Wednesday 7 March 2007, 7.

30pm
Part of Traced Overhead: The Musical World of Thomas Ads
Berliner Philharmoniker
Sir Simon Rattle conductor

Dvork Symphony No.7 in D minor 40

Interval
Ads Tevot UK premiere 20
Jancek Sinfonietta 20
This concert is being recorded for future broadcast on BBC Radio 3.

The appearance of the Berliner Philharmoniker has been made possible by

the support of Deutsche Bank.

Barbican Hall
The Great Performers 2007-2008 season is now on sale.
For full details visit www.barbican.org.uk/greatperformers0708 where
The Barbican Centre is provided by the you can listen to soundclips and watch the Barbicans Head of Music
City of London Corporation as part of its Robert van Leer introduce the new season.
contribution to the cultural life of London
and the nation.

Even as the UK is brimming with wonderful
young composers, I think few would
dispute that Tom Ads may be the most
extravagantly gifted of them all ... I have
been personally thrilled that the Berliner
Philharmoniker has taken as passionately
to his music as the City of Birmingham
Symphony Orchestra and Birmingham
Contemporary Music Group. After the
performances of Asyla in my inaugural
concerts [as Chief Conductor] in Berlin,
many of the players crowded round
demanding to know why we were not
immediately touring it.
A new work for the 2006/07 season was one
of our first commissions together and Ads
already seems like a member of the family.
He is easier to describe than his music, despite the
fact that he is a walking paradox an immensely
friendly, sociable hermit who will just disappear given
the slightest chance.
The music is harder to pin down, as it gleefully plunders a
weird, wonderful and eccentric selection of the past and
transmutes it into an unmistakably new voice. It is, almost
without exception, written at the far reaches of
instrumental virtuosity but, as a performer, one realises
very fast that he has transmitted what he hears in the
simplest possible notation, even if he has had to invent
new time signatures to cope with the rhythms in his head.
It is a sign of the very best music when every hour of
rehearsal, every performance, brings a feeling of
increased depth. However head-scratchingly, stomach-
churningly difficult the music is, the truth is that the
better you play it, and the closer you come to his
idiosyncratic vision, the more wonderful it sounds.
His sense of depth and darkness lurking behind dancing
lightness is, I am sure, going to become more and more
a feature of each new work and all of us eagerly await
the next instalments.
Sir Simon Rattle
About Thomas Ads, celebrated in Traced Overhead
Born in London, Thomas Ads studied
piano at the Guildhall School of Music &
Drama, and read music at Kings College,
Cambridge. Among his best known works
are Living Toys, Arcadiana, and Asyla a
commission for Sir Simon Rattle and the
CBSO (1997) which enjoyed immediate and
subsequent international succcess. Tevot, his
latest orchestral work, features as part of the
Berliner Philharmonikers current tour.
Adss first opera, Powder Her Face, has
been performed around the world, televised
and recorded. Most of the composers music
has been recorded by EMI, with whom Ads
has a contract as composer, pianist and
Ads conductor. His second opera, The Tempest,
was commissioned by the Royal Opera
House, Covent Garden, and was premiered there under
the baton of the composer in 2004; it is being revived at
Covent Garden this month.
In demand worldwide as a conductor and pianist, Ads
is a renowned interpreter of his own music, while his
performances and recordings of other composers have
also been critically acclaimed. His chamber music
collaborators include Ian Bostridge and the Belcea
Quartet and he has conducted many orchestras and
ensembles including Birmingham Contemporary Music
Group, with which he has a close association. He has
been Artistic Director of the Aldeburgh Festival since
1999. He is the featured composer this spring in the
Prsences festival in Paris, where 23 of his works are
being programmed and broadcast in just under a
month, in performances involving over 700 musicians.
Later this year Ads is the focus of Oslos Ultima Festival,
and in 2007/08 he undertakes a major residency at
Carnegie Hall, New York.
The music of Thomas Ads has attracted wide
international recognition including, most recently, the
2000 Grawemeyer Award for Asyla (the largest
international prize for composition, here awarded to the
youngest recipient), the 2001 Hindemith Prize, and a
2005 Royal Philharmonic Society Award for The Tempest.
3
Notes

