Program Notes | Rachmaninoff Symphony No. 2

Claude Debussy / André Caplet
Born: August 22, 1862, in St-Germain-en-Laye, France
Died: March 25, 1918, in Paris, France
Composed: 1890; final revisions in 1905
World Premiere: Undocumented, but probably in Paris in 1905.
Duration: 5 minutes
Instrumentation: two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, two horns, harp, and strings

Perhaps no piano solo is more beloved to listeners than Clair de Lune. With its ingratiating grace and subtle understatement, this lovely piece lures us into a magical world of tranquility, and nocturnal magic. The piece is actually part of a larger whole, serving as the third movement in Debussy’s Suite Bergamasque, originally composed in 1889 and revised for publication in 1903. The original is said to have been inspired by an eponymous poem by Paul Verlaine, which alludes to both the sadness and the beauty of moonlight. In his book on the composer's piano music, E. Robert Schmitz has written:

Filled with delicate, romantic feeling, it conveys through its precious harmonies the silvery atmosphere of the moonlight. Its elusive before-the-beat and after-the-beat yearnings spirit us away from the matter-of-fact reality of noontide and its vertically blazing light.

Biographer Paul Roberts points out the absences of emphases on individual syllables in French, which is quite different from English. That, and Debussy’s middle section, with its flowing arpeggiated chords, helps to capture the shimmering transparency of moonlight with an essentially simple texture and idiomatic writing. The piece has become so beloved that numerous arrangements have been made, many for solo instruments with piano, and at least six for orchestra. André Caplet’s version is deservedly popular.

Nico Muhly
Born: August 26, 1981, in Randolph, Vermont
Composed: 2023–24
World Premiere: May 4, 2024, in Burlington, Vermont. Adam Tendler was the soloist.
Duration: 43 minutes
Instrumentation: piccolo, flute, two oboes, two clarinets (second doubling bass clarinet), two bassoons (second doubling contrabassoon), two horns, two trumpets, trombone, bass trombones, percussion (three triangles, three woodblocks, kick drum, bass drum, tam tam, chimes, glockenspiel, and vibraphone), solo piano, and strings

The New Jersey Symphony and the Vermont Symphony co-commissioned Sounding. This weekend’s performances are the mid-Atlantic premiere.

Though he is barely in his mid-40s, Nico Muhly has rocketed to the forefront of American music. The Metropolitan Opera has already commissioned him twice, for Two Boys (2011) and Marnie (2018). Other commissions have come in from Carnegie Hall, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Australian Chamber Orchestra, Tallis Scholars, and King’s College Cambridge. Muhly has collaborated with major choreographers in France and the USA and is also active as a film composer.

The son of an art professor at Wellesley and a documentary filmmaker, Muhly grew up in Providence, RI. He holds dual degrees in English from Columbia and in music from Juilliard, where his principal teachers were John Corigliano and Christopher Rouse. While pursuing his master’s at Juilliard, he began an eight-year artistic collaboration with Philip Glass. Now, based in New York, Muhly has a major international career.

Sounding, however, took him back to his Vermont roots. The single-movement concerto, written for and dedicated to fellow Vermont native Adam Tendler, incorporates four hymn tunes by Justin Morgan (1747–1798), a horse breeder and composer who settled in Vermont in the late 1780s. The hymns—“Amanda,” based on Psalm 90; “Montgomery,” (after Psalm 63); “Huntington,” (Psalm 73; transcribed from Asahel Benham’s Federal Harmony, 1793), and “Sounding Joy,” (Psalm 95; also transcribed from Benham)—are reproduced in full four-part harmony at the front of Muhly’s orchestral score. His performance note—also printed in the score—states: “Throughout Sounding, these hymn tunes by Justin Morgan appear in various guises, and should be brought out whenever possible.”

The piece comprises four sections, performed without pause. Each one takes the Morgan hymn as a springboard, setting it in free variations that embroider the tune without obscuring its essence. The result is an amalgam of moods: often reverent, sometimes playful, always respectful of tradition but unafraid to transform the ‘bones’ of the hymns by cloaking them in new colors and textures. The solo piano role ranges from headstrong—Muhly’s directive—to intimate to sparkling and is beautifully integrated with the orchestra.

Sergei Rachmaninoff
Born: April 1, 1873, in Oneg, Novgorod District, Russia
Died: March 28, 1943, in Beverly Hills, California
Composed: October 1906–April 1907
World Premiere: January 26, 1908, in St. Petersburg. The composer conducted.
Duration: 43 minutes
Instrumentation: three flutes, piccolo, three oboes, English horn, two clarinets, bass clarinet, two bassoons, four horns, three trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, cymbals, bass drum, side drum, glockenspiel, and strings

Sergei Rachmaninoff is deservedly celebrated for his splendid contribution to the piano literature, both solo works—notably two sets each of Préludes and Etudes-tableaux—and concerted ones. His Second Piano Concerto (1901) and the Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini for piano and orchestra remain perennial favorites. Somewhat lesser known are Rachmaninoff’s strictly orchestral compositions, which include two undisputed masterpieces: the late Symphonic Dances, Op. 45 (1940) and the symphony we hear at these performances.

