st. louis symphony program - dec. 6-7

8/13/2019 St. Louis Symphony Program - Dec. 6-7

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CONCERT PROGRAMDecember 6-7, 2013

David Robertson, conductor

Dominique Labelle, soprano

Kate Lindsey, mezzo-soprano

Nicholas Phan, tenor

Stephen Powell, baritone

St. Louis Symphony Chorus

Amy Kaiser, director

BACH Cantatas Nos. 1-3, from Weihnachts-Oratorium(1685-1750) (Christmas Oratorio), BWV 248 (1734)

Part I:Am 1.Weihnachtstag (First Day of Christmas) Jauchzet, frohlocket, auf, preiset die Tage

Jauchzet, frohlocket, auf, preiset die Tage Es begab sich aber zu der Zeit Nun wird mein liebster Brutigam

Bereite dich, Zion Wie soll ich dich empfangen Und sie gebar ihren ersten Sohn

Er ist auf Erden kommen arm Groer Herr, o starker Knig Ach mein herzliebes Jesulein

BACH Part II:Am 2.Weihnachtstag(Second Day of Christmas)Und es waren Hirten in derselben Gegend

Sinfonia Und es waren Hirten in derselben Gegend Brich an, o schnes Morgenlicht

Und der Engel sprach zu ihnen Was Gott dem Abraham verheien Frohe Hirten, eilt, ach eilet Und das habt zum Zeichen

Schaut hin dort liegt im finstern StallSo geht denn hin, ihr Hirten, geht Schlafe, mein Liebster, geniee der Ruh Und alsobald war da bei dem Engel

Ehre sei Gott in der Hhe So recht, ihr Engel, jauchzt und singet Wir singen dir in deinem Heer

INTERMISSION


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BACH Part III:Am 3.Weihnachtstag(Third Day of Christmas)Herrscher des Himmels, erhre das Lallen

Herrscher des Himmels, erhre das Lallen Und da die Engel von ihnen gen Himmel fuhren

Lasset uns nun gehen gen Bethlehem Er hat sein Volk getrst Dies hat er alles uns getan Herr, dein Mitleid, dein Erbarmen Und sie kamen eilend Schliee, mein Herze, dies selige Wunder Ja, ja, mein Herz soll es bewahren Ich will dich mit Flei bewahren Und die Hirten kehrten wieder um

Seid froh dieweilHerrscher des Himmels, erhre das Lallen

Dominique Labelle, soprano Kate Lindsey, mezzo-soprano Nicholas Phan, tenor Stephen Powell, baritone St. Louis Symphony Chorus Amy Kaiser, director

David Robertson is the Beofor Music Director and Conductor.

Dominique Labelle is the Mr. and Mrs. Whitney R. Harris Guest Artist.

Amy Kaiser is the AT&T Foundation Chair.The concert of Friday, December 6, is underwritten in part by a generous gift from

the Estate of Michael and Marty Cramer.

The concert of Friday, December 6, is underwritten in part by a generous gift fromMrs. Pauline Keinath.

The concert of Saturday, December 7, is the Joanne and Joel Iskiwitch Concert.

The concert of Saturday, December 7, is underwritten in part by a generous giftfrom Dr. and Mrs. David Fischhoff.

Pre-Concert Conversations are sponsored by Washington University Physicians.

These concerts are sponsored by the Thomas A. Kooyumjian Family Foundation.

These concerts are part of the Wells Fargo Advisors series.


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FROM THE STAGEAmy Kaiser, Director of the St. Louis Symphony Chorus, on going from Brittens

Peter Grimes (November 16 & 22, at Powell and Carnegie halls, respectively) toBachs Christmas Oratorio:The real challenge of the Bach is to have learnedit at the same time as we were learning Peter Grimestwo works that arediametrically opposed to one another. Peter Grimeshad 130 singers, singingall that passion and drama in full voice. Then to go to a group of 80 singers,where the precision of every 16th note is critical. We would rehearse Brittenfrom 7 to 9, take ve minutes for a drink of water, and then Bach. It is morethan a mental and physical shiftyou need to shift your entire idea of soundand language.

