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What about the music?

An inside look with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra

Rachmaninoff’s Second Symphony

Friday, November 1, 2024 7:30PM | Chrysler Hall
Saturday, November 2, 2024 7:30PM | Ferguson Center
Sunday, November 3, 2024 2:30PM | Sandler Center

Maurice Ravel: Le Tombeau de Couperin
Franz Liszt: Piano Concerto No. 1
Sergei Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 2

By Stella Feliberti

Eric Jacobsen, Virginia Symphony Orchestra Music Director

The Performers

Thomas Wilkins

Conductor

Thomas Wilkins

Thomas Wilkins is currently principal conductor of the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, Artistic Advisor for Education and Community Engagement at the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and he holds the Henry A. Upper Chair of Orchestral Conducting at Indiana University. He recently stepped down after 17 successful years leading the Omaha Symphony and his guest conducting credits include every major American orchestra.

Devoted to promoting a life-long enthusiasm for music, Mr. Wilkins brings energy and commitment to audiences of all ages. He is hailed as a master at communicating and connecting with audiences.  Following his highly successful first season with the Boston Symphony, the Boston Globe named him among the “Best People and Ideas of 2011.” In 2014, Mr. Wilkins received the prestigious “Outstanding Artist” award at the Nebraska Governor’s Arts Awards, for his significant contribution to music in the state while in 2018 Thomas Wilkins received the Leonard Bernstein Lifetime Achievement Award for the Elevation of Music in Society conferred by Boston’s Longy School of Music.

Mr. Wilkins is a graduate of the Shenandoah Conservatory of Music and the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. He and his wife Sheri-Lee are the proud parents of twin daughters, Erica and Nicole.

Michelle Cann

Piano

Michelle Cann

Lauded as “exquisite” by The Philadelphia Inquirer and “a pianist of sterling artistry” by Gramophone, Michelle Cann has become one of the most sought-after pianists of her generation. She made her debut in 2021 with The Philadelphia Orchestra and has recently performed concertos with The Cleveland Orchestra, the National Symphony Orchestra, the Orquestra Sinfônica Municipalde São Paulo, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the symphony orchestras of Atlanta, Baltimore, and Cincinnati. Highlights of Cann’s 2023-24 season included appearances with the Charlotte, Hawaii, Indianapolis, Québec, Sarasota, and Winnipeg symphony orchestras, and recitals in New York City, Portland, Berkeley, Beverly Hills, and Denver.

Recognized as a leading interpreter of the piano music of Florence Price, Cann performed the New York City premiere of Price’s Piano Concerto in One Movement with The Dream Unfinished Orchestra in July 2016. Her recording of the concerto with the New York Youth Symphony won a Grammy Award in 2023. Her acclaimed debut solo album Revival, featuring music by Price and Margaret Bonds, was released in May 2023.

Cann was the recipient of the 2022 Sphinx Medal of Excellence, the highest honor bestowed by the Sphinx Organization. She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in piano performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music and an Artist’s Diploma from the Curtis Institute of Music. Cann joined the Curtis piano faculty in 2020 as the inaugural Eleanor Sokoloff Chair in Piano Studies, and she joined the piano faculty of the Manhattan School of Music in 2023.

The Creators

Maurice Ravel

Maurice Ravel

Pronounced moh-REES rah-VEHL

Fast Facts:
  • Maurice Ravel was born in 1875 in the Basque region of France. He started music lessons at 6 and gave his first public recital at 14. He claims that as a child he was extremely sensitive to music, “every kind of music.”
  • He studied composition under another famous French impressionist composer, Gabriel Fauré.
  • Ravel was very opinionated when it came to other composers and their music. He is said to describe Beethoven as “exasperating,” Wagner’s influence as “pernicious,” and Berlioz’s harmony as “clumsy.”
  • In 1928 Ravel toured the US where he was exposed to jazz artists such as George Gershwin. After this, Ravel began to include more jazz elements into his later compositions, especially his piano concerti.
  • Ravel was an extreme perfectionist when it came to his compositions. He would often get inspiration from his walks alone in the French countryside or Paris. Then, he would write down his new ideas and work on the composition until it was complete. He would not let anyone see the work until he deemed it ready.
  • Ravel included a wide variety of music and sounds into his works. His inspiration ranged from Baroque music forms to gamelan (a Balinese percussion instrument) music, to Spanish music and ancient modes.
Franz List

