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Alexander Weimann; Pacific Baroque Orchestra
A co-production with the Pacific Baroque Orchestra
To start our 2015-16 Baroque Series at the Vancouver Playhouse, EMV partners with the Pacific Baroque Orchestra led by Alexander Weimann for a performance featuring Johann Sebastian Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos Nos. 2 and 4 as well as concertos for solo recorder and solo trumpet by Georg Philipp Telemann.
Generously supported by Ingrid Söchting
Programme
Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767)
Concerto for Trumpet, Violin, Cello and Strings in D major TWV 53:D5
Vivace/Adagio/Allegro
Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767)
Concerto for Oboe and Strings in D minor TWV 51:D1
Adagio/Allegro/Adagio/Allegro
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Brandenburg Concerto No. 4 for Violin, 2 Recorders and Strings BWV 1049
Allegro/Andante/Presto
INTERVAL
Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767)
Concerto for Recorder and Strings in F major TWV 51:F1
Affetuoso/Allegro/Adagio/Menuet
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 for Trumpet, Oboe, Recorder, Violin and Strings BWV 1047
Allegro/Andante/Allegro/Assai
PROGRAMME NOTES
Tonight’s program is made up of works that demonstrate the expressive and unique characteristics of the dominant solo instruments of the Baroque as well as the creative genius of two of Germany’s most successful composers: Georg Phillip Telemann and Johann Sebastian Bach.
Though J.S. Bach is clearly the more popular of the two composers today, Telemann was extremely highly regarded by his contemporaries and was definitely the more successful businessman. Significantly, it was Telemann, and not J.S. Bach, who was first offered the job of Cantor at St. Thomas’ in Leipzig . While it seems implausible now, Bach was actually third choice for this important role, after Telemann and Graupner. Telemann declined the position, but shrewdly only after having used it as leverage to pry more money out of his employers in Hamburg. In addition to being a great businessman, Telemann was absolutely prodigious in his output-he wrote over 3000 works! He also played a pivotal role in the development of music publishing practices. By pursuing exclusive publication rights for his works, he set one of the earliest precedents for regarding music as the intellectual property of the composer. Sadly, in the early 19th century, a tradition of Telemann bashing began in musical criticism that still resonates today. The basic argument was that anybody who wrote so much music could not be revered as a serious musician. Though it is true that some of his music can be classified in the pleasant and efficient category, anyone who has taken the time to listen to his great oratorios Der Tag des Gerichts or Der Tod Jesu, for example, will find it hard to argue against his immense skill and mastery of baroque musical rhetoric.
While Bach and Telemann were in competition for some of the same high profile jobs, and inhabited very closely connected worlds, it is worth noting that this competition did not seem to have had a negative effect on their respect for one another. There is plentiful evidence demonstrating that they were in regular and amicable contact for much of their adult lives. J.S. Bach respected Telemann enough that he went so far as to ask him to be godfather to his own son Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach in 1714. Telemann appears to have made every effort to continue supporting his godson throughout C.P.E Bach’s adult life. The two concertos by Telemann on this programme hold their own beside the revered Brandenburgs and demonstrate Telemann’s understanding and appreciation of the solistic capabilities of the same instruments used by Bach in his concertos no. 2 and no. 4. Though there is obvious comparative value in presenting all of the concertos in one evening or weekend, the cost of such an endeavour is daunting. From another perspective, it is also worthwhile to see these recognizable masterpieces by Bach in the context of comparable works by another major composer of the period.
Composed between 1711 and 1720, the two works by J.S. Bach on this program are part of the collection known as the Brandenburg Concertos. Dedicated in 1721 to Christian Ludwig the Margrave of Brandenburg and younger brother of King Frederick 1 of Prussia, they were not composed specifically for him but adapted and repackaged from previously composed works. They can be looked upon as a sort of audition compilation for a possible job at the Duke’s court.
