≈ 90 minutes · No intermission
Last updated: September 20, 2021
Repertoire
String Quartet No. 2, Variations on “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”
A prolific composer, Adolphus Hailstork (b. 1941) has long established a reputation for works that masterfully blend eclectic elements from European, Euro-American, and African American music traditions, often emphasizing melody. He wrote his String Quartet No. 2 in 2012 for the Marian Anderson String Quartet’s Continuing the Legacy project, which commissioned American composers to create works for string quartet based on songs of the African diaspora.
As this work’s title indicates, Hailstork took as thematic basis the tune of the classic African American spiritual “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”, which he creatively transforms in complex ways. The variations unfold seamlessly, each one distinguished by changes in melodic material and ensemble texture—from song-like phrases expressed by one or two instruments to dense counterpoint involving the entire quartet, combining bowed and plucked strings. Certain variations feature syncopated jazz rhythms and blues riffs, while piquant dissonances add chromatic colour throughout.
Hailstork has written that the theme is “interrupted by abrupt dissonant chords that serve as ‘fate motifs’ to remind the listener that the ‘carry me home’ in the spiritual text is an end-of-life request.” Occurring in threes, these chords are first introduced in the aggressive opening of the piece, which is then followed by an energetic set of variations. Later, there’s a slow episode of wistful character, the nostalgic reverie of which is briefly disturbed by the “fate motif”, and gradually leads into another spirited segment of propulsive energy. After a pause, the nostalgic mood returns, though now rarified as the first violin soars ethereally. Despite the twice-interjection of the “fate” chords, the music melts into peaceful tranquility, as the cello sings the original tune to draw the piece to a serene close.
Program notes by Dr. Hannah Chan-Hartley
String Quartet in F major, Op. 96, “American”
I. Allegro ma non troppo
II. Lento
III. Molto vivace
IV. Vivace ma non troppo
The “American” String Quartet is one of Antonín Dvořák’s (1841–1904) best-known chamber works. It’s among a group of pieces (along with the “New World” Symphony and the Cello Concerto) that he wrote during the period he spent in the United States, from 1892 to 1895, as director and professor at New York’s National Conservatory of Music. As a respected composer who wrote in the nationalistic style (that is, incorporating national folk song into art music forms), he was there at the invitation of the Conservatory’s founder, Jeannette Thurber, to help guide U.S. composers in creating music of a national American style. These works integrate what Dvořák absorbed in his research of traditional American music, which included Amerindian melodies, spirituals, and popular songs like those by Stephen Foster, and thus represent a stylistic model that also sought to appeal to the tastes of American audiences.
Dvořák composed this string quartet in June 1893, during an enjoyable summer break in Spillville, Iowa, where there was a small farming community of Czech immigrants. The town’s rural setting likely inspired the work’s pastoral tone. Although it does not contain any actual American melodies, String Quartet No. 12 in many ways epitomizes what came to be regarded as the composer’s “American” style. You’ll hear in all four movements characteristic elements (as music scholars Jan Smaczny and Klaus Döge have identified) such as open-hearted, balanced melodies (often using pentatonicism), drone accompaniment, energetic or flowing rhythmic ostinatos, and strongly syncopated rhythms.
In conventional sonata form, the opening Allegro has two main themes—the first, introduced on viola, optimistic and jaunty; the second, on first violin, tender and slightly sentimental. The middle section develops the rhythmic motifs and syncopations of the first theme, and there’s a fugato on a sombre version of the second theme. The slow movement has a melancholy cast, featuring intensely lyrical exchanges and duets between the first violin and second violin or cello.
Good cheer returns with the scherzo, which has two sections in F major and F minor; the latter uses an augmented version of the main theme. At certain moments, the first violin plays a very high variant of the melody; it’s based on the song of the scarlet tanager, a bird the composer heard on his walks in the Iowan countryside. The Finale is high-spirited, with joyful melodies driven by syncopated accompaniment. Later, a chorale is introduced—another Spillville reference, this to the organ Dvořák played for services at St. Wencelas Church—after which the main melody returns, to bring the quartet to an exuberant finish.
