 
|
|
Join Us For Our 2025-2026 Season! |
|
|
Jupiter Symphony Chamber Players “This was music-making of a very high order” Fred Kirshnit, The New York Sun |
||||||||
|
||||||||
View Our Printable Calendar and Ticket Order Form (pdf) Take a look at our guest artists for this season. |
||||||||
|
||||||||
Join us for our next concerts...
Monday, February 2 ♦ 2 PM & 7:30 PM Tickets: $25, $17 ~ Reservations advised Evren Ozel piano William Hagen violin Paul Neubauer viola Ariel Horowitz violin Gaeun Kim cello Robin Park cello Vadim Lando clarinet Wilhelm Friedrich VOIGT Notturno Op. 75 Voigt (1833–1894), a Prussian military musician and composer, was born in the German city of Coblenz. His first teacher was his father, an oboist and military band director. After attending schools in Coblenz and Trier, he studied music in Cologne, and piano at the Leipzig and Berlin conservatories. Among his teachers was Ferdinand Hiller. In 1857 Voigt became a staff oboist in the 1st Foot Guards of the Royal Prussian Army, and led the music corps stationed in Potsdam. He became a military band conductor and eventually rose to the highest musical military rank in the Prussian Royal Army. In 1866 he participated in the Austro-Prussian War, and in 1870–1871 he served in the Franco-Prussian War. After the end of the campaign, he received an Iron Cross 2nd Class. The medal was awarded to soldiers for acts of bravery during the War, which led to the unification of Germany under Prussian leadership. Voigt was also a professor at the Berlin Hochschule für Musik. Most of his compositions are for military band, although he wrote chamber music as well. SCHUMANN Piano Trio No. 2 in F Major Op. 80 After its premiere, Clara Schumann wrote in her diary, “I love it passionately and want to play it again and again.” The music writer Donald G. Gíslason recognized “shadows” of Bach, Beethoven, and Schubert in the Trio: “From Schubert he admired the flights of fancy and ‘logical discontinuities’ that drove the Viennese composer’s music to such ‘heavenly length.’ In Beethoven he found a compelling motivic logic hidden beneath a determined harmonic drive. And in Bach, well, in Bach he found everything: contrapuntal logic, harmonic drive, and what he most admired—poetry.” After the Trio was rehearsed in Düsseldorf in mid-November 1851, it made is premiere in Leipzig in 1852. The dedicatee was the composer Niels Gade. Schumann and Gade had a close friendship and mutual admiration for each other’s music; they spent time together, and even went on excursions and trips. Schumann spent much of his life in Leipzig, a stimulating cultural city that influenced his work. He studied law at the University of Leipzig, and piano with his future father-in-law Friedrich Wieck, whose daughter Clara he met when she was just 9 years old. They married in 1840 when she turned 21. In 1843, the Leipzig Conservatory was established with Mendelssohn as director and Schumann as professor of “piano playing, composition, and playing from the score.” He was, however, unsuited to the work and left Leipzig for Dresden, where he lived with Clara from late 1844 to 1850. SCHUBERT String Quintet in C Major D. 956 Written in August and September 1828, Schubert sent the Quintet upon its completion on 2 October to his Leipzig publisher, Heinrich Albert Probst. His accompanying letter informed that “the quintet will only be tried out in the coming days.” It is not certain if Schubert lived to hear it. Probst, however, ignored the work. Six weeks later, Schubert was dead at the age of 31, and the Quintet lay forgotten for over 2 decades. Finally in 1850 the Hellmesberger Quartet—founded by violinist Josef Hellmesberger who had been born 2 weeks before Schubert’s death—premiered the Quintet on 17 November 1850 at the Musikverein in Vienna. It was not published until 1853 or 1854, and then by Spina as Op. 163. Schubert held Beethoven in high esteem; the respect was mutual. While on his deathbed in 1827, Beethoven, upon seeing several of Schubert’s songs, exclaimed, “Truly in Schubert there is the divine spark.” During these dark days, on one of his visits to Beethoven, accompanied by Anselm Hüttenbrenner, the dying man remarked, “You, Anselm, have my mind, but Franz has my soul.” Schubert was a torchbearer at Beethoven’s funeral. |
||||||||
|
||||||||