Franz Liszt

Pronounced frahnz LIST

Fast Facts:
  • Franz Liszt was born in 1811 in Hungary. He started lessons at age 5 with his father and started to compose by age 8.
  • Liszt is considered one of the world’s first “rockstars” due to his incredible fame and touring throughout his life. Between 1838 and 1848, he performed over 1000 concerts, showcasing his palpable flair in his playing and distinct hairstyle.
  • Liszt pulled lots of inspiration from Hungarian folk songs and the improvisatory style of the Romani people. He even wrote a treatise on the musical traditions of the Romani people, which is some of the earliest forms of ethnomusicological study.
  • Liszt was a firm believer in using his musical talents and wealth to serve larger purposes. He was a huge proponent for social justice, supporting women’s autonomy and redistribution of wealth. He would often donate his earnings to charity or even give free masterclasses to the next generation of pianists.
  • As an innovative composer, Liszt created a new form of music: the symphonic poem. This new form is a single piece for orchestra that pulls inspiration directly from something outside of music, usually a poem, painting, historical story, or mythology.
Sergei Rachmaninoff

Sergei Rachmaninoff

Pronounced SEHR-gay raak-MAH-nuh-naaf

Fast Facts:
  • Sergei Rachmaninoff was born in 1873 in Russia. His musical gifts as a pianist and composer were evident from a young age as he composed his 1st Piano Concerto only at age 18.
  • Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No.2 is considered as one of the nation’s favorite classical works at the time and is considered as one of the greatest piano concertos ever written. It was even used in the film Brief Encounters.
  • In addition to being a talented composer, Rachmaninoff was also a talented conductors and magnificent pianist. He held many prestigious positions including Principal Conductor of the Bolshoi Theater and offered a job as the conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra twice!
  • Many of Rachmaninoff’s pieces include large reaches for pianists as he could reach 12 keys form the tip of his pinky to the tip of his thumb, which is about the interval of a 13th.
  • In addition to being passionate about music and piano, Rachmaninoff enjoyed cars and speedboating. He was known as a virtuoso driver. He even had his own theory about the benefits of driving: “A good conductor must naturally be a good driver. Both the motorist and the conductor need a will of iron, focused attention, and constant presence of mind. To these qualities the conductor only needs to add some knowledge of music.”

Maurice Ravel

Le Tombeau de Couperin

Listen to Ravel’s Le Tombeau de Couperin by the Frankfurt Radio Symphony:

As the turn of century introduced exceptional change throughout the world, Ravel was open to the variety of new sounds that the early 20th century provided, which he included in his work, Le Tombeau de Couperin. This piece was written in 1917 originally for piano but orchestrated by Ravel himself in 1919. Ravel wrote this piece about the friends of Baroque composer Francois Couperin (1668-1733) through six movements that are based on a traditional Baroque suite. While the piece is an homage to Couperin, Ravel describes this piece as “directed less in fact to Couperin himself than to French music of the 18th century.” Throughout this piece, Ravel intertwines rhythmic, melodic forms, and cadences of Couperin’s time as well as his own harmonies, creating a luscious dialogue between the three. This piece is a great example of composers blending past and new styles of music to produce a vivid and colorful piece, like Le Tombeau de Couperin.

              This piece first opens with a lively Prelude, emulating the harpsichord music of Couperin or Scarlatti. However, instead of using traditional harmonies of the 18th century that Ravel pulls this form from, he employs the harmonies of his time. With this shift to a more modern harmonic structure, Ravel’s Prelude is full of scurrying ornamental lines that flourish with each iteration. Next is a Forlane, which is an Italian folk dance. This dance, unlike the opening movement, portrays dancers skipping across the dancefloor in a graceful yet rustic manner. The Menuet that follows is sweeter as it introduces a more pastoral quality to the piece. Finally, the piece closes with a Rigaudon—a lively French folkdance. This final movement starts with a jovial and vivacious dance, interrupted by a sweeter, lilting moment in the middle; yet, the Rigaudon returns to its original vivacity to close the piece.