A stage view of Powell Hall during the holidays

DILIPVISHWANAT


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TIMELINKS

1734BACHChristmas Oratorio,BWV 248Operas by Handel,

Rameau, and Vivaldipremiere

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH

Christmas Oratorio, BWV 248, Cantatas Nos. 1 - 3A COMPOSER FOR THE CHURCH Although thetitle by which it is now known designates Bachsgreat celebration of the Christmas story as an ora-torio, this work is structurally unlike any otherbearing that description. Bach initially created itas a set of six cantatas to be performed individu-ally on each of six feast days during the Christmas

season. (The collective title Christmas Oratoriowas bestowed on these half-dozen cantatas post-humously.) The work has, therefore, much morein common with the other Lutheran cantatasBach wrote over the course of his career than itdoes with Handels Messiah or other oratorioswritten on the theme of Christmas. Accordingly,it is worthwhile to review briey this aspect of thecomposers output.

Bach devoted most of his working life tothe Lutheran church. He began his career as anorganist and choirmaster in the small Germantowns of Arnstadt and Mhlhausen, where heserved from 1703 to 1708. In 1723, after spend-ing 15 years at princely courts in Weimar andCthen, where he primarily wrote and performedsecular music, he took up the post of Kantor, or

music director, of the Thomaskirche (St. ThomasChurch) and four associated churches in the cityof Leipzig. Bach remained in this position for theremainder of his life.

Bachs duties in these ecclesiastical posi-tions included the provision of music for regularchurch services and some 60 feast days through-out the year. Feast days in Lutheran Germanycalled for elaborate musical presentations,

usually a cantata based on texts appropriate tothe occasion, and Bach set about in workman-like fashion producing a formidable quantityof them. He composed no less than ve annualcycles of church cantatas during the course ofhis career, some 300 works in all. Sadly, about athird of these compositions have been lost, butthe approximately 200 that survive constitute

A CHRISTMAS MASTERPIECEBY PAUL SC HIAVO


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the core of Bachs creative output and one of thegreat monuments of Western music.

The sacred cantata had long been an impor-tant musical format for worship in ProtestantGermany. Their texts, by church poets and occa-

sionally by the composer, usually reected on ascriptural passage relevant to the particular dayof the church year. Bachs cantata form consistedof several movements of clearly dened types:large ensemble pieces with full chorus; chorales,or hymn tunes, in either simple or elaborate set-tings; and arias for one or two solo voices, oftenpreceded by a declamatory recitative. The arias

generally constitute the musical jewels of Bachscantatas, the repositories for his most expres-sive melodic ideas. In addition to the vocal linesand the standard continuo accompaniment ofbass line and keyboard harmonies, Bach almostalways wrote obbligato parts for one, or occa-sionally two, solo instruments, or sometimes fora section of his orchestra. Those instrumentallines greatly enrich the texture and sonorities

of the music in which they appear. In additionto expanding the range of timbres, they partnerthe vocal soloist(s) in contrapuntal dialogues,polyphonic discourse being always an essentialelement of Bachs musical thinking.

ORIGIN AND STRUCTURE OF THE CHRISTMASORATORIO Bach did not compose so much asassemble the six cantatas that comprise theChristmas Oratorio in 1734, adapting many ofits arias and large choral numbers from severalof his earlier works. (The briefer recitatives andchorales, however, were newly composed.) Inparticular, he reused music from a pair of secularcantatas he had written the preceding year forbirthday celebrations of members of the Saxonroyal family, rulers of the province that included

Leipzig. Bachs reuse of his own music for theChristmas Oratorio was not merely a matterof convenience. Rather, as the Bach scholarChristoph Wolff observes, this practice gavemusic written for a specic occasion and limitedaudience a more public and durable setting.We can also appreciate the contribution of theanonymous poet who t much of the ChristmasOratoriotext to pre-existing music.

