By the time our Philadelphia Orchestra in Concert broadcast airs on Sunday, June 7th, the Orchestra will have just completed its European tour with a concert at the Royal Festival Hall in London. WRTI will, however, continue to air Philadelphia Orchestra broadcasts of this season’s concerts through early July.
And on Sunday, June 7th, a concert from April, 2015 brings us Mozart and Beethoven, spotlighting the Philadelphia Orchestra’s Principal Viola, Choong-Jin (CJ) Chang, in the D Major Viola Concerto of Carl Stamitz. On the podium for this concert is early-music specialist Paul Goodwin.
The Mozart work we’ll hear to lead things off is his Symphony in D major (K. 320), which he extracted from his “Posthorn” Serenade, composed for graduation ceremonies at Salzburg University in 1779. Chronologically it would roughly be his Symphony No. 33½, if you’re counting.
Actually, at the time Mozart wrote this work he was especially impressed by the orchestra in Mannheim, and one of the leading families working there was the Stamitz family - Johann and his sons Anton and Carl. Carl was a prolific composer, but few of his works are performed today, with his Viola Concerto in D Major a happy survivor. And we’ll hear it played by CJ Chang.
Beethoven fills the second half of the program, starting with one of his last orchestral compositions, The Consecration of the House Overture, and – to conclude the concert -- Beethoven’s Fourth Symphony, as the Philadelphians continue their survey of the master’s complete symphonies.
During intermission, Susan Lewis and Kile Smith speak backstage with CJ Chang and Maestro Paul Goodwin.
Detailed program notes from The Philadelphia Orchestra concert
PROGRAM:
Mozart: Symphony in D, K 320, after the Serenade in D, the “Posthorn”
Carl Stamitz: Viola Concerto in D, Op. 1
Choong-Jin Chang, viola
INTERMISSION
Beethoven: Overture, The Consecration of the House, Op 124
Beethoven: Symphony No. 4 in B Flat, Op. 60
Paul Goodwin, conductor
Listen to The Philadelphia Orchestra in Concert broadcasts every Sunday at 1 pm on WRTI 90.1 FM and online at WRTI.org. Gregg Whiteside is producer and host.
