“Play Me a Story” Concert Preview No. 2

Before each concert, we share “Manny’s Musings,” thoughts from our Music Director and Conductor, Manny Laureano. This is the final “Musings”  that will be posted in advance of the BSO’s Play Me a Story concert on February 21.

Aaron Copland, Composer

Aaron Copland, Composer

America’s composer, Aaron Copland (1900-1990), when asked to compose a piece of music that would celebrate the spirit of America after its entry into World War Two, was given a variety of choices of luminaries both living and dead. Copland chose Abraham Lincoln not only because he was such an important figure in our history but because his actions and words were so well-suited to that current critical time. In particular, the words spoken at Gettysburg bore a strong tone of admonition to the Americans of 1942 when the work was conceived, written, and performed by the Cincinnati Symphony. Lincoln’s words were part of a drive that came from many corners to remind Americans of their greatness and place on the world stage. The words seem to directly confront the losses suffered at Pearl Harbor and also to say that despite our imperfections, America had a responsibility to overcome the evil brought about by those that would seek to enslave others by tyranny. Thus was born Lincoln Portrait.

Benjamin Britten, composer

Benjamin Britten, composer

If Sergei Prokofiev sought to cultivate the love of music in Russian children and make them aware of the instruments of the orchestra, then Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) took it a step further. Borrowing a tune written by fellow Englishman Henry Purcell, he uses that tune to introduce and dissect the sound of an orchestra, section by section, instrument by instrument. Interestingly, of the three works you will hear, The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra is the only one that was conceived as subject and accompaniment to a film about the symphony orchestra, called The Instruments of the Orchestra, which was to be shown in 1946. While Disney did also indeed make a film about Peter and the Wolf, it was an afterthought to Prokofiev’s original project. Speaking of films, if Purcell’s theme sounds familiar to you, it may be that you recognize it from the soundtrack of the most recent version of Pride and Prejudice from 2005.

Join Music Director & Conductor Manny Laureano, for the concert, “Play Me a Story” featuring narrators Yuri Ivan, Obiele Harper, and Quinton Wormald. The concert takes place on Sunday, February 21 at 3 p.m. at the St. Michael’x Lutheran Church in Bloomington.

To learn more about the concert, click here. You can order tickets online through the Bloomington Box Office or by calling 952-563-8575.

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“Play Me a Story” Concert Preview No. 1

Before each concert, we share “Manny’s Musings,” thoughts from our Music Director and Conductor, Manny Laureano. This is the first of two “Musings” that will be posted in advance of the BSO’s Play Me a Story concert on February 21.

Hearing a piece in which there is narration that accompanies the music is certainly not unusual. It may not be commonplace but it is something we’ve all experienced at some point or other. Most often, it occurred when we were young and perhaps even as a first trip to a concert hall. The speaker was often a local personality such as an actor. It may have been a celebrity that had a professional tie to the subject matter of the work that was performed. For example, the first time you heard Casey at the Bat by American composer William Schuman, it might have had a local baseball player as the speaker. Or maybe you heard Lincoln Portrait read by a former or current member of Congress or even an ex-president.

There have been times when an author, taken with the beauty or power or charm of a piece of music, decided that it needed a bit of narration even though the composer never intended it originally. Ogden Nash wrote a set of verses that, on occasion, serve as prelude to each of the movements from Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s suite to The Nutcracker.
So, then… what comes first: the narration or the music? In the case of our three works featured today, the narratives were conceived along with the music but with different ends in mind.

Sergei Prokofiev, Composer

Sergei Prokofiev, Composer

When Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953) was commissioned to write his now-beloved Peter and the Wolf it was a clearly designed to send a message to young Russian children that they should learn the importance of music and cultivate a life-long love for it. His passion for the project was so great that he dove into it and completed his best-known work in just four days! Astonishingly, this work we have all known since childhood was poorly received back in 1936. That poor reception was short-lived as various orchestras and narrators have competed to make wonderful recordings since then with each narrator putting his or her stamp on it, providing each of us with some version that suits us. It is also available in a variety of languages, as well. I even had the opportunity to narrate it in Spanish in a performance in the Twin Cities. Some of the various narrators on recording range from Peter Ustinov to Sean Connery, Captain Kangaroo, Patrick Stewart, Eleanor Roosevelt, William F. Buckley Jr., Mikhail Gorbachev, Bill Clinton, and even the late David Bowie.

