Waikanae Music Society

PROGRAMME

FENG NING & MICHAEL HOUSTOUN

SUNDAY 13 June AT 2.30PM,
WAIKANAE MEMORIAL HALL

Franz Schubert
(1797-1828)

Fantasy in C Major, D934
Franz Schubert composed the Fantasy in C, his last work for violin and piano, in 1827, and it was premiered by violinist Josef Slavik the following year. Although not a success at its first performance, the Fantasy is acknowledged today as the composer's finest work for violin and piano. It is more substantial and technically demanding for both instruments than the Sonatinas and the popular Rondo Brillant published earlier.
Schubert's Fantasy has four basic sections: a slow introduction, an Allegretto with gypsy-like flavour, a slow section with a glorious set of variations based on the song Sei mir gegrusst, followed by an energetic finale before one last song variation signals the rousing coda. It has Hungarian touches as well as brooding drama. particularly in the development sections. The Fantasy is an imaginative romantic masterpiece and is certainly deserving of more frequent concert performances and recordings.

Ernest Chausson
(1855 - 1899)

Poème Op 25
Ernest Chausson was the only child of a wealthy Parisian builder, and originally trained as a barrister before choosing composing as a career. He studied instrumentation at the Paris Conservatoire under Massenet, and was heavily influenced by Franck and Wagner. Shy and insecure as a child, he grew into an extremely self-critical adult.
Poème was written shortly before his premature death in a bicycle accident. Like much of his music, it echoes his life in its underlying sadness. It was based on a story by the Russian novelist Turgenev. Chausson's friend Debussy wrote: "The Poème shows the composer's best qualities. The quality of the form never contradicts harmonic proportion. Nothing is more touching in its dreamy tenderness than the ending, when the music, leaving aside all deception, and all that is anecdotal, becomes the very feeling that inspires the emotion. These are very rare moments in the work of an artist".

INTERVAL

Gabriel Fauré
(1845-1924)

Sonata in A, Op 13

Allegro molto
Andante
Allegro vivo
Allegro quasi presto
The violin technique required to play the big romantic works was developed essentially in the conservatories of Paris and Brussels, so it is hardly surprising that the greatest 19th Century French composers - Franck, Saint-Saëns and Fauré - should write sonatas for violin and piano. Fauré in fact wrote two of which this is the earlier, written in 1875. Its first public performance, with composer at the piano, was recieved with enthusiasm, especially by Saint-Saëns who published a glowing review.
The opening movement, in sonata form, has an impassioned first theme introduced by piano and continued in the violin. The entire movement has a sense of continuous forward momentum. The D minor Andante is the emotional centre of the work and is characterised by intense chromaticism. It is particularly fascinating for its contrast between the syncopated rhythms of opening and the swaying Barcarolle rhythms of the second theme. Syncopation is also a prominent feature of the nimble Allegro vivo. Its quirky offbeat accents contrast with the more relaxed and expressive central section. The last movement is a harmonically unorthodox sonata form, and again the thematic material is well contrasted. It opens gently but a passage of syncopated octaves in the piano heralds a gradual buildup of tension towards an intense peak. After a calmer interlude the same material returns, culminating in a virtuosic coda.

Niccolò Paganini
(1782-1840)

Le Streghe Op 8 (The Witch)

Maestoso - Thema mit Variationen
Italian composer Niccolò Paganini was one of the foremost violinists of his time. He lived most of his life as a travelling virtuoso, due to his phenomenal technique and appearance, became equivalent of a modern pop star. Notorious for his womanising and gambling, he won and lost considerable fortunes. He mainly performed his own works, which were constructed to show off his abilities, and are still staple challenges for every violinist today.
Le Streghe is a set of variations based on an Air by Süssmayer. It is a show piece that was famously used as a weapon in a concert duel against rival violinist Lafont. Like most of Paganini's compositions, it uses effects that challenged the contemporary technique of his instrument. Listen particularly for double-stop harmonics, left hand pizzicato, and very fast double-stop passages. One has the impression of a rather cheeky and kindly witch in this lighthearted piece.

