Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 49 in F minor, Hob. I:49, “La Passione”
Antonín Dvořák: Serenade for Strings in E major, Op. 22
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Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Adagio and Fugue in C minor, KV. 546
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 9 in E-flat major, KV. 271, “Jeunehomme”
The Italian title "La Passione" was, like many others, given to Haydn's symphony only after its creation and subsequently blended with it. The definite article for feminine gender conduces to its translation as "passion", thus contributing to the perception of this music as Haydn's passionate youthful outburst. The reputation of this symphony can be attributed to the Italian title itself, which instantly recalls to our minds the Mediterranean emotionality. In reality, the symphony’s patrons had something else in mind, i.e., the actual reason for the creation of this work – the celebration of Holy Week. Like in many other languages,
passione in Italian denotes both passion and the Passion – the suffering and crucifixion of Christ. However, the popular interpretation is not far from the heart of Haydn’s work, since the symphony originates in his fiery and more impassioned
Sturm und Drang period and is therefore full of expressive gestures, exciting contrasts, and also exaggerated tones, unmitigated outbursts that Haydn undoubtedly connected with Christ's sufferings, although he at the same time most probably gave free reign to his own vibrant interior life.
Our musicians will skillfully intertwine the expressively intense works with idyllic passages. Dvořák's soft
Serenade for Strings will provide the latter. Then we will again be invited to adopt a more serious mood thanks to the grandiosity of Mozart's
Adagio and Fugue, which with its unstoppable drive already hints at the intrinsic intensity of Beethoven's music and his remarkable fugues.
The concert will be given by the members of the
Slovenian Philharmonic String Chamber Orchestra, who will be accompanied by guest musicians. The ensemble will be led by the great connoisseur and fervent researcher, and most of all a passionate musician, conductor and pianist
Alexander Lonquich, with whom each concert turns into an intense, selfless surrender to the vigor and subtlety of music. The closing passages will provide an opportunity to display his subtle virtuosity. As a soloist, Lonquich will perform one of the most interesting Mozart piano concerts, where technical difficulty is enveloped in apparent lightness and airy playfulness.
"Haydn's Symphony No. 49, written in 1767, was given the name "La passione" by a Leipzig copyist in 1790, though it remains unclear whether this was done in agreement with the composer. But anyone who has examined the natural connection between music and linguistic elements in the eighteenth century will certainly consider this association to be correct, both with regard to the poignant chromaticism as well as the motif particles, which also in the fast movements in some cases rebel wildly, acting with great interval tensions. All this seems like an ingenious compendium of baroque affects. From there, a look into the future is also possible: some ideas in Schubert's slow variation movement from the String Quartet in D minor D.810 "Der Tod und das Mädchen" may have originated from the beginning of Haydn's work. "La passione" would also be a plausible title for Mozart's Adagio and Fugue KV. 546 from 1783 and 1788; however, here end the possibilities for a chain of relationships between Handel's example and the then current "sensitive" Sturm und Drang mentality. Everything sounds archaic and yet it is surprising and undiscovered. As we know, his first completely innovative work of this genre, the Piano Concerto KV. 271, was composed in 1777, begining with the then unusual opening dialogue between the orchestra and the keyboard instrument. The liveliness of the composition makes listening to the first movement an adventure. The Andantino is quite extraordinary: we are dealing with an imaginary operatic scene, including an erudite piano cadenza. One can imagine, for example, the abandoned Ariadne on the island of Naxos. The last movement reinforces the impression of dealing with a hypothetical stage work, especially because of many mood changes as fast as lightning. How often will there be moments in his mature operas that reflect the sentient world of the inserted Minuet!
Dvořáks String Serenade Op. 22 (1875) seems like a foreign body in this program. However, despite its popularity, it is sometimes underestimated. What fascinates me about it, apart from the Czech master's unique ability to create poetic moods, is the subtle art of irregular period formations, an inventive, wide-ranging, differentiated dynamics, like a naturally-grown polyphony, that repeatedly and simultaneously addresses the different groups of instruments with contradictory tasks. The new Bärenreiter edition gives us the opportunity to play the extended version of the autographed version. Whether the current abbreviations of the first edition were the idea of the publishing house Bote und Bock or are based on Dvořáks own considerations cannot be clearly determined."
Alexander Lonquich
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Tickets: 25 € / Pre-sale 20 € / Senior 20 € / Students, Disability 12,50 €
Discounted tickets can be purchased at the Information office of Narodni dom Maribor or at the concert venue up to an hour before the concert.
