''Orchestral Works by Tomas Svoboda'' (sometimes abridged as ''Orchestral Works'') is a classical music album by the

Oregon Symphony The Oregon Symphony is an American symphony orchestra based in Portland, Oregon, United States. Founded as the 'Portland Symphony Society' in 1896, it is the sixth oldest orchestra in the United States, and oldest in the Western United States. I ...

under the

artistic direction An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre or dance company, who handles the organization's artistic direction. They are generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since th ...

James DePreist James Anderson DePreist (November 21, 1936 – February 8, 2013) was an American conductor. DePreist was one of the first African-American conductors on the world stage. He was the director emeritus of conducting and orchestral studies at T ...

, released by the record label Albany in 2003. The album was recorded at the

Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall The Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall (opened as the Portland Publix Theatre before becoming the Paramount Theatre after 1930) is a historic theater building and performing arts center in Portland, Oregon, United States. Part of the Portland Cent ...

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...

during three performances in January and June 2000. It contains three works by Tomáš Svoboda, a Czech-American composer who taught at

Portland State University Portland State University (PSU) is a public research university in Portland, Oregon. It was founded in 1946 as a post-secondary educational institution for World War II veterans. It evolved into a four-year college over the following two decad ...

for more than 25 years: ''Overture of the Season'', Op. 89; ''Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra'', Op. 148; and Symphony No. 1 (of Nature), Op. 20. The album's executive producers were Peter Kermani, Susan Bush, and Mark B. Rulison; Blanton Alspaugh served as the recording producer. ''Overture of the Season'' and ''Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra'' were commissioned by the Oregon Symphony. The latter was dedicated to principal percussionist Niel DePonte, who encouraged Svoboda to compose the work and who is featured on

marimba The marimba () is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars that are struck by mallets. Below each bar is a resonator pipe that amplifies particular harmonics of its sound. Compared to the xylophone, the timbre ...

; it was the first concerto commissioned by the orchestra for one of its musicians. Though the album received a mixed critical reception, DePonte's performance earned him a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

nomination for Best Instrumental Soloist Performance with Orchestra. Selected tracks from the album have been broadcast by classical music radio stations throughout the United States.

Background and composition

''Orchestral Works by Tomas Svoboda'', released by

Albany Records Albany Records is a record label that concentrates on unconventional contemporary classical music by American composers and musicians. It was established by Peter Kermani in 1987 and is based in Albany, New York. See also * List of record labe ...

in July 2003, was recorded under the artistic direction of

and contains three works by Czech-American composer Tomáš Svoboda: ''Overture of the Season'', Op. 89; ''Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra'', Op. 148; and Symphony No. 1 (of Nature), Op. 20. Svoboda has been regarded as Oregon's "most prolific and performed" classical composer. Following his education at the

Prague Conservatory The Prague Conservatory or Prague Conservatoire ( cs, Pražská konzervatoř) is a music school in Prague, Czech Republic, founded in 1808. Currently, Prague Conservatory offers four or six year study courses, which can be compared to the level ...

(1954–1962), the Academy of Music in Prague (1962–1964) and the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

(1966–1969), Svoboda taught

composition Composition or Compositions may refer to: Arts and literature *Composition (dance), practice and teaching of choreography *Composition (language), in literature and rhetoric, producing a work in spoken tradition and written discourse, to include v ...

and music theory at

for more than 25 years. ''Overture of the Season'' and ''Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra'' were recorded at the

downtown Portland Downtown Portland is the city center of Portland, Oregon, United States. It is on the west bank of the Willamette River in the northeastern corner of the southwest section of the city and where most of the city's high-rise buildings are found ...

on January 9–10, 2000; Symphony No. 1 was recorded at the same venue on June 13, 2000. ''Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra'' features principal

percussionist A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Ex ...

