JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH (1685-1750)
Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 in F Major, BWV 1046 (ca. 1713)
In 1721 Bach presented his magnum opus, the six Brandenburg Concertos, to Christian Ludwig, Margrave of Brandenburg, a man who had his own private orchestra and who had issued the commission. Bach was understandably pleased (though still appropriately humble for a non-royal), as is evident from the dedication of the compositions, which reads in part: “Your Highness took some small pleasure in the small talents which Heaven has given me for music and…deigned to honor me with the command to send your Highness some pieces of my own composition.” Bach had hoped to land a job at the Margrave’s court, but this was not to be. Christian Ludwig apparently never had the concertos performed and, unbelievable as it may seem to us today, these six masterpieces languished until 1850, when they were finally published. Cast in four movements (rather than the expected three) the First Brandenburg Concerto is scored for solo violin, two solo hunting horns, and three oboes, plus bassoon, and the usual strings and basso continuo (probably performed by the cello here). Though the typical concerto grosso would feature a smaller group of instruments contrasting with a larger one, the First Brandenburg Concerto is more creative and seeks greater variety in the various combinations of instruments. The brisk Allegro showcases the entire ensemble punctuated by a few solo passages; a beautiful melody weaves its way through the lovely Adagio, with the solo oboe and violin entwined in exquisite counterpoint; the Allegro features an extended solo for violin and a star turn for the horns; the last movement is a brilliant series of minuets and interludes that is nothing short of exuberant.

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART (1756-1791)
Violin Concerto No. 5 in A Major, K. 219, “Turkish” (1775)
Mozart’s violin concertos, composed when he was still a teen, provide ample substantiation that the young man understood the instrument; yet he didn’t enjoy playing it. Still, in 1772 the 16-year-old accepted the post of concertmaster in the court orchestra of Hieronymus Colloredo, the Prince-Archbishop of Salzburg, hated by the young composer. He eventually gave up performing violin in public in favor of the piano, after finally quitting the employ of the court (and receiving a literal kick in the pants from Count Karl Arco, Colloredo’s chief chamberlain; the archbishop is said to have added: “Let him go; I don’t need him!”). In this final violin concerto Mozart surprises the listener with some unexpected techniques right in the first movement, when he introduces the solo violin—not echoing the first theme of the orchestral introduction, but rather with an expressive slow theme that arises from it. After a sublime Adagio, Mozart gives us a taste of Turkish music in the last movement (very fashionable and a source of fascination in the18th century), thus accounting for the concerto’s nickname. Watch for special effects from the low strings playing with the backs of their bows to imitate the sound of drums beaten with wooden sticks, as the Janissaries (elite soldiers of the Ottoman Empire) go marching past. The concerto ends with a delightful and unexpectedly understated cadence.

ROBERT SCHUMANN (1810-1856)
Symphony No. 4 in D Minor, Op. 120 (1841, rev. 1851)
1841, the year Robert Schumann composed the Fourth Symphony and one year after his hard-won marriage to his darling Clara, was one of unprecedented creativity. Up to that time, his output had been focused on piano works, Lieder (art songs), and smaller-scale compositions. Then he was ready to tackle orchestral works and composed two symphonies that year. No sooner had he completed his First Symphony, “Spring,” than he set to work on the present Symphony No. 4, presenting the manuscript to Clara on her 22nd birthday in late summer of 1841. He had told her that he would portray her in this symphony, and indeed, there is a melody that appears throughout the work that Schumann referred to as the “Clara” theme. She recorded her delight at her husband’s creativity in her diary, noting, “Yesterday he began another symphony …and I can see from the way he acts that it will be another work drawn from the very depths of his soul.” After a trial performance that garnered only a lukewarm response, Schumann didn’t touch the work for ten years. In the intervening decade Schumann composed his second and third symphonic works before returning to and radically revising his D Minor symphony. Now more heavily orchestrated, it carries the number four and explains the seemingly erroneous ordering. A compact work that is performed essentially without pause, it begins slowly, broodingly, with material that becomes fuel for the entire work. The Romanze second movement shows off Schumann’s great gift for creating gorgeous melodies; the third movement Scherzo is in turn tempestuous and gentle; a sense of anticipation marks the finale, but all ends with a big, exciting payoff as the music dashes ever faster to a frenzied climax. When the revised Fourth Symphony was finally performed in 1853 by the Düsseldorf Municipal Orchestra (whose music director Schumann was), it proved to be a great success.

