≈ 2 hours · No intermission
Last updated: May 8, 2019
I am delighted to be leading the orchestra in this splendid traditional yearly visit. This is truly one of the highlights of the TSO’s season. Our concert begins with a short but dazzling work by Canadian composer Chan Ka Nin, a playful fanfare he composed for the Sesquicentennial celebrations. The inimitable Louis Lortie is the soloist in Franck’s Symphonic Variations, a richly Romantic work. Despite the fact that he lived and worked in Paris for most of his life, Franck was Belgian, not French, and brought a very unique sensibility to the sounds of the Romantic era – neither French nor German, but somehow in between. Nothing could be more German than the mighty Seventh Symphony by Mahler, possibly his most introspective symphony. It is a vast canvas, atmospheric and dramatic, by turns lyrical and fierce. It is a perfect showcase for a virtuoso orchestra, a tumultuous journey through the human soul.
As part of an exchange program with the NAC Orchestra, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra has performed in Southam Hall every season since the 2004–2005. The TSO’s most recent visit was in May 2018, in Peter Oundjian’s final appearance as Music Director. Guest soloist Leon Fleisher performed Mozart’s Piano Concerto K. 414; Bruckner’s Eighth Symphony was on the program as well.
Repertoire
My New Beautiful, Wonderful, Terrific, Amazing, Fantastic, Magnificent Homeland
Born in Hong Kong, China, December 3, 1949
Now living in Toronto
Sesquie for Canada’s 150th
Composed in 2016 | TSO co-commission
The Toronto Symphony Orchestra’s Canada Mosaic sesquicentennial project entailed reaching out to orchestras across Canada and co-commissioning with them 40 short, fanfare-inspired symphonic works from Canadian composers. These works were performed during the 2016–2017 season both by the partner orchestra and by the TSO. The TSO’s performances of these “Sesquies”, as they were called, were digitally recorded and are available for listening at tso.ca/CanadaMosaic.
This Sesquie, “a short piece with a long title,” as the composer put it, was co-commissioned with Toronto-based chamber orchestra Sinfonia Toronto, who premiered the work on May 5, 2017; the TSO’s own first performance followed three weeks later on May 26. Chan Ka Nin says of his Sesquie that it reflects his enthusiasm for his homeland: “grateful for what Canada has to offer – education, health care, jobs, and a generally peaceful and safe environment. This work tries to capture the essence of being able to live in this most beautiful, wonderful, terrific, amazing, fantastic and magnificent country.”
After emigrating with his family to Vancouver in 1965, Chan studied composition with Jean Coulthard at the University of British Columbia, while simultaneously pursuing a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering. “Jean Coulthard,” Chan says, “more than any one person changed my life. One thing she did was to draw attention to my Chinese culture. ‘Use your original Chinese name’ she told me, ‘and look into yourself as a source.’ She taught me to write music from the heart.” After graduation from UBC, Chan continued studying composition at Indiana University where he obtained master’s and doctoral degrees in music. Since 1982, he has been teaching theory and composition at the University of Toronto.
In 2001, his opera Iron Road, with librettist Mark Brownell, for Tapestry Opera, won the Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding New Musical. The opera is set in the context of the building of the Canadian transcontinental railway, and the role of Chinese labourers in that task. This two-minute sesquie pulses with some of the same “trans-Canadian” energy of that earlier work.
— Program note by David Perlman
Symphonic Variations for Piano and Orchestra
Born in Liège, Belgium, December 10, 1822
Died in Paris, France, November 8, 1890
Franck wrote prolifically for the piano in the early 1840s, during his (brief) career as a virtuoso, but with few exceptions (like the Piano Quintet of 1879) he rarely returned to the instrument after that—until the summer of 1884, when he composed a short, dark symphonic poem with an obbligato piano part, Les Djinns, based on a poem from Victor Hugo’s collection Les Orientales. A great solo work, the Prélude, choral et fugue, followed later the same year, then, in the fall of 1885, the Variations symphoniques (Symphonic Variations) for piano and orchestra, composed in just two months for the French pianist Louis Diémer. Franck had been impressed when he heard Diémer in the Parisian premiere of Les Djinns. “You played splendidly,” he told him. “To try and express my gratitude I will write you a special little piece and dedicate it to you.” He did, and Diémer duly gave the premiere, in Paris, on May 1, 1886, with the composer himself conducting.
