All nine concerts will feature soprano soloist, Maria Jette. Ms. Jette has appeared with The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Houston, Kansas City, San Luis Obispo, Santa Rosa, Charlotte, Buffalo, Grand Rapids, Austin and San Antonio Symphonies, New York Chamber Symphony and Portland Baroque Orchestra, and for many merry seasons with Ex Machina Antique Music Theatre in the Twin Cities. With conductor Helmuth Rilling, she’s sung Bach, Mozart and Haydn around the US, Germany, Spain, Venezuela, Japan and Canada. She’s performed her own production of Seuss/Kapilow’s Green Eggs & Ham for over 40,000 kids around the USA. She has been a regular guest over many seasons at the San Luis Obispo Mozart and Oregon Bach Festivals and the Oregon Festival of American Music and is often heard nationally on Garrison Keillor’s A Prairie Home Companion. More at www.mariajette.com

The Minnesota Sinfonia will perform a variety of light family favorites as well as feature a selection of vocal pieces from the following: Georges Bizet’s Habanera from Carmen, 
Giacomo Puccini’s O mio babbino caro from Gianni Schicchi, 
Harold Arlen’s Stormy Weather,
 Richard Rodgers’s Do-Re-Mi from The Sound of Music,
 Bob Thiel and George Weiss’s What a Wonderful World,
 Leonard Bernstein’s Tonight from Westside Story and American Folk Songs Shenandoah and Yankee Doodle.

Concerts are made possible with a generous grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board with funds from the Legacy Ammendment, Plum Creek and Pioneerland Library Systems and Red Wing Arts Association.

Additional Minnesota Sinfonia concert information is available at 612-871-1701 or www.mnsinfonia.org.

The Minnesota Sinfonia is a professional chamber orchestra whose mission is to serve the musical and educational needs of the citizens of Minnesota, especially families with children, inner-city youth, seniors and those with limited financial means. The Sinfonia plays concerts for over 25,000 people each year, and is the only professional orchestra of its kind, offering all concerts free of admission charges, welcoming children to every performance, and dedicating over half its services to inner-city schools. Founded in 1989 by Artistic Director Jay Fishman, the Minnesota Sinfonia is an independent, non-profit 501(c)(3) organization supported by corporate, foundation and individual contributors. For more information, to make a donation, or for a list of upcoming performances, visit www.mnsinfonia.org or call 612-871-1701.

FOR CALENDARS: June 8 at 7pm, Canby High School,
 307 1st St W,
 Canby, MN 56220.
June 9 at 2pm, YME High School Auditorium,
 450 9th Ave
, Granite Falls, MN 56241.
June 9 at 7pm, Willmar Education and Arts Center,
 611 5th St SW
 Willmar, MN 56201.
June 10 at 2pm, Dassel-Cokato Performing Arts Center,
 4852 Reardon Ave SW,
 Suite 1700, 
Cokato, MN 55321.
June 13 at 7pm, Central Park,
 4th and West Avenue, 
Redwing, MN.
FREE. 612.871.1701. www.mnsinfonia.org

Contact:
Emily Matejcek, Marketing & Development
emily@mnsinfonia.org
612-871-1701

If you know of someone who you think would be interested in this opportunity and would be a good fit, please feel free to share with others. Thank you!

Full Board recruitment information

Name of Organization: Minnesota Sinfonia

Address: 901 North 3^rd Street, Suite 112, Minneapolis, MN  55401-1022

Web site: www.MnSinfonia.org

Background: The Minnesota Sinfonia is a professional, non-profit chamber orchestra offering free-admission concerts and educational programs in and around the Twin Cities and outstate Minnesota.  All programs are accessible and welcoming to all ages.

Music for Everyone

In the 1980s, conductor Jay Fishman had a remarkable idea. He envisioned a professional, top-quality orchestra that would dedicate its services to the underserved and low-income residents of Minnesota.  In 1989, he created the Minnesota Sinfonia, a professional chamber orchestra whose mission was to serve families, children, inner-city youth, seniors, and those with limited incomes.

Early on, the Sinfonia developed its policies of free admission and children welcome at all performances.  The Sinfonia was the first, and is still the only professional orchestra in the state to have such policies.  As a result, Sinfonia concerts consistently attract large audiences of first-time concertgoers, families with young children, and people from all walks of life.