BornMarch 21, 1685, Eisenach,Saxony

DiedJuly 28, 1750, Leipzig

First PerformanceDecember 25-27, 1734,in Leipzig, under thecomposers direction

STL Symphony PremiereDecember 13, 1952, DorothyMaynor, soprano, with St.Louis Bach Festival Chorus,

William Heyne conducting

Most Recent STL SymphonyPerformanceDecember 17, 1977, BachSociety Chorus of SaintLouis, Ronald Arnattconductor

ScoringCantata No. 1

soprano, alto, tenor, basssoloists

chorus2 flutes2 oboes2 oboes damorebassoon3 trumpetstimpaniorgan

stringsPerformance Timeapproximately 27 minutes


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Cantata No. 2soprano, alto, tenor, bass

soloistschorus2 flutes2 oboes damore

2 oboes da caccia (Englishhorns)organstrings

Performance Timeapproximately 32 minutes

Cantata No. 3soprano, alto, tenor, bass

soloistschorus2 flutes2 oboes2 oboes damore3 trumpetstimpaniorganstrings

Performance Time

approximately 26 minutes

As in others of his sacred compositions, Bachweaves the Christmas Oratorio from three distinctstrands of music. The Gospel narrative of Christsbirth is related by a tenor, the Evangelist, in rec-itative, declamatory singing that closely follows

the rhythms of speech. Interspersed among thisnarration are arias and choruses that reect uponthe events of the story, and which frequentlyfeature obbligato instrumental solos accom-panying the singers. Finally, there are chorales,which were well known to Bachs congregation.The varied types of music these three formatsprovide yield a composition of rich complexion.

We hear this evening the rst three cantatasthat comprise Bachs Christmas Oratorio.Thesecenter on the Nativity story up to and includ-ing the adoration of the shepherds. (The otherthree cantatas concern the naming of Jesus andthe journey and adoration of the Magi.)

THE FIRST CANTATAJauchzet, frohlocket, auf, preisetdie Tage (Give praise, be joyful, rise and hail the

day), the rst cantata, sketches the nativity storythrough the birth of Jesus. The Gospel narrativeis conned to two recitatives by the Evangelist.The former sets the scene and follows Mary to thestall in Bethlehem; the second very simply statesthe fact of Christs birth. Surrounding these reci-tations are movements expressive of rejoicing,Christian resolve, and wonder at the mystery ofGod incarnated as a child in a manger.

Bach opens the cantata with brilliance: Thechorus calls for jubilation and worship, whiletrumpets, drums, and energetic scale guresconrm the tone of its verses. After the rstGospel narration, a recitative and aria for altosoloist consider the coming of Christ through avenerable metaphor, the approach of the heav-enly bridegroom to the spiritual marriage cer-

emony. Bach used this symbol in a number ofhis cantatas, most famously Wachet auf, ruft unsdie Stimme, BWV 140. The words of the ensuingchorale take up this idea from the perspective ofthe devout listener.

Following the Evangelists second recitative,the import of Christs coming is contemplatedin a fascinating duet for soprano and bass. Thisbegins as a chorale fantasia, with a hymn


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melody intoned by the soprano amidst a owing obbligato duet for two oboesdamore (the alto members of the oboe family). Periodically, however, thisbreaks off for recitative-like comments from the bass. The latters sturdy aria,which follows directly, features trumpet and utes in the accompaniment. Asecond chorale, a late stanza from Martin Luthers famous 1535 hymn Vom

Himmel hoch, da komm ich her (From Heaven on High I Come Here),closes this cantata.

THE SECOND CANTATA Part two of the Christmas Oratorio, Und es waren Hirtenin derselben Gegend (And there were in the same country shepherds), relatesthe angels announcement of Christs birth to the shepherds near Bethlehem.Bach establishes a pastoral atmosphere in the instrumental sinfonia thatopens the work through the timbres of two alto and two tenor oboes (oboes

damore and oboes da caccia, or English horns). These instruments and thestrings evoke the shepherds of the Nativity story. Meanwhile utes, supportedby organ, make music of the angelic host. Heaven and earth are thus united inthis exceptional composition.

The remainder of the cantata follows Bachs usual format of narrativerecitatives interspersed with chorales, arias, and larger concerted movements.Several details merit notice. In the second recitative the Evangelist-narrator isjoined by a soprano speaking the words of the angel as she announces thebirth of Jesus to the shepherds. There are also three independent recitatives for

bass soloist. These do not advance the biblical narrative of the Nativity storybut briey comment on it. Of the two arias, the rst, for tenor, has obbligatoaccompaniment by solo ute. The second imagines a lullaby sung by Maryto the newborn Christ child. Its music is unusually elaborate, with ute andthe aforementioned quartet of oboes featured in the accompaniment of thealto soloist. The closing movement ingeniously combines two melodies heardearlier in the cantata: a chorale tune and a theme from the opening sinfonia.