Franz Liszt

Piano Concerto No. 1

Listen to Liszt’s Piano Concerto No.1 by Yuja Wang and the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra:

Even though Liszt completed several revisions of his 1st Piano Concerto, his final version stuns audiences because of its technical yet emotive demands of both the piano soloist and the orchestra. Liszt started to compose the work in 1830 when he first wrote the opening theme of the concerto. At the time, he reported that he had written the entire solo part of the concerto but the “accompaniment remains to be written.” Despite writing the solo part in full between 1830 and 1834, Liszt disregarded this edition as he wrote the accompaniment part. All that remains of this first edition is the imposing principal theme that is interwoven throughout the final version. It was not until 1855 that the final version was premiered; yet, even after that there was some altered details from the composer.

              Throughout the entirety of this concerto, a single theme is interwoven seamlessly into the musical textures Liszt creates. The composer even eventually added words to this melody: Das versteht Ihr alle nicht, haha!” (None of you understand this, ha-ha!). Opening the concerto, is a thundering melody from strings (Das versteht Ihr alle nicht), to which the winds respond to (haha!). Interrupting this conversation comes the solo piano with daunting octaves that turn into short, yet impressive, cadenza. Next is an intoxicating cavatina (Italian little song) to whisk the audience into a daydream. Yet, the third movement brings back the seriousness and intensity that the first movement encompassed in both the orchestral accompaniment and soloist with the main theme coming back in full force. Finally, the last movement takes the main theme and presents it in an impish manner rather than its usual statement of glory. All throughout the piece, this opening theme is manipulated so effortlessly that it is often unnoticeable that it is the same theme from the opening.

Sergei Rachmaninoff

Symphony No. 2 in E minor

Listen of Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No.2 by the Oslo Philharmonic:

Despite an unsuccessful premiere of his 1st Symphony, Rachmaninoff gained major acclaim for his 2nd Symphony as it is extremely rich and melodious. The work was composed in Dresden between 1906 and 1907. At this point, Rachmaninoff was taking a brief retirement from concert activities. Prior to this composition, Rachmaninoff suffered from depression after the failure of his 1st Symphony’s premiere. Yet, by 1906, he had reobtained success thanks to his infamous Piano Concerto No.2. Thus, in this 2nd Symphony, Rachmaninoff aimed to compose it to express his feelings, ranging from somber and melancholic, to tender and romantic. Audience can feel the lush emotions Rachmaninoff wanted to portray throughout the entirety of the work, making it a touching and gorgeous piece to listen to.

              Ominously, the symphony begins with only the double basses and cellos playing. This serious and dark melody is the essential motive of the symphony that dominates the entire symphony. A chorale of winds and the first violins then take the melody to open into a rich but grave color. Slowly, more of the orchestra joins the violins until the entire orchestra has opened into a yearning yet singing version of the central motive. However, this lyrical, grave melody shifts to a driving Allegro till the end of the movement. Using the same energy from the end of the first movement, the next movement starts restless and fiery with springing strings and rich brass, emulating a festive march. Yet, in the middle of this movement, Rachmaninoff includes a luxurious chorus that shifts back to the opening spriteliness. Unlike the 1st and 2nd movement, the third movement is a heartwarming and romantic character. This movement opens passionately with the strings, eventually fading into a more intimate sound as the solo clarinet enters. But as this intimate sound builds, the true height of passion is reached by the entire symphony singing gloriously. Finally, the last movement shatters the romance of the third movement with carnival-like atmosphere. Recollections of the earlier movements are intertwined to create a soaring melody once more. Gradually, the music falls into a bumbling recapitulation and coda to end the symphony in a brilliant manner.

Emmanual Losa

Emmanuel Losa

Cello

Born in 1998, Emmanuel Losa grew up in Marietta, Georgia to a Nigerian father and Jamaican mother. Starting his cello studies at the age of 12, he began to have an affinity for the orchestral world and later studying with the esteemed cellists of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, his primary instructor was Joel Dallow; in addition, studying with Dona Vellek (Assistant Principal Cello Emeritus) and Karen Freer (Assistant Principal Cello).

