Four Centuries of Great Music January 29, 2023 Chamber Music Works That Need to Be Programmed Episode 4

Chamber Music Works That Need to Be Programmed Episode 4

George Whitefield Chadwick: 4th string quartet in E minor.
Today on Four Centuries of Great Music we are opening with music by George Whitefield Chadwick.  Born in 1854 in Lowell, MA and left high school early following his initial training on organ performance.  We went on to enroll for musical training at the New England Conservatory and graduated with performance degree on organ.  He taught organ performance at Olivet College then realizing that his musical career in the U.S. would be limited without further studies in Europe, Chadwick headed to Germany like many other composers of his generation and studied in Leipzig at the Royal Conservatory of Music under Carl Reinecke. Upon returning to the United States, he returned to Boston  and began as a faculty member at the New England Conservatory .  

Along with John Knowles Paine, Horatio Parker, Amy Beach, Arthur Foote, and Edward MacDowell, he was a member of composer collaborative known as the Boston Six and a musical movement often referred to as the Second New England School of American composers of the late 19th century.

His works included several operas, three symphonies, tone poems, incidental music, songs and choral anthems. Along with a group of other composers collectively known as the Boston Six, Chadwick was one of those responsible for the first significant body of concert music by composers from the United States. Chadwick's works are influenced by the Realist movement in the arts, characterized by a down-to-earth depiction of people's lives.  Among his chamber works were 5 string quartets and we will be listening to his 4th string quartet in E minor.    It is in four movements I. Andante moderato - Allegro; II. Andantino simplice; III. Giocoso, un poco moderato - Trio, tempo tranquillo and IV. Finale: Allegro molto risoluto - Lento espressivo - Allegro con brio - Presto

His Fourth String Quartet, composed around the same time as Antonín Dvořák's String Quartet in F (op. 96, "American"), displays a more American folk style, with catchy tunes and pentatonic third-movement fiddle melodies and a modal section which sounds almost Irish.


Let stay with the Boston 6 with a work by Amy Beech, her Piano Quintet in F sharp minor.  We have talked about Amy Beech in a previous episode.  Her Piano Quintet in F sharp minor, Op. 67.  dates from 1908. It is in three movements: I. Adagio - Allegro moderato; II. Adagio espressivo and III. Allegro agitato - Adagio con prima.

The first movement  begins with a dark, brooding Adagio introduction. The main part of the movement, Allegro, begins with a sad melody given out by the first violin, followed by a brief Schubertian episode before the music reverts back to introductory theme. The mood remains dark and mysterious.

The middle movement, Adagio espressivo, opens softly with a lovely, highly romantic melody. Though the music never rises to any huge dramatic climax and for the most part remains relatively soft dynamically, it nonetheless burns with tremendous emotional intensity.

The finale, Allegro agitato, explodes out of the gate with incredible force and forward motion, sounding ever so slightly for a moment like Paul Dukas. It is only with the introduction of the second more lyrical theme that the feverish intensity is lessened. But with the reintroduction of the main subject brings many further dramatic climaxes in its wake.

This Piano Quintet was a milestone in American chamber literature, and for its time was in the vanguard of such works wherever. Long out of print and unavailable, it is great to have it back in the piano trio repertoire and  to reintroduce it once again to the chamber music loving public. American ensembles would do well to make sure a work like this is on their programs not only at home but when touring abroad. And experienced amateurs will be richly rewarded by making this quintet's acquaintance.

Élisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre: Trio Sonata in B-Flat Major

Lets jump back two centuries to the composer Élisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre was born in 1665, into a family of musicians and master instrument-makers in the parish of Saint-Louis-en-l'Île, Paris.

Her grandfather, Jehan Jacquet, and her father, Claude Jacquet, were two very well known French harpsichord makers.  Claude Jacquet taught both his sons and daughters how to survive and thrive in the world. Elisabeth  received her initial musical education from her father. At the age of five, Louis XIV took notice of her when she performed, evidently as a child prodigy, at his palace of Versailles. This eventually led to her becoming a musician in the court of Louis XIV, the Sun King.

She left the royal court and married the organist Marin de La Guerre, son of the late organist at the Sainte-Chapelle, Michel de La Guerre. After her marriage she taught, composed, and gave concerts at home and throughout Paris, to great acclaim.

Jacquet de La Guerre was one of the few well-known female composers of her time, and unlike many of her contemporaries, she composed in a wide variety of forms including opera, choral and solo vocal compositions, and music for large and small ensembles.  Her talent and achievements were acknowledged by Titon du Tillet, who accorded her a place on his Mount Parnassus when she was only 26 years old, next to Lalande and Marais and directly below Lully. After a long and successful career as both a harpsichordist and composer she died in Paris in 1729, aged 64.