Niel DePonte, who joined the orchestra in 1977 at age 24, on

. Peter Kermani, Susan Bush and Mark B. Rulison served as the album's executive producers. Blanton Alspaugh served as the recording producer. John Newton was the recording engineer, and mastering was conducted by Mark Donahue. Svoboda is credited for the album's cover art. The album's

liner notes Liner notes (also sleeve notes or album notes) are the writings found on the sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets that come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for cassettes. Origin Liner notes are desc ...

also credit Wendy Leher, Pavlina Honcova-Summers and Henry Hillman for photography, and Dave McLaughlin for graphic design.

Mixing console A mixing console or mixing desk is an electronic device for Audio mixing (recorded music), mixing audio signals, used in sound recording and reproduction and sound reinforcement systems. Inputs to the console include microphones, signals fro ...

mastering occurred at Soundmirror, based in Massachusetts. The recording was funded by Mary Ausplund Tooze, a longtime philanthropist and patron of Portland's arts community, who specifically requested the inclusion of ''Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra'' for being a "good, solid piece and one you find out more about each time you hear it". Tooze considered the concerto the "real star" of the recording.

Works

''Overture of the Season'' was commissioned by the Oregon Symphony for its 83rd season; the work's world premiere was presented by the orchestra on October 7, 1978. In 1994, the classical music writer for '' Philadelphia Daily News'' said the composition had been performed by 55 orchestras within the three previous seasons. According to Svoboda's website, as of May 2013 the work has been performed 270 times by 141 orchestras, under the direction of 93 conductors. The "festive" overture, which is approximately eight minutes in length, employs

flutes The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

, piccolo,

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. ...

s, clarinets, bassoons,

horns Horns or The Horns may refer to: * Plural of Horn (instrument), a group of musical instruments all with a horn-shaped bells * The Horns (Colorado), a summit on Cheyenne Mountain * ''Horns'' (novel), a dark fantasy novel written in 2010 by Joe Hill ...

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate ...

tuba The tuba (; ) is the lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece. It first appeared in the mid-19th century, making it one of the ne ...

timpani Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a membrane called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally ...

, percussion, and

strings String or strings may refer to: *String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...

. ''Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra'' was commissioned by the orchestra in 1993 in conjunction with its centennial celebration. It features solo marimba and a "

keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

" quintet (

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

, harp, celeste,

orchestra bells The glockenspiel ( or , : bells and : set) or bells is a percussion instrument consisting of pitched aluminum or steel bars arranged in a keyboard layout. This makes the glockenspiel a type of metallophone, similar to the vibraphone. The gloc ...

and

crotales Crotales (, ), sometimes called antique cymbals, are percussion instruments consisting of small, tuned bronze or brass disks. Each is about in diameter with a flat top surface and a nipple on the base. They are commonly played by being struck ...

), with parts for flutes, piccolo, oboes, clarinets, bassoons, horns, trumpets, trombones, tuba, timpani, and strings. According to Svoboda, the work took a year to compose and marks the first concerto commissioned by the Oregon Symphony for one of its musicians. ''Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra'' is dedicated to DePonte, who encouraged Svoboda to compose a marimba concerto. For the album's liner notes, Svoboda wrote: When the concerto is performed, according to Svoboda, instruments on stage are separated into three contrasting sections: the solo marimba, the quintet, and the remainder of the orchestra. The quintet is placed near the conductor and solo marimba, "which is the prominent voice of this uncommon ensemble". The composition contains several instances where the quintet plays for extended periods, referred to as "islands" by Svoboda, which create "concerto grosso-like interplay" with the orchestra. Symphony No. 1 was completed in 1956 and premiered in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

on September 7, 1957. Inspired by Svoboda's exposure to nature within a pastoral setting, the composition was commissioned anonymously 25 years later (1982), providing Svoboda an opportunity to make revisions. The work was influenced by

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

, Antonín Dvořák, and

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most pop ...

