Adam Stern, Music Director and Conductor

Sunday, February 21, 2016 2:00 p.m.Eastlake Performing Arts Center

Saturday, February 27, 2016 2:00 p.m.Meydenbauer Theatre

energy, life, affirmationNIELSEN’S THIRD SYMPHONY

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH Fantasia and Fugue in c, BWV 537 (orchestrated by Edward Elgar)

ROBERT SCHUMANN Overture, Scherzo and Finale, Op. 52 Overture – Andante con moto; Allegro Scherzo – Vivo Finale – Allegro molto vivace

INTERMISSION

CARL NIELSEN Symphony No. 3, Sinfonia Espansiva

Allegro espansivo Andante pastorale Allegrettounpoco Finale: Allegro

Brenna Wells, soprano Erich Parce, baritone

Please turn off all cell phones and pagers.No audio/video recording or flash photography is allowed during the performance.

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When I was given the privilege of becoming the Sammamish Symphony’s Music Director, I decided that it would be a good thing for one

concert out of our yearly six to feature the orchestra itself. The Symphony is marvelous at accompanying, of course, and we love presenting concertos and other literature thatfeaturessoloists,butitisalsobeneficialfortheorchestra to occasionally take on the challenge of being in the forefront for the entirety of a concert; the added pressure, while slightly daunting, is also exhilarating and perhaps adds something to the ensemble’s well-deserved self-confidence.

The onus on me, then, is to devise programs that contain sufficientdiversitysothatasolovehicleisn’tmissed,and that comprise enough variegation in style, mood and

use of the orchestra so that the experience is wholly rewarding to the orchestra and our audience. I am hopeful that the present combination of Elgar’s vivid realization of Bach, Schumann’s symphony-in-miniature, and Nielsen’s grand, life-asserting Symphony No. 3 have achieved my goal.

Forthoseofyouwhocannotwaituntilnextyeartofindoutwhatthenextorchestra-onlyeventwillbe,I’llofferthis,hopefully,tantalizingtidbit:Greatorchestralmoments from the world of opera!

Best regards, and thanks,

Adam SternMusic Director and Conductor, Sammamish Symphony Orchestra

Orchestra Management

Board of Directors

Founding DirectorJoyce Cunningham

Music Director & ConductorAdam Stern

PresidentMyrl Venter

Vice-PresidentAndy Hill

TreasurerTitan Rodick

SecretaryTimothy Corrie, Jr.

Directors-at-LargeArmand Binkhuysen

Dennis HelppieCindy Jorgensen

Hans KleinLibby LandyPaula Libes

Shannon NelsonCraig Saddler

Tim Strait

Honorary Board MembersDonGerend

Former Mayor, City of Sammamish

Skip RowleyChairman, Rowley Properties

NancyWhittenSammamish City Council Member

Personnel

Ensemble coordinatorKathryn Boudreau

LibrarianElaine Cox

GrantsArmand Binkhuysen

Concert ProgramAdam Stern

Emaugo Creative

WebmasterTimothy Corrie, Jr.

Youth Concerto CompetitionAndy Hill

Lobby ManagersKathie JorgensenCindy Jorgensen

Concessions ManagerGFWCCascadeWoman’sClub

Sound RecordingPhillip Chance

ADAM STERN, Conductor and Music Director of the Sammamish Symphony, isoneoftheregion’sbusiestmusicians.SincearrivinginSeattlein1992,hehas been active as a conductor, composer, pianist, educator and lecturer. He hasbeenleadingtheSeattlePhilharmonicOrchestrasince2003,duringwhichtenure he has brought numerous world, U.S., West Coast and Northwest premieres to the Puget Sound community. Stern’s unique programming combines beloved masterworks with must-hear rarities; his programs are not merely concerts, but true musical events.

SternwasborninHollywoodin1955.Hebeganhismusicalstudiesatagefiveasapianostudent,andbeganflutelessonstwoyearslater.At15,Sternwas accepted at California Institute of the Arts, where he initially majored in fluteperformance,butchangedhismajortoconductinginhissecondyearattheurgingofthelateGerhardSamuel,anotedconductorandeducator.Sternwasgraduatedin1977withanMFAinconductingat21,theyoungestMastersdegree recipient in CalArts’ history.

