Source: The Concert
Description: Classical Music Podcasts from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
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Works for piano trio and for string quartet performed by the Claremont Trio and musicians from the Ravinia Festival’s Steans Institute. -Kirchner: Trio No. 1 -Mendelssohn: String Quartet No. 2 in B Flat Major, Op 87 It comes as little surprise that Boston, one of America’s oldest cities, has a rich musical history. The Gardner Museum’s own concert series is the longest-running museum music program in the country. But the roots of Boston’s chamber music life stretch even further back, to the famed Mendelssohn Quintet Club, the very first professional chamber music ensemble in the U.S., founded in Boston in 1849. For almost fifty years, the ensemble was a cornerstone of Boston’s musical life. On today’s podcast, we hear one of the works that gave them their name. First, though, we have a work from much more recent history: Kirchner’s Trio No. 1. A longtime Harvard professor, Leon Kirchner was deeply involved in Boston’s new music community, as a teacher and a composer. He also conducted the Gardner Chamber Orchestra from 1995 to 2002, cementing his strong relationship with the museum, which has given performances and premieres of many of his works, some of which have been featured on this podcast. Our recording is taken from a January 2009 concert celebration of Kirchner’s 90th birthday at the Gardner. Recorded live in the Tapestry Room of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is pleased to share this concert under a Creative Commons Music Sharing License. For details see www.gardnermuseum.org.
Audio|Sun, 15 Nov 2009
|string quintetfound at1:11, 2:27
“…longest running museum music program in the country. The director of Boston's chamber music like stretched even further back to the famed -- quintet club. The very first professional chamber music ensemble and the US founded in Boston in 1849. For almost fifty years the ensemble was a cornerstone of Boston's musical life. On today's podcast we hear one of the works that gave them their name -- second string quintet in B flat major. A firsthand Contra report from 1855. Quoted by Robert winters in the Beethoven quartet companion. Confirms that indeed …”
“…music community as a teacher and composer. He also conducted the carnage chamber orchestra from 1995 to 2000 into cementing his strong relationship with the museum. Which is given performances and premieres of many of -- …”
Pictures in Sound
Works for solo piano performed by Alexander Ghindin. -Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition -Liszt/Schubert: Der Müller und der Bach, Op. 25, No. 19 -Liszt/Schubert: Auf dem Wasser zu Singen, D. 774, Op. 72 -Liszt: Concert paraphrase of Verdi’s opera Rigoletto This week’s program features several works that conjure visual images. First up is Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, based on artwork by Viktor Hartmann. Even without seeing those paintings, it’s not hard to imagine the depictions of the dim Parisian catacombs and the majestic gates of Kiev that inspired Mussorgsky’s music. We then get two very different depictions of flowing water, in a set of Franz Liszt arrangements of Schubert songs. The first song, the sorrowful final movement of Schubert’s Die schöne Müllerin, changes character entirely when the voice of the brook enters, bringing with it flowing sextuplets and a major tonality shift. The second work, loosely translated as “To be sung upon the water,” is perhaps a more obvious depiction of water, with a fluid triple meter throughout, the undulating water a constant beneath the singer’s description of a glowing sunset. Finally, we hear Liszt’s concert paraphrase of Verdi’s opera Rigoletto, specifically an arrangement of the famous Act 3 quartet. Recorded live in the Tapestry Room of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is pleased to share this concert under a Creative Commons Music Sharing License. For details see www.gardnermuseum.org.