Join Music Director & Conductor Manny Laureano, for the concert, “Play Me a Story” featuring narrators Yuri Ivan, Obiele Harper, and Quinton Wormald. The concert takes place on Sunday, February 21 at 3 p.m. at the St. Michael’x Lutheran Church in Bloomington.

To learn more about the concert, click here. You can order tickets online through the Bloomington Box Office or by calling 952-563-8575.

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“Journeys” Concert Preview No. 3

Before each concert, we share “Manny’s Musings,” thoughts from our Music Director and Conductor, Manny Laureano. This is the final “Musings” that will be posted in advance of the BSO’s Journeys concert on November 22.

Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Op. 55, “Eroica”

circa 1800: Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827), German composer, generally considered to be one of the greatest composers in the Western tradition. (Photo by Henry Guttmann/Getty Images)

circa 1800: Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 – 1827), German composer, generally considered to be one of the greatest composers in the Western tradition. (Photo by Henry Guttmann/Getty Images)

To say that the third symphony of Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) is remarkable is a classic understatement. His eschewing of some parts of classical form, the almost-complete deafness he suffered, the political turmoil of the time, and his ability to express personal frustration were part of the art he expressed. The deafness, that irony of ironies for a musical genius, began to take hold as the 19th century turned and was at first, admitted only to close associates. Yet, he continued to compose with each work displaying further his ability to shift from beautiful melody to raging developmental climaxes, from tenderness to melancholy, with seamless transitions or abrupt halts that preview later great symphonic works. Originally, it was his plan to dedicate his Third Symphony to a then-hero of the French people, Napoleon Bonaparte. He proudly named the French revolutionary on the front page of the new work, which also innovatively started with two opening hammer blows. When it came to be known that Napoleon would declare himself emperor, Beethoven angrily erased the name from the dedication, so much so, that the paper tore through to the other side. The dedication was replaced with one to Prince Lobkowitz, a patron whose historical palace can be seen in a first edition copy of the symphony today.

As far as the composition itself, gone is the usual sort of slow introduction which would normally serve as prelude to the first two themes. In its place are two E? major chords that are sometimes interpreted with majesty and other times with crisp severity. The rolling, almost waltz-like quality of the themes is constantly interrupted by angry interjections that remind us that a punishing climax is waiting in the work’s development section. The last two bars of the movement create an unprecedented musical ring by repeating the first two!

The Funeral march that makes up the second movement is, in this writer’s opinion, the most human bit of composition set to pen for a symphony orchestra up to that point in musical history. Its settled sadness, the look at clouds parting in order to remember an unnamed hero, and the sheer rage at perhaps God himself, is chilling! Was Beethoven mourning a person… or the loss of one of his five senses?

The scherzo brings us back to a playfulness that marks Beethoven’s compositions without exception in his symphonies. He even plays a game with the listener during the famous trio asking the horns to repeat a hunting call, only to fade away deceptively to a different resolution. Surely, the first listeners to this work must have smiled at the teasing from Beethoven.

The finale is full of fire – one that momentarily lets the listener wonder whether it will be a serious blaze in a minor key, only to present us with a dominant chord which resolves to a clear E? major. You are then charmed by what can only be referred to as a romp that reminds one faintly of the French Alouette song of childhood. The romp gives way to song and then a fugue in C minor follows, only to return to the major key with a foothold into a world of mad joy. The madness is halted for a moment while Beethoven breaks all convention and has the orchestra embrace music in a slower tempo that soars eventually leaving us with a busy coda to end the work establishing E? major as the key of heroes.

Join Music Director & Conductor Manny Laureano, for the concert, “Journeys” featuring Minnesota Orchestra trumpet player Charles Lazarus and his Jazz Quintet, as soloists, along with narrator James Lileks. The concert takes place on Sunday, November 22 at 3 p.m. at the Schneider Theater at the Bloomington Center for the Arts. 