Emmanuel heavily enjoys studying various pieces of solo, chamber, and orchestral music, spending his summers at various festivals such as Bowdoin International Music Festival, Spoleto Festival USA, and Aspen Music Festival to name a few.

A student of Alan Stepansky at the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University, Emmanuel is pursuing an undergraduate cello performance degree in orchestral performance. He continues his studies with a focus on winning a position with a major orchestra.

Zacherie Small

Zacherie Small

Double Bass

After migrating from his native island of Barbados, Zacherie Small began his Double Bass studies the age of 19 with Jonathan Dadurka at Miami-Dade College where he graduated with a Associate of Arts in Music. Afterwards, he went on to study with Luis Gomez-Imbert at Florida International University where he now holds a Bachelor of Music in Double Bass Performance; Cum Laude, and a Masters of Music in Double Bass Performance. Also, recently graduated with his second Masters from Temple University studying with members of the Philadelphia Orchestra such as Nathaniel West, Joseph Conyers, and Robert Kesselman.

Small has performed with various orchestras. He is a member of the Miami Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Eduardo Marturet. He was also the Principal Double Bass of the Miami Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Jorge Vazquez. Small periodically performs with the Colour of Music Festival Orchestra.

Small has attended the Miami Summer Music Festival at Barry University for 3 years. During the festival, he has performed in many concerts with various conductors like Michael Rossi, Yuriy Bekker, Joel Smirnoff, David Efron, Stephanie Rhodes, and Steve Gruman. Also, participated in the Philadelphia International Music Festival to study with Nathaniel West and under the baton of Kensho Watanabe.

As well as being a performer, Small is the secondary music director South-Dade Middle School and does masterclasses at various schools in Miami, FL. He is also a teacher for the Artist of the Miami Music Project where he guides children in troubled neighborhoods to bring about social change, cultivate lessons, and run ensembles.

Tyler McKisson

Tyler McKisson

viola

Tyler McKisson is a 26-year-oldorchestral and freelance violist originally from Arvada, Colorado. He has recently received an Artist Diploma from The University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music as a Diversity Fellow where he regularly performed with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. McKisson received a Master’s degree in viola performance at the University of Colorado Boulder and a Bachelor’s degree in Viola Performance at the University of Northern Colorado with honors. McKisson’s musical career started at age ten when he joined his school’s string orchestra program and at age fourteen, he began his studies under his first private instructor, Brian Cook. McKisson has also studied under Christopher Luther, Anne Leilehua Lanzilotti, Erika Eckert, and Catharine Carroll Lees. He has played with several American orchestras including the Cheyenne Symphony with tenure, Atlanta Symphony, Kentucky Symphony, National Repertory Orchestra, and the Aspen Conducting Academy.

Camille Jones

Camille Jones

violin

A passionate collaborator and advocate for diversity in the arts, Camille has worked with various festival orchestras and chamber groups, including the National Orchestral Institute and Festival (NOI + F), Bowdoin International Music Festival, and Next Festival of Emerging Artists.

As a 2019 Sphinx Orchestral Futurist Fellow, she has helped commission works and curate a professional development workshop for K-12 students in Prince George’s County, Maryland.This project piloted what is now the K12 New Music Initiative, a commissioning project to expand the repertoire of K12 orchestras with music by BIPOC composers. In the Fall of 2018, she curated Voices Unheard, a concert series at UMD that celebrated works by women composers and composers of color. In addition, she had the opportunity to collaborate with esteemed cello professor Anthony Elliott for a concert series at the Kerrytown Concerthouse titled Passing the Torch in 2021 and 2022. Camille is establishing herself as a freelance artist in the Michigan area as well, having performed for singer Michael Bublé, rapper Big Sean and Darren Criss. She has also served as a teaching artist for the Detroit Symphony Orchestra’s Civic Youth Ensembles as well as the Sphinx Overture program in Detroit.

