- This event has passed.
Virtuoso Violins from Lincoln Center, NYC
June 12, 2021 @ 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Free
This event was recorded live at Lincoln Center in New York City featuring performers from the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and guest pianist, Orion Weiss. Weiss has been a soloist with the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra. Tune in for the premiere on June 12 at 7PM. The program will remain live for viewers through June 19.
VIRTUOSO VIOLINS PROGRAM
GEORG PHILIPP TELEMANN (1681-1767)
Concerto in D major for Four Violins, TWV 40:202 (c. 1720) Adagio
Allegro
Grave
Allegro
Francisco Fullana, Danbi Um, Paul Huang, Sean Lee, violin
Concerto in D major for Four Violins, TWV 40:202 (c. 1720) Adagio
Allegro
Grave
Allegro
Francisco Fullana, Danbi Um, Paul Huang, Sean Lee, violin
RICHARD STRAUSS (1864-1949)
Sonata in E-flat major for Violin and Piano, Op. 18 (1887-88) Allegro ma non troppo
Improvisation: Andante cantabile
Finale: Andante—Allegro
Danbi Um, violin • Orion Weiss, piano
Sonata in E-flat major for Violin and Piano, Op. 18 (1887-88) Allegro ma non troppo
Improvisation: Andante cantabile
Finale: Andante—Allegro
Danbi Um, violin • Orion Weiss, piano
—INTERMISSION (Q&A with the artists)—
GABRIEL FAURÉ (1845-1924)
Quartet No. 1 in C minor for Piano, Violin, Viola, and Cello, Op. 15 (1876-79)
Allegro molto moderato
Scherzo: Allegro vivo
Adagio
Allegro molto
Wu Han, piano • Paul Huang, violin • Matthew Lipman, viola • Clive Greensmith, cello
Quartet No. 1 in C minor for Piano, Violin, Viola, and Cello, Op. 15 (1876-79)
Allegro molto moderato
Scherzo: Allegro vivo
Adagio
Allegro molto
Wu Han, piano • Paul Huang, violin • Matthew Lipman, viola • Clive Greensmith, cello
Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
NOTES ON THE PROGRAM
Concerto in D major for Four Violins, TWV 40:202 (c. 1720) Georg Philipp Telemann (Magdeburg, 1681 – Hamburg, 1767)
Telemann was one of the most sought-after German composers of the late Baroque. Towns and courts vied for the honor of having him as music director and he commanded a very high salary. In one famous incident, he turned down a job in Leipzig, forcing the disappointed city council to settle for Bach instead. Telemann spent most of his career in Hamburg overseeing the music for the city’s churches. He also had many other sources of income—he was a writer (he wrote no fewer than three autobiographies), he did freelance composing for other German courts, and he published his own music. He was also tireless as a composer. In an era when composers were expected to produce vast amounts of music, Telemann stands out for his truly immense oeuvre. Other Baroque composers produced hundreds of works but he produced thousands—the exact number is unknown but he is believed to have composed over 3,000 compositions.
Telemann’s wide-ranging output includes all the main genres of the time, including concertos for many different instrumentations such as this Concerto in D major for Four Violins, one of three for this unusual instrumentation. Baroque concertos usually included basso continuo, an accompaniment that provides the harmonies of the piece, but Telemann wrote about 80 pieces without continuo, including this one. The exact occasion and reason for this particular instrumentation is unknown. The four movements, arranged slow-fast-slow-fast, capture Telemann’s charm, grace, and wit with warm harmonies and clever imitation.
Sonata in E-flat major for Violin and Piano, Op. 18 (1887-88) Richard Strauss (Munich, 1864 – Garmisch-Partenkirchen, 1949)
When Strauss wrote his Violin Sonata at age 24, he was just finding his path. He was third conductor at the Hofoper in his hometown of Munich. He had recently met his future wife, the soprano Pauline de Ahna, who would prove to be a major source of motivation and encouragement. He had also recently returned from a trip to Italy and was inspired to try an entirely new type of composition with his symphonic fantasy Aus Italien. Strauss had had a very conservative musical education focused on Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven and wrote quite a bit of chamber music in his younger years (he was a child prodigy). The Violin Sonata ended up serving as a capstone to that period in his life. After it, he would shift his focus to big, programmatic music—he quickly wrote the tone poems Macbeth, Don Juan, and Tod und Verklärung in 1888 and 1889. He would also go on to write his brilliant operas and dozens of songs but the Violin Sonata was essentially his last word on abstract instrumental music.
