UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA PERFORMING ARTS presents

ALEKSEY SEMENENKO, VIOLIN OF YOUNG CONCERT ARTISTS

INNA FIRSOVA, PIANO

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2015, 7:30 P.M. SQUITIERI STUDIO THEATRE

 

PROGRAM Sonata No. 7 in C Minor, Op. 30, No. 2

Ludwig van Beethoven

Allegro con brio Adagio cantabile Scherzo. Allegro — Trio Finale. Allegro

Violin Sonata in G Minor (The Devil’s Trill)

Giuseppe Tartini

Larghetto affettuoso Allegro moderato Andante Allegro assai — Andante — Allegro assai INTERMISSION

Sonata No. 4 in E Minor (Fritz Kreisler)

Eugène Ysaÿe

Allemanda Sarabande Finale

Valse Sentimentale, from Six Morceaux, Op. 51 Scherzo, Op. 42, from Souvenir d’un lieu cher Carmen Fantasy

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Georges Bizet Arranged by Franz Waxman

PROGRAM NOTES Sonata No. 7 in C Minor, Op. 30, No. 2 Ludwig van Beethoven Born December 16, 1770 in Bonn; died March 26, 1827, in Vienna Beethoven wrote this sonata and the other two published in the same set in the early months of 1802, just months before he came to terms with symptoms he could no longer try to hide or rationalize away. Just after he wrote these three violin sonatas, on the advice of his doctor, Beethoven left Vienna for a stay of several months in the quiet country village of Heiligenstadt. It was a wrenching and tragic time for him and yet one that preceded the incomparably rich productiveness of his middle years. On October 6, shortly before he returned to Vienna, he wrote a will in the form of a letter to his two brothers, the famous Heiligenstadt testament, a moving document in which he laid out the horror and pain of a terrible handicap he had tried to keep secret. He was losing his hearing: “How could I possibly admit an infirmity in the one sense which ought to be more developed in me than in other people, a sense that I once possessed in the highest perfection, a perfection such as few in my profession enjoy or have ever enjoyed! I would have ended my life — but my art held me back. To leave the world until I have brought forth everything that I feel within me is impossible.” A few days later he added a postscript in which he gave vent to even more utter despair, but he, nevertheless, returned to the city with the fruit of his unabated hard work and resumed his busy public career.

Beethoven had the violin sonatas published in the spring of the following year with the already antiquated designation Three Piano Sonatas with the Accompaniment of a Violin. They bore a dedication to “His Majesty Alexander I, Emperor of all the Russias” who had ascended the throne in 1801. Protocol required that permission for such a dedication be granted in advance, and apparently Beethoven had secured it with the assistance of one of the many music-loving Russian noblemen he knew in Vienna. Beethoven did not ever receive the valuable diamond ring he had been led to expect as a gift from the Emperor, nor any other acknowledgment. The sentiments Beethoven expresses in the Op. 30 set of sonatas are elevated ones, the emotions powerful, and the forms original. They are rich and mature works. The instrumental writing is highly original and perfectly idiomatic for the piano and the violin. This work, the second sonata in the series, has great dramatic power. Occasionally the work is referred to by a subtitle, Eroica, identifying it with its orchestral counterpart written in the related major tonality. The Allegro con brio begins with a huge, extended statement, energetically developed. This passionate initial movement starts with a concentrated motive with Beethoven’s distinctive quality. The richness and the difficulty of the violin part are unmatched elsewhere in the set. Arthur Cohn has said that the “entire first movement is like Beethoven’s assertion that a sonata movement might be the conflict between head and heart.” The lovely slow movement, Adagio cantabile, is made up of, in essence, a set of free variations of ever-increasing intensity built on a central dramatic theme. The following light-hearted movement, an impish Scherzo, Allegro, provides relief. The odd phrase lengths and tricky rhythms of the contrasting Trio section reflect the sonata’s Russian association. The work closes with a fierce Finale, Allegro, of renewed intensity, balancing the first movement not only in concentration and fervor, but in structure. Both structures grow from a cell built from a single motive.

