Program Notes - Colburn School

About the Music
ottorino respighi (1879–1936)
Trittico Botticelliano (1927)
by Michelle Feng, oboist in the Bachelor of Music program of the
Colburn Conservatory of Music
Born in Bologna in 1879, Ottorino Respighi studied violin
and piano as a child. From 1900 to 1903, while employed
in Russia as a violist, he studied composition with
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. Upon his return to Italy, in addition
to working as an orchestra musician, Respighi became active
as a transcriber of late Renaissance and Baroque music,
including Claudio Monteverdi’s Lamento d’Arianna and Orfeo.
He was strongly influenced by this music, and later published
editions of works by Monteverdi, Vivaldi, and Marcello. His compositions show the profound
influence of his studies of Renaissance and Baroque music, as well as Rimsky-Korsakov’s
colorful orchestration and lush romantic harmonies, resulting in a style that combines a
consciousness of the past with vivid originality.
Although Respighi composed for opera, ballet, and chamber ensembles, it is his orchestral
works that have become his most beloved and enduring. Trittico Botticelliano (Botticelli
Triptych) is one of his best-known orchestral works, showcasing his evocative compositional
style in a chamber orchestra setting. Composed in 1927, its movements are inspired by
three paintings of the early Renaissance master Sandro Botticelli: La primavera (Spring),
L’adorazione dei Magi (Adoration of the Magi), and La nascita di Venere (The Birth of Venus).
The first movement of the triptych, La primavera, opens with trills in the high strings and
woodwinds, evocative of gentle breezes and bird songs. A boisterous fanfare figure and
celebratory dance rhythms seem to announce the awakening of spring. After this exuberant
opening, a middle section begins with the quiet voices of a woodwind trio. The rest of the
orchestra takes up their Renaissance-inspired melodies, embellished with joyful flourishes.
A solemn bassoon solo opens the second movement, a musical representation of
L’adorazione dei Magi. Respighi’s use of old church modes and open fifths, an interval
reminiscent of early organum, creates an atmosphere of spiritual devotion and reverence
throughout the movement. L’adorazione dei Magi features variations on the medieval
hymn “Veni, veni Emmanuel” (“O come, O come Emmanuel”). The ancient melody is first
introduced by the woodwinds, beginning with the flute and bassoon, and is answered by
gentle swells in the strings. A threatening string ostinato punctuates the middle section,
along with arpeggios in the piano, celesta, and harp, and meandering woodwind solos.
A singing violin enters to bring a sense of relief before the bassoon solo returns to close
the movement.
The concluding movement, La nascita di Venere, musically depicts Botticelli’s Roman
goddess of love rising out of the seafoam, standing in an oyster shell. A repetitive rolling
motif in the upper strings evokes waves on the ocean, while the cellos carry a slow, sweeping
melody. A free, winding flute solo portrays the beauty and sensuality of the goddess, while
fast scales in the woodwinds suggest sea breezes. The strings sing a broad, soaring melody
as La nascita di Venere comes to a climax, but as quickly as she appeared, the goddess
withdraws, leaving only the quiet rocking of the waves.
About the Music
Concerto for Cello and Orchestra in C Major,
Hob. VIIb:1 (c. 1761–1765)
joseph haydn (1732–1809)
by Elizabeth Lu, flutist in the Professional Studies Certificate
program of the Colburn Conservatory of Music
A staple of the cello repertoire, Haydn’s Cello Concerto in
C Major is his first of two such concertos, and is a wondrous
gem that demonstrates not only the virtuosic and emotional
capabilities of the cello, but Haydn’s musical acumen as well.
Music historian David Wyn Jones considers it “one of the
finest artistic expressions of the age.” This exuberant
work reflects the exceptional maturity of Haydn’s
early compositions.
The Cello Concerto in C Major was written between 1761 and 1765, Haydn’s first four years
in the employ of the Esterházy family. The illustrious and powerful Esterházys hired Haydn
to become the musical director of the Esterházy Orchestra, and with financial security and
Austria’s best musicians at his disposal, Haydn was free to explore new musical ideas.
Inspired by the talents of Joseph Franz Weigl, principal cellist of the Esterházy Orchestra,
Haydn wrote his first cello concerto. The work both gave Weigl the opportunity to display his
abilities in the royal court and Haydn the opportunity to display his compositional talents.
Unfortunately, the concerto was performed once or twice before it vanished for almost two
centuries. It was rediscovered by musicologist Oldřich Pulkert in 1961 in the archives of the
Prague National Museum, and was re-premiered by cellist Miloš Sádlo and the Czech Radio
Symphony Orchestra in 1963.
Haydn’s first cello concerto is a true hybrid of the Baroque and Classical periods, as he sets
his graceful melodies in a Baroque ritornello form. The orchestra presents the thematic
material and then alternates with the solo instrument as it expands and develops the theme,
in a manner reminiscent of a Baroque concerto grosso. The first movement, Moderato,
opens with a vibrant and majestic orchestral ritornello. The striking opening theme is marked
with dotted eighths and syncopated passages that recur throughout the work. The cello
enters with a restatement of this courtly theme, which it slowly transforms into a beautiful,
contrasting lyrical melody. Haydn finishes the movement with a cadenza for the cello,
another opportunity for the soloist to display virtuosity before the orchestra restates the
theme one last time.
