Ravinia 2025 Issue 3

following evening, the New York Philharmon- ic and conductor Jakub Hrůša gave the world premiere of Chemiluminescence , a composition for string orchestra co-commissioned by the New York Philharmonic, St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic, and the inde- pendent Dutch public broadcaster AVROTROS. Strum has remained one of Montgomery’s most frequently performed and widely acclaimed com- positions. One review of a recent Dover Quartet performance published in The Strad (January 2025) described the score as “perhaps an ear- ly candidate for ‘classic,’ given the frequency of performances.” More recently, Strings magazine (May 1, 2025) included Strum among “15 of the Most Significant StringWorks of the 21st Century … So Far,” observing that “Not a note is wasted in … [this] jaunty seven-minute curtain-raiser.” Montgomery guided Strum through several transformations between 2006 and 2012. The Providence String Quartet, in collaboration with members of the Community MusicWorks Players, premiered the original version for two violins, viola, and two cellos in 2006. Two years later, Montgomery arranged the score for string quartet. The Catalyst Quartet unveiled an ex- panded and refined string quartet version in 2012 at the 15th Annual Sphinx Competition. That same year, Montgomery arranged the score for string orchestra—the version performed on this occasion—with support from the Sphinx Virtu- osi Composer-in-Residence program, funded through a gift from Linda and Stuart Nelson. “Originally conceived for the formation of a cel- lo quintet,” Montgomery explained, “the voicing is often spread wide over the ensemble, giving the music an expansive quality of sound. Within Strum , I utilized texture motives, layers of rhyth- mic or harmonic ostinato that string together to form a bed of sound for melodies to weave in and out. The strumming pizzicato serves as a texture motive and the primary driving rhyth- mic underpinning of the piece. Drawing on American folk idioms and the spirit of dance and movement, the piece has a kind of narrative that begins with fleeting nostalgia and trans- forms into ecstatic celebration.” GEORGE GERSHWIN (1898–1937) Piano Concerto in F Scored for three flutes, three oboes, three clarinets, two bassoons, four horns, three trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion, strings, and solo piano Gershwin’s music for solo piano and orchestra has received mixed reviews. Critic Paul Rosen- feld judged rather harshly: “It is only very su- perficially a whole, actually a heap of extremely heterogeneous minor forms and expressions.” Others recognized its significance to a distinct- ly American tradition. Henry O. Osgood found these pieces “representative of a successful attempt to graft upon the great tree of legitimate music little offshoots of that vigorous sapling which is the only really original thing America has produced in music—jazz.” Walter Damrosch, conductor of the New York Symphony Orchestra, admired Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue enough to commission a large-scale piano concerto for the 1925/26 sea- son at Carnegie Hall. Damrosch also possessed an astute business sense. A new piece by Gersh- win, who was featured in a Time magazine cov- er story (July 20, 1925), was sure to draw an audience. Contracts were signed, and Gersh- win began sketching his New York Concerto , later renamed Concerto in F. Previous obliga- tions took him out of the country for a London production of his musical Tell Me More . Back in New York, Gershwin composed and orches- trated the Concerto in F between July and No- vember. Gershwin scheduled a run-through two weeks before the premiere, hiring the or- chestra out of his own pocket. The first perfor- mance took place at Carnegie Hall on Decem- ber 3, 1925, with Gershwin as soloist. Broadly speaking, the Concerto in F adheres to the traditional three-movement design of the Classical concerto. However, the musical de- tails originate from a different musical world, that of dance and song. From the sketch stage, Gershwin viewed his concerto as a sequence of musical elements—rhythm, melody, rhythm— rather than forms. “The first movement employs the Charleston rhythm. It is quick and pulsat- ing, representing the young enthusiastic spirit of American life. The second movement has a po- etic nocturnal atmosphere which has come to be referred to as the American blues, but in a purer form than that in which they are usually treated. The final movement reverts to the style of the first. It is an orgy of rhythms, starting violently and keeping to the same pace throughout.” The opening theme of the Toccata finale resembles a fragmentary piano prelude in G minor, which Gershwin originally designed for a collection of 24 preludes ( à la Chopin), only three of which were ever completed. George Gershwin and Walter Damrosch PETER ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY (1840–1893) Symphony No. 6 in B minor, op. 74 (“Pathétique”) Scored for three flutes and piccolo, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, bass drum, cymbals, tam-tam, and strings “It will be quite conventional and no surprise if this symphony is abused and unappreciated— that has happened before. But I definitely find it my very best and, in particular, the most sin- cere of all my compositions. I love it as I have never loved any of my musical children.” De- cades-long experience with Russian audiences conditioned Tchaikovsky to a typical pattern of reception: initial rejection, artistic depression, followed by belated acclaim. True to pattern, the Symphony No. 6 failed to inspire the performers or audience at the composer-led premiere on October 28, 1893. Incidents over the next few days, however, for- ever altered its significance. The morning after the first performance, Tchaikovsky awoke to mull over a title for his new work. Quickly, he rejected the generic “Symphony No. 6,” then his working title “Program Symphony” (the com- poser maintained ultimate secrecy over its pro- grammatic inspiration). His brother Modeste next proposed “tragic,” which was rejected, then he suggested the Russian adjective “patetiches- ky,” a term that denotes great pathos. Tchaikovsky ventured out to operatic and con- cert performances over the next several nights. On November 2, troubled with stomachaches, he took morning breakfast and tea as usual. Physical discomfort increased over lunch, when he allegedly drank a glass of unboiled St. Peters- burg water, a risky act during the cholera season. The next few days witnessed a steady decline in his health. On November 6, Tchaikovsky died. The attending doctor reported “thoroughly characteristic” symptoms of cholera. However, rumors that Tchaikovsky committed suicide through poisoning—rather that endure public Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1893) RAVINIAMAGAZINE • JUNE 30 – JULY 20, 2025 66