Audio|Thu, 15 Oct 2009
|isabella stewart gardner museumfound at0:21, 1:38
“…Hello I'm Scott -- music director at Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston. And you're listening to the conflict from Gardner museum dot or. Join me in museums tapestry room. As we listen …”
“…it flowing sextuplets and the major -- shift. The second work loosely translated us to be some upon the water is perhaps more obvious depiction of water with a fluid triple meter throughout. The until …”
Not Just for Singers
Works for solo piano and for voice and piano performed by Gleb Ivanov, piano, Randall Scarlata, baritone, Jennifer Aylmer, soprano, and Laura Ward, piano. -Rachmaninoff: Vocalise -Rachmaninoff: Etudes Nos. 8 and No. 9, Op. 39 -Songs from Tin Pan Alley This week we’ll bring you a few works that started off as songs, but have had great success instrumentally. Rachmanioff’s lyrical Vocalise is undoubtedly one of the best-known melodies in the canon. Originally the last of his opus 34 set of songs, the gorgeous tune seems to have been a more or less immediate hit. Rachmaninoff himself wrote several arrangements, augmented over the years by dozens more. Today, we’ll hear Rachmaninoff’s own arrangement for piano. The Vocalise will be followed by more Rachmaninoff, Etudes nos. 8 and 9 from opus 39. Then, we’ll move to the popular end of the spectrum, with a set of songs from the Gardner’s Tin Pan Alley series. Today’s selections range from the traditional Danny Boy to the marching band hits You’re A Grand Old Flag and When Johnny Comes Marching Home to the ballad Shine On, Harvest Moon. Recorded live in the Tapestry Room of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is pleased to share this concert under a Creative Commons Music Sharing License. For details see www.gardnermuseum.org.
Audio|Thu, 1 Oct 2009
|rachmaninofffound at1:19, 0:20
“…to arrangements of the work includes an eclectic mix of versions for piano and orchestra soprano. Counter tenor flute and violin cello electronics. A full thirteen different versions and -- Today we're here rock -- not own arrangement for piano played by young pianist Glenn -- enough. The vocal -- will be followed by -- performances of more Rachmaninoff. . -- numbers eight and nine from opus 39. Then moved to the popular and the spectrum. With a set of songs from the gardeners tend finale series sung by Jennifer Elmer and -- Carmona was Laura -- on piano. . Ten finale that stretch of west 28 street in New York that poured out songs by the dozens in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Was the source of many maladies that have become favorites with jazz musicians and bands as well as singers. Today's selections range from the traditional Danny boy to the marching band hits your grand old flag and when Johnny comes marching home. To the ballot shine on harvest moon. First -- enough spoke release her piano. . …”
“…Hello I'm Scott -- prince. Music director at Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston. And you're listening to the conflict. From Gardner museum -- war. Join me in museums tapestry room as we listen …”
Two Keyboard Masters
Works for cello and piano played by cellist Laurence Lesser and pianists Yunjie Chen and Russell Sherman -Bach: Partita for keyboard No. 5 in G Major, BWV 829 -Beethoven: Cello Sonata in G minor, Op. 5, No. 2 Today, we’ll hear pieces by two great composers that reflect instrumental developments in their time. Bach was a dedicated keyboardist and composed for nearly every keyboard instrument. His Partita No. 5 in G Major was written specifically for a single-manual harpsichord; therefore, there are very few sustained notes. Instead, Bach uses intricate counterpoint and fugal relationships between the voices to create a densely textured and swirling set of dance movements. Beethoven, a gifted keyboard player himself, was also a pioneer in utilizing the cello as a solo instrument. In his Cello Sonata in G minor – one of the very first cello sonatas ever written – we hear the young composer beginning to realize the full potential of both instruments. He skillfully matches the sustained tones of the cello with rhythmic articulation and cascading notes in the piano. And in the final Rondo-Allegro, the piano and cello take turns carrying the lyrically playful melody and adding sparkling embellishment. Recorded live in the Tapestry Room of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is pleased to share this concert under a Creative Commons Music Sharing License. For details see www.gardnermuseum.org.
