Category Archives: Program Notes

Beethoven’s 4th Program Notes

Ludwig van Beethoven was born in Bonn, then an independent electorate. His baptismal certificate is dated December 17, 1770, and...
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Dioclesian Program Notes

The Prophetess; or, The History of Dioclesian (Z. 627) by J.J.G.Muller-van Santen Henry Purcell (1658/9-1695) was born in London at...
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“Beethoven Songs & Haydn Trios” – Program Notes for June 3

Music Director Nicholas McGegan contributes these program notes for the June 3 concert that opens the Berkeley Early Music Festival....
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April Program Notes: Alexander’s Feast, or The Power of Music

George Frideric Handel was born on February 23, 1685 in Halle and died on April 14, 1759 in London. His...
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March Program Notes – Schumann’s Cello Concerto

Felix Mendelssohn: The Fair Melusine, Op. 32 Felix Mendelssohn, scion of an eminent German banking family, was born in Hamburg on...
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January Program Notes – Richard Egarr: Masters of the English Baroque

There’s an old Chinese curse that goes: may you live in interesting times. Such was the lot of the 17th-century...
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December Program Notes: Bach’s Mass in B Minor

Johann Sebastian Bach: Mass in B Minor, BWV 232 Johann Sebastian Bach was born in Eisenach on March 21, 1685...
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November Program Notes: Marion Verbruggen & the Italian Baroque Recorder

Arcangelo Corelli: Concerto Grosso in F major, Op. 6 No. 2 Concerto Grosso in D major, Op. 6 No. 4...
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October Program Notes: Arias for Farinelli

Johann Friedrich Fasch (1688–1758) Concerto for Two Flutes, Two Oboes and Two Bassoons in D Minor, FWV L:d7 Johann Friedrich...
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April Program Notes: Haydn’s Creation

Franz Joseph Haydn was born in Rohrau, Austria on March 31, 1732. By age 29 he had entered service to...
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Chamber Music Program Notes: Mozart with Zheng Cao

In his mere thirty-five years, Johann Chrysostom Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart enriched humanity with a king’s ransom of musical treasures. Born...
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March Program Notes – Zheng Cao: The Life of a Singer

Jean-Féry Rebel: Les Caractères de la Danse Born in Paris on April 18, 1666 to a century-spanning musical dynasty, Jean-Féry...
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February Program Notes: Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 1 and Hummel’s Concerto for Keyed Trumpet

Johann Nepomuk Hummel: Trumpet Concerto in E Major, S. 49 Johann Nepomuk Hummel was born in Pressburg, Hungary (now Bratislava,...
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January Chamber Concert Program Notes: Viva Vivaldi!

Antonio Lucio Vivaldi was born on March 4, 1678 in Venice, where he was ordained as a priest in 1703....
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January Program Notes: David Daniels

Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1787) Concerto for Three Horns and Violin in D major, TWV 54:D2 Suite in F major, TWV...
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December Program Notes: Handel’s Messiah

Primo le parole, poi la musica: first the words, then the music. Ask a roomful of people to identify the...
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November Program Notes: Vivaldi’s Four Seasons

Arcangelo Corelli (1653-1713) Concerto Grosso Op. 6, No. 11 in B-flat Major In an era of harried composers whose livelihoods...
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October Program Notes: Bach’s Wedding Cantata

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH Orchestral Suite No. 1 in C Major, BWV 1066 It’s worth remembering that the Baroque era (1600–1750)...
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September Program Notes: Robert Levin plays Mozart

Mozart: Incidental Music to Thamos, King of Egypt, K. 345/366a The story of Thamos, Mozart’s sole foray into incidental stage...
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