Antonn Dvork (1841-1904)

Symphony No.7 in D minor, Op.70
Allegro maestoso
Poco adagio
Scherzo: Vivace Poco meno mosso Vivace
Finale: Allegro
Dvork

In a way this symphony is coming home here, for it was in such a context a stirring model of national aspirations.
commissioned by the Philharmonic Society of London, Some recent political concessions to the Czechs such as
and Dvork himself conducted the first performance in the adoption in 1880 of Czech as an official language
the city, on 22 April 1885. London had received him well within the civil service, alongside German had only
the year before, on his first trip abroad. As his music intensified demands for independence. Dvorks
grew more Czech, so it was winning more international symphony was a rallying call, and its political message
admirers. A commission from the Philharmonic Society surely warmed hearts in London, where imperial Vienna
was a distinct mark of having arrived, as Dvork was seen as a rival, as much as in Prague.
recognised. The society had commissioned Beethovens
But music is music, and if this symphony has long outlived
Ninth; Dvork would write his London symphony in the
the nationalist feelings which motivated it, that must be
same key.
because effort and conflict are right there in the musical
The nearer stimulus, though, came from Brahms, and in ideas and shapes because these tunes are not only
particular from Brahmss Third Symphony (1883), which Czech but charged with possibilities of change, because
made Dvork want to create something similarly these rhythms drive onwards, because these harmonies
imposing and well built. London gave him the prompt, are made to promise but also to resist the resolution that
but it was in Prague that the music started to come. In must come.
December 1884 the composer (a keen train-spotter) was
at the citys railway station when a special train pulled in
from Budapest. It was bringing people to attend an Interval
evening at the National Theatre in support of self-
determination for the Czechs, who were then second-
class subjects of the Austro-Hungarian empire. Fired up,
he drafted the first movement in five days, and wrote to a
friend: God grant this Czech music will move the world!
Three months later the entire score was finished.
Find out first Why not download your Great Performers
For the first time in a symphony Dvork resolutely
programme before the concert? Each programme is now available
explored varieties of melody and rhythm typical of Czech
online five days in advance of each concert. Due to the possibility of
folk music the sort of material he had used in his
last minute changes, the online programme content may differ
Slavonic Rhapsodies and Slavonic Dances of 1878. The
slightly from that of the final printed version. For details visit
post-Beethoven atmosphere of struggle, unique to this
www.barbican.org.uk/greatperformers
symphony among Dvorks orchestral works, becomes

4
 Notes

Thomas Ads (born 1971)

