The Philadelphia Orchestra

Opening Night

Yannick Nézet-Séguin ConductorRenée Fleming Soprano

attrib. J.S. Smith/ “The Star-Spangled Banner” orch. Ormandy

Ravel Shéhérazade I. Asie II. La Flûte enchantée III. L’Indifférent Brahms Symphony No. 4 in E minor, Op. 98 I. Allegro non troppo II. Andante moderato III. Allegro giocoso—Poco meno presto—Tempo I IV. Allegro energico e passionato—Più allegro

Strauss “Mein Elemer!” from Arabella, Op. 79 FirstPhiladelphiaOrchestraperformance

This program runs approximately 1 hour, 25 minutes, and will be performed without an intermission.

Musicians of The Philadelphia Orchestra are graciously donating their services for tonight’s concert.

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Season 2012-2013Thursday, October 18, at 7:00

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The Philadelphia Orchestra

Renowned for its distinctive sound, beloved for its keen ability to capture the hearts and imaginations of audiences, and admired for an unrivaled legacy of “firsts” in music-making, The Philadelphia Orchestra is one of the preeminent orchestras in the world.

The Philadelphia Orchestra has cultivated an extraordinary history of artistic leaders in its 112 seasons, including music directors Fritz Scheel, Carl Pohlig, Leopold Stokowski, Eugene Ormandy, Riccardo Muti, Wolfgang Sawallisch, and Christoph Eschenbach, and Charles Dutoit, who served as chief conductor from 2008 to 2012. With the 2012-13 season, Yannick Nézet-Séguin becomes the eighth music director of The Philadelphia Orchestra. Named music director designate in 2010, Nézet-Séguin brings a vision that extends beyond symphonic music into the

vivid world of opera and choral music.

Philadelphia is home and the Orchestra nurtures an important relationship not only with patrons who support the main season at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts but also those who enjoy the Orchestra’s other area performances at the Mann Center, Penn’s Landing, and other venues. The Philadelphia Orchestra Association also continues to own the Academy of Music—a National Historic Landmark—as it has since 1957.

Through concerts, tours, residencies, presentations, and recordings, the Orchestra is a global ambassador for Philadelphia and for the United States. Having been the first American orchestra to perform in China, in 1973 at the request of President Nixon, today The Philadelphia

Orchestra boasts a new partnership with the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing. The Orchestra annually performs at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center while also enjoying a three-week residency in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., and a strong partnership with the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival.

The ensemble maintains an important Philadelphia tradition of presenting educational programs for students of all ages. Today the Orchestra executes a myriad of education and community partnership programs serving over 45,000 annually, including its Neighborhood Concert Series, Sound All Around and Family Concerts, and eZseatU.

For more information on The Philadelphia Orchestra, please visit www.philorch.org.

Jessica Griffin

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SoloistThe glamour and excitement of a gala performance may well be embodied in soprano Renée Fleming, and this is her fifth such appearance with The Philadelphia Orchestra. She made her Orchestra debut in 1998 at the 141st Academy of Music Anniversary Concert with Wolfgang Sawallisch. In 2004 she sang with the Orchestra and Christoph Eschenbach at both the Orchestra’s Opening Night and at Opening Night of Carnegie Hall. She returned to the Academy of Music in 2011 for the 154th Anniversary Concert. Known as “the people’s diva,” Ms. Fleming was named 2012 Female Singer of the Year by the German ECHO awards. This fall at the Metropolitan Opera, she sings Desdemona in Verdi’s Otello. Her fall concert and recital schedule includes performances throughout South America and in Paris, Geneva, London, and Vienna.

Ms. Fleming has hosted a variety of television and radio broadcasts, including the Metropolitan Opera’s LiveinHD series and LivefromLincolnCenter on PBS. She has performed on numerous distinguished occasions, including the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize ceremony and the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. Also in 2008 she became the first woman in the 125-year history of the Metropolitan Opera to solo headline an opening night gala. In January 2009 Ms. Fleming was featured in the televised “We Are One:The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial.” Earlier this year she sang on the balcony of Buckingham Palace in the Diamond Jubilee Concert for Queen Elizabeth II.

A three-time Grammy Award winner, Ms. Fleming won the 2010 Grammy for Best Classical Vocal Performance. Among her other accolades are the Fulbright Lifetime Achievement Medal, Sweden’s Polar Prize, the Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur, and Honorary Membership in the Royal Academy of Music. In 2010 she was named the first Creative Consultant at Lyric Opera of Chicago. She is currently curating the creation of a world-premiere opera based on Ann Patchett’s best-selling novel BelCantofor Lyric Opera’s 2015-16 season. For tonight’s performance Ms. Fleming’s gowns are by Angel Sanchez and her jewelry is by Ann Ziff for Tamsen Z. For more information visit www.reneefleming.com.

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Framing the ProgramThe festive Opening Night Concert of The Philadelphia Orchestra’s 113th season heralds the inauguration of Yannick Nézet-Séguin as the ensemble’s eighth music director in a program featuring works by Maurice Ravel, Johannes Brahms, and Richard Strauss.