; it features polyphonic textures and

asymmetrical Asymmetry is the absence of, or a violation of, symmetry (the property of an object being invariant to a transformation, such as reflection). Symmetry is an important property of both physical and abstract systems and it may be displayed in pre ...

and

harmonic rhythm In music theory, harmonic rhythm, also known as harmonic tempo, is the rate at which the chords change (or progress) in a musical composition, in relation to the rate of notes. Thus a passage in common time with a stream of sixteenth notes and ch ...

ic elements. The symphony consists of four movements: "Moderato", "Presto", "Andante", and "Allegro – Moderato". The first, considered a

chorale Chorale is the name of several related musical forms originating in the music genre of the Lutheran chorale: * Hymn tune of a Lutheran hymn (e.g. the melody of "Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme"), or a tune in a similar format (e.g. one of the th ...

, is in the key of

C-sharp minor C-sharp minor is a minor scale based on C, with the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. Its key signature consists of four sharps. The C-sharp natural minor scale is: : Changes needed for the melodic and harmonic versions of the scale ar ...

and features a theme performed by flute. The second movement, a

scherzo A scherzo (, , ; plural scherzos or scherzi), in western classical music, is a short composition – sometimes a movement from a larger work such as a symphony or a sonata. The precise definition has varied over the years, but scherzo often re ...

, features a "quick, motoric" triple rhythm and

meter The metre (British spelling) or meter (American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its pref ...

. The third is a

pastorale Pastorale refers to something of a pastoral nature in music, whether in form or in mood. In Baroque music, a pastorale is a movement of a melody in thirds over a drone bass, recalling the Christmas music of ''pifferari'', players of the tradi ...

that highlights the

woodwind Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the greater category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and re ...

section and incorporates a piece called "The Bird", composed by Svoboda in 1949 at age nine. The final movement, a

rondo The rondo is an instrumental musical form introduced in the Classical period. Etymology The English word ''rondo'' comes from the Italian form of the French ''rondeau'', which means "a little round". Despite the common etymological root, rondo ...

, was influenced by Czech folk music and mixes themes supplied by earlier movements.

Reception and broadcasts

The album received a mixed reception. Blair Sanderson of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

found Svoboda's compositions to be imitative, specifically comparing ''Overture of the Season'' to work by

Leoš Janáček Leoš Janáček (, baptised Leo Eugen Janáček; 3 July 1854 – 12 August 1928) was a Czech composer, musical theorist, folklorist, publicist, and teacher. He was inspired by Moravian and other Slavic musics, including Eastern European f ...

and Symphony No. 1 to "equal parts" of

Hugo Alfvén Hugo Emil Alfvén (; 1 May 18728 May 1960) was a Swedish composer, conductor, violinist, and painter. Career Violinist Alfvén was born in Stockholm, Sweden, and studied at the Royal College of Music (Kungliga Musikhögskolan) from 1887 ...

and

Jean Sibelius Jean Sibelius ( ; ; born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius; 8 December 186520 September 1957) was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic and early-modern periods. He is widely regarded as his country's greatest composer, and his music is often ...

, with "just a dash" of

Carl Nielsen Carl August Nielsen (; 9 June 1865 – 3 October 1931) was a Danish composer, conductor and violinist, widely recognized as his country's most prominent composer. Brought up by poor yet musically talented parents on the island of Funen, he ...

. Sanderson criticized the harmonic language of ''Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra'' and found DePonte's performance to be admirable but "weakly planned". Similarly, Robert Dettmer of ''Classical CD Review'' found Svoboda's work to be derivative and "expressively sterile", and "no more engaging than any other marimba concerto". However, Dettmer acknowledged that the marimba was one of his least favorite solo instruments. Dettmer wrote that DePriest "serves the composer dutifully, but not as enliveningly as one might have expected". For his marimba performance, DePonte earned a

nomination for Best Instrumental Soloist Performance with Orchestra, the first time that the Oregon Symphony or any of its musicians had been recognized by the

Recording Academy The Recording Academy (formally the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences; abbreviated NARAS) is an American learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is famous for its Grammy Aw ...

