Samuel Dushkin (l) and Igor Stravinsky (r)
Presented by violinist Victoria Martino and pianist James Lent
Sunday, January 15, 2023
4 PM
Join violinist Victoria Martino and pianist James Lent for a dazzling performance of Igor Stravinsky's complete works for violin and piano. This concert will replicate a recital program which the composer himself performed on tour with the violinist Samuel Dushkin. Featuring the virtuoso Duo Concertante, composed especially for Dushkin, and universally regarded as one of Stravinsky’s masterpieces, the concert will also include delightful “miniatures” and a number of suites that the composer arranged from his ballets. The performance will culminate in Stravinsky’s own violin/piano transcription of his magnificent Violin Concerto.
The Complete Works for Violin and Piano by Igor Stravinsky (1882–1971)
In 1931, the music publisher Schott proposed to Igor Stravinsky, that he compose a concerto for the virtuoso violinist, Samuel Dushkin (1891–1976).
Wary of composing for the violin, and accustomed to the production of large-scale works, Stravinsky agreed to the commission on one condition: that Dushkin be available for consultation throughout the composition process. The fruitful collaboration of the two musicians resulted not only in Stravinsky's magnificent violin concerto, which Dushkin premiered on Berlin Radio in 1931, but also in a decade-long friendship and musical partnership. Resolving to tour throughout Europe as a duo, Stravinsky and Dushkin created violin and piano arrangements of many of the composer's most popular and beloved works for the opera and ballet. The results can be heard in this concert.
Suite Italienne: Based upon movements from his popular ballet, Pulcinella, the Suite Italienne was first performed by Stravinsky and Dushkin on a Berlin Radio broadcast (October 28, 1932).
Chanson Russe (Russian Maiden's Song): This charming "miniature" is a 1937 arrangement for violin and piano of Parasha's aria from Stravinsky's early opera buffa, Mavra (1921–22).
Pastorale: Stravinsky composed this song without words in 1907, under the supervision of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. It was dedicated to Rimsky-Korsakov's daughter, Nadia. In 1933, Samuel Dushkin and Stravinsky premiered a new version for violin and piano.
Divertimento: This transcription of an orchestral work was adapted from Stravinsky's ballet, Le Baiser de la fée. Stravinsky and Dushkin premiered this arrangement in Strasbourg on December 12, 1934.
Danse Russe: Based upon material from Petrouchka, Stravinsky's burlesque ballet from 1910–11, this version was created by Dushkin and the composer in 1932.
Duo Concertante: Stravinsky composed this virtuoso duo for violin and piano specifically for performance by Samuel Dushkin and himself. They premiered the work alongside the Suite Italienne on a Berlin Radio broadcast (October 28, 1932).
Concerto in D major: At the suggestion of Dushkin, Stravinsky transcribed the violin concerto's orchestral score for piano, thereby facilitating its performance in violin and piano recitals.
About Victoria Martino:
A magna cum laude graduate of Harvard University and the University of California, violinist Victoria Martino has concertized extensively throughout Europe, North America, Australia, and Japan. Considered a specialist both in early music and contemporary performance practice, her repertoire spans six centuries. Martino is passionately committed to the revival of works by major composers that are rarely performed and has become known internationally for her monographic anniversary concerts and “marathons” of the complete works for violin (unaccompanied and accompanied) by many composers, including Bach, Beethoven, Bernstein, Brahms, Corelli, Dvořák, Gade, Grieg, Handel, Hindemith, Ives, Lutoslawski, Mendelssohn, Mozart, Nielsen, Pärt, Schubert, Schumann, Sibelius, Strauss, Tartini, Tchaikovsky, and Telemann. Martino’s “Mozart Marathon,” a nine-hour performance with James Lent, of all 32 of the composer’s violin sonatas, has been presented regularly to public and critical acclaim since his 250th birthday in 2006. Martino plays an original, unmodified Baroque violin by Michael Andreas Bartl (Vienna, 1760) and a modernized violin by Jakob Stainer (Absam, 1670).
About James Lent:
James Lent holds a DMA from Yale School of Music, where he studied under Boris Berman, Claude Frank, and Peter Frankl. He currently teaches and coordinates collaborative piano at UCLA and serves as the Music Department’s principal pianist for choral and vocal studies. James Lent has been collaborating with Victoria Martino since 2005. The duo has performed throughout North America, presenting works for violin and keyboard that range from early Baroque to contemporary, cutting-edge compositions.
The concert will be in person at the Athenaeum Music & Arts Library. There are no physical tickets for these events. Your name will be on an attendee list at the front door. Doors open at 3:30 p.m. Seating is first-come; first-served. This event will be presented in compliance with State of California and County of San Diego health regulations as applicable at the time of each concert.
Masks optional. If you have a fever, cough, or flu-like symptoms, please stay home.