Few 19th- and 20th-century French composers resisted the allure of the East. From Berlioz and Bizet, through Debussy and Ravel, to Messiaen and beyond, the exoticism of both a real and an imagined Asia inspired countless compositions. For his magnificent song cycle Shéhérazade, Ravel set three French poems by Tristan Klingsor that were based on OneThousandandOneNights, in which the legendary Persian queen forestalls death by telling marvelous tales perpetually “to be continued.”

Brahms, after many years of delays, finally completed his Symphony No. 1 at age 43. With his writer’s block broken, and acclaim for the work overwhelming, he wrote his other three symphonies within the decade. The final Fourth Symphony, dating from the summers of 1884 and 1885, proved a masterful culmination, looking back to Bach and Beethoven all the while forging compositional innovations that inspired the next generation of composers.

No 20th-century composer wrote as gloriously for the female voice as did Richard Strauss, who was married to a noted soprano. From the magical conclusion of DerRosenkavalier to the ending of his last opera, Capriccio, and the magnificent FourLastSongs, Strauss incomparably weaved the voice into a gorgeous orchestral fabric. The concert tonight concludes with the solo aria at the end of Act I of Arabella, in which the title character muses on her many suitors but is most intrigued by a mysterious stranger who has just arrived for carnival time in Vienna.

Parallel Events1885BrahmsSymphony No. 4

1903RavelShéhérazade

1929StraussArabella

MusicFranckSymphonic VariationsLiteratureHaggardKingSolomon’sMinesArtVan GoghThePotatoEatersHistoryGalton proves individuality of fingerprints

MusicDeliusSeaDriftLiteratureLondonTheCalloftheWildArtKandinskyTheBlueRiderHistoryFord Motor Company founded

MusicWaltonViola ConcertoLiteratureCocteauLesEnfantsterriblesArtChagallLoveIdyllHistory“Black Friday”

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Fascination with “the Orient,” as it was known then, took many musical forms during the 19th and early 20th centuries: generalized exoticisms such as those in Alexander Glazunov’s OrientalRhapsody, settings of ancient and obscure Eastern poetry such as that of Mahler’s DasLiedvonderErde, and specific retellings of folktales such as Rimsky-Korsakov’s Sheherazade. The impressionists in France found particular resonance with the delicately shaded poetry and modal scales of the Far East, and reveled in the perfumed exoticism that was so close in its affinities to the fin-de-siècle aesthetic. Of course few of the Europeans who were creating these picturesque scenes of far-off lands had ever actually been to Asia, but this didn’t stop them from depicting it in poetry, painting, and music. Ravel was especially fascinated with Asia, partly because he felt a strong sympathy with native peoples who were often living under oppressive colonial rule. Composed in 1903 on poems by the poet Arthur Justin Leon Leclère (Tristan Klingsor), Ravel’s Shéhérazade was an orchestral song cycle imbued with colorfully fragile and perhaps stereotypical images of life in Asia.

An Unrealized Opera In 1899 Ravel had already composed an overture to a projected opera on the subject of Sheherazade, the plucky Arab woman whose 1001 nights of romantic storytelling had more than once captured the imagination of composers of the 19th century. The operatic project was never realized, however, and the music was put aside. Ravel began anew with the present cycle, and this project occupied him for some time. The three Shéhérazadesettings were first performed in Paris in 1905, with the soprano Jane Hatto and an orchestra conducted by the pianist Alfred Cortot.

As a guide to idiomatic text-setting, Ravel enjoined Klingsor to read the poetry to him aloud, so that he might learn to imitate his vocal inflections in as precise a manner as possible. The poet was highly pleased with the resulting music, and credited Ravel with having “transformed the poems into expressive recitative, exalting the inflections of the texts into song.” The result was no less than a masterpiece of song.

The MusicShéhérazade

Maurice RavelBorn in Ciboure, Lower Pyrenees, March 7, 1875Died in Paris, December 28, 1937

A Closer Look The first song, Asia, presents Ravel with a perfect opportunity to show off his rapidly expanding orchestral aplomb, in scoring that reflects the whole spectrum of this poem’s multi-hued subject matter. In The Enchanted Flute a girl listens to the willowy tune played by her lover on the flute, while her master sleeps; and in The Indifferent One a stranger pauses in the doorway and longs for the lovely inhabitant, but does not enter.

—Paul J. Horsley

RavelcomposedShéhérazadein1903.

TheworkwasfirstperformedbyThePhiladelphiaOrchestrainOctober1926withsopranoHelenTraubelandLeopoldStokowskionthepodium.TheworklastappearedonsubscriptionconcertsinFebruary2004,whenSimonRattleledmezzo-sopranoRinatShahaminthework.

Shéhérazadeisscoredforpiccolo,twoflutes,twooboes,Englishhorn,twoclarinets,twobassoons,fourhorns,twotrumpets,threetrombones,tuba,timpani,percussion(bassdrum,cymbals,glockenspiel,snaredrum,suspendedcymbal,tam-tam,tambourine,andtriangle),twoharps,celesta,strings,andfemalevocalsoloist.

Performancetimeisapproximately20minutes.

