WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART (1756-1791)
Symphony No. 41, K. 551, Jupiter (1788)
Mozart finished his Symphony No. 40 in late July, 1788; a mere 16 days later, he had completed the present Symphony No. 41—an amazing achievement by any measure. Aptly nicknamed for the king of the gods (probably by the impresario Johann Peter Salomon), his last symphony would set a crown upon his symphonic output. It is one of the illustrious trio of symphonies, No. 39, 40, and 41, composed by Mozart in 1788. We’re plunged immediately into the spirited first movement, with trumpets and drums punctuating the proceedings. Two elegant inner movements ultimately give way to a magnificent finale. Mozart had become acquainted with Johann Sebastian Bach’s music in around 1782, and was particularly fascinated by his fugues. In the last movement of the “Jupiter” he pays homage to the old master, while at the same time showing off his own command of the fugue. It would be a head-spinning exercise to try to explain the interplay of the six intersecting themes; but in the coda they are heard in brilliant profusion in five-part counterpoint until they all come together in a dazzling finale. Suffice it to say, that hearing is believing in Mozart’s genius and is exuberant proof of his mastery of the symphonic form.

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN (1770-1827)
Symphony No. 7 (1811-1812)
Beethoven’s most instantly appealing symphony was first performed in Vienna in 1813, at a benefit concert for Austrian soldiers who had been wounded in the Napoleonic wars. (Also on that program was his “Battle Symphony,” Wellington’s Victory, one of the few works of Beethoven that is not in the first tier of his masterpieces today, but was immensely popular in Beethoven’s lifetime.). The Symphony proved so popular that it was performed three more times in the months following the premiere. Beethoven himself said it was “one of the happiest products of my poor talents.” Still, its rhythmic drive and energy caused some unusual comments from his contemporaries. The many unusual characterizations and comparisons ascribed to it from all quarters, seem to underscore this; for example: the dour Friedrich Wieck (Clara Schumann’s father) opined that the music could only have been written by someone who was seriously intoxicated; Carl Maria von Weber said that Beethoven was ready for the madhouse; music writer Ernest Newman spoke of “a divine intoxication of the spirit”; but Richard Wagner, called it “the apotheosis of the dance” and continued, “if anyone plays the Seventh, tables and benches, cans and cups, the grandmother, the blind and the lame, aye, the children in the cradle fall to dancing.” And it has been choreographed more than once, including by Twyla Tharp for New York City Ballet in 2000. Beginning with an introduction of marvelous anticipation, punctuated by fortissimo chords, the symphony is unleashed with rhythmically complex and unrelenting momentum that never lets up. Even the traditionally slower second movement isn’t particularly slow. This Allegretto, encored at the premiere of the Symphony, has had a life of its own, being played as a separate piece. The driving energy and sheer exuberance of Beethoven’s Seventh will sweep you along, too—from that suspenseful opening to whirlwind ending, where every part of you will feel like dancing.

Alan Gilbert will begin his tenure as Music Director of the New York Philharmonic in the 2009–10 season, the first native New Yorker to hold the post. For his inaugural season he has introduced a number of new initiatives: Composer-in-Residence Magnus Lindberg; The Mary and James G. Wallach Artist-in-Residence Thomas Hampson; an annual three-week festival; and CONTACT, the New York Philharmonic’s new-music series. He will also lead the Orchestra on a major tour of Asia in October 2009, with debuts in Hanoi and Abu Dhabi; a European tour in January 2010; and performances of world, U.S., and New York premieres. Also in the 2009–10 season Mr. Gilbert becomes the first to hold the William Schuman Chair in Musical Studies at The Juilliard School, a position that will include coaching, conducting, and performance master classes.

Highlights of Mr. Gilbert’s 2008–09 season with the New York Philharmonic included the November 14, 2008, Bernstein anniversary concert at Carnegie Hall, and a performance with the Juilliard Orchestra, presented by the Philharmonic, featuring Bernstein’s Symphony No. 3, Kaddish. In May 2009 he conducted the World Premiere of Peter Lieberson’s The World in Flower, a New York Philharmonic Commission, and in July 2009 he led the New York Philharmonic Concerts in the Parks, Presented by Didi and Oscar Schafer, and two concerts at the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival in Colorado.

In June 2008 Mr. Gilbert was named conductor laureate of the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, following his final concert as its chief conductor and artistic advisor. He has been principal guest conductor of Hamburg’s NDR Symphony Orchestra (NDRSO) since 2004. Mr. Gilbert regularly conducts other leading orchestras in the U.S. and abroad, including the Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, and San Francisco symphony orchestras; The Cleveland Orchestra; Munich’s Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra; Amsterdam’s Royal Concertgebouw; and Orchestre National de Lyon. In 2003 he was named the first music director of Santa Fe Opera, where he served for three seasons.

Born and raised in New York City, Alan Gilbert studied at Harvard University, The Curtis Institute of Music, and The Juilliard School; he was a substitute violinist with The Philadelphia Orchestra for two seasons, and assistant conductor of The Cleveland Orchestra from 1995 to 1997. In November 2008 he made his acclaimed Metropolitan Opera debut conducting John Adams’s Dr. Atomic. His recording of Prokofiev’s Scythian Suite with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra was nominated for a 2008 Grammy Award for Best Orchestral Performance.

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