At the end of his period in Cothen, Bach’s great supporter, Prince Leopold, married a woman who had little interest, and maybe even some disdain for music. It is in this context that Bach saw the writing on the wall, started quietly looking for other work, and sent these pieces off in the mail to the Duke of Brandenburg. It is known that the Duke never acknowledged receipt of the music, never paid Bach for his services, and never had them performed. The title Brandenburg Concertos was only given to the collection long after the fact, when they were discovered in the Brandenburg archives. The cover page simply refers to them as “Six Concerts Avec Plusieurs Instruments”. They are typical of J.S. Bach in that though they represent a staggering feat of technical virtuosity, they are also so full of energy that the individual concertos seem almost improvised when you hear them in concert. Their enduring appeal and popularity of have made them some of the most recognizable and beloved works in the classical music repertoire. All unique masterpieces with different instrumental complements, they represent an incomparable overview of what was possible to include under the name of concerto. As usual, Bach took accepted conventions and made them very much his own. Now, in full awareness of Bach’s enduring genius, it is almost impossible not to cringe when reading the obsequious dedication of these works to the Duke who had never even bothered to look at them.
“As I had the good fortune a few years ago to be heard by Your Royal Highness, at Your Highness’s commands, and as I noticed then that Your Highness took some pleasure in the little talents which Heaven has given me for Music, and as in taking Leave of Your Royal Highness, Your Highness deigned to honour me with the command to send Your Highness some pieces of my Composition: I have in accordance with Your Highness’s most gracious orders taken the liberty of rendering my most humble duty to Your Royal Highness with the present Concertos, which I have adapted to several instruments; begging Your Highness most humbly not to judge their imperfection with the rigor of that discriminating and sensitive taste, which everyone knows Him to have for musical works, but rather to take into benign Consideration the profound respect and the most humble obedience which I thus attempt to show Him.
Bach did not bet the farm on this potential position. He wisely kept a copy of the manuscripts and re-used movements in the cycle of cantatas that he would begin to write in his next official position as the new Cantor at St. Thomas’s in Leipzig – the same position that Telemann had turned down for a pay raise at home in Hamburg. It worked out well for both of them.
– Matthew White, September 2015
Alexander Weimann
The internationally renowned keyboard artist Alexander Weimann has spent his life enveloped by the therapeutic power and beauty of making music. Alex grew up in Munich. At age three he became fascinated by the intense magic of the church organ. He started piano at six, formal organ lessons at 12 and harpsichord at university (along with theatre theory, medieval Latin and jazz piano.) He is in huge demand as a director, soloist and chamber player, traveling the world with leading North American and European ensembles. He is Artistic Director of the Pacific Baroque Orchestra in Vancouver and teaches at the University of British Columbia where he directs the Baroque Orchestra Mentorship Programme.
Alex has appeared on more than 100 recordings, including the Juno-award-winning album “Prima Donna” with Karina Gauvin and Arion Baroque orchestra. His latest album series “The Art of Improvisation” (Volume 1: A Prayer for Peace; Volume 2: Ad libitum; and Volume 3: Caravan Variations, released on Redshift, 2024) unites his passions for both baroque music and improvisation on organ, harpsichord, and piano.
Pacific Baroque Orchestra
The ‘house band’ of Early Music Vancouver, The Pacific Baroque Orchestra (PBO) is recognized as one of Canada’s most exciting and innovative ensembles performing “early music for modern ears.” Formed in 1990, the orchestra quickly established itself as a force in Vancouver’s burgeoning music scene with the ongoing support of Early Music Vancouver. In 2009, PBO welcomed Alexander Weimann as Director. His imaginative programming, creativity and engaging musicianship have carved out a unique and vital place in the cultural landscape of Vancouver.
PBO regularly joins forces with internationally-celebrated Canadian guest artists, providing performance opportunities for Canadian musicians while exposing West Coast audiences to a spectacular variety of talent. The Orchestra has also toured throughout BC, the northern United States, and across Canada. Their 2019 East Coast Canadian tour with Canadian soprano Karina Gauvin culminated in a critically acclaimed album, Nuit Blanches, released by Atma Classique.
