Keep. THE BRITISH MUSIC SOCIETY OF NORTHERN IRELAND in association with for бол sob PR2 ay to foo pe The Arts Council of Northern Ireland dot and The Music Department, Queen's University prom a to te dolgu 1977-78 SEASON FIRST RECITAL 5 done bus bangoo had MARIUS MAY (cello) IMOGEN COOPER (piano) avad of Saturday 22 October 1977 hebio at 7.30 p.m. Elmwood Hall, Queen's University

2 Seven Variations in E major on Beethoven 'Bei Männern, welche Liebe fühlen (1770-1827) Throughout his career, Beethoven wrote many sets of variations and is recognised as a supreme exponent of the form.. His works of this type can be roughly divided into two categories: those of a serious purpose, many of which are among his greatest compositions (including the Ninth Symphony and the Diabelli Variations for piano) and those which are of a more lightweight character, mostly written in the earlier part of his career, designed to give pleasure rather than express the deepest thoughts of the composer. Such a work is the set of variations inspired by a popular theme from Mozart's opera 'The Magic Flute, written in 1801. (Four years earlier he had composed another set also taken from the same opera.) In this early essay for cello, Beethoven proves his ideal is that of true chamber music, where both instruments are treated as equal partners. On close inspection of the music, the piano appears to have the more elaborate part, a fact hardly surprising in a work using a stringed instrument whose technique was only starting along a pathway of significant development. Beethoven ensures that the cello is as fully exploited as was possible, within the boundaries of existing technique, in order to counter the more brilliant passage-work of the piano. The design of the variations is orthodox, with the structure and harmonic basis of the theme clearly apparent in each variation. The theme is stated by the piano and immediately echoed by the cello in its tenor register. Thereafter, Beethoven finds different ways, often gay and brilliant, sometimes expressive, of dividing the interest between the two instruments. Amongst

the most telling are the slow variations (numbers four and six) while the Finale in compound time t includes an extended coda, twice the length of tud any preceding variation, featuring the original o theme. boa Sonata No 1 in E minor (op 38) zotoa oinot edit t potong Brahms (1833-1897) site to ponyola ett dtiv doide Allegro non troppo so dtreenis Allegretto quasi Menuetto - Trio Allegro ous at oirt bm toxin Brahms excelled at most forms of musical composition, both small and large scale. He left outstanding examples of symphonic writing in his four symphonies while his finest lieder rank with those of Schubert and Schumann. It is perhaps with his considerable output of chamber music, however, that one finds the composer at his most inspired, producing such works as the Clarinet Quintet, three string quartets, trio combinations for horn, piano and clarinet, three sonatas for violin and piano and two for cello and piano. 1910 The cello sonatas represent the extremes of the composer's life. In his earlier years Brahms was tormented by doubt and self-criticism, destroying or making considerable revision in later years to his musical essays. Such a work was the E minor sonata, the opening two movements of which he began in 1862, but suspended until 1865 when he added a third movement. His second cello sonata in F minor followed twenty-one years later as the composer was reaching a new peak of maturity. The Allegro non troppo opens in sombre fashion with a haunting melody heard on the cello's lower register, gradually rising with a restless intensity

4 to the tenor register. An agitated second theme attempts to arrest the character of the first idea, but with only partial success, having to wait until the dramatic development for fuller exploitation. Following a regular recapitulation, a coda section in the tonic major provides a serene conclusion. In preference to a central slow movement, Brahms springs a surprise by substituting a minuet and trio, which with its elegance of style indebted to the eighteenth century forms a pleasant contrast to the severity of the first movement. A 0230LIA The grace of the minuet and trio is succeeded. by a brusque Allegro in the form of a fugue, a device no doubt inspired by the music of JS Bach, for which Brahms had considerable reverence. The question of balance was obviously uppermost in the composer's mind, as the two instruments are not ideal companions in fugal writing. The cello div struggles hard for equal partnership with the wa piano throughout the contrapuntal finale, only t gaining momentary relief in the occasional lyrical moments that occur. Ortiq be offes o' тов 110-11 bas tduga vd bodomof sonte 3, ont saw dro INTERVAL end of dotdy to stor got th

