Upload
live-publishing
View
218
Download
3
Tags:
Embed Size (px)
DESCRIPTION
November 3 Gala Concert featuring Yo-yo Ma
Citation preview
Gala 2012 THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA n o v e m b e r 3
The Cleveland Orchestra is one of the few orchestras in the country with an in-depth
early childhood program, engaging very young children in music and learning, right
from the start. PNC Musical Rainbows introduce them to the instruments of the or-
chestra, one at a time (“Triumphant Trumpet” pictured at top), and Orchestra musi-
cians work alongside Cleveland pre-school teachers using music to help children build
school readiness skills (such as counting) in PNC Grow Up Great.
A Gala Evening to Benefit the Orchestra’s Education and Community Programs across Northeast Ohio
Norma Lerner Beth Mooney Gala Chair Gala Corporate Chair
Gala 2012 THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA
November 2012 Gala
��
welcomeTHANK YoU
November 3, 2012
On behalf of the entire Cleveland Orchestra family, I want to thank Norma Lerner and Beth Mooney for their leadership and vision in creating this extraordinary benefit event.
Thanks go to all of this evening’s generous Gala sponsors and patrons, with special gratitude to our leading Diamond Sponsors, The Lerner Foundation and KeyBank, and to Platinum Sponsors Audrey and Albert Ratner. Through everyone’s generosity, this event is raising crucial funds to support the Orchestra’s many ongoing Education and Community Programs across Northeast Ohio.
Thanks also to our Board of Trustees under the leadership of President Dennis W. LaBarre for overwhelming support of tonight’s event. Their work for and generosity toward The Cleveland Orchestra symbolize the community spirit from which the Orchestra was created — and to which we are all dedicated.
I also express my thanks to tonight’s soloist, Yo-Yo Ma, and to conductor Carlos Miguel Prieto, for their artistic contributions to this Gala celebration. And I extend my deepest gratitude to the wonderful musicians of The Cleve-land Orchestra. Their artistry every week is a marvel to experience and a privilege to help make possible.
Finally, this benefit event would not be possible without the tireless staff and volunteers who have worked to make it an outstanding success. Thank you, and enjoy the concert.
Best wishes,
Gary HansonExecutive Director
From the Executive Director
�
2012 Gala — November 3
Dear Friends,
We are delighted to welcome you to this evening’s concert and celebration, featuring world-renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma.
Please accept our heartfelt gratitude to all of you who have made this evening such a wonderful success. Without your support, this Orchestra could not continue as a source of pride and service for all of Northeast Ohio. With your support, The Cleveland Orchestra is making a difference — through education, performance, and community involvement, for today’s audiences and for future generations.
This evening is raising funds to support The Cleveland Orchestra’s many and invaluable Education and Community Programs across Northeast Ohio. The photographs throughout this program book — of people engaged and interested in a wide variety of musical programs and activities — are testament to the Orchestra’s unflagging efforts and ongoing commitment to music education and community service.
Many thanks for joining us for this special occasion. And special thanks to executive chef Doug Katz, for his tireless efforts and creativity in planning this evening’s gala dinner.
Sincerely,
Norma Lerner Beth MooneyGala Chair Gala Corporate Chair
welcome
From the Gala Chairs
Gala 2012 THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA
The Cleveland Orchestra believes that all children should have access to the countless
benefits and sheer joy of active music-making. With their expertise and passion, Orch-
estra musicians support school music programs (through Music Mentors and Music
Masters), lead important after-school programs (such as El Sistema@Rainey, pictured
at top), and coach the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra, passing down the hall-
mark artistic excellence of The Cleveland Orchestra to future generations.
�
2012 Gala — November 3
Diamond SponsorsThe Lerner Foundation
KeyBank
Platinum SponsorsAudrey and Albert Ratner
Gold SponsorsBakerHostetler
Alexander and Sarah CutlerForest City Enterprises
Medical Mutual of OhioNACCO Industries, Inc.
Silver SponsorsTrevor and Jennie Jones
Walter and Jean KalbererPark-Ohio Holdings Corp.
The Payne FundQuality Electrodynamics (QED)
Thompson Hine LLP
Bronze SponsorsCleveland Clinic
Litigation Management, Inc.Nancy W. McCann
David and Inez Myers Foundation The Plain Dealer
Barbara S. Robinson Dr. and Mrs. Ronald J. Ross
Tucker Ellis LLP University Hospitals
Gala 2012 THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA
Gala �01�
The Cleveland Orchestra is devoted to the citizens of Northeast Ohio, and is proud to serve
as the region’s most prominent international ambassador. Whether celebrating the birth
of our country with the annual Public Square Concert, remembering the fallen with the
September 11 Anniversary Concert, or honoring the memory of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
through the Orchestra’s annual MLK Concert and Community Open House, The Cleveland
Orchestra draws people together through music in times of sorrow, joy, and celebration.
