1918-1939: Breaking Away (Sunday)

The second of two concerts centered on the musically rich period between the World Wars features music that forges new paths in all directions by Leoš Janáček, Germaine Tailleferre, and Ernest Bloch. 

• Leoš Janáček: Pohádka (Fairy Tale)
• Germaine Tailleferre: String Quartet
• Ernest Bloch: Piano Quintet No. 1, B.43

Matthew Zerweck & Laura Scalzo, violins; Emily Freudigman, viola; Ken Freudigman, cello; Viktor Valkov, piano 

About the Music: 

JANÁČEK: PODHÁDKA (“FAIRY TALE”)

In 1910, both Igor Stravinsky and Leoš Janáček (1854-1928) made musical settings of Russian folk tales. Stravinsky’s famous Firebird ballet for full orchestra was quite literal and became world famous. Janáček’s Fairy Tale, a more general setting for cello and piano, went relatively unnoticed. This statement is not to take away from the mastery and charm of Janáček’s music, but rather to contrast two opposing approaches to similar material. The full title of Janáček’s work was originally “The Tale of Czar Berendey.” When the composer revised the work in 1923, he shortened the title simply to Fairy Tale.

Briefly, the story goes that Czar Berendey is duped into ransoming the soul of his son, Ivan, to Kashchey, Ruler of the Underworld. When Ivan is old enough, his father tells him of his terrible fate, whereupon Ivan sets out, determined to free himself of the curse. Early in his odyssey, he sees a duckling turned into a beautiful maiden, and they instantly fall in love. She turns out to be Marya, the good daughter of Kashchey. In later episodes, Ivan (with Marya’s help) successfully accomplishes two tasks set for him by Kashchey, but Marya is changed into a flower. Ultimately, the couple are rejoined in a happy ending.

In the Fairy Tale, the cello part represents Ivan while the piano speaks for Marya. These symbols are immediately apparent in the first movement, as a fanfare-like cello pizzicato punctuates the gently curving main theme. A canon (imitation) between the instruments perhaps symbolizes the betrothal of the couple. Soon, however, this tender stroking turns into a gallop, possibly signifying Kashchey’s pursuit of the lovers.

Another piano-cello canonic dialogue opens the second movement, but this spiky theme is answered by a more lyrical variant. The fanfare motive from the first movement returns along with other music heard previously.

The most “Russian” sounding part of the Fairy Tale is the main theme of the final movement. One striking feature that occurs in every movement is a sort of “dissolution” at the end, rather than a solid recapitulation and conclusion. As biographer Jaroslav Vogel points out, this “. . . heightens the fairy-tale atmosphere, and the charm is enhanced by Janacek’s ability to enter completely into the spirit of the old Russian epic tales.”

TAILLEFERRE: STRING QUARTET

In 1917, World World War I was still raging throughout Europe, A group of six composers gathered frequently in Paris to discuss progressive aesthetic theory and practice. Included were Louis Durey, Arthur Honegger, Darius Milhaud, Georges Auric, Francis Poulenc, and Germaine Talleferre. 

The progressive-minded Talleferre (1892-1983) was the only female member of Les Six, and here rebellious nature preceded her there. Born with the family name of Taillefesse, she changed it to Tailleferre to spite her father, who refused to support her musical studies. She took piano lessons with her mother, and began to compose short original pieces. These led to her studies at the Paris Conservatoire, where she met the young composers who, with her, would soon constitute Les Six. Her early relationship with them soon led to her association with the artistic crowds in the districts of Montmartre and Montparnasse. There the idea of Les Six was born, unified by their faith in writer Jean Cocteau’s published ideas.

During the 1920s, Tailleferre wrote many of her most important compositions, and she remained reasonably prolific throughout her long life. In addition to the concert hall, she composed several film scores, music or the radio and television, and incidental music for the theater. Her music for piano solo and concertos was especially profuse.