Lorin Maazel, who has led more than 150 orchestras in more than 5,000 opera and concert performances, became Music Director of the New York Philharmonic in September 2002. His appointment came 60 years after his debut with the Orchestra at Lewisohn Stadium, then the Orchestra’s summer venue. As Music Director he has conducted seven World Premiere–NewYork Philharmonic Commissions, including the Pulitzer Prize– and Grammy Award–winning On the Transmigration of Souls by John Adams; Stephen Hartke’s Symphony No. 3; and Melinda Wagner’s Trombone Concerto. He has led cycles of works by Brahms, Beethoven, and Tchaikovsky; and he conducted the Orchestra’s inaugural performances in the DG Concerts series — a groundbreaking initiative to offer downloadable New York Philharmonic concerts exclusively on iTunes.

Mr. Maazel has taken the Orchestra on numerous international tours, including the historic visit to Pyongyang, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, in February 2008 — the first performance there by an American orchestra, and an event watched around the world. Other recent tours have included Asia 2008 — to Taipei, Kaohsiung, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Beijing; the May 2007 Tour of Europe; the November 2006 visit to Japan and Korea; the Philharmonic Tour of Italy in June 2006, sponsored by Generali; the two-part 75th Anniversary European Tour to thirteen cities in five countries in the fall of 2005; and residencies in Cagliari, Sardinia, and at the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival in Colorado.

In addition to the New York Philharmonic, Mr. Maazel is music director of the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia in Valencia, Spain. A frequent conductor on the world’s operatic stages, he returned to The Metropolitan Opera in January 2008 for the first time in 45 years to conduct Wagner’s Die Walküre.

Prior to his tenure as New York Philharmonic Music Director, Mr. Maazel led more than 100 performances of the Orchestra as a guest conductor. He served as music director of the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (1993–2002), and has held positions as music director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (1988–96); general manager and chief conductor of the Vienna Staatsoper (1982–84); music director of The Cleveland Orchestra (1972–82); and artistic director and chief conductor of the Deutsche Oper Berlin (1965–71). He is an honorary member of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and an honorary member of the Vienna Philharmonic. On February 17, 2009, he will be named a Commander of the Legion of Honor by the government of France.

A second-generation American, born in Paris, Mr. Maazel was raised and educated in the United States. He took his first violin lesson at age five, and first conducting lesson at seven. Between ages 9 and 15 he conducted most of the major American orchestras. In 1953 he made his European conducting debut in Catania, Italy.

Mr. Maazel is also an accomplished composer. His opera, 1984, received its world premiere on May 3, 2005, at London’s Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. It was revived in the 2007–08 season at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan, and has been released on DVD by Decca.

German violinist Julia Fischer was Gramophone’s youngest ever Artist of the Year in 2007, and at 25 years of age is Germany’s youngest professor of violin at the Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst Frankfurt am Main. At the age of 12 she won the Yehudi Menuhin International Violin Competition, an event that catapulted her toward a career as a soloist.

During the 2008–09 season, Ms. Fischer will make her debuts with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Los Angeles Philharmonic, and return to the New York Philharmonic, and to Carnegie Hall with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. She will also appear with the Boston and San Francisco Symphony Orchestras and The Philadelphia Orchestra. In Japan she will make her NHK Symphony debut. Ms. Fischer will perform with the Zurich’s Tonhalle Orchestra, Rome’s Orchestra of Santa Cecilia, and the Philharmonia Orchestra, and will tour with the Netherlands Philharmonic and return to the Gewandhaus Orchestra and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. In 2009–10 she will tour her solo Bach sonatas and partitas in Europe and the U.S. and will be Artist-in-Residence with the Tonhalle in Zurich and, similarly, in 2010–11 in Baden Baden.

A prolific recitalist, Ms. Fischer will be heard in recital in 10 North American and 9 German and Austrian cities as leader and soloist for the 50th anniversary tour of the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields.