Audio|Tue, 15 Sep 2009
|cellofound at1:21, 0:30
“…part Tito -- here today was written specifically for a single manual harpsichord. . As such there are very few sustained notes. Instead Fox -- as intricate counterpoint and Hugo relationships between the voices. To created densely textured and swirling set of dance movements. We're here the -- to number five played by UNG Chan. Our second pieces Beethoven Sonata in G minor for cello and piano. Like Bach Beethoven -- immensely gifted and dedicated keyboard player. They'll -- his time the fourteen piano was the primary instrument the news. At the same time Beethoven was a pioneer in utilizing the cello as a solo instrument. Indeed this is one of the very first show some modest ever written. In this piece we can -- Beethoven as a young composer beginning to realize the full potential of both instruments. He skillfully -- the sustained tones of the cello with rhythmic articulation and cascading notes from the piano. And in the final Rondo allegro. The piano -- take turns carrying the lyrically play formality and adding sparkling embellishment. As they trade off the rolls of soloist and accompanist but two instruments become equal musical partners. This Sonata will be performed by Lawrence lesser on cello and Russell Sherman on piano. …”
“…Hello I'm Scott -- prince music director at Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston. And you're listening to the conflict from Gardner museum -- or. Join me in museums have a -- as we …”
Why Do They Do It?
Works for bassoon, chamber orchestra, and piano quartet played by bassoonist Elah Grandel and the Gardner Chamber Orchestra (Paula Robison, director), and Musicians from Marlboro. -Vivaldi: Concerto for bassoon, strings, and continuo in A minor -Schumann: Piano Quartet in E-flat Major, Op. 47 While the bassoon was hardly a common solo instrument at the turn of the 18th century, Vivaldi clearly took it seriously. He wrote over 39 concertos for the instrument, including the Bassoon Concerto in A minor that we’ll hear today. Why was Vivaldi so drawn to the bassoon? Theories abound: perhaps he was inspired by a well-known Venetian master of the dulcian (an early version of the bassoon) or by an accomplished bassoonist at the girls’ school where he taught. Robert Schumann wrote his Piano Quartet in E-flat Major in 1842, a year known as his “Chamber Music Year” for the abundance of chamber works he composed during that time. Why so much chamber music all at once? Part of the answer lies in the genre itself, representing an ideal middle ground between private and public entertainment. This piano quartet has moments of quiet intimacy; yet the overall texture is thick with activity and grand gestures, melding an older chamber music model with a new impulse towards soloistic virtuosity. Recorded live in the Tapestry Room of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is pleased to share this concert under a Creative Commons Music Sharing License. For details see www.gardnermuseum.org.
Audio|Tue, 1 Sep 2009
|chamber musicfound at1:43, 0:40
“…concertos. The concerto and a minor will be performed by the carnage chamber orchestra. . With director Paul Robeson and the soonest a -- Crandall. Roberts to Monroe his piano quartet in. 1842. This -- called two months chamber music here. In addition to this piece he composed his piano quintet a piano trio and three string quartet. Why so much chamber musical it wants. Part of the answer lies in the chamber music genre itself. In the mid nineteenth century chamber music represented an ideal middle ground between private and public entertainment. Does this piano quartet has moments of quiet intimacy. That the overall texture is thick with activity and grand gestures. In combining the piano with three string instruments. To -- was mounting an older chamber music model. With the new impulse towards sold ballistic for to -- city. The results of peace that contains intimacy. Brilliance and majesty. …”
“…Antonio Vivaldi -- 39 concertos for the the soon. Get a paternity eighteenth century that the -- was hardly a common solo instrument. When …”
On Either Side of the Heiligenstadt Testament
Works for violin and piano played by violinist Corey Cerovsek and pianist Paavali Jumppanen. -Beethoven: Violin Sonata No. 6 in A Major, Op. 30, No. 1 -Beethoven: Piano Sonata in C Major, Op. 53 (“Waldstein”) After Beethoven’s death, a curious document was found among his belongings. In this highly personal letter, labeled the “Heiligenstadt Testament,” Beethoven admitted that he was going deaf and revealed the agony that his condition had caused him. Indeed, the loss of his hearing was Beethoven’s greatest fear realized. Beethoven wrote the Violin Sonata in A Major, Op. 30, No. 1 just four months before the Heiligenstadt Testament. The Adagio movement holds a beautifully deep sense of melancholy and pathos, perhaps reflecting the composer’s growing despair. By contrast, his ambitious Piano Sonata in C Major, op. 53, nicknamed the “Waldstein Sonata,” was composed a year after the Heiligenstadt Testament. By this time, Beethoven had moved beyond his anxiety and depression into a phase of intense productivity. Featuring compelling motives and strong characters, this sonata is a clear reflection of Beethoven’s personal determination and commitment to his life and music. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is pleased to share this concert under a Creative Commons Music Sharing License. For details see www.gardnermuseum.org.
