#sandiegosymphony
Dvorák’s Radiant Eighth Symphony
ABOUT THE CONCERT
Ruth Reinhardt, conductor
Steven Banks, saxophone
San Diego Symphony Orchestra
SMETANA: Overture and Three Dances from The Bartered Bride
YOSHIMATSU: Soprano Saxophone Concerto, Albireo Mode
DVOŘÁK: Symphony No. 8 in G Major, Op. 88
The approximate running time for this concert, including intermission, is one hour and forty minutes.
Ruth Reinhardt returns to lead the Symphony in two delightful works by two Czech masters: the Overture and Three Dances from Smetana’s folk-inspired romantic comedy The Bartered Bride and Dvořák’s infectiously joyous Symphony No. 8, which was conceived and written in the gorgeous green landscape of fields and woods around the small community where Dvořák had his country home. Having grown-up as a country boy in a largely agricultural community, the composer was passionate about the beauties of the rural world, taking pleasure especially in the rich variety of the songs of wild birds, which he would listen to in the little wood at the bottom of his garden. Probably no other symphony in the established repertoire is so full of delicious suggestions of singing birds as this!
And at the center of the concert, something else entirely! Having quickly established himself as one of the leading classical saxophonists today, Steven Banks returns to San Diego to take the Jacobs Music Center stage with famed Japanese composer Takashi Yoshimatsu’s Soprano Saxophone Concerto Albireo Mode. Written nearly 20 years ago, this accessible and gentle music, shot through with the sound of temple bells and the liquid traditions of American free jazz for which Yoshimatsu has a special admiration, takes its title from a famous double star in the Cygnus constellation, and is divided into two movements: the first – "Topaz" – after the precious stone which is often a pale-yellow color, and the second – "Sapphire" – after the familiar dark-blue stone.
Pre-Concert Talk
Drinks Status: Enjoy Beverages in the Lobbies
Inside the Music
Age and Seating Guideline
Pre-Paid Parking
Come enjoy a pre-concert talk covering highlights and backstories of this program, one hour before concert-time.
Guest speaker for this weekend: Meghan Hynson, USD Adjunct Assistant Professor of Music. Conductor Ruth Reinhardt will join her briefly at the top of the talk.
For this classical music concert, drinks purchased inside Jacobs Music Center should only be enjoyed in the lobbies pre-concert or during intermission, and should not be brought inside the concert hall.
Composer Takashi Yoshimatsu
TAKASHI YOSHIMATSU: SOPRANO SAXOPHONE CONCERTO, ALBIREO MODE
Composed: 2004-05
Length: 25 minutes
Orchestration: soprano saxophone & orchestra
Takashi Yoshimatsu’s path to composing was unconventional. Drawn to rock, classical, and jazz, he played keyboards in rock bands and taught himself composition after rejecting formal academic training. Initially a serialist, he later embraced a style he called “the new lyricism.” He served as the official composer for Chandos Records and has written six symphonies, numerous concertos, orchestral works, and pieces for keyboard and traditional Japanese instruments. He’s also arranged music by Emerson, Lake and Palmer and other rock bands.
Yoshimatsu was approached by the Japanese saxophonist Nobuya Sugawa, who asked him to compose a concerto for soprano saxophone and orchestra. Yoshimatsu was not enthusiastic. He had already written a concerto for alto saxophone titled Cyber-Bird for Sugawa, and he felt that he had said the things he wanted to say on the saxophone. But Sugawa persisted, and Yoshimatsu found himself attracted to the sound of the soprano saxophone. He composed the new concerto in 2004-05, and it was first performed in Osaka on April 29, 2005 by Nobuya Sugawa and the Kansai Philharmonic.
"Every human being has in his mind a vast mixture of such passions as hope and longing for harmony, as well as hate and the impulse to destroy."
- Takashi Yoshimatsu
The new concerto has a nickname that reflects its inspiration. Albireo is the name of a double Beta star in the constellation Cygnus. It is not clear whether those two stars form a true double star or if they only appear to be from our angle on Earth, but what is clear is that they make an extraordinarily beautiful pair in the night sky: one is a deep blue, and the other is a rich golden color. In that contrast of color and character, Yoshimatsu found the inspiration for his concerto, saying “Albireo Mode symbolizes the character of the soprano sax, which is two-fold, combining both coolness and heat, both beauty and depth. That is why I named the cool and beautiful first part ‘Topaz,’ and the hot and deep second part ‘Sapphire.’”
- Excerpt of program notes by Eric Bromberger
For Jacobs Masterworks concerts, only children ages five years and older will be allowed into the concert hall. These children must have a ticket and be able to sit in an un-accompanied seat.
Ace Parking has provided a DEDICATED JACOBS MUSIC CENTER PARKING PRE-PURCHASE PAGE for upcoming events at JMC.
- Jacobs Masterworks
Choose a date below to see details.
Time  |
7:30 PM |
Venue  |
Jacobs Music Center |
Ticket Price  |
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| Time |
2:00 PM |
| Venue |
Jacobs Music Center |
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Check out 3 THINGS about this upcoming Jacobs Masterworks classical concert!