. Following the announcement, DePonte admitted that he was surprised by the nomination and had not felt similar emotions since learning of his invitation to join the orchestra 26 years earlier: "I am completely overwhelmed. I had no idea the recording had been submitted." DePriest said: "The credit goes to Mary Tooze for making the recording possible, to Niel for his fine playing and to Tomas for writing such a wonderful piece. I am thrilled for everyone concerned." Svoboda said of the nomination: "The prestige goes to the orchestra. This is a great moment for our symphony." The Oregon Symphony's director of public relations commented: "The running joke is that forever more, the name of this organization is 'The Grammy-nominated Oregon Symphony Orchestra.' The Grammy acknowledgment is recognized as a mark of great artistic achievement. To be nominated is about as good as it gets." Selected tracks from the album have been broadcast by classical music radio stations. ''Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra'' was aired by

WFMT WFMT is an FM radio station in Chicago, Illinois, featuring a format of fine arts, classical music programming, and shows exploring such genres as folk. The station is managed by Window to the World Communications, Inc., owner of WTTW, Chicago ...

(Chicago) in March 2012,

WWFM WWFM ( FM, "The Classical Network") is a classical music radio station owned and operated by Mercer County Community College. The flagship station is licensed to the Trenton/Princeton area and operates from the West Windsor campus of MCCC. The Clas ...

(Trenton, New Jersey) in September 2013, and

KUAF KUAF (91.3 MHz) is a non-commercial FM radio station licensed to Fayetteville, Arkansas, serving Northwest Arkansas. The station is owned by the University of Arkansas, with studios and offices near the school's campus in Downtown Fayettevil ...

(Fayetteville, Arkansas) in November 2013. Symphony No. 1 was broadcast by

Interlochen Public Radio Interlochen Public Radio (IPR), established in 1963, is the National Public Radio member network for Northern Michigan. It broadcasts classical music and news on five stations in the northwestern Lower Peninsula. It is operated by the Interloch ...

in August 2012 and by

WRTI WRTI (90.1 FM) is a non-commercial, public radio station licensed to serve Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is a service of Temple University. The Temple University Board of Trustees holds the station's license. The broadcast tower used by the s ...

(Philadelphia) in November 2013.

WNYC WNYC is the trademark and a set of call letters shared by WNYC (AM) and WNYC-FM, a pair of nonprofit, noncommercial, public radio stations located in New York City. WNYC is owned by New York Public Radio (NYPR), a nonprofit organization that ...

(New York City) has aired the marimba concerto and Symphony No. 1 as recently as January 2011 and January 2014, respectively.

Track listing

All works by Tomáš Svoboda. # ''Overture of the Season'', Op. 89 – 8:42 ; ''Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra'', Op. 148 #

"Con moto" – 8:48 # "Adagio" – 8:08 # "Vivace" – 8:39 ; Symphony No. 1 (of Nature), Op. 20 #

"Moderato" – 10:08 # "Presto" – 8:13 # "Andante" – 6:56 # "Allegro – Moderato" – 10:18 Track listing adapted from the album's liner notes.

Personnel

* Blanton Alspaugh – producer * Susan Bush – executive producer * Niel DePonte –

– conductor * Mark Donahue – mastering * Henry Hillman – photography * Pavlina Honcova-Summers – photography * Peter Kermani – executive producer * Wendy Lehrer – photography * Dave McLaughlin – graphic design * John Newton –

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limit ...

– orchestra * Mark B. Rulison – executive producer * Tomás Svoboda – composer, cover photo Credits adapted from

Orchestra roster

* Clarisse Atcherson – first

violin The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...

* Aida Baker – first violin * Kenneth Baldwin – assistant principal bass * David Bamonte –

* Joēl Belgique – principal

viola ; german: Bratsche , alt=Viola shown from the front and the side , image=Bratsche.jpg , caption= , background=string , hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow , range= , related= *Violin family ...

* Joseph Berger – associate principal

horn Horn most often refers to: *Horn (acoustic), a conical or bell shaped aperture used to guide sound ** Horn (instrument), collective name for tube-shaped wind musical instruments *Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various ...