Audio|Sat, 15 Aug 2009
|piano sonatafound at1:31, 0:18
“…they duet and the charming variations of the last movement. The middle adagio called the beautifully deep sense of melancholy and conference. If there's a section of the piece that reflects Beethoven's going to -- is this. We're here this -- not any -- performed by violinist cores are sick and pianist poverty and then. Our second piece is the grand an ambitious piano Sonata in C major focus 53. Nicknamed the -- This piece was composed a year after the highly against -- testament. By this …”
“…And hello I'm Scott -- prince. Music director at Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston. And you're listening to the conflict from Gardner museum or. During the museums tapestry as we listen to some outstanding …”
An Ambitious Octet
Schubert’s Octet in F Major played by Musicians from Marlboro. -Schubert: Octet in F Major, D. 803 (Op. 166) Schubert’s Octet in F Major, the centerpiece of today’s program, is an ambitious piece in every way. Its broad instrumentation—string quartet plus double bass, clarinet, bassoon, and French horn—provides a richness of texture and timbre that is unusual in a chamber work. Moreover, Schubert gives each instrument a place of honor within the piece. Melodies are shared and swapped, making the octet a rich and respectful conversation between eight individuals, where the expressive whole is truly greater than the sum of its parts. The octet was commissioned by the Archbishop Rudolph of Olomutz, Beethoven’s former patron, who asked Schubert for a work that would complement Beethoven’s 1799 septet. Schubert followed Beethoven’s model closely in the number and structure of the movements as well as in the instrumentation. And indeed, this octet is marked by the strength and fieriness that we associate with Beethoven. But the elegance and lyricality, as well as the intimacy of emotions expressed, are quintessentially Schubert. Recorded live in the Tapestry Room of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is pleased to share this concert under a Creative Commons Music Sharing License. For details see www.gardnermuseum.org.
Audio|Wed, 29 Jul 2009
|isabella stewart gardner museumfound at0:25, 1:06
“…Hello I'm Scott -- friends. Music director and Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston. And you're listening to the concert from Gardner museum -- or. Join me in museums tapestry. Listen to some outstanding …”
“…with as a wide variety of instruments as possible. Resulting combination of string quartet plus double bass clarinet bassoon and French born. Gives -- to -- richness texture and Hamburg that is rarely found in a …”
Integration with an Intention
Works for flute, harp, and piano played by Paula Robison, flute; Mariko Anraku, harp; and Jeremy Denk, piano.. -Gluck: Orfeo ed Euridice (excerpt) -Beethoven: Piano Sonata in B-flat Major, Op. 106 “Hammerklavier” Today’s podcast features works by two composers who were committed to devising integrated musical forms in order to create compelling musical experiences. In his opera Orpheus and Eurydice, Christoph Willibald Gluck wanted to unify all elements of the work to create dramatic momentum. By simplifying flashy vocal techniques and making skillful use of orchestration, harmonies, and plot, he created a work that flows smoothly, allowing the audience to become thoroughly absorbed in the music and drama. We’ll hear a selection from the opera, arranged for flute and harp. Monumental in its structure, length, and sheer amount of musical material, Beethoven’s “Hammerklavier” Sonata is considered one of the most challenging in the piano repertoire. Though each movement has a distinctly different mood, Beethoven too was focused on creating an integrated musical form. Through skillful variation and fugal development, he was able to take a few small melodic units and spin them into a massive, yet elegant, musical structure. Recorded live in the Tapestry Room of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is pleased to share this concert under a Creative Commons Music Sharing License. For details see www.gardnermuseum.org.