From1996until2001,SternwastheAssociateConductoroftheSeattleSymphony(afterhavingservedasAssistantConductorfrom1992-96).Helednumerousconcertsinalloftheorchestra’sseries,includingtheorchestra’sfirstperformances of Vaughan Williams’ Symphony No. 3 and Elgar’s Symphony No. 2.Inaddition,heledmany“pops”concertsandwasthehappycollaboratorofsuchartistsasJamesTaylor,ArtGarfunkel,JudyCollinsandFrankSinatra,Jr.

SternresidesinSeattlewithhiswife,sopranoKamilaStern,andhischildrenEllaand Oscar.

Adam Stern

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Orchestra MembersFIRST VIOLINDennis Helppie ConcertmasterTim Strait Associate ConcertmasterIan BackmanKristin EdlundMichael KingSarah LinkatoonLynne MartinelHeather RaschkoHaley SchaeningKolleen Uppinghouse

SECOND VIOLINShelby Eaton*Emily Price**Barbara EthingtonMatthewGuentherNancy JohnsonJillian Kent-DobiasShravani KulkarniPaula LibesFran PopeSetsuko ReevesMcKenna Roberts

VIOLALibby Landy*Hans Klein**Armand BinkhuysenKathryn BoudreauDan PopeSariya RashidJan Rider

Amanda SalmickLoraine Terpening

CELLOShiang-Yin Lee*Juha Niemisto**Loryn BortinsAndy HillMichelle MillerGailRatleyJoyce SanfordJoan SelvigSandra Sultan

BASSJarod Tanneberg*Timothy Corrie, Jr.Natalie Schlichtmann

FLUTEMelissa Underhill*Tori BerntsenElanaSabovic-Matt

PICCOLOElanaSabovic-Matt

OBOESusan Jaboby*Jim Kobe

ENGLISH HORNDennis Calvin

CLARINETJayne Marquess*Kathy CarrLinda Thomas

BASS CLARINETLinda Thomas

BASSOONShannon Nelson*Julia KingreyTitan Rodick

CONTRA-BASSOONTitan Rodick

SAXOPHONEDavid Bissell

FRENCH HORNEvelyn Zeller*Dan Chernin Sha’ariGarfinkelCraig KowaldNels Magelssen

TRUMPETJim Sailors*Ross AdamsonRayPitts

TROMBONEJohn Ochsenreiter*Rob Birkner

BASS TROMBONEMichael Wennerstrom

TUBAMark Wiseman

TIMPANIEric Daane

PERCUSSIONCraig Wende*Daniel Pooley

PIANO/KEYBOARDCatherine Lowell

HARPBethany Man

*Principal**Assistant Principal

Section members are listed in alphabetical order.

FOR INFO CALL 206-517-7777

ADD A TOUCH OF CLASS TO YOUR PARTY OR EVENT. TheSammamishSymphonyOrchestraofferssmallchambergroupsforprivatefunctions.

Thank you, Feather Asmussen, for many years of dedicated playing as assistant principal second violin! Thank you, too, for hours of hard work during your tenure on the Symphony Board.

VIOLA CONTINUED

MaestroScotthasretiredfromtheSammamishSymphonyOrchestraafter16yearswiththeSymphony.Hisdedication,talentandpassion for excellence has grown the Sammamish Symphony to an organizationreveredinthecommunityasoneofthefinestorchestralensembles in the region. We are grateful for his years of service to the members of the orchestra, the residents of Sammamish and the community at large.

R. Joseph Scott

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The Sammamish Symphony Orchestra would like to thank the City of Sammamishfor their support

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The Sammamish Symphony would like to thank

Gordon Brown and the

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for the generous contribution for music to build theSymphony’slibrary.Gordonhasbeenan

active member and contrabassoon player with the symphony for many years.

Bryce Van ParysGeneral Manager

425.392.3963 | Bryce@HammondAshley.com970 5th Ave NW, Suite 100, Issaquah WA 98027

Program Notes“I worked hard. Anyone who works as hard as I did can achieve the same results.”

– Johann Sebastian Bach

“To send light into the darkness of men’s hearts – such is the duty of the artist.”

– Robert Schumann

“Music is a manifestation of Life...it can exactly express the content of Life from its most elementary form of utterance to the highest spiritual ecstasy.”

– Carl Nielsen

In wholly individual ways, all of these great composers’ words bespeak their perspectives on their life’s work. Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), one of history’s most staggeringly fecund composers, was not one to write about music’s potential to illuminate men’s hearts or ability to express spiritual ecstasy; for these qualities we must turn to his music itself, and in so doing be continuously rewarded by its consistent magnifi cence and power. Robert Schumann’s (1810-1856) compositions, at once so vigorous and fragile, are a natural expression of the extraversion and introversion between which he vaciliated all of his life. And Carl Nielsen (1865-

1931), Denmark’s greatest composer, was a man who swallowed life whole and self-consciously sought to communicate everything from primal nature to the individual quirks of his works’ dedicatees. Their many diff erences notwithstanding, one thing that defi nitely binds these three composers together is their integrity: all were uncompromising in their quests to bequeath to posterity only the very best of themselves.