Haydn moves to the subdominant key of F major and chooses to use only strings for the
ritornello in the enchanting second movement, Adagio. The cello emerges from the string
orchestra’s introduction with a sustained C before blooming into a beautiful, warm, voicelike
melody. The solo cello and strings intertwine in a graceful dialog to create a dreamlike
atmosphere throughout the movement.
The spirited Allegro molto finale is a true showcase of the virtuosic capabilities of the cello.
This brilliant movement opens with a bass line pulse over the theme played by the oboes
and violins. Similarly to the second movement, the soloist enters with a C pedal tone
before surprising the listeners with an exhilarating run. The finale uses the entire range of
the orchestra, and puts the cello’s virtuosity on display. The fast tempo, demanding turns,
acrobatic runs, and jagged double-stop figures give the work a spectacular, exhilarating finish.
About the Music
bruce edward miller (b. 1957)
Bassoon Concerto (2010; World Premiere)
Note by the composer
I was influenced by the concertos of the Baroque era when
writing this piece, and especially by the simplicity and
brevity associated with works of this era. For example, the
accompaniment consists only of strings, as it would in a
Baroque work. Further, the Doctrine of Affections, supported
by composers of the later Baroque period, put forward the
idea that a single movement or larger section should have
what was called a “unity of affection,” often represented in
a consistency of feeling in tempo, in certain intervals, in the
rhythm of the movement, or in the overall sound. The individual sections of the
first movement reflect this idea, as does the entire second movement. The rhythms of
the second movement are almost constant sixteenths, consistent with the style of
Baroque works.
As much as it was influenced by the Baroque, my concerto makes many points of departure
from the works of the era. For instance, rather than featuring five movements, my concerto
has but two. The forms of the movements are much more classical in nature; the first
movement is a five-part rondo with coda, while the second is a quasi-sonata form with
introduction and coda.
Further, the harmonic language in my concerto is much more conservative and
straightforward in the slower first movement. The harmonies take on patterns with flowing
rhythms and a pizzicato bass accompaniment. I wanted to ensure this movement exploited
the range of the bassoon while creating long melodic lines for the soloist.
The second movement is decidedly more aggressive in terms of both harmony and rhythm.
I wished to highlight the versatility of the bassoon here. The urchord, or main chord,
used here is more piquant than any chord used in the first movement. The neighbor tone,
parallel seventh figures established at the start of the movement, now begin to permeate
the piece. The passage alternates between performance by the full string section and a
sextet of the principals for each instrument.
About the Music
wolfgang amadeus mozart (1756–1791)
Symphony No. 35 in D Major, K. 385, “Haffner”
(1782)
by Madeleine Vaillancourt, violinist in the Bachelor of Music
program of the Colburn Conservatory of Music
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Sigmund Haffner the
Younger were not only born in the same year, they were also
childhood friends in their hometown of Salzburg, though
their respective families belonged to very different ranks in
Salzburg society. While the Mozarts were musicians and
widely known as traveling entertainers led by Wolfgang’s
father Leopold, the Haffners were among the wealthiest and
most distinguished families in the city, also led by a famous patriarch, Sigmund Haffner
the Elder, the former mayor of Salzburg. The Haffner family was much more prominent at
the time, but it is Mozart’s 35th symphony that has given the Haffner name enduring fame
outside of Salzburg for over 200 years.
The first musical connection between Mozart and the Haffner name was a serenade
commissioned for a Haffner family wedding in 1776. Mozart’s serenades and divertimentos
were among the most refined and profound of the Classical era, as is exquisitely
demonstrated by his “Haffner” Serenade, K. 250. This first “Haffner” work exemplifies
a splendid hybrid of festive social character and sophisticated symphonic style. An
outstanding success, the serenade led to another commission for Mozart from the family,
this time to honor Sigmund the Younger’s elevation to the nobility in 1778. By this time,
Mozart had moved to the more musically competitive Vienna and consequently composed
a much grander work that easily surpassed the genre of “festive background music.”
The “Haffner” Symphony begins with bold unison leaping octaves that immediately
command attention and continue to permeate the rest of the movement. Although
the main theme’s authoritative splendor overshadows the movement’s subsequent,
understated motifs, Mozart sets those in exquisite virtuosic and contrapuntal style,
creating a perfect foil for the attention-getting opening theme. The lengthy and songlike
second movement, marked Andante, has been interpreted in a number of ways, and
scholars have disagreed over the years as to whether it represents Parisian coquetry
or Viennese grace. There is, however, much less argument regarding the stature of the
Menuetto third movement. The dramatic contrast between the jaunty minuet and legato
trio creates a highly theatrical scene and one of the most entertaining and satisfying
sections of the symphony. The Menuetto’s opera buffa spirit carries over to the Presto
finale; this fast-paced finale is a test of the performers’ speed and precision, which, to the
listener, comes across as sheer brilliance. Mozart carries the buffa spirit all the way to the
end of the symphony as he quotes Osmin’s rollicking aria from his opera, The Abduction
from the Seraglio: “Ha, wie will ich triumphieren” (“Ah, how shall I triumph”).