Explore the Drama of Mozart with the Spokane Symphony

Mar 9, 2011

For Immediate Release

Contact: Annie Matlow 464-7071

SPOKANE— Music Director Eckart Preu will conduct the Spokane Symphony performing an all-Mozart program, on Saturday, March 19, at 8 p.m. and Sunday, March 20, at 3 p.m. at Martin Woldson Theater at The Fox.  Preu has chosen selections from this multifaceted composer will include solo parts played by Concertmaster Mateusz Wolski and Principal Violist Nicholas Carper. There will be a pre-concert lecture in the hall one hour before each performance.

The concert will begin with Mozart’s Don Giovanni Overture. During his lifetime, Mozart wrote 20 operas, and in the process, revolutionized the art form from static conventions to a wealth of new aria forms and stunning ensembles. The overture was not exempt from this transformation; rather than music completely unrelated to the opera, Mozart manages to convey the intensity of the drama, and hint at its highlights, without giving away the elements of surprise and excitement of the music and the action. Gounod wrote of the overture, “Everything in this tremendous introduction breathes terror and inspires awe.”

The Sinfonia Concertante E-flat major, follows a format that was popular in Mozart’s day, blending elements of the symphony and concerto. Written shortly after the death of Mozart’s mother, it is an elegant creation with moments of breathtaking beauty. For those who have wondered about the differences in the character of the violin and viola, this is the perfect piece. The soloists’ parts sometimes weave in and out of each other and sometimes chase each other, and always pouring forth a stream of melodies.

This celebration of Mozart will wrap up with his Symphony No. 36 in C major, “Linz”. Mozart and his young wife were returning to Vienna after a visit to Salzburg and stopped in the town of Linz en route. Immediately upon his arrival, the local count announced there would be a concert with Mozart presenting a symphony four days later. Not having a symphony in hand, Mozart set to work and wrote the entire symphony, including copying parts and rehearsal, in just four days. In spite of the phenomenal speed of composition, no trace of hasty writing can be found in the work. 

Spokane Symphony Concertmaster Mateusz Wolski was born in Warsaw, Poland where he studied at the Chopin Music Academy in Warsaw before traveling to the U.S. to attend Manhattan School of Music. He has enjoyed a distinguished career both in the U.S. and abroad.  His solo performances have included violin concertos of Paganini, Sibelius, Beethoven, Wieniawski, Karlowicz, and Mozart, as well as both the Sarasate and Waxman CarmenFantasy. An enthusiastic chamber musician, he has appeared in New York City at Weill Hall, Merkin Concert Hall, 92nd Street Y, the Kosciuszko Foundation, and on radio broadcasts with WQXR. In Europe, his performances have included Wigmore Hall in London and the Mozarteum in Salzburg, as well as several engagements throughout Poland, Italy, England and Germany. Mateusz has served as concertmaster at the Attergau Music Festival (Austria), playing alongside principal members of the Vienna Philharmonic, with the Annapolis Symphony, and for Spokane Opera. 

Nick Carper has been praised by critics, audiences, and fellow musicians for his dynamic energy and warmth of tone. Since joining the Spokane Symphony Orchestra in 2001, he has devoted himself to performing and teaching in the region and abroad. Born in Spokane, Nick holds degrees from Columbus State and Butler Universities, and has performed widely throughout the U.S. in various capacities, as principal, chamber musician, and soloist. As principal and section player he has performed with the Eugene, Columbus, Macon, La Grange, and Muncie Symphony Orchestras and the Marion Philharmonic. Recently Nick was guest Principal Violist of the 2010 American Prize-winning Lancaster Festival Orchestra. Carper is a passionate advocate of chamber music, and currently can be heard with the Inland Northwest Chamber Music Collective and on the Spokane Symphony’s Chamber Soiree series at the Davenport Hotel. In addition to his concert schedule, Nick is currently on faculty at Gonzaga University. He teaches privately and is a frequent coach of Spokane’s youth orchestra.

This concert has been underwritten by Maxine Kopczynski. Eckart Preu recommends this concert for participants in Symphony YES!, which is sponsored by STCU.

Tickets for either performance are $22, $32, $40, and $44. Tickets are available in advance at the Spokane Symphony Ticket Office, located at Martin Woldson Theater at The Fox, 1001 W. Sprague, or by calling 509-624-1200. Tickets may also be purchased online at www.spokanesymphony.org Tickets are also available at all TicketsWest outlets or by calling 1-800-325-SEAT.

CALENDAR LISTING:

The Drama of Mozart, Eckart Preu conducts the Spokane Symphony, Mateusz Wolski, violin, Nick Carper, viola, on Saturday, March 19, at 8 p.m. and Sunday, March 20, at 3 p.m. at Martin Woldson Theater at The Fox. Tickets are $22, $32, $40 and $44. Tickets are available in advance at the Spokane Symphony Ticket Office, located at Martin Woldson Theater at The Fox, 1001 W. Sprague, or by calling 509-624-1200. Tickets may also be purchased online at www.spokanesymphony.org Tickets are also available at all TicketsWest outlets or by calling 1-800-325-SEAT.