Cleveland Orchestra: Beethoven and Schubert

Beethoven: Coriolan Overture, Op. 62
Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 1 in C major, Op. 15 (Martin Helmchen, piano)
Schubert: Symphony in C major ("The Great"), D.944
David Afkham, conductor

Where has this summer gone? While next weekend officially marks the end of the Blossom season (with Pixar in Concert), this weekend was the last classical concert -- as well as my last concert -- of the season. (While I am actually very intrigued by the Pixar program Rachel and I are heading up to Michigan to walk the Mackinac Bridge and possibly adopt a dog for Labor Day).

On one hand I'm sad to see the season end as it means cooler weather is soon to be on its way, on the other hand I am eager to return to Severance and will not miss the hour-long drive to and from Blossom (usually behind someone attempting to merge onto Route 8 [speed limit: 65] at 16 miles per hour).

Tonight's concert was particularly social including a pre-concert discussion with an orchestra staffer that was most enlightening, and at Intermission I was visited by an Engineering Professor who I've chatted with a couple times at Severance. What's a bit more remarkable is that he and his wife are such fans of the Cleveland Orchestra that they make the three-hour drive from their home in Ann Arbor several times each season to hear the Orchestra live.

Technically all three pieces on the program were great, musically none of the three pieces really compelled me to listen, instead I found my thoughts wandering -- largely to questions of dog logistics.

The ten-minute Coriolan Overture seemed much tamer and more subdued than the average overture but had a beautiful cello ending. The three movements of Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 1 started with a pastoral gentile walk through autumn before a gentile and very tender hymn-like second movement and ending with what was to be my favorite movement from the evening centered around an energetic and very fun main theme.

Schubert's Symphony ("The Great") contrasted the somewhat relaxed "walk" of the first-movement Beethoven with a more austere and contemplative then turning impassioned and determined first movement. The adante con moto second movement was more unsettled and stormy and wandering off course. The third movement with a waltz encapsulated within and would prove to be my favorite from the piece. And by the fourth movement I was simply tired and ready to make a speedy exit from the pavilion to beat the throngs of concert goers to my car.

Lincoln

Cleveland Orchestra: Joffery Ballet: The Rite of Spring

Gould: Interplay (choreographed by Jerome Robbins)
Adams: Son of Chamber Symphony (choreographed by Stanton Welch)
Khachaturian: Adagio (choreographed by Yuri Possikhov)
Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring (Choreography after Vaslav Nijinsky, reconstructed by Millicent Hudson)
Joella Jones, piano.
Tito Munoz, conductor.

Once again a beautiful late summer evening greater patrons arriving at Blossom Music Center -- and its hard to believe summer is almost over, and there is only one more "true" cancer weekend left at Blossom. (There is a labor day double header of music from Pixar films that sounds interesting, but at this point it seems Rachel and I will be in St. Ignace, Michigan to participate in the Mackinac Bridge walk). Anyway, returning to this evening, I had found my way toy seat early and was settled in -- head down in reading about the advantages of clipless bike pedals -- when about 10 minutes until 8 the dam bust open and a surge of patrons filled the pavilion.

Opening the evening was Interplay, a four movement piece that the program notes claim has no storyline, however, I got the feeling of innocence and playground fun (the movement titles seem to support this) the third movement was slow and sad almost a loss of innocence before turning a slow jazzy (with a thin hint of "making whoopee" wisping up from the orchestra if I'm not reading too much into it) before turning spritely and happy and fast for the fourth movement.

I can have mixed feelings with John Adams work, and Son of a Chamber Symphony would be no exception of the music were to stand alone. Likewise, the dance without music would have fallen into that same void, but the combination of the two (and possibly the number of classical tutus--have I mentioned I'm a sucker for the look of a classical tutu) was beautiful allowing me to switch from eye to ear at whim as my attention span with either was taxed.