I. AsieAsie,Asie,Asie,vieuxpaysmerveilleuxdes

contesdenourriceoùdortlafantaisiecomme

uneimpératrice,ensaforêttoutempliede

mystère.Asie,jevoudraism’enaller

aveclagoëlettequisebercecesoirdans

leport,mystérieuseetsolitaire.Etquidéploieenfinses

voilesviolettescommeunimmenseoiseau

denuitdanslecield’or.Jevoudraism’enallervers

desîlesde fleurs,enécoutantchanterlamer

perversesurunvieuxrythme

ensorceleur.

JevoudraisvoirDamasetlesvilles dePerse

aveclesminaretslégersdansl’air;

jevoudraisvoirdebeauxturbansdesoie

surdesvisagesnoirsauxdentsclaires;

jevoudraisvoirdesyeuxsombresd’amour

etdesprunellesbrillantesdejoie

endespeauxjaunes

AsiaAsia, Asia, Asia,marvelous old land of

fairy-taleswhere fantasy sleeps like

an empressin her forest full of

mystery.Asia, I would like to sail

away with the schoonerthat rocks this evening in

the port,mysterious and solitary.And that at last unfurls its

violet sailslike an immense night bird

in the golden sky.I would like to sail away to

the islands of flowers,listening to the perverse

sea singto an old, bewitching

rhythm.

I would like to see Damascus and the cities of Persia

with their slender minarets in the air;

I would like to see beautiful silk turbans

on dark faces with bright teeth;

I would like to see eyes dark with love

and pupils shining with joy

in skin yellow

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commedesoranges;jevoudraisvoirdes

vêtementsdeveloursetdeshabitsàlongues

franges.Jevoudraisvoirdes

calumetsentredesbouches

toutentouréesdebarbeblanche;

jevoudraisvoird’âpres marchandsauxregards louches,

etdescadis,etdesvizirsquiduseulmouvementde

leurdoigtquisepencheaccordevieoumortau

grédeleurdésir.

JevoudraisvoirlaPerse,etl’Inde,etpuis laChine,

lesmandarinsventrussouslesombrelles,

etlesprincessesauxmainsfines,

etleslettrésquisequerellent

surlapoésieetsurlabeauté;

jevoudraism’attarderaupalaisenchanté

etcommeunvoyaguerétranger

contempleràloisirdespaysagespeints

surdesétoffesendescadresdesapin,

avecunpersonnageaumilieud’unverger;

jevoudraisvoirdesassassinssouriant

dubourreauquicoupeuncoud’innocent

avecsongrandsabrecourbéd’Orient.

Jevoudraisvoirdespauvresetdesreines;

jevoudraisvoirdesrosesetdusang;

as oranges;I would like to see

garments of velvetand clothes with long

fringe.I would like to see

pipes in mouths

entirely surrounded by white beards;

I would like to see harsh-looking merchants

and magistrates, and vizierswho with a single bending

of a fingergrant life or death at the

whim of their desire.

I would like to see Persia, and India, and then China,

big-bellied mandarins under their umbrellas

and princesses with delicate hands

and scholars who quarrel

over poetry and beauty;

I would like to linger in the enchanted palace

and, like a foreign traveler,

contemplate at leisure landscapes painted

on cloth in frames of fir,

with one figure in the middle of an orchard;

I would like to see assassins smiling

at the executioner who cuts off an innocent head

with his great curved Oriental sword.

I would like to see poor people and queens;

I would like to see roses and blood;

Pleaseturnthepagequietly.

jevoudraisvoirmourird’amouroubiendehaine.

Etpuism’enrevenirplustard

narrermonaventureauxcurieuxderêves

enélevantcommeSindbadmavieilletassearabe

detempsentempsjusqu’àmeslèvres

pourinterrompreleconteavecart…

II. La Flûte enchantéeL’ombreestdouceetmon

maîtredortcoifféd’unbonnetconique

desoie,etsonlongnezjauneen

sabarbeblanche.

Maismoi,jesuiséveilléeencor

etj’écouteaudehorsunechansondeflûteoù

s’épanchetouràtourlatristesseou

lajoie,unairtouràtour

langoureuxoufrivolequemonamoureuxchéri

joue.Etquandjem’approchede

lacroisée,ilmesemblequechaque

notes’envoledelaflûteversma

jouecommeunmystérieux

baiser.

III. L’IndifférentTesyeuxsontdouxcomme

ceuxd’unefille,jeuneétranger,etlacourbefinedetonbeauvisagede

duvetombragéestplusséduisanteencor

deligne.

I would like to see people dying of love or hatred.

And then to return home later

and tell my story to those curious about dreams,

raising, like Sinbad, my old Arabian cup

to my lips from time to time

to interrupt the tale artfully …

The Enchanted FluteThe shade is soft and my

master sleeps,wearing a conical

silk cap,with his long yellow nose in

his white beard.

But I, I am awakened again

and I listen, outside,to the melody of a flute

pour forthin turn sadness and

joy,an air alternately

languorous and frivolous,which my dear lover

plays.And when I approach

the windowit seems to me that each

note fliesfrom the flute towards my

cheeklike a mysterious

kiss.

The Indifferent OneYour eyes are as soft as

those of a girl,young stranger,and the delicate curveof your handsome face,

shaded with down,is even more seductive

in outline.