�
2012 Gala — November 3
�
Distinguished Patrons Bank of America-Merrill Lynch Mr. William P. Blair III Barbara Ann Davis
Mr. and Mrs. Robert W. Gillespie Joyce Glickman Richard Horvitz and Erica Hartman-Horvitz James D. Ireland III Allan V. Johnson Dr. Nancy Kurfess Johnson, M.D.
Richard L. Jones Mr. and Mrs. Joseph P. Keithley John D. Koch Tim and Linda Koelz Mr. and Mrs. Dennis W. LaBarre Larry and Chris Levey
Mr. and Mrs. Jon A. Lindseth Robert P. Madison Materion Corporation Meg Fulton-Mueller William J. and Katherine T. O’Neill Clara T. Rankin
Mrs. David Seidenfeld Dr. Michael Vogelbaum and Ms. Judith Rosman
Patrons Jacqueline Acho and John LeMay Mr. and Mrs. William W. Baker Mr. and Mrs. Dean Barry
Mr. Jeffrey and Dr. Sheila Berlin Ms. Loretta Borstein Jeanette G. and Glenn R. Brown Rebecca A. Brunotte Frank and Leslie Buck Marc and Viki Byrnes Marge and Harry Carlson
Mr. and Mrs. William E. Conway Dr. Delia DiGregorio Drs. Brenda Ellner and Melvin Schoenstein The Fedeli Group Robert K. Gudbranson and Joon-Li Kim Mr. and Mrs. Robert N. Gudbranson
Lainie Hadden and David Ford Iris and Tom Harvie Marguerite B. Humphrey Hyland Software Mr. and Mrs. Douglas A. Kern Kenneth and Audrey Koblitz Alicia Koelz Richard Lang and Lisa Kraemer Mr. and Mrs. Alex Machaskee
The Milton and Tamar Maltz Family Foundation Mr. and Mrs. Sanford E. Marovitz Kay Mathieu William and Eleanor McCoy Donald W. Morrison Marjorie and Bert Moyar Deborah L. Neale
Gary Oatey John & Linda Olejko Mr. and Mrs. Peter R. Osenar Randy and Amy Paine Scott Peters and Jeannine Gury Drs. Carmen Fonseca and Raymond Rackley
James and Donna Reid Dr. Rod Rezaee and Ms. Sara Schiavoni Michael F. Roizen, M.D. Paul A. and Anastacia L. Rose Lincoln Russell and Nancy Fitzpatrick
Raymond T. and Katherine S. Sawyer Mr. John Schambach Mary Ann K. Sholtis Laura and Alvin A. Siegal Naomi G. and Edwin Z. Singer Gretchen D. Smith
Jack Sutte Lorraine S. Szabo Ulmer & Berne LLP Philip and Peggy Wasserstrom WCLV Mr. and Mrs. Norman E. Wells, Jr. Sandy and Ted Wiese
listings as of October 31, 2012
Gala �01�
Gala 2012 THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA
Special thanks are extended to these Gala Sponsors for increasing their gifts from last year’s level:
KeyBank Audrey and Albert Ratner BakerHostetler
Alexander and Sarah Cutler Thompson Hine LLP Nancy W. McCann
With special gratitude to The Lerner Foundation for its continuing leadership support of the Gala.
Education has always been an integral part of the Orchestra’s mission. Across nine de-
cades, Education Concerts at Severance Hall have introduced over 4 million young peo-
ple to symphonic music. And, for the first time in forty years, Franz Welser-Möst has
taken the entire Cleveland Orchestra to area high schools for in-school performances. In
local elementary schools students are Learning Through Music, using music to support
math, science, and language arts, with the help of Cleveland Orchestra teaching artists.
�
2012 Gala — November 3
Sensemayá by Silvestre Revueltas (1899-1940)
Elegy (for solo cello and orchestra) by John Williams (b. 1932)
Yo-Yo Ma, cello
El Salón México by Aaron Copland (1900-1990)
Cello Concerto in B minor, Opus 104 by Antonín Dvorák (1841-1904) 1. Allegro 2. Adagio ma non troppo 3. Finale: Allegro moderato
Yo-Yo Ma, cello
Severance HallSaturday evening, November �, 2012, at 7:00 p.m.