The last piece before intermission was the beautiful nine-minute duet Adagio which was, true to its name, a slow piece filled with romance and dance where both seemed to flow effortlessly.

The sole piece after intermission was Stavinsky's The Rite of Spring -- a piece celebrating its centennial this year. The piece has intrigued me since I first heard it performed at the Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM) a few years ago and when I heard about it's turbulent history (causing a "near riot" in the audience upon its premiere for it's -- at the time -- avant garde music and choreography). I've heard the piece performed several times since, but I've never seen it danced. While musically it was a bit less sharply percussive than I've come to expect, it was a beautiful performance and I will say my heart seemed to beat a bit faster and I had to imagine being in the theatre a hundred years ago -- seeing something "new" and unlike the three pieces proceeding it on the program.

Lincoln

Cleveland Orchestra: Vivaldi's Four Seasons

Rossini: Overture to La gizzar larda [The Thieving Magpie]
Vivaldi: The Four Seasons violin concertos Op. 8 No. 1-4 (Ray Chen, violin)
Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 3 ("Scottish") in A minor, Op. 56
Jahja Ling, conductor.

It was a positively beautiful evening at Blossom. Before the cancer began it was possible to survey the lawn where picnicking families clearly dominated, and a sea of people managed to marks the majority of the green lawn. As the music started, the sea of pavilion latecomers Behring held back by the ushers was likewise impressively immense.
The appetizer for tonight's concert was Rossini's 10-minute overture to La gazza ladra which mixed a military march and a dance -- the piece was enjoyable and reminded me of something but I couldn't -- and can't -- put my finger on what that was.

The main course, if you will, was Vivaldi's Four Seasons...and it was, if you'll pardon the metaphor delectable. While the electric quartet interpretation by the group Bond is a staple on my iPod, I don't think I've ever heard the complete piece played live.

The program notes include a short poem or, perhaps better stated as a  visualization for each of the three movements for each season. Though translations were in English, the program indicates the original Italian was inserted into the score by Vivaldi himself. The execution by both The Cleveland Orchestra and soloist brought those words to life for example the first line in Spring -- my favorite season from the piece -- "...and joyously the birds now welcome her return..." was brought to fluttering, chirping life by Mr. Chen.

The final piece of the program, Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 3 was the closest I've ever come to turning around and flat out telling a patron to shut up and let the people around him enjoy the piece (glaring was ineffective). Indeed, those in the area of the 400 boxes may have thought they were tuned into a baseball style  play-by-play broadcast. While he was obviously very taken by the music -- I'd be tempted to make comparisons to certain, *ahem* adult activities if this weren't a family blog -- it did not help the enjoyment of those around him.

While the first and fourth movements were the most substantial, I found the greatest satisfaction in the second and third movements. The second movement had a distinctly 20th century flavor (despite the piece having been composed in 1829) and what I would describe as hints of a Western film score. The third movement, on the other hand had the sense of tiptoeing through a garden very delicately and with an elegant flair.

Lincoln

Cleveland Orchestra and Kent/Blosom Chamber Orchestra: French Connection

Kent/Blossom Chamber Orchestra
Debussy: Clair de lune [Moonlight] from Suite Bergamasque
Beethoven: Symphony No. 8 in F major, Op. 93
James Feddeck, conductor
The Cleveland Orchestra
Berlioz: Overture to Les Francs-Juges [The Free Judges], Op. 3
Saint-Saens: Piano Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 22 (Cederic Tiberghien, Piano)
Debussy: La Mer [The Sea]
Stephane Deneve, conductor
The Cleveland Orchestra and the Kent/Blossom Chamber Orchestra
Ravel: La Valse [The Waltz]
Stephane Deneve, conductor


As the Cleveland Orchestra and the Kent/Blossom Chamber orchestra were concluding the program "side by side" playing Ravel's La Valse, I was desperately trying to find something -- anything -- from tonight's program that was likable. Sure there were brief passages here and there but overall, I have to say I spent most of the concert wishing that I had a "Next Track" button. It was particularly disappointing in contrast to how much I enjoyed last weekend's concert.