Violin Sonata in G Minor (The Devil’s Trill) Giuseppe Tartini Born April 8, 1692, in Pirano; died February 26, 1770, in Padua Tartini, who originally intended to become a priest, became one of the great early masters of the violin, a composer of distinction, and an important musical theorist. He enriched the repertoire of his instrument with about 100 sonatas and 150 concerti, and he created great advances in the technique of violin playing as well as made important improvements in the violin bow. He composed the best known of all his compositions, this Violin Sonata in G minor, in 1713. It was published posthumously in 1798, and became known as The Devil’s Trill Sonata. The four movements of the work take the alternating slow-fast-slow-fast sequence of many sonatas of the Baroque era. The first, a moving Larghetto affettuoso, has the rhythm of a siciliano, (similar to a slow gigue characterized by repeated dotted rhythms) preceding the witty Allegro energico second movement full of decorative trills. In the second half of the sonata, the third and fourth movements are linked together as The Author’s Dream. They approximate the music Tartini said he heard in a vivid dream during which the devil appeared to him. He gave an account of the experience: “At last I thought I would offer my violin to the devil, in order to discover what kind of musician he was, when

to my great astonishment I heard him play a solo so singularly beautiful and with such superior taste and precision that it surpassed all the music I had ever heard or conceived in the whole course of my life. I was so overcome with my surprise and delight that I lost my power of breathing, and the violence of the sensation awoke me. Instantly, I seized my violin in the hope of remembering some portion of what I had heard, but in vain! The work which this dream suggested, and which I wrote at that time, is doubtless the best of my compositions. I call it The Devil’s Trill Sonata.” Tartini said that he tried to transcribe the Devil’s music of unending trills of unprecedented difficulty faithfully, but confessed he felt only partly successful. A short Grave leads into the finale, Allegro assai, where the trilling indeed has a diabolical difficulty for the violinist. Here, three times, The Devil’s Trill requires the soloist to use two fingers to trill, (to rapidly alternate between two notes) while the other two fingers play a countermelody. This passage occurs three times in phrases of varying length. Tartini uses the trill for many functions: as decoration, as melodic material, and as a device to build tension. Before the slow coda at the end of the work, Tartini leaves room for a cadenza that the 19th century violin virtuoso, Fritz Kreisler (1875 1962), and the famous violin teacher, Leopold Auer (1845-1930) used as occasion to continue the trill pattern.

Sonata No. 4 in E Minor (Fritz Kreisler) Eugène Ysaÿe Born July 16, 1858, in Liège; died May 12, 1931, in Brussels Eugène Ysaÿe was a great violinist in an era of great violin playing. George Bernard Shaw wrote in the 1890s that he thought him greater than Sarasate and equal to Joachim, but when he heard Ysaÿe play the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto, he said, “Sarasate and Joachim rolled into one could have done no more.” César Franck, a fellow Liègeois, dedicated his Violin Sonata to Ysaÿe as a wedding gift, and Debussy wrote his string quartet for him. In 1898, Ysaÿe declined the directorship of the New York Philharmonic, but from 1918 to 1922, he was the conductor of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. His compositions include an opera, some chamber music and many works for violin. Ysaÿe’s son, Antoine, recorded the history of his father’s six unaccompanied violin sonatas in his memoir. It is not easy to give credence to exactly what he says, but it is all we have. One day in 1924, in Brussels, Ysaÿe heard the famous violin virtuoso, Joseph Szigeti play one of Bach’s solo violin sonatas, and on the way home afterwards, he spoke of what an interesting challenge it would be to write pieces that particularly suited the styles of individual violinists. “That evening,” according to Antoine, “Ysaÿe retired to his study, and did not reappear until the following evening. His meals were served to him on a table at his side, and when he finally came out again, he was radiant. ‘I have sketched ideas for six violin sonatas,’ he said. Then, during the following days he completed the works and sent them to the printer.” It seems almost impossible that he could have conceived and written this set of six varied works, which are among the most difficult in the violin repertoire, in so short a time. The Sonata No. 4 (The Kreisler), is the most classical of the six in form and so named because of its dedication to Fritz Kreisler. Ysaÿe incorporated his memories of the great

Viennese virtuosi’s playing in this work. The first movement, Allemande, has a stately and noble character. The second movement, Sarabande, begins with vibrating pizzicati, which mark the first theme, indicated by four notes printed in the manner of liturgical plainsong. The harmonic and technical details of the movement are unfolded around the four notes. In the final third movement, the composer takes up the themes of the first and second movement again. The composer’s students and Fritz Kreisler first performed Ysaÿe’s first four sonatas in public. Kreisler played this one in 1930 at the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels. In her royal box, H.M. Queen Elisabeth sat next to Eugène Ysaÿe for the performance. Before the performance began, Kreisler said, “I feel ashamed to play this work in front of the master, for I must confess there is a passage I am unable to play as it is written. Therefore, I take the daring liberty of altering it a little, and so that . . .[ Ysaÿe] does not imagine that my memory fails me, please offer him my apologies so and show him . . where I indicated the alteration.” This sonata was a required piece in 1937 at the Eugène Ysaÿe International Contest, organized by the Queen Elisabeth Musical Foundation. The competition was won by one of the most renowned violinists of the 20th century, David Oistrakh.

