In 1862, a group of young Russian nationalist composers led by Mily Balakirev and César Cui formed what is known today as “The Five.” Alexander Borodin, Modest Mussorgsky, and Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov would complete the group. Their goal was to create a style of Russian music that would be distinct from the music written in western Europe. Characteristics of these composers include the use of folk songs and dances, invented scales that are distinguishable from the more traditional major and minor scales used in the west, and a more unpredictable harmonic vocabulary that results in fresh and exciting progressions previously unheard. Likewise, these composers were fascinated and influenced by the art of the Eastern world. Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade showcases all of these elements. Completed in the summer of 1888, Scheherazade is loosely based on the tales found in One Thousand and One Nights, a collection of Middle Eastern folktales. RimskyKorsakov’s note in the score states: “The Sultan Schahriar, convinced of the perfidy and faithlessness of women, vowed to execute each of his wives after the first night. But the Sultana Scheherazade saved her own life by interesting him in the tales she told him through 1001 nights. Impelled by curiosity, the Sultan continually put off her execution, and at last entirely abandoned his sanguinary resolve. Many marvels did Scheherazade relate to him, citing the verses of poets and the words of songs, weaving tale into tale and story into story.” Over the course of the piece, you’ll meet the Sultan – bold and furious, usually in the brass; and Scheherazade our concertmaster, Susanna Perry Gilmore, as Scheherazade weaves four epic stories across four movements, tales within her own tale of survival. Scheherazade is ultimately a Russian nesting doll, opening bombastically and ending in the most exquisite of solo features for our heroine. © Mathew Fuerst, 2024