Carlos Miguel Prieto, conductor
Gala �01�
T h e C l e v e l a n d O r c h e s T r a f r a n z w e l s e r - m Ö s T m u s i c d i r e c t o r
Gala 2012 THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA
Special thanks for generous ongoing support of:
November 2012 Gala
10 The Orchestra
FIRST VIOLINSWilliam Preucilconcertmaster
Blossom-Lee ChairYoko Mooreassistant concertmaster
Clara G. and George P. Bickford Chair
Peter OttoFirst associate concertmaster
Jung-Min amy leeassociate concertmaster
Gretchen D. and Ward Smith Chair
lev Polyakinassistant concertmaster
Dr. Jeanette Grasselli Brownand Dr. Glenn R. Brown Chair
Takako MasamePaul and Lucille Jones Chair
Wei-Fang GuDrs. Paul M. and Renate H. Duchesneau Chair
Kim GomezElizabeth and Leslie Kondorossy Chair
Chul-In ParkHarriet T. and David L.Simon Chair
Miho HashizumeTheodore Rautenberg Chair
Jeanne Preucil RoseDr. Larry J.B. and Barbara S. Robinson Chair
alicia KoelzOswald and Phyllis Lerner Gilroy Chair
Yu YuanPatty and John Collinson Chair
Isabel TrautweinTrevor and Jennie Jones Chair
Mark dummGladys B. Goetz Chair
alexandra PreucilKatherine BormannYing Fu
SECOND VIOLINSStephen Rose*
Alfred M. and Clara T. Rankin Chair
emilio llinas 2
James and Donna Reid Chaireli Matthews 1
Patricia M. Kozerefski and Richard J. Bogomolny Chair
elayna duitmanIoana MissitsCarolyn Gadiel WarnerStephen WarnerSae Shiragamivladimir deninzonSonja Braaten MolloyScott WeberKathleen CollinsBeth Woodsideemma ShookJeffrey Zehngut
VIOLASRobert vernon*
Chaillé H. and Richard B. Tullis Chair
lynne Ramsey1
Charles M. and Janet G. Kimball Chair
Stanley Konopka 2
Mark JackobsJean Wall Bennett Chair
arthur KlimaRichard Waughlisa Boykolembi veskimetseliesha nelsonJoanna Patterson ZakanyPatrick Connolly
CELLOSMark Kosower*
Louis D. Beaumont ChairRichard Weiss1
The GAR Foundation ChairCharles Bernard2
Helen Weil Ross ChairBryan dumm
Muriel and Noah Butkin ChairTanya ellRalph CurryBrian Thorntondavid alan HarrellPaul KushiousMartha BaldwinThomas Mansbacher
BASSESMaximilian dimoff *
Clarence T. Reinberger ChairKevin Switalski 2
Scott Haigh1
Mary E. and F. Joseph Callahan Chair
Mark athertonThomas SperlHenry Peyrebrune
Charles Barr Memorial ChairCharles CarletonScott dixonderek Zadinsky
HARPTrina Struble*
Alice Chalifoux Chair
f r a n z w e l s e r - m Ö s T m u s i c d i r e c to r Kelvin Smith Family Chair
t h e C l e v e l a n d o r c h e s t r a
11
2012 Gala — November 3
The Orchestra
1213
SEASONt h e C l e v e l a n d o r c h e s t r a
FLUTESJoshua Smith*
Elizabeth M. andWilliam C. Treuhaft Chair
Saeran St. ChristopherMarisela Sager 2
Austin B. and Ellen W. Chinn ChairMary Kay Fink
PICCOLOMary Kay Fink
Anne M. and M. Roger Clapp Chair
OBOESFrank Rosenwein*
Edith S. Taplin ChairMary lynchJeffrey Rathbun 2
Everett D. and Eugenia S. McCurdy Chair
Robert Walters
ENGLISH HORNRobert Walters
Samuel C. and Bernette K. Jaffe Chair
CLARINETSFranklin Cohen*
Robert Marcellus ChairRobert Woolfreydaniel McKelway 2
Robert R. and Vilma L. Kohn Chairlinnea nereim
E-FLAT CLARINETdaniel McKelway
Stanley L. and Eloise M. Morgan Chair
BASS CLARINETlinnea nereim
BASSOONSJohn Clouser *
Louise Harkness Ingalls ChairBarrick Stees2
Sandra L. Haslinger ChairJonathan Sherwin
CONTRABASSOONJonathan Sherwin
HORNSRichard King *
George Szell Memorial ChairMichael Mayhew §
Knight Foundation ChairJesse McCormickHans ClebschRichard Solisalan deMattia
TRUMPETSMichael Sachs*
Robert and Eunice Podis Weiskopf Chair
Jack Suttelyle Steelman2
James P. and Dolores D. Storer Chair
Michael Miller
CORNETSMichael Sachs*
Mary Elizabeth and G. Robert Klein Chair
Michael Miller
TROMBONESMassimo la Rosa*
Gilbert W. and Louise I. Humphrey Chair
Richard StoutAlexander andMarianna C. McAfee Chair
Shachar Israel2
BASS TROMBONEThomas Klaber
EUPHONIUM AND BASS TRUMPETRichard Stout
TUBAYasuhito Sugiyama*
Nathalie C. Spence and Nathalie S. Boswell Chair
TIMPANIPaul Yancich*
Otto G. and Corinne T. Voss ChairTom Freer 2
PERCUSSIONJacob nissly*
Margaret Allen Ireland Chairdonald MillerTom FreerMarc damoulakis
kEyBOARD INSTRUMENTSJoela Jones*
Rudolf Serkin ChairCarolyn Gadiel Warner
Marjory and Marc L. Swartzbaugh Chair
LIBRARIANSRobert O’Briendonald Miller
ORCHESTRA PERSONNELCarol lee Iottdirector
Karyn Garvinmanager
*Principal § Associate Principal 1 First Assistant Principal 2 Assistant Principal
ENDOwED CHAIRS CURRENTLy UNOCCUPIEDassistant concertmaster
Dr. Jeanette Grasselli Brownand Dr. Glenn R. Brown Chair
assistant principal harpSunshine Chair
The Cleveland Orchestra is committed to developing future generations of audiences
for symphonic music. Discounted ticket offerings (subsidized through donor contri-
butions) are attracting more young people to Severance Hall and Blossom than ever
before. In the first two months of this season, more than twice as many students are
attending the Orchestra’s classical concerts as last year. Varied programming ideas, in-
cluding KeyBank Fridays@7 and the Celebrity Series, are also attracting new audiences.
