Program
Livestream, March 14, 2021, at 3:00pm
Richard Strauss, arr. Franz Hasenöhrl
Till Eulenspiegel, einmal anders! (1894)
Sergei Prokofiev
Quintet in G minor, op. 39 (1924)
I. Tema con variazioni
II. Andante energico
III. Allegro sostenuta, ma con brio
IV. Adagio pesante
V. Allegro precipitato, ma non troppo presto
VI. Andantino
W.A. Mozart
Divertimento in D major, K. 136 (1722)
I. Allegro
II. Andante
III. Presto
Program Notes
By Caitlin Custer
This is a program of rogue moments, of creators letting loose.
Richard Strauss puts his own spin on an absurd German folktale. Decades later, an arranger filters the piece into something bite-sized.
Sergei Prokofiev commits to finding his voice, wherever it takes him geographically or musically, unafraid of what others might think.
And we get a glimpse of W.A. Mozart at the roguish age of 16, a young musical athlete.
Till Eulenspiegel, einmal anders!
Richard Strauss
Born June 11, 1864, Munich, Germany
Died September 8, 1949, Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany
Richard Strauss’s legacy is one of intense tone poems, dramatic operas, and mammoth orchestras. He sensed a duty to take on the final bursts of German Romanticism. One thing he was not: all work and no play.
At around 30 years old, Richard married Pauline de Ahna, a successful soprano. Rumors around Pauline’s character swirled. Some called her eccentric, turbulent, brash. Richard described her as “very complex, very feminine, a little perverse, a little coquettish…” In any case—she kept things interesting.
It was during the passionate early days with his new wife when Richard gave us his take on the medieval folktale Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks.
Till is a trickster through and through, with a wide repertoire of practical jokes ranging from puns to crass humor to the obscene. As his surname, “Owl-mirror” suggests, in most episodes he provides a mirror for society to wise up. On the other hand, the same surname might be a very crude Low German pun—an indicator that Till always gets the laugh last.
Sixty years later, violinist Franz Hasenöhrl retooled Strauss’s work into a well-intentioned prank of his own. The huge orchestration is reduced to just five instruments, and the duration is cut in half. The mischievous character remains, both musically and in its joking title: Till Eulenspiegel, once more, differently!
First performance, original version: November 5, 1895, in Cologne, Germany, Franz Wüllner conducting
First and most recent SLSO performance: January 23, 1995; George Silfies, clarinet; Daniel Matsukawa, bassoon; Roger Kaza, horn; Elisa Barston, violin; Erik Harris, double bass
Scoring: Clarinet, bassoon, horn, violin, double bass
Performance time: Approximately 9 minutes
Quintet in G minor, op. 39
Sergei Prokofiev
Born April 23, 1891, Sontsivka, Ukraine
Died March 5, 1953, Moscow, Russia
Sergei Prokofiev, like Richard Strauss, had recently turned 30. Like Richard, he was newly married to a singer, had found some musical success, was poised to carry on his country’s musical story—thanks in part to studies at the St. Petersburg Conservatory, help from a Russian musicologist in securing a publishing contract, and a boost from contemporary Igor Stravinsky, who said Prokofiev was the greatest Russian composer of their day, after himself.
By 1924, Prokofiev had witnessed war and revolution. He had drifted from the United States, to Germany, to France, where he joined a community of Russian immigrants living in Paris. It was there that he accepted a commission from a roving Russian dance troupe, who asked for a collection of pieces performable by the quintet who accompanied the group.
The first version of the piece, Trapèze, ran into staging problems. Some accounts pin this on a difficult economy; others on Prokofiev’s difficult music. Either way, Trapeze vanished from performance. Prokofiev was resourceful, though, and had always planned to publish the piece as the Quinet, no matter the fate of the ballet.
Prokofiev’s music dazzles us with the bright lights and acrobatic display of the circus. The Quintet is free and unabashed, straddling the line between funny and scary, owning its strangeness. Characters dance together and fall apart; they step forward to solo, then play disappearing tricks.
First performance: Probably in 1924 as the ballet, Trapèze
First SLSO performance: February 24, 1975; Anthony Lucia, violin (subbing for oboe); Robert Coleman, clarinet; Darwyn Apple, violin; Irene Breslaw, viola; Christopher Carson, double bass
Most recent SLSO performance: December 12, 1983; Marc Gordon, oboe; Tina Ward, clarinet; Deborah Bloom, violin; William Martin, viola; Carolyn White, double basss
Scoring: Oboe, clarinet, violin, viola, double bass
Performance time: Approximately 20 minutes
Divertimento in D major, K. 136
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Born January 27, 1756, Salzburg, Austria
Died December 5, 1791, Vienna, Austria
Wolfgang Mozart’s Divertimento bounds gracefully onto the stage.
Mozart was on a visit home following a successful tour of Italy, music’s capitol at the time. At 16, he was already a celebrity in Europe, and held a contract to compose an opera—an enviable symbol even today.
This Divertimento was probably party music for the nobility of Salzburg, where he was concertmaster of the court orchestra. The skilled teenager likely wrote it easily and without much second thought—perhaps to take his mind off of more demanding work. He didn’t even title the manuscript (someone added “Divertimento” to the top of the score later).
Whatever his expectations, the piece was immediately popular and has shown its staying power. Its first and third movements fly by, a well-organized flurry of excitement, while the middle movement gently lilts, encouraging a dance.
First performance: Probably winter of 1772, at a party in Salzburg
First SLSO performance: March 7, 1974, Jerzy Semkow conducting
Most recent SLSO performance: May 21, 2008, Benjamin Zander conducting
Scoring: Strings
Performance time: Approximately 11 minutes
Caitlin Custer is the SLSO's Communications Manager.
Program Notes are sponsored by Washington University Physicians.