Program notes by Eric Bromberger

Partita for Piano, Harp and Strings (1998)
Victor KISSINE
Born 1953

A NOTE FROM THE COMPOSER

The solo part of the Partita was, at first, intended for a period instrument: piano-forte Hammerflügel or Walter. I was drawn to this ‘authentic’ context not only by the instrument itself, but also because of the pianistic approach which calls for a spirit entirely different from the contemporary piano. This choice determined that of the rest of the instruments, as well as their treatment. It also lies at the source of the form, through which I wished to explore the ‘vertical’ feeling of time. The one, more precisely, that gives the impression that time reflects itself. Trying to transform this feeling into an emotion, I recalled a small poem by Osip Mandelstam that I inserted by way of an epigraph.

The careful and muted sound
Of tree’s fruit falling
Among endless singing
Silent forest depths…

Osip Mandelstam, 1908

Partita is dedicated to the memoryof the composer and harpsichordist Prince André Volokonsky.

Piano Trio in D Minor, Opus 32
Anton ARENSKY
Born July 12, 1861, Novgorod, Russia
Died February 25, 1906, Terioki, Finland

The son of two passionate amateur musicians, Anton Stepanovich Arensky studied with Rimsky-Korsakov at the St. Petersburg Conservatory and received the gold medal on his graduation in 1882. That same year, at age 21, he became professor of harmony at the Moscow Conservatory, where he was a friend and colleague of Tchaikovsky and taught Rachmaninoff, Scriabin, and Glière (Rachmaninoff dedicated his first tone poem, Prince Rostislav, to his teacher). Arensky served as head of the Imperial Chapel in St. Petersburg from 1895 until 1901 and died at age 44 from tuberculosis.

Arensky’s music has today largely disappeared from the concert hall–of his 75 opus numbers, only the Piano Trio in D Minor remains an established part of the repertory. Arensky wrote this trio in 1894 and dedicated it to the memory of Russian cellist Karl Davidov (1838-1889), who had served for several years as principal cellist of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. Arensky has been described as an “eclectic” composer, and the influence of Tchaikovsky is strong here; some have also heard the influence of Mendelssohn, whose own Piano Trio in D Minor is one of the most famous in the literature.

The sonata-form Allegro moderato alternates soaring lyric ideas–there are three separate theme-groups–with dramatic gestures before coming to a quiet close. The ternary-form Scherzo has a brilliant beginning, where the violinist alternates harmonics, spiccatos, and pizzicatos over swirling piano runs; the middle section is a good-natured waltz with the strings dancing above the piano’s rollicking accompaniment.

The third movement, marked Elegia, is the memorial for Davidov, and Arensky has the muted cello–Davidov’s own instrument–introduce the grieving main theme, which is quickly picked up by the violin. The sparkling center section of this movement sounds the most “Tchaikovsky-an,” but this sunlight is short-lived and the somber opening material returns to bring the movement to its close.

The opening of the finale seems consciously dramatic, built on contrasting blocks of sound: the piano’s massive dotted chords and string passagework in octaves and tremolos make for a portentous beginning. All seems set for a conventional spirited finale, but the conclusion brings some surprises: just as Beethoven had done in the finale of his Ninth Symphony, Arensky now revisits themes from earlier movements, bringing back the middle section of the slow movement and the opening theme of the first movement. The trio concludes with a brisk coda derived from the opening of the finale itself.

Ballade No. 1 in G Minor, Opus 23
Ballade No. 2 in F Major, Opus 38
Ballade No. 3 in A-flat Major, Opus 47
Ballade No. 4 in F Minor, Opus 52
Frédéric CHOPIN
Born February 22, 1810, Zelazowa Wola, Poland
Died October 17, 1849, Paris

Chopin himself was the first to use the term “ballade” to refer to a piano composition, appropriating the name from the literary ballad: he appears to have been most taken with the lyric and dramatic possibilities of the term, for his four ballades fuse melodic writing with intensely dramatic–almost explosive–gestures. After Chopin’s death, Liszt, Grieg, Fauré, and Brahms would compose works for solo piano that they too called ballades.

Formally, Chopin’s ballades most closely resemble the sonata-form movement (an opening idea contrasted with a second theme-group, and the two ideas developed and recapitulated), but the ballades are not strictly in sonata-form, nor was Chopin trying to write sonata-form movements. His ballades are quite free in form, and their thematic development and harmonic progression are sometimes wildly original. All four ballades employ a six-beat meter (either 6/4 or 6/8), and the flowing quality of such a meter is particularly well-suited to the sweeping drama of this music. All four demand a pianist of the greatest skill.

Because of the literary association and the dramatic character of the music, many have been quick to search for extra-musical inspiration for the ballades, believing that such music must represent the attempt to capture actual events in sound. Some have heard the Polish struggle for independence in this music, others the depiction of medieval heroism. Chopin himself discouraged this kind of speculation and asked the listener to take the music on its own terms rather than as a representation of something else.

Chopin began work on the Ballade in G Minor in 1831 in Vienna and completed it four years later in Paris. A portentous seven-bar introduction of uncertain tonality gives way to the opening episode, a waltz-like theme in G minor. The second theme is much more dramatic but–curiously–is related to the waltz theme. The second theme undergoes a brilliant development, though this ballade lacks the recapitulation that would be expected at this point in a sonata-form movement. Instead, Chopin brings back the waltz theme briefly before launching into the coda, appropriately marked Presto con fuoco.

Chopin dedicated the Ballade in F Major to Robert Schumann. The actual composition of this piece was spread over several years, and Schumann was surprised when the text published in 1840 bore little resemblance to a version Chopin had played for him in 1836. The Ballade in F Major is built on two distinct theme-groups. The gently-rocking opening, marked Andantino, moves along gracefully but is suddenly shouldered aside when the Presto con fuoco explodes to life. These two sections alternate, and the music comes to a close on a quiet fragment of the opening melody.

Chopin wrote the Ballade in A-flat Major in 1840-41 and performed the work in public in 1842. The least overtly dramatic of the four ballades, this one nevertheless contains music of extraordinary beauty. The opening theme–a quiet, rising figure–also contains the falling half-step that gives shape to the lilting second subject.

Many regard the Ballade in F Minor, composed in 1842 and dedicated to Madame la Baronne de Rothschild, as Chopin’s finest creation. The waltz-like opening theme, marked Andante con moto, gradually evolves into music of unusual animation. A slightly-swung second subject provides contrast, and the two themes alternate in an atmosphere of increasing tension, leading to a grand climax and a brilliant close.