Fans of the Evansville
Philharmonic Orchestra get the chance this month to hear the orchestra premiere
a new Clarinet Concerto from American composer Lowell Liebermann, in addition
to two other great pieces of music. Along with the Liebermann piece, at this
month’s Heroic Heights concert on February 20, the EPO will continue its Beethoven-heavy
season by presenting “Eroica,” Beethoven’s
Symphony
No. 3.
Why would a fan of classical music
care about a new piece by Liebermann? He’s a graduate of both the Carnegie Recital School
and the Juilliard School of Music, for one thing. Notable works by Liebermann
include a sonata for flute and guitar composed in 1988 and four cello sonatas
(including one composed just two years ago). Liebermann is also responsible for
1996’s opera The Picture of Dorian Gray,
from Oscar Wilde’s 1890 novel of the same name.
From this new piece, audiences
should expect, if his earlier works are any indication, a combination of
traditional tones and structure with some adventurous harmonies. Jon Manasse,
an American clarinetist, has performed Liebermann’s Clarinet Concerto since its initial premiere in November 2009.
As for the other established pieces
in this concert, the orchestra will begin with a performance of The Hebrides, written in 1830 by Felix
Mendelssohn. It was completed on December 16 of that year under the title of The Lonely Island, but revised a few
years later and retitled to its current name.
Jon Manasse, Clarinet, solos with the Evansville Philharmonic for “Heroic Heights,” part of the Classics Series, on February 20
Although
labeled an overture, The Hebrides is
intended to stand on its own, and does not tell a specific story. Instead, it
sets the scene for listeners and depicts the composer’s journey into FIngal’s
Cave located off the west coast of Scotland. For readers who are
concerned with time constraints, performances of the overture typically run
between 10 and 11 minutes.
After
these two pieces, the EPO will perform Symphony No. 3, also known as Eroica—Italian for heroic. Eroica is
sometimes cited as an endpoint for the Classical Era of music and the beginning
of the Romantic Movement. This symphony
has an entertaining story behind it—originally set to be dedicated to Napoleon,
it was changed to celebrate “the memory of a great man—Prince Franz Joseph
Maximillian Lobkowitz,” after Beethoven became disgusted with Bonaparte, who
was proclaimed Emperor of the French in May 1804.
All
three pieces of music were created by talented and well-known composers, and Evansville concert-goers
should take advantage of the ability to take part in the Liebermann piece’s
premiere. The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. and tickets are available by
ordering them online at www.evansvillephilharmonic.org, calling 812-425-5050,
or visiting the Victory Theatre box office at least two hours prior to the
concert.
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Photo by Christina Lessa
