BRAHMS, KALABIS, BEETHOVEN

Whilst composing his only completed opera Fidelio, LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN (1770–1827) was already afflicted by the onset of deafness, which he concealed from the public. This secrecy undoubtedly influenced his choice of a dramatic subject, as found in the libretto of Pierre Gaveaux Léonore ou l´amour conjugal. The subject of the opera is based on a true story from the French Revolution. The main heroine, Madame de Touraine, named Leonora in the opera, dressed as a man, liberated her husband from a Jacobean prison in Tours. Although the opera was premiered under this title in the Theater an der Wien already on the 20^th March 1805, Beethoven continued working on it after this date and two further versions of the opera were written. The overture which we are going to hear tonight, known as Leonora No. 3, Op. 72, is the one most frequently performed, belonging to the second version of the opera, premiered on the 29^th of October 1806. Gustav Mahler introduced the practice, common until the middle of the twentieth century, of performing Leonara No. 3 between the two scenes of the second act, namely the Duet of Leonora and Florestan and the Finale, using it as a kind of orchestral summary. Written in sonata form, Beethoven uses motifs from the opera to structure his overture, and achieves a highly dramatic and tense movement. 

VIKTOR KALABIS (1923–2006) composed the Concerto for Violin and Orchestra, No. 1, Op. 17 in 1959 and dedicated it to the memory of musicologist Hana Weberová – Hlavsová. However, the piece was not premiered until the 27^th of February 1961 by the Prague Symphony Orchestra under the conductor Jindřich Rohan, with the soloist Václav Snítil. The concerto, highly praised even by expert critics, is impressive for its formal perfection and the depth of invention; the remarkable sound formations it contains and the masterly orchestration also add to its allure. The introductory Maestoso ofthe first movement, Maestoso. Andante,

attracts our attention with the sounding of two harsh tone clusters, formed from intervals of seconds and tritones. In his thematic material the composer makes use of all twelve tones of the chromatic scale, enriching the melodic line with rich harmonisations, and creating varied, colourful and markedly expressive areas of music.  The meditative slow movement Andante angoscioso. Quasi adagio is full of melancholy and humility, reminiscent of a prayer. In the energetic third movement, Allegro vivace, dodecaphony is again used for the creation of themes, and there are also hints of the tritone motif recurring from the first movement.  Typically for this part of the composition, the dramatic areas alternate with more lyrical sections.

Whilst the First Symphony by JOHANNES BRAHMS (1833–1897) took almost twenty years to finish, the second, Symphony No .2 in D Major, Op. 73, was completed during two summer months in 1877. Brahms was at the time staying in Pörtschach by Wörthersee, in Carinthia and was strongly influenced by the beauty of the surrounding Austrian countryside. All four movements evolve from a discreet four note motif, first heard in the low strings, a technique which pre-empted the monothematic thinking in music of the beginning of the twentieth century. The introductory movement, Allegro non troppo, is brought to an end by a grandiose coda, creating an impressive contrast with the song-form of the following Adagio non troppo, with its excited middle section and a contemplative, calm ending. Musical reminiscences are quickly replaced by a playful Allegretto grazioso with gentle reminders of the composer’s Hungarian Dances. The last movement, Finale. Allegro con spirito, is built on the outline of a sonata form. Its lively theme passes through the whole of the orchestra, and like the rest of the other themes, is derived ingeniously from the introductory motif.