Korngold King’s Row Suite
Miguel del Aguila Violin Concerto, Op. 94 “El viaje de una vida”
Guillermo Figueroa, violin
Bright Sheng Black Swan—After Brahms’ Intermezzo Op. 118, no. 2
Bartók Suite from The Miraculous Mandarin
The Cambridge Symphony Orchestra explores music of the 20th century by immigrant composers in its second Masterworks concert of the season.
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[See more detailed notes on King’s Row Suite here!]
The 1942 film King’s Row, starring Ann Sheridan, Robert Cummings, Ronald Reagan, and Betty Field, was scored by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, one of the most important Hollywood composers of his time. The soundtrack was so popular with viewers that Warner Brothers received requests for recordings and sheet music; a normal concept by today’s standards that was not yet in practice at the time. It wasn’t until nearly 40 years later that a commercial recording became available. Today, the score of King’s Row is considered one of Korngold’s most significant works.
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Miguel del Aguila’s Violin Concerto, Op. 94 “El viaje de una vida” (The journey of a lifetime), was composed in 2007. It was commissioned and premiered by the New Mexico Symphony and its music director Guillermo Figueroa, who was the premiere’s soloist as well as its conductor, and who joins the CSO for this performance. The concerto form is an apt sonic metaphor for the struggle between the individual and society, and del Aguila’s violin concerto partakes of this paradigm. He writes, “The violin soloist personifies the traveler who becomes the protagonist of the story; the orchestra represents the outside world as he sees it. As the work progresses, the actual trip becomes a symbol of a more existential journey.” In del Aguila’s narrative, a “traveler abandons his homeland (Spain) to embark on a long voyage. A simple, undulating theme carries him steadily across the ocean. During the long journey, he reminisces and loses himself in introspection.”
Compiled from migueldelaguila.com
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Bright Sheng’s Black Swan is a gorgeous orchestral work inspired by Brahms' Intermezzo in A Major, Op. 118, No. 2, for piano. Sheng wrote the piece in 2007 and it was premiered in 2010 by the Seattle Symphony Orchestra as part of its celebration of the orchestra’s retiring music director, Gerard Schwarz.
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Bartók’s The Miraculous Mandarin, originally a one-act pantomime ballet composed between 1918 and 1924, is now most commonly performed as an orchestral suite. The ballet tells the story of three tramps who enlist a girl to help lure passersby into their room so they can rob them. The first man lured into the room has no money, so the tramps throw him out. The second man to be taken by the girl’s act begins to dance with her. As the dancing becomes more passionate, the tramps jump the man and throw him out. The final man to be lured inside is the titular character, a wealthy Chinese man. While dancing with the girl, he grows more and more passionate and is overcome with love. He suddenly embraces her and a struggle breaks out. She escapes and the tramps jump on him. As the tramps attempt to suffocate him with pillows, the Mandarin doesn’t die, remaining fixated on the girl. One of the tramps grabs a sword and stabs the Mandarin with it. He falls, but rises again and throws himself on the girl. As the fight continues, the chandelier falls to the floor in the commotion and the darkness reveals the Mandarin’s glowing blue-green body. The girl, realizing how to end the encounter, tells the tramps to release the Mandarin who jumps at her and they embrace. With his passion satisfied, he dies.
