Program Notes
COSUSS Fall 2025 extended program notes
Jules Demersseman (1833–1866) was a French flute virtuoso and composer whose life – while brief – yielded a wealth of brilliant concert works. A devout student of Jean-Louis Tulou at the Paris Conservatoire, he remained loyal to the older wooden flute models that Tulou adored, even as the new Boehm flutes were developed, changing the performance practices at the time. His resistance to the popular new model of flutes limited his influence as a performance, but his compositions were well received and are still studied and performed today.
Demersseman wrote a number of pièces de concours: flashy single-movement compositions that condensed contrasting styles into one continuous piece to allow conservatory students to show off their skills at their annual examinations. Nicknamed the “Italian Concerto,” the Solo de concerto No. 6 is perhaps Demersseman’s most well-known work, capturing the operatic charm and virtuosic sparkle of mid-nineteenth-century flute music. Composed of three distinct sections, the work begins with a jaunty, swaggering opening from the orchestra which then makes way for the flute’s grand entrance with a cadenza-like solo. Lyrical melodies alternate with virtuosic passages, showcasing the soloist’s ability to play both long, lovely phrases and demanding runs requiring masterful technique. The central section is comprised of the Chanson Napolitaine, a lilting, folk-like tune similar to the pastorales and barcarolles of Italy. Following the chanson comes a fiery saltarello filled with relentless triplets, from which the soloist gets one short respite, before taking off again and moving with frenetic energy to the finish line.
Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904) was one of the most prominent Czech composers of the Romantic era. His Slavonic Dances, “New World” symphony and Cello Sonata are among his most famous pieces and exemplify his blending of classical musical elements with the rhythms and colors of his native Bohemia. Dvořák trained as a violist and organist and was supported in his career by Johannes Brahms before establishing himself internationally as a composer of symphonies, chamber works, operas, and choral music. Toward the end of the nineteenth century, Dvořák served as the director of the National Conservatory of Music in New York, where he celebrated the emergence of a specifically American musical voice inspired by spirituals and indigenous melodies.
Silent Woods was originally named Waldesruhe (“Forest Tranquility”), and part of the four-hand piano suite Ze Šumavy (“From the Bohemian Forest”), which was composed in Bohemia in 1883. A decade later, after moving to the United States, Dvorak rewrote the music for cello and piano, then decided to recreate the work once more for cello and full orchestra. Dedicated to the cellist Hanuš Wihan, Silent Woods has become an audience favorite, admired for its melodic charm and graceful elegance. The piece begins dreamily, evoking the calm Bohemian countryside that Dvořák treasured. The cello speaks with a yearning tone, slipping between lyricism and a broader expressive outpouring. Beneath that simplicity, the composer’s trademark depth can be found in the rustic melodies and a lingering nostalgia heard in every phrase, and it is easy to imagine that this last incarnation of the piece was a portrait of peace, calm, and home for Dvořák.
Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) was one of history’s most influential composers, sharing his extraordinary musical talent with the world from his early days as a child prodigy to the end of his short life. Born in Salzburg, he quickly became known as a musical genius and eventually became a central figure in Vienna’s musical world as well as a musical influence for generations of composers to come. Mozart mastered every major genre of his time, composing symphonies, operas, concertos, chamber music, and sacred works. His music embodies the Classical era’s ideals of clarity, balance, and elegance while also containing a wide emotional range.
Symphony No. 35 in D Major, K. 385 was composed in 1782 and is nicknamed “Haffner” in honor of the Haffner family, longtime patrons of the Mozart family. Originally a simple serenade, Mozart later expanded the composition into a full symphony. Allegro con spirito bursts forth with strength, exuding jubilance and a grand sense of ceremony with its unison octaves, scales and fanfare gestures. The Allegro is exceedingly Classical; written in sonata form, it contains two main themes – a vigorous and rhythmic first theme and a flowing and lyrical second theme – with contrast and deliberation. The orchestration is thoughtfully written, with the brass and percussion adding to the movement’s pomp and grandeur. The movement pulses with rhythmic drive and clarity, and showcases Mozart’s skill for both formal balance and expressive energy.
The Classical spirit continues in the poised Andante, which shines with serenity and deliberate grace. Written in G major, the second movement is a poised and elegant serenade; the transparent texture features refined harmonic progressions and delicate interplay between the strings and winds. The gentle phrasing and subtle motivic development create a sense of restraint as well as a clear distinction between the slower movement and its livelier outer movements.
Returning to D major, the Menuetto: Allegretto opens with a stately minuet, which blends rhythmic precision with a dignified charm. While the Minuet is firm and structured, the contrasting Trio section is lighter and shows off graceful woodwind lines and songlike string passages. The two sections of this movement reveal Mozart’s ability to pair a sense of ceremony with playful qualities within a single movement.
The Presto finale spins with dazzling momentum and spirited dialogues between the winds, horns, and strings. Virtuosic and effusive, the closing movement includes rapid string passages, ever-present momentum, and an overall sense of exhilaration. Mozart employs sonata form once more and creates a genius fusion of brilliance and control with this closing movement of joyous finality.
Beloved Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840–1893) is known for the passion, melodic richness, and orchestral color found in his works. Like Dvořák, he loved his native land, and his sense of nationalism and Russian musical traditions can be heard in his works, combined with Western European traditions (courtesy of his formal conservatory training). His works were also shaped by his personal turmoil, as Tchaikovsky struggled with his identity, isolation, and depression. Emotional complexity are found in every one of his symphonies, ballets, and concertos, and his compositions are staples in the performing arts repertoire today.
Tchaikovsky completed Symphony No. 6 (“Pathétique”) mere months before his death, and considered it his greatest work. It premiered in St. Petersburg in 1893, and is widely considered to reflect the profound struggles and fleeting joy in the composer’s life. Adagio – Allegro non troppo begins as if in a shadow, with brooding strings and plaintive bassoon motifs, then giving way to an agitated Allegro in sonata form. Broad, sweeping melodies surge forward – only to disintegrate with wrenching suddenness. Tenderness and distress are closely layered together, as the movement is pulled back and forth between hope and despair. The climaxes are fiery and fierce, never coming to a comforting resolution, which leaves the audience suspended in tension.
Allegro con grazia, is lovely but uneasy, with melancholic undercurrents despite its dance-like feel and deceptive lightness. The 5/4 time signature is well-written and at first doesn’t raise any misgivings, but the asymmetrical meter makes for a slightly off-balance sensation and hints that the graceful waltz heard isn’t as secure as it seems. The delicate orchestration of light strings paired with warm woodwinds is shimmering and crystalline, beautiful even as they play slightly menacing harmonic changes that hint and something darker beneath the surface.
The Allegro molto vivace is a lively march, brimming with energy and vigor. The movement gathers momentum as it progresses, emphasized by its crisp rhythms and sharp articulation. Unfolding with building energy, the nimble strings, brass proclamations, and bright winds drive triumphantly to a climactic conclusion that could serve as a thrilling finale to the work if the symphony concluded at this point.
In great contrast to the vibrant and martial preceding movement – as well as to symphonic convention – Tchaikovsky closes this symphony withAdagio lamentoso, one of the most devastating slow movements in the symphonic repertoire. The emotional and weighty phrases are one long musical sigh after another, and while there are flickering moments of warmth and hope, the darkness inevitably resumes. Subdued and whispering, the finale unfolds with pleading melodic lines and stark orchestral textures. The climax is a quiet, resigned lament, fading into silence; the symphony concludes as T.S. Eliot describes the end of the world in The Hollow Men: “Not with a bang but a whimper.”
Program notes by Lauren Servias