To learn more about the concert, click here. You can order tickets online through the Bloomington Box Office or by calling 952-563-8575.

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“In the Spanish Style” Concert Preview No. 3

Before each concert, we share “Manny’s Musings,” thoughts from our Music Director and Conductor, Manny Laureano. This is the final “Musings” that will be posted in advance of the BSO’s In the Spanish Style concert on October 11.

chabrierAlexis-Emanuel Chabrier was born in January of 1841 and died relatively young at age 53. He was, as we have seen now many times, one of those composers who went for a practical field of study only to turn toward art as his greatest form of expression. It’s not surprising to note that he was, at first, a law student whose musical training was largely self-taught (ironically, the title of one of his operas was A Deficient Education). He was also a devotee of the then-new style of Impressionism in painting even though his music didn’t particularly reflect that trend in composition. In fact, the opus we’re playing at this concert was referred to by him as “a piece in F and nothing more.”

As with many composers, it was a trip abroad that awakened his interest in the sounds, rhythms, and character of Spanish music. In 1882, he toured almost every region of Spain and the writings he left behind were an indication that he found the various musical styles irresistible. Conductor Charles Lamoureux was a champion of sorts of his music and was eager to embrace and perform Chabrier’s recently orchestrated work, España. Although the work was conceived originally as a piano duet named Jota, it was well-received at its premiere owing to its rich orchestration and infectious melodic and rhythmic content.

portrait by Valentin Serov (1898)

portrait by Valentin Serov (1898)

Finally, tonight’s concert will end with a Russian work that has become synonymous with Spanish musical styles. The Capriccio Espagnol of Nikolai Rimsky Korsakov has been thrilling audiences since its premiere in 1887 in St. Petersburg.

Though he showed aptitude for math and science as a lad he fell prey to the muses and succumbed to a lifetime in art. So much so, in fact, that after meeting other Russian composers of the day and excelling in his piano studies, he became a member of what became known as “The Five.” The Five were Russian composers who made it their business to establish a clear identity for Russian music. Thus it was somewhat ironic that Rimsky-Korsakov would become so well known for his Spanish Caprice. Yet, perhaps not so much when we remember that he was the man who wrote a book on orchestration that would become a required text for study for many composers that followed after him.

The Capriccio was first thought of as a solo work for violin and orchestra but he thought better of it and spread the wealth of his composition among the various instruments in the orchestra. It is, for all intents and purposes, a five-movement concerto for orchestra!

It begins with a lively Alborada that celebrates our daily sunrise with full percussion complement and competitive solos by the clarinet and solo violin. The lovely Variazioni that follow are a smooth showcase for the horns and voluptuous strings, ending with a wandering flute that leads us to another Alborada but a half step higher and the sound of what is mostly a wind band. The penultimate movement, Scena e canto Gitano is a suite of opportunities for soloists and complete orchestra sections to, well, show off a bit at their own pace before we end with the Fandango Asturiano and its blindingly energetic whirling dance music. The pace is dizzying and intoxicating but this is Spain… eso es asi!

Join Music Director & Conductor Manny Laureano, for the concert, “In the Spanish Style” featuring BSO Concertmaster Michael Sutton, as soloist. The concert takes place on Sunday, October 11 at 3 p.m. at St. Michael’s Lutheran Church in Bloomington.

To learn more about the concert, click here. You can order tickets online through the Bloomington Box Office or by calling 952-563-8575.

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“In the Spanish Style” Concert Preview No. 2

Before each concert, we share “Manny’s Musings,” thoughts from our Music Director and Conductor, Manny Laureano. This is the second of three “Musings” that will be posted in advance of the BSO’s concert on October 11.

