LSO Discovery

Johannes Sebastian Bach is now regarded as the composer who influenced all who followed, but in his lifetime he was merely a jobbing musician moving from job to job as music master to a series of wealthy families. In this role he had to provide music for the weekly church services, for entertainment and for celebration, and he therefore churned out a huge amount of music. In 1722 and 1742 Bach wrote The Well-Tempered Clavier – two sets of 24 Preludes and Fugues, one in each major and minor key. Bach wrote his pieces ‘for the profit and use of musical youth desirous of learning and especially for the pastime of those already skilled in this study'. They are now considered one of the most important musical works of all time.

_{Note by Rachel Leach}

1 Largo e molto espressivo

The oldest of the four Mendelssohn children, Fanny, was the first to display any interest or talent in music. She was taught piano by her mother and was able to play all of Bach’s 24 Preludes and Fugues by the age of just 13. She wrote music throughout her life, amassing more than 460 works mostly for piano or voice, but it was not socially acceptable for women to publish music in the 1800s and her father was very much against it. This Sonata in A major was written around Easter in 1828. Fanny spoke of its composition in her letters, but the work wasn’t published and the manuscript was lost. It was found in France 150 years later and immediately attributed to her brother, Felix Mendelssohn. It then took until 2012 for it to be performed rightfully attributed to Fanny. The opening movement starts with a very simple melody that quickly grows in complexity and passion.

_{Note by Rachel Leach}

Ludwig van Beethoven was in appearance and manner a very unlikely genius. He was often dirty, dishevelled, aggressive and eccentric, but his music radically transformed every genre he wrote in. Tragedy struck at the age of 28 when he began to go deaf and soon could only communicate using a notebook. He only heard his greatest works by imagining the sounds in his head. As well as being one of the finest composers who ever lived, Beethoven was an exceptionally gifted pianist and wrote much for the instrument. A ‘bagatelle’ is a short, characterful piece. This one is part of a set written towards the end of Beethoven’s career and dedicated to his brother Nikolaus. No 6 is the finale of the set and shares a similarity with another great work Beethoven was composing at the time, his mighty Ninth 'Choral' Symphony – both pieces begin with a slightly chaotic flurry of notes.

_{Note by Rachel Leach}

Franz Liszt was the first superstar musician. He was famous all over Europe as a great pianist and women in particular would flock to see his performances, desperate for a small souvenir from the hugely attractive star. He retired from performing at just 35 to concentrate on his composing career and wrote hundreds of incredible works in all genres. His true masterpieces are, of course, for piano. This gorgeous, gentle work is from a suite of pieces written around 1839, inspired by travels around Italy. Francesco Petrarca (whose name is in the title) was a scholar and poet from early-Renaissance Italy, and this is a setting of his Sonnet 123 which talks of ‘seeing angels, their eyes like the sun, who made a sound full of love and sorrow, and who caused a storm, but no leaves moved upon the trees’. Liszt perfectly encapsulates these words with his music.

_{Note by Rachel Leach}

The last of the great romantic composers, Serge Rachmaninoff was really quite behind the times. He was writing music of unparalleled feeling and pathos during a time of musical revolution with the 12-note system and atonalism challenging all that preceded it. The audiences loved him, but the critics were often scathing in their reviews of his work. It is undeniable however that Rachmaninoff was a truly great pianist, perhaps the greatest of all time. Liebesleid (Love’s Sorrow) is one of three short pieces written by Rachmaninoff’s friend, the great violinist Fritz Kreisler. Published in 1905 under a pseudonym, this piece became famous when Kreisler used it as an encore. Rachmaninoff then transcribed it for solo piano in 1931 adding in passages of fiendish difficulty so that he too could use it to show off!

_{Note by Rachel Leach}

Friday 18 February 12.30pm

Robert Schumann Märchenbilder
(Fairy Tale Pictures)
Clara Schumann Two Songs from
‘Six Lieder’ arr for Viola and Piano

Steve Doman viola
Catherine Edwards piano
Rachel Leach presenter

This concert will also be live streamed on the LSO's YouTube channel.