Haydn + Mozart + Walton

About

The popular Australian conductor Nicholas Carter leads the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in Haydn's "Miracle" Symphony, so named not only for its surprising and catchy tunes but for a near disaster at its premiere: An enormous chandelier crashed to the floor—no one was hurt. The concert includes another miracle, the brilliant and joyous Violin Concerto No. 3 by the 19-year-old Mozart. The Orchestra welcomes the debut of rising star violinist Geneva Lewis. The evening takes a left turn during the second half to lean into the volcanic power of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra for the passionate and alluring First Symphony by William Walton.

Notes To Know

1. The success of Walton's Symphony No. 1 led to a commission to write Crown Imperial for the coronation of George VI, grandfather of the current King Charles III.
2. King George III, who lost the American colonies in the Revolutionary War, offered Haydn rooms at Windsor Castle if he would remain in England. Haydn declined.
3. Mozart wrote his five violin concertos as a teenager. After that, he focused on the piano and wrote a seminal series of piano concertos but never wrote another violin concerto. As a player, he preferred the viola.
4. Although the "Miracle" Symphony bears the number 96, it was written before Symphony No. 93 and was the first of Haydn's twelve "London" symphonies.
5. At his debut, Sir William Walton presented a series of short pieces (Façade) accompanying poet Edith Sitwell as she recited her nonsensical poems through a megaphone. Many luminaries attended the performance, including Virginia Wolff and Noel Coward; Coward stormed out.