We’re halfway through the current pops run (plus one runout to Salem on Monday night) of Broadway classics/favorites, and now thoughts turn to the upcoming Classical series for next weekend.
A highlight will be the solo debut of concertmaster Jun Iwasaki, playing the gorgeous Korngold Violin Concerto, Op. 35.
The Violin Concerto is a lush, Romantic score, with ample opportunities for the soloist to showcase a full, rich tone and also their virtuosity. The concerto was premiered by Jascha Heifetz in 1947, but was actually written for Bronislaw Huberman in 1945, and for reasons unknown to me was dedicated to Mahler’s widow, Alma Mahler-Werfel. Composers who make their livelihood film scoring are by necessity borrowers from both their own previous material and from those of other composers (witness John Williams‘ frequent borrowings from Prokofiev, Strauss, and, yes Korngold himself) and the need for expediency and economy makes such a composer’s concert works no exception. Thus the Violin Concerto takes themes from Korngold’s own Hollywood scoring projects (for Warner Brothers) of the previous decade, most notably from the films Another Dawn (1937), Juárez (1939), Anthony Adverse (1936), and The Prince and the Pauper (1937).
Here’s a video of Hilary Hahn playing the first movement of the Korngold:
Recommended recordings:
Gil Shaham/LSO/Previn Barber: Concerto for violin Op14; Korngold: Much Ado about Nothing Op11
James Ehnes/VSO/Tovey James Ehnes – Korngold, Barber, Walton
The other major work on the program is Richard Strauss’ equally cinematic work Dance of the Seven Veils from his opera Salomé (1905). It’s an orchestral showpiece that depicts the famous dance from the climax of the opera where Salomé dances before King Herod in order to gain the head of John the Baptist. Solo turns by the flute and oboe are highlights to watch for in this evocative score.
Recommended recording:
New York Philharmonic/Maazel Strauss: Don Juan; Death and Transfiguration; Dance of the Seven Veils; Rosenkavalier Suite
Mozart’s Symphony No. 40 is also on the program, and you don’t really need to hear anything more about this masterpiece from anyone, but it will doubtless be a robust and lively account with Maestro Kalmar at the helm.