Monday, February 16 ♦ 2 PM & 7:30 PM Tickets: $25, $17 ~ Reservations advised Michael Stephen Brown piano Julian Rhee violin Maurycy Banaszek viola Christine Lamprea cello Marguerite Cox double bass Vadim Lando clarinet Karl Kramer horn Gina Cuffari bassoon Fritz KREISLER Rondino on a Theme by Beethoven Kreisler himself explained for the Victor Record Catalog, “This theme consists of only eight measures, which occurs in a very early and unimportant composition by Beethoven, now quite forgotten. The little theme itself is of indescribable charm and its rhythm is of such alluring piquancy that it grows by every repetition. In order to set this peculiarity off to advantage, I conceived the idea of writing a rondo around it, the rondo being a form of composition where a short tune returns obstinately in more or less regular intervals. Rondino means ‘little rondo.’ I have tried to keep the old classic style throughout the little piece, and I hope I have succeeded.” The Rondino was dedicated to his colleague, Mischa Elman, the Ukrainian-born Jewish-American violinist. Kreisler’s deep respect for Beethoven is evident in his dedicated performances and interpretation of his works for the violin. He wrote 3 cadenzas for the Violin Concerto (one for each movement), and he edited and published the complete violin and piano sonatas of Beethoven, adding his own editorial markings. His interpretations of the Violin Concerto and Sonatas are recognized for their unique expressiveness and distinct style; his recordings of these are also notable. Kreisler (1875–1962) is regarded as one of the greatest violinists of all time. He was unique in playing with a tone of indescribable sweetness and expressiveness, and his style is reminiscent of the gemütlich lifestyle of prewar Vienna. Born in Vienna, Kreisler began to learn the violin at age 4 with his father, a doctor and enthusiastic amateur violinist. At age 7 he was the youngest ever to enter the Vienna Conservatory, where he studied violin for 3 years with Joseph Hellmesberger and theory with Anton Bruckner. He won a gold medal at age 10, an unprecedented distinction. He then studied composition and violin at the Paris Conservatoire. After a successful concert tour in the United States in 1888–1889, he returned to Vienna to study medicine. Then he studied art in Paris and Rome and served as an officer in the Austrian army. In 1899 he resumed concertizing and became one of the most successful virtuosos of his time. In 1910 Kreisler premiered Edward Elgar’s Violin Concerto (dedicated to him) with the London Symphony Orchestra and Elgar conducting; it was a triumph. After 1915 he lived mainly in the United States but continued to tour widely in Europe. In 1941 he was struck by a truck in New York City and nearly died from the injuries; although he recovered, his playing and hearing were never the same. He died in New York in 1962. Archduke RUDLOPH of Austria Septet in E minor The Septet is attributed to Erzherzog Rudolph von Österreich (Archduke Rudolph). Passionate about music, he was an amateur composer whose works were frequently performed in his day, an important patron (and the only composition pupil) of Beethoven, and a collector. Scholars are divided on the authorship, and some sources cite the later date noted on the manuscript (1850). German musicologist Michael Kube, for one, attributes the Septet to Rudolph and dates it to 1830, according to Grove Music Online; American musicologist Susan Kagan calls this attribution into question. The manuscript copy is located at the Österreichische Nationalbibliothek in Vienna. Archduke Rudolph was Beethoven’s greatest patron. Born in the Pitti Palace in Florence in 1788, he was the youngest son of Emperor Leopold II and youngest brother of Emperor Franz II. “As brother of the Emperor, Rudolph was able to gain access for Beethoven to the highest salons in Vienna. Rudolph was himself a first-class musician. He was an excellent pianist and competent composer. He was the only pupil Beethoven ever took on as student of composition…. In 1809, when Beethoven accepted an invitation from King Jerome of Westphalia (brother of Napoleon Bonaparte) to become Kapellmeister at the court in Kassel, Archduke Rudolph persuaded Prince Lobkowitz and Prince Kinsky that they should pay Beethoven a guaranteed annual salary of 4000 florins—Rudolph contributing 1500 fl., Lobkowitz 700 fl., Kinsky 1800 fl.—on the sole condition that he abandon plans to move to Kassel and remain resident in Vienna for the rest of his life. Beethoven agreed. Then, after the Austrian currency was devalued fivefold in 1811, Kinsky was thrown from his horse and died in 1812, and Lobkowitz went bankrupt and was forced to flee from Vienna in 1813. Archduke Rudolph increased his payment at each stage to ensure Beethoven did not suffer financially. In gratitude, Beethoven dedicated far more compositions to Rudolph than to anyone else [14 in all]—including the Fourth and Fifth (Emperor) Piano Concertos, the Piano Sonatas ‘Les Adieux,’ Hammerklavier and opus III, the Violin Sonata opus 96, the Archduke Piano Trio (named for Rudolph), the Missa Solemnis and the Grosse Fuge. ‘Les Adieux’ was specifically composed for Rudolph when