BlueWater Chamber Orchestra: A Night Of Fright and Delight

Debussy: Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun
Respighi: Trittico Botticelliano for chamber orchestra
Deak: Concerto for String Quartet and Orchestra "The Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow" (Kenneth Johnston, Charles Morey, violins; Kirsten Docter, viola; Bryan Dumm, cello; Robert Conrad, narrator) Carlton R. Woods, director.
At Plymouth Church, UCC, Shaker Heights

Late Fall has certainly arrived in Northeast Ohio and while I was out of town Thursday and Friday, after spending a lazy day under warm covers Rachel and I headed to Plymouth Church in Shaker Heights to hear BlueWater Chamber Orchestra's Halloween-appropriate program. BlueWater, as a chamber orchestra, is an example of what makes greater Cleveland a great place to live with the wealth of musical talent in a slightly more compact and intimate format than the full-blown orchestra.

While the third work on the program, a concerto based on the short story The Headless Horesman of Sleepy Hollow" was initially what I thought was most intriguing, in execution the first two were the strongest showings.

Debussy's Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun is always enjoyable to hear and tonight's performance was particularly enjoyable thanks to an energetic delivery and the additional color brought by the addition of a harp -- while subtle it added a sparkle that made the afternoon of the faun that much easier to imagine.

Through the second piece on the program brought the audience Respighi's reactions, in musical form, to three works by Botticelli in Florence's Uffizi gallery via Trittico Botticelliano for chamber orchestra. The first, Primavera, was an energetic almost marching delivery that reminded me of a conversation in music with an interesting rhythm and more interesting texture. Second, L'adorazione dei Magi was a little bit more subdued and if I had to ascribe a specific feeling to it, "slightly middle-eastern"; the final movement, La Nascita di Venere was more of a meandering walk on a tepid fall day with a passionate delivery by the orchestra.

The concert concluded with Deak's Concerto for String Quartet and Orchestra "The Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow", narrated by Robert Conrad of WCLV, a piece I was really looking forward to hearing, especially with Mr. Woods's introductions for the soloists (Ichabod was represented by the two violinists on account of his "complex personality", Katrina represented by the viola "in a frisky kind of way", and the cello was "just strange") -- and Mr. Conrad's distinctive voice built for narration -- but the balance seemed a little lacking and I found myself struggling to hear Mr. Conrad's narration over the orchestra at times which distracted me from simply enjoying  the piece. Despite that challenge, the piece was enjoyable with overlapping textures a fun and lively "barn dance" and musicians clearly having fun with the performance.

Lincoln

BlueWater Chamber Orchestra: Lake Winds Bring Spring Strings

Elgar: Introduction and Allegro, Op. 47 for Solo String Quartet and Strings (Kenneth Johnson, Emily Cornelius, violins; Laura Shuster, viola; Kent Collier, cello)

Barber: Adagio for Strings, Op. 11

Barber: Capricorn Concerto, Op. 21 (Sean Gabriel, flute; Neil Mueller, trumpet; Martin Neubert, oboe)

Tchaikovsky: Serenade for Strings, Op. 48

Carlton R. Woods, conductor. At the Plymouth Church UCC, Shaker Heights

Rachel and I attended our third BlueWater Chamber Orchestra concert this evening and it occurred to me that one consistency among all three is that they're easily digestible presentations: Well performed pieces in an format that runs roughly 90 minutes free from intermission, it's just the right amount of commitment. 

Tonight's program opened with Elgar's Introduction and Allegro -- striking me at first as having the dreary atmosphere of a turn-of-the-century main street, particularly through a longing viola. However, as the piece progresses the sun begins to shine through and a moment of drama as the clouds part. A tremolo in the second violin created am interesting sound that sounded almost banjo-like and a musically romantic embrace were highlights of the piece. 

Barber's Adagio for Stings -- easily that composer's best known work, followed with a beautifully somber and longingly sentimental piece. Third on the program, the same composer's Capricorn Concerto moved us into the long form portion of the concert; while the first movement (allegro ma non troppo) didn't really engender any feelings, the second recaptured my attention through winds that I could best describe as walking -- and joined in their stroll by the violas and later cellos. As the piece progressed into the third and fourth movements, I particularly enjoyed what seemed like the soundtrack for a spirited and civic-minded dialogue. 

This brings us to the final piece on the program, Tchaikovsky's Serenade for Strings which felt much different than the prior works on the program -- the first movement starting with a powerful first statements and evolving into a spirited debate between the high and low string sections before settling into a lovely elegant and graceful mood. The second movement was faithful to its notation as a waltz, evoking imagery of a 1800s ballroom and a romantic slow dance, while the third movement made me think of quiet springtime walks. 

Next up on BlueWater's season is Iron Composer and Iron Violinist on May 10th at the Plymouth Church -- based on Mr. Woods' comments during tonight's program it sounds like it has the potential to be very entertaining. 

