RACHMANINOFF AND SHOSTAKOVICH
Saturday, May 6, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
Cannon Center for Performing Arts
Sunday, May 7, 2023, 2:30 p.m.
Scheidt Family Performing Arts Center
Robert Moody, conductor
Haochen Zhang, piano
SCOTT JOPLIN
(1868 - 1917)
(ARR. GUNTHER SCHULLER)
Overture to Treemonisha
SERGEI RACHMANINOFF
(1873 - 1943)
Concerto No. 2 in c-minor for Piano and Orchestra, op. 18
I. Moderato (moderate tempo)
II. Adagio sostenuto (slot and sustained)
III. Allegro scherzando (lively and playful)
Haochen Zhang, piano
INTERMISSION
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH
(1906 - 1975)
Symphony No. 5 in d-minor, op. 47
I. Moderato (moderate tempo)
II. Allegretto (somewhat lively)
III. Largo (slow)
IV. Allegro non troppo (lively, but not too fast)
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by Michelle Pellay-Walker
Concert Notes
Treemonisha is the second of two operas by Scott Joplin. Initially published in 1911, the plot of this three-act opera centers around an 18-year-old woman (Treemonisha) who is taught to read, and who subsequently leads her community against the influence of conjurers who prey upon ignorance and superstition. The original orchestrations were long lost, with the piano score being rediscovered in 1970. Several composers have recreated the orchestrations, including Gunther Schuller, whose version of the opera’s Overture is being featured to open this concert set. The premiere of the reorchestrated opera (version by T.J. Anderson) took place in 1972, in a joint production by Morehouse College and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, and was conducted by Robert Shaw. While sometimes described as a “ragtime” opera, this work includes a wide variety of styles and song types, as well as a ballet. Joplin was posthumously awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Treemonisha in 1976.
The Piano Concerto No. 2 in c-minor, Op. 18, by Sergei Rachmaninoff, has long been one of the most popular pieces of classical music ever penned. Written in 1900-1901, it marked his successful return to composition following the disastrous premiere of his First Symphony three years previously. The concerto is dedicated to Nikolai Dahl, the psychotherapist who was instrumental in helping Rachmaninoff to overcome his writer’s block; it was premiered in the fall of 1901 at a Moscow Philharmonic Society concert conducted by Alexander Siloti, featuring Rachmaninoff as soloist. Scored for woodwinds in pairs, full brass, timpani, bass drum, cymbals, and strings, this three-movement concerto takes approximately 35 minutes to perform. The piece can theoretically be played with no breaks, as each subsequent movement begins in the concluding key of its previous counterpart. The lush, soaring melodies for which this work is so beloved have been “borrowed” for popular tunes on more than one occasion, the most famous being Frank Sinatra’s “Full Moon and Empty Arms” (second theme of movement three), recorded in 1945. Another song, “I Think of You” (second theme of movement one), was also recorded by Sinatra, in 1957. The second movement doesn’t get left out; its main theme is featured in Eric Carmen’s “All By Myself,” released in 1975.
Dmitri Shostakovich wrote his epic Symphony No. 5 in d-minor, Op. 47 following the composer’s first major run-in with the Russian political authorities; his opera, Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District, had provoked an official denunciation of his music, which appeared as an anonymous opinion piece in Pravda (then the official newspaper of the Soviet Union’s Communist Party) in early 1936. One direct result of this was the Fifth Symphony, and it succeeded in “rehabilitating” the composer in the Party’s eyes (“…a Soviet artist’s creative response to ‘justified’ criticism” is a quote attributed to Shostakovich that appeared in print shortly before the work’s first performance). It was composed over a three-month period between April and July in 1937, and premiered in Leningrad in November, featuring the Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Yevgeny Mravinsky. It was enthusiastically received by the audience, which gave it an extended ovation at its conclusion that lasted at least a half-hour. Lasting approximately 45 minutes, the orchestration calls for eleven woodwinds, full brass, timpani plus a large number of percussion instruments, two harps, piano, celesta, and strings. The four movements encompass a wide variety of moods, with the last movement still being subject to debate, especially its conclusion: Has good truly triumphed over evil?? Is the joyful nature depicted genuine or enforced?? A last note of interest: Shostakovich references one of his earlier songs in the haunting middle section of movement four. Vozrozhdenije (Rebirth), Opus 46, No. 1, is a setting of a poem by Alexander Pushkin, and it is the accompanying figure that is alluded to in the symphony. This is a lovely work, and can be found via the following link: https://youtu.be/1j-bvuhCKH8.
