National Broadcaster Spotlight

Murphy & The Water Music, Live from The Concertgebouw

Media Release, 25 May, 2020 (for immediate release)

The Dutch national broadcaster (NPO) has identified Simon Murphy and the NDA's live concert performance of Handel's The Water Music for the ZaterdagMatinee series in June 2007 at The Concertgebouw Amsterdam as a highlight from the archives.

The NPO has released the live concert recording to its international partner-broadcasters through the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), spotlighting Murphy's work internationally. At home in the Netherlands, the national broadcaster will transmit The Water Music on Radio 4 (NTR) on Saturday 6 June 2020 at 16:15 (GMT + 1).

To accompany the EBU radio release, the NPO asked Murphy to write a personal background-story on The Water Music and this special performance. It is given here.

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Performing Handel's The Water Music for the ZaterdagMatinee at The Concertgebouw

By Conductor Simon Murphy

Handel's cosmopolitan, orchestral masterpiece The Water Music is a vibrant celebration of the rich musical traditions of Baroque Europe. From a Watteau-esque French shepherdess dancing a Sarabande for her lover in the dappled shadows by a babbling brook to an ruddy-faced Irish farmer doing a jig in the local village tavern, The Water Music is a captivating portrait of a time and place where humanity and nature are connected and where both flourish. It pictures a place which is invigorating, nourishing, abundant and bountiful. It celebrates the fullness of the human experience– earthy, physical, sensual, spiritual, intellectual and emotional.

As the last instrumental masterpiece of the pre-industrial era, it also holds a special significance for us today. Handel's The Water Music offers us the opportunity to gain invaluable insights into the intrinsic connections between humanity, nature and culture, and the beauty and importance of diversity in all three. As such, it is not only a portrait of the past. It could also be a picture of our future.

This performance follows the extensive work done together with the NDA on Corelli's orchestral aesthetic. The Water Music is also the subject of our current project, Garden of Eden. Please find details of this below, alongside a personal story about preparing and performing this concert of The Water Music and about our musical approach to the piece.

I invite you to join us for our performance of (selections from) this deeply moving, defining Baroque musical work of genius by Handel, live from The Concertgebouw Amsterdam as part of Dutch radio's ZaterdagMatinee series.

A Personal Story

Listening to the radio as a teenager growing up in Australia in the 1980s, it seemed like every broadcast-concert in the world took place in the Netherlands. Today, from The Festival of Early Music Utrecht … Today, from The Concertgebouw Amsterdam … Today, from The North Sea Jazz Festival The Hague … Later on, I learned that this was due to the Netherlands' very proactive approach to contributing live concert recordings to the world through the EBU sharing system, but also because I had become obsessed with pioneering Dutch early music figures such as Gustav Leonhardt and Frans Brüggen, so my teenage ears pricked up at any sound of the words early music and the Netherlands.

From early on, my boyhood dream was to play Baroque viola – in a Baroque church, with a frescoed ceiling, in Europe. I wanted to be able to revel in being surrounded by the voluptuous sights and sounds of the Baroque, and just soak up the total experience. After my studies in Sydney, I took a very big breath, packed my suitcase, and moved to the Netherlands. And, to my delight, I started performing with those musical heroes of mine.

In that process however, I saw that the younger generation needed more of a platform, and in 2003, I conducted the closing concert at the Holland Festival of Early Music Utrecht with my then brand-new Baroque orchestra, The New Dutch Academy. Festival director Jan van den Bossche invited us to make a big statement, and we did so with a large-scale performance of Corelli's Concerti Grossi. It was voted one of the top five highlights in the festival's history.

Broadcast live by Dutch radio with an EBU simulcast around the world, the festival co-production also resulted in a CD album for PENTATONE, and an invitation to perform in Rome, in the presidential palace, under the Bernini vaulted golden ceiling, for a state visit of Queen Beatrix, broadcast live on the RAI. Boyhood dream come true.

