THE MAGAZINE OF THE TOLEDO SYMPHONY VOLUME 4, ISSUE 6 - MarCH 2021
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amy chang | Associate Principal Cello
THE MAGAZINE OF
THE TOLEDO SYMPHONY
VOLUME 4, ISSUE 6
MARCH 2021
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Legacy
What do you want yours to be?
It’s a personal question, to be sure, but that’s how we
develop personal wealth management strategies.
Don’t just leave your mark. Leave a legacy.
ANN McCAULEY PRESIDENT | CEO
To get the conversation started,
call Ann personally at 419.865.0852.
tcfona.com
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N RD
!
G
IN A
IN
W AW
COMMITTED TO
SERVING THE
COMMUNITY
The Andersons grows enduring
relationships through extraordinary service,
a deep knowledge of the market, and a
knack for finding new ways to add value as FROM WGTE PUBLIC MEDIA
we have done for more than 70 years. A behind-the-scenes look at
the world of classical music.
Tune in to FM91 every
Wednesday at 3:30PM!
Ever have a question about music or the symphony
but were always afraid to ask? Now’s your chance to
shape the course of our weekly radio show and podcast!
Call us at 419.418.0012 with your questions today!
www.AndersonsInc.com
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Enriching communities
and transforming lives
through musical
performance – Relax. Recharge. Enjoy the show.
All-inclusive amenities include:
the Toledo Symphony.
• Hot breakfast buffet
• In-room high-speed internet access
• 24-hour Business Center Sylvania / Toledo
• 24-hour Fitness Center 5480 South Main Street
• Microwave and refrigerator in all rooms Sylvania, Ohio 43560
Highest in Guest Satisfaction among 419.517.2000
Mid-scale Hotel Chains, 5 Years in a Row wyndhamhotels.com/hotel/30140
Call today to make your reservation. Ask for the Toledo Symphony / Toledo Ballet rate.
From classics to pops, Dana and its Charitable
Foundation proudly support the Toledo
Symphony’s diverse and outstanding array of
performances. Established in 1956, the Dana
Charitable Foundation is dedicated to enriching
our community through education and the arts.
5704 Alexis Rd., Sylvania, OH 43560
www.whiteknightlimo.com
© 2020 Dana Limited. All rights reserved.
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Music for
your eyes.
TSO in HD is made possible through the
generous support of Buckeye Broadband.
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CMR190597
FROM THE board CHAIr
As board chair of the Toledo Alliance for Performing Arts (TAPA),
I am pleased to welcome you to the second half of our 2020–
2021 season and would like to thank you for supporting the
Toledo Symphony and Toledo Ballet. Our community is fortunate
to have such a strong, diverse and talented performing arts
scene, which is bolstered by these two great organizations.
It goes without saying that last year was a difficult time for our
community and our nation. The unprecedented challenges of
2020 had an impact on us all. While the pandemic forced us to
postpone or cancel many of our favorite events and traditions,
the absence of some live performances left a large void in
our lives. Music, theatre and dance play major roles in our
community. They provide meaningful entertainment and
enrichment and help us connect to each other. We truly missed
being able to see and hear these art forms live on the stage for
some of our performances. “Music, theatre and dance play major roles
I am very proud of how our local performers and staff adapted in our community. They provide meaningful
to the pandemic and found new ways to share their talents. entertainment and enrichment and
From streaming live and previously recorded performances
online, to offering smaller in-person events, they managed to
maintain our connection and appreciation for the arts. This is help us to connect
just another example of the value our symphony and ballet bring to each other.”
to our community.
As we begin a new year, I look forward to the great things
our symphony and ballet have planned. While our world may
not completely be back to normal, it will be great to start
experiencing more outstanding performances in person and
online. I encourage you to look ahead to see how you can
experience the Toledo Symphony and Toledo Ballet and renew
your connection with the arts. You will not only receive
outstanding entertainment, but you will help enrich our
whole community.
Pat Bowe
Board Chair
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LIVE ART Easy-to-use
brought directly to you! Watch wherever you
are and whenever
you want
New this season, we’ve invested in a state-
of-the-art, easy-to-use streaming platform
Convenient
to bring most of our performances directly
to you! Unable to attend in-person?
We’ll meet you wherever you are. High-quality,
HD video & sound
Watch our performances where and when it
fits your schedule!
Family-friendly
Two ways to watch our streamed performances: programming
WATCH live as the performance is happening.
RENT a recording of the performance after it’s finished.
Performances
start at Ways to watch:
Desktop Browser
Mobile Browser
Chromecast or
Apple AirPlay from your mobile device
NEW! TAPA Streaming apps on Apple TV and Roku
Tickets available now!
Visit stream.artstoledo.com to purchase your tickets today!
Video streaming is made possible by the Rita Barbour Kern
Foundation with additional support from the Greater Toledo
Community Foundation Resilience Fund.
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Program Book 6 | March 2021
PerformanceS
21 March 5 & 6 ProMedica Masterworks Series
Tchaikovsky & The Russian Romantics
27 March 13 & 14 KeyBank Pops Series
Sláinte! A St. Patrick’s Day Celebration
31 March 21 Buckeye Broadband & The Blade
Chamber Series
Prodigal Songs
General Information
The TSO musicians take your breath away with moments
11 Orchestra Personnel & Trustees
of musical beauty. Would you like to return the favor?
Show the orchestra your appreciation and make a gift
15 Corporate Sponsors & Partners
TODAY to the Toledo Symphony’s Annual Fund.
39-47 With Gratitude Pages
THREE EASY WAYS TO GIVE
BY MAIL—PO Box 407 | Toledo, OH 43697
BY PHONE—419.418.0028
ONLINE—toledosymphony.com/donate
2020 | 2021 ANNUAL FUND
TICKETS: 419.246.8000 | TOLEDOSYMPHONY.COM | 9
BOX office: 419.246.8000
toledosymphony.com
Like us on
Dance
–series–
Listen
The magazine of the Toledo Symphony
Volume 4, Issue 6 | March 2021
PUBLISHER: Zak Vassar
Editor: Allie Dresser
Design Director: Tamie Spears
SPONSOR RELATIONS: Mari Davies
WITH GRATITUDE PAGES: Brett Loney
PROGRAM ANNOTATOR: Kalindi Stone
PROGRAM AD SALES: Allie Dresser
For sponsorships, call Mari Davies at 419.418.0055.
For advertising space, call Allie Dresser at 419.418.0027.
sunday, April 25, 2021, 7 PM The Toledo Symphony program books are produced by the Symphony’s
peristyle theater marketing department for distribution free of charge.