he and the Imperial royal family were forced to leave Vienna in the face of the advancing French army in 1809. The first movement—Das Lebewohl [the Farewell]—was composed before Rudolph left; the second—Die Abwesenheit [the Absence]—was composed during his exile. Beethoven told him he would not compose the third and final movement—Das Wiedersehen, [the Welcome Home]—until the Archduke returned to Vienna, which he duly did in 1810. Archduke Rudolph asked Beethoven in March 1819 to compose a piece to be played at his enthronement as Archbishop of Olmütz a year later. Beethoven embarked on the mighty sacred work, Missa Solemnis, which he didn’t complete until 1823—three years after Rudolph’s enthronement! Archduke Rudolph was an epileptic [like many of the Hapsburgs] and sickly man; original plans for him to join the army were abandoned in favour of a less strenuous career in the church. He died at the early age of 43 [in 1831], only four years after his great idol, Beethoven. He ordered that his heart should be removed from his body and placed in a niche of the cathedral at Olmütz [today’s Olomouc], and that his body should be buried in the Imperial vault at St Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna [Classicfm].” As Beethoven’s only composition pupil Rudolf wrote, over a period of 2 decades of study, a number of respectable compositions—for piano, chamber ensemble, and voice. They were composed within the forms and harmonic language of the period, but with impressive lyricism. His earliest dated work is from 1810; and several of the autograph manuscripts bear corrections, suggestions, and emendations in Beethoven’s hand. Kagan asserts that “A notable feature of his style is a strong lyrical bent, a predilection for arching melodic lines and decorative filigree, especially in the slow movements, that foreshadow the music of Romantic composers of the following generation…. That Beethoven left an imprint on Rudolph’s music is not surprising, considering the powerful nature of Beethoven’s personality and the absolute veneration Rudolph felt for his teacher. However, the actual manifestations of Beethoven’s teaching, seen in those manuscripts in which he made corrections, indicate that for the most part, he allowed the Archduke to develop his compositional ideas quite independently.” Rudolph was one of 50 composers Anton Diabelli invited to write a variation on a waltz tune by Diabelli for a publication entitled Vaterländischer Künstlerverein. Rudolph’s variation, while not as widely celebrated as Beethoven’s, is notable as it was included in the anthology alongside Beethoven’s monumental Diabelli Variations Op. 120. In fact, Rudolph’s variation was published anonymously and identified as “S.R.D.” (Serenissimus Rudolfus Dux). Rudolph’s enthusiasm for music also inspired him to amass a vast library of music, which he made available to Beethoven early in their acquaintance. He began collecting music scores and books about music at age 13. Today, his collection of 18,000 works from 2400 composers is housed at the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde (Society of Friends of Music) in Vienna, as are the letters written by Beethoven to Rudolph. The Archduke’s talent as a pianist manifested itself in his teens, when he was performing in aristocratic salons at age 15. Under Beethoven’s tutelage, he improved noticeably. When Beethoven’s Violin Sonata Op. 96 was premiered on 29 December 1812 by the renowned French virtuoso violinist Pierre Rode, accompanied by Rudolph, a critical observer wrote, “the performance as a whole was good, but we must mention that the piano part was played far better, more in accordance with the spirit of the piece, and with more feeling than that of the violin.” Beethoven also was not satisfied. Apparently, even before Rode’s arrival in Vienna, a deterioration in his playing had been noticed. Furthermore, Rode did not study the violin part of the Sonata and treated the occasion too casually. BEETHOVEN Piano Trio No. 7 in Bb Major “Archduke” Op. 97 “Arguably the finest trio for violin, cello, and piano ever written, it begins marvelously and expansively with an unforgettable, glorious melody that immediately establishes its nobility. This broad stroke sets the tone for the entire piece, a monumental work of larger-than-life architecture in which thoughts develop organically and unhurriedly,” explained the astute critic Fred Kirshnit. It was dedicated to his pupil, the Archduke Rudolph of Austria, hence its moniker. The premiere, which was part of a charity concert, took place on 11 April 1814 at a hotel in Vienna. Beethoven played with violinist Ignaz Schuppanzigh and cellist Joseph Linke. It was one of Beethoven’s final concert appearances as a performer, as his increasing deafness made it impossible for him to continue playing. Schuppanzigh, Beethoven’s lifelong friend and the leader of Prince Lichnowsky’s private String Quartet, premiered many of Beethoven’s string quartets and is regarded as the pioneer of public string quartet concerts. Linke was a member of the Schuppanzigh Quartet. |