[In all honesty, if it wasn't for the fact that I need to drive to Michigan tomorrow--and it's Rachel's last day working retail--I would have attended that program instead of tonight's]

The pacing -- particularly for the Kent/Blossom pieces--seemed slow, the balance between sections seemed off, and there seemed to be a certain lack of cohesiveness that muddied the sound.

Next weekend Rachel and I will be in a different part of Michigan vacating over a long weekend (I need a vacation) but those programs sound promising, I will admit that I'm a bit disappointed to be missing Holst's The Planets.

Lincoln

Cleveland Orchestra: Porgy and Bess

Williams: Liberty Fanfare
Williams: Music from Lincoln
Navarro: II Concerto for clarinet and orchestra (Franklin Cohen, clarinet)
Hogan: Three Spirituals (Blossom Festival Chorus with Laquita Mitchell, soprano and Eric Greene, baritone)
Gershwin: Porgy and Bess (highlights from the opera) Arr. Bennett (Blossom Festival Chorus, Laquita Mitchell, soprano; Roderick Dixon, tenor; Eric Greene, baritone)

Encore: Ward: America the Beautiful
James Feddeck, conductor.

Arriving early for tonights concert I meandered into the pavilion after enjoying a few moments respite in the cool breeze of shady Kulas Plaza. Finding my seat and settling in, the sounds of a harpist warming up rolled out over the pavilion much like the breeze in the plaza momenta earlier. Joined for a brief time with a xylophone, then a marimbist and bassists it was a great relaxation for a summer evening.

The concert did not disappoint -- without a doubt my favorite thus far in the Blossom season. I'm a fan of John Williams's works -- one of my three gateways to classical music, but so frequently concerts of his works are the same rote selections. Tonight opened with two uncommon Williams works. The first, Liberty Fanfare was amazing with sweeping strings giving the image of tall ships cutting across the ocean, or a the opening of an evening newscast, though with a softer edge than The Mission -- Mr. Williams's theme for the NBC Nightly News.

The second Williams selection was a bit more recent -- three selections of music from the film Lincoln. The first, The People's House was somber and dark with heavy winds; the last, With Malice Toward None, was longing with a beautiful solo cello and restless strings. The middle selection, Getting out The Vote was my favorite from the work with a country fiddle and a light fun air.

Rounding out the first half of the program, and my favorite work from the evening -- and one of the most enjoyable in months -- was II Concerto for clarinet and orchestra with Franklin Cohen playing the solo part. Starting with a fairly unsuspecting repetitive three note "drip" from the orchestra, it swelled into an enchanted lagoon with a Spanish flair (with much of the rear of the orchestra clapping), before turning dramatic as if  approaching a deadly waterfall. After a very long pause (long enough that despite Mr. Feddeck's outstretched arms a fairly enthusiastic applause emerged) the piece continued with a much brighter mood, though with a more "real" feeling, as if we had emerged from the musical fantasy into the real world.

I was not as crazy for the second half as I was the first, but it was still above average. With Three Choruses arranged for unaccompanied chorus by Moses Hogan, the show was as visual as it was audible. While the pieces didn't move me, watching a very animated Mr. Feddick gesticulate across the expanse of empty orchestra chairs and music stands to the unaccompanied chorus was a sight to behold, almost as if he were a preacher physically reaching into each singer's soul to extract the notes.

Twelve selections from Gershwin's Porgy and Bess closed out the published program, and again I wasn't crazy about the work as a whole -- and soprano Laquita Mitchell's vibrato seemed overdone -- the seventh selection with Eric Green and the chorus's Oh, I got Plenty o' Nuttin' was among my favorites, and the eighth Bess, You Is My Woman Now where Laquita Mitchell and Eric Green played off of each other and gave a touching romantic feeling. The best balance between Orchestra, Chorus, and soloist came from Rodrick Dixon, in It Ain't Necessarily So, where Mr. Dixon also hit a seemingly impossible -- and impossibly loud note.