Juliette Morgan Quinlan plays the part of Shakespeare The Toledo Symphony is located at:
himself as the figments of his imagination in the form of Puck, 1838 Parkwood Ave., Toledo, OH 43604
Romeo, Iago, and Ariel inspire his ideas which will eventually Mailing Address:
become his future masterpieces. Michael Lang’s world P.O. Box 407, Toledo, OH 43697-0407
premiere of Moving Soliloquies takes us on a unique journey
We welcome your comments at our mailing address.
of Shakespeare’s famous speech “All the world’s a stage”
performed by Jaques in As You Like It. The Toledo Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA)
dba Toledo Symphony is a 501c3 non-profit organization.
Toledo Ballet dancers will move, portray, and ponder Jaques’
ProMedica Masterworks Series accommodations are provided by
seven ages of life—Infancy, The Schoolboy, The Lover, The
the Renaissance Toledo Downtown Hotel.
Soldier, Justice, Old Age, and Oblivion—accompanied by the
chamber music of Beethoven, Ravel, Shostakovich, Grieg, and White Knight Limousine is the exclusive ground transportation
others all performed live by Toledo Symphony musicians. provider of the Toledo Symphony.
419.246.8000 | TOLEDOballet.COM
10 | CHECK US OUT ON FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAMADMINISTRATION the TOLEDO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Toledo Alliance for the Performing Arts Board of Trustees alain trudel, MUSIC DIRECTOR
Officers Joel Jerger Stephen D. Taylor
Patrick Bowe*, Board Chair Richard A. Karcher* Michael H. Thaman First Violin contrabass Trombone
Steven M. Cavanaugh*, Vice Chair Robert A. Koenig David Tighe Kirk Toth, Concertmaster * Jack Henning * Garth Simmons *
Pam Hershberger*, Past Chair Harley Kripke Louis E. Tosi Lenore & Marvin Kobacker Bill McDevitt + ** Edward H. Schmidt Chair
Elaine Canning*, Treasurer David Mack Alain Trudel Chair Aaron Keaster John Gruber †
Frank Jacobs*, Secretary William B. Mathis Marlene Uhler* Téa Prokes ** Richard Alleshouse *,
Zak Vassar* Lisa Mayer-Lang Julie Waidelich-Roberts Associate Concertmaster Principal Bass Emeritus Bass Trombone
C. Allen McConnell Traci Watkins, MD Catharine Z. Melhorn Chair Derek Weller Daniel Harris *
Trustees
William R. McDonnell Dave White, Jr. Patricia Budner Jean Posekany †
James Adams
Joseph D. Napoli Lance Woodworth Jillienne Bowers Tuba
DeAnne Gorun Baker Timothy Somers †
Jonathan Orser* Vasile Chintoan David Saltzman *
Debra Ball BOARD FELLOWS
Marna Ramnath* Laura Longman
Shelley Bridarolli Samuel Adler, Ph.D. Flute
Christina Ramsey Gyusun Han
Jameel Burkett Stephanie Alexander Joel Tse * Timpani
John Reynolds
John H. Burson Dr. Tom Brady Charles Roth Betty & Robert J. Sally Rochotte *
Bennett Romanoff, MD
Stephanie Cole, MD* William F. Buckley Tom Sieberg Lanigan Chair
Ronald Rybarczyk
Jenny Coluccio Eric S. Fankhauser Roger Jamini Amy Heritage Percussion
Carolyn Savage*
Susan L. Conda Kenneth E. Hileman Maria Bessmeltseva † Joanna Goldstein † Jordan Wirth + *
Robert P. Schlatter
Jennifer Coy Justice G. Johnson, Jr. Sophie Tang † Pilkington Chair
Joseph Sferra
Debbie Sauder David George M. Jones, III Virgil Lupu † Piccolo Keith McWatters
Mo Sheahan
Kathleen Davis Darryl R. Lippman Chris Will † Joanna Goldstein † Jonathan Smith †
Saga Shoffner*
Jeanne DeWitt* Ronald A. McMaster
Rebecca E. Shope
Michael Ellison, Ph.D.* Randy Oostra
Sara Ann Smith Second Violin Oboe Harp
Melissa Freeman* Mark Pietrykowski
Bethanne Snodgrass, MD Merwin Siu * Kimberly Loch * Nancy Lendrim *
Ashley A. Futrell* Mark E. Ridenour
Sharon S. Speyer* David W. Robinson Chair Owens Corning Chair Lois Nitschke Chair
Charlene D. Gilbert Stephen H. Staelin
Charles Stocking* Heewon Uhm ** Michele Smith
John Gonia
Desmond Strooh * Member, Executive Committee Cheryl A. Trace Kristin Reynolds † Keyboard
Judy Gorun
Olivia K. Summons Pamela Stuckey Valrie Kantorski †
Anneliese M. Grytafey
John S. Szuch Ran Cheng Clarinet Jonathan F. Orser Chair
Kimberly Howard*
Diana Dyer Anderson Georg Klaas *
THE Toledo Symphony League LEADERSHIP David Dyer Clement O. Miniger saxophone
Alice Neff Petersen Foundation Chair Shannon Ford †
Marlene Uhler, Linda Olrich, Beth Williams,
Vice President of Diane Kent Jocelyn Langworthy
President Assistant Treasurer
Kathy Scheer, JoAnn Phipps, Scholarships, Awards Randy Workman Kevin Schempf † Electric Bass
Past President Recording Secretary and Grants Ashley Dyer † Richard Alleshouse *
Susan Lang, Beth Bowman, Shelli Jacobs, Dana Mader † E-flat Clarinet
Treasurer Vice President Vice President of Jocelyn Langworthy Recorder
of Membership Symphony Activities Viola David Dyer
Valentin Ragusitu * Bass Clarinet
Toledo Alliance for the Performing Arts Administrative Staff and Advisors Blade Foundation Chair Kevin Schempf † * Principal
Full Time John Juan, Part Time Tim Zeithamel** ** Associate Principal
Bassoon + Acting
Zak Vassar, Stage Manager Patricia Budner*, Reed Anderson
President & CEO Tim Lake, Casey Gsell * † Supplemental
Assistant to the Orchestra Mihaela Ragusitu
Alain Trudel, Production Manager Joan Weiler ** *** On Leave
Manager Philip Stoll
TSO Music Director Michael Lang, Betsy Cranston, Nora Schankin
David Ford Steinway piano tuning and
Lisa Mayer-Lang, Toledo Resident Choreographer TSYO Conductor Esther Nahm †
Ballet Artistic Director Brett Loney, Director of ContraBassoon technical services provided
Richard Gardiner, Veronica Vassileva †
Robert Bell, Development Assistant Librarian Nora Schankin * by Craig’s Keyboards. Craig
Kalindi Stone † Whitaker is the official piano
President Emeritus Keith McWatters*, Wasim Hawary,
Nicole Bohmer, Orchestra Manager TSYO Artistic Director Horn technician for the Toledo
Cello
Finance Assistant Ron Papke, & Conductor Megan Amos Symphony.