As one of three professional orchestras in the Twin Cities, the Sinfonia is the only one to offer all concerts free of admission charges, to perform in accessible neighborhood locations year-round, and to welcome children to every performance.  The Sinfonia is dedicated to community service and education.  Each year, the Sinfonia performs more free, in-school concerts than any professional orchestra in the state, allocating nearly 30 percent of its budget and over half its concerts to educational programs.  Our guiding values are quality, accessibility, and education.

Mission:

The mission of the Minnesota Sinfonia is to serve the musical and educational needs of the citizens of Minnesota, with special emphasis given to families with young children, inner-city youth, seniors, and those with limited financial means.  To further this end, all concerts are offered free of admission charges, and children are welcome and encouraged to attend all performances.

In keeping with the goal of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Minnesota Sinfonia is committed to ensuring its programs and services are accessible to people of all abilities.

Recruitment Needs: We are seeking 2 – 3 candidates with an interest in our mission.

Skills/Qualities Looking For:

• Finance skills
• Legal knowledge
• Fundraising abilities
• Public/community relations
• Strategic planning
• Operations
• Additionally, candidates from the following companies are sought:

2012 Annual budget: $575,000

Funding Sources: 31% foundation grants, 27% corporation grants, 26% government grants,
9% individual contributions, and 7% earned income.

Board Information:

Current number of members: 11

Board members needed:  2 – 3

Meeting time and frequency: Monthly – about 10 times annually.  Mondays from 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

Board Committees:  Governance, Finance, Operations, Development & Marketing, and Nominations.

Meeting location:  Minnesota Sinfonia office

Expectations of Board Members:

Time Expectation: 3-4 hours per month and attendance at 2-3 concerts per year

Financial Contribution:  Expectation is that every board member will give as much to the MN Sinfonia as they give to any other charity.  The suggested minimum is $500 annually.

Service on Committee Required: Yes

Length of Term: 3 years

Renewable: Yes, but limited to two consecutive three-year terms (maximum of six consecutive years)

If interested, please contact board members: Mary Weber at Mweber@csmcorp.net or Grant Fairbairn at gfairbairn@fredlaw.com

TBA by the winner of the 2012 Junior Composers Competition

Concerto in a minor for violin and orchestra, opus 53, Allegro ma non troppo by Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904)

Antonin Dvorak came from humble and financially insecure origins.  He grew up in a small Czech village, and at age eleven, he was apprenticed as a butcher for financial security. The young Antonin was a talented violinist, and at age sixteen his father allowed him to go to Prague and study music. While there, he played violin in the local café orchestra and in the Provisional Theater Orchestra. While in the Theater Orchestra, he played under two of the most important composers of the day – Bedrich Smetana (the Czech nationalist composer) and Richard Wagner.  Dvorak was a prolific composer, and by age thirty-four, he had already composed several symphonies, operas and much chamber music.  Unfortunately, he received little public recognition for those efforts.  His fortunes changed however, after he won the Austrian State Prize. Johannes Brahms was one of the judges, and was so impressed, that he introduced Dvorak to his own publisher, Simrock.   Simrock also was impressed with Dvorak, and immediately commissioned and published a set of Slavonic Dances (originally written for piano duet, but later orchestrated by the composer). From that point on, Dvorak’s place in history was secured.

This three-movement violin concerto was composed with the thought that it would be dedicated to and premiered by the great German violinist, Joseph Joachim. The concerto was written in the summer of 1879 soon after Joachim premiered the Brahms violin concerto, and given the close association between Brahms and Dvorak (Brahms was instrumental in helping Dvorak establish a career), it seemed like a natural progression. Unfortunately, evidently Joachim had reservations about the new piece, and did not play its premier. The first performances were left to the Czech violinist, Frantisek Ondricek, and they took place four years later, in 1883 in Prague.

In some respects, the concerto was similar to others of its day, but there were also some significant differences. In the first movement, after only a five-measure orchestral introduction, the solo violin enters for nine measures, after which the full orchestra plays for five measures, followed again by the solo violin. And, the movement ends with a quiet lead to the second movement, not the more typical and expected big bravura bang. Most concertos of the day had long and substantial introductions that would prepare the audience for the upcoming star, and of course a loud and exciting end that would encourage the audiences to stand up and cheer.  The last movement has a recurring dance-like theme and character, similar to some the composer’s very popular Slavonic Dances. It is lighter in nature – perhaps a bit too light for the audiences of the day. Given the quality and romantic appeal of this concerto, there is much conjecture as to why it is not a regular offering in today’s concerto repertoire.  I think that it simply may be overshadowed by the composer’s great cello concerto, which most people of course rate as the best of the cello repertoire. jf

Symphony No. 9 from the New World, opus 95 by Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904)

In 1893, Dvorak was brought to America to head the National Conservatory of Music in New York City by the Conservatory’s founder and primary benefactor, Jeanette Thurber. She was trying to build a national conservatory that would admit and train America’s best musicians, regardless of gender, race or financial circumstances, all with free tuition. She attracted some of the best musicians of the time, including cellist and composer, Victor Herbert. Adding Dvorak as the head of course was a major coup.