Ms. Fischer is an exclusive recording artist for Decca. Her first album of Bach concertos recorded with the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields will be released in winter 2009. Her recording of Bach’s sonatas and partitas for solo violin earned worldwide critical praise including three of France’s most prestigious awards: the Diapason d’Or; the CHOC from Le Monde de la Musique; and the highest rating from Classica Repertoire.

New York Philharmonic Concertmaster Glenn Dicterow has established himself worldwide as one of the most prominent American concert artists of his generation. His extraordinary musical gifts became apparent when, at age 11, he made his solo debut in Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto with the Los Angeles Philharmonic (where his father, Harold Dicterow, served as principal of the second violin section for 52 years). In the following years, Mr. Dicterow became one of the most sought-after young artists, appearing as soloist from coast to coast.

Mr. Dicterow, who has won numerous awards and competitions, is a graduate of The Juilliard School, where he was a student of Ivan Galamian. In 1967, at the age of 18, he performed as soloist with the New York Philharmonic under Andre Kostelanetz in Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto. In 1980 he joined the Orchestra as Concertmaster, and has since performed as soloist every year, both on tour and in New York. Prior to joining the New York Philharmonic, he served as Associate Concertmaster and Concertmaster of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Among his appearances on tour with the Philharmonic was his performance of the Barber Violin Concerto during the Orchestra’s 1998 Asian Tour, in Manila, Korea, and in Beijing, China, where he performed in The Great Hall of the People to an audience of more than 10,000 people. Most recently, he performed Bernstein’s Serenade with the Philharmonic at Carnegie Hall, and Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 1, at Avery Fisher Hall, both in November 2008.

Mr. Dicterow, who frequently appears as a guest soloist with other orchestras, has made numerous recordings. His most recent CD is a solo recital for Cala Records entitled New York Legends, featuring John Corigliano’s Sonata for Violin and Piano, Korngold’s Much Ado About Nothing, the premiere recording of Leonard Bernstein’s Sonata for Violin and Piano, and Martinů’s Three Madrigals for violin and viola, in collaboration with violist Karen Dreyfus and pianist Gerald Robbins. His recording of Bernstein’s Serenade, on Volume 2 of the American Celebration set, is available on the New York Philharmonic’s Website, nyphil.org. Mr. Dicterow can also be heard in the violin solos of the film scores for The Turning Point, The Untouchables, Altered States, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, and Interview with the Vampire, among others.

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Liang Wang joined the Philharmonic as Principal Oboe in September 2006; in February 2008 he performed Richard Strauss’s Oboe Concerto with the Orchestra in Hong Kong. Previously he was principal oboe of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Santa Fe Opera, and San Francisco Ballet Orchestra, and was guest principal oboe at the Chicago and San Francisco Symphony Orchestras. Born in Qing Dao, China, he studied at the Beijing Central Conservatory and at California’s Idyllwild Arts Academy. He received his bachelor’s degree from Philadelphia’s Curtis Institute of Music, and was a fellowship recipient at the Aspen Music Festival and School and at the Music Academy of the West. He has won awards at the Spotlight Competition of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the Pasadena Instrumental, Fernard Gillet International Oboe, and Tilden Prize competitions, and he has twice received the Los Angeles Philharmonic Fellowship. He has performed chamber music at the Santa Fe and Angel Fire Festivals; given master classes at the Cincinnati Conservatory; and was on the oboe faculty of the University of California–Berkeley.

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Associate Principal Oboe Sherry Sylar joined the New York Philharmonic in 1984. Previously she performed with the Louisville Orchestra and taught at the University of Evansville in Indiana. Her most recent solo performance with the Philharmonic was in J.S. Bach’s Concerto for Oboe and Violin in March 2005. In 2001 the Boston Symphony Orchestra invited her to perform solo principal oboe in tour performances led by Bernard Haitink, which concluded with a concert at Carnegie Hall, and in 2003 she substituted for an ailing principal oboist for the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France’s Carnegie Hall debut conducted by Myung-Whun Chung. She was also invited to China as a judge in the Beijing National Orchestra’s first-ever auditions. Ms. Sylar earned her bachelor’s degree in music at Indiana University and her master’s degree from Northwestern University. She gives master classes internationally, has participated in the Aspen and Grand Teton Music Festivals, and performs chamber music regularly, including at Merkin Concert Hall and the 92nd Street Y. She is on the faculty of the Mannes College of Music.