Tevot UK premiere

Ads

Coming a decade after Asyla, this is Adss second big develops, it embraces more and more of the orchestra,
orchestral work big in length (allowing some scope to carrying the musics thrust towards a massive,
the conductor in choosing tempos) and in resources emphatically decelerated amplification of the tuned
(close to those of Stravinskys The Rite of Spring, but with anvils irregular rhythm.
the percussion tilted more to tuned instruments). Again
From here, about halfway through, the clamour must
Ads has chosen a one-word title that, like a closed
subside, and it does, into a polyphonic stream of lines
musical form in miniature, begins and ends with the
shifting within narrow ranges. This grows towards a
same sound. There are also connections of meaning.
recollection of the opening, out of which suddenly
The Hebrew word tevot is the ordinary musical term for
emerges an extraordinary passage much the slowest
bars; it can also mean words. In the singular, as tevah,
music in the piece for super-high violins. Gradually
it appears just twice in the Bible in very special and
descending, this music gathers expressive counterpoints,
similar contexts: for the ark built by Noah and for the
which take on a life of their own. Through impassioned
reed basket made by Mosess mother to float him on the
melody from the first violins the music arrives at a
Nile. These tevot are both places of safety asyla. They
transfiguration of the beginning. But it is not an easy
are also both structures that, made of natural materials,
peace.
remain firm in fluid surroundings.
Tevot may owe something in its sonic invention to Adss
Music, of course, is all fluid, but it can also be firm, and it
experience, since Asyla, as an orchestral conductor.
can be assertive, as parts of Tevot certainly are. The
Particularly relevant, perhaps, was a concert he gave at
start, however, is tremulously quiet, as if gearing up for
the Aldeburgh Festival in June 2005, around the time he
the larger statements that, already implicit, duly come
was starting this score. On the programme were The Rite
forward. They consume almost the whole orchestra in
of Spring and Tchaikovskys Pathtique Symphony
music that is, in characteristic Adsian fashion, at once
works of pounding, pulsed dynamism and pure
exhilarating and unsettling.
orchestral song such as one might have thought
There follows a complex but intensive canon for irreconcilable. Tevot could be their love-child.
woodwind and percussion (a department not much used
up to now), leading to a passage marked in volo (in
flight), where leaping gestures piggy-back on each other Tevot was commissioned by Stiftung Berliner Philharmoniker and The Carnegie Hall
Corporation. The world premiere was given at the Berliner Philharmonie by the Berliner
to one climax after another. Tension is extended rather Philharmoniker and Sir Simon Rattle on 21 February 2007. The United States premiere will be
than released in the ensuing percussionless molto given at Carnegie Hall, New York City, on 11 November 2007, by the same performers who
also give the UK premiere this evening.
espressivo and the next sequence with tuned anvils to the
fore, the latter succeeded by a breathless rush towards a
moment of stability: a chorale for oboes and
vibraphone. Nothing, however, is still. As the chorale

5
Notes

Leos Jancek (1854-1928)

Sinfonietta
Allegretto Andante Moderato Allegretto Andante con moto

Jancek

A composer offers not just new music but a new view of bobbing back, no matter what is thrown at it. The second
the past. So it is with Ads. As pianist and conductor he and last movements are the longest and most varied;
has paid eager respects to the great tradition, as both also dramatically reintroduce the first movements
represented in these concerts by Haydn, Beethoven and fanfares.
Schumann. Where the 20th century is concerned, he has
For the premiere, which Vclav Talich conducted in
chosen his own ancestors, and they also figure here: not
Prague in June 1926, Jancek gave the movements titles:
only Stravinsky, a talisman for every subsequent
Fanfares, The Castle, The Queens Monastery, The
composer, but also a choice personal group that includes
Street and The Town Hall. His reference points, as he
Sibelius, Conlon Nancarrow, Gyrgy Kurtg and
explained the next year, lay in his home town of Brno; in
Jancek.
this music could be found the blare of victorious
If these composers share anything, it is what also trumpets, the holy peace of the Queens Monastery
separates them: individuality, conveyed in highly hidden in voz, the shadows of the night, the breath of
characterful and intensely expressive ideas. Take the the green hill and a vision of the secure growth and
opening movement of Janceks Sinfonietta: tubas sway, greatness of the town.
drums beat a defining rhythm, and just a few notes are all
Thus Janceks Brno follows Adss self-made
the trumpets need to blaze and crackle. This is also all the
habitations (both the Biblical tevot are unfixed dwellings)
orchestra Jancek needs for the movement, which he
and one of Dvorks most decisively Czech works three
based on fanfares he had written for a gymnastics
versions of what it means to be home.
festival.
Having got that far, he seems to have written the rest of
the work quickly, completing it in April 1926, between his
Programme notes by Paul Griffiths 2007
opera The Makropulos Case and his Glagolitic Mass.
Infectious ideas driving, spinning create the other
movements. So do contrasts of mood. The slow
movement, placed centrally, has a main theme full of Please make sure that all digital watch alarms and mobile phones
Romantic yearning, but other things are punchy and are switched off during the performance. In accordance with the
dynamic. Here, in under five minutes, is enough to make requirements of the licensing authority, sitting or standing
in any gangway is not permitted. No smoking, eating or drinking is
a whole symphony; the motifs bang up against each
allowed in the auditorium. No cameras, tape recorders or any other
other. Yet everything hangs together. Abruptness is part of recording equipment may be taken into the hall.
the action.
Programme edited by Edge-Wise, artwork by Jane Denton; printed
That is true even of the fourth movement, which takes by Vitesse London; advertising by Cabbell (tel. 020 8971 8450)
repetition to an extreme: the principal melodic tag keeps

