Toledo Symphony

Description:

Famed for his lyrical and incisive interpretations at the keyboard and the podium, Ignat Solzhenitsyn, music director of the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, returns as both pianist and conductor in one of the most beloved piano concerti in the literature.

Even before the beautiful, limpid theme from the second movement of Mozart’s twenty-first piano concerto was used in the movie Elvira Madigan, this piano concerto has had a special place in the hearts of audiences.   Though it is punctuated by occasional melancholic passages, as a whole, this is one of Mozart’s most cheerful compositions, exuding an aura of calmness, joy, and good humor.  Nonetheless, its unruffled surface belies the polyphonic complexity that underpins one of Mozart’s more large-scale constructions.

Prokofiev shares some characteristics with Mozart – a reputation as a compositional prodigy, a remarkable performing career as a pianist, and a quirky sense of humor, among others.  Indeed, one of Prokofiev’s most famous symphonies is known as the Classical Symphony, a tribute to the writing styles of Haydn and Mozart.  Prokofiev’s most famous symphony, however, and one of his own favorites, is the Fifth, written during a single month in 1944.  The gravitas of the times has a significant impact on the Symphony, particularly in the slow first movement.  However, the Symphony ends triumphantly, with a joyous and vigorous finale.


Points of interest:

• Prokofiev’s Fifth Symphony was tremendously popular at its premiere – its message resonated strongly with a wartime audience.  Indeed, during the premiere, held in January of 1945 in Moscow, gunfire was heard, and was associated with the Soviet army’s final push to victory.  A few days after the premiere, Soviet troops would liberate Warsaw and Auschwitz.
• A week after the American premiere, Prokofiev appeared on the cover of Time Magazine.
• More recently, the beautiful melody of the second movement of Mozart’s twenty-first concerto was heard on the film soundtrack for another boat voyage – but in a somewhat more ironic manner.   Lex Luthor is playing this melody on the sound system of his boat in the recent blockbuster Superman Returns.

Media Sponsor:

Program:

Mozart                    Piano Concerto No. 21 in C Major “Elvira Madigan”    30’
                                    Allegro
                                    Andante
                                    Allegro vivace assai


Intermission


Prokofiev             Symphony No. 5 in B-Flat Major    46’
                                   Andante
                                   Allegro marcato
                                   Adagio
                                   Allegro giocoso


WGTE – FM 91 broadcasts the Toledo Symphony on FM 91 In Concert.  Tonight’s concert will be rebroadcast Thursday, March 20, 2008, at 8:00 p.m. through the generosity of the Edward H. Schmidt Musical Arts Fund.

A preconcert lecture with Dr. Melvin Harsh will be held at 7 p.m. onstage at the Peristyle both nights. Conductor/soloist Ignat Solzhenitsyn will join Dr. Harsh on Saturday night.

Media Sponsor for the Classics Series is WSPD Newsradio 1370 AM.