Raymond Clark, Director of Individual Giving Martha Reikow *
Chad Hutchinson, Emily Dietz
Librarian Carly Rockenhauser, France Stone Foundation
TSYO Conductor Chair Alan Taplin
Mari Davies, Box Office Associate Aaron Keaster*, Tamara Kosinski †
Director of Institutional Giving Matty Sayre, Amy Chang**
Assistant Librarian Lorenzo Robb †
Randi Dier, Executive Assistant & Damon Coleman
Kelly Hill Kretzer, Ensemble
Vice President, Finance Artist Liaison Sales Associate Robert Clemens
Elizabeth Rice Trumpet
Allie Dresser, Rachel Schultz, Sonsoles Llodrá,
Kellen Degnan Lauraine Carpenter *
Marketing & Program Ad Director of Education & School of Music Coordinator
Matthew Schiebold Chrysler Corporation
Sales Manager Community Engagement Anthony Piercefield, Fund Chair
Vanessa Gardner, Merwin Siu*, Administrative Assistant Katherine Cosgrove
Director of Marketing & Artistic Administrator Kathleen Schnerer, Thaddeus Archer **
Communications Erin Steel, TSYO Conductor
Judith Gonia, Gift & Stewardship Ric Wolkins †
Joan Weiler*,
Operations Director Coordinator Benjamin Thauland †
Youth Orchestras Coordinator
James M. Hartley, Kalindi Stone,
Business Manager Box Office Manager &
* Member of orchestra
Program Annotator
TICKETS: 419.246.8000 | TOLEDOSYMPHONY.COM | 11Local Fifth Third Bank proudly
supports the arts in the
Matters.
communities we serve.
Because creativity
makes our communities
a Fifth Third betterSM
for everyone.
No one covers the region like The Blade. For breaking news stories
that matter most to you and hit the right note, sign up for a digital
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Visit: my.toledoblade.com/purchase
12 | CHECK US OUT ON FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAMFROM THE president & CEO
The coronavirus pandemic has wrought havoc upon the
performing arts. Storied organizations, larger and smaller than
ours, have gone dark. This has silenced musicians, left songs
unsung, and suspended beautiful movement. The arts sector has
recorded the highest unemployment rate in Ohio. Those in other
states have fared even worse.
Across the country, musicians, dancers, singers, and arts
administrators have seen their worlds turned upside-down. This
is not to mention the remarkable behind-the-scenes staff, who
make performances happen. And there is a notable trickle-
down effect, when one considers associated businesses—from
restaurants to parking lots—that rely upon events to drive traffic.
What happens when a community loses its performing arts?
How much does that spark of creativity propel us forward?
How would we see the world without the different lenses that
art provides? These are fortunately questions that our region will “Our commitment to bring our
community together
not have to answer.
The Toledo Symphony is especially fortunate to continue
presenting high-quality live performances. As one of the only through the music is more evident than ever.”
symphonies performing this year, our commitment to bring our
community together through music is more evident than ever.
At a time that we crave social stimulation, it is through art that Our commitment has never been more clear.
we are united.
I am frequently reminded of a quote from Jean-Michel Basquiat:
This is thanks in large part to you, our audience. By purchasing “Art is how we decorate space, music is how we decorate time.”
tickets and subscriptions, you breathe wind into our sails and These days, we need both. After months of staring at the
reaffirm our course during this crisis. Whether you attend in same walls, we need beauty to surround us. When the silence
person or via TAPA Streaming, we are grateful for your becomes deafening, we need music to calm our minds and
enthusiasm and applause. While the concerts might look a little reassure our hearts. It is only with these tools at hand that we
different than we planned, it remains our honor and privilege can see the light on the horizon.
to continue performing for you.
Welcome to 2021. May music bring us together.
I am likewise grateful to work with such an amazing and cre-
ative team. In so many ways, this pandemic has presented us
with new challenges. It has also has taught us much about
ourselves. As the lights began to fade at concert halls across
the country, we had to dig deep, turn into the storm, and pave Zak Vassar
our own path forward. Our resolve has never been more tested. President & CEO
TICKETS: 419.246.8000 | TOLEDOSYMPHONY.COM | 1314 | CHECK US OUT ON FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM
THANK YOU SPONSORS AND PARTNERS
We recognize and thank those businesses and organizations whose support of Toledo Symphony
programs reflect an investment in the orchestra and in the well-being of our community.
SUSTAINING PARTNERS
Rita Barbour Kern
Foundation
SEASON PRESENTERS
artistic partners
T O L E D O
S Y M P H O N Y
L E A G U E
ARTISTIC UNDERWRITERS BUSINESS LEADERS GOVERNMENT AGENCIES
Directions Credit Union Betco Corporation
Findley Eastman & Smith, LTD.
The LaValley Foundation LA-Z-Boy
PNC Bank Mosser Construction
Rehmann
BUSINESS PARTNERS Toledo Arena Sports
Art Iron
BP Husky - Toledo Refining
Coil-Bar Corporation
Ernst & Young LLP
Signature Bank, N.A.
palmer energy MEDIA sponsorS
Taylor Automotive Toledo.com
Yark Automotive Group WGTE
TICKETS: 419.246.8000 | TOLEDOSYMPHONY.COM | 15Toledo Symphony Youth Orchestras bring together
more than 200 of the most talented students
from Northwest Ohio and Southeast Michigan in
an atmosphere of musical excellence.
The 2020-2021 TSYO season has been cancelled.
In conjunction with the TSYO, the Toledo Symphony School
of Music is offering ensemble classes for TSYO and non-TSYO
students who desire a music-making experience in a more
intimate environment.
For more information about the TSYO and our ensemble
classes, visit the education tab on toledosymphony.com or
contact Joan Weiler at jweiler@artstoledo.com.
