Ukrainian composer Alexey Shor (b. 1970) came to the US to study mathematics and, in addition to his Ph.D. in the field, is an accomplished composer.
Alexey Shor (Photo by Evgeny Evtyukhov)
The ‘four seasons’, at least to those in the temperate climes, are well known, be they by Vivaldi or Piazzolla. Shor’s Four Seasons are the Four Seasons of Manhattan, aka, his Violin Concerto No. 3.
We open in Summer, the time of year when it’s ‘hotter in the city than it is in the summer’, as one New York resident put it. The sun bounces off the buildings, off the pavements, and makes you forget all the cold and windy days of other times of the year. Down in Greenwich Village, the park in the middle of the 19th century houses provides a spot of green, walks through shading trees, and just a glimpse of Old New York
Washington Square Park in the early 20th century
Alexey Shor: Violin Concerto No. 3, “The Four Seasons of Manhattan” (version for violin and string orchestra) – I. Summer: Allegro (Zia Hyunsu Shin, violin; Kyiv Virtuosi Orchestra; Massimiliano Caldi, cond.)
Although it’s the most beautiful time of the year, Autumn (or Fall) is also a time of melancholy, as Shor indicates in this movement. The leaves turn beautiful colours, but are in their death throes. They fall from the trees, whirling down in the breeze to lie underfoot, browning and crunching until they get swept away into the gutter.
Autumn in Central Park (Photo by Chris Ford)
Alexey Shor: Violin Concerto No. 3, “The Four Seasons of Manhattan” (version for violin and string orchestra) – II. Autumn: Andante lacrimoso (Zia Hyunsu Shin, violin; Kyiv Virtuosi Orchestra; Massimiliano Caldi, cond.)
Winter in the City can be when it comes alive, as the opera season comes into full swing, or a time of intense loneliness when it snows and the city falls silent. The ponds and streets freeze over, and if you can skate on the first, watch out for sliding on the second!
Snow in New York City
Alexey Shor: Violin Concerto No. 3, “The Four Seasons of Manhattan” (version for violin and string orchestra) – III. Winter: Andante lacrimoso (Zia Hyunsu Shin, violin; Kyiv Virtuosi Orchestra; Massimiliano Caldi, cond.)
Finally, it’s spring! The trees are in bloom, the streets are free of ice and puddles, and flowers spring up in the parks. In Madison Square Park, under the statue of William H. Seward (shown in his ever-busy position as Governor of New York, (1839–1842). US Senator (1849–1861) and Secretary of State (1861–1869). As Lincoln’s and then Johnson’s Secretary of State, he prevented foreign countries from interfering in the US Civil War and is best remembered today as the man responsible for the purchase of Alaska (aka Seward’s Folly) from Russia.
Tulips surround William H. Seward
Alexey Shor: Violin Concerto No. 3, “The Four Seasons of Manhattan” (version for violin and string orchestra) – IV. Spring: Allegro (Zia Hyunsu Shin, violin; Kyiv Virtuosi Orchestra; Massimiliano Caldi, cond.)
It’s not the four seasons as presented by Vivaldi but rather a personal view of a very public city. Every New Yorker carries the city in their heart. After the pessimism of Autumn and Winter, Spring returns to remind us of the city of the now and of the future.
For more of the best in classical music, sign up for our E-Newsletter
