Mozart 41: Nov. 5
Treyton Oak Towers Coffee series
Thursday, November 5, 2009 | 10:30am | Whitney Hall
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Hilliard Lyons Classics series
Thursday, November 5, 2009 | 8pm | Whitney Hall
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Jorge Mester, conductor
Ilya Kaler, violin
Program
Leonard Bernstein
Fancy Free: Three Dance Variations
Niccolò Paganini
Concerto for Violin No. 1
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Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Symphony No. 41 (“Jupiter”)
Few classical musicians in history boast the pedigree and flair of Niccolò Paganini. He was the consummate showman, astonishing audiences wherever he performed not merely by his flawless technique, but through hidden tricks and clever tunings that his rivals simply could not match, let alone figure out.
He was most secretive with his compositions, not permitting them to be published during his lifetime for fear that others would copy his innovative ideas. The Concerto for Violin, as example – one of his most sensational works, providing the soloist with high-wire feats of immense technical virtuosity – was not published until after his death in 1840.
The only violinist ever to win Gold Medals at all three of the world’s most prestigious competitions, the Tchaikovsky, the Sibelius and the Paganini competitions, Ilya Kaler is already being compared to the likes of Heifetz and Perlman. Kaler’s recordings of the Paganini Caprices have been deemed by American Record Guide to be, “in a class by themselves” combining “the perfection, passion, and phrase-sculpting of Michael Rabin with the energy, excitement, and immediacy of Jascha Heifetz.”
Jorge Mester leads a program including Mozart’s immortal “Jupiter” symphony and a popular overture by Gershwin, harkening back to the early American years of orchestral programming during which conductors often combined a variety of orchestral works in one program. From sweetness and light, to fire and vigor, this program hits all the stops!
