August 2009 Symphony Season - Program 5
Thursday, August 13, 2009 -
Beethoven Piano concertos & Ballet II
Victor Yampolsky, conductor
Stravinsky: Song of the Volga Boatmen
Beethoven: Piano Concerto #4
Stewart Goodyear, piano
Stravinsky: The Fairy's Kiss Ballet
This program is the second of the three Thursday Beethoven Piano Concerto & Ballet mini-series concerts.
The concert begins with one of the shortest pieces ever performed at the Festival, Stravinsky's Song of the Volga Boatmen, It is only about one minute in duration, so do not be distracted or you may miss it!
Stewart Goodyear, who last appeared at the Festival in 2006, returns to perform Beethoven's Piano Concerto #4. It begins with only the piano, a departure from the usual practice and a radial step at the time but continues in an especially lyrical vein. This concerto was last performed at the Festival in 1986 with John Browning. Stewart Goodyear returns on Saturday, August 15 to perform the rarely heard Beethoven Fantasy for Piano, Chorus, and Orchestra.
The program concludes with Stravinsky's homage to Tchaikovsky on the 35th anniversary of his death, the Fairy's Kiss Ballet. Based on melodies of Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky gives us his uniquely lean orchestral sonority.
Hear Music Director Victor Yampolsky and Associate Conductor Stephen Alltop discuss this program and some unique aspects of the music by clicking here.
Program Notes for this concert
This concert is sponsored by the Egan Foundation & the Egan Family in memory of Peg Egan