ALYSON
CAMBRIDGE
OPERA GALA
MASQUERADE BALL
SATURDAY, MAY 8, 2021 . THE TOLEDO CLUB
TICKETS AVAILABLE AT
YOUTH ORCHESTRAS TOLEDOOPERA.ORG
419-255-7464
For more information, visit ToledoSymphony.com
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TOOP_TSO_operamasquerade_4.375x7_01082020_v2.indd 1 1/8/21 9:34 AMFROM THE music director
Happy new year to all of you. We made it to 2021. As we enter
this new year, we continue our commitment to bring beauty,
positivity, and a sense of normality to our community. I am
constantly humbled by my incredible colleagues of the symphony,
both on stage and behind-the-scenes, for their inspiring resilience
and love for our community through our art form.
Our programming reflects this sentiment of a brighter future as
we start off the new year with a truly spectacular performance
featuring world-renowned organist Todd Wilson on a program
that includes virtuosic organ repertoire and your TSO musicians.
We then take you on a cinematic adventure through exhilarating
movie blockbusters—including highlights from Lord of the Rings,
Psycho, Beauty & The Beast, and more—all from the comfort of
your home.
In February, pianist Stewart Goodyear makes his way back to
Toledo for Ludwig van Beethoven’s masterful Fourth Piano “The past year has brought many challenges,
Concerto at the Peristyle. We celebrate the month of love with a but it has also given us the opportunity to be a
variety of intimate and romantic music—ranging from Broadway
to Hollywood—in our KeyBank Pops Series and on Valentine’s Day
weekend, we present to you a fabulous program of jazz tunes,
glimmer of light
film-favorites, tangos, and more across two performances. It’s in the darkest moments of our lives.”
going to be such a treat and I hope you and your special
someone will join us for these events.
We continue our series of amorous music with Tchaikovsky and
the Russian Romantics in March. And, just in time for your St. I encourage you to join us this season, whether that’s live and
Paddy’s day celebrations, we present Sláinte!, an incredibly fun in-person at the Peristyle or virtually on our TAPA Streaming
and light-hearted program full of rich Irish folk music that is sure platform. Let the joy and beauty of music connect us. Please
to get you in the spirit. stay safe and be kind to one another. I look forward to seeing
you again soon.
The past year has brought many challenges, but it has also
given us the opportunity to be a glimmer of light in the darkest Bien à vous,
moments of our lives. United as one organization, we have the
ability to uplift and inspire in ways I cannot put into words. It is
my mission to bring our community together through lasting
musical moments, and it is my hope that this new year allows Alain Trudel
us all to find happiness in these special moments that live Music Director
art provides.
TICKETS: 419.246.8000 | TOLEDOSYMPHONY.COM | 17Make a difference.
Volunteer.
The TSO staff are indebted to the numerous
volunteers that assist at concerts, in the office
and archives, and with the youth orchestras.
Many give over 100 hours of service or more
per year to our organization. We offer sincere
thanks to them! If you are interested in
sharing your time and volunteering with the
Toledo Symphony, please call Kalindi Bellach
at 419.418.0040.
Charlene Anderson*
Kathryn Bellach
Dorothy Coats (TSYO)* +
Kathleen Durham
Ann Lieder
Aileen Pargament
Directions Credit Union helps you plan Hannah Perrot
for life’s little joys and big moments. Karen Rose
Kathy Scheer*
With financial guidance that sets you
Bill Stein*
free. With advice and encouragement Beth Williams (TSYO)
that supports your biggest dreams. Toledo Symphony League*
And with technology that follows you
down every road.
You can become a member today. And choose your
own direction.
*Donate more than 100 hours per
year to the Toledo Symphony Orchestra.
Join now at directionscu.org + Recently retired
FEDERALLY INSURED BY NCUA
18 | CHECK US OUT ON FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAMOUR PEOPLE
AND PRODUCTS
MAKE MORE
POSSIBLE
Visit us on Facebook to see what we’re doing here in Toledo and around the globe.
@OwensCorningCorporate | #OCGIVESBACK
THE PINK PANTHER™ & © 1964–2020 MGM.
www.owenscorning.com The color PINK is a registered trademark of Owens Corning. © 2020 Owens Corning. All Rights Reserved.
TICKETS: 419.246.8000 | TOLEDOSYMPHONY.COM | 19mei-ann chen, guest conductor timothy chooi, violin
Praised for her dynamic, passionate conducting style, Violinist Timothy Chooi has garnered huge critical and
Taiwanese American conductor Mei-Ann Chen is public acclaim, most recently when he won Second
acclaimed for infusing orchestras with energy, Prize at the 2019 Queen Elisabeth Competition in
enthusiasm and high-level music-making, galvanizing Belgium. He had already made a name for himself
audiences and communities alike. Music Director of having been awarded numerous prizes, among them
the MacArthur Award-winning Chicago Sinfonietta First Prize of the 2018 Joseph Joachim International
since 2011, Ms. Chen has been named the first-ever Violin Competition in Germany, and the First Prize of
Principal Guest Conductor of Austria’s Recreation the 2018 Schadt Violin Competition in the USA, as well
Grosses Orchester Graz and the first-ever Artistic as the Michael Hill Violin Competition in New Zealand,
Partner of Houston’s River Oaks Chamber Orchestra and the Montreal Symphony ManuLife Competition in
(ROCO), both effective September 2019. She also has served as Canada. In 2018 he also won the ‘Prix Yves Paternot’ of Switzerland’s
Artistic Director & Conductor for the National Taiwan Symphony Verbier Festival, a prize which recognises the most promising and
Orchestra Summer Festival since 2016. Highly regarded as a compelling accomplished musician of the annual Academy for young professional
communicator and an innovative leader both on and off the podium, musicians.
and a sought-after guest conductor, Ms. Chen continues to expand her
In addition to having already performed with every major orchestra
relationships with orchestras worldwide (over 110 orchestras to date).
in his home country of Canada, he has also played with the Brussels
Upcoming highlights for 2020 – 2021 season include debut at Vienna’s Philharmonic under Stéphane Denève, Santa Barbara Symphony,
Musikverein with Tonkünstler Orchester and debuts with Würth Orchestre Philharmonique de Liége, Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra,
Philharmonic in Germany and Helsinki Philharmonic in Finland, as well and the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, as well as giving an
as return engagements to San Francisco Symphony, Oslo Philharmonic extensive recital tour with Jeunesses Musicales du Canada, appearing
in Norway, Norrlandsoperan in Sweden, and serving on the jury for the at the Ravinia Festival and making his Carnegie Hall debut.
prestigious Malko Competition for Young Conductors in 2021. Debuts
Timothy Chooi was born in 1993 in Victoria BC, Canada, and made his
with New York Philharmonic & Carnegie Hall’s NYO2, Basque National
orchestral debut at the age of seven performing with his brother Nikki
Orchestra in Spain, and Staatsorchester Darmstadt in Germany, an
and the Victoria Symphony Orchestra. When Chooi was fourteen years
engagement with the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra (Ms Chen
old, he won a full scholarship to attend the Academy Program at the
was scheduled to conduct the opening season concert at Amsterdam’s
Mount Royal Conservatory in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, and two years
Concertgebouw), and with the Taiwan Philharmonic have been post-
later was accepted to the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where
poned due to COVID.
he studied with Ida Kavafian.Chooi went on to complete the master’s
Recent guesting highlights include England’s BBC Symphony in London, programme at the Juilliard School under the tutelage of Catherine
Finland’s Tampere Filharmonia, Germany’s NDR Radiophilharmonie Cho. His mentors include Pinchas Zukerman, Pamela Frank and Patinka
Hanover, Netherland’s Residentie Orkest at The Hague, Sweden’s Gävle Kopec.
