Huntsville Symphony Concert Features Violinist Vadim Gluzman

The Huntsville Symphony Orchestra features great music by American composers and one of the gems of the violin repertoire. Carlos Miguel Prieto returns to the podium to conduct Copland and Brahms in the fifth concert of the Classical Series on Saturday, March 18, 2006 at 7:30 p.m. In the VBC Concert Hall. Guest artist is Vadim Gluzman, violin. Concert sponsor is the Olin B. King Foundation. Guest Artist sponsor is Dentists 2006.

The concert opens with Short Ride in a Fast Machine by contemporary American composer John Adams. “You know how it is when someone asks you to ride in a terrific sports car, and then you wish you hadn't?” That's how the composer describes this short and infectious fanfare. Three distinctive and seemingly unrelated patterns combine

to create an aura of energy and excitement that propels the listener into the heart of the music. Its unique melodic flow demonstrates that modern music can sing.

The Violin Concerto by Brahms, performed by young virtuoso Vadim Gluzman, needs no introduction to listeners. Conductor Carlos Prieto states, “Of todays' young stars, Vadim Gluzman is one of my favorite violinists, because he brings a unique intensity and depth, both emotionally and intellectually.” For his part, Mr. Gluzman states, "No other concerto brings me the same satisfaction musically and emotionally. . .no other concerto allows me to express myself more fully and deeply. I cannot wait for every time I play Brahms!"

At its premiere, many listeners were skeptical of the new piece, which seemed to be virtually beyond the abilities of merely mortal violinists. One observer, the conductor/pianist Hans von Bülow, actually labeled it a concerto "against the violin." The noted Spanish violinist Pablo de Sarasate flatly refused to play the work, though not on questions of difficulty. "Do you think," he queried rhetorically, "that I would stand there with my violin in my hand and listen while the oboe plays the only melody in the entire piece?" Nevertheless, the violinist has lovely music in abundance, and audiences have always delighted in the concerto's lyrical melodies and rich orchestration.

Premiered in 1946, Aaron Copland's Symphony No. 3 is a majestic display of orchestral virtuosity. Although not based upon any folk or popular American melodies, this large-scale work has at its heart a deeply American sensibility. In the final movement, listeners will recognize eloquent and majestic use of Copland's his “Fanfare for the Common Man,” composed earlier during the war years as part of a public morale campaign.

Brilliantly scored for large orchestra, the orchestration calls for two harps. The instruments played in this concert were built side-by-side over fifty years ago by premier harp manufacturer Lyon & Healy. These sister harps were bound for different destinations—one to the Metropolitan Opera in New York City, and the other to the hands of the HSO's first harpist. Through a series of coincidences, both are now in Huntsville, and the pair will be reunited for the first time on stage for Saturday's concert. The performing harpists were students of the legendary Marjorie Tyre, formerly of the Metropolitan Opera, and original owner of one of the harps, which she bequeathed HSO's principal harpist Katherine Newman. The other is now owned by Olin and Shelbie King, who are sponsors for this concert.

Tickets maybe purchased by phone at 539-4818, in person at the HSO Offices and online at www.hso.org. Tickets may also be purchased the night of the concert at the VBC beginning at 6:30 p.m. Single ticket prices range from $27 to $58, with student and group rates available. There is a $5.00 student rush for available seating beginning ten minutes before the concert.

Pre-Concert Conversations are thirty-minute informal talks beginning at 6:45 before the concert. “Sneak Preview,” HSO’s final rehearsal at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, is open to the public for a nominal charge of $5.00. Children 5 and under are free. Sponsor is Publix Super Markets Charities and Compass Bank.

Artist Biography

Vadim Gluzman

“…poised naturalness, poetry of expression and flawless finesse of a born fiddler…”
The Jerusalem Post

“…a commanding technique, spontaneity, and visionary breadth…capable of both delicate nuances and incendiary passion.”
The Washington Post

Israeli violinist Vadim Gluzman, in technique and sensibility, harkens back to the Golden Age of violinists of the 19th and 20th centuries, while possessing the passion and energy of the 21st century. Lauded by both critics and audiences as a performer of great depth, virtuosity and technical brilliance, he has performed throughout the United States, Europe, Russia, Japan, Australia and Canada as a soloist and in a duo setting with his wife, pianist Angela Yoffe.

Mr. Gluzman performs on the extraordinary 1690 ex-Leopold Auer Stradivarius on extended loan to him through the generosity of the Stradivari Society of Chicago. "In Gluzman's hands, this Strad doesn't speak: it proclaims, sings, sighs, laughs," said the Detroit Times after Mr. Gluzman's sensational debut with the Detroit Symphony under Maestro Neeme Järvi. He has performed under many of the leading conductors of the day including the late Yehudi Menuhin, James de Priest, Claus Peter Flor, James Judd, Marek Janowski, Dimitri Kitayenko, Eri Klas, Jesus Lopez-Cobos, Peter Oundjian, Yan Pascal Tortellier, and Vladimir Verbitsky.

In the summer of 2005, Mr. Gluzman performed in the Naumburg Concert Shell in New York's Central Park at the opening concert celebrating the 100th Anniversary of that esteemed summer series. He returned to the David Oistrakh Festival in Parnu, Estonia for orchestral appearances and recitals, performed with Korea's KBS Symphony in Seoul, and performed and taught in Israel.

Mr. Gluzman records exclusively for the BIS label. The recording of Lera Auerbach's Twenty-Four Preludes for Violin and Piano (written for Mr. Gluzman and Ms. Yoffe), released on BIS, received rave reviews, as did their second album, featuring music by Schnittke, Vasks, Pärt, and Kancheli. He has recorded and appeared internationally for radio and television.

Born in the Ukraine into a family of professional musicians, Mr. Gluzman began studying the violin at the age of seven. After moving to Israel in 1990, he studied with Yair Kless at the Rubin Academy of Music in Tel-Aviv. He has also studied in the United States with Arkady Fomin and at the Juilliard School with the late Dorothy DeLay and Masao Kawasaki. In 1990, the young violinist was granted five minutes to play for the late Isaac Stern, after which a friendship was born. Mr. Gluzman later worked with Stern in Israel and The United States. Mr. Gluzman, his wife and daughter make their home in the Chicago area.

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