Talleferre composed her only string quartet during 1917-1919 at the height of her involvement with Les Six. She was a student of Milhaud at the time. The conciseness of each movement suggests that the work may have originated as a composition assignment or a competition entry.

 The quartet opens with a movement marked Modéré. A short theme is passed around between instruments. Then another, led by the Second Violin receives similar treatment. Led by the First Violin a cascading idea now becomes the focus, and this leads to a short coda (or, wrapping up) of the first movement.

Marked Interméde, the second movement opens in a playful, puckish mood. By contrast, the central section is smooth and closely concentrated on two or three short musical ideas. A variant recap of the first section rounds out the intermediate movement.

A somewhat ferocious mood, marked Très ritmé greets us at the opening of the finale. Then, sudden quietness prevails while the players explore the lower regions of their instruments. This congeals into a surprising solo by the first violin. Shifting into a tremulous pattern, the opening music returns, now transformed in mood and texture. A brief transition leads to a recapitulation of the opening material, which soon dissolves into freer expression and a new section of the movement. Then, taking on a veneer of heroism (Un peu plus lent), the music slips slowly into a hushed ending.

BLOCH: PIANO QUINTET NO. 1

Ernest Bloch (1880-1959) was a composer of Swiss origin. His studies and early musical career centered in his native city, Geneva. In 1916, he traveled to the United States as the conductor of a Swiss dance company. When the company suddenly went bankrupt, Bloch was stranded without friends or financial resources. Within a short time, however, he had begun a new career here, at first teaching at the Mannes School of Music, then becoming Director of the Cleveland Institute and later the San Francisco Conservatory. 

Most of the music Bloch composed during the 1920s could be termed “neoclassic” That is, music written in Classical Period forms, or music adhering to formal principles (such as balance and proportion) found in Classical Period composers, notably, Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven. At the same time, Bloch’s own musical style became intensely personal, and consistently so. He completed his Piano Quintet No. 1in 1923.

Tension and drama inform the opening minutes of Bloch’s quintet. In part, this can be attributed to the contrast between the piano’s music and the music for strings. The piano then begins a new “bed” of sound for individual and pairs of strings to etch brief musical statements. This whole passage is a transition to a new theme group, again contrasting piano and strings. Melodies and accompaniments are freely exchanged between strings and piano. These textures are somewhat simplified as the music reaches the epitome of its development. The music becomes declamatory again (as in the opening music), finally tumbling to the conclusion of the movement.

Marked Andante mistico, the central movement begins with the piano offering low-pitched support for sustained fragments of melody exchanged among the strings. This texture now dominates for a substantial period of time until the lower registers of the piano join in the melodic interchange. Strings soon dominate again, offering attractive melodies and duets above the rumbling piano. The whole quintet gradually become more rhapsodic leading to a new section marked misterioso. Former melody fragments return, now supported by steadily rocking rhythms in the piano. Gradually, all the players gel into a rocking rhythm until a climactic moment, when the ensemble gradually re-assembles in an intense quasi-pastoral setting. Again winding down, the music arrives at a restatement of earlier, quieter music. This gradually recedes to a sustained, soft finish.

Allegro energetico reads the tempo marking for the finale. The dance impulse is undeniable, yet the “dancers” seem to stumble often. All this makes for an entertaining movement full of surprises. Mostly unpredictable, the music draws the listener close, waiting for the next surprise. Occasional long-breathed string melodies are stretched across a percussive texture, but they never reach a stable conclusion. Viola and cello struggle to create a melody with   some continuity, and soon the other strings join them. Finally, we hear galloping rhythms accompanying the fragmented melody, now shared with the piano. A great variety of rhythms inform the next pages of this movement, ushering in reminiscences of slower, earlier ideas and melodies. A sizeable and even slower, long-breathed melody leads to a quiet, high-pitched ending to the Quintet.

Notes by Dr. Michael Fink 2023. All rights reserved.