& Helsingborg Symphonies, Switzerland’s Luzerner Sinfonieorchester,
Chooi performs on the 1717 Windsor-Weinstein Stradivarius on
Taiwan’s Kaohsiung Symphony Orchestra at Weiwuying (the world’s
generous loan from the Canada Council for the Arts.
largest performing arts center since 2018), in addition to return
engagements with symphonies of America’s Atlanta, Detroit, and
Pacific.
20 | CHECK US OUT ON FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAMmasterworks
–series–
Tchaikovsky & The Russian Romantics
Friday and Saturday, March 5 & 6, 2021, 8 pm | Peristyle Theater
Mei-Ann Chen, guest conductor | Timothy Chooi, violin
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Serenade for Strings 32’
Pezzo in forma di Sonatina
Walzer
Élégie
Finale: Tema Russo
Igor Stravinsky Suite for Small Orchestra No. 2 8’
Marche
Valse
Polka
Galop
Sergei Prokofiev Violin Concerto No. 2 in G Minor 29’
Allegro moderato
Andante assai
Allegro ben marcato
–
The Steinway Model D grand piano is a gift of Jonathan F. Orser.
The refurbished Dr. James W. Southworth Piano is a gift of Dorothy MacKenzie Price.
The Lyon and Healy concert grand harp is a gift of Norman C. Nitschke.
White Knight Limousine is the exclusive ground transportation provider of the Toledo Symphony.
Media Sponsor for the Masterworks Series is WGTE.
TICKETS: 419.246.8000 | TOLEDOSYMPHONY.COM | 21PROGRAM NOTES | by Kalindi Stone ©2021
Serenade in C Major for String Orchestra, Op. 48 The second movement, the Valse, is a graceful wonder. Steinberg
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840–1893) writes that it is “never more [lovely] than when the melody moves into
inner voices while the first violins create an almost balletic embroidery
Like many composers, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky received musical
above.” In the Elegy, Tchaikovsky uses some gentle dissonances to
training as a child. Unlike them, he first pursued a career in another field
provide a slightly darker color palate and one with more variety. The
– in his case, in the civil service – before abandoning it to attend music
Finale theme is “derived from a Volga boat-hauling song,” (Steinberg)
school in St. Petersburg in his early twenties. Understandably, it took
and the theme of the Allegro, when we reach it, is based on a folk
him a few years to gain the necessary compositional technique and to
dance. At the end, Tchaikovsky cleverly uses material from the first
find his voice as a composer.
movement’s coda to unify the piece.
In 1876 Tchaikovsky began a correspondence with the wealthy widow
In a letter to Von Meck written two years before the Serenade was
Nadezhda von Meck. She soon became a close friend and confidante,
published, Tchaikovsky addresses the use of folk idioms and his musical
though the two never met, and after some time, began to support him
identity: “I may tell you that not infrequently I begin a composition
financially so he could compose. She would continue to do so for the
with the intention of introducing some folk melody into it. Sometimes
next fourteen years.
it comes of its own accord, unbidden.… As to this national element in
Tchaikovsky composed his Serenade for Strings in 1880, the same my work, its affinity with the folk songs in some of my melodies and
year he composed his famous “1812” Overture. In October of that year, harmonies comes from my having spent my childhood in the country,
in a letter to Von Meck, he wrote, “The Overture will be very loud, and, from my earliest years, having been filled with the characteristic
noisy, but I wrote it without any warm feelings of love and so it will beauty of our Russian folk music. I am passionately fond of the national
probably be of no artistic worth. But the Serenade, on the contrary, element in all its varied expressions. In short, I am Russian in the fullest
I wrote from inner compulsion. This is a piece from the heart and so, sense of the word.”
I venture to say, it does not lack artistic worth.” Love as the basis for
Tchaikovsky’s Serenade was premiered in St. Petersburg in 1881,
artistic worth is something Tchaikovsky thought about a lot, and he
conducted by Eduard Nápravník.
had explained to Von Meck two years earlier that the circumstances of
composition mattered: “Works I compose on my own initiative … from
an invincible inward impulse … [are not the same as] works that are Suite for Small Orchestra No. 2
inspired by external circumstances: the wish of a friend, or publisher, Igor Stravinsky (1882–1971)
and commissioned works.” He adds, somewhat grudgingly, “It happens
that a composition that owes its existence to external influences proves Igor Stravinsky is one of the most significant composers of the
very successful, while one that proceeds entirely from my own initiative twentieth century, and is responsible for several developments
may … turn out far less well.” Annotator Michael Steinberg agrees with in composition. Musicologists Elliot Schwartz and Barney Childs
him, calling the Overture “that inartistic and triumphantly successful explain that Stravinsky broke tonally with the then ideal of German
piece of claptrap … which Tchaikovsky had been nagged into writing for Romanticism – substituting a “strongly tonal, often polytonal, casting of
an exhibition mounted in honor of the Silver Jubilee of Tsar Alexander II melody and harmony. In place of the Romantic sense of spaciousness
… The Serenade is … [a] lovely work.” and lyricism, he substituted a more urgent, driving sense of rhythm,
pulse, and accent.” Stravinsky was also strongly interested in American
Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings is set in four movements. The first jazz.
is a stylistic nod to Mozart and has a classical sonata form, complete
with a slow, andante introduction with a stately but exuberant air. In this In 1913 the Ballet Russes premiered Stravinsky’s controversial work The
movement Tchaikovsky gives each string part double stops to augment Rite of Spring at the Théatre des Champs-Elysées in Paris. It caused an
the chords and create the fullest sound possible. In fact, he noted that instant uproar, and news of the event reached every corner of the Paris
he liked to have as many players as possible to make the Serenade as art scene, no doubt due, in part, to Gertrude Stein, who had attended.
sonorous as possible. Stravinksy became famous almost overnight. Most unfortunately, the
First World War broke out soon after, and the Ballet Russes was forced
22 | CHECK US OUT ON FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAMto close its doors. Stravinsky decided to move to Switzerland until the Violin Concerto No. 2, Op. 63
world seemed sane again. Sergei Prokofiev (1891–1953)
During these years (1914–1920), Stravinsky composed in smaller forms Early in his career, Sergei Prokofiev, like many of his contemporaries,
for smaller ensembles, and honed his craft. He also used the time to was something of a musical revolutionary. Opposed to the ideals of
explore folk musics, especially those of Russia, which had appealed to overt Romanticism, he explored harsher textures and harmonies.
him for some time.
