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| This afternoon's concert | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Sep 18 2016, 03:48 PM (94 Views) | |
| George K | Sep 18 2016, 03:48 PM Post #1 |
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Finally
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Mrs. George and I traveled about 45 minutes to the west to hear the Elgin Symphony Orchestra on their opening weekend of the season. It was an all Russian program: Shostakovich – Festive Overture Tchaikovsky – Violin Concerto Rachmaninoff – Symphonic Dances The conductor was the (relatively) new music director of the ESO, Andrew Grams. Grams is a young-ish guy with a flair for the theatrical. That became obvious when he introduced the program as "all Russian, but not depressing." We were seated on the main floor today, about 8 rows back, and on the right (where the cellos are). With the Shostakovich, Grams demonstrated his theatricality. His conducting style was exceptionally expressive and athletic. He cajoled, winked, smiled and shaped the sounds he wanted with broad expensive strokes of his baton and hand. I thought it was because we were seated to right that the strings sounded a bit on the thin side, but I was willing to give the orchestra the benefit of the doubt. The highlight of the afternoon was the Tchaikovsky. The soloist was Simone Porter: ![]() She wore a beautiful red gown, bare on the right shoulder and very elegant. She walked up and raised her instrument for the Tchaikovsky, and magic happened. From the very first bars, it was obvious that this young woman was completely in control of the music, and despite its formidable difficulty, she navigated it with apparent ease, never, ever, losing the wonderful musicality that's in that music. I sat, mouth agape, as she negotiated all the tricky double and triple-stops. There's one passage in the first movement where that glorious melody soars above an accompanying figure in the lower strings. She brought out the melody just wonderfully. She was totally into the music, and her face showed enthusiasm as she approached the difficult passages and a joy in the fun parts (the final movement). The entire audience burst into applause after the first movement, it was so magical. It was wonderful to see her and the conductor communicating as she played. Each was sensitive to the nuances and needs of the other. It's rare for me to stand for applause, but this wonderful woman deserved it. She will, I hope, go places - big places. I hope to see much more of her. Even Mrs. George, by no means a classical afficiando, understood that we saw something special today. After intermission we heard the Symphonic dances. Here's where I was able to note some of the weaknesses of the ESO. The brass was a bit on the harsh side, and I heard one missed (flubbed) entry from the horns. The woodwinds were not *quite* together on their entries, but not horribly so. In the first movement, there's a wonderful part where the clarinet soars above the orchestra, and Grams did his best to get the clarinet to soar even higher - but it just sounded weak to me. My concern about the strings was validated when, after 3 curtain calls, Grams played an encore - Vocalise. Sadly, the strings were not up to it. There was no poignancy, no soaring tune, no lushness there. You can't have Rachmaninoff without being lush. Nevertheless, it was a really fun afternoon, and I'm thrilled that Mrs. George enjoyed it. |
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A guide to GKSR: Click "Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... " - Mik, 6/14/08 Nothing is as effective as homeopathy. I'd rather listen to an hour of Abba than an hour of The Beatles. - Klaus, 4/29/18 | |
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| Renauda | Sep 18 2016, 04:12 PM Post #2 |
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HOLY CARP!!!
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Sounds like a fun afternoon, George. I have admit though that, no thanks to John Williams, each time I hear the first movement of the Tchaikovsky violin concerto, I have flashbacks of the Mercury astronauts in the Right Stuff. |
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| George K | Sep 18 2016, 04:19 PM Post #3 |
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Finally
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I just pointed that out to Mrs. George. I played both pieces for her. And, it was Bill Conti, not John Williams. Right Stuff is one of my favorite movies, and books. |
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A guide to GKSR: Click "Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... " - Mik, 6/14/08 Nothing is as effective as homeopathy. I'd rather listen to an hour of Abba than an hour of The Beatles. - Klaus, 4/29/18 | |
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| Renauda | Sep 19 2016, 06:06 AM Post #4 |
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HOLY CARP!!!
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I just assumed it was John Williams as he tends to siphon off his ideas from classical composers with impunity. Vaughn Williams both thematically and orchestration styles. |
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| George K | Sep 19 2016, 06:08 AM Post #5 |
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Finally
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When the conductor introduced the program, he said that during the Symphonic Dances, we will hear a lot of music that makes us think of John Williams (Raiders, Star Wars, Jurassic Park). He reminded us of the old saw: "Good composers borrow, and great composers steal." |
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A guide to GKSR: Click "Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... " - Mik, 6/14/08 Nothing is as effective as homeopathy. I'd rather listen to an hour of Abba than an hour of The Beatles. - Klaus, 4/29/18 | |
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