—

In this day and age of period instrument virtuosi and their H(istorically) I(nformed) P(erformances) (yes, they have

by Adam Stern

In wholly individual ways, all of these great composers’ words bespeak their perspectives on their life’s

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)staggeringly fecund composers, was not one to write about music’s potential to illuminate men’s hearts or ability to express spiritual ecstasy; for these qualities we must turn to his music itself, and in so doing

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their very own alphebetism), the presentation of orchestral transcriptions of Baroque music may seem somewhat controversial, a slap in the face to those seeking to come as close as possible to the performance practices of the time. While I am a purist in many musical matters, I have long been a proponent of symphonic reconceptions of the organ works by Johann Sebastian Bach and others of his epoch. My two main reasons are that (1) many of the compositions which have been ministered to by the likes of Leopold Stokowski, Ottorino Respighi, and Eugene Ormandy mightn’t otherwise have been heard nearly as often, except by afficionados of organ recitals (not the biggest percentage of the music-loving public), and (2) I think that the spirit of the transcriptions is very much in keeping with Bach’s own ethos. After all, this is the same man who gussied up the Preludio from his Partita No. 3 for unaccompanied violin as a grand orchestral work when he needed an opening sinfonia for his Cantata No. 29; who arranged Alessandro Marcello’s Oboe Concerto in d minor as a work for solo harpsichord; who arranged Antonio Vivaldi’s Concerto for Four Violins as a concerto for four harpsichords...in other words, Bach himself was constantly reworking his and others’ music for different instrumental combinations whenever the need arose and/or fancy compelled him. Remember, too, that his final masterpiece, Die Kunst der Fuge (The Art of Fugue) was written without any indications as to what instruments or voices were to realize it; it’s as if Bach were saying, “So long as you are executing the notes I’ve put down, you are legitimately performing my piece.” Such ensembles and executants

as saxophone quartets, jazz vocal ensembles, and Moog synthesists have long been thankful for this implicit blessing.

Sir Edward Elgar, most famous for his “Enigma” Variations and widely acknowledged as one of music’s greatest orchestrators, made several symphonic arrangements of others’ compositions (that of Chopin’s Funeral March is particularly effective). For the present Fantasia and Fugue in c, he chose an opulent, rich sound for the Fantasia and an all-stops-out, Technicolor approach to the Fugue; Elgar fans who adore his most athletic music, punctuated as it is by the boldest of brass writing and arresting percussion tattoos, will thrill to the wedding of Bach’s masterful counterpoint and Elgar’s brawny orchestral tack. It cannot be stressed enough that Elgar’s arrangement plays up the fun aspect of Bach’s music, an attribute which has been downplayed if not virtually ignored by generations of listeners and scholars. It may not have the whimsy of Rossini, nor the occasional lurches into burlesque of Shostakovich, but it frequently betrays a robust and healthy good humor that complements and even transcends Bach’s technical prowess and yields copious smiles to those open to them. (And let’s not forget Bach’s “Coffee” Cantata, just about the closest thing to a comic opera in Baroque music!)

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The world of classical music abounds in legends, myths...and fallacies. Some of these have their origins, and have been promulgated, in our own time. For example, thanks to the success of the stage and screen

versions of Amadeus, how many innocent souls are there who are convinced that Mozart was a cackling punk whose penchant for scatalogical humor and donning tasteless wigs were as much a part of his makeup as the creation of perfect masterpieces?

Robert Schumann, who would have to be counted among the dozen or so greatest composers, nonetheless has been dogged by a persistent fallacy for more than a century-and-a-half. Few would deny his tremendous lyrical gifts, the infectious verve and zest of his melodies and rhythms, and his flawless ear when composing for the piano, chamber ensembles or the voice. But mention his symphonies or other orchestral works, and like as not he will be impulsively damned as one of the worst orchestrators in history.