Aside from spending one summer in the Czech community of Spillville, Iowa and another summer in Prague, Dvorak spent the rest of his American stay in and around New York City, composing, guest conducting and building the Conservatory.

Dvorak composed several important works while in American, including his famous ninth symphony, from the New World. Dvorak was certainly taken with the music of America, especially with the music of the Negro and American Indian populations. The symphony’s melodic content was certainly influenced by “local” American music, which in turn generated much discussion and controversy. Following are several quotes that may help to explain:

In a newspaper interview, presumably because of the similarities in the use of pentatonic scales and some of the melodies, he stated:

“I found that the music of the Negroes and of the Indians was practically identical… and that the music of the two races bore a remarkable similarity to the music of Scotland.”

In the New York Herald, he stated:

“I am now satisfied that the future music of this country must be founded upon what are called the Negro melodies. This must be the real foundation of any serious and original school of composition to be developed in the United States. When I first came here last year I was impressed with this idea and it has developed into a settled conviction.”

Dvorák’s learned about the Negro melodies from his African-American student and song- writer, Henry Thacker Burleigh, who sang many of the melodies to his teacher. Burleigh later wrote that:

There is no doubt that Dr. Dvorák was very deeply impressed by the Negro spirituals from the old plantation. He just saturated himself in the spirit of those old tunes, and then invented his own themes.

More specifically, there have been questions if Dvorak used some of the spirituals in the New World Symphony. To clarify and presumably to eliminate controversy, in an interview published in Harper’s Magazine, Dvorak wrote:

It is this spirit that I have tried to reproduce in my new symphony. I have not actually used any of the melodies I have simply written original themes embodying the peculiarities of Indian music…and using these themes as subjects, have developed them with all the resources of modern rhythms, harmony, counterpoint, and orchestral color.”

He later explained that the title was simply meant to express  “impressions and greetings from the New World.”

And finally, in a letter to conductor Oskar Nedbal, he wrote:

“Kindly omit the nonsense that I have used American and Indian motives because it is a lie. I tried only to write in the spirit of American folk melodies.”

I think that one final quote sums up Dvorak’s thoughts on the symphony and his time in America:

“I should never have written the Symphony as I have, if I hadn’t seen America, but he added in a later letter that it was genuine Bohemian music.” jf

Jest by Christopher Neiner (b.1994)

Jest is based on two themes, a witty, bustling rhythm, and an innocent, playful melody. These themes together create a light-hearted, whimsical mood that in itself is a jest: a playful attitude. After the themes are first presented, they begin to intermingle with each other. Their interactions develop first through fragments and later in their entirety as the piece nears a jostling, frenzied ending.  Jest was first written during the spring of 2011 for the Junior Composer’s workshop, New Symphonies. It was then revised in the spring of 2012 for the MN Sinfoina’s current performance. cn

Violin Concerto in G Major, K 216 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)

“I declare to you before God, and as an honest man, that your son is the greatest composer I know, either personally or by name.” Franz Joseph Haydn to Leopold Mozart

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in Salzburg in 1756, and died in Vienna in 1791. He is best known as the boy genius who gave us hundreds of wonderful operas, symphonies, concertos, songs, etc. Thanks to the play Amadeus and the movie that followed, he is often remembered as a prankster, a fun loving child who never grew up, and a genius who was able to spin out one masterpiece after another. Life of course is never that simple, nor was his life the happy fairy tale one so often wants to assume.

The young Mozart started music lessons at age three with his father Leopold, who in his own right was a well-known and respected violinist and teacher. By age five the young Wolfgang had progressed enough to begin public performing and composing. Soon thereafter, Leopold took both Wolfgang and his sister (who also was a talented musician) to Vienna to show them off. The boy’s reputation preceded them, and he was already called the “little magician.”  The child Wolfgang performed for the royal court and was a smash hit.  After the performance, he jumped into to the lap of the empress, and kissed her.  The court went wild, and according to a quote from the time,  “all the ladies lost their hearts to the little fellow.”  The children’s early childhood was filled with many successful trips, playing concerts, and meeting important leaders and musicians.  During these travels, the young Mozart continually studied and learned under the direction of his father.

