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S U M M E R 2 0 1 8
PROGRAM NOTES
the Russians were very surprised
by his performance of the sym-
phony, because they were used to
it being done a different way. But
Shostakovich was in attendance for
the last concert of the tour, and he
personally congratulated Bernstein
on his version because it showed off
the celebration of human spirit that
he wanted the symphony to be.
8:00 p.m. Thursday, August 19
Pavilion
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Marin Alsop,
conductor
J’Nai Bridges,
mezzo-soprano
Leonard Bernstein:
Symphony No. 1 (“Jeremiah”)
Gustav Mahler:
Symphony No. 1
This last CSO concert of the sum-
mer is also one filled with Leonard
Bernstein’s personal story. His Jewish
faith was very important to him, so
his First Symphony has several tradi-
tional Jewish themes in it, as well as
a vocal solo part using text from the
Hebrew Bible. It follows the story of
the prophet Jeremiah, ending with
him mourning the destruction of the
city of Jerusalem. When Bernstein
gave the first performance of the
symphony, it was at the height of
World War II, so the story stuck a
chord with a lot of people. But it was
still a special occasion for Bernstein,
because he had become an overnight
star just two and a half months earlier
when he made his surprise first con-
cert appearance with the New York
Philharmonic. (And five months after
the premiere, Bernstein made his first
appearance with the CSO at Ravinia.)
Another one of the composers
that Bernstein made popular was
Gustav Mahler. There are also hints
of Jewish music in Mahler’s First
Symphony, but what really grabs your
attention is how dramatic and theat-
rical it is. He originally wrote it with
a series of scenes to imagine with
each movement, but what stands
out (literally!) is that during the final
minutes of the symphony, the brass
players are supposed to stand and
play their parts. See if you can hear
the difference it makes in the sound
when they stand up!