Camille received her B.M. in Violin Performance at the University of Maryland, College Park and a M.M. in Violin Performance from the University of Michigan, having studied under Danielle Belen.

Daphine Henderson

Daphine Henderson

bass

Daphine Henderson, a double bassist and vocalist in the DC metro area, completed her Master’s Degree in Double Bass Performance at the University of Maryland College Park in Spring 2023, where she also received two Bachelor’s Degrees in Music Performance with concentrations in Double Bass and Soprano Voice in Spring ’20. She was the first black woman to earn a Master’s Degree in Double Bass Performance at University of Maryland and the third black woman to receive a graduate degree in strings. Teaching herself the double bass at age 12, Daphine became extremely involved in music through her high school career, ranging from performing with the Maryland Senior All State Orchestra to being the drum major of her high school marching band. She is actively involved in the University of Maryland School of Music community, performing with numerous classical and wind ensembles.

Throughout her time at UMD, Daphine served as one of the ensemble assistants for the UMD Treble Choir, where she actively engaged with and lead her section. She sat as one of the student chairs and founding members of the School of Music’s IDEA Committee, which focuses on bringing diversity, accessibility, and inclusive engagement to the music community at College Park. Daphine is also a founding member of the PAGE (Project for All Gender Equality) for Bassists, where she spoke on a panel in the 2019 and 2021 International Society of Bassists conventions. Daphine teaches in Prince George’s County and Montgomery County, Maryland, and is an active strings coach for the Maryland Classic Youth Orchestra. Additionally, she teaches all string instruments, piano, and voice at Crescendo Studios in Falls Church, Virginia.

Daphine is taking steps in her musical career to create an impact and be an inspiration for younger musicians of color that would otherwise not have ample resources and opportunities to pursue their passion. Following the completion of her graduate degree, Daphine plans to continue establishing herself as an advocate through her performance and an arts administrator for underserved and minority musicians, while continuing to inspire others through her love for music.

Avery Robinson

Omari Imhotep Adbdul-Alim

Violin

Omari Imhotep Abdul-Alim is an accomplished violinist and educator with a Master of Music in Violin Performance from the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music and a Bachelor of Music from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He is a dedicated instructor with extensive experience teaching violin to a diverse range of students, from young children to adults, in both individual and group settings.

Omari has also contributed significantly as a violin instructor and orchestral strings coach at the Academy for Discovery at Lakewood, as a member of VSO's first inaugural class of African American Fellowship.

In addition to his teaching accomplishments, Omari has an extensive performance background. He has been a substitute with VSO, New World Symphony, Chicago Civic Orchestra, and Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera. For the last year Omari has been an active performer in the San Diego area, playing with Coronado Philharmonia Orchestra, Poway Symphony Orchestra, the City Ballet of San Diego, La Jolla Symphony Orchestra and as resident violinist at First Lutheran Church of San Diego.

Omari is committed to enriching our musical education and performance landscape through his expertise and passion for music.

Avery Robinson

Avery Robinson

Cello

Avery Robinson grew up in Western Massachusetts where he was influenced by his parents’ love for jazz music. At the age of 10 he started playing piano and began learning bass when he was 12 years old. As a young musician, Avery’s passion for jazz persisted however, as he became exposed to the wonderful sounds of the symphony, his musical passion grew to include a second genre: classical music. After joining his high school orchestra, his career path was set.

Avery has studied at many top music schools such as the Eastman School of Music, The Hartt School of Music, and the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and has graduated with honors. His teachers include Rachel Calin, Albert Laszlo, and Robert Black. Avery has been a member of the Kentucky Symphony, and most recently, the Tulsa Symphony Orchestra. He has also worked as a substitute for the Amarillo Symphony and the Symphony of Northwest Arkansas. In addition to his orchestral career, Avery is also an accomplished recitalist, having performed many solo and chamber recitals at various venues such as the Chautauqua Institution and at the “Classical Revolution” Series in Cincinnati. His love for performing with others shows in his expressive and sometimes fervent style of playing.

Avery has other passions in addition to music. Firstly, he is a huge art and history buff and loves to frequent museums and galleries whenever he can. He is also a lover of sports and an avid golfer.