Ravinia 2023 Issue 6

LAUREN DESBERG (LARK) B ( ) The three-movement Sonata No. 4 in E mi- nor is dedicated to Fritz Kreisler (1875– 1962). Its opening movements evokes the Allemande , a slow dance that orig- inated in Germany during the 16th cen- tury and eventually became the opening dance of the standard Baroque suite. Next comes the stately triple–meter Sarabande , an oriental dance that came to Europe via Spain. Ysaÿe’s dance begins with the violinist playing pizzicato. The rapid Finale , which trips along in uneven 5/8 time, changes to a major key near the end. Ysaÿe dedicated So- nata No. 5 in G major to Belgian violinist Mathieu Crickboom (187 1–194 7), for many years the sec- ond violinist of the Ysaÿe Quartet and later the founder and first violinist of his own quartet with Jo- sep Rocabruna (sec- ond violin), Rafael Gálvez (viola), and Pablo Casals (cello) during his years of resi- dence in Barcelona. L’aurore (Dawn) evokes the slow break of day from first light to the full blaze of sun. The ensuing Danse rustique (Rustic Dance) projects a stately air in the vi- olin’s full chords and irregular phrase lengths. A more capricious central section diverges from the dance character. The Danse rustique resumes at a slightly faster tempo to conclude the sonata. Sonata No. 6 in E major, dedicated to the Galician violin- ist Manuel Quiroga Losada (1892–1961), offers a continuous stream of virtuosic writing, making it perhaps the most difficult work in the set. Its fiery charac- ter, inspired by the dedicatee, prompted the nickname “Span- ish Capriccio.” Un- fortunately, Quiroga never performed this sonata. Injured in an accident while on tour in New York (1937), he was forced to aban- don his career. Mathieu Crickboom Manuel Quiroga Losada JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH (1685–1750) Largo from Sonata No. 3 for Solo Violin in C major, BWV 1005 Posterity owes a great debt to Carl Philipp Emanuel, the most famous of Bach’s mu- sician sons, for the preservation of an esti- mated half of his father’s manuscripts. This family archive, which also contained music of other Bach family composers, disappeared during World War II and has only recently resurfaced in Kyiv, Ukraine. Equally import- ant to his father’s legacy were the numerous biographical accounts and letters to Johann Nikolaus Forkel, who wrote the earliest ex- tended biography of Johann Sebastian Bach. Emanuel lauded, among other qualities, his father’s intimate knowledge of string in- struments: “As the greatest expert and judge of harmony, he liked to play the viola, with appropriate loudness and softness. In his youth, and until the approach of old age, he played the violin cleanly and penetratingly. … He understood to perfection the possibil- ities of all string instruments.” Bach’s output for violin in various chamber combinations comprised six sonatas with fully composed harpsichord parts (the “accompanied sona- tas”; BWV 1014–19), two sonatas with con- tinuo accompaniment (i.e., keyboard plus sustaining bass instrument; BWV 1021, 1023), and the six sonatas and partitas for solo violin (BWV 1001–6). Violinists have prized these works as the summa of Baroque violin tech- nique for three centuries. Bach compiled his volume of six works for solo violin while in Köthen (1717–23), al- though some scholars have proposed an earlier starting date during his Weimar years (1708–17). The title page of his autograph manuscript reads: “Six solos for violin with- out an accompanying bass. First book by Joh. Seb. Bach. 1720.” Three pieces are titled so- natas and the others are called partitas. Bach arranged these in alternating fashion, sonata followed by partita. The sonatas contain the four movements of the church sonata form, in slow–fast–slow–fast order; the partitas are suites of dance movements. These technical- ly demanding works remained unpublished, yet not entirely unknown, during Bach’s life- time. Emanuel boasted in 1774: “One of the greatest violinists told me once that he had seen nothing more perfect for learning to be a good violinist, and could suggest nothing better to anyone eager to learn, than the said violin solos without bass.” All six works