European premiere of his new “dramatic symphony for violin and orchestra”, Scheherazade.2, with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and Leila Josefowicz as soloist. Composer–conductor John Adams is known the world over as a pioneering composer of operas based on current and recent historical events. Adams has distilled a turbulent symphony from his opera Doctor Atomic, in which Robert Oppenheimer, the ‘father of the atomic bomb’, filled with excitement and doubt, anticipates the very first atomic bomb test in 1945. He also draws inspiration from current events in his instrumental works, as in his new violin concerto Scheherazade.2, written for Leila Josefowicz. Moved by TV footage of oppressed and abused women, Adams juxtaposes the masculine power of the orchestra with a strong woman, an empowered Scheherazade: ‘This one hits back!’ Tromba Lontana is a short, gentle fanfare marking the 150th anniversary of the declaration of independence with which Texas seceded from Mexico in 1836.
Short Rides with John Adams
John Adams is one of the most influential and at the same time most popular US composers of the post-war period, known for his irresistible music in which minimalism is mixed with imaginative orchestration and jazzy verve. The Film accompanied the composer for a year on his explorations and “Short Rides” in Berlin. The film documents both on and off stage encounters with musicians of the Berliner Philharmoniker, old friends and associates such as Sir Simon Rattle, Peter Sellars, Gustavo Dudamel and star violinist Leila
Josefowicz (“I call him Johnny”). A film which is both entertaining and serious, and which features jazz-inspired symphonic and poignant Passion music. A film not only for connaisseurs and admirers – just like the music of John Adams.
RCO: Made in America
Don’t miss the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in an all-American extravaganza from their illustrious home venue in Amsterdam! Susanna Mälkki leads a program entitled “Made in America,” exploring American identity across three rare, well-chosen works. Opening the evening is A Short Piece for Orchestra by 20th-century African-American composer Julia Perry, a neoclassical work of complex and frenetic rhythms tempered by profound lyricism. Next up is the formidable Violin Concerto by John Adams, a revolutionary piece for the instrument whose exceptional melodic richness complements a marvelously original rhythmic frame. Ferociously difficult and rarely played, it is interpreted with brio and assurance by virtuoso violinist Leila Josefowicz. Finally, the concert closes with Charles Ives’s Symphony No. 2, an evocative blend of European influences and New England folklore. PROGRAM Perry: A Short Piece for Orchestra; Adams: Violin Concerto; Ives: Symphony No. 2