1�
2012 Gala — November 3
Student Ticket Programs“Under 18s Free,” Student Advantage membership, and Student Frequent FanCard offer affordable access to Cleveland Orchestra concerts all season long
The Cleveland Orchestra is committed to developing one of the youngest audiences of any orchestra in the country. With the help of generous contributors, the Orchestra has expanded its discounted ticket offerings through several new programs. In the opening two months of the current Severance Hall season, nearly 20% of the audience has been been students attending Orchestra concerts through these various programs and offers.
STUDENT ADVANTAGE PROGRAM The Orchestra’s ongoing Student Advantage Program provides opportunities for students to attend Orchestra concerts at Severance Hall through discounted ticket offers. Membership in the Student Advantage Program is free. A new Student Frequent FanCard was introduced this season. Priced at $50, the FanCard offers students unlimited single tickets (one per FanCard holder) to weekly Classical Subscription Concerts all season long.
“UNDER 18s FREE ” Introduced for Blossom Festival concerts two summers ago, the “Under 18s Free” program now includes select Cleveland Orchestra concerts at Severance Hall each season. This program offers free tickets (one per regular-priced adult paid ad-mission) to young people ages 7-17 to the Orchestra’s Fridays@7, Friday Morning at 11, and Sunday Afternoon at 3 concerts. All of these programs are supported by The Cleveland Orchestra’s Center for Future Audiences and the Alexander and Sarah Cutler Fund for Student Audiences. The Center for Future Audiences was created with a $20 million lead endowment gift from the Maltz Family Foundation to develop new generations of audiences for Cleveland Orchestra concerts in Northeast Ohio.
Student Ticket Programs
November 2012 Gala
14
Carlos Miguel PrietoMExiCAN CONDUCTOR Carlos Miguel Prieto currently serves as music director of four ensembles: the Orquesta Mineria, Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional de México, Louisiana Philhar-monic, and the Youth Orchestra of the Americas. He is also founder and music director of the Mozart-Haydn Festival, an annual six-concert series featuring the symphonic music of these two composers. He is making his Cleveland Orchestra debut with this evening’s concert. Mr. Prieto has appeared as a guest condutor with every major orchestra in Mexico and with many ensembles across the United States, including the orchestras of Boston, Chi-
cago, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Memphis, Phoenix, San Antonio, Seattle, To-ronto, and Vancouver, among others. He has also has led orchestras throughout Europe, Israel, Japan, Latin America, and Russia. A champion of contemporary music, Carlos Miguel Prieto has conducted over fifty world premieres of works by Mexican and American composers, many of which he commissioned. His commitment to education is exemplified by his relationship with the Youth Orchestra of the Americas since its inception in 2002. Also an accomplished violinist, Mr. Prieto has performed with the National Symphony Orchestra of Mexico and at the Aspen, Cervantino, Interlochen, San Miguel Allende, and Tanglewood festivals. Continuing a family tradition of four generations, he has performed with the Cuarteto Prieto throughout Europe, Mex-ico, and the United States. A graduate of Princeton and Harvard universities, Mr. Prieto studied conduct-ing with Charles Bruck, Enrique Diemecke, Jorge Mester, and Michael Jinbo. He went on to serve as assistant conductor of the Houston Symphony, and later served as music director of the Mexico City Philharmonic (1998-2002), Orquesta Sinfónica de Xalapa (2002-2007), and of Alabama’s Huntsville Symphony (2003-2011). Among Carlos Miguel Prieto’s honors are being named conductor of the year in 2002 by the Mexican Union of Music & Theatre Critics, and receiving the Mozart Medal of Honor from the governments of Mexico and Austria in 1998, and the Order of Orange-Nassau, Grade of Officer, from the Netherlands. Mr. Prieto has recorded Latin American and Mexican music for the Urtext label. His discography also includes violin works on Avanticlassic, and a Gram-my-nominated album on Naxos. For additional information, visit www.carlosmiguelprieto.com.