In 1918 Prokofiev decided to leave Russia – a move he intended to be
Stravinsky’s resulting two orchestral Suites are based on two sets of temporary but which lasted the better part of two decades. Though
little piano duos he wrote for various colleagues and for his two eldest he based himself in Paris, he was seldom home, spending months
children; these were intended as études or miniatures. Three Easy on concert tours in the United States and around Europe. Prokofiev
Pieces were completed in 1915, and are each dedicated to a colleague, sometimes performed his own works on these tours, but his primary
and Five Easy Pieces (1917) are marked to his children. Annotator Jeff income came from performing as a piano soloist.
Counts explains that each of these pieces has a fairly simple melody,
In the early 1930s Prokofiev began to consider moving back to Russia
“to be played by the youngsters and more difficult accompaniments
permanently. He also focused more on composing, and quickly gained
meant for skilled hands, presumably the composer’s…. Beyond the
respect and success in that field along with his renown as a pianist. The
obvious charm [and] wit … of the included dance forms, what is
warm reception of his work in Europe and the US made his decision
offered here (particularly in the orchestrated versions) is a premonition
to return to Russia difficult. The political climate in the newly formed
of Stravinksy’s approaching Neo-Classical period…. More than mere
Soviet Union was uncertain. Though the regime held the arts in high
caricatures, these eight ‘Easy Pieces’ are vintage Stravinsky.”
esteem, the expectations of artists the newly appointed Stalin had were
Orchestrated in 1921, Suite No. 2 for Small Orchestra is in four not the same as those Lenin had espoused. Rather than being an actual
movements, like the first Suite, and takes movements from both sets benevolent patron of the arts who sought to encourage progress and
of Easy Pieces. The Marche features the trumpet, which is sometimes innovation even in the name of nationalism, Stalin wanted to control
joined by the bassoon over an ostinato accompaniment. The Valse composers’ output and restrict it to music that was easily accessible to
features the piccolo, and is a forerunner to the circuslike Polka. Playful audiences, and of a simple and optimistic mind.
and sharp, the Polka hints at polytonality, and again makes excellent use
Prokofiev began work on his second violin concerto in 1935 while he
of the trumpet, this time adding clarinet. The Suite ends with a Galop,
was making arrangements to return to Russia. He had a commission
which makes more use of the full violin section, giving the impression
from Robert Soetens, and though he first thought a violin sonata
of a raucously cheerful group dance. This theme is contrasted with a
(he refers to a “concertino” in his letters) would be the right thing to
less exuberant theme in the bassoon before the movement ends with a
compose so he and Soetens could perform it together, he realized that
bang.
the work he was developing in his mind was too large for that format.
Stravinksy explains, “I wrote the Polka first; it is a caricature of Diaghilev, Of composing the concerto, Prokofiev writes, “The number of places in
whom I had seen as a circus trainer cracking a long whip.” The story which I wrote the Concerto shows the kind of nomadic concert-tour life
goes that the composer Alfredo Casella was there when Stravinsky first I led then. The main theme of the 1st movement was written in Paris, the
presented the Polka for Diaghilev. He liked it so much that he asked first theme of the 2nd movement at Voronezh, the orchestration was
for his own movement. And so the Marche is dedicated to him, and the finished in Baku, and the premiere was given in Madrid.”
Valse was written to mimic the style of Erik Satie.
The first movement is in a traditional sonata form and is characterized
by lyrical themes. Somewhat surprisingly it begins with solo violin.
Annotator Jonathan D. Kramer remarks, “The composer’s concern
with accessibility and simplicity is clearly in evidence.” The second
movement is also quite lyrical, featuring a terser accompaniment
supporting the legato solo line. This relationship is reversed toward the
(continued on next page)
TICKETS: 419.246.8000 | TOLEDOSYMPHONY.COM | 23(continued from previous page)
end of the movement, with the theme being taken up by the cellos,
horns, and clarinets.
The finale offers a contrast to the first two movements, showing a
side of Prokofiev that Kramer calls “brash, sarcastic, almost demonic.”
Prokofiev also works in dance-inspired rhythms and asymmetries in
the metric structure. The effect is almost waltzlike at times, and the
movement builds to the end, which is marked tumultuoso.
Kramer points out that Prokofiev’s first Violin Concerto, written at
the beginning of his time in Europe, and this second one, written at
or after the end of it, “form an appropriate frame to the composer’s
Parisian period.” The two obviously share stylistic similarities, but this
second concerto is often held up as an example of Prokofiev’s simplified
writing.
Musicologist Josiah Fisk writes, “In 1936 [Prokofiev] returned to Russia
STILL LOCAL. STILL YOURS.
after seventeen years in the West, but soon found himself under Visit mclaren.org/stlukes or call 419-893-5911.
pressure from the Soviet government to write music that was less
‘decadent.’ He complied … exhibiting a … strong melodic lyricism and a
Neo-Classical sense of form.” Though Prokofiev stayed in contact with
the West for a few years following his move, he considered himself to
be a Soviet composer.
Robert Soetens premiered Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto No. 2 in Madrid
in 1935, and composer, concerto, and performance were all very well
received. Prokofiev writes, “Wherever I played, after every concert,
whether in a cafe or during supper in a restaurant, they would ask me
thousands of questions about the Soviet Union, about Soviet music.
pops
–series–
The Spaniards were particularly interested to hear about our unions
of creative artists, composers’ contracts, and the centralization of our
concert institutions and orchestras…. When I came out on the stage, the
orchestra and entire audience stood up and hailed me as a Soviet artist
Forces of Nature:
visiting Spain.” Toledo Symphony Celebrates
Previous Performances:
Tchaikovsky - Serenade for Strings: Zaliouk 1981, Schmidt 1990, no
Metroparks Toledo
conductor 2015 April 16 & 17, 2021, 8PM | Peristyle Theater
Stravinsky - Suite No.2: Zaliouk 1981
Prokofiev - Violin Concerto No. 2: Fournier with Darwyn Apple 1968, Buy your in-person or streaming tickets today!
