American Salute-Morton Gould
Molly on the Shore-Percy Grainger
Let Freedom Ring-Ryan Nowlin
Symphony No. 5 in E Minor- Peter Tchaikovsky
Symphony Supporters: April 2, 2022
General Public: April 9, 2022
We conclude our inaugural season with Tchaikovsky’s magnificent Symphony No. 5 in E Minor. Composed in 1888, the symphony reflects the Romantic Era’s sense of longing, and—more typical of Tchaikovsky—sense of fate.
On 15 April 1888, about a month before he began composing the symphony, the composer sketched a scenario for its first movement in his notebook, containing “… a complete resignation before fate, which is the same as the inscrutable predestination of fate …” While contemporary critics struggled with his music, panning such classics as the 1812 Overture and The Nutcracker, modern-day audiences are transported by his unique ability to plunge emotional depths.
Few composers in history have the ability to tap into raw emotion like Tchaikovsky, and few works typify the emotional power of music like the Fifth Symphony. A triumph for him, and for all of us.
Also on the program is the charming Suite of Old American Dances by Bennett and the hauntingly-beautiful Lyric Fantasy by Larsson.