* Heather Blackburn – second violin*** * Ronald Blessinger – first violin * Naomi Blumberg –

cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G ...

* David Brubaker – first violin * Pansy Chang – cello * JáTtik Clark – principal

* Julie Coleman – second violin * Robin Cook – first violin* * John Cox – principal horn * Jennifer Craig – principal harp * Dolores D'Aigle – assistant principal second violin * Dan Alan Danielson – second violin**** * Juan de Gomar – bassoon, contrabassoon * Eileen Deiss – first violin * Niel DePonte – principal

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Ex ...

* Frank Diliberto – principal bass * Jonathan Dubay – first violin * Cheri Ann Egbers – clarinet * Mark Eubanks – principal bassoon * Daniel Ge Feng – second violin * Kenneth Finch – cello * Lynne Finch – second violin * Kathleen Follett – first violin* * Michael Foxman –

concertmaster The concertmaster (from the German ''Konzertmeister''), first chair (U.S.) or leader (U.K.) is the principal first violin player in an orchestra (or clarinet in a concert band). After the conductor, the concertmaster is the second-most signifi ...

, first violin * Leah Frajola – second violin * Peter Frajola – associate concertmaster, first violin * Katherine George – principal

* Mary Grant – horn * Kathryn Gray – first violin * Paloma Griffin – assistant concertmaster, first violin * Lisa Hansen – second violin * Philip Neil Hatler –

* * Donald Hermanns – bass * John Hubbard – second violin*** * Denise Huizenga – second violin**** * Gyrid Hyde-Towle – second violin * Marty Jennings – first violin*** * Jeffrey Johnson – bass * Lawrence Johnson – assistant principal horn * Mary Ann Coggins Kaza – first violin * Bridget Kelly – cello * Frederick Korman – principal

* Sally Kuhns – assistant principal trumpet * Todd Kuhns – clarinet, E-flat clarinet/ bass clarinet * Eileen Lande – second violin * Steve Lawrence – percussion * Ann Leeder-Beesley – second violin * Nancy Lochner – viola * Marlene Majovski – first violin * Virginia McCarthy – second violin * Stephanie McDougal – cello * Patricia Miller – viola * Robert Naglee – bassoon * Yoshinori Nakao – principal clarinet * Charles Noble – assistant principal viola * Gayle Budd O'Grady – cello * William Ofstad – bass * Harris Orem – English horn, oboe * Barton Parker – horn * Christine Perry – percussion * Jeffrey Peyton – percussion*** * Alan Pierce – bass trombone, trombone * Deloris Plum – cello * Stephen Price – viola * Brian Quincey – viola * Paul Salvatore – principal

* Fred Sautter – principal trumpet * Anna Schaum – viola * Jason Schooler – bass * Timothy Scott – cello * Burke Shaw – bass * Michael Sigell – second violin * Deborah Singer – first violin * David Socolofsky – assistant principal cello * Rachel Sokolow – first violin * Tomáš Svoboda – keyboard * Peggy Swafford – viola * Chien Tan – principal second violin * Margo Tatgenhorst – principal cello * Robert Taylor – principal trombone * Tommy Thompson – bass * Karen Wagner – oboe * Martha Warrington – viola * Dawn Weiss – principal flute * Connie Whelan – viola * Leo Whitlow – viola* * Carol Williams – horn*** * Carla Wilson – piccolo Orchestra roster adapted from the album's liner notes. "*" designates acting orchestra members; "**" designates musicians on a leave of absence; "***" designates extra musicians; "****" designates contract musicians.

References

External links

*
Tomas Svoboda
Oregon Symphony
Tomas Svoboda: "Orchestral Works"
Albany Records

TomasSvoboda.com {{Oregon Symphony 2000s in Portland, Oregon 2003 classical albums 2003 in Oregon Albums produced by Blanton Alspaugh Albums recorded at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall Oregon Symphony albums