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Oboist Robert Botti joined the New York Philharmonic in 1992, having been principal oboe of the New York City Opera Orchestra. He has appeared as soloist with the New York Symphonic Ensemble and performed in the Grand Teton, Bach Stony Brook, and Music from Colorado festivals. He has collaborated and recorded with Gunther Schuller and Wynton Marsalis as a guest artist with Jazz at Lincoln Center, and is a member of the Sylvan Winds, with whom he has given many premieres. He can be heard on recordings with the Philharmonic’s Principal Bassoon Judith LeClair, Sylvan Winds, Philharmonia Virtuosi, New York Kammermusiker, Amadeus Ensemble, and Harmonie Ensemble; he is featured on the premiere recording of Arnold Sturm’s Suite for Oboe and Piano. Mr. Botti holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from The Juilliard School. He is on the faculty of the Manhattan School of Music, New York University, and SUNY–Purchase, and has given master classes at Yale, Princeton, and Indiana universities.

Judith LeClair joined the Philharmonic as Principal Bassoon (The Pels Family Chair) in 1981, at the age of 23, and has since made more than 50 solo appearances with the Orchestra. Previously she was principal bassoon with the San Diego Symphony and San Diego Opera. She has participated in the Music from Angel Fire, Bridgehampton, Bay Chamber, and Aspen music festivals, and she performs as a member of the Philharmonic Woodwind Quintet of New York. Ms. LeClair has given solo recitals and master classes at the Eastman School of Music, Oberlin College, University of Colorado at Boulder, and Northwestern, Michigan, and Ohio universities. Every August she gives a solo recital and weeklong master class at the Hidden Valley Music Seminar in Carmel Valley, California. In April 1995 she premiered The Five Sacred Trees, a concerto written for her by John Williams and commissioned by the Philharmonic as part of its 150th Anniversary celebration. Her recording of the piece with the London Symphony Orchestra and her solo New York Legends CD for Cala Records were released in 1997. Ms LeClair is on the faculty of The Juilliard School.

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Philip Myers joined the Philharmonic as Principal French Horn (The Ruth F. and Alan J. Broder Chair) in January 1980, and made his solo debut with the Orchestra that month in the premiere of William Schuman’s Three Colloquies for French Horn and Orchestra. He has since appeared as a Philharmonic soloist often, most recently performing Mozart’s Horn Concerto No. 2, conducted by Lorin Maazel, in New York in January 2008 and again in February 2008 in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, and Shanghai, China. Mr. Myers began his orchestral career in 1971 with a three-year term as principal horn of the Atlantic Symphony in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He was third horn with the Pittsburgh Symphony from 1974 until 1977. As principal horn of the Minnesota Orchestra for a season and a half, he made a solo debut with that ensemble in 1979, performing Richard Strauss’s Horn Concerto No. 1, Sir Neville Marriner conducting. A native of Elkhart, Indiana, Mr. Myers holds two degrees from Carnegie–Mellon University in Pittsburgh. He plays Engelbert Schmid French horns.

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R. Allen Spanjer joined the Philharmonic as Second Horn in February 1993. He appeared with the Orchestra as a featured soloist in performances of Schumann’s Konzertstück for Four Horns in 1995, 2001, and 2007, as well as on the Philharmonic’s 1996 European Festivals Tour and 2001 Latin American Tour. He was also featured in 1996 in Vivaldi’s Concerto for Two Horns with Principal Horn Philip Myers. Prior to joining the Philharmonic Mr. Spanjer served as a frequent substitute with the Orchestra, as well as with the Pittsburgh Symphony; he also spent one season as second horn of the Orquesta Filarmonica de la UNAM in Mexico. Mr. Spanjer studied at the Interlochen Arts Academy; The Juilliard School; the Tanglewood, Aspen, and Waterloo music festivals; and at SUNY–Purchase. He is on the artist faculty of the Brevard Music Center, of which he is an alumnus, and frequently performs as a chamber musician. He has written for The Horn Call, the journal of the International Horn Society, and was featured at the 1999 Symposium of the International Horn Society and the 2000 and 2001 Northeast Horn Workshops.