The Wellesley Symphony closes its season on Sunday, May 6, with Brahms’ mighty Symphony No. 1 and the rhapsodic, technically brilliant Glazunov Violin Concerto performed by Wellesley native Julia Glenn. The overture Cortège de Bacchus from Delibes’ opera, "Sylvia," opens the program.
Brahms worked on his his first symphony for over twenty years. Haunted by the ghost of Beethoven, to one friend he wrote, “I shall never write a symphony! You can’t have any idea what it’s like always to hear such a giant marching behind you!” First performed in 1876, the piece was immensely popular from the start and is sometimes called “Beethoven’s Tenth.”
Written in 1904, Glazunov’s Violin Concerto had its premiere in St. Petersburg with violinist Leopold Auler. With beautiful melodies and blazing pyrotechnics, it remains one of Glazunov’s most popular pieces. The piece is in three connected movements. Composing about the same time as Stravinsky, Glazunov was seen as conservative and his works have never been as popular as they might have been.
Violinist Julia Glenn has been hailed as “remarkable,” “gripping,” and a “brilliant soloist” (New York Times) and “fully focused and betraying not one whit of insecurity” (Boston Musical Intelligencer). Currently a doctoral candidate at the Juilliard School, she obtained her master’s from New England Conservatory in 2013 and her bachelor’s in linguistics magna cum laude from Harvard University in 2012.
A devoted solo and chamber musician, Julia has concertized widely and has recently appeared on stages including Alice Tully Hall, Carnegie Hall’s Weill Hall, Sanders Theatre, Jordan Hall, the Beijing Recital Hall, and Shanghai Concert Hall. In January of 2016 she gave the world premiere of Milton Babbitt’s violin concerto to critical acclaim. In high school Julia won the Wellesley Symphony Orchestra’s Young Soloist Competition and performed with the orchestra.
Ms. Glenn has a deep interest in exploring and sharing the music and culture of China. In addition to her role as performer, she also draws upon her background in linguistics and Chinese language to open up fruitful avenues in the arena of Chinese music theory and performance. Her doctoral dissertation is titled “Hearing in Tone: A Phonetic Approach to the Analysis and Performance of Chinese Contemporary Music.” She has recently presented talks and lecture- performances on her work at the Hamburg Hochschule für Musik und Theatre, Harvard University, Shanghai Conservatory, Beijing Central Conservatory, and Juilliard. Julia plays a Benjamin Ruth violin made for her in 2017.
The concert is at MassBay Community College, 50 Oakland, Street, Wellesley, at 3 p.m. Orchestra president Leslie Holmes will give a pre-concert talk at 2:15. Individual tickets for the concert - $25 for adults, $20 for seniors and students, and free for children 12 and under - may be purchased at Wellesley Books, Andrews Pharmacy on Weston Road, online, and at the door. There is plenty of free parking at the college. Call (781-235-0515) or visit www.wellesleysymphony.org for further information.