This is a shame, and a charge of which he is not guilty. He was not a virtuoso orchestrator in the way that Tchaikovsky or Ravel were, but his symphonic music certainly “sounds” well if the conductor and players ensure that balances and attacks are lovingly and responsibly nurtured. Also, I am convinced that by seating the strings of the orchestra in the traditional way (i.e., first and second violins to the conductor’s left and right, respectively) – the configuration in which they sat in Schumann’s time – then Schumann’s part-writing “opens up” and emerges as more transparent than when all the violins are seated side-by-side.

This is more than borne out in his unjustly-ignored Overture, Scherzo and Finale (1841), a work which achieves a lovely balance

Continued on page 6

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between Schumann’s gift for sets of miniatures (e.g., Carnaval or the Davidsbündlertänze) and the larger form of the symphony. These three movements – essentially an orchestral suite – are little gems of perfectly-gauged orchestration, from the tender sounds of hushed strings or solo woodwinds to the grand tutti that closes the work (note how Schumann saves the trombones for the Finale to add yet one more splash of brilliance to the orchestral color). I should also add that Edward Elgar – as noted above, a superb orchestrator and an opinionated curmudgeon when it came to the music of other composers – counted Schumann amongst his very favorites.

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Karol Szymanowski, Arthur Honegger, and Carl Nielsen – but

three of the fi nest composers of the fi rst half of the 20th century whose works just can’t seem to get a foothold in the basic repertoire. This is particularly surprising in the case of Nielsen, whose works are overfl owing with melody, are superbly constructed and orchestrated, and possess a burning, passionate spirit that just won’t quit. Perhaps it’s the most unique of his qualities – the frequent biting irony, the twists-and-turns of his harmonic language, the humor that suddenly bursts in on a serious passage and retreats just as abruptly – that have put up something of a barrier between him and a larger public. But we may yet see a change: Leonard Bernstein’s eff orts on Nielsen’s behalf in the 1960s (which included splendid concert performances and recordings of four of the symphonies and the concertos for fl ute and clarinet)

paved the way for an increasing amount of American orchestras and their conductors, who have followed in Bernstein’s footsteps over the years and dotted their seasons with too-occasional but still-welcome performances. Most recently, Alan Gilbert, the soon-to-be former music director of the New York Philharmonic, treated New Yorkers to The Nielsen Project, a survey of Nielsen’s six symphonies and three concertos spread out over several seasons. Perhaps it’s just a matter of time before Nielsen is performed with the same regularity as that other great Scandinavian symphonist Jean Sibelius (who once told Nielsen, “I don’t come up to your shoetops.”)

Nielsen’s Symphony No. 3 (“Espansiva”) is a transitional work, the one that divides his more traditional, “Germanic” Symphonies

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Nos. 1 and 2 (although they are as redolent of their composer’s traits as anything else he wrote) from the somewhat more experimental (but no less powerful and endearing) Nos. 4 through 6. The first movement is, in some ways, a waltz on a grand scale; its “swing” is irresistable, as is the parade of catchy rhythms and great tunes. The middle movements are on a more intimate scale, the

second being a nature painting as evocative as any by Mahler (Nielsen uses two wordless solo voices in this movement to increase the pastoral feeling) and the third a graceful scherzo with a good-natured outburst or two. The finale, which Nielsen called a “hymn to the joy of work”, could perhaps be an inadvertent nod towards the sentiment expressed at the head of these notes – Nielsen’s

simultaneously humble and frank admission that he, liked Bach, worked hard and achieved something of lasting worth.

© 2016 Sammamish Symphony Association

THE DRIVING FORCE OF ALL NATURE

Friday,April29,2016,7:30p.m.●MeydenbauerTheatre

Sunday,May1,2016,2:00p.m.●EastlakePerformingArtsCenter

THE SPRING BLOSSOMS OF THE EARTH:

BRAHMS’ SECOND SYMPHONY

Sunday,June12,2016,2:00p.m.●EastlakePerformingArtsCenter

Save the Date We invite you to join uS for the remainDer of our

2015-16 concert SeaSon

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THESAMMAMISHSYMPHONYORCHESTRAISGRATEFULFORTHEGENEROUSSUPPORTOFTHE

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Acknowledgements

FacilitiesMeydenbauer CenterEastlake High School

Program Design & LayoutEmaugo Creative

Program Notes Adam Stern

Rehearsal Space Bellevue Christian School

Lobby ServicesThe City of Sammamish Volunteer Network

Refreshments Safeway/Costco

Klahanie QFC/Pine Lake QFC

Percussion EquipmentMarianna Vale

Beaver Lake Middle School

Recording EngineerPhillip Chance

Symphony Board Meeting PlaceSammamish Presbyterian Church

Many people have worked together to make our community orchestra possible. They have given of their time, talent and energy. Thank you!

