Saturday, May 1, 2021 at 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, May 2, 2021 at 3:00 p.m.

First Presbyterian Church

Ankush Kumar Bahl, conductor

The Greenville Symphony Orchestra thanks the staff and congregation of First Presbyterian Church for hosting concerts this season.

 
This General Operating Support Grant program is funded in part by the Metropolitan Arts Council with grants received from the City of Greenville, the South Carolina Arts Commission whichreceives support from the National Endowment for the Arts and private donations.

 
This organization is funded in part by the
South Carolina Arts Commissionwhich receives support
from the National Endowment for the Arts.

VIOLIN

Mary Lee Taylor Kinosian

Concertmaster
  Leila Cunningham Roe Endowed Chair

Shr-Han Wu

Assistant Concertmaster
  Uwe Diestel Endowed Chair

Robin Hague Els 

Catherine Hazan 

Melissa Dant

Sarah Land 

Inez Hullinger Redman 

VIOLIN

Joanna Mulfinger

Principal

Xiaoli Saliny

Assistant Principal

Kathleen S. Robinson 

Carol Roosevelt  

Elizabeth Fee  

Kristen Browning

Emily Kirkpatrick  

VIOLA

Arthur Ross III
Principal
  Erika and Chuck Riddiford Endowed Chair

Alvoy Bryan, Jr.
Assistant Principal

John Young Shik Concklin 

Scott Garrett 

CELLO

Ismail Akbar
Principal
  Guild of the Greenville Symphony Endowed Chair

Ryan Knott
Assistant Principal

David Saliny   

Cynthia Sulko   

DOUBLE BASS

Tim Easter
Principal
  Anonymous Endowed Chair

Ian Bracchitta
Assistant Principal

Maurice Belle   

TIMPANI

Daniel Kirkpatrick
Principal
  Nancy B. Stanton Endowed Chair

PRODUCTION MANAGER

Laura Auvil

PRINCIPAL LIBRARIAN

John Wickey

‘Sensational Strings’

Program Notes by Paul Hyde

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‘Simple Symphony”

Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)

British composer Benjamin Britten prefaces his 1934 score with this message:

“The ‘Simple Symphony’ is entirely based on material from works which the composer wrote between the ages of nine and 12. Although the development of these is in many places quite new, there are large stretches of the work which are taken bodily from the early pieces — save for the re-scoring for strings.” 

Britten called this string symphony “simple” because of its brevity and straightforward structure. The composer gave each of the four movements a title:

• “Boisterous Bourree” presents a lively syncopated theme (boisterous indeed) that will be balanced by a more lyrical second melody. The basic material comes from Britten’s Suite No. 1 for Piano, written in 1926. A note on the dance form: A “bourree” is a spirited French dance of the baroque period often beginning on an upbeat, as does this movement.

• “Playful Pizzicato” is, at the title suggests, a jaunty scherzo in which the strings are plucked rather than bowed. Britten first wrote this music for his Scherzo for Piano in 1924.

• The slow “Sentimental Saraband” is the emotional heart of the symphony. The main melody is nostalgic and gently melancholy. The contrasting second theme takes the form of a lullaby. When the main melody returns, it does so with passionate intensity. The movement closes with fragments of the second theme lullaby. The music is taken from Britten’s Suite No. 2 for Piano (1925). A note on the dance form: A “saraband” originally was a brisk Spanish dance but became a more stately style when introduced in France and England in the early 17^th century.

• “Frolicsome Final” is just what the title says: a movement bursting with youthful hope and vitality. The music comes from Britten’s Piano Sonata No. 9 (1926).

“Rakastava”

Jean Sibelius (1865-1957)

Sibelius’ “Rakastava” (“The Lover”) owes its origins to four songs the Finnish composer wrote for male chorus in 1897. He used those songs as the basis for his “Rakastava” suite, completed in 1912.

The short work features three contrasting sections. The first, simply titled “The Lover,” is filled with passionate longing. The second section, “The Way of the Lover,” is dreamlike, featuring a soft, continuous triplet figure. The final movement, “Good Night, My Beloved. Farewell!” takes the form of a nocturne, alternately melancholy and serene.

Sibelius often conducted “Rakastava” together with his symphonies because the piece “captivated audiences.”

Serenade for Strings

Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904)

There’s nary a cloud in Dvorak’s sunny Serenade for Strings. The 1875 piece seems a product of happy times, and indeed it was. Dvorak had married two years before and his son recently had been born. He had composed some of his finest work to date, including the Fifth Symphony, and was enjoying both financial security and growing recognition as a composer. The Czech composer wrote the serenade in a mere 12 days.

• Moderato. The singing theme at the beginning seems the soul of tranquility. Later, a new dancelike theme will be introduced. The initial theme returns to end the movement in quietude.

• Menuetto. Allegro con moto: A lilting waltz dominates the second movement. The middle section introduces a whiff of tension before the waltz returns.

• Scherzo. Vivace: The scherzo evokes the high spirits of a rustic celebration. The tempo slows, however, for more songful episodes.

• Larghetto. The music grows more reflective and wistful. The flowing melodies and tender phrases provide a sharp contrast to the vigorous third and fifth movements.

• Finale. Allegro vivace: Dvorak offers one of his stylistic trademarks, evoking the fiery spirit of Czech folk music. Dvorak reprises the theme from the beginning of the serenade, bringing the piece full circle. A dynamic coda concludes the work.    

Paul Hyde, a longtime Upstate journalist, is the public information coordinator for the College of Architecture, Arts and Humanities at Clemson University. He writes regularly for the Greenville Journal. Follow him on Facebook and Twitter: @PaulHyde7.