Manuel de FallaManuel de Falla (y Matheu) was born in Cadiz in 1876. Like Richard Wagner, he had a great interest in literary works and felt a pull between music and writing. Music won out but not surprisingly, as he was exposed to a great many musical events in his younger life. However, it was his admiration for the work of the Norwegian Edvard Grieg that pushed him toward wanting to be a proponent of Spanish music and its national character. His tremendous work ethic and self-discipline paved the way for that to happen. Ironically, it was the work and recognition he received from fellow composers in Paris that helped him establish a foothold in musical circles as the 19th century turned into the 20th. He began to crank out success after success until he finally achieved immortality with his ballet/pantomime El Sombrero de Tres Picos or The Three-Cornered Hat.

The Second suite from The Three-Cornered Hat deals with the events in the latter half of the ballet. Essentially, the plot is farcical, dealing with stereotypical characters like the good miller and his wife, a lecherous and self-aggrandizing magistrate, and a bodyguard. Mistaken identities (the life-blood of theatrical works) and unrealistic situations that culminate in the powerful receiving their just desserts are the inspiration for Falla’s musical treat. Listen for the constantly shifting beat patterns that typify so much of the music from Spain. 6/8 time slyly becomes ¾ and vice versa. The sound of castanets tickle the ear as does the energetic restraint of Flamenco stylings.

Saint-SaensCamille Saint-Saens, born in Paris in 1835, was one of those Frenchmen for whom the captivating music of the Spanish tradition had great appeal. However, his contribution to this program comes through a different outlet. The source of the style comes from the island nation of Cuba, thus the title “Havanaise.” The Havanaise is typified by its rocking back and forth between a set of triplets and eight note duplets. The grouping is a gentle one-two-three, one… two, one-two-three, one… two. If it is reminiscent of the “Habanera” from the opera Carmen by Georges Bizet, then that is an astute observation on the part of you, the listener, as both rhythms come from the same source.

That Saint-Saens would be attracted to a musical form from outside the French tradition is not surprising considering that he also wrote music that gave a nod to the Russian style and he was also a fierce defender of the music of Wagner, a stance occasionally taken during a time when Wagner’s music was still considered somewhat revolutionary. Perhaps the young Saint-Saens’ efforts and dedication to art could be summed up best by countryman Hector Berlioz: “He knows everything but lacks inexperience.”

Since music is prone to being the stuff of legend, a popular notion is that the crackling of a fire in a pit at a hotel provided Saint-Saens with the crisp Havanaise rhythm that typifies the work. Of course, the violinist, Rafael Diaz, to whom the work was dedicated was, after all, a Cuban. Legend or not, Saint-Saens had a winner on his hands and the work was immediately popular.

The next Manny’s Musings with insights about Chabrier’s España and Capriccio Espagnol will be posted on Thursday, October 8. Check back for more about “In the Spanish Style!”

Join Music Director & Conductor Manny Laureano, for the concert, “In the Spanish Style” featuring BSO Concertmaster Michael Sutton, as soloist. The concert takes place on Sunday, October 11 at 3 p.m. at St. Michael’s Lutheran Church in Bloomington.

To learn more about the concert, click here. You can order tickets online through the Bloomington Box Office or by calling 952-563-8575.

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“In the Spanish Style” Concert Preview No. 1

Before each concert, we share “Manny’s Musings,” thoughts from our Music Director and Conductor, Manny Laureano. This is the first of three “Musings” that will be posted in advance of the BSO’s concert on October 11.

In the Spanish Style

OutsideLeftManny2015When I set about the task of creating a program to begin the BSO 2015-16 season, I thought it necessary to define in musical terms what characterizes Spanish music of the 19th and 20th centuries. This is important because this concert is not only about Spanish music, but about composers who tried their hand at writing in that style. Several things surprised me. One was that the only piece we’re playing that was written by a Spanish composer, was written after three of the non-Spanish composers’ works. The other thing which was most interesting was that three of the works on this program were written four years apart from each other with two of them being published in the same year, 1887! Clearly, this style of music was compelling enough to draw the attention of both Russian and French composers.