The Variations symphoniques is shorter than the average Mozart concerto, but length is the only respect in which it can be considered “little.” It is an ambitious, clever, vibrant work, based on not one but two main themes, both concise and strongly characterized. The first theme comprises two contrasting motifs set in conflict in the opening bars. Its first motif, for the strings in stark octaves, is fast, loud, and violently martial in character; its second motif, for the piano, is slow, soft, and fully harmonized. The second main theme appears a few moments later: a gentle waltz for woodwinds and pizzicato strings, with only some quiet arpeggios in the piano part.
In the first section, the two main themes are introduced and discussed at length by both piano and orchestra. The middle section is a sequence of six variations on the second main theme (with only occasional allusions to the first), each with its own distinctive profile, texture and colours. The intensity of this section mounts impressively, then, with variation six, the tempo slows, and for the first time, the key changes, from F-sharp minor to F-sharp major. A high trill from the piano signals the beginning of a long, rhythmically vital finale, still in F-sharp major, now mostly taken up with the first main theme. Both motifs of the first theme are recast in the form of a happy march, and the work ends in dazzling high spirits.
As music for the piano, the Variations symphoniques is brilliant, and difficult, though the piano does not utterly dominate the proceedings to the degree that it does in the concertos of Chopin and Liszt; throughout, solo and orchestral forces beautifully and tellingly meld. The piano writing is wonderfully varied, especially given the brevity of the piece. There are textures of glittering figuration in the manner of Chopin or Saint-Saëns or even of contemporary salon music, but also heavier “orchestral” textures recalling Brahms and Liszt. It’s a veritable encyclopedia of 19th-century pianism, which Franck managed somehow to squeeze into just 15 minutes of music.
— Program note by Kevin Bazzana
Symphony No. 7 in E Minor
Born in Kalischt, Austria July 7, 1860
Died in Vienna, Austria May 18, 1911
Of the nine completed symphonies Mahler composed, the Seventh is regarded as the most enigmatic. Since its premiere in Prague on September 19, 1908, it has divided critical opinion, and as result, it has been less frequently performed and researched than the others. Recently though, interest in the Seventh Symphony has undergone a renaissance, further illuminating the issues of how and why this work seems to defy expectations.
One take on why the Seventh stands out among Mahler’s orchestral works is its postmodern character. In it, he appears to be surveying the history and possible future of the symphony. For one, he employed the basic structures of the symphony developed since the 18th century – e.g. sonata form, scherzo and trio – but he expanded their formal outlines through constant variation of thematic material. He inserted allusions to popular music (e.g. the waltz), often treated in an ironic manner, and open references to works significant to him (e.g. his own Sixth Symphony and Wagner’s opera Die Meistersinger). Unifying these disparate elements is the duality of “night” and “day,” represented both by Mahler’s use of bitonality (often major and minor keys simultaneously), and the psychological journey from the darker opening movement in E minor to the brilliant C major finale.
The first movement opens with a solemn funeral march (Adagio) that introduces three musical ideas: first, a sombre, dark melody (“the voice of nature” according to Mahler) intoned by the tenor horn, followed by a processional march for woodwinds. By contrast, the second theme, played by the violins, is all sentimentality and passion. Suddenly, mysterious trumpet fanfares and tremolos high in the violins transport the ear to an otherworldly plane; a chorale-like passage provides calming reassurance. But this tranquil interlude does not last, and the opening march mood returns. The rest of the movement recapitulates, ultimately culminating in a dazzling finish.
The central three movements of the symphony are among Mahler’s most fantastic inspirations. He had initially titled the first Nachtmusik as Nachtstück, meaning a musical piece about the night, rather than a piece to be performed during the night. Although he changed it, Nachtstück seems the more appropriate term to describe the shadowy atmosphere of the second movement. Appearances of the “motto” (major-to-minor chord) from his Sixth Symphony add a tinge of melancholy, while mysterious “sounds of the night” abound throughout, created by offstage cowbells, the tam tam, and strings plucked or played with the wood of the bow.