Zaliouk with Viktoria Mullova 1986
toledosymphony.com | 419.246.8000
MetroparksToledo photo by Art Weber.
24 | CHECK US OUT ON FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAMfamily
–series–
Dancing Fairy Tales
May 14, 2021, 7 PM & May 15, 2021, 3 PM | Peristyle Theater
Michael Lang, director and choreographer
Buy your in-person or streaming tickets today!
The Toledo Region’s Largest
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TICKETS: 419.246.8000 | TOLEDOSYMPHONY.COM | 25Enrico Lopez-Yañez, conductor
Enrico Lopez-Yañez is the Principal Pops Conductor
of the Nashville Symphony where he leads the
Symphony’s Pops Series and Family Series. Lopez-
Yañez is quickly establishing himself as one of the
Nation’s leading conductors of popular music and
becoming known for his unique style of audience
engagement. Since working with the Nashville
Symphony, Lopez-Yañez has conducted concerts
with a broad spectrum of artists including: Patti
LaBelle, Kenny Loggins, Richard Marx, Toby Keith,
Trisha Yearwood, Jennifer Nettles, Renée Elise Goldsberry, and more.
Also an active arranger, Lopez-Yañez has been commissioned to write
for the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra and the Houston Symphony, and has
had his works performed by orchestras including the Detroit Symphony,
Rochester Philharmonic, and Omaha Symphony.
As Artistic Director and Co-Founder of Symphonica Productions, LLC,
Lopez-Yañez curates and leads programs designed to cultivate new
audiences. An enthusiastic proponent of innovating the concert
experience, his exciting education, classical, and pops concerts are
performed by orchestras across the United States.
Lopez-Yañez previously held the position of Assistant Conductor
with the Nashville Symphony and Omaha Symphony. He holds a
Masters in Music from the University of Maryland and received a
Masters in Music and his Baccalaureate from UCLA, where he
graduated summa cum laude.
26 | CHECK US OUT ON FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAMpops
–series–
Sláinte! A St. Patrick’s Day Celebration
friday, march 13, 2021, 8 PM & Saturday, march 14, 2021, 3 PM | Peristyle Theater
Enrico Lopez-Yañez, conductor
PERCY GRAINGER Molly on the Shore
John F. Larchet The Dirge of Ossian
MacAnanty’s Reel
Quinn Mason Irish Dance Suite
Jig
Slip Jig
Aire and Reel
Finale: Haigh Didil Dum
John Williams, Theme from Angela’s Ashes
arr. John Moss
James Horner, An Irish Party in Third Class from Titanic
arr. Larry Moore (with winds and brass)
Percy Grainger Mock Morris
leroy anderson Irish Suite
The Irish Waterwoman
The Minstrel Boy
The Last Rose of Summer
The Rakes of Mallow
Percy Grainger Irish Tune from County Derry
Ronan Hardiman, The Lord of the Dance
arr. Larry Moore
–
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TICKETS: 419.246.8000 | TOLEDOSYMPHONY.COM | 29The Music Never Stops at the
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30 | CHECK US OUT ON FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAMchamber
–series–
Prodigal Songs
Sunday, march 21, 2021, 7 PM | Peristyle Theater
Johan Halvorsen Passacaglia on a Theme of Handel* 8’
Téa Prokes, violin Martha Reikow, cello
Dmitri Shostakovich Piano Trio No. 1 in C Minor, Op. 8* 13’
Kirk Toth, violin
Amy Chang, cello Frances Renzi, piano
Alain Trudel Quatuor (Quartet)* 22’
Lent (Slow) –
Allegro
Lent et triste (Slowly and sadly) –
Allegro con fuoco
There is a brief pause between the second and third movements. Otherwise,
the movements of this quartet are performed attacca, or without pause.
Cheryl Trace, violin Merwin Siu, violin
David Ford, viola Kellen Degnan, cello
Richard Strauss, Till Eulenspiegel, einmal anders! 10’
ARR. Franz Hasenörhl (Till Eulenspeigel, differently, for once!)
Gyusun Han, violin Jocelyn Langworthy, clarinet
Casey Gsell, bassoon Megan Amos, horn
Jack Henning, bass
*This performance is a Toledo Symphony premiere.
TICKETS: 419.246.8000 | TOLEDOSYMPHONY.COM | 31PROGRAM NOTES | by Kalindi Stone ©2021
Passacaglia The Passacaglia is one of Halvorsen’s most performed works as well
Johan Halvorsen (1864–1935) as being one of the most popular works for string duo. Though it’s
originally scored for violin and viola, it has been arranged for other
Norwegian musician Johan Halvorsen enjoyed a career not only
pairings, the most popular of which is violin and cello.
as a composer but also as a violinist and conductor. He performed
extensively, and his music was popular in Norway and across Europe.
Halvorsen’s earliest musical training was on the violin, though his Piano Trio No. 1 in C minor, Op. 8
instruction in this area was sporadic. Despite this, his immense talent Dimitri Shostakovich (1906–1975)
helped him become one of the best violinists in his country. In his
Russian composer Dimitri Shostakovich may be most easily recognized
mid-twenties he traveled to Helsinki to take up a teaching post at the
as a giant in twentieth-century music because of his contributions to
Helsinki Music Institute, and only a few short years later his conducting
the symphonic genre, but he was also prolific in other genres, not least
career began to take off, leading to a directorship at the National
of which is chamber music. Furthermore, what we might imagine of his
Theater in Oslo, where he would remain for the next three decades.
life and work is wrapped up tightly in his relationship with the Soviet
Of Halvorsen’s compositional style, musicologist Øyvin Dybsand writes, government and how it affected him. Author Josiah Fisk writes, “To
“He was mainly self-taught, apart from some lessons in counterpoint an extraordinary extent the story of Shostakovich’s life is the story of
… in Berlin. His compositions develop the national Romantic tradition his interactions with the Soviet government, which recognized him
of his friends, [including] Grieg … but his was a distinctive marked by as one of the country’s greatest artists but feared and mistrusted his
brilliant orchestration inspired by the French Romantic composers.” independence of mind. He could never be certain how his music would
Unfortunately, most of his works are now performed or recorded only be viewed by the authorities, or what humiliations and punishments
seldomly. The Passacaglia on tonight’s program is an exception. might lie in store for him. At the same time, he responded to official
pressures with either a sullen indifference or a strictly superficial
The Harvard Dictionary of Music and Musicians defines a passacaglia as
compliance, inwardly preserving a spirit of resistance.” It is clear that
“a continuous variation form, principally of the Baroque [period]…. [The
Shostakovich’s life and therefore his music was shaped and influenced
passacaglia] developed in a way quite similar to the chaconne.” Like
by these circumstances.”