The music of Spain is complex because there were so many regions that had their own forms of musical expression. The music of Andalusia is essentially that which we have come to know as Flamenco, characterized by its sharp rhythms and use of castanets. Aragon is where the jota (hoh-tah) likely developed with its addition of guitars and tambourines to the castanets. Add to this the regions of Asturias, Galicia, the Basque Country, and Seville and you can understand that such richness would appeal to composers with keen ears. But what is most important to recognize is that virtually all of these types of Spanish music lent themselves to or were born in the spirit of the dance.

What this concert will explore is not only the music of Spain but also Cuba via France and Minnesota! Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, though. Let’s start with Spanish music of the 20th century and Manuel de Falla…

The next Manny’s Musings will be posted on Monday, October 5. Check back for more about “In the Spanish Style!”

Join Music Director & Conductor Manny Laureano, for the concert, “In the Spanish Style” featuring BSO Concertmaster Michael Sutton, as soloist. The concert takes place on Sunday, October 11 at 3 p.m. at St. Michael’s Lutheran Church in Bloomington.

To learn more about the concert, click here. You can order tickets online through the Bloomington Box Office or by calling 952-563-8575.

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BSO 2015-16 Print Materials

If you haven’t seen a hard copy of the BSO’s 2015-16 Print Materials, please download them from this page! It contains all of the information you need to know about this year’s concerts and how to purchase tickets! (Click on the images to enlarge!)

BSO 2015-16 Mailer Front

BSO 2015-16 Mailer Back

 

BSO Fall 2015 Postcard Back

BSO Fall 2015 Postcard Front

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BSO Announces 2015-16 Concert Season

02bwThe Bloomington Symphony is thrilled to announce its 2015-16 concert season. Music Director Manny Laureano has put together a season of programs that will delight listeners young and old alike. Listeners will travel to many places through music – Spain and Italy, a trumpet player’s journey from beginner to the world of jazz clubs, the land of Lincoln and through the orchestra itself.

Featured soloists are BSO Concertmaster Michael Sutton, the Charles Lazarus Quintet, Narrators James Lileks, Yuri Ivan, Obiele Harper, Quinton Wormald, Organist Jane Horn and the winner of the Mary West Solo competition, to be announced in December. We are especially excited to play our first full orchestra concert at the Schneider Theater at the Bloomington Center for the Arts. Tickets for that concert are reserved, so please book early for the best seats.

For more information, please visit the page for each concert.

October 11, 2015 :: In the Spanish Style

November 22, 2015 :: Journeys

February 21, 2016 :: Play Me a Story

April 17, 2016 :: Music in 3D: Part Three

Tickets are available in advance through the Bloomington Box Office:

Tickets are also available at the door – Cash or check only

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“Music in 3D: The Sequel” Concert Preview No. 2

Before each concert, we share Manny’s Musings, thoughts from our Music Director and Conductor, Manny Laureano. Please enjoy this concert preview and check back on Friday for the final entry of “Manny’s Musings”!

Henryk Wieniawski, Composer

Henryk Wieniawski, Composer

Henryk Wieniawski and his Concerto No. 2 in D Minor for Violin and Orchestra occupy a stable place in the repertoire for talented violinists. Born in Lublin, Poland, he was exposed to music along with each of the sons produced by his parents, Regina and Tadeusz. He showed promise quickly and it came as no surprise that he would eventually be admitted to the Conservatoire de Paris at age ten with great enthusiasm by its director at the time, Daniel Auber.

As though being a dazzling young violinist weren’t enough, young Henryk or Henri, as he would become known in France, added to the concert repertoire he learned by composing his own music. Thus, the inevitable comparisons to composer/virtuoso performer Nicolo Paganini started to form when Henryk’s talent became undeniable as he approached his 20s. His output included pieces such as concert etudes, Three Romances, an air with variations, and a concerto for violin in D major, part of which has been lost with only a fragment surviving.
Wieniawski’s life as a musician proved rewarding and prolific as a composer as he continued to write and perform, receiving accolades from respected luminaries of the day such as Franz Liszt and Hector Berlioz who bemoaned Henryk’s leaving Paris to concertize in Russia. He was even lucky in matters of the heart when he was allowed to become engaged to the lovely Isabella Hampton of London, despite the raised eyebrows of her father who was not keen on the idea of his daughter marrying a musician. Love conquered in the end (along with a £200,000 life insurance policy) and they were married.