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On Stage This Weekend
Get to know our conductor, special guest, and musicians for this weekend’s performances.
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Maestro Robert Moody is thrilled to begin his sixth season as Music Director of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra. Expanded and adventurous programming, expanded collaboration with multiple arts organizations in the Mid-South, commission of several new works for the orchestra, the MSO’s first commercial recording in over three decades, and a new $25-million-dollar endowment are but some of the many achievements made under his direction.
In 2018 Moody completed eleven-years as Music Director of the Portland Symphony Orchestra (Maine), and thirteen-years as Music Director of the Winston-Salem Symphony (NC). Prior to that he served as Resident Conductor for the Phoenix Symphony, Chorus Master for Santa Fe Opera, and Associate Conductor for the Evansville (IN) Philharmonic Orchestra.
This past summer, Moody was invited to return to South Africa for a tour of concerts with the three major orchestras of that country – in Durban, Johannesburg, and Cape Town. Other recent and upcoming guest conducting includes the orchestras of Bogota, Colombia; Aachen and Baden-Baden, Germany; The Louisiana Philharmonic in New Orleans, The Sacramento Philharmonic and Pacific Symphony in California, Sewanee Music Festival in Tennessee, and his first return to the Winston-Salem Symphony in North Carolina.
Equally at home in the opera pit, Moody began his career as apprentice conductor for the Landes theater Opera in Linz, Austria. He conducted for the opera companies of Santa Fe, Brevard Music Center, and Hilton Head Opera. He made his debut with Opera Memphis in Mozart's Cosi fan tutte in 2022.
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Since his gold medal win at the Thirteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 2009, Haochen Zhang has captivated audiences in the United States, Europe, and Asia with a unique combination of deep musical sensitivity, fearless imagination, and spectacular virtuosity. In 2017, Haochen received the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant, which recognizes talented musicians with the potential for a major career in music.
Haochen has already appeared with many of the world’s leading festivals and orchestras including the BBC Proms with Long Yu and the China Philharmonic; the Munich Philharmonic with the late Lorin Maazel in a sold-out tour in Munich and China; The Philadelphia Orchestra with Yannick Nézet-Séguin; the Sydney Symphony and David Robertson in a China tour; and the NDR Hamburg and Thomas Hengelbrock in a tour of Tokyo, Beijing, and Shanghai.
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Violin I
Barrie Cooper, Concertmaster
The Joy Brown Wiener Chair
Marisa Polesky, Assistant Concertmaster
Diane Zelickman Cohen, Assistant Principal
Paul Turnbow, Assistant Principal
Jessica Munson
Long Long Kang
Wen-Yih Yu
Daniel Parker*
The Joyce McAnulty Blackmon Memorial Fellow
Priscilla Tsai
Pedro Maia
Daniel Gilbert
Violin II
Gaylon Patterson, Principal
The Dunbar and Constance Abston Chair
Erin Kaste, Assistant Principal
Lenore McIntyre, Assistant Principal
Rebeca Rathlef*
The Judith and Sheldon Korones Memorial Fellow
Julie Johnson
Sam Spurbeck
Miguel Lesmes
Carissa Perez
Jamie Weaver
Janet Cooper
Basil Alter
Viola
Jennifer Puckett, Principal
The Corinne Falls Murrah Chair
Michelle Pellay-Walker, Assistant Principal
Aaron Tubergen, Assistant Principal
Karen Casey
Alejandro Gallagher*
The Ellen Rolfes Legacy Fellow
Katie Brown
Michael Brennan
Lenny Schranze
Jane Scharnze
Cello
Ruth Valente Burgess, Principal
The Vincent de Frank Chair
Iren Zombor, Assistant Principal
Jonathan Kirkscey, Assistant Principal
Mark Wallace
Estefan Perez
The Rebecca Webb Wilson Fellow
Jeffrey Jurciukonis
Hannah Schmidt
Otavio Kavakama
Christine Sears
Bass
Scott Best, Principal
Chris Butler, Assistant Principal
Jeremey Upton
Sean O’Hara
Andrew Palmer
Kaleb Collins
Flute
Nave Graham, Principal
The Marion Dugdale McClure Chair
Delara Hashemi
Kelly Hermann
Piccolo
Kelly Herrmann
Oboe
Saundra D’Amato, Principal
The Paul and Linnea Bert Chair