Conductor
Conductor
Soloist
1�
2012 Gala — November 3
Yo-Yo MaC E l l i S T YO -YO M A’s multi-faceted career is testament to his continual search for new ways to communicate with audi-ences, and to his personal desire for artistic growth and re-newal. Whether performing new or familiar works from the cello repertoire, coming together with colleagues for cham-ber music, or exploring cultures and musical forms outside the Western classical tradition, Mr. Ma strives to find con-nections that stimulate the imagination. Yo-Yo Ma made his Cleveland Orchestra debut in Janu-ary 1982, performing the Dvořák Cello Concerto in con-cert at Severance Hall. He returned frequently over the next
decade, including concerto and recital performances at Severance Hall, as well as concertos at Blossom. Most recently, he led a Blossom Festival performance of his Silk Road Ensemble in August 2010. (He returns to Northeast Ohio in March 2013 with his Silk Road Ensemble as part of Akron’s Tuesday Musical 2012-13 season at E.J. Thomas Hall.) Mr. Ma maintains a balance between his engagements as soloist with or-chestras throughout the world, his recital and chamber music activities, and his work with the Silk Road Project, for which he serves as artistic director. He draws inspiration from a wide circle of collaborators, each fueled by the artists’ interactions. Mr. Ma is also widely recognized for his strong commitment to educational programs that bring the world into the classroom and the class-room into the world. While touring, he takes time whenever possible to con-duct masterclasses as well as more informal programs for students — musicians and non-musicians alike. He has also reached young audiences through ap-pearances on Arthur, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, and Sesame Street. One of Yo-Yo Ma’s goals is the exploration of music as a means of commu-nication and as a vehicle for the migrations of ideas across a range of cultures throughout the world. Expanding upon this interest, in 1998, Mr. Ma estab-lished the Silk Road Project to promote the study of the cultural, artistic, and intellectual traditions along the ancient Silk Road trade route that stretched from the Mediterranean Sea to the Pacific Ocean. Since the Project’s inception, more than sixty works have been commissioned specifically for the Silk Road Ensemble, which tours annually. At the invitation of the New York City De-partment of Education, in 2009, the Silk Road Project began a multi-year part-nership with cultural and educational organizations to pilot Silk Road Connect, a multidisciplinary middle school engagement program designed to spark a life-long passion for learning. In Silk Road Connect, visual and aural elements are
Soloist
November 2012 Gala
16
used alongside the experiences of creating and collaborating, making direct con-nections to classroom work in subjects such as social studies, English language arts, science, and the arts. Mr. Ma is an exclusive Sony Classical artist, and his discography of over 75 albums (including more than 15 Grammy Award winners) reflects his wide-ranging interests. He has made several successful recordings that defy easy categorization, among them Hush with Bobby McFerrin, Appalachia Waltz and Appalachian Journey with Mark O’Connor and Edgar Meyer, and three albums with the Silk Road Ensemble. Mr. Ma’s recent recordings include Mendelssohn Trios with Emanuel Ax and Itzhak Perlman. His album The Goat Rodeo Ses-sions, with Edgar Meyer, Chris Thile, and Stuart Duncan, was released in 2011. Across this full range of releases, Mr. Ma remains one of the best-selling record-ing artists in the classical field. In autumn 2009, Sony Classical released a box set of over 90 albums to commemorate Mr. Ma’s 30 years as a Sony recording artist. Yo-Yo Ma was born in 1955 to Chinese parents living in Paris. He began to study the cello with his father at age four and soon came with his family to New York, where he spent most of his formative years. Later, his principal teacher was Leonard Rose at the Juilliard School. He sought out a traditional liberal arts edu-cation to expand upon his conservatory training, graduating from Harvard Uni-versity in 1976. Mr. Ma has received many awards, including the Avery Fisher Prize (1978), Glenn Gould Prize (1999), National Medal of the Arts (2001), Dan David Prize (2006), Sonning Prize (2006), World Economic Forum’s Crystal Award (2008), and the Presidential Medal of Freedom (2010). Mr. Ma serves as a United Na-tions Messenger of Peace and as a member of the President’s Committee on the Arts & Humanities. He has performed for eight American presidents, most recently at the invitation of President Obama on the occa-sion of the 56th Inaugural Ceremony. Yo-Yo Ma and his wife have two child-ren. Mr. Ma plays two instruments, a 1733 Montagnana cello from Venice and the 1712 Davidoff Stradivarius.