6

Sir Simon Rattle conductor
Sir Simon Rattle, Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of
the Berliner Philharmoniker since September 2002, was
born in Liverpool and studied at the Royal Academy of
Music in London.
In 1980, Rattle was appointed Principal Conductor and
Artistic Adviser of the City of Birmingham Symphony
Orchestra, and was the orchestras Music Director from
September 1990 until summer 1998, touring and
recording extensively with it. In addition, he conducted
leading orchestras of the USA and Europe, enjoying a
close collaboration with the Boston Symphony Orchestra
and, in more recent seasons, with the Philadelphia
Orchestra. He is a regular guest conductor of the Vienna
Philharmonic, with which he has recorded the complete
Beethoven symphonies, as well as the piano concertos
with Alfred Brendel. He is a Principal Artist with the
Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, with which he has
enjoyed a collaboration since shortly after its formation,
and he is also the Founding Patron of Birmingham
Contemporary Music Group.
For the Salzburg Easter Festival, of which he is Artistic
Director, Rattle has conducted staged productions of
About the performers
Simon Fowler EMI Classics
Rattle
Beethovens Fidelio, Mozarts Cos fan tutte, Brittens
Peter Grimes and Debussys Pellas et Mlisande (which
he brings to the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, in
May), and a wide range of concert programmes
including Mozarts Idomeneo. In this years festival, in
addition to concerts, he conducts Das Rheingold, the first
part of Wagners Ring.
An exclusive EMI artist for many years, Rattle has made
over 70 recordings for the label, and received many
major international awards. Recent releases with the
Berliner Philharmoniker include Holsts The Planets with
Colin Matthewss Pluto; Shostakovichs Symphonies Nos.1
and 14; Strausss Ein Heldenleben; Debussys La mer;
Dvork tone poems; Schuberts Symphony No.9; and
Orffs Carmina Burana, with Brahmss Ein Deutsches
Requiem released this month. Bruckners Symphony No.4
and Haydn Symphonies Nos.87-92 follow in May and
August, respectively.
Sir Simon Rattle, who was knighted in 1994, has been
awarded many distinguished honours and prizes in
recognition of his extraordinary contribution to music,
and its understanding and appreciation.
7
About the performers

Berliner Philharmoniker

The Berliner Philharmoniker has been a feature of Berlins The orchestras change of status to a charitable
musical life since its creation in 1882. Its first regular foundation (the Stiftung Berliner Philharmoniker) has
conductor was Hans von Blow; guest conductors at this created new opportunities and ensured its economic
time included Hermann Levi, Hans Richter, Felix Mottl, future. The foundation is supported by its principal
Felix von Weingartner, Hans Pfitzner, Brahms, Grieg, sponsor, Deutsche Bank, whose patronage is closely
Mahler and Strauss. Arthur Nikisch followed Blow in allied to the orchestras education programme,
1895, advocating the music of Bruckner, Berlioz, Liszt, Zukunft@BPhil. This was set up at the time of Rattles
Tchaikovsky and modern works by Strauss and Mahler. appointment to ensure that the orchestra reached a
Nikisch was succeeded in 1922 by Wilhelm Furtwngler, broad and younger audience.
who led the orchestra through the Nazi period.
In 1955, after Furtwnglers death, the musicians chose
the Austrian conductor Herbert von Karajan to be the
orchestras Artistic Director. He played a significant role in
developing the unique tonal quality and performing style
that made the Berliner Philharmoniker famous all over the
world. Karajan terminated his partnership with the
orchestra shortly before his death in 1989, and was
succeeded by Claudio Abbado, Chief Conductor from
1990 to 2002. His tenure was characterised by a new type
of programme into which more contemporary works were
introduced, as well as an increased number of chamber
recitals and concert performances of operas. Sir Simon
Rattle succeeded him and became the orchestras first
British Chief Conductor and Artistic Director from the
2002/03 season.