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Talèvrechantesurlepasdemaporte

unelangueinconnueetcharmante

commeunemusiquefausse…

Entre!Etquemonvinteréconforte…

Maisnon,tupassesetdemonseuiljetevois

t’éloignermefaisantundernier

gesteavecgrâceetlahanchelégèrement

ployéepartadémarcheféminineet

lasse…

You sing on my doorstep

an unknown and charming language

like music out of tune …

Enter! And let my wine refresh you …

But no, you pass byand I see you leave my

threshold behind,making one last graceful

gesture to me,with your hips slightly

bentby your feminine and

weary gait …

English translation by Darrin T. Britting

34A

The MusicSymphony No. 4

Johannes BrahmsBorn in Hamburg, May 7, 1833Died in Vienna, April 3, 1897

Haydn composed over 100 symphonies, Mozart some 50, but the most celebrated 19th-century composers dramatically scaled back on such quantity. Beethoven’s formidable nine upped the stakes. The Romantic celebration of originality meant that each new work now carried extraordinary weight. While Mozart had written his first symphony at the age of eight, Beethoven held off until age 29. Many subsequent 19th-century composers waited until long into their careers to produce a symphony.

After Robert Schumann in 1853 more or less discovered the 20-year-old Brahms, writing a glowing review praising him as the new musical messiah, all eyes and ears were on the young composer. Brahms felt under phenomenal pressure to produce an impressive first symphony. He made various false starts and it ultimately took him until age 43 to complete the Symphony No. 1 in C minor. Following the premiere of that glorious work in 1876 the celebrated conductor Hans von Bülow hailed it as “Beethoven’s Tenth.” Brahms’s next symphony, a quite different work in a sunny D major, came quickly the next year. The Symphony No. 3 in F major dates from 1883 and he began the Fourth the following summer.

A Final Symphony Brahms composed the Symphony over the course of two summers in the resort of Mürzzuschlag, not far southwest from Vienna. From the start he had the idea of ending the work with a passacaglia, a Baroque procedure in which a musical theme is constantly repeated; specifically he wanted to use as its basis a passage from Johann Sebastian Bach’s Cantata No. 150. He composed the first two movements in 1884 and then the fourth and third (it seems in that order) the next summer.

Brahms was acutely aware that the Fourth Symphony was different from his earlier efforts. With his typical self-deprecating humor, he compared the work to the sour cherries found in the Alpine region in which he was composing. He wrote to Bülow, with whose formidable court orchestra in Meiningen he often performed, that “a few entr’actes are lying here—what [taken] together is usually called a symphony.” But Brahms worried “about

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whether it will reach a wider public! That is to say, I fear that it tastes of the native climate—the cherries here do not get sweet, you would not eat them!”

Initial Reactions As was often his practice, Brahms sought the opinion of trusted colleagues to whom he sent the score and eventually played through the piece with composer Ignaz Brüll in a version for two pianos. In early October 1885 he assembled a group of friends, among them the powerful critic Eduard Hanslick, conductor Hans Richter, and his future biographer Max Kalbeck. After the first movement concluded there was no reaction—Hanslick said the experience was like being beaten “by two terribly clever people,” which dissipated some of the tension. The next day Kalbeck suggested scrapping the third movement entirely and publishing the finale as a separate piece.

Despite some polite praise Brahms realized that most of his friends were lukewarm on the piece; he may well have felt that until it was played by an orchestra its true effect could not really be judged. Bülow put the Meiningen ensemble at the composer’s disposal: “We are yours to command.” Brahms could test out the piece, see what he might want to change, and then present the premiere. The event on October 25, 1885, turned out to be a triumph—each movement received enthusiastic applause and the audience attempted, unsuccessfully, to have the brief third-movement scherzo repeated. Over the next month the new work was presented on tour in various German and Dutch cities.

The first performance in Brahms’s adopted hometown of Vienna took place in January 1886 with Richter conducting the Vienna Philharmonic. Hanslick was now enthusiastic and compared the work to a “dark well; the longer we look into it, the more brightly the stars shine back.” On the opposing side, Hugo Wolf, taking time off from composing great songs to write scathing reviews, lambasted the “musical impotence” of the Symphony and declared that “the art of composing without ideas has decidedly found in Brahms its worthiest representative.” Another notable Viennese performance came a decade later, again with Richter at the helm, in what proved to be Brahms’s last public appearance; he died of cancer a month later. As Florence May, an English pianist who wrote a biography of Brahms, recalled:

A storm of applause broke out at the end of the first movement, not to be quieted until the composer,

coming to the front of the “artists’” box in which he was seated, showed himself to the audience. The demonstration was renewed after the second and the third movements, and an extraordinary scene followed the conclusion of the work. The applauding, shouting audience, its gaze riveted on the figure standing in the balcony, so familiar and yet in present aspect so strange, seemed unable to let him go. Tears ran down his cheeks as he stood there shrunken in form, with lined countenance, strained expression, white hair hanging lank; and through the audience there was a feeling as of a stifled sob, for each knew that they were saying farewell.

A Closer Look Although Brahms thought of beginning the first movement (Allegro non troppo) with a brief chordal introduction, he ultimately decided to cut these measures and launch directly into the opening theme, a series of limpid two-note sighs consisting of descending thirds and ascending sixths that bind the movement together. The following Andante moderato opens with a noble horn theme that yields to a magnificently adorned theme for the strings. The tempo picks up in the sparkling third movement (Allegro giocoso), a scherzo in sonata form that gives the triangle a workout.