yo-yo Ma
1�
2012 Gala — November 3
Sensemayá by Silvestre Revueltas (1899-1940)
Mexico in the early 20th century boasted two composers of prominence and promise: Carlos Chávez and Silvestre Revueltas. Chávez was the more conserva-tive, firmly anchored in Western European art music (with careful additions of native ideas and musical spice). The more daring was Silvestre Revueltas, whose music continually agitated against the caging confines of classical tradition. Much of Revueltas’s music was shaped from three issues: by the composer’s hopes to create a uniquely Mexican musical language, by the radicalness of his politics, and by the composer’s fiery personality. That Revueltas was born at the end of the 19th century and died at age 40 of alcoholism perfectly embodies his forward-looking yet consumingly passionate life. Revueltas was born to a middle-class, arts-loving family. His siblings also became artists — including a painter, an actor, and a writer. Silvestre’s interest in music was discovered early, and his parents sent him to the Conservatorio Nacio-nal de Música in Mexico City, and then to the Chicago Musical College, where he earned a diploma in violin, harmony, and composition. Afterward, his life as a composer wavered between happiness and despair, between creativity and stagna-tion, between poverty and bursts of momentary income. Sensemayá is today Revueltas’s best-known work. It is a brief and intense work, embracing the idea of a specific ritual within an almost terrifying, relentless 7/8 meter. Composed in 1937, it started as a simple musical setting of a poem of the same name by his friend Nicolás Guillén. Revueltas then arranged it for large orchestra — and plenty of percussion. The subject of Sensemayá is the killing of a snake — but there is an undercur-rent of subtexts relating to cruelty in many forms, and especially to the unfairness that Guillén and Revueltas both wanted addressed in Mexican politics. The text of Sensemayá follows here, in English translation. (The untranslat-able “Mayombe-bomne-mayombe!” is a ritual incantation repeated throughout the poem.) “Mayombe-bombe-mayombe! The snake has eyes of glass. The snake coils on a stick. With his eyes of glass on a stick. — The snake can move without feet, the snake can hide in the grass. Crawling he hides in the grass, moving without feet. — Mayombe-bombe-mayombe! Hit him with an axe and he dies; Hit him! Go on, hit him! Don’t hit him with your foot or he’ll bite. Don’t hit him with your foot or he’ll get away. — Sensemayá, the snake, Sensemayá. Sensemayá, with his eyes. Sense-mayá, with his tongue. Sensemayá, with his mouth, Sensemayá. — The dead snake cannot eat, the dead snake cannot hiss, he cannot move, he cannot run! — The dead
About the Music
About the Music
November 2012 Gala
18
snake cannot drink, he cannot breathe, he cannot bite. —Mayombe-bombe-may-ombe! Sensemayá, the snake. Sensemayá does not move . . . Sensemayá, the snake . . . Mayombe-bombe-mayombe! Sensemayá, he died!
Performance Time: about 7 minutes
Elegy (for solo cello and orchestra) by John Williams (b. 1932)
The composer has written the following comments about the origins of this work, which he created between 1997 and 2001. “A few years ago, an acquaintance of mine, a brilliant young violinist, lost her two young children in tragic circumstances. For the memorial service for little Al-exandra and Daniel, a group of composer colleagues and I each contributed a small piece to mark this occasion, which was not only heart-rending, but also one that was suffused with a great deal of love. “A short time before this event, Yo-Yo Ma appeared as soloist on my soundtrack recording of Seven Years in Tibet. The score included a short melodic fragment that I thought might be expanded, so I shaped it into the form of the present Elegy, al-ways with the cello in mind. The original version of the piece was for piano and cello and was beautifully performed at the memorial service by John Walz, an outstand-ing Los Angeles cellist. When the opportunity to record an album with Yo-Yo Ma emerged, I decided to orchestrate the Elegy and Yo-Yo kindly agreed to record it.”
Performance Time: about 7 minutes
El Sálon México by Aaron Copland (1900-1990)
The success of El Salón México helped launch Copland’s worldwide fame. It was inspired by a visit (or perhaps several) that the composer made in 1932 to a col-orful nightclub of the same name in Mexico City. Here, a variety of the city’s popu-lace mingled to dance (some barefoot, some in shoes or boots). A Cuban-Mexican band played a mixed dance repertoire (slow, swirling, fast, furious, drunk, sober) firmly grounded in Mexican everyday musical tastes. “I was attracted by the spirit of the place and by the Mexican people,” Copland later said. “Using Mexican melodies in my version seemed appropriate. My purpose was not merely to quote literally, but to heighten without in any way falsifying the natural simplicity of Mexican tunes.”