THE THIRD CANTATA Having considered the annunciation to the shepherds ofJesuss birth in the second of the Christmas Oratoriocantatas, Bach proceedsto relate and meditate upon the visit of those humble folk to the Christ child.As in the rst cantata, Bach opens the third portion of the oratorio, Herrscherdes Himmels, erhre das Lallen (Ruler of Heaven, hear the murmur), withmusic of praise and jubilation. In the Gospel narration that ensues, the chorusspeaks for the shepherds as they resolve to go to Bethlehem, the contrarymotion of their melodic linessome rising, others fallingsuggesting the dif-ferent routes they must take to the city. A bass recitative and a chorale follow,

and then a lovely duet for soprano and bass with obbligato accompanimentby oboes damore. Additional recitatives, a pair of chorales and an aria for altowith obbligato violin bring us to the nale, a reprise of the opening movement.

Program notes 2013 by Paul Schiavo


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DAVID ROBERTSONBEOFOR MUSIC DIRECTOR AND CONDUCTOR

In fall 2013, David Robertson launched hisninth season as Music Director of the St. LouisSymphony. While continuing as Music Director

with St. Louis, in January 2014, Robertsonassumes the post of Chief Conductor andArtistic Director of the Sydney SymphonyOrchestra in Australia.

Highlights of his 2013-14 season withSt. Louis include the recording of a St. LouisSymphony co-commission, John AdamsSaxophone Concerto. Nonesuch Records willrelease the disc featuring the concerto, along

with the orchestras performance of Adams CityNoir, in 2014. In addition, Robertson and theSymphony recently gave a historic performanceof Brittens Peter Grimes at Carnegie Hall.

Robertson is a frequent guest conductorwith major orchestras and opera houses aroundthe world. In the 2013-14 season, in addition tolaunching his rst year at the helm of the SydneySymphony Orchestra, David Robertson con-ducted the U.S. premiere of Nico Muhlys Two Boysin a new production at the Metropolitan Opera.

DOMINIQUE LABELLEMR. AND MRS. WHITNEY R. HARRIS GUEST ARTIST

Dominique Labelles recent engagements haveincluded Stravinskys Les Noceswith the St. Louis

Symphony and David Robertson, Handel withKent Nagano and the Orchestre symphonique deMontral; aMessiahtour with the Netherlands BachSociety and Jos van Veldhoven, Yehudi WynersFragments from Antiquity with the LexingtonSymphony; and performances with conductorNicholas McGegan and the Philharmonia BaroqueOrchestra, the Gttingen Handel Festival, and the

National Arts Centre Orchestra.Last season she sang the lead female role in themodern premiere of Monsignys Le Roi et le fermierfor Opera Lafayette, conducted by Ryan Brown,in performances at the Kennedy Center, LincolnCenter, and at Versailles. Contemporary musiccredits include Shostakovichs Seven Romances onPoetry of Alexander Blok; Brittens Les Illuminations,and John Harbisons The Rewaking (recorded

David Robertson returnsto conduct Music of JohnWilliams, December 27-29.

Dominique Labelle mostrecently performed withthe St. Louis Symphony inNovember 2012.


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for Musica Omnia). Her most recent recordingis Monsignys Le Dserteur (Naxos). Learn moreabout the artist at dominiquelabelle.com.

KATE LINDSEY

This season, rising star mezzo-soprano KateLindsey returns to the Seattle Opera as Nicklaussin The Tales of Hoffmann and the BayerischeStaatsoper as Rosina in The Barber of Seville. Shealso sings her rst performances of Berliozs TheDamnation of Faustwith the Utah Symphony andappears in concert with the Richmond Symphonyand Boston Baroque.

Lindsey recently starred in the MetropolitanOperas HD broadcast of its new production ofThe Tales of Hoffmann. She was also featured in itsbroadcasts of La Clemenza di Titoand The MagicFlute(which was subsequently released on DVD). A native of Richmond, Virginia, Kate Lindseyholds a Bachelor of Music Degree with Distinctionfrom Indiana University and is a graduate of

the Metropolitan Operas Lindemann YoungArtist Development Program. Her many awardsinclude a prestigious 2011 grant from the FestivalMusique et Vin au Clos Vougeot, the 2007Richard F. Gold Career Grant, the 2007 GeorgeLondon Award in memory of Lloyd Rigler, the2007 Lincoln Center Martin E. Segal Award, anda 2006 Sullivan Foundation Grant.