An invitation also followed from another Dutch legend, Jan Zekveld, programmer of the ZaterdagMatinee, to perform The Water Music in what was to be one of his very last concerts in the series before his retirement. I was super honoured to be included in this tastemaker's long line of rather illustrious musical guests at The Concertgebouw and, thereby, to make an appearance in just the type of radio programme which had so inspired me as a kid back in Australia. The result is this live concert recording.
For me personally, it is a very special recording of what is a treasured musical experience, as it represents a kind of full circle, but also a springboard, as it has had so much positive effect on me being able to create all sorts of further musical opportunities since then.

Roman Holiday

The quite substantial musical work which we did on bringing Corelli's rich orchestral soundscape to life in 2003 formed the basis for our approach to Handel's The Water Music. Whilst in Rome, Handel worked closely with Corelli. Handel was clearly influenced by Corelli's rich soundscape.

We know from payment records, that, on occasion, Corelli also used winds, brass and percussion, alongside his string group and basso continuo section. In preparing for The Water Music, we experimented adding horns and oboes to a Corelli movement, and yes, perhaps unsurprisingly, you do get a rather “Handelian” sound as the result. Another example of Handel being a fan of Corelli is Corelli's Fuga a 4 which is basically a blueprint of Handel's Hallelujah Chorus pretty much with just about everything in it except for the Ha - llelujah itself (see our Corelli CD, track 23). You can also read an article on the experience which I wrote for Limelight here.

Handel's The Water Music is such an encyclopaedia of

1. the formal musical styles of the time (including church, opera, instrumental, ballet, theatre and military styles),
2. the regional languages/dialects/flavours of the time (including Italian, French, German, English, Irish and Spanish) and
3. the myriad of instruments in and as part of the Baroque orchestra.

In bringing The Water Music to life we wanted to highlight the variety in musical styles as well as the variety and richness of timbres of which the Baroque orchestra is capable.

In general, we tried to achieve one broad colour per suite matching the emotional state represented by the key (according to the 18th century sources)

• Suite 1 in F - polite and refined, bonne grâce (contrasting with the relative minor of d minor in the extensive last movement – grave and serious matters),
• Suite 3 in G rustic, pastoral, friendly, and
• Suite 2 in D royal, grand, military might, warlike and noisy, triumph, celebration.

As well as honing the playing style to represent each of these 3 general colours effectively (tone production, timbre and articulation), we varied the use of lutes and/or guitars accordingly, alongside Handel's own variations in the scoring per suite – most obviously the horns in Suite 1, the solo flute in Suite 3, and then the trumpets and horns together in Suite 2. In individual movements, we also used flecks of colour from guest percussionist Ivo Nitschke (who actually hails from Handel's home town of Halle!) to underline the different regional flavours particularly in the dance movements, for example spoons in the more Irish movements and then side drum in the more military movements. In the theatre, percussion (either played by the dancers or in the orchestra) was used enthusiastically, so we wanted to have that included in the experience. In this way also, we wanted to ensure the full range of colours from the Baroque orchestra would be represented and explored.

For the winds, we chose to have a oboe band style wind section - tripling or quadrupling the numbers of oboes and bassoons, which bulks up the sound in general to Handelian “proportions” (and simply also follows in the Lully-tradition). It provides a nice equal weight between the strings and winds in the orchestral balance, and also in the musical conversations between the two groups (for example in the last movement of Suite 1). It also means that there's a difference between solo and tutti in the winds, as well as in the strings.

With the resulting instrumentation, (authentic) instruments and playing style, we've endeavoured to create a soundscape with plenty of profile, grain, grit and texture.

With this inspiring musical work, Handel expresses his strong vote of confidence in humanity. He underscores this through every aspect of the work. As such

• the instruments of the orchestra have their own distinctive voice but also come together to form a beautifully interweaving whole, a tapestry of sound with its unity being far richer for its diversity,
• highly diverse national and regional dishes are all given a place at this colourful, nourishing, musical table, and
• the rich journey of the human experience is explored from the joy of young dance, to triumph and collective celebration, to the personal reflection of a solemn church procession.

Garden of Eden

Following the successful performance at the ZaterdagMatinee in The Concertgebouw, we were invited to perform The Water Music at the Händel Festspiele in Handel's birth city, Halle, for a festival concert broadcast live by the MDR.