As mentioned, Brahms initially had the idea of the final movement (Allegro energico e passionato) using the Baroque technique of a passacaglia or chaconne (the terms were often used interchangeably). He slightly altered a ground bass progression from the final chorus of Bach’s Cantata No. 150, “Nach Dir, Herr, verlanget mich” (For Thee, Lord, Do I Long) over which he built a mighty set of 30 variations and coda. (The cantata may be Bach’s earliest to survive, although some scholars have questioned its authenticity.) In 1877 Brahms had made a piano transcription for left hand alone of Bach’s D-minor Chaconne for solo violin, which provided a model here, as did the last movement of Beethoven’s “Eroica” Symphony. The variations, often presented in pairs, begin with a bold statement based on Bach’s theme. Despite a section in major, the movement gradually builds in its tragic force to a thrilling conclusion.

—Christopher H. Gibbs

BrahmscomposedhisSymphonyNo.4from1884to1885.

Brahms’sFourthSymphonyhasbeenafavoritepieceofPhiladelphiaOrchestraconductorsfromitsfirstappearance,inJanuary1902withFritzScheel.TheworklastappearedonsubscriptionconcertsinOctober2010,withChristophvonDohnányi.

TheOrchestrahasrecordedthepiecefourtimes:in1931and1933withLeopoldStokowskiforRCA;in1944withEugeneOrmandyforCBS;andin1988withRiccardoMutiforPhilips.

TheSymphonyisscoredfortwoflutes(IIdoublingpiccolo),twooboes,twoclarinets,twobassoons,contrabassoon,fourhorns,twotrumpets,threetrombones,timpani,triangle,andstrings.

Theworkrunsapproximately40minutesinperformance.

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The Music“Mein Elemer!” from Arabella

Richard StraussBorn in Munich, June 11, 1864Died in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, September 8, 1949

Among the great collaborations between a composer and a librettist—comparable to Mozart and Da Ponte or Verdi and Boito—is that of Richard Strauss and the “born librettist” he found in Hugo von Hofmannsthal. The Austrian writer was his principal collaborator for nearly a quarter century. The two first met in Berlin in 1899 and the following year the 26-year-old poet, who was a decade younger, contacted Strauss about a possible project. It was not until 1906 that they began work on Elektra, their first opera. As Strauss wrote to Hofmannsthal at the time: “We were made for each other and are certain to do fine things together.”

A Tragic Interruption The team went on to produce DerRosenkavalier (1911), AriadneaufNaxos (1912, rev. 1916), DieFrauohneSchatten (1919), and DieägyptischeHelena (1928). Their next project proved to be the last: Arabella. The original idea was to write a Viennese comedy, along the lines of their very successful Rosenkavalier, set in the 1860s on Shrove Tuesday (Fat Tuesday, the last day of Carnival just before Ash Wednesday, which starts Lent). Carnival time would offer a perfect excuse for a grand ballroom scene and alluring waltzes. The two began serious work on the opera in December 1927 but progress was halted by a tragic event—Hofmannsthal’s son Franz killed himself in July 1929 and two days later, while dressing to go to the funeral, the 55-year-old librettist had a fatal stroke. At this point the first act of Arabella was complete and the other two acts drafted; in tribute to his partner Strauss opted to set the libretto as it stood, although as can be surmised from their fascinating correspondence, the text would surely have undergone extensive revisions had the team been able to collaborate to the end. It took Strauss several years to finish Arabella, which finally received its premiere in Dresden in July 1933.

The action of the opera takes place in a single day. The Waldner family is in financial straits, due largely to the father’s gambling, and its best prospect is a good marriage for the lovely daughter Arabella. To save money on clothes and other expenses, her sister, Zdenka, is passed off as a boy. Arabella has many suitors, including

Matteo (with whom Zdenka is secretly in love) and three eligible Counts: Elemer, Dominik, and Lamord. Arabella, however, is most intrigued by a mysterious stranger she saw intently watching her on the street—he turns out to be the wealthy Croatian landowner Mandryka.

A Closer Look Tonight we hear Arabella’s luscious aria that concludes Act I, a soliloquy that Hofmannsthal specially added at Strauss’s request. (Few composers have written as magnificently for the female voice as did Strauss, who was married to a prominent soprano.) After an expressive viola solo introducing the aria, Arabella ponders her sister’s teasing announcement that “her” Count Elemer is waiting outside to go on a previously arranged carriage ride. “Mein Elemer!” (My Elemer!), she exclaims: Such an idea sounds so strange as she has little interest in him, or for Matteo, and can think only of the stranger she saw in the street. Arabella wants to meet him, to hear his voice, although she fears he is married. She looks forward to the Fiakerball (Cabbie’s Ball) that night at which she will be the queen and the sounds of joyous waltzes are already evident to conclude the act. Not to worry, as the rest of the opera unfolds Arabella is united with Mandryka and Zdenka with Matteo, and all’s well that ends well.

—Christopher H. Gibbs

Arabella wascomposedfrom1929to1932.

ThesearethefirstPhiladelphiaOrchestraperformancesof“MeinElemer!”