Clara Schumann: 3 Romances for Violin and Piano, Op. 22

Lets jump a century and a half into the future with the birth of Clara Wieck in 1819 in Leipzig. When Clara was five, her parents divorced and she stayed with her father. Friedrich Wieck saw the potential in Clara’s musical ability and he began planning her career down to the small details. She received daily lessons in piano, singing, violin, theory, harmony, composition and counterpoint. This was followed by 2-3 hours of practice.

At age 8, Clara performed at the home of Dr. Ernst Carus and met another young musical talent – Robert Schumann. Robert admired Clara’s playing so much that he requested to stop studying law so he could concentrate on music.  At age 11, Clara went on a concert tour to Paris, where she gave her first performances of her career. Whilst there she met Niccoló Paganini who requested to perform with her. By the time she was 18, Clara performed a series of recitals in Vienna. She performed works from Beethoven, Schubert and Chopin. Below is a critique of Clara’s Vienna recitals from an anonymous music critic:
 
“The appearance of this artist can be regarded as epoch-making…In her creative hands, the most ordinary passage, the most routine motive acquires a significant meaning, a colour, which only those with the most consummate artistry can give.”

Robert Schumann proposed to Clara when was 18.  She said yes, but her father forbid the marriage. So the couple went to court to sue Clara’s father. The court ruled that the marriage could go ahead, so in 1840 they wed.  However Robert Schumann’s mental illness developed quickly and in 1854 he attempted suicide and was institutionalized, and in 1856 he died.  Clara Schumann was surrounded by friends such as Joseph Joachim, Albert Dietrich and Johannes Brahms, who helped her through this tragedy.  After her husband’s death Clara returned to concertizing and composing and promoting the music of her late husband. Clara Schumann published all of her late husband’s works. She also began building some hostility to certain composers, notably Liszt and Wagner. And she was unimpressed by composers such as Bruckner and Richard Strauss, whose works were never impressive enough for her taste.

She suffered a stroke and died in 1896 at the age of 76.

Today we will be listening to her 3 Romances for Violin and Piano, Op. 22.   Three Romances for Violin and Piano was dedicated to close friend and virtuoso violinist, Joseph Joachim. Schumann and Joachim went on tour with this piece and they even played it before King George V of Hanover who absolutely loved the work. The work is in three movenents:  Andante molto, Allegretto  and Leidenschaftlich schnell.

I. Andante Molto
The first romance begins with a “gypsy pathos opening” which leads into a very emotional melodic framework. The brief central theme is then developed and embellished throughout this romance. This movement is incredibly passionate and the dialogue between the piano and violin is incredibly effective. The main theme is based loosely on arpeggios, with the final section of this movement referring to Robert Schumann’s First Violin Sonata.
 
II. Allegretto
The second romance is supposedly representative of all three movements as it embodies all the things that link these romances together. It is in G minor and is wistful in character. The main theme played by the violin is syncopated and there is a very melancholy atmosphere created throughout the movement.
The middle section picks up in tempo and the use of embellishments gives this section a shimmering kind of feel. Throughout the movement, the theme is varied a lot considering how short this movement is. The final section, which is back in G minor, reiterates the main theme before resolving with a charming pizzicato statement.
 
III. Leidenschaftlich schnell
The third and final romance is the longest of the three, and it is very similar to the first romance. Instantly there is a rippling accompaniment from the piano which is bubbly and fast-paced. The long melody played on the violin is very simple but it fits very well with very busy accompaniment.

We are going to close todays Four Centuries of Great Music with Albert Dietrich’s Cello Sonata In C Major, Op. 15 written in 1869.  We will talk about Dietrich on another episode in this series.  It is in 4 movements  I. Moderato Espressivo, Non Troppo Lento; II. Allegro Con Fuoco - Poco Più Lento;  III. Poco Adagio - Adagio and  IV. Allegro Con Spirito.   
Albert Dietrich: Cello Sonata In C Major, Op. 15 -  I. Moderato Espressivo, Non Troppo Lento
Albert Dietrich: Cello Sonata In C Major, Op. 15 - II. Allegro Con Fuoco - Poco Più Lento
Albert Dietrich: Cello Sonata In C Major, Op. 15 - III. Poco Adagio - Adagio
Albert Dietrich: Cello Sonata In C Major, Op. 15 - IV. Allegro Con Spirito