Now, the work forms the centrepiece of our new project, Garden of Eden. The project aims to make a energising, cultural contribution to promoting action on the climate crisis. This will be our next recording, together with our partner label, PENTATONE, with the recording sessions talking place as soon as is feasible.


© Simon Murphy 2020




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Not for publication

Simon Murphy
+ 31 614 975 395
info@simonmurphyconductor.com
www.simonmurphyconductor.com

Founding Music Curator Murphy Leaves as Festival Dumps Classical & Jazz Component

Shock move by festival organisers brings 8 years of award-winning success to a halt 

Press Release & Media Statement from Simon Murphy, 25 February, 2020

During a meeting at the headquarters of the Embassy Festival in The Hague earlier this month, festival organisers Prooost informed founding festival music curator Simon Murphy of their decision to ditch the entirety of the festival's Classical & Jazz component, including the festival's popular Classical & Jazz Stage, effective immediately. Murphy was not consulted on this.

Murphy has been the curator and presenter of the Classical & Jazz Stage since the festival's inception in 2012. Some of the highlights of his programming have included the Dutch début of Swedish Jazz superstar Ida Sand, celebrated Dutch harpist Lavinia Meijer playing works by Philip Glass, and the musical fireworks of the 4 Double Basses of the Oslo FAT String Quartet. The festival has received the EU's prestigious EFFE Award multiple times for its consistent, diverse, high quality programming.

In communicating the decision to Murphy, festival organisers cited desires for “new directions” during the festival's next phase. However, with a mere 6 months to go before the 2020 festival, the stage envisioned by the organisers to replace the dumped Classical & Jazz Stage is yet to be named and its content yet to be defined.

The Embassy Festival is an annual event held in September. Organisers Prooost are also behind the Pop festival “Life I Live” a.k.a. Koningsnacht. Both events are primarily funded by the municipality of The Hague.

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Background Story 

Quality and Diversity

In the heart of the historic centre of the cosmopolitan court city of The Hague, on the beautiful, leafy, tree-lined boulevard of the Lange Voorhout, the idyllic setting of the Embassy Festival gazes out at some of the city's iconic palaces, theatres and churches. Its ancient, cobbled streets have borne witness to the footsteps of the city's many illustrious musical visitors including Abel, J.C. Bach, Stamitz, Mozart and Beethoven. In this exquisite setting, Dutch-based Australian conductor and violist Simon Murphy has revelled in his role as the curator and presenter of the festival's Classical & Jazz Stage.

With its distinctive blend of high quality programming within an informal but stylish atmosphere, the festival has grown steadily in popularity, garnering tens of thousands of visitors in recent years. Under Murphy's watch, the festival has won international acclaim for its musical quality and diversity. It has twice received the EU's EFFE Award – a seal of quality for remarkable, European festivals offering unique and high quality experiences. The award's jury, headed by Sir Jonathan Mills, acknowledged the consistency in quality and in the artistic choices made in programming both established and emerging artists.

Successful Formula

From the very beginning, the festival's programming formula has featured two central pillars,
Pop, and Classical & Jazz, each with their own dedicated stage. Until now.

Murphy: “I am shocked by the festival organisers' decision to axe the Classical & Jazz component of the festival. I was not consulted about this. The Classical & Jazz Stage was the jewel in the festival's crown. This is a great loss for the quality and diversity of the festival's programming. The Classical & Jazz Stage offered audiences in the Netherlands a unique opportunity to experience an array of repertoire and a beautiful variety of high quality international Classical and Jazz artists – for free, in a joyous, relaxed atmosphere, and in a stunningly beautiful historical location. 

I therefore have no choice but to immediately step back from my role at the festival as curator and presenter of the Classical & Jazz Stage and to distance myself from the festival as a whole at this time. I cannot in any way support the organisers' decision to discard the festival's Classical & Jazz component, especially given that it has been such a core part of the festival's identity and success since the festival's foundation 8 years ago.” 

