TCHAIKOVSKY PIANO CONCERTO NO . 1 driver behind the front lines . When he was demobilized , his health was broken . The death of his beloved mother early in 1917 sent him into a long depression . La Valse was written by a man who had experienced horrors both on the battlefield and in his personal life . There was no longer any possibility of creating a Romantic apotheosis , only , in Ravel ’ s words , “ the impression of fantastic and fatal whirling .”
TCHAIKOVSKY PIANO CONCERTO NO . 1 driver behind the front lines . When he was demobilized , his health was broken . The death of his beloved mother early in 1917 sent him into a long depression . La Valse was written by a man who had experienced horrors both on the battlefield and in his personal life . There was no longer any possibility of creating a Romantic apotheosis , only , in Ravel ’ s words , “ the impression of fantastic and fatal whirling .”
Like his Daphnis and Chloé , La Valse was originally intended as a ballet for the flamboyant Russian impresario Serge Diaghilev and given the subtitle “ choreographic poem .” But when Ravel and a colleague played it in a two-piano version for Diaghilev in April 1920 , he dismissed it : “ It ’ s a masterpiece … but it ’ s not a ballet .” However , La Valse has been subsequently choreographed several times , with George Balanchine creating a particularly successful version in the 1950s .
Ravel provided a brief synopsis for his ghostly dance : “ Through whirling clouds , waltzing couples may be faintly distinguished . The clouds gradually scatter : one sees … an immense hall peopled with a whirling crowd .… The light of the chandeliers bursts forth at the [ first ] fortissimo .… An imperial court , about 1855 .”
The music opens ominously with the dark rumble of low strings and bassoons , and a nightmarish thud in 3 / 4 time delivered by basses and timpani . A few waltz strains gradually penetrate the mists , then shine forth brilliantly . The dark music returns , and , whirling faster , the waltzes begin to collide with each other in wild harmonic and rhythmic confusion . Finally , even the 3 / 4 beat breaks down in an orgy of self-destruction — the most violent ending in Ravel ’ s music . In just 12 minutes , we have experienced the most vivid sound portrait imaginable of the end of an era .
Instrumentation : Three flutes including piccolo , three oboes including English horn , two clarinets , bass clarinet , two bassoons , contrabassoon , four horns , three trumpets , three trombones , tuba , timpani , percussion , two harps and strings .
JOSEPH MEYERHOFF SYMPHONY HALL
Friday , January 19 , 2018 , 8 pm Sunday , January 21 , 2018 , 3 pm
MUSIC CENTER AT STRATHMORE
Saturday , January 20 , 2018 , 8pm
Marin Alsop , Music Director Gabriela Montero , piano
Béla Bartók Rumanian Folk Dances
( arr . Willner ) Jocul cu bâta ( Stick Dance ) Brâul ( Waistband Dance ) Pe loc ( Stamping Dance , or On the Spot ) Buciumeana ( Hornpipe Dance ) Poarga româneasca ( Rumanian Polka ) Maruntel ( Quick Dance ) Maruntel ( Quick Dance )
Bartók
INTERMISSION
Concerto for Orchestra Introduzione : Andante non troppo - Allegro vivace Giuocco delle coppie : Allegretto scherzando Elegia : Andante non troppo Intermezzo interrotto : Allegretto Finale : Pesante - Presto
Pyotr Ilyich Piano Concerto No . 1 in B-flat Minor , op . 23 Tchaikovsky
Allegro non troppo e molto maestoso Andantino semplice Allegro con fuoco
Gabriela Montero
The concert will end at approximately 10:10 pm on Friday and Saturday and 5:10 pm on Sunday .
Friday , January 19 : Join pianist Gabriela Montero in the Meyerhoff lobby after the concert for a post-concert performance .
PRESENTING SPONSORS :
The appearance of pianist Gabriela Montero is made possible through the support of the Sidney M . Friedberg Guest Artist Fund .
Notes by Janet E . Bedell , © 2018
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