Valse Sentimentale, from Six Morceaux, Op. 51 and Scherzo, Op. 42 from Souvenir d’un lieu cher Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky Born May 7, 1840, in Votkinsk; died November 6, 1893, in Saint Petersburg When he was 19 years old, Tchaikovsky was a good enough pianist to give a public performance of Liszt’s difficult Reminiscences of Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor, but in later years his interest in the instrument was limited. Except for the three concertos and the sonata, all his compositions for piano are home-music, rather than concert-music, short and intimate pieces, often in the manner of Schumann. Among them are works of considerable charm, like the 12 that were published as his Op. 37b, each devoted to a month of the year, though the series has come to be called The Seasons, rather than The Months. They were commissioned by the editor of a popular magazine for publication monthly, in each of the 12 issues of the year 1876. The composer did not consider the task burdensome and is said to have told a friend that tossing them off was as easy as turning pancakes. In fact, he charged his manservant with the responsibility for reminding him of the monthly deadline, and when it came, he sat down and wrote each piece at a single seating. At this period, six years later, in 1882, Tchaikovsky’s attention was focused on opera, ballet, symphony, and other orchestral work. He wrote these six little “morsels,” he said, only for the purpose of making some money. Most of the pieces are light dance movements, each dedicated to a different woman. Valse sentimentale, the last of the Six Morceaux, was composed during a difficult time in Tchaikovsky’s life even though the piece is charming and intimate with a peaceful feel. He dedicated the Valse to a governess (Emma Genton) of one of the friends at whose house he stayed. He delivered the six brief pieces, originally intended for piano, to the Jurgenson brothers, receiving 100 rubles for each.

The Valse has a direct opening statement, superficially reminiscent of a Chopin waltz; its middle section is calm, if melancholy. Overall, the piece displays an introspective Tchaikovsky. Souvenir d’un lieu cher, Op. 42 from which the Scherzo, Presto giocoso, is the second of three movements, was published originally separately in 1884, when the composer went to Brailov, after he fled from his marriage. Because the weeks he spent alone at Brailov came as a welcome respite, the estate became the “dear place” of the Souvenir d’un lieu cher, (Remembrance of a dear place), a suite of three short pieces he composed there for violin and piano. The second and central piece, the lively and virtuosic Scherzo in C minor, written in 1878, has a three-part form. It begins with a quiet, ascending theme of eighth notes; its a particularly lyrical and passionate middle section Con molto espressione ed un poco agitato, presents a song-like contrast full of sweetness.

Carmen Fantasy George Bizet Born October 25, 1838, in Paris; died June 3, 1875, in Bougival One of the most popular operas in the repertoire is Bizet’s Carmen, which had its first performance on March 3, 1875, three months before the composer’s death. For some reason, it was long believed that the opera had failed and that Bizet had died of a “broken heart.” Many at first questioned the violent passions and the moral ambiguities in the work, and looked to the opera for reinforcement of their theories, but in fact Carmen completed its 37th performance just two weeks after Bizet died of a cardiac condition from which he had suffered for some time. The opera is a simply and directly told story of a Spanish gypsy girl, Carmen, who did not care what fate was finally met by the men she chose to satisfy her great appetite for love. Many great solo instrumentalists have played the music from this opera in brilliant, virtuosic adaptations. Horowitz had his Variations for Piano on a Theme from Carmen, there is a flutists’ version of the Fantasy, and the illustrious violinist Heifetz played a Carmen Fantasy arranged for violin and orchestra for him by Franz Waxman. It is the Waxman arrangement of the Carmen Fantasy for violin and piano that you will hear on tonight’s program. — Program notes copyright Susan Halpern, © 2015

