Sunday, January 12, 2025
– 2:00pm –
Zion Lutheran Church
– Warm a Sunday afternoon in January with this performance of chamber music. Composers, musicians, and listeners alike consider chamber music to be the music of friendships. Composers write it with specific friends in mind, often writing a part for themselves in the ensemble. The group of friends gather to play it, and invite their closest friends to hear it. Join our musicians as we continue this great tradition of musical friendships!
Program:
Randall Thompson ~ Suite for Oboe, Clarinet, and Viola
Tamara Byram Mahl, oboe • Susan Schwaegler, clarinet • Donna Rod, viola
Malcolm Arnold ~ Divertimento for Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Op.37
Crystal Duffee, flute • Hillary Brunner, oboe • Emily Bressler, clarinet
Ludwig van Beethoven ~ Piano Trio in D major, Op.70 No. 1
Nadia Wirchnianski, piano •Julie Marston, violin • David Spaulding, cello
Program Notes:
Ludwig Van Beethoven Piano Trio in D Major, “Ghost”
At the beginning of the 19th century piano makers introduced the sustaining, or damper
pedal, triggering a major breakthrough in the playing of the instrument. This new pedal made it
possible for the pianist to sustain notes and chords, cut them short, or play in a smoother legato
style. Equally important, the pedal expanded the piano’s sonorities and added resonance.
In his two piano trios of 1808, Beethoven was the first to exploit the piano’s expanded
resources. In effect, these trios did for piano-trio literature what Beethoven’s “Eroica” did for
symphonies. Although Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven himself had previously written highly
original piano trios, Beethoven’s new trios created higher standards for the expressive use of
piano sonorities
When writing these trios, Beethoven was living in rooms generously provided to him by
Hungarian Countess Marie Erdody. Before this, Beethoven had moved from place to place,
changing lodgings frequently because of minor disagreements with landlords, and she hoped to
settle him down. Unfortunately, his irritability made him a poor houseguest, and he moved out
after six months of petty squabbling. Still, he dedicated his trios to her in appreciation for her
long-suffering hospitality.
By 1808, Beethoven was at the pinnacle of his productivity and popularity, and the trios were
surrounded by the masterpieces he presented at a famous marathon concert in December,
including the Fifth and Sixth Symphonies, the C Major Mass and the Choral Fantasy. The first of
the trios came to be called the “Ghost” after his death because of a comment made about the
amazing slow movement. A former pupil wrote that the Largo “resembles an appearance from
the underworld…the first appearance of the ghost in Hamlet.”
The trio is in three movements. The first, in sonata form, is a study in contrasts. The main
theme consists of two segments — a thumping tune played by all three instruments in unison,
immediately followed by a lyrical melody in the cello. The slow movement’s atmosphere of
mystery and gloom underscores the “Ghost” epithet. After the ominous motifs and hair-raising
climaxes of this movement, the audience enjoys a relaxed, happy finale.
Malcolm Arnold Divertimento for Flute, Oboe and Clarinet, Op. 37
Sir Malcolm Arnold is no stranger to wind music and to forms such as this Divertimento, a
happy synthesis of various strands in his music. Born in Northampton in 1921, ever since he
began composing he has included an element of pure entertainment to sit alongside his more
serious symphonies and concertos. His early musical influences came from his pianist mother,
and later from writing and improvising jazz with his brother and friends.
A fan of trumpeter Louis Armstrong after meeting him on a family holiday, Arnold took up the
trumpet at the age of twelve and won a scholarship to the Royal College of Music at sixteen.
Having already won several prizes by his second year, he left the college to join the London
Philharmonic as second trumpet. Promotions quickly followed and he became acknowledged as
one of the great trumpeters of his age.
He composed prolifically, learning the symphonies repertoire from the inside, eventually leaving
professional playing in favor of composition. From 1848 until the early sixties, Arnold became
one of the most sought-after composers of the time, alongside Benjamin Britten and William
Walton. His Third, Fourth and Fifth Symphonies were commissioned during this time, and he
wrote sonatas and concertos for players he particularly admired.
Arnold’s role as conductor of his works, both in the concert hall and in the studio for films
and recordings increased to a hectic pace and eventually led to depression and a move to
Cornwall where he became closely involved in Cornish life. He died in 2006 after collecting
numerous awards “ for his lifetime’s achievements as one of the greatest composers of the 20th
century.”
Written in 1952, the Divertimento was given its first performance the following year in
London. All three instruments are basically equal partners in this sequence of six short pieces,
none lasting more than about two minutes. A Lively, jaunty tune opens the first movement, its
motifs recurring in succeeding movements. The slow second movement leads into a Vivace with
the clarinet taking the lead. By contrast, the clarinet rocks back and forth between just two
notes in the fourth movement. A Maestoso is stately and march-like, the three instruments
playing in unison. Wild arpeggios close the movement, while a lovely final section ends in
Arnold’s best lyrical vein.
Randall Thompson Suite for Oboe, Clarinet, and Viola
American composer Randall Thompson, born in New York City in 1899, had a long career as
an educator and is best known for the choral Alleluia, heard at church services, choral concerts
and academic ceremonies. The son of an English teacher, Thompson grew up in an
atmosphere that emphasized academic excellence. While on summer vacations he became
interested in an old parlor reed organ that led to his earliest written works. He entered Harvard
and later studied with composer Ernest Bloch, eventually teaching at a number of colleges and
universities. He also became director of the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia
Although his writing for voice spanned his entire life, Thompson also produced three
symphonies, two string quartets and other instrumental pieces. His Symphony No. 2 was
conducted by Leonard Bernstein in his first appearance as a conductor in 1931. His choral
works were more widely performed than any other American composer up to his time. He died
in 1984.
The Suite is a warm masterpiece of Americana written in 1940 for an unusual but pleasing
combination of mid-range instruments. It reflects Thompson’s characteristic style: accessible
and melodious. The opening Andante introduces a lyrical and flowing dialogue among the
instruments. A lively and rhythmically engaging Allegro follows leading to an introspective and
evocative Largo showcasing the rich emotional depth of the viola. The final Allegro vivace is
spirited with brisk rhythms and clever interplay.