NICHOLAS PHAN

In celebration of the Britten centenary during the2013-14 season, American tenor Nicholas Phanperforms Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Stringswith the Toronto and Kitchener-Waterloo sym-phonies, as well as with the chamber orchestra,the Knights. He also returns to the Baltimore

Symphony for War Requiem. Other engagementsthis season include returns to the PhiladelphiaOrchestra, Boston Baroque, and the NationalArts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa, performancesof the Evangelist in Bachs St. Matthew Passionwith the Chicago Bach Project, the OratorioSociety of New York in Carnegie Hall, and theCharlotte Symphony, and recitals in Atlanta,Boston, Chicago, New York, and Istanbul.

DARIO

ACOSTA

Kate Lindsey most recentlyperformed with the St. LouisSymphony in April 2012.

Nicholas Phan mostrecently performed withthe Symphony in April 2012.

FACECOLLECTIVE


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A graduate of the University of Michigan,Nicholas Phan is the 2012 recipient of the PaulC. Boylan Distinguished Alumni Award. He alsostudied at the Manhattan School of Music andthe Aspen Music Festival and School, and is an

alumnus of the Houston Grand Opera Studio. Hewas the recipient of a 2006 Sullivan FoundationAward and 2004 Richard F. Gold Career Grantfrom the Shoshana Foundation.

STEPHEN POWELL

In the 2013-14 season Stephen Powell returns

to the Los Angeles Opera as Enrico in Luciadi Lammmermoor; to the Atlanta SymphonyOrchestra in Brittens War Requiem (also atCarnegie Hall); and to the Nashville SymphonyOrchestra in Brahms Ein deutsches Requiem. Alsoin 2013-14 he makes his role debut as Falstaffin his debut with Virginia Opera, and sings asGermont with Michigan Opera Theatre. Hisengagements for 2012-13 included singing asSimon Boccanegra (1857 version) with WarsawsLudwig van Beethoven Association; his debutwith the Cleveland Orchestra in Carmina burana,Franz Welser-Mst conducting; with LeipzigsMDR Sinfonieorchester as soloist in Peer Gynt,under Kristjan Jrvi; with Lyric Opera Baltimoreas Rigoletto; and with Anchorage Symphonyin The Damnation of Faust. His several return

engagements included performances withthe St. Louis Symphony as soloist in MozartsRequiem; Houston Symphony in BelshazzarsFeast; Atlanta Symphony, under Robert Spano, inBachs Mass in B minor; Jacksonville SymphonyOrchestra, under Fabio Mechetti, as Iago in afully-staged production of Otello; and to the LosAngeles Opera for its production of I due Foscari.In summer 2013 he makes his debut with the

Caramoor Festival as Rodrigo in Don Carlos.

Stephen Powell mostrecently sang with theSt. Louis Symphony inNovember 2012.

CHRISTIAN

POLLARD


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AMY KAISERAT&T FOUNDATION CHAIR

One of the countrys leading choral direc-tors, Amy Kaiser has conducted the St. LouisSymphony in Handels Messiah, Schuberts Massin E-at, Vivaldis Gloria, and sacred works byHaydn and Mozart, as well as Young PeoplesConcerts. She has made appearances as a guestconductor for the Berkshire Choral Festival inShefeld, Massachusetts; in Santa Fe; and atCanterbury Cathedral. As music director of theDessoff Choirs in New York for 12 seasons, sheconducted many performances of major works at

Lincoln Center. Other conducting engagementsinclude concerts at Chicagos Grant Park MusicFestival and more than 50 performances with theMetropolitan Opera Guild. Principal conductorof the New York Chamber Symphonys SchoolConcert Series for seven seasons, Kaiser also ledmany programs for the 92nd Street Ys acclaimedSchubertiade. She has conducted over 25 operas,including eight contemporary premieres.

Amy Kaiser leads the St.Louis Symphony Chorusin Verdis Requiem, March

7-8, 2013.