Program notes by Dr. Hannah Chan-Hartley
LIFT for String Quartet (Part III)
Paul Wiancko (b. 1983) is a highly regarded cellist and chamber musician who has performed with artists ranging from Midori, Yo-Yo Ma, and Mitsuko Uchida to Chick Corea, Norah Jones, and members of Arcade Fire. It’s not surprising then that his work as a composer reflects his multifaceted interests in different styles and genres of music, combining them in fresh ways in pieces that have been described as “dazzling” and “compelling”.
Wiancko composed LIFT in 2016; it was premiered that year by the Aizuri Quartet, who subsequently performed it widely and recorded it. From their “insider’s” perspective, they’ve described the piece as “a virtuosic tour-de-force for the string quartet” in which Wiancko “channels his love of jazz, improvisation, hip-hop, and folk music to create a rich sonic palette.” In the composer’s words, “LIFT is an investigation of elation in its musical form… I joyously explored the capacity for harmony, colour, and rhythm itself to evoke and inspire. [The] piece ultimately represents the journey of a soul—laid out in fervent, celebratory detail.”
You’ll hear tonight the work’s third and final movement, which consists of three wildly contrasting sections. The first, marked “Glacial”, consists of sustained notes that shift as in layers, the mood becoming increasingly intense. After reaching an impassioned climax, the tension gradually dissipates via expressive glissandos, subsiding into the “icy” sound of bows playing sul ponticello (near the bridge of the instrument). “Maniacal”, the second section, is a wittily surreal mash-up of jazzy melodies and syncopations. The final section “Lift” is an ecstatic celebration, blending minimalist and folk-fiddling elements that revel in vibrant sonorities and richly varied sonic textures.
Program notes by Dr. Hannah Chan-Hartley
Artists
Yosuke Kawasaki currently serves as Concertmaster of the NAC Orchestra and Guest Concertmaster of the NHK Symphony Orchestra in Tokyo. His versatile musicianship allows him to pursue a career in orchestra, solo, and chamber music. His orchestral career began with the Montgomery Symphony Orchestra and soon led to the Mito Chamber Orchestra, the Saito Kinen Orchestra, and the Japan Century Orchestra, all of which he led as concertmaster. His solo and chamber music career spans five continents, collaborating with artists such as Seiji Ozawa, Pinchas Zukerman, and Yo-Yo Ma and appearing in the world’s most prestigious halls such as Carnegie Hall, Suntory Hall, and the Royal Concertgebouw.
Yosuke’s current regular ensembles are Trio Ink and the Mito String Quartet. His passion for chamber music led to his appointment as Music Director of the Affinis Music Festival in Japan. He is also an artistic advisor to the chamber music festival Off the Beaten Path in Bulgaria.
As an educator, Yosuke has given masterclasses and performed alongside students in schools across Canada. Well-versed in the string quartet literature, he was entrusted by Seiji Ozawa as the youngest faculty member of the Ozawa International Chamber Music Academy at age 26. He was also an adjunct professor of violin at the University of Ottawa School of Music from 2013 to 2022 alongside the beloved pedagogue Yehonatan Berick.
Yosuke began his violin studies at age six with his father, Masao Kawasaki, and Setsu Goto. He was subsequently accepted into The Juilliard School Pre-College Division, where he furthered his education. He graduated from The Juilliard School in 1998 under the tutorship of Dorothy DeLay, Hyo Kang, Felix Galimir, and Joel Smirnoff.
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Mintje van Lier (1982) is Principal Second violin with Canada’s National Arts Centre Orchestra.
At the age of five, Mintje started studying the violin under Anneke Schilt-Plate and continued with Hans Scheepers, Joyce Tan, Mimi Zweig, Chris Duindam and Lex Korff de Gidts. In 2006 she received her Bachelor of Music at the Amsterdam Conservatory. She continued her studies in the class of Ilan Gronich at the Universität der Künste, Berlin, receiving the Diplom in 2009.
From 2004-2006, Mintje performed as a member of the European Union Youth Orchestra under the direction of Bernard Haitink, Sir Colin Davis, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Paavo Järvi and Sir John Eliot Gardiner.
