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Single Concert Ticket Prices:
Adult $23
Senior (62 and up) $21
Student (under 25) $5




Victory
March 10, 2012 - The State Theatre
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To the Light
May 12, 2012 - Gantner Hall - Haas Fine Arts Center - UWEC Campus
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Thank you to our year-round partners in supporting the symphony:
Eau Claire Regional Arts Center Wisconsin Public Radio University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire

Program Notes


March

Egmont Overture ………….…..…………………………………………Ludwig von Beethoven

Egmont Op. 84 is set of pieces written between 1809 and 1810 for the play Egmont by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. It consists of the overture, followed by nine pieces. The overture, which is powerful and expressive, is one of the last pieces written by Beethoven during his middle period. Egmont Op. 84 as a whole work expressed Beethoven’s political concerns by exalting a man condemned to death after taking a valiant stand against oppression. (Beethoven was furious at Napoleon Bonaparte for his decision to crown himself Emporer in 1804.) Egmont Overture became the unofficial anthem of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution.

The overture opens with a brief Andante introduction, followed by a theme in Sarabande tempo.The main section of the overture, Allegro, begins with a crescendo, at the end of which the strings give out the first theme. Next follows passage work, leading to the second theme, which bears close relation to the Sarabande. The Coda is composed of entirely new material and the close is a jubilant, mighty fanfare in full orchestra.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPID2gwQSXM

Finlandia Op. 26……………………………………………………………………..Jean Sibelius

Finlandia was composed in 1899 by Finnish composer Jean Sibelius. The piece was composed for the Press Celebrations of 1899, which was a protest against increased censorship by the Russian Empire. A recurring joke in Finland at the time was to rename Finlandia for each performance so as to avoid censorship, the most flippant example being the name Happy Feelings at the awakening of Finnish Spring.

Most of the work is turbulant, rousing music, but toward the end calm comes over the orchestra and the serene and melodic Finlandia Hymn is heard. The Finlandia Hymn section is often cited as a folk melody, but it is actually Sibelius’ own creation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqRHRfcnOwQ

Concerto with winner of the Kristo Orthodontics Young Artist Competition

Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68……………………………………….….Johannes Brahms

Brahms claimed his Symphony No. 1 took 21 years to compose, beginning in 1854 and finally premiering in 1876. Two possible explanations as to why this work took so long to compose include Brahms’ well-known self-critical behavior, which meant he destroyed much of his early work, and also the expectation from friends and the public that Brahms should create a symphony as great as Beethoven’s. In the finale of Symphony No. 1, there is a strong resemblance to the finale of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, as well as a rhythmic motto from Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5. Brahms felt he was paying homage to Beethoven, while others have accused him of plagiarizing and have dubbed this symphony, “Beethoven’s Tenth.”

The first movement contains an introduction that was added after the rest of the symphony had been scored, as well as an Allegro section that is set up in sonata form where ideas are stated, developed, and restated. The second movement is slower and lighter than the first, while the third movement is quick and light yet full of complex rhythms and interwoven textures. The fourth movement begins slow and gradually becomes quicker while building up to the Beethoven-like grand-finale.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQal8AmmtpM&feature=bf_next&list=PL534C0DD807421BC4&index=2
May

Symphony No. 2…………………………………………………………………Gustav Mahler

Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 took six years to compose, and debuted in 1895. It was one of his most popular and successful pieces during his lifetime. The first movement of the symphony is a symphonic poem called Totenfeier (Death Celebration.) Mahler composed the second and third movements in one year, but he struggled with the finale. Mahler wanted vocals in his final movement, but knew his symphony would then be compared with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9. When a close friend and mentor of Mahler’s died in 1894, he was inspired by a funeral hymn, and finally was able to write the text for the fifth movement. He then inserted the song Urlicht (Primeval Light) as the fourth movement.

Mahler told many friends that he created a narrative programme for his symphony. The first movement represented a funeral and asks, “Is there life after death?” The second movement remembers happy times in the life of the deceased; the third movement represents the view that life is meaningless; the fourth movement is a wish for release from a life without meaning; and the fifth movement, after touching on themes from other movements, ends with hope for everlasting life.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9_ONIz8XKA&playnext=1&list=PLD427845137CCAA55

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