Sinfonietta DuPage presents guest cellist Leonardo Altino in fall concert

Join the Sinfonietta DuPage in its fall concert on Nov. 25 featuring guest Brazilian cellist Leonardo Altino in Saint-Saëns’ Cello Concerto No. 1.

Altino, who has appeared as concerto soloist and in solo recitals throughout the world, is an associate lecturer in music at the Wheaton College Conservatory of Music where he teaches cello and chamber music.

Altino’s breakthrough came at age 14 when he was the youngest winner at the Jovens Concertistas Brasileiros, a prestigious competition in Rio de Janeiro. By 15, he had performed as soloist with every major orchestra in Brazil and worked with renowned conductors such as Eleazar de Carvalho and Isaac Karabitchevsky.

A dedicated teacher and mentor, Altino has taught in many festivals around the world. He studied at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston and the Detmold Musihöchschule in Germany. He was a recipient of the Montgomery Symphony Orchestra Fellowship where he served as artist-in-residence, and he was on the faculty at the University of Memphis for 13 years.

As part of the program, the Sinfonietta DuPage orchestra also will perform Louise Farrenc Symphony No. 1 and Overture to “Der Schauspieldirektor” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

Saint-Saëns composed his Cello Concerto No. 1 in 1872 when he was 37 years old. It is one of his finest compositions. He wrote this work for the French cellist player Auguste Tolbecque. Saint-Saëns broke with convention in writing the concerto. Instead of using the normal three-movement concerto form, he structured the piece in one continuous movement. Many composers, including Shostakovich and Rachmaninoff, considered this concerto to be the greatest of all cello concertos.

“Der Schauspieldirektor” (“The Impresario”), K. 486 is a comic singspiel by Mozart in 1786. Mozart, who describes it as “comedy with music” wrote it as his entry in a musical competition which was given a private performance hosted on Feb. 7, 1786 by Joseph II in Vienna. This competition pitted a German singspiel (comic opera with dialogue) presented at one end of the room, against a competing Italian opera seria. The work is a parody of vanity and rivalry among singers and makes fun of the theatrical world. The overture features a lively orchestration typical of Mozart’s mature style and incorporates comedic and dramatic aspects of the story. It prepares the audience for the humorous interactions that follow.

Louise Farrenc (May 31, 1804 to Sept. 15, 1875) was a French composer, virtuoso pianist and teacher of the Romantic period. Her compositions include three symphonies, a few choral works, numerous chamber pieces and a wide variety of piano music. In 1819 at the age of 15, Farrenc studied composition with Anton Reicha, the composition teacher at the Conservatoire d Paris. However, she was taught through private lessons as women were forbidden to enroll in the traditional composition classes at that time.

By the 1830s, Farrenc gained considerable fame as a performer and her reputation was such that in 1842, she was appointed to the permanent position of professor of piano at the Paris Conservatory, a position she held for 30 years and one which was among the most prestigious in Europe. Despite this, Farrenc was paid less than her male counterparts for nearly a decade. Only after the triumphant premiere of her “Nonet,” at which the famous violinist Joseph Joachim took part, did she demand and receive equal pay. Besides her teaching and performing career, she also produced and edited an influential book, “Le Trésor des pianistes,” about early music performance style, and was twice awarded the Prix Chartier, in 1861 and 1869. Unfortunately, genre played a large role in her success, and, as a result, Lousie Farrenc compositions suffered.

The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 25, at Peace Church, 21W500 Butterfield Road in Lombard. Tickets are available only at the door. Admission is $22 or $12 for students and seniors. Information can be found through the SBC website. sinfoniettabelcanto.org. Parking is free and there is ample intimate seating.

This program is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency and National Endowment for the Arts, and Arts DuPage foundation.