Tonight’sexcerptisscoredforthreeflutes,twooboes,Englishhorn,threeclarinets,bassclarinet,twobassoons,contrabassoon,fourhorns,twotrumpets,threetrombones,timpani,andstrings.

Performancetimeisapproximately10minutes.

MeinElemer!—dashatsoeinensonderbarenKlang…

Ermein—ichsein.Wasistdenndas,miristja,wiewenneineAngstmich

überfiele—undeineSehnsucht…ja,nachwasdennauf

derWelt?

NachdemMatteo?Weilerimmersagt,

erkannnichtlebenohnemich,

undmichsoanschautmitAugenwieeinKind?

NachdemMatteosehntsichnichtsinmir!

IchmöchtemeinenfremdenManneinmalnochsehen!

My Elemer!—That has such a strange sound …

He is mine—I am his.What is happening to me,I seem to be overcome by

fear—and longing …but what on earth

for?

For Matteo?Because he always says

he can’t live without me,

and looks at me with the eyes of a child?

Nothing yearns within me for Matteo!

I want to see my strange man once again!

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I want to hear his voice!

His voice. Then he would be as the others are to me.

What does Zdenka say: that we must wait

until someone chooses us, otherwise we are lost.

Married to Elemer?

Why do I feel as thoughI am walking upon

someone’s grave?Is it the stranger,with whom I’ve never

uttered a word,who draws me into such

darkness?

Dear God, he is surely a married man,

and I must and I will never see him again!

And today is Shrove Tuesday, and tonight is my ball—

at which I will be queen, and then …

IchmöchteeinmalseineStimmehören!

SeineStimme.Dannwärerwiedieanderenfürmich.

WiesagtdieZdenka:dasswirwartenmüssen,

bisunseinerwählt,undsonstsindwirverloren.

Verheirat’tmitdemElemer?

Wasrührtmichdensoan,alsträticheinemübers

Grab?IstdasderfremdeMann,mitdemichnieeinWort

geredethab,ziehterimDunkelsoan

mir?

HerrGott,eristjasichereinverheirateterMann,

undichsollundichwerdihnnichtmehrwiedersehn!

UndheutistFaschingsdienstag,undheutabendistmeinBall—

vondembinichdieKöniginunddann…

English translation by Darrin T. Britting

Program notes © 2012. All rights reserved. Program notes may not be reprinted without written permission from The Philadelphia Orchestra Association.

Musical TermsGENERAL TERMSAria: An accompanied solo song (often in ternary form), usually in an opera or oratorioCadence: The conclusion to a phrase, movement, or piece based on a recognizable melodic formula, harmonic progression, or dissonance resolutionCantata: A multi-movement vocal piece consisting of arias, recitatives, ensembles, and choruses and based on a continuous narrative textChaconne: Before 1800, a dance that generally used variation techniques; in 19th- and 20th-century music, a set of ground-bass or ostinato variationsChord: The simultaneous sounding of three or more tonesCoda: A concluding section or passage added in order to confirm the impression of finality Dissonance: A combination of two or more tones requiring resolutionGround bass: A continually repeated bass phrase of 4 or 8 measuresLegato: Smooth, even, without any break between notesMeter: The symmetrical

grouping of musical rhythmsOp.: Abbreviation for opus, a term used to indicate the chronological position of a composition within a composer’s output. Opus numbers are not always reliable because they are often applied in the order of publication rather than composition.Passacaglia: In 19th- and 20th-century music, a set of ground-bass or ostinato variations, usually of a serious characterRecitative: Declamatory singing, free in tempo and rhythmRondo: A form frequently used in symphonies and concertos for the final movement. It consists of a main section that alternates with a variety of contrasting sections (A-B-A-C-A etc.).Scherzo: Literally “a joke.” Usually the third movement of symphonies and quartets that was introduced by Beethoven to replace the minuet. The scherzo is followed by a gentler section called a trio, after which the scherzo is repeated. Its characteristics are a rapid tempo in triple time, vigorous rhythm, and humorous contrasts.

Sonata form: The form in which the first movements (and sometimes others) of symphonies are usually cast. The sections are exposition, development, and recapitulation, the last sometimes followed by a coda. The exposition is the introduction of the musical ideas, which are then “developed.” In the recapitulation, the exposition is repeated with modifications.Tonic: The keynote of a scale

THE SPEED OF MUSIC (Tempo)Allegro: Bright, fastAndante: Walking speedEnergico: With vigor, powerfullyGiocoso: HumorousModerato: A moderate tempo, neither fast nor slowPassionato: Impassioned, very expressivePresto: Very fast

TEMPO MODIFIERSMeno: LessNon troppo: Not too muchPiù: MorePoco: Little, a bit

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2012 Opening NightSapphire Sponsor

The Central Committee for The Philadelphia Orchestra

Automotive Underwriter

Delaware Valley Audi Dealers

Diamond Benefactors

Edith R. DixonCaroline and Sidney Kimmel

Leslie Anne Miller and Richard Worley

Platinum BenefactorsJoseph Neubauer and Jeanette Lerman-Neubauer

PHLX Foundation

Gold PatronsDavid’s Bridal

The Gillespie GroupUPS

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2012 Opening NightGala Committees