And what an ending it is. Strauss eagerly soaked in all the competing influences of 1880s Germany. He went through a brief period of fascination with Brahms that gave way to a lasting involvement with Wagnerism. He also studied German philosophy, including Schopenhauer and Nietzsche. The Violin Sonata came at a pivotal time when Strauss was synthesizing all these influences. The two outer movements are impassioned pleas, full of rapid modulations and high flying melodies, while the middle
Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
movement is a spontaneous-sounding reflection.
Quartet No. 1 in C minor for Piano, Violin, Viola, and Cello, Op. 15 (1876-79) Gabriel Fauré (Pamiers, 1845 – Paris, 1924)
The young Fauré started down a new path in 1871 as a reaction to the Franco-Prussian War. He helped found the Société Nationale de Musique in Paris on February 25, 1871, whose goal was to promote new French concert music and whose motto was ‘ars gallica.’ The Société concerts gave a platform for him and his fellow members to focus on the previously-overlooked genre of chamber music from a French lens and promote it as part of Parisian cultural life. Fauré had a number of premieres at Société concerts, including this work, his first piano quartet, on February 14, 1880. After revisions to the last movement, it was published four years later and dedicated to Belgian violinist Hubert Léonard, a champion of Fauré and the Société in general. Though Fauré’s professional life was going well when he wrote this quartet, his personal life was more difficult. His relationship with Marianne Viardot, who came from a well-connected musical family, ended when she called off their engagement in October 1877. Fauré was deeply hurt but, not one to wear his heart on his sleeve, little of his distraught state of mind made its way into this piano quartet except perhaps in the profound adagio movement.
The C minor Piano Quartet is an elegant mix of traditional chamber forms and detached French character. The standard line-up of movements—sonata, scherzo, slow movement, and energetic finale— is enhanced with modal twinges, colorful melodies, light textures, and distinctive rhythms. The first movement begins with a modally-inflected melody that visits beautifully distant harmonic territory in the development section before ending in C major. The second movement is a particularly French scherzo with an ethereal lightness created through tripping rhythms, clever melodies, and thin textures alternating between strings and piano. The third movement is a long-breathed adagio, deeply felt and the only fully serious movement of the piece. The last movement, like the first, is another journey from C minor to C major with many intriguingly imaginative detours on the way. Fauré is best known for his chamber music and his songs and with this piece (along with the Violin Sonata two years earlier) he finds his mature voice in the genre—a perfect marriage of rigorous form and French style.
Program notes by Laura Keller, CMS Editorial Manager © 2020 Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Spanish violinist Francisco Fullana has been praised as a “rising star” (BBC Music Magazine) and “frighteningly awesome” (Buffalo News). His thoughtful virtuosity has led to collaborations with conducting greats like the late Sir Colin Davis, Hans Graf, and Gustavo Dudamel, who described Fullana as “an amazing talent.” Besides his career as a soloist, which includes recent debuts with the Philadelphia and St. Paul Chamber Orchestras and the Buffalo Philharmonic, he is making an impact as an innovative educator. He created the Fortissimo Youth Initiative, a series of seminars and performances in partnership with youth and university orchestras, which explore and deepen young musicians’ understanding of 18th-century music. His first CD, Through the Lens of Time (released by Orchid Classics), showcases both his incandescent virtuosity and the range of his artistic inquisitiveness. The album is centered around Max Richter’s re–composition of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, recorded alongside the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, and has been praised by critics as “explosive”
Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
(Gramophone) and “electric and virtuosic” (The Strad). He was awarded the 2018 Avery Fisher Career Grant and was a first prize winner of the Johannes Brahms and Angel Munetsugu International Violin Competitions. He is currently a member of The Bowers Program at the Chamber Music Society. A graduate of The Juilliard School and the University of Southern California, he performs on the 1735 Mary Portman ex-Kreisler Guarneri del Gesù violin, on loan from Clement and Karen Arrison through the Stradivari Society of Chicago.