About the Musicians: 

LAURA SCALZO

Originally from Long Island, New York, Laura Scalzo’s love of the violin was sparked by the great violinist, Itzhak Perlman, when she heard him play on “Sesame Street.” She began lessons at the age of 4 and has been playing ever since. She holds degrees from Temple University (BA) and the University of Delaware (MM). Her primary teachers have included William dePasquale, Xiang Gao, and Ellen dePasquale.

Ms. Scalzo joined the first violin section of the San Antonio Symphony in 2011. Ms. Scalzo is also the Assistant Concertmaster of the Mid-Texas Symphony. Before moving to San Antonio, she was a tenured member of the Delaware and Allentown Symphonies.

As a passionate chamber music lover, Ms. Scalzo has performed with various ensembles in San Antonio, New York, Pennsylvania, and Delaware. She is currently a member of the Mid-Texas Chamber Players.

In addition to performing, Ms. Scalzo is an enthusiastic teacher and has maintained a private studio of all levels since 2000. At the University of Delaware, she was Xiang Gao’s teaching assistant and taught the undergraduate non-music majors. She was a professor of violin at Texas Lutheran University from 2013-2015.

Ms. Scalzo has many interests outside of music. In 2020 she launched a blog, www.rootsinthecitytx.com, where she shares her adventures in vegetable and native plant gardening. She is an avid animal lover and amateur chef. She can often be found at home in the kitchen cooking for family and friends, or when not working, attempting to entertain the cats.

MATTHEW ZERWECK

Matthew Zerweck (matthewzerweck.com) began his music studies at age 5, after watching Itzhak Perlman perform on the children’s television show, “Sesame Street.” After studying with several esteemed artist teachers, he entered the Eastman School of Music. He earned degrees from the Eastman School of Music (BM, MM), where he served as teaching assistant to the world renowned violinist and teacher, Charles Castleman.

Formerly the Assistant Concertmaster of the San Antonio Symphony (2008-2012), Matthew teaches violin full time in San Antonio.  His students have played as soloists with the San Antonio Symphony, San Antonio Sinfonietta, and Starlight Symphony Orchestra.  His students occasionally pursue music degrees at competitive colleges and conservatories. 
 
An active performer, Matthew leads the San Antonio Sinfonietta as concertmaster. He’s also performed major concertos with the UIW Orchestra and Youth Orchestras of San Antonio. In 2015, he recorded the lead violin parts for “Upon the Awful Tree,” an independent film with an original score by Matt Dunne. In his free time, Matthew enjoys spending time with his wife, Nancy, his son, Charlie, and five cats.

EMILY WATKINS FREUDIGMAN

Emily Freudigman is Co-Founder of Camerata San Antonio. Emily holds degrees in viola performance from Southern Methodist University, the Peabody Conservatory, and the University of Michigan and has been a Fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center and the Aspen Music Festival and School. She has studied chamber music with members of the Juilliard, Muir, Concord and Tokyo String Quartets, and she has performed with the Grand Rapids, Maryland, Fort Worth and Boston Symphony Orchestras. Emily was the Assistant Principal Viola of the San Antonio Symphony from 2002 to 2019. She maintains an active viola studio in San Antonio – her students perform in the Texas All-State orchestras, attend prestigious summer music camps, including the Eastern and Killington Music Festivals and Interlochen Center for the Arts and have gone on to study at the Cleveland Institute of Music and Peabody Conservatory of Music.

KENNETH FREUDIGMAN

Kenneth Freudigman is Co-Founder and Artistic Director of Camerata San Antonio. Ken was Principal Cello of the San Antonio Symphony from 2004 to 2022 and continues in the role with the new San Antonio Philharmonic. A highly-respected cello pedagogue, Ken also serves as Conductor of YOSA’s Symphony and Concertino Orchestras.

