Dvořák’s Cello Concerto

MACA CLASSICS SERIES

Friday 15 & Saturday 16 March 2024, 7.30pm

Perth Concert Hall

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West Australian Symphony Orchestra respectfully acknowledges the Traditional Custodians and Elders of Country throughout Western Australia, and the Whadjuk Noongar people on whose lands we work and share music.

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Asher Fisch | Principal Conductor

Welcome

Returning to Perth to work with my magnificent Orchestra is always a joy, and I am thrilled to embark on another musical journey this year with them and with you.

Our 2024 season is a celebration of exceptional musical talent, and we are thrilled to showcase soloists from within our Orchestra and to welcome outstanding local, international and Australian guests. Our WASO soloists this year include Concertmaster Laurence Jackson, Principal Flute Andrew Nicholson, Principal Clarinet Allan Meyer and Acting Principal Trumpet Jenna Smith. You may also recognise some new faces on the stage this year who have recently passed their trials and become permanent members of the orchestra, including Associate Principal Horn Eve McEwen, Tutti Double Bass Robin Brawley and Tutti Violin William Huxtable. We congratulate them on joining the WASO ranks and wish them all the best for a wonderful career. I’m also delighted to continue working with Jen Winley in her new role as WASO’s Associate Conductor and proud and excited to witness her continuing artistic development.

In our final year at the Perth Concert Hall before its redevelopment, we wanted to share works of scale to revel in and showcase its wonderful acoustics. I’m thrilled to perform the works of Strauss, Wagner, Brahms, Mozart and of course Mahler’s iconic Eighth, the ‘Symphony of a Thousand’. I’m also excited to return to the piano and microphone to host an exploration of the music of one of the most revered figures of Western music in Discover: Beethoven, and pleased to share the news that we will now complete our 2024 season in the Perth Concert Hall. In 2024 WASO continues its proud and longstanding commitment to the performance of new work with world premieres by Lachlan Skipworth, Holly Harrison, James Ledger and WASO Composer in Residence Olivia Davies, and last week I was delighted to share the stage with Noongar composer/ conductor Aaron Wyatt as we premiered his new work The Coming Dawn.

With old favourites, bold undertakings and new experiences, there is so much to explore in our 2024 season. Thank you for supporting this wonderful Orchestra and I look forward to sharing our big bold musical journey together.

Six WASO concerts added to Perth Concert Hall season

Perth Concert Hall will now remain open for the rest of 2024, so all October and November classical performances, previously at Winthrop Hall, have been moved to Perth Concert Hall.

We encourage you to explore the season of Mozart and Brahms and secure your seats now. Book online or contact our friendly box office on 9326 0000.

Dvořák’s Cello Concerto

Bedřich SMETANA The Bartered Bride: Overture (7 mins)

Antonín DVOŘÁK Cello Concerto (40 mins)

Allegro
Adagio ma non troppo
Allegro moderato

Interval (25 mins)

Pyotr Ilyich TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No.4 (44 mins)

Andante sostenuto – Moderato con anima – Moderato assai, quasi Andante – Allegro vivo
Andantino in modo di canzona
Scherzo (Pizzicato ostinato) – Allegro
Finale (Allegro con fuoco)

Asher Fisch conductor
Alban Gerhardt
cello

Asher Fisch appears courtesy of Wesfarmers Arts. First Nations Creative Collaborations are supported by the Bendat Family Foundation.

Wesfarmers Arts Pre-concert Talk
Find out more about the music in the concert with this week’s speaker, Yvonne Frindle. The Pre-concert Talk will take place at 6.45pm in the Terrace Level Foyer.

Did you know?

Tchaikovsky was only four years old when he began composing.

Tchaikovsky suffered from severe anti-social behaviour and irrational stage fright. During his guest conductor appearances, he would hold his hand on his head because he feared that it would become detached from his body.

Smetana’s health began to deteriorate and he went completely deaf in the early 1870s, but the last decade of his life was his most prolific.

Tchaikovsky trained for, and became a lawyer in Russia. At the time, a musical profession didn’t convey the sort of social status that was acceptable to his family’s respected position.

Dvořák was born in a Bohemian village to a very humble background. His father was an innkeeper and butcher who also played the Zither professionally to make ends meet. His parents encouraged his musical training despite their poverty-stricken background.

Johannes Brahms is the one responsible for getting Dvorák in the public eye. Brahms noticed Dvořák during the Austrian State Stipend for composers in which Brahms was a judge.

Alban Gerhardt on Dvořák's Cello Concerto

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