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BACH & HANDEL:AMY KAISER, DIRECTOR OF THE ST. LOUIS SYMPHONY CHORUS

The poetry in the Bach is much more reective than in Messiah. There arethese beautiful moments of shepherds songs in both works, but in Bach

there are also lullabies to the child and meditations on the birth. OverallBach is more meditative, more poetic, less biblical. The text of Messiah isdirectly from the Bible. The text of the Bach is poetry. Its fantastic to havethis new Christmas piece, and to sing it with an orchestra of trumpets andtimpani and oboe damore and oboe da caccia.

GERRYLOVE

Amy Kaiser

A BRIEF EXPLANATIONYou dont need to know what andante means or what a glockenspiel is toenjoy a St. Louis Symphony concert, but its always fun to know stuff. For

example, what is an oboe damore?

Oboe damore:a double-reed instrument in the oboe family, bigger than theoboe, with a bulb bell and what is sometimes referred to as a less assertive,more serene tone than the oboe; the mezzo-soprano between the sopranooboe and alto English horn


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YOU TAKE IT FROM HEREIf these concerts have inspired you to learn more, here are suggested sourcematerials with which to continue your explorations.

Christoph Wolff,Johann SebastianBach: The Learned MusicianW. W. NortonCurrently the nest English-languagebiography of the composer

John Eliot Gardiner, Bach: Music in theCastle of Heaven

KnopfThe most recent Bach book by theeminent historian and conductor

W. Murray Young, The Cantatas of J. S.Bach: Analytical GuideMcFarland & Co.Useful commentary on all of Bachs

cantatas, including those of theChristmas Oratorio

Read the program notes online atstlsymphony.org/planyourvisit/programnotes

Keep up with the backstage life of the St. Louis Symphony, as chronicled bySymphony staffer Eddie Silva, via stlsymphony.org/blog

The St. Louis Symphony is on


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AUDIENCE INFORMATION

BOX OFFICE HOURS

Monday-Saturday, 10am-6pm; Weekdayand Saturday concert evenings through

intermission; Sunday concert days12:30pm through intermission.

TO PURCHASE TICKETS

Box Ofce: 314-534-1700Toll Free: 1-800-232-1880Online: stlsymphony.org

Fax: 314-286-4111A service charge is added to alltelephone and online orders.

SEASON TICKET EXCHANGE POLICIES

If you cant use your season tickets,simply exchange them for another

Wells Fargo Advisors subscriptionconcert up to one hour prior to yourconcert date. To exchange your tickets,please call the Box Ofce at 314-534-1700 and be sure to have your tickets

with you when calling.

GROUP AND DISCOUNT TICKETS

314-286-4155 or 1-800-232-1880 Anygroup of 20 is eligible for a discount ontickets for select Orchestral, Holiday,or Live at Powell Hall concerts. Callfor pricing.

Special discount ticket programs areavailable for students, seniors, andpolice and public-safety employees.

Visit stlsymphony.org for moreinformation.

POLICIES

You may store your personalbelongings in lockers located on the

Orchestra and Grand Tier Levels at acost of 25 cents.

Infrared listening headsets are availableat Customer Service.

Cameras and recording devices aredistracting for the performers andaudience members. Audio and videorecording and photography are strictly

prohibited during the concert. Patronsare welcome to take photos before theconcert, during intermission, and afterthe concert.

Please turn off all watch alarms, cellphones, pagers, and other electronicdevices before the start of the concert.

All those arriving after the start of the

concert will be seated at the discretionof the House Manager.

Age for admission to STL Symphonyand Live at Powell Hall concerts

varies, however, for most events therecommended age is ve or older. Allpatrons, regardless of age, must havetheir own tickets and be seated for all

concerts. All children must be seatedwith an adult. Admission to concerts isat the discretion of the House Manager.

Outside food and drink are notpermitted in Powell Hall. No food ordrink is allowed inside the auditorium,except for select concerts.

Powell Hall is not responsible for

the loss or theft of personal property.To inquire about lost items, call314-286-4166.

POWELL HALL RENTALS

Select elegant Powell Hall for your nextspecial occasion.

Visit stlsymphony.org/rentalsfor more information.


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st. louis symphony program - dec. 6-7

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