War and Peace

Aaron Coplands (1900-1990) Outdoor Overture from 1938- the same year as the Anschluss (Nazi Germanys occupation of Austria) and the Munich Agreement (beginning the dismemberment of Czechoslovakia)- is a wakeup-call to America.

Paul Hindemiths (1895-1963) monumental symphony Mathis der Maler (Matthias the Painter) from 1934- the year Hitler officially became Führer- was denounced by the Nazis as degenerate after one performance and banned. A kind of sketch for the full opera Mathis der Maler, the three movements are inspired by panels of the Isenheim Altarpiece by Matthias Grünewald (c. 1475-1528).

Written in London, Joseph Haydns (1732-1809) Symphony No. 103 in E-flat major from 1795- in the middle of the wars following with the French revolution- opens with a terrifying timpani roll (hence the nickname Drumroll for this symphony) that surely audiences must have understood as an echo of the violence occurring on the Continent and a foreshadowing of worse to come.

Presented by Thalia Symphony Orchestra. For questions about this event, please contact Thalia Symphony Orchestra at info@thaliasymphony.org.