Audio|Wed, 15 Jul 2009
|piano sonatafound at1:38, 0:16
“…We're here selection from this opera arrange for -- and heart with flutist Paul Robeson and harpist Marico and a -- Our second piece is Beethoven's piano Sonata opus one a sex nicknamed the hammer -- your Sinatra. Monumental and it structure linked in sheer amount of musical material. This -- considered one of the most challenging in the piano repertoire. An additional challenge is the distinct shift in mood from one movement to the next. For example the adagio -- almost shockingly somber after the catchy rhythm and my humor of the scare so. Get Beethoven too was working to create …”
“…Hello I'm Scott nick friends' music director Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston. And you're listening to the conflict from Gardner museum dot or. Join me in museums tapestry room as we listened …”
From the Periphery to the Center
Works for violin and piano played by violinist Nick Kendall and pianists Jonathan Biss, Gleb Ivanov, and Robert Koenig. -Chopin: Polonaise-Fantasy in A-flat Major, Op. 61 -Chopin: Nocturne-Waltz-Scherzo -Grieg: Violin Sonata in C minor, Op. 45 Frederic Chopin and Edvard Grieg came from the periphery of Europe to become two of the most celebrated 19th century composers. Chopin was born in Poland but spent most of his life in Paris. After the Polish uprising against the Russian empire in 1830, he realized that he could use his music to raise awareness of Polish culture. The polonaise - the quintessential Polish dance form - thus played an important role in his compositions. His Polonaise-Fantasy incorporates the polonaise’s martial rhythm while maintaining an organic spontaneity and sustained intensity. An early Nocturne, Waltz, and Scherzo illustrate Chopin’s ability to compose emotional and innovative pieces in a range of genres. Committed to being a Norwegian nationalist composer, Grieg drew on a range of influences, from the intense romanticism of Schumann to the angular rhythms and unusual intervals of Norwegian folk song. His Violin Sonata in C minor displays Grieg’s Scandinavian roots alongside the wider aesthetic influences that affected his music. Recorded live in the Tapestry Room of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is pleased to share this concert under a Creative Commons Music Sharing License. For details see www.gardnermuseum.org.
Audio|Wed, 1 Jul 2009
|isabella stewart gardner museumfound at0:32, 0:55
“…Hello I'm Scott -- friends. Music director at Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston. And you're listening to the conflict and Gardner museum or. During the museum's campus. Listen to some outstanding live performance. …”
“…Frederic Chopin and -- couldn't keep from the periphery of Europe to become two of the most celebrated nineteen century composers. Show I was …”
A Baroque Master and a Romantic Disciple
Works for solo flute and piano trio played by flutist Paula Robison and the Claremont Trio. -Bach: Partita for solo flute in A minor, BWV 1013 -Schumann: Piano Trio No. 3 in G minor, Op. 110 The first piece on today’s program is Bach’s Partita in A minor, made up of four movements that constitute a typical baroque dance suite. Because the work is for solo flute, with no accompanying instrument to provide the harmonic bass figures, Bach had to conjure meter, harmony and counterpoint in one solo melodic instrument. The result is a challenging piece, demanding frequent leaps between registers to create the effect of multiple voices in just one instrument. Robert Schumann idolized Bach. Throughout his life he collected and studied Bach’s works, especially the Well-Tempered Clavier, which greatly influenced his own keyboard compositions. Even within Schumann’s lush and romantic Piano Trio No. 3, the flowing lines and densely layered voices mask a carefully refined structure, a rigor of form and development that hints at Bach’s central role in Schumann’s musical world. Recorded live in the Tapestry Room of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is pleased to share this concert under a Creative Commons Music Sharing License. For details see www.gardnermuseum.org.
Audio|Mon, 15 Jun 2009
|art museumfound at0:30, 1:33
“…Hello I'm Scott -- prints. Music director -- Isabella Stewart art museum in Boston. And you're listening to the concert from Gardner museum -- or. Join me in museums have assumed as we listen …”
“…and idolize -- In his early years he studied box works and baroque music was essential element of this compositional and teaching activities. Later she wants close study of fox will tempered revered greatly influenced his …”