The Second Concerto had originally come to life in 1862 and dedicated to another fine virtuoso of the day, Pablo Sarasate. With the wisdom of the years come improvements and revisions to many composers and he published his final, improved version in 1870. It is, however, unfortunate to note that Wieniawski’s years were not as many as we would have liked. He developed a heart condition which came to a head while, ironically, performing the Concerto in D minor you will hear at this performance. He collapsed on stage yet marshalled the strength to finish his tour and improve slightly until he finally succumbed a few months later despite the loving care of Isabella.

Sara Melissa Aldana, Violin

Sara Melissa Aldana, Violin

Join Music Director & Conductor Manny Laureano, for the concert, “Music in 3D: The Sequel” featuring Sara Melissa Aldana, winner of the CodaBow prize at the Mary West Solo Competition, as soloist. The concert takes place on Sunday, April 19 at 3 p.m. at St. Michael’s Lutheran Church in Bloomington. To learn more about the concert, click here, or to order tickets online through the Bloomington Box Office or by calling 952-563-8575.

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“Three Singing Masters” Concert Preview No. 3

Today, we share the thoughts of Manny Laureano, the Bloomington Symphony’s Music Director and Conductor, with our audience, in advance of our concert “Three Singing Masters” on Sunday, October 5. This is our final edition of Manny’s Musings for this concert. Please join us at the concert, and check back to our website in a few weeks, to learn more about the pieces on the November concert program (Copland, Barber and Ives, for those looking to whet their appetites!)

Symphony No. 1 in D Major
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)

Gustav Mahler

Gustav Mahler

If Richard Strauss teaches us how to exit “this mortal coil,” then it can easily be argued that Gustav Mahler shows us the way into a boisterous and unabashed symphonic existence! He was, like Wagner and Strauss, one who loved the possibilities and expressive power of the human voice and wasted no time in writing much of his first works for the voice and orchestra. In fact, parts of his Songs of a Wayfarer serve as thematic material for this first symphony, written immediately after the premiere of that song cycle.

He was taken with the music of Wagner and, in short order, became friendly with luminaries of the day who were Wagner’s associates, such as Hugo Wolf, though that relationship ended abruptly with Wolf accusing Mahler of stealing his ideas. Of interest to the young intellectual born of Jewish parents in Bohemia, were Wagner’s philosophical ideas, as well as his music. As did Strauss, Mahler became an opera conductor very drawn to Wagner’s music.

If the First Symphony sounds like a bit of a mad rush in places, consider that it took the young, seemingly possessed composer only six weeks to write the 50-minute work. One often comes away from a Mahler symphony feeling as though each “story” he tells is somewhat autobiographical. Mahler seems to be obsessed with going from darkness into light and back again pausing every so often to embrace the charm of youth and the times in which he lived. He takes us from what could described as a journey that begins before the dawn of a fresh spring day. He seems to determined to pack his bags and set off for the country dance that awaits us in the second movement, both gruff and sweetly beckoning. The ironic funeral march seems more like the Jewish funeral processions he saw as a young boy growing up in Iglau, a part of the Austrian empire. With mock solemnity, the cortège marches respectfully until they are out of sight, where they pick up the pace until the weary pall bearers set for a moment to enjoy the day as the body and casket wait for them to regain their energy to continue.

The final movement is a stormy description of an infernal nightmare that gives way to a respite of sensual beauty. This push and pull of pain and pleasure finds its way to the triumphant close that seemingly quotes the “Hallelujah” chorus from Handel’s Messiah. It is almost as though Mahler were out to prove his D major celebration of joy can outdo Beethoven’s Choral Symphony. You be the judge!

Please join us for this concert, “Three Singing Masters,” on Sunday, October 5 at 3 p.m. at St. Michael’s Lutheran Church in Bloomington. To purchase tickets in advance, please visit our online box office here. Tickets are always available at the door (cash or check only).

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