Tchaikovsky, "Eugenio Onegin", Polonaise

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was 37 years old when the unhappy idea of getting married popped into his mind. The chosen one (although rather the chosen one was him), nine years his junior, was Antonina Miliukova, a former pupil. As it is known, the marriage lasted two and a half months, although, better expressed, that was how long the life "as a couple" lasted. The master kept sneaking Antonina all that time, until he finally deserted the conjugal bed, for good.
The master had to resort to a rest cure. But he recovered:

"There is no doubt that for some months I have been a bit crazy, and only now, being fully recovered, have I learned to relate objectively to everything I did during my brief period of insanity. The man who in May came up with the idea of marrying Antonina Ivanovna, who during June wrote a whole opera as if nothing had happened, who in September ran away from his wife, who in November embarked for Rome and other such things; that man was not me, but another Pyotr Ilyich."

The opera he wrote "as if nothing had happened" is the most recognized and successful of the twelve he composed, Eugene Onegin, an opera in three acts based freely on the homonymous novel in verse by his compatriot Alexander Pushkin. A social and psychological portrait of Russia in the twenties in the nineteenth century.

Very briefly, the story goes like this:
Tatiana, a naive and dreamy girl, falls for the charms of the sophisticated Eugene Onegin when he goes on a visit to the countryside. Tatiana confesses her love to him, but Eugene rejects her. To make it clear, Onegin decides to flirt with Olga, Tatiana's sister, and fiancée of his best friend, Lensky. Enraged by this behavior, Lensky challenges his friend Onegin to a duel. The event ends with Lensky's death. (It is not superfluous to add here that the poet Pushkin died in a duel, in 1837, when he was just over 37 years old). Onegin disappears for a long time. Years later he meets Tatiana, already married, at a party with an old prince. Onegin sees her dancing a cheerful polonaise, more beautiful than ever. This time it is Tatiana who refuses.

Polonaise, from Eugene Onegin, opus 24
Premiered in 1879 in Moscow, the opera received a warm reception, which continues to this day.
As was customary in the lyric theater of the romantic nineteenth century, scenes of dancing and festivities were not to be missed. In the third act, Onegin reunites Tatiana at a party. The guests enjoy themselves dancing a lively polonaise. This polonaise became very popular and today it is customary to include it in the symphonic repertoire as an autonomous piece.

The Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra is conducted by the Russian conductor Yuri Temirkanov.

Schumann, "Arabesque" for piano, opus 18

Probably a victim of the medical condition we know today as manic-depressive illness, Robert Schumann's life and work embody the quintessence of the romantic artist: the creation of art through suffering. The composer, somewhat reluctant to write long-term works, would display his best lyrical genius in songs and short piano pieces. The brilliant collection of miniatures Kinderszenen, from 1838, is a good example; there his extraordinary ability to translate states of the soul into music is manifested.

A year later, Schumann will leave Leipzig for Vienna, putting great distance between him and Clara Wieck, as a result of the old Wieck's rejection of their relationship. But from there he will communicate with Clara through letters and music. Arabesque opus 18 is part of that troubled connection.

Deep was the depression that assailed the maestro in Vienna. And not only sentimental. It was his teacher who was opposed to his daughter's marriage to a musician who was just starting out in a difficult art. Friedrich Wieck's fervent refusal reflected his faint-hearted expectations of his pupil's professional future. But Schumann, who never imagined himself as a second Beethoven or anything similar, managed in Vienna to create a handful of pieces of remarkable charm and grace, "delicate," he wrote, "for ladies." They are part of an intense work he developed parallel to the via crucis prior to his longed-for marriage to Clara, virtually inventing the brief, poetic romantic piece.

Arabesque, opus 18
Less than seven minutes long, this delicate piece "for ladies" makes no great demands on the performer. It is one of those unique pieces of music that, despite its low technical demands, manages to captivate the listener with its colorful and lively writing.

