John Adams’ Scheherazade.2 reimagines the heroine of the Arabian Nights
The American composer’s symphonic piece makes its Asia-Pacific debut this week with the incredible Leila Josefowicz as solo violinist
A violin concerto may seem an unlikely forum to reflect on injustice to women, but American composer John Adams’ new piece, Scheherazade.2, is just that: a rethinking of the Arabian Nights story with the heroine as a feisty, powerful woman.
The piece, which receives its Asia-Pacific premiere on March 2 at the Sydney Opera House, will be performed by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra under the baton of David Robertson, featuring celebrated violinist Leila Josefowicz as soloist, someone known for her passionately committed playing.
After it was first performed last March by the New York Philharmonic, Josefowicz, who has been associated with Adams for many years, was praised by critics for her powerful rendition. “Ms Josefowicz, playing this formidable violin part from memory, gave a stunning performance, by turns commanding and vulnerable, slashing and sensual. The ovation was tremendous,” wrote Anthony Tommasini of The New York Times.
SEE ALSO: HKPhil music director named head of New York Philharmonic
When asked to describe the piece, the 38-year-old violinist tells the South China Morning Post, “There is no piece in the violin literature that has this scope of theatric power. If you were to have a one-heroine opera, that’s what this would be.”
To prepare, she explains, “I spent many, many months studying strong women characters. I thought about Joan of Arc, I thought about Catherine the Great, Elizabeth the First, I thought about the fictitious character Lisbeth Salander from The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Katniss Everdeen [from The Hunger Games].
“I really took this on as a role, not just a piece of music to play, basically going to very dark places myself.”
Scheherazade.2 was jointly commissioned by three orchestras: the New York Philharmonic, which played the world premiere; the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, of Amsterdam; and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. The work is expected to be performed by orchestras in Los Angeles, Vienna, Seattle, Toronto, Chicago, London, Helsinki and Berlin in the future.