Clive Greensmith has a distinguished career as soloist, chamber musician, and teacher. From 1999 until 2013 he was a member of the world-renowned Tokyo String Quartet, giving over one hundred performances each year in the most prestigious international venues, including New York’s Carnegie Hall, Sydney Opera House, London’s Southbank Centre, Paris Châtelet, Berlin Philharmonie, Vienna Musikverein, and Suntory Hall in Tokyo. As a soloist, he has performed with the London Symphony Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Seoul Philharmonic, and the RAI Orchestra of Rome. He has also performed at Marlboro Music Festival, La Jolla Summerfest, Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, the Ravinia Festival, the Salzburg Festival, Edinburgh Festival, and the Pacific Music Festival in Japan. Over 25 years, he has built up a catalogue of landmark recordings, most notably the complete Beethoven string quartet cycle for Harmonia Mundi with the Tokyo String Quartet. He studied at the Royal Northern College of Music in England with American cellist Donald McCall. He continued his studies at the Cologne Musikhochschule in Germany with Boris Pergamenschikow. After his 15-year residency with the Tokyo String Quartet at Yale University, he was appointed professor at the Colburn School in Los Angeles in 2014. In 2019, he became the artistic director of the Nevada Chamber Music Festival and was appointed director of chamber music master classes at the Chigiana International Summer Academy in Siena, Italy. Mr. Greensmith is a founding member of the Montrose Trio with pianist Jon Kimura Parker and violinist Martin Beaver.
Recipient of a 2015 Avery Fisher Career Grant and a 2017 Lincoln Center Award for Emerging Artists, violinist Paul Huang makes recent and forthcoming appearances with the Mariinsky Orchestra with Valery Gergiev, the Detroit Symphony with Leonard Slatkin, and the Houston Symphony with Andrés Orozco-Estrada. During Beethoven’s 250 anniversary celebrations in the 2020-21 season, he will perform the Beethoven Concerto with the Colorado Symphony and Eugene Symphony, as well as the Triple Concerto with the Charlotte Symphony. Other highlights will include appearances with the San Diego Symphony, Louisville Orchestra, and the National Symphony of Mexico. Internationally, he will make his debut with Heidelberg Philharmonic, Rotterdam Philharmonic with Lahav Shani, and return to the National Symphony Orchestra of Taiwan as its artist-in-residence. A frequent guest artist at music festivals worldwide, he recently stepped in for Anne-Sophie Mutter at Bravo! Vail Music Festival playing Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 4 with Chamber Orchestra Vienna-Berlin as well as a recital debut at the Lucerne Festival, both to critical acclaim. Winner of the 2011 Young Concert Artists International Auditions, Mr. Huang earned both bachelor’s and master’s degrees at The Juilliard School and is an alum of CMS’s Bowers Program. He plays on the legendary 1742 ex-Wieniawski Guarneri del Gesù on loan through the Stradivari Society of Chicago.
Violinist Sean Lee has captured the attention of audiences around the world with his lively performances of the classics. A recipient of a 2016 Avery Fisher Career Grant, he is one of few violinists who dares to perform Niccolò Paganini’s 24 Caprices in concert, and his YouTube series, Paganini POV, continues to draw praise for its use of technology in sharing unique perspectives and insight into violin playing. He has performed as a soloist with orchestras including the San Francisco Symphony, Israel Camerata Jerusalem, and Orchestra del Teatro Carlo Felice; and his recital appearances have taken him to Vienna’s Konzerthaus, Tel Aviv Museum of Art, and Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall. As a season artist at the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and an alum of CMS’s Bowers Program, he
Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
continues to perform regularly at Lincoln Center, as well as on tour. Originally from Los Angeles, Mr. Lee studied with Robert Lipsett of the Colburn Conservatory and legendary violinist Ruggiero Ricci before moving at the age of 17 to study at The Juilliard School with his longtime mentor, violinist Itzhak Perlman. He currently teaches at The Juilliard School’s Pre-College Division, as well as the Perlman Music Program. He performs on a violin originally made for violinist Ruggiero Ricci in 1999 by David Bague.
American violist Matthew Lipman has been praised by the New York Times for his “rich tone and elegant phrasing.” He has appeared with the Minnesota Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic, Academy of St Martin in the Fields, Grand Rapids Symphony, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, Montgomery Symphony, Juilliard Orchestra, and at Chicago’s Symphony Center. Recent solo appearances include the Aspen Music Festival, Carnegie Hall, New World Symphony, Seoul’s Kumho Art Hall, and CMS’s Rose Studio. The Strad praised his “most impressive” debut album Ascent, released by Cedille Records in 2019, and his recording of Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante with violinist Rachel Barton Pine and Sir Neville Marriner on the Avie label topped the Billboard Charts. He was featured on WFMT Chicago’s list of “30 Under 30” of the world’s top classical musicians and has been published in The Strad, Strings, and BBC Music magazines. He performs regularly with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and at renowned chamber music festivals including Music@Menlo, Marlboro, Ravinia, Bridgehampton, and Seattle. The recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant and a winner of the Primrose, Tertis, Washington, Johansen, and Stulberg International Viola Competitions, he studied at The Juilliard School with Heidi Castleman and was further mentored by Tabea Zimmermann at the Kronberg Academy. A native of Chicago and an alum of CMS’s Bowers Program, Mr. Lipman is on faculty at Stony Brook University and performs on a 1700 Matteo Goffriller viola on generous loan from the RBP Foundation.