8
 Berliner Philharmoniker

First Violin Viola Flute Trumpet

Guy Braunstein leader Carrie Dennis principal Andreas Blau principal Gbor Tarkvi principal
Daniel Stabrawa leader Neithard Resa principal Emmanuel Pahud principal Tams Velenczei principal
Toru Yasunaga leader Naoko Shimizu principal Prof. Michael Hasel Thomas Clamor
Rainer Sonne sub-leader Wilfried Strehle principal Jelka Weber Georg Hilser
Zoltan Almsi Micha Afkham Martin Kretzer
Maja Avramovi Julia Gartemann Oboe
Simon Bernardini Matthew Hunter Jonathan Kelly principal Trombone
Wolfram Brandl Ulrich Knrzer Albrecht Mayer principal Prof. Christhard Gssling
Peter Brem Sebastian Krunnies Christoph Hartmann principal
Armin Brunner Walter Kssner Andreas Wittmann Olaf Ott principal
Andreas Buschatz Martin von der Nahmer Dominik Wollenweber Thomas Leyendecker
Alessandro Cappone Zdzislaw Polonek Stefan Schulz
Madeleine Carruzzo Martin Stegner Clarinet
Aline Champion Wolfgang Talirz Wenzel Fuchs principal Tuba
Laurentius Dinca Karl-Heinz Steffens Paul Hmpel
Sebastian Heesch Cello principal
Felicitas Hofmeister Georg Faust principal Alexander Bader Timpani
Aleksandar Ivi Ludwig Quandt principal Walter Seyfarth Rainer Seegers
Rdiger Liebermann Martin Lhr principal Bass Clarinet Wieland Welzel
Kotowa Machida Olaf Maninger principal Manfred Preis
Helmut Mebert Jan Diesselhorst Percussion
Andreas Neufeld Richard Duven Bassoon Raphael Haeger
Bastian Schfer Christoph Igelbrink Daniele Damiano principal Fredi Mller
Solne Kermarrec Stefan Schweigert principal Franz Schindlbeck
Second Violin Martin Menking Henning Trog Jan Schlichte
Christian Stadelmann David Riniker Markus Weidmann
principal Nikolaus Rmisch Contrabassoon Harp
Thomas Timm principal Dietmar Schwalke Marion Reinhard Marie-Pierre Langlamet
Axel Gerhardt principal Knut Weber
Chairmen
Holm Birkholz Horn Jan Diesselhorst
Stanley Dodds Double Bass Radek Baborak principal Peter Riegelbauer

Cornelia Gartemann Nabil Shehata principal Stefan Dohr principal Media Chairmen
Amadeus Heutling Prof. Klaus Stoll principal Norbert Hauptmann Peter Brem
Olaf Maninger
Christophe Horak Rudolf Watzel principal Stefan de Leval Jezierski
Orchestral representatives on
Rainer Mehne Martin Heinze Fergus McWilliam Board of Trustees
Christoph von der Nahmer Wolfgang Kohly Georg Schreckenberger Rudolf Watzel
Fergus McWilliam
Raimar Orlovsky Esko Laine Klaus Wallendorf
Heinz-Henning Perschel Peter Riegelbauer Sarah Willis Orchestra Committee
Madeleine Carruzzo
Bettina Sartorius Edicson Ruiz Helmut Mebert
Rachel Schmidt Janne Saksala Nikolaus Rmisch
Christian Stadelmann
Armin Schubert Janusz Widzyk Martin Stegner
Stephan Schulze Ulrich Wolff Philharmonic Community
Christoph Streuli Martin Heinze
Klaus Wallendorf
Eva-Maria Tomasi Sarah Willis
Romano Tommasini
9