TheSammamishSymphonyOrchestraAssociation(SSOA)isaNon-ProfitCorporationunderSection501(c)(3)oftheInternalRevenueService.Forfurtherinformation,contacttheSSOA:

P.O.Box1173,Issaquah,WA98027www.sammamishsymphony.org(206)517-7777

We are seeking donations from supporters like you to help us sustain and expand our programs. Please join the generous individuals and organizations who have provided support to enable us to make the music our audiences love to hear. All contributions are tax-

deductible. Please contact one of our representatives about how you can help.You can now donate via Paypal on our website at www.sammamishsymphony.org.

ContributorsIn addition to the following donors we gratefully acknowledge those

individuals and families who purchased donated goods and services at our Sammamish Symphony Auctions.

PATRONS ($1,000+)

AnonymousSandy AnurasThe Boeing CompanyTheCharlesMaxfieldandGloriaF.ParrishFoundationAndrew ColdhamExpediaGarneau-NiconFamilyFoundationGordonBrownFoundationAllyn & Pat HebnerRuth & Preben Hoegh-ChristensenKing County 4CultureKingCountyEmployeeGivingProgramKevin & Lynne MartinellMicrosoft CorporationSkip RowleyRowley PropertiesCity of SammamishHarry & Claradell SheddTim StraitSwedish HospitalSymetraUniversity HouseMark & Linda WisemanPattyZundel

BENEFACTORS ($500-999)

Benevity Community Impact FundHenryBischofbergerViolinsShelby EatonCathyGrindleDan & Melissa TruaxDavid E. Van Moorhem

SPONSORS ($100-499)

Pete & Andie AdeeArtEASTPatricia BiceArmand & Claudia BinkhuysenVerna BorupAva BrockDaniel & Jan CherninEric & Pat DaaneDon&SueGerendGlassyBabyToddGuglerDennis HelppieRon HindenbergerNancy & Paul JohnsonJim Kobe

Shrikant KulkarniShannon KrzyzewskiVictoria LaBergeHelen LauPaula LibesNels H. Magelssen & Evelyn M. ZellerTed & Lenore MartinellJohn & Sally MorganJuha NiemistoThomas Pinto & Vicky KingFran & Dan PopeHeather & Michael RaschkoGailRatleyMarkRentzDaphne & John RobinsonJohn & Ruth RughCarlSchwartz&WildaLuttermoserTheSeattleFoundation’sGiveBIGScottSelfonLinda M S ThomasMiranda & Dave ThorpeHerman & Myrl VenterVerizonDebra Williams

SUPPORTERS ($25-99)

Ann & John BackmanTheresa BosworthKathy CarrCindy JorgensenAnn KalasDonnaMansfieldDonna Onat in Memory of Ruth & PrebenKimberly RussDavid & Penny ShortKathryn Vaux

SPONSORS ($100-499)Continued

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Are you interested in playing with us?

The Sammamish Symphony Orchestra is composed of adult volunteer musicians dedicated to performing concerts and maintaining outreach programs serving Eastside communities.

Rehearsals: Thursdays 7:15-9:45 p.m. at Eastlake High SchoolPlease call 206-517-7777 or go to www.sammamishsymphony.org

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Featured GuestsThe Sammamish Symphony welcomes

Beaver Lake Middle School ChoirTina Worthington, Choir Director

The Beaver Lake Middle School (BLMS) Choir is a combined choir of 7th and 8th grade girls and 6th, 7th and 8th grade boys. The Beaver Lake Middle School Choir has already performed a Fall Concert this school year and will also be performing at Seattle Center’s “Winterfest” before the end of the holiday season. In addition, the BLMS choirs will perform at several concerts and assemblies throughout the remainder of the school year and take Disney Music Tour May 17-20. This is the second time that the choir has performed with the Sammamish Symphony and we are super excited to be part of this special holiday event. We will do our best to share our gift of music as we do when we sing for our audiences throughout the year!

This year we also feature “The Rhythmics” Handbell Choir of the Fall City United Methodist Church. Marion Querro, Director

Cascade Woman’s Club Living the Volunteer Spirit

The GFWC Cascade Woman's Club is a non-pro� t charitable organization bringing together women from surrounding areas to promote community service and welfare locally, regionally and internationally. Anyone interested in learning more and contacting us visit our website at: gfwccascadeclub.weebly.com

For more information please visit www.SammamishSymphony.orgThank you to our generous sponsors.

Sponsors