BIOGRAPHIES ALEKSEY SEMENENKO, VIOLIN Ukrainian violinist Aleksey Semenenko is praised for passionate performances replete with “stunning technique and intonation, verve, wit, delicatesse, and beautiful phrasing” (The Boston Musical Intelligencer), as well as consistently demonstrating “an unparalleled level of refined musicianship and stage presence” (The Strad). This was evidenced in his triumph at the 2015 Queen Elisabeth Competition in Belgium, where he captured Second Prize and went on to perform Laureate concerts throughout Belgium with the Orchestre Philharmonique Royal de Liège in Liege, Brussels, Namur, Charleroi, Hasselt, and Antwerp, and with the Brussels Philharmonic in Bruges and Ghent. In 2015-2016, he performs in Europe at the Musée du Louvre in Paris, the Rotary Club d’Arlon in Belgium, and the Rotary Gent-Zuid in Gent, and in the U.S., where he appears in recitals and concerto engagements at University of Florida Performing Arts, Tannery Pond Concerts, Merkin Concert Hall, the Embassy Series, the Eastern Connecticut Symphony, the DuPage Symphony, and the Meridian Symphony. He makes his Alice Tully Hall concerto debut with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s on the Young Concert Artists Gala Concert in May 2016. Mr. Semenenko has appeared as soloist with orchestras including the Moscow Virtuosi, the Kiev National Orchestra, the Junge Philharmonie in Cologne, and the Sinfonietta Hungarica, among others. He appeared at the Interlaken Classics Festival in Switzerland as soloist with the Zakhar Bron Chamber Orchestra and toured Germany, performing recitals in the Best of NRW Series. At the 2011 Musik:Landschaft Westfalen Festival, he performed Paganini’s Concerto No. 2 with the National Philharmonic of Russia under Vladimir Spivakov, and was subsequently invited by the Spivakov Foundation to perform at the Kremlin in Moscow and at the Moscow International Performing Arts Center. Mr. Semenenko performed the violin solo from John William’s Schindler’s List with the Odessa Philharmonic Orchestra in Hamburg. An avid chamber musician, Mr. Semenenko founded the Stolyarsky Quartet, which has given concerts in Russia, the Ukraine, France, Malta and Switzerland. Semenenko’s other honors include First Prize in the 2015 Boris Goldstein International Violin Competition, Musical America’s New Artist of the Month (March 2015), the Audience Prize at the 2015 Musical Olympus International Festival in St. Petersburg, the Alois Kottmann Award at the 2010 International Day of Music Festival in Hofheim, Germany, and the Grand Prix of the 2006 National Violin Competition in Lviv, Ukraine. Winner of the 2012 Young Concert Artists International Auditions, he was presented in debut recitals at Merkin Concert Hall and the Kennedy Center. At the auditions, he was also awarded special prizes resulting in performances at the Paramount Theatre, the

Usedomer Musikfestival, and the Friends of Music Concerts. He has also appeared in recital at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, the Port Washington Library, Rockefeller University, the Vero Beach Museum of Art, the First Presbyterian Church of Myrtle Beach, La Grua Center for the Arts, and on the Embassy Series. Born in Odessa, Mr. Semenenko began his violin studies at the age of 6 with Zoya Mertsalova at the Stolyarsky School, and only a year later performed Vivaldi’s Violin Concerto in A Minor with the Odessa Philharmonic Orchestra. He currently studies with Zakhar Bron at the Hochschule für Musik in Cologne. Mr. Semenenko plays a 1760-70 Carlo Ferdinando Landolfi violin, loaned to him by the Deutsche Stiftung Musikleben fund of Hamburg, Germany.

INNA FIRSOVA, PIANO Pianist Inna Firsova was born in 1988 in Tschita, Russia and began playing piano at the age of 8 with Svetlana Korzhova in Pervomaisk, Ukraine. At the age of 12 she was awarded Second Prize at the “Zolotyj Leleka” International Piano Competition in the Ukraine. The following year she was the winner of the “Vivat Musica” International Competition for Young Pianists in Nova Kakhovka, Ukraine. Ms. Firsova’s early studies were at the Music Conservatory of Hamburg under the tutelage of Professor Grigory Gruzman. From 2006-2009, she continued her studies with him in Weimar at the Musikgymnasium Schloss Belvedere. After graduating, she studied at the Folkwang University of the Arts in Essen, Germany with Professor Arnulf von Arnim, and graduated in 2012 with high honors and First Prize in the University’s concerto competition. Her other prizes include a scholarship award from the “Yehudi Menuhin/Live Music Now Rhein-Ruhr” Association, as well as awards from the Lions Club of Ludenschied (Germany). She has performed at the Rhein-Ruhr Piano Festival in 2010 and 2012, and given numerous duo-recitals throughout Europe with violinist Aleksey Semenenko, including the Philharmony of Kharkov (Ukraine), at the Beethoven House in Bonn, Germany, and at the International Summer Acadamy in Cervo (Italy).