Franz Schubert (1797-1828) Fantasy in C Major, D934	Franz Schubert composed the Fantasy in C, his last work for violin and piano, in 1827, and it was premiered by violinist Josef Slavik the following year. Although not a success at its first performance, the Fantasy is acknowledged today as the composer's finest work for violin and piano. It is more substantial and technically demanding for both instruments than the Sonatinas and the popular Rondo Brillant published earlier. Schubert's Fantasy has four basic sections: a slow introduction, an Allegretto with gypsy-like flavour, a slow section with a glorious set of variations based on the song Sei mir gegrusst, followed by an energetic finale before one last song variation signals the rousing coda. It has Hungarian touches as well as brooding drama. particularly in the development sections. The Fantasy is an imaginative romantic masterpiece and is certainly deserving of more frequent concert performances and recordings.
Ernest Chausson (1855 - 1899) Poème Op 25	Ernest Chausson was the only child of a wealthy Parisian builder, and originally trained as a barrister before choosing composing as a career. He studied instrumentation at the Paris Conservatoire under Massenet, and was heavily influenced by Franck and Wagner. Shy and insecure as a child, he grew into an extremely self-critical adult. Poème was written shortly before his premature death in a bicycle accident. Like much of his music, it echoes his life in its underlying sadness. It was based on a story by the Russian novelist Turgenev. Chausson's friend Debussy wrote: "The Poème shows the composer's best qualities. The quality of the form never contradicts harmonic proportion. Nothing is more touching in its dreamy tenderness than the ending, when the music, leaving aside all deception, and all that is anecdotal, becomes the very feeling that inspires the emotion. These are very rare moments in the work of an artist".
	INTERVAL
Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924) Sonata in A, Op 13 Allegro molto Andante Allegro vivo Allegro quasi presto	The violin technique required to play the big romantic works was developed essentially in the conservatories of Paris and Brussels, so it is hardly surprising that the greatest 19th Century French composers - Franck, Saint-Saëns and Fauré - should write sonatas for violin and piano. Fauré in fact wrote two of which this is the earlier, written in 1875. Its first public performance, with composer at the piano, was recieved with enthusiasm, especially by Saint-Saëns who published a glowing review. The opening movement, in sonata form, has an impassioned first theme introduced by piano and continued in the violin. The entire movement has a sense of continuous forward momentum. The D minor Andante is the emotional centre of the work and is characterised by intense chromaticism. It is particularly fascinating for its contrast between the syncopated rhythms of opening and the swaying Barcarolle rhythms of the second theme. Syncopation is also a prominent feature of the nimble Allegro vivo. Its quirky offbeat accents contrast with the more relaxed and expressive central section. The last movement is a harmonically unorthodox sonata form, and again the thematic material is well contrasted. It opens gently but a passage of syncopated octaves in the piano heralds a gradual buildup of tension towards an intense peak. After a calmer interlude the same material returns, culminating in a virtuosic coda.
Niccolò Paganini (1782-1840) Le Streghe Op 8 (The Witch) Maestoso - Thema mit Variationen	Italian composer Niccolò Paganini was one of the foremost violinists of his time. He lived most of his life as a travelling virtuoso, due to his phenomenal technique and appearance, became equivalent of a modern pop star. Notorious for his womanising and gambling, he won and lost considerable fortunes. He mainly performed his own works, which were constructed to show off his abilities, and are still staple challenges for every violinist today. Le Streghe is a set of variations based on an Air by Süssmayer. It is a show piece that was famously used as a weapon in a concert duel against rival violinist Lafont. Like most of Paganini's compositions, it uses effects that challenged the contemporary technique of his instrument. Listen particularly for double-stop harmonics, left hand pizzicato, and very fast double-stop passages. One has the impression of a rather cheeky and kindly witch in this lighthearted piece.