the chaconne, the passacaglia is generally in a slow triple meter and
arranged over a repetitive bass line. In 1923, when Shostakovich was still a teenager, he fell ill with
tuberculosis and traveled with his sister Mariya to a sanatorium outside
Halvorsen’s Passacaglia, written in 1897 but still being tweaked as
his city to recuperate. While he was there he met Tatyana Glivenko
late as 1914, is based on a theme taken from Handel’s Suite No. 7 in G
and fell in love. Mariya writes in a letter home, “Dmitri has grown, got a
Minor for Harpsichord, HWV 432. Though Handel’s original work has
suntan, is cheerful and has fallen in love. This is now clear to me. The girl
fifteen variations, Halvorsen extended and expanded on the material
in question is a bit strange, a flirt, and I don’t like her.”
and included only twelve. Despite having fewer variations, Halvorsen’s
version is still longer and contains more contrasting elements and On returning to Leningrad, Shostakovich began work on his first piano
techniques. No doubt Halvorsen’s mastery of the violin was crucial to trio, originally called Poème and dedicated to Tatyana. Though the work
his composition of this piece. contains some elements that might betray his youth and relative lack of
experience, the piece is already mixed with the sharpness and irony that
Passacaglia opens with a bold presentation of the four-bar bass line
would become hallmarks of his more mature music. This unvarnished
beneath driving double stops that outline the theme in the violin. The
expression did not impress his teachers, one of whom famously
variations follow, thoroughly exploring the theme in both instruments
remarked on Shostakovich’s “obsession with the Grotesque.”
and sketching it in a variety of timbral settings through techniques like
pizzicato, ponticello (bowing on top of the bridge), ricochet (dropping Around the time that he was working on his first piano trio,
the bow vertically onto a string to create a percussive bounce), and Shostakovich was prompted by his family’s financial situation to
others. The final two variations build toward a dramatic end, complete take a job as a cinema pianist, where each night he improvised the
with a triumphant major closing chord which Handel did not include in films’ musical scores live. Some annotators suggest some of this
the original piece.
32 | CHECK US OUT ON FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAMimprovisation found its way into the Piano Trio, though if they did, it’s Trudel did not compose the quartet for a particular group of musicians
likely Shostakovich regretted including them, later remarking, “As a rule, he knew at the time but more as a way to express his thoughts and
I hear the score and write it down in ink, [a] finished copy – without experiences, and for practice. The piece is set in four movements,
rough drafts or studies…. I’ve always seriously warned my students which were written in order. The first, called 1984, is characterized by a
against picking out tunes on the piano. I had a near-fatal case of this feeling of oppressive scrutiny, similar to that found in George Orwell’s
disease, improviser’s itch, in childhood.” Nevertheless, Shostakovich dystopian novel of the same name. Trudel describes it as “the idea
used his time in the cinema at least partly to his benefit, playing of having Big Brother watching over you … [and] trying to escape
through the work to various films and using the time to “rehearse” with austerity.”
his friends.
The second movement is a theme and variations, a form Trudel is very
Music writer Robert Philips describes this Piano Trio as “[a collection fond of. In this movement, Trudel mixes “[music] which moves along
of] lyrical melodies colored by acerbic harmonies, sudden contrasts and something which is more contemplative” with elements drawn
of pace and energy, insistent rhythms, and spare textures giving way from jazz. Since both his parents were jazz musicians, jazz is really the
to unashamedly romantic passages.” Annotator Kai Christiansen adds language with which he was most familiar – his mother tongue. Trudel
that it is “beautifully constructed and vividly expressed … complex, describes it as “the music of a teenager … [with] no ego in it.”
passionate, and … compellingly ambiguous.”
The third movement is called chanson triste, “Sad Song,” and is simple
In a 1925 letter to fellow composer Boleslav Yavorsky, Shostakovich and sincere. Trudel says, “It comes out, you write, you don’t pass
wrote, “I passionately love music. I have dedicated myself completely judgement … [and now it can seem] a little too straight from the heart.”
to music, or it would be more correct to say that I will dedicate myself
The finale movement, called “The 16th of October,” is a fugue, and is
completely to music. There are no other joys in life apart from music.
marked con fuoco, “fiery.” Trudel dips into jazz-inspired tonality in this
For me, all of life is music.”
movement, and this combined with its fire lends more angst to this
Shostakovich’s Piano Trio No. 1 was published posthumously, and movement. The title is a nod to the various weighty events of that day
composer Boris Tischchenko actually completed some final measures in throughout Canadian and French history, including events related to
the piano part. the French Revolution, Napoleon’s exile, and more personally for Trudel,
the 1970 crisis in Quebec: “When I was four, they sent the army to my
town, and I vividly remember looking across the living room and seeing
String Quartet soldiers with guns across the street next to my school. This is why [the
Alain Trudel (b. 1966) quartet] starts with Big Brother.” He continues to explain that despite
Canadian conductor, composer, and trombonist Alain Trudel wrote his the long gap between the experience of seeing his area overrun with
String Quartet over several years in the early 1980s, when he was a soldiers and his writing of the quartet, he knew he wanted to capture
teenager. During this time in his budding career, he dreamt primarily that experience and memory.
of being a composer, though he was also training as a performer. He Although as Trudel says, the quartet has “some errors, not so much
was developing so quickly as a performer, in fact, that his performance knowledge, and no inhibitions,” it is still well crafted, and pays homage
development soon took precedence. Trudel explains that his composing to both Bartok and Shostakovich, who were great influences on Trudel.
career was “cut short by [his] talent in playing [trombone] and TSO’s principal second violinist, Merwin Siu, notes that this influence is
conducting … as well as [his] awe of giants Mahler and Beethoven.” also evident in the use of solos, as both Bartok and Shostakovich use
The latter prompted him to move toward a full-time conducting and solos in their string quartets as well. Trudel attributes this usage mostly
performing career, leaving composition aside for the next two decades. to the jazz tradition, saying “They’re all part of the message together,
The String Quartet, therefore, is a rare find. Looking back on it now, and alone at the same time.”
Trudel comments, “It was [written] so long ago that it’s like I didn’t even
write [it]…. This youthful creative time comes only once in your life, and
I’m glad I still have this piece – it’s nice to have some kind of testimony
from that period.” (continued on next page)
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