Mr. Freudigman began playing the violin at age six and found his true love, the cello, at the age of nine. After six years of study, he was accepted to attend the prestigious Interlochen Center for the Arts. Upon graduating with honors in music performance, he went on to receive a Bachelor of Music from the Eastman School of Music. He began his orchestral and chamber music career while at Eastman, winning a position with the Rochester Philharmonic and was also a founding member of the Esterhazy Chamber Ensemble. In 1992, Mr. Freudigman joined the New World Symphony, an advanced training orchestra for recent graduates of music schools, under the direction of Michael Tilson Thomas. He has also performed with the Atlanta, Utah, Grand Rapids, Charleston, and Virginia Symphony Orchestras, as well as the Sarasota Opera and the Mexico City Philharmonic. Mr. Freudigman was also a founding member of the American Sinfonietta. 

His orchestra and chamber music engagements have taken him to the major concert halls of Europe, the Middle East, and throughout South and North America. Mr. Freudigman has performed chamber music with members of the Amadeus and Cleveland Quartets and with the pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet. He has been a featured soloist with the World Youth and New World Symphony Orchestras, the San Antonio Symphony and the Mexico City Philharmonic, where he was engaged to perform Shostakovich’s First Cello Concerto. Mr. Freudigman can be heard in recordings on the Argo and Summit record labels, featured with Renee Fleming and the New World Symphony Orchestra performing Bachianas Brasileiras by Heitor Villa-Lobos on BMG Classics, and on Camerata San Antonio’s Grammy-nominated premiere CD, Salon Buenos Aires: Music of Miguel Del Aguila.

VIKTOR VALKOV

Winner of the 2012 New Orleans International Piano Competition, Viktor Valkov has been hailed as a “lion of the keyboard” and “sensational” (Wiesbadener Kurier). A winner of Astral’s 2015 National Auditions, he recently gave a critically acclaimed recital in London’s Wigmore Hall, and appeared as soloist with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra, West Virginia Symphony Orchestra, and the Acadiana Symphony Orchestra.

Mr. Valkov has appeared frequently as a recitalist in the U.S., China, Japan, England, Norway, Germany, Italy, Greece, Bulgaria, and Macedonia. A Japanese tour took him to Tokyo, Toyama, Yokohama, and Okinawa. He has performed with most of the major orchestras in his native Bulgaria, and at most of the country’s important music festivals. He debuted with the Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra, and performed Dimitar Nenov’s Grande Piano Concerto with New Symphony Orchestra under Rossen Milanov, becoming the fifth pianist to perform the concerto, and the only one to do so in its entirety. Mr. Valkov has made a number of recordings for the Bulgarian National Radio archive and has recorded for Bulgarian National Television and Macedonian Radio and Television.

Mr. Valkov’s concerts reflect a vast interest in chamber music as well as lesser-known piano repertoire. He frequently performs with Bulgarian cellist Lachezar Kostov. Both deeply interested in broadening the repertoire for cello/piano duo, they often include such composers as Kabalevsky, Roslavetz, Schnittke, and Saint-Saëns in their programs. In 2009, the Kostov-Valkov Duo gave its Carnegie Hall debut in Zankel Hall, and in 2011 won the Liszt-Garisson International Competition, where they were also awarded the Liszt Prize and special prizes in the collaborative artists category. In 2008, they recorded the entire opus for cello and piano by Nikolay Roslavets, released by Naxos in 2011. Their second CD, Transcriptions and Paraphrases, was released in 2015 and featured their own arrangements of Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsodies Nos. 1 and 2, and the Evocation à la Chapelle Sixtine.

As a soloist, some of Mr. Valkov’s recent projects include Beethoven’s Hammerklavier sonata and Busoni’s Fantasia Contrappuntistica. He has presented a program highlighting composers of the 1600’s, including Froberger, Couperin, Frescobaldi, and Buxtehude, and selections from The Fitzwilliam Virginal Book. His first solo CD was a Naxos release of the complete piano music of Dimitar Nenov. Viktor Valkov is an Assistant Professor of Piano at the University of Utah.