Co-ChairsPriscilla HolmesOsagie Imasogie

President of the Volunteer CommitteesStephanie Brandow

Opening Night CommitteeSusan BancroftStephanie BrandowMrs. Robert M. BraslerJudith G. BreslinSally S. BullardKaren ColemanSarah Miller CoulsonBetsy CrowellJanet DeArmondNancy GallowayEllen Goldener Dr. Janice T. GordonLisa HallRonna F. HallKris KentLaura KoropeySheila LeithMrs. Francis J. Leto

Elizabeth M. MahoneyLynn MankoSandy MarshallLeslie A. MillerSharon ModelevskyMary Ellen MoranHilarie MorganHeather MurphyDespina F. PageRegina Pakradooni Alex PenningtonLaura RiedelCaroline B. RogersNancy RonningDianne RotwittLauren RoyerLynn SalvoEsther SchwartzMollie SlatteryDonna SlipakoffCarol SpinelliRoberta R. TanenbaumRamona VosbikianRobin WarzelTina WellsFelice G. WienerLisa Weber Yakulis

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2012 Opening NightThe Volunteer Committees for The Philadelphia Orchestra

Governing Board OfficersStephanie Brandow, President

Caroline Rogers, President Elect and Vice President for Volunteer CommitteesRegina Pakradooni, Vice President for Standing and Ad Hoc Committees

and Special FunctionsLauren Royer, Treasurer

Esther Schwartz, Secretary

Individual Committee ChairmenCentral: Lynn Salvo

Chestnut Hill: Judith BradleyMain Line: M. Priscilla Holmes

Musical Cocktails: Ann Hozack and Anne Ellithorpe LukerNew Jersey: Virginia Dowd

Rittenhouse Square: Marilyn AppelWest Philadelphia: Susan Bancroft

Chairmen of Standing CommitteesAnnual Giving: Lynn Manko

Education: Ramona VosbikianMuseum: Betsy Crowell and Lisa Weber Yakulis

Volunteers at Large: Edna Dick

2012 Opening NightPrincipal BenefactorsLeonard and Madlyn AbramsonDennis AdamsJohn and Cindy AffleckBarbara A. Alleva and Donald Ross GantDottebob AndesDr. and Mrs. Richard BalderstonMr. Ted A. Barham and

Ms. Pamela C. WatersIrma BarnessMrs. Robert M. Brasler Judith Broudy and Eli PackmanMrs. Elia D. BuckMr. and Mrs. Roland K. Bullard IISara CeratoConstance and Michael ConeSarah Miller CoulsonMr. and Mrs. James L. CrowellMrs. Jacqueline Desmarais Tobey and Mark DichterMr. and Mrs. Henry DonnerGovernor and Mrs. Pierre S. du Pont IVJeanette and Herbert EvertMarie and Joseph FieldToni and Bob GarrisonCarole and Emilio GravagnoDrs. Erik and Éllen GregorieMarcy Gringlas and Joel GreenbergMr. and Mrs. J. Tyler Griffin, Jr.Mr. and Mrs. Harry R. Halloran, Jr. Matt and Anne HamiltonMartin and Cynthia HeckscherMr. and Mrs. James R. Holt, Jr. The Honickman FoundationOsagie and Losenge ImasogiePatricia and John ImbesiRachelle and Ronald KaisermanAndrea and Warren KantorJoseph Kluger and Susan LewisAnita S. LetoMs. Joanna McNeil LewisMr. and Mrs. Edwin B. MahoneyDr. and Mrs. Morton S. Mandell

Lynn K. Manko and Joseph MankoSandra and David MarshallMr. and Mrs. Peter A. Martosella, Jr. Mr. and Mrs. Peter McCauslandJohn McFadden and Lisa KabnickDaniel K. Meyer, M.D., and

Frederick R. HaasLeslie Miller and Richard WorleyMr. and Mrs. Philippus Miller, Jr.Mitchell and Hilarie MorganMr. Robert E. MortensenMr. Ralph Muller Lorraine and David PopowichMr. and Mrs. Jon R. PowellMr. and Mrs. Alan L. ReedDr. and Mrs. Milton L. RockCaroline B. RogersJoseph W. Rogers, Jr.Mr. and Mrs. Harold S. RosenbluthLyn M. RossMr. and Mrs. Jeffrey RotwittRobin and Mark RubensteinTony and Lynn SalvoHarold and Adele SchaefferMs. Julie ScottIrene and Fred ShabelJoseph and Carol ShanisCarol ShermanDeborah and David SimonMollie and Frank P. Slattery, Jr.Constance SmuklerHarold A. and Ann R. SorgentiMrs. Roberta R. TanenbaumMr. and Mrs. Wilson H. TaylorMr. and Mrs. Brian and Maud TierneyMr. and Mrs. Archbold van BeurenJack and Ramona VosbikianPenelope and Thomas WatkinsAileen WhitmanFelice and Tom WienerRuth W. and A. Morris Williams, Jr.Marian and Norman WolginPaul Yakulis and Lisa Weber Yakulis