The ensuing Scherzo conjures up phantoms at a ghostly ball – jerky rhythms on timpani and lower strings give way to whirling figures on muted strings, and then a sarcastic waltz tune. The Trio opens with an oboe theme over trilled “drones,” which give it a mock-pastoral effect. When the Scherzo returns, its musical ideas undergo increasingly parodic variations, eventually disintegrating to nothingness. The second Nachtmusik movement evokes the romantic aspects of night through a serenade, which, Mahler told his wife Alma, had been inspired by murmuring streams and the German Romantic poetry of Josef von Eichendorff. Tender themes in the strings are accompanied in turns by combinations of guitar, harp and mandolin; the soaring gesture that opens the movement recurs like a refrain.
From the “night” movements, the listener is suddenly thrust into the “daylight” of the finale. After a brief introduction of battering timpani and woodwind and horn fanfares, a unit of ideas is introduced that is varied throughout the movement. The most prominent of these ideas is the majestic processional theme played by the horns – an open allusion to the main theme of Wagner’s overture to Die Meistersinger. It acts like a signpost, each time signaling a new “round” of variation and development. Before the end, Mahler introduces the solemn march theme (in a minor key) from the first movement; it tussles with one of the finale’s main themes, until finally, the march theme is transfigured into the major and the orchestra celebrates with one of the most grandiose of symphonic endings.
— Program note by Hannah Chan-Hartley
Artists
For over a century, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) has played a fundamental role in shaping and celebrating Canadian culture. Now in our 101st year, the TSO’s commitment to musical excellence and ability to spark connection remain as strong as ever. With a storied history of acclaimed concerts and recordings, Canadian and international tours, and impactful community partnerships, we are dedicated to engaging and enriching local and national communities through vibrant musical experiences. Music Director Gustavo Gimeno brings an expansive artistic vision, intellectual curiosity, and sense of adventure to programming the 93-musician Orchestra that serves Toronto—one of the world’s most diverse cities. As a group of artists, teachers, and advocates who share the belief that music has the power to heal, inspire, and connect people from all walks of life, we engage audiences young and old through an array of education, community-access, and health-and-wellness initiatives. The 2023–2024 season marks the 50th anniversary of the TSO-affiliated Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra—a tuition-free training program dedicated to cultivating the next generation of Canadian artists.
Join us for a concert at Roy Thomson Hall, or experience the TSO in your neighbourhood. Visit TSO.CA or Newsroom.TSO.CA.
For over three decades, French-Canadian pianist Louis Lortie has continued to build a reputation as one of the world’s most versatile pianists; he extends his interpretative voice across a broad spectrum of repertoire, and his performances and award-winning recordings attest to his remarkable musical range.
In demand on five continents, Lortie has established long-term partnerships with orchestras such as the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Dresden Philharmonic, and The Philadelphia Orchestra. In his native Canada he regularly performs with the major orchestras in Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Calgary. Further afield, collaborations include the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, and Orquestra Sinfônica do Estado de São Paulo in Brazil.
In recital and chamber music, Louis Lortie appears in the world’s most prestigious concert halls and festivals, including London’s Wigmore Hall, Carnegie Hall, and Beethovenfest Bonn. Together with fellow pianist Hélène Mercier, as the Lortie-Mercier duo, he has also shed new light on the repertoire for four hands and two pianos both in the concert hall and on several best-selling recordings.
A prolific recording artist, Louis Lortie’s 30-year relationship with Chandos Records has produced a catalogue of over 45 recordings on the label, covering repertoire from Mozart to Stravinsky, including a complete Beethoven sonata cycle and the complete Liszt Années de pèlerinage. Lortie was Master-in-Residence at The Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel of Brussels from 2017 until 2022 and he continues to mentor exceptionally talented pianists. In 1984, he won First Prize in the Busoni Competition and the same year he was a prize-winner at the Leeds Competition. Louis Lortie is co-founder and Artistic Director of the LacMus International Festival on Lake Como, taking place annually every July since 2017.