Ravinia 2025 Issue 3

HIMARI Born in 2011, violinist Himari has been de- scribed as a once-in-a-generation talent. Be- tween her incredible technique, playful and imaginative interpretations, and emotional depth and perspective as a young artist, she has captured the attention of classical music centers around the globe. During the 2024/25 season, Himari has made her European debut perform- ing Wieniawski’s Violin Concerto No. 1 with the Berlin Philharmonic and Zubin Mehta. She also made her debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra on their New Year’s Eve concert led by Marin Al- sop, performing Kreisler’s La Gitana , Waxman’s Carmen Fantasie , and John Williams’s arrange- ment of Gardel’s tango “Por una cabeza.” In her native Japan, Himari appeared with the Yomi- uri Nippon and Kyoto Symphonies and Tokyo Philharmonic, performed Sibelius’s concerto on tour with the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, and held a recital tour with pianists Yoshitaka Suzuki and Akiko Mimata. Since making her orchestral-soloist debut at age 6, Himari has worked with such ensembles as the NHK Sym- phony Orchestra, New Japan Philharmonic, Tokyo and Gunma Symphony Orchestras, and Japan and Kanagawa Philharmonic Orchestras, among others. Himari has performed recitals across the United States, Russia, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, Belgium, Ukraine, and Japan. Among her honors, Himari has won top prizes from such international competitions as the Lip- inski/Wieniawski for Young Violinists, the 12th Arthur Grumiaux in Belgium, the 26th Andrea Postacchini in Italy, the 20th Schelkunchik in Russia, and the Kogan Competition in Belgium. In 2019, she participated in the Mozarteum Summer Academy, where she was the young- est participant in the academy’s concert at the Salzburg Festival and received an award for her performance. Himari won the audience prize at the “Mini Violini 2023” held as part of the Mon- treal International Violin Competition. Himari began her violin studies at age 3 under the tute- lage of Koichiro Harada and Machie Oguri, and she continues to advance her talent studying with Ida Kavafian as one of the youngest-ever musicians at the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia. Himari is making her Ravinia and Chicago Symphony Orchestra debuts. MARIN ALSOP, Ravinia Chief Conductor For Marin Alsop’s biography, see page 69. composed many memorable film scores, in- cluding Rebecca (1940), Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941), The Spirit of St. Louis (1957), Peyton Place (1957), and Taras Bulba (1962). His musical ac- tivities extended beyond the Hollywood studios. Waxman founded the Los Angeles Music Festi- val in 1947 and continued to conduct orchestral concerts and compose choral and instrumental works until his death in 1967. The Carmen Fantasie for solo violin and orches- tra, based on material from Bizet’s opera, was written in 1947 for Jascha Heifetz, who recorded it within months. Realizing the dramatic—and cinematic—merits of his Fantasie , Waxman incorporated his Carmen music into the film Humoresque (1947). There, actor John Garfield portrayed a violinist, while the soundtrack re- cording by Isaac Stern played in the background and Stern’s hands are seen in close-up. LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN (1770–1827) Symphony No. 7 in A major, op. 92 Scored for two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, two horns, two trumpets, timpani, and strings. The triumphant spirit of the Viennese, undi- minished during the Napoleonic invasions, re- sounded in Beethoven’s compositions as a wave of popularity swept him into the second decade of the 19th century. His music was revered as a national treasure during the Congress of Vienna (1814–15), whose assembled monarchs sought to restore peace and order in Europe. Ironically, Beethoven expressed his patriotism most often in cantatas and hymns, forms more fashionable in Paris than in Vienna. There also was Welling- ton’s Victory (known as the “Battle Symphony”), originally for the panharmonicon, a mechani- cal organ by Johann Nepomuk Maelzel, a clock maker who also invented the metronome. Pure symphonic composition from this period was reserved for broad sentiments, such as grand Romantic heroism (No. 3 [“Eroica”] and No. 5), scenes of rural life (No. 6 [“Pastoral”]) and clas- sicism (No. 8 and, somewhat less so, No. 4). The distinction between nationalist, pastoral, and heroic expressions was bridged, at least in the minds of Beethoven’s contemporaries, in the Symphony No. 7. Numerous programmatic descriptions by other musicians soon appeared in print. Beethoven railed against these fanciful imaginings of battles, triumph over oppression, drunken revelry, bucolic meadows, and merry- making. The music’s patriotic associations, how- ever, were almost impossible to overlook. Beethoven introduced the symphony to the Vi- ennese public on December 8, 1813, at a benefit concert for Austrian and Bavarian soldiers in- jured at the Battle of Hanau. Two marches by Dussek and Pleyel played on the “mechanical trumpeter” invented by Maelzel (who sponsored the concert) with orchestral accompaniment came next. The concert ended with Beethoven’s Wellington’s Victory . This musical celebration lifted battle-weary spirits and added to the relief fund on the eve of the Congress of Vienna. The review in the Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung was effusive: “The new symphony in particular fully deserved the loud applause and the excep- tionally warm reception that greeted it. One must hear this newest work of Beethoven’s ge- nius as ably performed as it was here to appreci- ate fully its beauty and to enjoy it to the utmost. … The Andante [the second movement, later retitled Allegretto ] had to be repeated, and de- lighted musicians and amateurs alike.” The Symphony No. 7 in A major, op. 92—com- posed in 1812 and 1813—begins with the most expansive slow introduction of Beethoven’s sym- phonic catalogue. Faster, dance-like rhythms prevail in the main portion of the movement. Prominent writing for the winds lends a pastoral atmosphere. A sustained chord in the winds fades into the main theme of the Allegretto . At first, the haunting melody appears in the low strings. The theme gradually rises from the depths of the or- chestra in a series of variations, each time outfit- ted with an expressive countermelody. Beethoven interjects a new melody in the clarinet and bas- soon midway through the movement. The Presto presents a frolicking, staccato theme. Twice a rustic melody interrupts. Biographer Alexander Wheelock Thayer suggested that this theme was an actual Austrian pilgrimage hymn. The finale is taut and propulsive. Spirited, al- most militaristic, rhythmic patterns unify this movement. Brass and timpani are employed to great effect. This rousing music provides a tri- umphant conclusion to the symphony. –Program notes © 2025 Todd E. Sullivan Ludwig van Beethoven by Joseph Willibrord Mähler (1815) RAVINIAMAGAZINE • JUNE 30 – JULY 20, 2025 78