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2012 Opening NightBenefactorsNina and Billy AlbertMary and Peter AustenMrs. Sandra K. Baldino Peter Benoliel and Willo CareyMrs. Joanne BerwindHoward and Margery BleimanSandra BlumbergIrvin Borowsky and Laurie WagmanDr. and Mrs. Kirk R. BrandowJudith G. BreslinRichard P. Brown, Jr.Robert and Julie J. BryanMr. and Mrs. James L. CrowellMr. Roberto Díaz and Elizabeth B. WarshawerRoberta and Carl DranoffPhyllis and Howard FischerDr. and Mrs. John T. Galloway, Jr.Vim and Kay GatelyDr. Janice T. GordonMartyn and Grete GreenacreMimi and Michael Greenly Mr. and Mrs. J. Tyler GriffinLyn and Harry GroomeRonna and Bob HallTony and Lynn HitschlerEric and Lenora HumeAndrea Johnson and Charles ZiccardiDr. Sherman Leis Bruce and Robyn LetoMs. Christina Weiss LurieMr. Jeffrey LurieJamie and Meg McLaneJohn and Leslie NeffJerry and Kay O’GradyDespina F. PageEliana PapadakisDr. David L. Paskin and

Mrs. Linda C. ScribnerAlexandra M. PenningtonMrs. Vivian W. PiaseckiBob and Caro RockRuthanne and Gary SchlarbaumJoan and Leonard B. Shore

Mr. and Mrs. Bernard SpainStephen and Carol SpinelliDr. and Mrs. Jerome J. VernickMr. and Mrs. Jeffrey A. WarzelJon and Janine WellerJoanne and Raymond WelshConnie and Sankey WilliamsRichard and Diane Woosnam Mr. F. Gordon YasinowMr. Joseph S. Zuritsky

PatronsMr. and Mrs. George M. AhrensIsabelle BentonCharlotte BiddleJohn and Susan BusilloAl and Martha Caesar Joyce CafieroRobert Capanna and Cathryn CoateNicole A. CashmanScott and Nelly ChildressDr. and Mrs. Gary R. CrooksMr. and Mrs. James E. CrutchfieldMr. and Mrs. Craig W. CullenMichael A. Curley and Joan CurleyDr. Richard L. Davidson and

Ms. Linda Golden Evie and Rod DayMr. A. Louis Denton and Karen S. WestMr. David B. DevanLarry Dubinski and Vicki MarkovitzMr. and Mrs. William H. Eyre, Jr.Sabina Gatti and Dr. Stanley MiezioMs. Anne Stanley Glunk Pamela and James GoryKate HallMr. and Mrs. Michael P. HalpertMarybeth HenryHollie Powers HoltKaren and Charles HomerBerdj and Alice KalustyanJeffrey and Marie KenkelenDr. Howard B. Kessler and

Ms. Hope Lefeber, Esq.

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Patrons cont.Patty and Mark Klein Peter and Caroline KoblenzerBernice KoplinJoel KoppelmanMr. and Mrs. Roman KoropeyNeal KrouseMs. Shirley Laird Mrs. Sheila Leith Mr. Stephen E. LeoinHon. and Mrs. Stephen LevinRichard and Florence Maloumian Thomas J. Maresca and

Dorothy Scialdone-MarescaJosselyn McAdamPeggy MervesMr. and Mrs. Jeffrey MichaelIan and Sharon ModelevskyStephen F. MohrCathy MossFrancis MulhernDr. and Mrs. R. Barrett NooneFrank OrmanMrs. Mary S. PageMr. and Mrs. Peter B. PakradooniMr. and Mrs. Steven Park

Mr. David Pierson and Mrs. Pamela Trimingham

Ms. Elizabeth PriceJohn S. PriceLaura and Ralph RiedelMr. and Mrs. John E. RoyerJohn Ryan and Mary GreggMatthew Scanlan II and

Dr. Mary Beth KensickiMichael and Esther SchwartzHenry and Yumi ScottMr. and Mrs. Willard J. ScottFaye SennecaEllen and Michael SilbermanJudith SillsDonna L. SlipakoffMr. William ValerioThomas and Patricia VernonPeter and Irene VosbikianBennett and Julie WeinstockJohn WestonJulie WilliamsGil and Diane YoungMr. and Mrs. V. Scott Zelov

ListcompleteasofOctober4,2012

2012 Opening Night42B

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Barber, Gershwin, and CoplandNovember 1 & 3 8:00 PM November 2 2:00 PMGiancarlo Guerrero Conductor Kirill Gerstein Piano

Barber Medea’sDanceofVengeance Gershwin Piano Concerto in F Copland AppalachianSpring Sierra Sinfonía No. 4

Joshua Bell Performs BernsteinOctober 25 & 27 8:00 PM October 26 2:00 PMVerizon HallYannick Nézet-Séguin ConductorJoshua Bell Violin

Gabriela Lena Frank ConcertinoCusqueño (world premiere)Bernstein Serenade (after Plato’s Symposium)Brahms Symphony No. 4

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October/November The Philadelphia Orchestra

Create-Your-Own 4-Concert Series Now Available!

Enjoy the ultimate in flexibility with a Create-Your-Own 4-Concert Series today! Choose 4 or more concerts that fit your schedule and your tastes. Hurry, before tickets disappear for Yannick’s Inaugural Season.

The 2012-13 season has over 80 performances to choose from including:

Jessica Griffin

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Analyst

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