Praised as an “utterly dazzling” artist (The Strad), with “a marvelous show of superb technique” and “mesmerizing grace” (New York Classical Review), violinist Danbi Um captivates audiences with her virtuosity, individual sound, and interpretive sensitivity. A Menuhin International Violin Competition Silver Medalist, she showcases her artistry in concertos, chamber music, and recitals. After winning the Music Academy of the West Competition in 2014, she made her concerto debut performing the Walton Violin Concerto with the Festival Orchestra, conducted by Joshua Weilerstein. Highlights of her 2019-20 season included solo appearances with the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia (Kimmel Center) and Brevard Philharmonic, a national tour with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, and debut performances at premier national series including Wolf Trap, Cincinnati’s Linton Chamber Series, and Chicago’s Dame Myra Hess Concerts. An avid chamber musician, she is an alum of CMS’s Bowers Program. Her festival appearances have included those at Marlboro, Ravinia, Yellow Barn, Moab, Seattle, Caramoor, Moritzburg, and North Shore. Her chamber music collaborators have included Vadim Gluzman, Pamela Frank, Frans Helmerson, Jan Vogler, David Shifrin, and Gilbert Kalish. Admitted to the Curtis Institute of Music at the age of ten, Ms. Um graduated with a bachelor’s degree. Her teachers have included Shmuel Ashkenasi, Joseph Silverstein, Jaime Laredo, and Hagai Shaham. She is a winner of Astral’s 2015 National Auditions and plays on a 1683 “ex-Petschek” Nicolò Amati violin, on loan from a private collection.
One of the most sought-after soloists in his generation of young American musicians, pianist Orion Weiss has performed with the major American orchestras, including the Chicago Symphony, Boston Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and New York Philharmonic. His deeply felt and exceptionally crafted performances go far beyond his technical mastery and have won him worldwide acclaim. In 2019-20 he performed with orchestras from Austin to Milwaukee, toured with both James Ehnes and Augustin Hadelich, and performed in recital with his curated repertoire. Recent seasons have seen him in performances for the Lucerne Festival, the Denver Friends of Chamber Music, the University of Iowa, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center’s Fortas Series, the 92nd Street Y, and
Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
the Broad Stage, and at Aspen, Bard, and Grand Teton summer festivals. He is an alum of CMS’s Bowers Program. Highlights of recent seasons include his third performance with the Chicago Symphony, a performance of Beethoven’s Triple Concerto with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, and recordings of Gershwin’s complete works for piano and orchestra with his longtime collaborators JoAnn Falletta and the Buffalo Philharmonic. Named the Classical Recording Foundation’s Young Artist of the Year in 2010, in the summer of 2011 he made his debut with the Boston Symphony Orchestra at Tanglewood as a last- minute replacement for Leon Fleisher.
Co-artistic director of the Chamber Music Society, pianist Wu Han is among the most esteemed and influential classical musicians in the world today. She is a recipient of Musical America’s Musician of the Year award and has risen to international prominence through her wide-ranging activities as a concert performer, recording artist, educator, arts administrator, and cultural entrepreneur. In high demand as a recitalist, soloist, and chamber musician, she appears at many of the world’s most prestigious venues and performs extensively as duo partner with cellist David Finckel. Together, they co-founded ArtistLed,classical music’s first musician-directed and Internet-based recording company, whose catalogue has won widespread critical praise. Recent recordings include a set of three Wu Han LIVE albums,
a collaborative production between the ArtistLed and Music@Menlo LIVE labels. The latest captures her live performances of Fauré’s piano quartets from the festival. Complementing her work as a performing artist, Wu Han’s artistic partnerships bring her in contact with new audiences in the US and abroad: she is Artistic Advisor of The Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts’ Chamber Music at the Barns series and co-founder and artistic director of Music@Menlo Chamber Music Festival and Institute in Silicon Valley. In recognition of her passionate commitment to music education, Montclair State University has appointed her a special artist-in-residence.