The Second Symphony was an easy sell for Rachmaninoff, and one that he badly needed to assuage damaged self-confidence. Excepting an unfinished youthful symphony, his first effort in the genre was a Symphony in D Minor from 1895. Its failure was so disastrous that Rachmaninoff hardly composed for three years following, and it was nearly twelve years before he saw fit to complete another symphony. Fortunately, the success of the Second Piano Concerto and a number of smaller works did much to restore his faith in his own talent.

He began work on the Second Symphony in October 1906 while living in Dresden, where he and his family had moved in the aftermath of the failed Russian revolution of 1905. The piece gave him problems. He composed it with difficulty, laboring over the first movement alone for nearly three months. He spoke little of the work; most of his friends believed him to be immersed in a new opera. Somewhat frustrated by symphonic form, Rachmaninoff set the manuscript aside after completing the draft in April 1907.

Back in Russia during the summer, he turned to orchestration, but remained very tight-lipped about having completed the score, and confiding to friends in letters that he was displeased with it. He managed to work through his dissatisfaction and returned to St. Petersburg to conduct the premiere early in 1908. A Moscow premiere followed in mid-February. The Symphony was a great success in both cities, and the Russian academy hastened to formally recognize Rachmaninoff's achievement by awarding him the Glinka Prize in December 1908.

The music is lush and relaxed. This is an expansive symphony in the late Romantic vein: heartfelt, emotional, and long. More than one writer has compared it to the Schubert Ninth, the "Great" C Major. It shares with that work an embarrassment of melodic riches, including at least one Rachmaninoff theme that has found its way into the popular canon via Eric Carmen’s 1976 hit “Never Gonna Fall in Love Again.” (Carmen lifted his theme from Rachmaninoff’s slow movement). Raw emotional power in this work points to mature Rachmaninoff; at the same time, it links him more strongly to his predecessor Tchaikovsky than probably any other composition.

While each movement has its share of the broad lines, arching melodies, and sometimes ecstatic expression that characterize this work, the brilliant Scherzo merits special mention. At approximately nine minutes, it is the shortest of the four, but the composer has compressed a wealth of ideas in that brief span. The orchestration is impeccable (listen for the sparkle of the glockenspiel), and Rachmaninoff’s command of counterpoint in the central fugato is impressive. Also noteworthy is the exuberant opening of the finale, which matches the opening to Strauss’ Don Juan in its evocation of newly-popped champagne bubbling over.

Rachmaninoff’s Second Symphony remained one of his principal vehicles for promoting his own music as a guest conductor; however, he did not conduct it after 1914. It was the longest symphony to come out of Russia prior to the era of Soviet music. Perhaps because of that, during the middle decades of the twentieth century, it was routinely and extensively cut in concert. Xian Zhang observes the cuts taken by Eugene Ormandy in Minneapolis and Philadelphia. The beauty and splendor of Rachmaninoff’s music remains.

2024–25 will mark the GRAMMY and Emmy Award-winning conductor Xian Zhang’s ninth season as music director of the New Jersey Symphony. Starting in 2025–26, Zhang will also hold the role of music director at Seattle Symphony. Zhang holds the position of conductor emeritus of Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano, having previously held the position of music director between 2009–2016.

The 2024–25 season sees Zhang return to the Metropolitan Opera in New York to conduct David McVicar’s acclaimed production of Puccini’s Tosca.

Zhang is in high demand as a guest conductor, appearing regularly with Philadelphia Orchestra and Los Angeles Philharmonic, returning to both in 2024–25. Her recording with Philadelphia Orchestra and Time for Three, Letters for The Future (released 2022 on Deutsche Grammophon), won multiple GRAMMY Awards in the Best Contemporary Classical Composition (Kevin Puts’ Contact) and Best Classical Instrumental Solo categories.

Following a successful collaboration at Tanglewood Festival 2023, Zhang returns to Boston Symphony Orchestra this season. She remains a favored guest of the Orchestra of St Luke’s and recently stepped in for their Brahms Requiem concert at Carnegie Hall. Other 2024–25 highlights include Montreal Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, NAC Orchestra, Belgian National Orchestra and Milan Symphony Orchestra.

