent his last 25 years as the music musical personnel. Moreover, the structural player is an equal soloist. Designed to showcase nique later used by Haydn and Beethoven. His director for the principal churches of Leipzig—a coherence that Bach always instilled in pieces the virtuoso musicians of the Köthen orchestra, slow movements show colorful imagination in moderately prestigious post, but not very well that he composed as a set (i.e., key relationships, the piece remains a thrilling workout for any the use of texture and instrumentation. Rather paid. Bach was the Town Council’s fourth form, instrumentation, etc.) does not exist be- ensemble today. Bach composed two substantial than the sense of uplifting spirituality that rings choice for that post. They offered it to Telemann, tween the six “Brandenburgs.” Rather, each one movements for this concerto, leaving the players through Bach’s music, Heinichen seems to enjoy Graupner, and Fasch before finally settling for is an individual gem—a sparkling and perfectly to improvise a transitional second movement, musical jokes and the fun of playing together. As Bach. The records of the Leipzig Town Council structured entity on its own. for which he provided only two chords. such, his pieces make a wonderful complement contain the discouraged quote from Councillor Music writers in the 18th century often Concerto No. 4 features revolutionary pyro- to an evening of “Brandenburgs.” Platz: “As the best men cannot be gotten, we talked about the goal of musical performance: technics for the violin, and the recorder parts are must settle for the mediocre.” Their “mediocre” to move the affections (moods, emotions) of the rather devilish as well. The triumphant counter- Jeannette Sorrell composer Bach gave them the St. Matthew and listener. The “Brandenburg” Concertos are mas- point of the finale proves once and for all that Cleveland, 2013 St. John passions, among other things. terful examples of this. They have proven their that fugal writing can be fun. 18 CAL PERFORMANCES CAL PERFORMANCES 19 ORCHESTRA ROSTER ABOUT THE ARTISTS APOLLO’S FIRE Library of Congress, the Tropical Baroque the cleveland baroque orchestra Festival in Miami, and the Ojai Music Festival Jeannette Sorrell, Music Director in California.