One might say that its title affirms that arabesques are present, but it is more of a metaphor. The little piece presents a modified rondo form (ABACA) with A, the main, lyrical theme, and two somewhat more intense sections, B and C. When the piece would seem to conclude with the last appearance of the initial theme, Schumann has a surprise in store, an exquisite intimate postlude provides the true closure.

La versión es del pianista chino Lang-Lang.

Alban Berg, Violin Concerto - "To the memory of an angel"

In February 1935, the last year of his life, the Austrian composer Alban Berg was commissioned to compose a concerto for violin and orchestra. The request came from Louis Krasner, a Russian-American violinist who would later build a notable career performing first auditions of the works of his contemporary colleagues. The commission offered was no small sum. But at the time, the fifty-year-old Berg was working intensively on his opera Lulu and, rigorous and methodical as he was, he rejected the proposal. However, Krasner had touched on a sensitive point. For dodecaphonic music to reach a broad audience, he had said, there was nothing better than giving it to them in a friendly format, a concerto. The maestro had doubts. A deep tragedy would finally convince him.

Now we must talk a little about Alma Mahler. Gustav's widow married the famous architect Walter Gropius in 1915. The relationship, from which a daughter, Marion, was born, ended in 1920. Despite the brevity of the bond, Alban Berg built a solid friendship with the couple, adding to it a great affection for little Marion, who was four years old at the time of their separation.

Alma Mahler, Gropius and Marion (1918)

The tragedy
Berg's doubts were dispelled when he learned that spring that eighteen-year-old Marion Gropius had died of polio on April 22. Absorbing all the creative energy that such a tragedy could inspire, he resolved to compose a musical memorial, to honor little Marion. "Before this terrible year is over," he wrote to Alma, "you will be able to hear a score which I will dedicate 'to the memory of an angel' and which encapsulates what I feel and cannot express today." Leaving aside the last act of his opera Lulu (which he will fail to finish), the maestro devoted himself with all his strength to the composition of the violin concerto.

"To the memory of an angel"
Alban Berg usually needed about two years to compose a work of a certain scale. This time, although his health was not the best, he only needed four months. On August 11, the concerto was finished. On the first page of the manuscript, he wrote: "To the memory of an angel", as he had promised. The dedication was extended, of course, to the violinist Krasner, who premiered it the following year in Barcelona. Alban Berg did not get to hear it. He passed away on December 24, 1935.

Violin Concerto
The work, Berg's only concerto for solo instruments, is developed according to the principles of dodecaphonic music that the composer learned from his teacher Arnold Schoenberg. Yet it has become the composer's most popular work, and the most programmed on stage. And despite its daring combination of tonal and atonal language, it is also his most accessible work.

Movements:
There are two, although each includes another section that is played without interruption. According to Berg told his biographer, in the first movement he tried to translate the girl's character traits into musical characters. The second is somewhat less pastoral, perhaps nightmarish, depicting the catastrophe of death. The work ends without fuss. It is not easy to find another work in which the silence that follows the last bars is as important as the one "heard" here.

00:00  Andante - Allegretto
11:37  Allegro - Adagio

The German violinist of Russian origin, Alina Pogostkina, is accompanied by the Gothenburg Symphony under the baton of the German conductor David Afkham.

Mozart, Concerto No 7, for three pianos

Of course, a concerto for three pianos is an unusual orchestral ensemble. Even more so if the work is intended to be performed at home, in a family atmosphere. But well into the eighteenth century, this was not that unusual. We know that in the homes of the aristocracy and the rising bourgeoisie, having a piano in the living room was a symbol of status and more. Naturally, if the nobleman or high bourgeois had achieved a comfortable financial situation, adding another piano raised his status a little higher. A third piano raised him to magnificent heights. This is what we imagine must have happened over time at Countess Lodron's home in Salzburg.

As was usual with Mozart, a good number of his piano concertos were written for specific performers. In his Vienna maturity, he wrote them for himself. In Salzburg, he intended them for his pupils, or, alternatively, for himself and his sister Nannerl. These are concertos that could be accompanied by a small group of strings, so they were perfectly suitable for an evening at home.