||||||||
|
||||||||
Jupiter 2025 - 2026 Season Tickets: $25, $17 ~ Reservation advised Please visit our Media Page to hear Audio Recordings from the Jens Nygaard and Jupiter Symphony Archive Concert Venue:
Office Address:
Like our Facebook page to see photos, videos, Jupiter in the News ConcertoNet
Strad Magazine ConcertoNet
|
As promised, here are the videos of John Field’s Divertissement No. 1 and Sir Hamilton Harty’s Piano Quintet. Fortuitously, our Jupiter musicians had the good sense to record the rehearsal in an impromptu decision, literally minutes before pressing the record button. Pianist Mackenzie Melemed (replacing Roman Rabinovich at the last minute) learned the music in 2 days! Bravo to him. Both works are Irish rarities that were scheduled for the March 16 performances which had to be canceled because of the coronavirus epidemic. Even though the entire program could not be recorded because of technical issues, we are pleased to be able to share with you the 2 musical gems. Enjoy. John FIELD Divertissement No. 1 H. 13 We thank the University of Illinois (Champaign) for a copy of the Divertissement music. Mackenzie Melemed piano
Sir Hamilton HARTY Piano Quintet in F Major Op. 12 Andrew Clements of the Guardian proclaimed the beautiful Quintet “a real discovery: a big, bold statement full of striking melodic ideas and intriguing harmonic shifts, which adds Brahms and Dvořák into Harty’s stylistic mix, together with Tchaikovsky in some passages.” There’s folk music charm as well, reminiscent of Percy Grainger—notably in the Scherzo (Vivace) with its folksy quirks and nonchalance, and the winding, pentatonic melody in the Lento. Our gratitude to the Queen’s University Library in Belfast, Northern Ireland, for a copy of the autograph manuscript of the music. Much thanks, too, to Connor Brown for speedily creating a printed score and parts from Harty’s manuscript. Mackenzie Melemed piano I Allegro 0:00 | |||||||
|
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
||||||||
Jupiter featured on Our Net News American program opener on March 18, with grateful thanks to Michael Shaffer of OurNetNews.com for recording the matinee concert, and making available the Horatio Parker Suite video for our viewing pleasure. Horatio Parker Suite in A Major, Op. 35, composed in 1893 Stephen Beus piano
More video from this performance can be viewed on our media page |
Jupiter on YouTube NEW YORK CANVAS : The Art of Michael McNamara is a video portrait of the artist who has painted iconic images of New York City for more than a decade, capturing the changing urban landscape of his adopted city. Our Jupiter Symphony Chamber Players provide the music from Brahms’s Piano Quartet in G Minor, underscoring the inspiration the artist has drawn from Jens Nygaard and the musicians. Michael was also our Jupiter volunteer from 2002 to 2010. Here is a video of the Jupiter Symphony Chamber Players performance of the Rondo alla Zingarese movement:
The producer-director, Martin Spinelli, also made the EMMY Award-winning “Life On Jupiter: The Story of Jens Nygaard, Musician.” For more information, visit our media
page | |||||||
|
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
||||||||
“Some great musicians get a statue when they pass away. Some get their name imprinted on the roof of a well-known concert hall. But the late conductor Jens Nygaard has a living tribute: an entire ensemble of musicians and a concert series to go along with it... It is one of the city’s cultural jewels... In the end, if Mr. Nygaard was known for anything, it was unmitigated verve. That’s what the audience regularly returned for, and that’s what they got Monday afternoon. To have a grassroots community of musicians continue to celebrate Mr. Nygaard with indomitable performances like these week after week, even without the power of world-famous guest soloists, is proper tribute. And with more large orchestras and ensembles needing more corporate sponsorship year after year, I, for one, hope the Jupiter’s individual subscriber-base remains strong. New York’s musical life needs the spirit of Jens Nygaard, and Mei Ying should be proud she’s keeping it alive.” Read the complete article on our reviews page. |
||||||||
Please send any correspondence to |
||||||||
office address: |
||||||||
MeiYing Manager All
performances, except where otherwise noted, are held at: Copyright © 1999-2026 Jupiter Symphony. All rights reserved. |
||||||||