Shelly Sublett, Assistant Principal
English Horn
Shelly Sublett, Principal
Clarinet
Andre Dyachenko, Principal
The Gayle S. Rose Chair
Rena Feller
Nobuko Igarashi
Bass Clarinet
Nobuko Igarashi
Bassoon
Susanna Whitney, Principal
Michael Scott
Christopher Piecuch
Contrabassoon
Christopher Piecuch
Horn
Caroline Kinsey, Principal
The Morrie A. Moss Chair
Eric Sorensen, Assistant Principal
Robert Patterson
Jeremiah Frederick
Mimi Linehan
Trumpet
Scott Moore, Principal
The Smith & Nephew Chair
Susan Enger
J. Michael McKenzie
Trombone
Greg Luscombe, Principal
Wes Lebo
Mark Vail
Bass Trombone
Mark Vail
Tuba
Charles Schulz, Principal
The Charles and Sharen Schulz Chair
Timpani
Frank Shaffer, Principal
Percussion
David Carlisle, Principal
Ed Murray, Assistant Principal
Bill Shaltis
Stewart Plumlee
Harp
Marian Shaffer, Principal
The Ruth Marie Moore Cobb Chair
Piano/Celeste
Adrienne Park, Principal
The Buzzy Hussey and Hal Brunt Chair
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DONORS
THANK YOU! Individuals, corporations, foundations, ArtsMemphis, the Tennessee Arts Commission, and others make annual contributions to support the Memphis Symphony Orchestra. The following community members have expressed their support for the Memphis Symphony Orchestra for 2022 and 2023.
$25,000+
ArtsMemphis
Autozone
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FedEx Corporation
First Horizon Foundation\
Dr. Suzanne Gronemeyer
Carolyn and Scott Heppel
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Mid-America Apartment Communities
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Nancy Walker
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$10,000+
Allied Pest Control, Inc
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Belz 2008 Foundation
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Orion Federal Credit Union
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$2,500+
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Page Henrion
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$1,000+
Kay and Keith Anderson
Henry and Janet Bartosch
Reed Baskin and Alice Nishiwaki
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Peggy Bodine
Judith Bookman
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Franklin and Katherine Godoy
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Carolyn Chism Hardy
Larry Hardy
Shawn Hayden
Lewis and Lunida Holland
Julia Howell
Huey's Restaurants
Joanna Hwang
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Janas Jackson
Eric and Cynthia Johnson
Rose and Thomas Johnston
Edith Kelly-Green
Yoriko Kitai
Ellen Klyce
Brandon and Jennifer Knisley
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Barbara Lapides
Lucy and Tom Lee
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Lauriann Lines
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Luretia Luscombe
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Bacarra Mauldin
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Jeanie Mercer
Irma W. Merrill
Jan and Scott Morrell
Rozlyn Nichols
William and Barbara Nixon
Marianne Parrs
Robert Patterson and Patricia Gray
John Pickens
Kenneth Prince
Eileen and Joel Prout
Linda Rhea
Neil and Judy Ringel
Betty Robinson
Bradford Rockabrand
Rose Montgomery Johnston Family Foundation
Gayle Rose
Diane Rudner
Craig and Andrea Sander
Samuel and Leanne Scull
Mary Seratt
Mimi Shaffer
Jerry Sharp
Cynthia Spangler and Charles Askew
Richard and Trish Spore
Mary Anne K. Sullivan
Dr. D. Parker Suttle
Irvin Tankersley
Joan Terry
Michael and Andie Uiberall
Union Service Industries, INC.
Susan Van Dyck and James Newcomb
Bill and Carmine Vaughan
Dr. Lee and Mary Linda Wardlaw
Graham and Megan Warr
Otis and Marilane Warr
A C and Ruby Wharton
Benton Wheeler and Aimee M. Christian
Alvin and Myra Whitney
Camilla Wilson
Jocelyn Wurzburg
Susan Yount
Lyn and Gordon Yukon
This list recognizes philanthropic contributors to the MSO made between Jan 1, 2022 - March 9, 2023 . While compiling this list every effort has been made to reflect the accuracy of our donors. If your name has been misspelled, omitted, or misrepresented please contact us at 901-537-2500 and will correct our records. We appreciate your generosity and understanding.
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