Yo-Yo Ma
{ program notes
syllables “ Ser-gei Dia-ghi-lev ” over and over ! The premiere on June 8 , 1912 , with Nijinsky and the great Tamara Karsavina dancing the title roles and Pierre Monteux conducting , was a rocky affair , but nearly everyone loved Ravel ’ s music .
Ravel extracted two concert suites from the score , and the Second Suite — which comprises the ballet ’ s third and final tableau — is by far the more often performed . It consists of three interlocking movements — “ Dawn ,” “ Pantomine ,” and “ Final Dance .” Earlier in the story , Daphnis and Chloé ’ s love has been tested by rivals , and Chloé has been abducted by pirates , but she is rescued by the miraculous intervention of the god Pan .
The third act opens with “ probably the most famous dawn in all music ” ( Robin Holloway ). Master orchestrator that he was , Ravel paints the sunrise with all the Technicolor sounds he can conceive : the ripple of brooks , the chatter of birds , and from deep in the orchestral strings a magnificent song portraying the rising sun , finally gleaming aloft in the violins . Daphnis awakes , searches frantically for Chloé , and at the crest of the second crescendo sees her returning with a party of shepherdesses and joyfully embraces her . Seeing the crown on her head , he realizes that Pan has saved her in memory of his love for the nymph Syrinx . Daphnis and Chloé then mime the courtship of Pan and Syrinx and Pan ’ s invention of the flute , celebrated in a glorious extended flute solo . Returning to their own identities , Daphnis and Chloé swear their eternal fidelity to solemn , brass-dominated music . Nymphs and shepherds surround them for a joyously pagan dance in that notorious 5 / 4 meter . Here Ravel ’ s 18 th -century ideal seems at last to yield to the full-blooded style of his Russian colleagues .
Instrumentation : Four flutes , ( including piccolos and alto flute ), two oboes , English horn , two clarinets , bass clarinet , E-flat clarinet , three bassoons , contrabassoon , four horns , four trumpets , three trombones , tuba , timpani , percussion , two harps , celesta , and strings .
Notes by Janet E . Bedell , Copyright © 2016
Michael O ' Neill
Marin Alsop
For Marin Alsop ’ s bio ., please see pg . 7 .
Yo-Yo Ma
Ranked among the finest cellists of the 20 th century , Yo-Yo Ma strives to find connections that stimulate the imagination — by performing new or familiar works from the cello repertoire , joining colleagues for chamber music and exploring cultures and musical forms outside the Western
Yo-Yo Ma
Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall Wednesday , June 15 , 2016 — 8 p . m .
Marin Alsop , Conductor Yo-Yo Ma , Cello
Antonín Dvořák Symphony No . 9 in E Minor , opus 95 ,
“ From the New World ” adagio - Allegro molto largo molto vivace allegro con fuoco
INTERMISSION
Antonín Dvořák Cello Concerto in B Minor , opus 104 allegro adagio ma non troppo Finale : Allegro moderato yo-YO MA
The concert will end at approximately 9:50 p . m .
Supporting Sponsor :
classical tradition . In 1998 , Mr . Ma established the nonprofit Silkroad , made up of musicians from more than 20 countries , to co-create art and performance .
Among Mr . Ma ’ s discography of over 90 albums ( including more than 18 Grammy winners ) are several recordings that defy categorization , among them Hush with Bobby McFerrin , Appalachia Waltz and Appalachian Journey with Mark O ’ Connor and Edgar Meyer , and two Grammy-winning tributes to the music of Brazil , Obrigado Brazil and Obrigado Brazil – Live in Concert . Mr . Ma ’ s recent
36 Overture | www . bsomusic . org