The program concluded with an unannounced encore of Ward's God Bless America, which was simply beautiful.

Lincoln

Cleveland Orchestra: Wagner's Valkyrie (at Blossom Music Center)

Wagner: Prelude and Love-Death from Tristan and Isolde (Christine Brewer, soprano)
Wagner: Wotan's Farewell and Magic Fire Music from Die Walkure (Alan Held, bass-baratone)
Wagner: Orchestral Selections from Brunnhilde's Immolationfrom Gotterdammerung
Franx Welser-Most, conductor.

I spent the day in Akron working -- I think the first Saturday I've actually worked (as opposed to travel-for-worked) in my career, but my client's client had unique scheduling demands. I made it out of the World Headquarters and to Blossom in the nick of time, but I don't think I ever really settled in. I'm not sure if it is a result of not being settled or not, but as a whole the concert felt distant. Under Mr. Welser-Most's baton this evening, I felt as if the orchestra was overly restrained -- the orchestral equivalent of the 6-foot-leash holding back a pitbull. 

 Though the orchestra was restrained, both soloists seemed easily overpowered, for better or worse [what can I say, I like the music, but I'm not a fan of many opera singers] at times. My favorite moments from the program were those that were purely orchestral. The musical space (filled in by chirping birds, and if I'm not mistaken, a hooting owl) and romance tinged by tragedy in the Prelude and Dawn and Siegfried's Rhine Journey / Sigfried's Death and Funeral Music from Gotterdammerung. The sung passages, it was fair to say I was ambivalent about -- soothing and enjoyable but not really memorable or provoking.

Lincoln

Cleveland Orchestra: Heroic Beethoven (at Blossom)

Beethoven: Grosse Fuge [Grand Fugue] in B-flat, Op. 133
Liszt: Totentanz [Dance of Death] (for piano and orchestra) (Jean-Yves Thibaudet, piano)
Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 ("Eroica") in E-flat major, Op. 55
Franz Welser-Most, Conductor.

My attendance at tonight's concert was anything but certain: My mother arrived in town Friday morning for a weekend visit, and I wanted to keep the schedule open. She had never been to Blossom and Rachel was able to wrestle the evening off so the three of us headed back out to Blossom Music Center for tonight's concert. (Incidentally, I've been assured that the chime issue I mentioned in my last post will be resolved quickly)

Beethoven pieces bookended the concert and I realized in listening to both pieces that while his music is beautiful musically, listening to it doesn't really evoke imagery, which makes it difficult for me to express my reaction to it. That said, Grosse Fuge immediately struck me as both sweet and deep and throaty, the sense of repetition made it very relaxing, though the hammering of an increasingly violent rain virtually drowned out (figuratively and almost literally) some of the quieter passages.

That rain also served to delay the beginning of the second piece (and the volume of water was forming and impressive waterfall off the pavilion roof), which was the unanimous favorite because we all found it particularly evocative -- "birds" said Rachel; "soundtrack to a horror movie" was my mother's take; "Pirates of the Caribbean" was my four-word take. The piece began with an ominous and intense funeral march--being literally hammered out on the piano, and you could almost see taunting skeletons dancing, before taking a lighter, almost fantasy air as  if passing through the gates to the after world. Darkness and light trade places again during the piece including a brief portion of "light" where the piano took on a but more of a baroque sound.

After intermission, Beethoven's Eroica (Symphony No. 3) finished out the program and, as with the earlier Beethoven was beautifully played, and still nice an throaty but not as sweet, but without imagery it didn't really hold my attention--but I did find it quite relaxing (and a nearby patron was lulled into a very relaxed looking sleep)

Overall a good exposure to my Mother of the Cleveland Orchestra at Blossom and a good "first" (for me, actually second) concert of the 2013 season.

Lincoln