Lincoln 

BlueWater Chamber Orchestra: Honoring Cleveland's Culture

Corigliano: Voyages for Strings
Weber: Concertino for Clarinet and Orchestra, Op. 26 (Amitai Vardi, clarinet)
Beethoven: Romance No 2 for Violin and Orchestra. Op. 50 (Jieming Tang, violin)
Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 4 (Italian), Op. 90
Davies: An Orknet Wedding, with Sunrise, J. 264
Carlton R. Woods, conductor.
At the Plymouth Church UCC, Shaker Heights.

I'm finally home in Cleveland for a bit (no travel "on the books" until January, thankfully) and feeling a little lacking in the Music department. Tonight, Rachel and I took the short jaunt to the Plymouth Church in Shaker Heights for a fun program full of variety and quality musicianship from the BlueWater Chamber Orchestra.

This was our second time hearing the orchestra and the different "feelings" between the two venues was a bit striking -- while the Breen Center is more modern and a bit more comfortable, Plymouth Church has the advantage of a less formal feeling, specifically a less harsh division between orchestra and audience.

The program was a delightful "musical sampler" of sorts featuring works that span vast spaces both in time and structure, making it easy to like and hard to get bored.

Opening the program, Voyages for Strings presented a relaxed bit of travel -- no drama of a trip gone awry, but rather the serenity of an airplane in cruise or a train en route where everything is going as it should. Next up, the Concertino for Clarinet and Orchestra was restrained at introduction but broke free to a lively midsection with lively and engaging playing by soloist Anitai Vardi.

One beautifully flowing piece lead to another -- featuring a slightly younger but no less talented soloist in Jieming Tang, a currently sophomore. Mr. Tang and the orchestra gently embraced before taking each other on a slow dance.

Mendelssohn's Italian symphony was played with particular clarity, and the longest piece of the evening -- the first and fourth movements were the fastest -- the first being insistent with a hint of bickering, and the fourth with a sense of running after a burst of energy. While the second (more reserved) and the third movements were slower, the momentum of the piece was preserved avoiding the sense of "hitting the emergency brakes" that slower movements can sometimes give when following a faster movement.

The last piece of the evening was certainly the most fun and unique -- following a Scottish wedding with such movements as "Guests arriving out of violent weather", and "Increasingly inebriated dance" -- and also the first I can remember to feature bagpipes (with Mr. Jeff Sandlin filling that need quite well) -- it was toe tapping and cheery music. The only objection was the (intentionally) out of tune playing as the "drinking" progressed -- it was clear some of the musicians appeared to be physically pained by being forced out of tune -- but such is the necessity of the piece.

The next BlueWater Chamber Orchestra concert, "Lake Winds Bring Spring Strings" will be presented at the Plymouth Church on March 1st at 7pm.

Lincoln

BlueWater Chamber Orchestra: From Cleveland For Cleveland

Rossini: Overture to La Scala Di Seta (Silken Ladder)*
Haydn: Symphony No. 104 in D, "London"^
Barber: Concerto for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 14* (Diana Cohen, violin)
*-Carlton R. Woods, conductor. ^-Neil Mueller, conductor
At the Breen Center for the Performing Arts, St. Ignatius High School.

This week has been particularly long and stressful--Rachel and my attempt at dog adoption was not the success that we had hoped for, and I was somewhat relishing the thought of a quiet weekend before driving back to Michigan tomorrow -- for the fourth time in two weeks.

Late in the week were invited to attend this evening's concert -- and as fans of Ms. Cohen and intrigued by both BlueWater and the Breen Center -- both new to us, we couldn't say no.

For the venue, the Breen Center is comfortable and intimate without being cramped -- the auditorium is not huge but there is plenty of room. Acoustically, it seems to be very nice.

As a Chamber Orchestra, BlueWater is likewise a bit more compact than a traditional orchestra but produced a robust beautifully cohesive sound that filled the room and preserved nuances.

Rossini's Overture set the tone for the evening as  restrained, crisp and balanced with an emphasis on strings but very well blended.

While named  "London", neither Rachel nor could say that any particular imagery or sense of place was evoked Haydn's Symphony No. 104. Thus, while the first three movements were enjoyable, without evoking particular imagery it's difficult to me to connect the music, and instead I found it a very relaxing background to my thoughts on the past week. The fourth movement (Finale: Spiritoso) featured a fun set of notes starting in the first violins and expanding to encompass the entire orchestra that just made the movement kind of catchy.

The third piece on the program, Barber's Concerto for Violin and Orchestra  was clearly the highlight of the program. The first two movements were a bit of lyrical beauty and Ms. Cohen and the orchestra were in total sync but I didn't really get the impression that either was particularly challenged until the third movement -- aptly titled presto in moto perpetuo -- a flurry of well-controlled notes at blazing speed.

Lincoln