In 2007, Mintje studied in the Academy of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, after which, she was awarded a scholarship from the Bernard Haitink Fund for Young Talent. In 2008, Mintje won the position as assistent principal 2nd Violin with the Netherlands Radio Chamber Filharmonic. In the five years leading up to the closing of this orchestra, Mintje enjoyed playing under the frequent guest conductor’s Philippe Herreweghe and Frans Brüggen. Mintje freelances with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra. From 2014—2021 Mintje was the assistant principal 2nd violin of the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, as well as a member of the Jenufa String Quartet.
She has taken part in the Zermatt Festival with the Scharoun Ensemble of the Berliner Philharmoniker. In Berlin, Mintje played with Solistenensemble Kaleidoskop.
Mintje plays a Theo Marks violin (2018).
In 2014, after 12 years of living abroad, violist David Marks returned to Canada to accept the position of Associate Principal Viola with the NAC Orchestra. Born in Vancouver, David grew up in Virginia in the heart of a musical family. He experimented with composing, writing, drawing, and painting from an early age. These passions have resulted in dozens of original songs, paintings, and murals. His viola studies took him across the U.S. and Europe for lessons with Roberto Diaz, Atar Arad, Karen Tuttle, Gerard Caussé, Thomas Riebl, and Nobuko Imai; to the Banff Centre; L’Académie de Musique Tibor Varga; and Prussia Cove.
In Europe, David performed as Principal Viola with L’Orchestre de Montpellier and L’Opera de Bordeaux, La Orquesta de la Ciudad de Granada, Holland Symfonia, and Amsterdam Sinfonietta. He was Principal Viola of the London Philharmonic Orchestra under the batons of Vladimir Jurowski, Christoph Eschenbach, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, and Marin Alsop. As a fixture on the contemporary music scene, he performed across Europe with the Asko/Schonberg Ensemble, Ensemble Modern, the Mondriaan Quartet, Fabrica Musica, and Nieuw Amsterdamse Peil. He was a member of the avant-garde Dutch contemporary music group Nieuw Ensemble, with whom he toured China and recorded over 40 works.
As a folk musician, David has toured Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia, singing his songs with The History of Dynamite. His folk opera The Odyssey was performed at the Banff Centre and subsequently at Theater de Cameleon in Amsterdam. He plays fiddle and guitar and has performed with Van Dyke Parks, Bill Frisell, and Patrick Watson.
He lives with his wife and four children in Wakefield, Quebec.
Assistant Principal Cello of the National Arts Centre Orchestra since 2014, Julia MacLaine performs worldwide as a soloist, chamber, and orchestral musician in music ranging from classical to contemporary and from ‘world’ to her own arrangements and compositions.
Julia enjoys exploring the juxtaposition of music with other art forms, of different styles of music, and of contemporary and classical music. Her début album, Préludes, released by Analekta in January 2022, features six new Canadian works written for her, alongside the six Préludes from the Bach Cello Suites that inspired the new pieces.
During the ten years she spent living in New York City, Julia collaborated frequently with composers, giving voice to new chamber and solo cello works. She has given premieres of music by Ingram Marshall, James Blachly, and Mauricio Pauly and has been a champion of Pedro Malpica’s Pachamama’s Catharsis for solo cello. With three other members of Ensemble ACJW, Julia created and performed an immersive tribute to whales and ocean life at the Museum of Natural History, featuring new American music, original poetry, and live painting. From 2005 to 2014, she was a member of The Knights, with whom she performed the Schumann Cello Concerto in Central Park.
Julia has performed at the Mecklenberg‐Vorpommern, Lanaudière, Bic, Mostly Mozart, Tanglewood, and Ravinia Festivals in Abu Dhabi, Tokyo, and throughout Europe, the U.S., and Canada. She has performed with the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen and Les Violons du Roy and counted Itzhak Perlman, Pinchas Zukerman, James Ehnes, Cynthia Phelps, Inon Barnatan, Jamie and Jon Kimura Parker, and the Orion String Quartet among her chamber music partners.
Originally from Prince Edward Island, Julia studied with Antonio Lysy at McGill University and Timothy Eddy at the Mannes College of Music and The Juilliard School. She lives in Wakefield, Quebec, with her partner (also a musician) and their son.
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