Performance Time: about 10 minutes
About the Music
1�
2012 Gala — November 3
About the Music
Cello Concerto in B minor, Opus 104 by Antonín Dvorák (1841-1904)
Although Dvořák was well into middle age before his gifts as a composer were widely recognized, he soon thereafter emerged as one of Central Europe’s greatest composers and was frequently mentioned as a worthy successor to Brahms as the leading proponent of Germanic symphonic traditions. Even so, his Czech upbring-ing also brought him face-to-face with the waves of nationalism cresting across mid-19th-century Europe. Throughout his life, Dvořák deftly applied the notion of homeland to his musical creations, borrowing freely from Czech music traditions while working within accepted classical forms. Dvořák wrote his Cello Concerto at the age of fifty-five, as a fully mature composer of international standing. He created it in 1894-95, during the last of his three winters living in New York City as director of the National Conservatory of Music — although he subsequently completed the orchestration and reworked the ending after returning to Europe to live that spring. He was at least partially in-spired by the example of his colleague at the Conservatory, the cellist-composer Victor Herbert, whose own Second Cello Concerto he had heard premiered in March 1894 by the New York Philharmonic. Dvořák had, in fact, attempted to write a cello concerto thirty years before, but had become frustrated with the challenges that concertos for a middle-voiced string instrument often cause — requiring careful balance so that the soloist’s part is not buried in the midst of the surrounding orchestral sound. He had set his youthful effort aside, incomplete. Dvořák the mature composer had no such dif-ficulties. While successfully managing the dialogue and balance between orchestra and soloist, he also imbued his new concerto with a strong chamber music charac-ter, in part by at times reducing the orchestral forces that play against the cello at any one time. And like Beethoven and Brahms before him, Dvořák included plenty of moments filled with orchestral grandeur — while, in fact, creating one of the greatest concertos for any instrument. From its sober, almost melancholy opening to its strong-willed ending, with strong musical statements and passages carefully balanced against wistful, even elegaic sections, this concerto breathes with dramatic life and character.
Performance Time: 40 minutes program notes by Eric Sellen
November 2012 Gala
�0 Board of Trustees
NON-RESiDENT TRUSTEES Virginia nord Barbato (nY) Wolfgang c. Berndt (austria) laurel Blossom (sc)
richard c. gridley (sc) george gund iii (ca) loren W. hershey (dc)
herbert Kloiber (germany)ludwig scharinger (austria)
TRUSTEES Ex-OFFiCiO Faye a. heston, President, Volunteer Council of The Cleveland Orchestra Beth schreibman gehring, President, Women’s Committee of The Cleveland Orchestra ruth ann Krutz, State Chair, Blossom Women’s Committee
carolyn dessin, Chair, Cleveland Orchestra Chorus Operating Committee dr. lester lefton, President, Kent State University Barbara r. snyder, President, Case Western Reserve University
PAST PRESiDENTS d. Z. norton 1915-21 John l. severance 1921-36 dudley s. Blossom 1936-38 thomas l. sidlo 1939-53
percy W. Brown 1953-55 Frank e. taplin, Jr. 1955-57 Frank e. Joseph 1957-68 alfred m. rankin 1968-83
Ward smith 1983-95richard J. Bogomolny 1995-2002, 2008-09James d. ireland iii 2002-08
hONORARY TRUSTEES FOR liFE gay cull addicott Francis J. callahan mrs. Webb chamberlain oliver F. emerson
allen h. Fordrobert W. gillespiedorothy humel hovorkarobert F. meyerson
TRUSTEES EMERiTi clifford J. isroff samuel h. miller david l. simon
RESiDENT TRUSTEES george n. aronoff dr. ronald h. Bell richard J. Bogomolny charles p. Bolton Jeanette grasselli Brown helen rankin Butler scott chaikin paul g. clark owen m. colligan robert d. conrad matthew V. crawford alexander m. cutler terrance c. Z. egger hiroyuki Fujita paul g. greig robert K. gudbranson iris harvie Jeffrey a. healy stephen h. hoffman david J. hooker michael J. horvitz marguerite B. humphrey david p. hunt
christopher hyland James d. ireland iii trevor o. Jones Betsy Juliano Jean c. Kalberer nancy F. Keithley douglas a. Kern John d. Koch s. lee Kohrman charlotte r. Kramer dennis W. laBarre norma lerner Virginia m. lindseth alex machaskee robert p. madison nancy W. mccann thomas F. mcKee Beth e. mooney John c. morley donald W. morrison meg Fulton mueller gary a. oatey Katherine t. o’neill
the honorable John d. onglarry pollock alfred m. rankin, Jr. clara t. rankinaudrey gilbert ratner charles a. ratnerJames s. reid, Jr.Barbara s. robinson paul rosesteven m. rossraymond t. sawyerluci scheyneil sethihewitt B. shaw, Jr. richard K. smuckerr. thomas stantonthomas a. Waltermiregeraldine B. Warnerpaul e. Westlake Jr.david a. Wolfort
OFFiCERS AND ExECUTiVE COMMiTTEE dennis W. laBarre, President richard J. Bogomolny, Chairman the honorable John d. ong, Vice President
norma lerner, Honorary Chair raymond t. sawyer, Secretary Beth e. mooney, Treasurer
Jeanette grasselli Brown alexander m. cutler matthew V. crawford michael J. horvitz douglas a. Kern
Virginia m. lindseth alex machaskee nancy W. mccann John c. morley larry pollock
alfred m. rankin, Jr.audrey gilbert ratnerBarbara s. robinson
the MuSICal aRTS association operating The Cleveland Orchestra, Severance Hall, and Blossom Festival
the Cleveland orchestra Franz Welser-Möst, Music Director Gary Hanson, Executive Director
Grateful thanks are extended to:
Executive Chef Douglas KatzFire Food & Drink Consolidated Graphics GroupD.K. Vanderbrook Inc. DC Rentals EventSource Kristen Flynn Designs Jody Guinn Lasting Impressions Dennis Lewin Dan MaierRoger Mastroianni Daniel MilnerNOW Valet ServiceOliver PrintingSammy’sStandard Parking Vincent Lighting
Cleveland Orchestra photography by Roger Mastroianni.