Mozart’s life and career had many ups and downs.  At times he was very popular and at other times, he was all but neglected. Like his popularity, his finances also had many fluctuations – sometimes he was wealthy, and at other times he was poor. In spite of the uncertainties, he was able to create more than 600 works, many of which remain popular in today’s repertoire. Included are 41 numbered symphonies, and 27 numbered piano concerti.

Mozart composed his five violin concertos during the span of April to December of 1774, when he was only nineteen. There seems to be some question as to who they were composed for, most likely a violinist named Brunetti. As it turns out, there were several violinists named Brunetti, and one theory is that these concerti may have been written for Antonio Brunetti, who later became the concertmaster of the Salzburg opera. Given Mozart’s connection to the city and its opera, this seems to be a reasonable conjecture. However, there was another violinist, Gaetano Brunetti who was largely associated with Boccherini, but who also had dealings with Mozart, and, for whom Mozart did compose some music. So the questions remain unanswered.

This and the rest of the concerti are all scored for a relatively small orchestra (2 oboes, 2 horns and strings), and technically are not the virtuosic tour de forces that one might expect from the young Mozart. In fact, the last three (the most famous and popular of the concertos) all end quietly – peacefully – and not with the grand rush of loud and exciting flourishes that would attract the shouts of bravos and standing ovations. For any other composer, this would surely be a disappointment. But for Mozart, another demonstration of his genius .jf

Symphony No. 103 in E flat Major, The Drumroll by Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)

Franz Joseph Haydn (born in Lower Austria in 1732 and died in Vienna in 1809) is commonly known as the father of the classical symphony. Because he had the luxury of consistent financial security, and the opportunity to work with quality musicians over a long period of time, he was able to develop slowly and methodically as a composer and craftsman. Haydn spent the years of 1761 to 1790 in the employ of Esterhazy family – first with Paul Anton, and after his death, his brother Prince Nicolaus. Nicolaus (who had the longer tenure) loved music, and was very supportive of Haydn and his efforts.  He employed excellent musicians and singers, which gave Haydn a marvelous laboratory to develop and sharpen his compositional skills. The Esterhazy estate, which was described by a French traveler as “having no place but Versailles to compare with for magnificence,” became a center for excellent music making and productions.

At first Haydn’s orchestra was small (his early symphonies generally used few winds and a small string compliment), but over time the size of the orchestra grew, as did the proficiency of its players. Haydn’s composing mirrored these changes. The complexities and the lengths of his symphonies increased, and he made more technical demands on his players. Over this time frame, the typical four-movement classical symphony format became formalized, largely because of the development of his compositions.

Haydn’s fame spread across Europe, and after the death of his patron Prince Nicolaus, he was very much in demand. He was brought to England by the impresario Johann Peter Salomon, who commissioned two sets of six symphonies. These twelve symphonies (numbers 92-104), which are referred to as the London Symphonies, or the Salomon Symphonies are considered to be the pinnacle of the classical symphonic form, and the best of Haydn’s enormous symphonic output.

Many of these symphonies have nicknames, somehow related to the musical content. Examples include the Surprise because of the sudden loud noises in the slow movement, or the Drumroll (heard on this set of concerts) because of the opening roll in on the timpani. Other symphonies have specific associations, such as the Oxford, because Haydn was awarded an honorary doctorate at one of the town’s universities, or the Clock because of the constant “ticking” sound of the regular rhythm in the second movement.

Titles on symphonies were also good marketing tools. An excellent case in point is the Miracle symphony – number 96. Stories (rumors) circulated that during the premiere of this work, a chandelier crashed from the ceiling to the floor of the concert hall. Fortunately, before the crash, the audience had rushed to the stage to see the famous composer, and consequently, there were no injuries caused by the falling fixture. The lack of injuries was called a miracle, which led to the nickname. Although this is a great story, reality tells a different tale. According to historical records, a chandelier did fall during a concert, and no one was injured. But it was during the premiere of Haydn’s symphony number 102, not 96.  So even though the numbers did not work, the story stuck, the nickname caught on, and to this day it has been associated with the wrong symphony. jf

Friday, March 30
7:00 p.m.

Founders Hall, Metro State University
700 E 7th St, St Paul, MN 55106

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Sunday, April 1,
4:00 p.m.

Temple Israel
2324 Emerson Ave S, Minneapolis, 55405

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Full concert information