Synopsis
On today’s date in 2002, a new violin concerto received its premiere by the Boston Symphony and German violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter, with the new work’s composer, Andre Previn conducting. Previn was born in Berlin, came to the United States in 1939, and became an American citizen in 1943.
His concerto reflects a homecoming of sorts in its third movement, “From a Train in Germany.” In 1999, while riding on a German train, Previn had telephoned a birthday greeting to his manager, who suggested that the new composition he was planning for Boston might reflect that return to the country of his birth. And so its third movement ended up incorporating a German children’s song suggested by Anne-Sophie Mutter, one Previn had known as a child.
Autobiographical inferences throughout the concerto are also suggested by an inscription from T.S. Eliot’s Four Quartets, which reads: “We shall not cease from exploration/And the end of all our exploring/will be to arrive where we started/and know the place for the first time.” And, as if to underscore the autobiographical interplay of life and art, Mutter and Previn were married on August 1, 2002, five months after the premiere of “their” Concerto.
Music Played in Today's Program
André Previn (1930-2019): Violin Concerto; Anne-Sophie Mutter, violin; Boston Symphony; André Previn, conductor; DG 474500
On This Day
Births
1681 - German composer Georg Philipp Telemann, in Magdeburg
1727 - Baptism of German composer and keyboard virtuoso Johann Gottlieb Goldberg, in Danzig (now Gdansk)
1804 - Austrian composer and conductor Johann Strauss, Sr., in Vienna
Premieres
1734 - Handel: anthem This is the Day which the Lord hath Made in London at the French Chapel of St. James’s Palace, for the wedding of Princess Anne and Prince Willem, the Prince of Orange (Gregorian date: March 25)
1824 - Schubert: String Quartet in Vienna, by the Schuppanzigh Quartet. Published the following September, this was the only chamber work of Schubert’s published in his lifetime.
1847 - Verdi: opera Macbeth, in Florence at the Teatro della Pergola
1885 - Gilbert & Sullivan: operetta The Mikado, at the Savoy Theatre in London
1963 - Simpson: Symphony No. 3, in Birmingham, England
1975 - Ulysses Kay: Quintet Concerto for brass and orchestra, in New York City
1976 - Paul Creston: Hyas Illahee for chorus and orchestra, in Shreveport, Louisiana
1986 - Harrison Birtwistle: Earth Dances for orchestra, at Royal Festival Hall in London by the BBC Symphony, Peter Eotvos conducting
1996 - Leo Ornstein: Piano Sonata No. 6, at the Yerba Buena Center in San Francisco, by pianist Marvin Tartak
2000 - David Maslanka: Wind Quintet No. 3, in Columbus, Mo., by the Missouri Quintet
2001 - Danielpour: Cello Concerto No. 2 (Through the Ancient Valley), by the New York Philharmonic, Kurt Masur conducting, with soloist Yo-Yo Ma
2002 - Previn: Violin Concerto, by the Boston Symphony with the composer conducting and soloist Anne-Sophie Mutter
2003 - Jim Mobberley: Vox Inhumana for live and prerecorded sounds, in Kansas City, by the NewEar ensemble
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About Composers Datebook®
Host John Birge presents a daily snapshot of composers past and present, with timely information, intriguing musical events and appropriate, accessible music related to each.
He has been hosting, producing and performing classical music for more than 25 years. Since 1997, he has been hosting on Minnesota Public Radio's Classical Music Service. He played French horn for the Cincinnati Symphony and Pops Orchestra and performed with them on their centennial tour of Europe in 1995. He was trained at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, Eastman School of Music and Interlochen Arts Academy.