Special Thanks . . .
lATE SEATiNGAs a courtesy to the audience members and musicians in the hall, late-arriving patrons are asked to wait quietly until the first convenient break in the program, when ushers will help you to your seats. These seating breaks are at the discretion of the House Manager in consultation with the conductor and performing artists.
PhOTOGRAPhY AND RECORDiNGFor the safety of and as a courtesy to guests and performers, photography and videography are strictly prohibited during concerts at Severance Hall.
CEllPhONESAND wATCh AlARMSCellphones and watch alarms should be turned off before the start of the concert.
iN ThE EVENT OF AN EMERGENCYContact an usher or a member of house staff if you require medical assistance. Emergency exits are clearly marked throughout the building. Ushers and house staff will provide instructions in the event of an emergency.
NON-RESiDENT TRUSTEES Virginia nord Barbato (nY) Wolfgang c. Berndt (austria) laurel Blossom (sc)
richard c. gridley (sc) george gund iii (ca) loren W. hershey (dc)
herbert Kloiber (germany)ludwig scharinger (austria)
TRUSTEES Ex-OFFiCiO Faye a. heston, President, Volunteer Council of The Cleveland Orchestra Beth schreibman gehring, President, Women’s Committee of The Cleveland Orchestra ruth ann Krutz, State Chair, Blossom Women’s Committee
carolyn dessin, Chair, Cleveland Orchestra Chorus Operating Committee dr. lester lefton, President, Kent State University Barbara r. snyder, President, Case Western Reserve University
PAST PRESiDENTS d. Z. norton 1915-21 John l. severance 1921-36 dudley s. Blossom 1936-38 thomas l. sidlo 1939-53
percy W. Brown 1953-55 Frank e. taplin, Jr. 1955-57 Frank e. Joseph 1957-68 alfred m. rankin 1968-83
Ward smith 1983-95richard J. Bogomolny 1995-2002, 2008-09James d. ireland iii 2002-08
hONORARY TRUSTEES FOR liFE gay cull addicott Francis J. callahan mrs. Webb chamberlain oliver F. emerson
allen h. Fordrobert W. gillespiedorothy humel hovorkarobert F. meyerson
TRUSTEES EMERiTi clifford J. isroff samuel h. miller david l. simon
RESiDENT TRUSTEES george n. aronoff dr. ronald h. Bell richard J. Bogomolny charles p. Bolton Jeanette grasselli Brown helen rankin Butler scott chaikin paul g. clark owen m. colligan robert d. conrad matthew V. crawford alexander m. cutler terrance c. Z. egger hiroyuki Fujita paul g. greig robert K. gudbranson iris harvie Jeffrey a. healy stephen h. hoffman david J. hooker michael J. horvitz marguerite B. humphrey david p. hunt
christopher hyland James d. ireland iii trevor o. Jones Betsy Juliano Jean c. Kalberer nancy F. Keithley douglas a. Kern John d. Koch s. lee Kohrman charlotte r. Kramer dennis W. laBarre norma lerner Virginia m. lindseth alex machaskee robert p. madison nancy W. mccann thomas F. mcKee Beth e. mooney John c. morley donald W. morrison meg Fulton mueller gary a. oatey Katherine t. o’neill
the honorable John d. onglarry pollock alfred m. rankin, Jr. clara t. rankinaudrey gilbert ratner charles a. ratnerJames s. reid, Jr.Barbara s. robinson paul rosesteven m. rossraymond t. sawyerluci scheyneil sethihewitt B. shaw, Jr. richard K. smuckerr. thomas stantonthomas a. Waltermiregeraldine B. Warnerpaul e. Westlake Jr.david a. Wolfort
OFFiCERS AND ExECUTiVE COMMiTTEE dennis W. laBarre, President richard J. Bogomolny, Chairman the honorable John d. ong, Vice President
norma lerner, Honorary Chair raymond t. sawyer, Secretary Beth e. mooney, Treasurer
Jeanette grasselli Brown alexander m. cutler matthew V. crawford michael J. horvitz douglas a. Kern
Virginia m. lindseth alex machaskee nancy W. mccann John c. morley larry pollock
alfred m. rankin, Jr.audrey gilbert ratnerBarbara s. robinson
the MuSICal aRTS association operating The Cleveland Orchestra, Severance Hall, and Blossom Festival
the Cleveland orchestra Franz Welser-Möst, Music Director Gary Hanson, Executive Director