Breadth & Depth

With a repertoire spanning more than seven centuries and featuring artists from all corners of the world, Murphy's Classical & Jazz Stage programming delivered a wealth of styles and musical personalities to eager audiences. From Dutch harp heroine Lavinia Meijer performing her own arrangements of works by Philip Glass, to U.S. piano virtuoso Bobby Mitchell playing Mozart, Beethoven and Mendelssohn, to Palestinian Trio Nur performing traditional Arabian music, to Dutch contemporary composer/percussionist Arnold Marinissen playing his own works, Murphy's festival offerings featured everything from Baroque instrumental music through to Lieder recitals through to cutting edge modern jazz.

Murphy's festival programming saw several major international artists make their Dutch débuts, including Swedish Jazz superstar Ida Sand and celebrated Australian Classical saxophonist Amy Dickson. Audiences shared in unique festival collaborations with Dutch Jazz pianist Rembrandt Frerichs, Norwegian accordionist Frode Haltli and Swedish trombonist Karin Hammar performing each others' newest compositions. Other highlights included recitals by Slovenian soprano Barbara Kozelj, Dutch violinist Frederieke Saeijs, German recorder player Anna Stegmann, Greek soprano Myrsini Margariti, Swedish lutenist Karl Nyhlin, Georgian pianist Nino Gvetadze, and Belgian soprano Elise Caluwaerts. Polish outfit Bodo brought central-European music from the interbellum to the stage and the unstoppable Oslo FAT String Quartet presented re-imaginings of classical favourites mixed with stunning interpretations of modern works.

Murphy: “As well as celebrating top local talent, I am delighted to have been able to bring some of my international musical heroes to the Netherlands. Presenting Ida Sand in 2018 and hearing her sing my favourite song, “Home”, as she made her Dutch debut with a solo set created especially for the festival was a very special moment for me. I am also proud to have been able to help highlight up-and-coming artists from around the world who I feel deserve to be taken notice of. Australian mezzo Anna Smith and Norwegian mezzo Kristin Mulders are two examples. 

As a performing musician myself, I also have greatly enjoyed contributing to the festival experience by getting the viola out and joining some of my musical guests in several very memorable festival collaborations over the years. It was lovely to be part of the music making – both backstage and on stage.” 

Cultural Diplomacy

Due to his experience with cultural diplomacy and his profile in the international community in The Hague, the organisers approached Murphy to do some outreach and help sell the new festival to embassies and other stakeholders, alongside his programming work.

Murphy: “I particularly enjoyed the early days of the festival – pitching it at press events, writing the festivals texts together with Holly Marder, and pounding the pavement together with Fleur van Rijn, visiting the various prospective partner-embassies. 

Fleshing out the festival's sound requirements together with Marc Noble of More Stage was also very inspiring. We enjoyed exploring mutual amplification wishes together and looking at how the stage placements could best work on the festival terrain. During the process, we had our own little “nerd fest”, discussing favourite microphones and so forth. I learnt a lot from him. Marc had built some rigs especially designed for acoustic/classical music. It was beautiful to work with such a sound craftsman (!) and to see it all come alive on the day. 

It was very exciting, creating what would become the blueprint for the festival.” 

Grateful 

Murphy: “I'm proud to have been able to make a contribution to the cultural environment in the Netherlands through my work at the festival. At the end of it all, looking out from the festival stage at the happy faces of the audiences has been a reward in itself. 

I would like to thank all of the artists, ambassadors and cultural attachés with whom I've had the honour and pleasure of working during my time at the festival. I'm proud of the highly meaningful co-operations we created together and that the resulting performances so beautifully profiled the immense talent and strong cultural identities of the countries involved and simultaneously demonstrated the incredible power which music has to unite us all and to celebrate our shared humanity. 

I would especially like to the thank the embassies of Norway, Finland, Sweden, Ireland, Australia and the U.S. for their active support in the early days of the festival. Their votes of confidence gave the festival wings to fly and have had a big effect on what it's been able to grow into during its first 8 years.” 

Future

Murphy: “I would like to thank Prooost's director Arthur Pronk for his vision and commitment to include Classical music as a core element of the festival, right from the very beginning. I wish him and his team good luck in their future endeavours. 