Zhang continues to enjoy good relationships with many leading orchestras worldwide, including London Symphony Orchestra, Orquestra Sinfônica do Estado de São Paulo, Houston Symphony, St Louis Symphony, San Francisco Symphony, National Symphony Orchestra DC and Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse.

Zhang previously served as principal guest conductor of the BBC National Orchestra & Chorus of Wales, the first female conductor to hold a titled role with a BBC orchestra. In 2002, she won first prize in the Maazel-Vilar Conductor's Competition. She was appointed New York Philharmonic’s assistant conductor in 2002, subsequently becoming their associate conductor and the first holder of the Arturo Toscanini Chair.

Gregory D. McDaniel is a passionate conductor who is active in many different musical surroundings.

Praised for his “impeccable musicality and technique” (La Presse – Montreal), McDaniel was recently featured in concert with the Orchestre Métropolitain in Québec, conducting Lili Boulanger’s D’un Matin de printemps. Last summer, as a member of the Orchestral Conducting Academy at the Académie du Domaine Forget de Charlevoix, he worked with the Orchestre Symphonique de Québec under the tutelage of conductors Thomas Rosner and Yannick Nézet-Séguin.

Last season, McDaniel led two projects for the Houston Ebony Opera Guild, including their annual African-American Music Gala, which featured a performance of Julia Perry’s Stabat Mater. He also worked with Opera in the Heights as cover conductor and chorus master for their production of La Bohéme, and cover conductor for their production of Hansel and Gretel.

This upcoming season, in addition to receiving the Colton Conducting Fellowship with the New Jersey Symphony, McDaniel will work with Opera in the Heights as cover conductor and chorus master for their production of Lucia di Lammermoor. He will also conduct the Houston premiere of Laura Kaminsky’s pivotal opera As One for HOPERA.

Past seasons have included leading performances of William Grant Still’s Highway 1, USA and Missy Mazzoli’s Proving Up for Opera Ithaca. He also had the opportunity to work with the Boise Baroque Orchestra in works by Mozart and Haydn, and he also worked with the Prizm Ensemble in a concert that featured Emmy and GRAMMY Award-winning baritone Reginald Smith, Jr. With the University of North Texas Chamber and Concert Orchestras, McDaniel conducted the works of Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Sibelius, Puccini and more.

Some of McDaniel’s past conducting opportunities include working with the Fort Bend Symphony Orchestra and Chorus (TX), the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music Opera Conducting Initiative, and participating in a conducting fellowship with the Allentown Symphony. Past operatic opportunities include various works of Bizet (CCM) and a production of Poulenc’s Dialogue of the Carmelites (EADO in Houston). A native of Houston, TX, Gregory received degrees from the University of North Texas in Orchestral Conducting and the University of Houston in Music Education.

Praised for his “adventurousness and muscular skill” (The New York Times), GRAMMY-nominated artist Adam Tendler is “currently the hottest pianist on the American contemporary classical scene” (Minneapolis Star Tribune), “relentlessly adventurous” (Washington Post), a “remarkable and insightful musician” (LA Times), an “intrepid. . .maverick pianist” (The New Yorker), and “one of contemporary classical music’s most intentional and daring pianists” (Seven Days). A pioneer of DIY culture in classical music, at age 23 Tendler performed solo recitals in all 50 United States as part of a grassroots tour called “America 88x50,” the subject of his acclaimed coming-out memoir, 88x50. He has gone on to become one of today’s most recognized and celebrated performers in classical-contemporary music, receiving Lincoln Center's Emerging Artist Award and the Yvar Mikhashoff Prize, and appearing as soloist with the London Symphony Orchestra, LA Philharmonic, Sydney Symphony, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Symphony Orchestra, as well as on the main-stages of Carnegie Hall, the Barbican Centre, Sydney Opera House, BAM, Roy Thomson Hall, Milan Fashion Week, and leading series and stages worldwide.

Tendler’s recordings include his much-anticipated Inheritances, featuring 16 new works commissioned using the entire inheritance left to him by his father after his unexpected death, from composers including Laurie Anderson, Nico Muhly, Devonté Hynes, and Missy Mazzoli. Inheritances was The New York Times Critic Pick, which wrote, “You will be moved, profoundly and intensely,” describing the project as “not only a display of contemporary compositional force. . .but a true show. . .emotionally involving. . .with a sense of true dramatic stakes.”

Tendler was also featured as soloist on Wild Up’s GRAMMY-nominated album of works by Julius Eastman, If You’re So Smart, Why Aren’t You Rich?, and has released solo albums of music by Robert Palmer, Franz Liszt, and his own music. Tendler recently published his second book, tidepools, and as Green-wood Cemetery’s artist-in-residence created a site-specific installation, Exit Strategy in 2024. Adam Tendler is a Yamaha Artist and serves on the piano faculty of NYU.