RPO History

This is Llewellyn Sanchez-Werner’s debut with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra.

Your RPO has performed Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 24 in C Minor, K. 491 5 times from 1978-2017.

• David Zinman (1), Peter Bay (1), and Christopher Seaman (3) conducted all instances of this Mozart concerto – and all 3 return to conduct the RPO again this season!

Your RPO has performed Tchaikovsky’s String Serenade in C Major, Op. 48 7 times from 1941-2021.

• Music Director Andreas Delfs conducted String Serenade in January 2021.

Where have I heard this?

• Squid Game – The second movement of Tchaikovsky’s String Serenade was used in the 2021 South Korean survival drama series.
• Oppenheimer – While it may not have made it into the movie, Tchaikovsky’s String Serenade incidentally accompanied the final countdown of the Trinity test on July 16, 1945 when it was being broadcast by a Voice of America station on the same frequency being used to transmit test communications.

Program Note Excerpt

Mozart composed 12 superlative piano concertos, Nos. 14 to 25, between February 1784 and December 1786 in Vienna. They are deeper in feeling, broader in scope and richer in color than any written before, and would form a clear model for Beethoven’s concertos. The first performance of this one took place on April 7, 1786.

Tchaikovsky adored Mozart. “I not only like Mozart, I idolize him,” he wrote. “He captivates, delights and warms me. It is my profound conviction that he is the culminating point of musical beauty.” In terms of general Classical style, he paid homage to Mozart through this glowing Serenade for Strings. He composed it immediately after the bombastic 1812 Overture. The public première took place in October 1881, and it won a huge success.

Program Notes by Don Anderson © 2023