5 (20 go) on Janacek o (1854-1928) Pohádka (A Fairytale) Con motor ofIA (old moo Con moto Todo Allegro (orgelIA) ofant Following the nationalistic trend in Czech music established by his compatriots Smetana and Dvorák, Leos Janacek pursued this patriotic ideal to an even further degree in the Twentieth Century. He fo consciously renounced the Western European styles and moulded a personal style which emerged from tow the rhythms and inflexions of Moravian peasant speech and song. Nevertheless, his artistic interests da transcended the borders of his homeland to Russia, a country where music and literature gave him much pleasure throughout his lifetime. He demonstrated this amicable attitude to that country by composing music directly under the influence of many prominent Russian authors, including Tolstoy and Zukovsky. In his Fairytale for cello and piano, Janacek was influenced by Zukovsky's stories about Czar Berendcy but intended no specific programmatic connection with that character in the work, which was completed in 1910 and subsequently revised in 1923. atqodo doidw too fast add co niega ba 10 Throughout the three movements, both parts are thematically integrated, with folksong and rhythm prevalent in the fragmented melodic lines and ostinato rhythmic patterns, while the overall structure combines elements of sonata and rondo forms. The effect of worldly make-believe is enchanced by the manner in which each movement seems to dissolve wistfully away, in the best traditions of a piece inspired by folklore.

Sonata in G minor (op 65) 6 Allegro moderato Scherzo (Allegro con brio) Largo A Finale (Allegro) Chopin (1810-1849) One normally considers the musical output of Chopin to be exclusively confined to compositions for solo piano or piano and orchestra. It is therefore interesting to find among his opus numbers three works for cello and piano. His undoubted association with the instrument stemmed from a lifelong friend- ship with Franchomme, a notable French virtuoso cellist of that time. erobred odd bobneemen I It was common practice (and still is) for composers to consult with famous contemporary aidt instrumentalists when wishing to write in the most effective manner for a solo instrument both in su musical and technical terms. Thus, Franchomme offered his Polish friend considerable advice and assistance while the latter completed his cello tud sonata of 1847. They gave the first performance t together at a private concert in the same year oper and again on the last concert in which Chopin appeared in the following year, when the composer already was a sick man with tuberculosis, an affliction which brought a tragic end to his career. en The first movement opens in concerto-like doo fashion with the piano part assuming the role of an orchestra as the cello utters a series of t glorious melodies, within a tightly controlled sonata form development - a surprising feature qat when one recalls Chopin's personal struggle with large scale forms.

7 The second movement, a scherzo, contains in its central section, a melody of particular poignance marked 'cantabile', followed by a reduced version of the opening. The Largo epitomises the romantic concept of beauty with a memorable melody, if somewhat sombre in character, while the Finale contains many rewards for the cello, yet with the piano receiving a fair share of the honours. Although declining in health during its completion, there is little evidence of despair in the actual music. As one writer stated, 'It is as songful as anything he composed... concentrated essence of Chopin'. 事 Notes by Graham Nelson 1000 1200, I Bitsi oda sus exid

THE ARTISTS MARIUS MAY was born in London in 1958, and began playing the cello at the age of seven. Two years later he gave his first concert at the Royal College of Music, and when he was twelve played the Cello Concerto by Saint-Saëns in Edinburgh. He studied under Anna Shuttleworth in London and later with such eminent cellists as Pierre Fournier and André Navarra. Since appearing at the Wigmore Hall, London, in 1973, he has performed as soloist with the London Philharmonic, Scottish National Orchestra, BBC Northern Symphony Orchestra and Bournemouth Sinfonietta. Marius May plays a Tononi cello dating from the early eighteenth century. IMOGEN COOPER studied with Kathleen Long before going to the Paris conservatoire, where she was a pupil of Jacques Fevrier and Yvonne Lefebure. In 1967 she was awarded the premier prix at the Conservatoire, after which she commenced studies with Alfred Brendel. Since winning the Mozart Prize in 1969 she has given many recitals and performed with the leading British orchestras, including appearances at the Proms. She has made several recordings and her recording with Brendel of the Mozart two-piano concerto will be issued shortly.