first appeared in print in 1802. During the early 19th century, several German musicians—notably Felix Mendelssohn and Robert Schumann—provided piano accom- paniments in order to extend their popularity for a new concert audience. Later generations of musicians, among them Johannes Brahms and Ferruccio Busoni, discovered creative inspiration in one particular movement, the Chaconne from Partita No. 2 in D minor. The sonatas and partitas require an astound- ing range of string techniques, many seem- ingly exceeding the violin’s traditional capa- bilities. All three sonatas contain fugues that weave together several independent melodies simultaneously. Other movements contrast single-line writing with full four-note chords. In essence, Bach translated polyphonic key- board textures to a lone string instrument. In the Sonata No. 3 in C major, BWV 1005, the Largo third movement exudes a gentle, lyrical expression in its shapely melodic phrases supported by occasional multi-stop chords. The true magic of the unaccompanied so- natas and partitas rests in their continued ability to inspire wonder and awe. Brahms best expressed the humbling power of Bach’s creations in a letter to Clara Schumann (June 1877): “Using the technique adapted to a small instrument, the man writes a whole world of the deepest thoughts and most powerful feel- ings. If I could picture myself writing, or even conceiving, such a piece [the Chaconne ], I am certain that the extreme excitement and emo- tional tension would have driven me mad.” –Program notes © 2023 Todd E. Sullivan “Weydenhammer Portrait Fragment” of Johann Sebastian Bach (ca.1730–35), owned by the Weidenhammer family TESSA LARK A 2020 Grammy nominee with her debut re- cording, violinist Tessa Lark has been gather- ing accolades for more than a decade, from the 2012 Naumburg (first prize) and 2014 In- dianapolis (silver medal) Competitions to a 2016 Avery Fisher Career Grant, 2018 Borlet- ti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship, and 2020 Lincoln Center Emerging Artist Award. In addition to technical agility in classical music, Lark has earned acclaim for her performances in her native Kentucky fiddling tradition, regu- larly sharing Appalachian and bluegrass mu- sic and inspiring composers to write for her. Since her concerto debut with the Cincinnati Symphony at age 16, Lark has been a guest of numerous US orchestras and festivals, recent- ly making her debuts at London’s Wigmore Hall and Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Hall. She has also been presented by Lincoln Center, Am- sterdam’s Concertgebouw, the Music Center at Strathmore, Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gard- ner Museum, the Seattle Chamber Music So- ciety, Australia’s Musica Viva Festival, and the Marlboro, Mostly Mozart, Bridgehampton, and La Jolla summer festivals. In 2022 Lark premiered Michael Schachter’s violin concer- to Cycles of Life with the Knoxville Sympho- ny, and this fall she guests with the Alabama Symphony Orchestra to premiere a concerto written for her by its music director, Carlos Izcaray. She has also appeared with the Roy- al Scottish National Orchestra, Louisville Orchestra, and the Indianapolis and Seattle Symphonies, among other ensembles. Lark joined the Albany Symphony for her record- ing debut—featuring Sky , a bluegrass-in- spired concerto written for her by Michael Torke—and her discography has grown to include the recital album Fantasy , featur- ing her own Appalachian Fantasy alongside Schubert, Telemann, Kreisler, and Ravel works; Invention , a duo album with bassist Michael Thurber juxtaposing Bach with their original music; Piazzolla’s The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires with the Buffalo Philharmon- ic; and most recently The Stradgrass Sessions with composer-performers Jon Batiste, Edgar Meyer, Michael Cleveland, and Sierra Hull. Co-host of NPR’s From the Top , she recently became artistic director of Musical Master- works in Connecticut. Tessa Lark was a Ra- vinia Steans Music Institute Piano & Strings Program fellow in 2007 and 2008 and most recently returned to the festival in 2014. Fritz Kreisler RAVINIA.ORG • RAVINIA MAGAZINE 31