Concerto No. 7 for three pianos, in F major, K 242
The concerto for three pianos was composed in 1776 for Countess Antonia Lodron of Salzburg and her two daughters, all three of whom we assume were Mozart's pupils. The copy given to the family by the maestro contains the following dedication, written in his own handwriting:

"To Her Excellency, Her Ladyship, Countess Lodron, and to her daughters, Their Lordships the Countesses Aloysia and Giuseppa."

The parts for each of the three pianos are carefully elaborated according to the abilities and experience of each performer. Two of these parts are of moderate difficulty. The third, on the other hand, demands very modest skills as it was intended for the youngest of the sisters.

In the opinion of some scholars, Concerto No. 7 does not constitute a significant contribution to the maestro's concert production. But some believe that Mozart may have been the only composer capable of writing works intended to shine with modest performers. And the latter does not mean at all that the work is unimaginative or simple.

What there is no doubt about is that its performance does not demand the participation of great virtuosos. For this reason, it is pleasantly surprising that three great masters have been "concerted" in the video presented here.

Movements:
00:00  Allegro
09:04  Adagio
16:50  Rondeau. Tempo di Menuetto

The performance is by the maestros Georg Solti, Andras Schiff, and Daniel Barenboim. It occurs to us that Solti was left in charge of the piano intended for the youngest of the countesses since he must also conduct.

Beethoven, Sonata No 12 - "Funeral March"

For thirty years, Beethoven and Franz Schubert lived in the same city, Vienna. It is unknown whether they ever met. If they had, they would have exchanged entirely opposite views on access to the publication of their works. While the young Franz would have difficulties with his publishers, at the turn of the century the Bonn-born master wrote in a letter that "I do not sign a contract with them [his publishers], I set my own conditions and they pay me". These are good years for Beethoven, he is thirty years old and a celebrity in Vienna. And very productive. In addition to finishing the First Symphony, in 1801, an annus mirabilis, he writes four sonatas. At times he feels discomfort in his ears, but nothing to worry about.

The group of four sonatas includes the renowned Moonlight and Pastoral. It begins with the lesser-known Sonata No. 12, opus 26, which according to some authors would be the last of his classical period and according to others the first of his middle period. There is no doubt that the master is exploring new territories: the sonata has four movements, they are played without interruption, they are all written, unusually, in the same key -A flat-, and the third movement contains a Funeral March, just like Chopin's "Funeral" Sonata. And if all this didn't add up, none of the four movements is written in "allegro de sonata" form (that which takes a theme, develops it and then recapitulates it) even though the piece is a sonata.

Sonata No 12, opus 26, in A flat major - Movements

00:00 Andante con variazoni
One more novelty. The usual allegro of the first movement has been replaced by a theme and variations, five in all. The only known antecedent of this innovation is due to W.A. Mozart, present in the Sonata K331, that of the famous Turkish March.

09:12 Scherzo. Allegro molto
After the variations, the maestro follows the usual classical sequence of fast-slow-fast movements. The second movement, then, is a scherzo, marked allegro molto. Here we meet again a young Beethoven, very agile.

11:55 Marcia fúnebre sulla morte d'un Eroe. Maestoso andante
Funeral march. As expected, there has been a lot of speculation about it, but Beethoven left no trace of who that eroe might have been. Very popular among the Romantics (even today, perhaps: it is the movement we remember most), it was the only Beethoven sonata that Chopin played in public. Its outspoken popularity, moreover, led the master to write an arrangement for wind and brass, which was performed at his funeral.

18:27 Allegro
Against all odds, the funeral march will lead into a brilliant allegro, a brief but impetuous movement in ABA form (A theme, B theme, A theme), with a somewhat dramatic but never too serious B theme. The left hand does not rest in its perpetual motion figurations. A simple coda leads to a finale in which, diminuendo after diminuendo, the sound seems to evaporate.

The performance is by maestro Daniel Barenboim.