Alongside my own performing work, I look forward to exploring new curating opportunities, both locally and internationally, in order to continue to bring quality musical experiences to audiences in personal, engaging, vibrant and meaningful ways.” 

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About Simon Murphy

Simon Murphy (Sydney, 1973) is an international award-winning Dutch-based Australian conductor and violist. Nicknamed “the repertoire refresher” by France's Diapason, he has won major industry awards including an Edison (Dutch “Grammy”) for his performing, programming and recording activities including his many albums featuring world première presentations of symphonic works rediscovered by him. He is a champion of 18th century Dutch music and has made several albums profiling unearthed Dutch musical gems. His landmark recording of Corelli's Concerti Grossi made during the Holland Festival of Early Music Utrecht was voted one of the five highlights of the festival's history.

Murphy is music director of The Hague's Baroque orchestra, The New Dutch Academy. With the orchestra, he has toured extensively, appearing at prestigious international music festivals including the Bachfest Leipzig. Murphy has also worked as guest-conductor with major international ensembles ranging from the Strasbourg Philharmonic through to the Latvian State Choir.

Murphy has a special affinity for cultural diplomacy. Murphy has programmed and performed concert events for multilateral celebrations around the world, including in New York, Beijing, Vancouver, Rome, Ankara, Hong Kong and Sydney. He has regularly performed for members of the Dutch royal family, both abroad and at home. Murphy is also music advisor to the Netherlands' Prinsjesfestival.

Launched in September in The Concertgebouw, Amsterdam, Murphy's latest album is JET SET! Classical Glitterati (PENTATONE, 2019). On it, he performs Zelter's Viola Concerto and conducts orchestral works by Abel, Reichardt, Mozart and Paisiello. Murphy's current large scale passion projects include his Gothic Project which explores the 18th century foundations of the genre in music, music theatre, art and literature, and his musical, climate change advocacy project, Garden of Eden, which centres around Handel's cosmopolitan Baroque orchestral masterpiece, The Water Music. www.simonmurphyconductor.com

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At a Glance 

Highlights of Murphy's Classical & Jazz Stage at the Embassy Festival 2012 – 2019 

Dutch Débuts including
Swedish Jazz superstar Ida Sand
Australian Classical saxophonist Amy Dickson

Unique Festival Collaborations including
Dutch Jazz pianist Rembrandt Frerichs, Norwegian accordionist Frode Haltli and Swedish trombonist Karin Hammar performing each other's newest compositions

Recitals including
Dutch harp-superstar Lavinia Meijer performing her own arrangements of works by Philip Glass
U.S. pianist Bobby Mitchell playing Mozart, Beethoven and Mendelssohn
Belgian soprano Elise Caluwaerts singing Verdi, Liszt and Bernstein
Dutch violinist Frederieke Saeijs performing Bach and Ysaye
German recorder virtuoso Anna Stegmann with selections from Van Eyck's Der Fluytenlusthof
Dutch composer/percussionist Arnold Marinissen playing his own works ft. Katharina Gross
Other recitals featuring Trinidadian Soprano Nicole Jordan, Slovenian soprano Barbara Kozelj, Belorussian pianist Hanna Shybayeva, Dutch flautist Felicia van den End, Dutch/Hungarian
pianist Valentina Tóth, Swedish lutenist Karl Nyhlin, Greek soprano Myrsini Margariti,
Irish pianist Fionnuala Moynihan, English fiddler Mike Bailey, Georgian pianist Nino Gvetadze, Dutch harpist Gwyneth Wentink, and Ukranian/U.S. soprano Julia Kogan

Groups including
Palestinian Trio Nur performing traditional Arabian music
Polish outfit Bodo ft. Aldona Bartnik performing central-European music from the interbellum
Oslo FAT String Quartet performing re-imaginings of classics together with modern works
Bulgarian Bodurov Trio with own new compositions
Boreas Quartett Bremen with music for recorder consort from the northern European Renaissance and early Baroque
Australian violist Simon Murphy and members of the New Dutch Academy with works by Bach, Handel, Vivaldi, van Wassenaer, Stamitz, Abel, Graaf, Zappa, Haydn, Mozart and Mendelssohn