The Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra will begin its tenth season on a heroic note, when founding music director Chiu-Tze Lin raises her baton for Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3, “Eroica,” and Tchaikovsky’s “1812 Overture.”

Interestingly, both works are tied to Napoleon. Tchaikovsky’s overture was written in 1880 to commemorate Russia’s successful weathering of Bonaparte’s invading troops in 1812.

Beethoven famously dedicated his symphony to Napoleon, whom the composer had viewed idealistically as an advocate of democracy and egalitarianism; but when Bonaparte declared himself Emperor, the composer scratched out the dedication with such vehemence that he tore a hole in the page. The inscription was changed to read, “… to the memory of a great man.” The second movement of the work is a funeral march.

Beethoven’s symphony stands as a monument to a fallen idol, but it remains heroic to its core, both in scope and content. Lin has selected these works to coincide with the 15th anniversary of the attacks of 9/11 and all the tragedy and triumph of the human spirit those events entailed.

“We’ve titled the concert ‘Heroic Masterworks,’ to commemorate the heroism of our firefighters and police on 9/11,” Lin says. She cites the aforementioned funeral march and the overall uplifting spirit of both pieces as bases for her programming decisions.

The concert will take place at Princeton Alliance Church in Plainsboro on Sunday night at 7 p.m. Also on the program, 16 year-old cellist Noah Lee will perform the Cello Concerto No. 1 by Dmitri Shostakovich.

Find out more about this remarkable young artist in my article in today’s Trenton Times.

http://www.nj.com/times-entertainment/index.ssf/2016/09/classical_music_bpo_performing.html