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October 8, 2006
We Preferred the Dead Guy
Last night Shirley and I went to the season opener of the Pomona College Orchestra concert series. These performances are always great entertainment at a very low price - free. The orchestra is about 70 strong and made up of Pomona College students and faculty plus a few performers from the other Claremont Colleges and from the community at large.
Last night's program consisted of three pieces: "Fratres for stings and percussion (1991)" by Arvo Pärt; "In the Midst of Darkness, Light Persists (2005)" by Tom Flaherty and Symphony #9 in E-flat major, op.70 (1945) by Dmitri Shostakovich.
Neither of us are great fans of contemporary orchestral music. In large measure, we just don't get it. So we had our problems with the first two pieces. Pärt, who is still alive, used the word "tintinnabulation" for the bell like quality of certain orchestral sounds he favors. "Fratres" rings in one's ears. The dialogue between the drum and wood block on the one hand and the strings on the other is interesting. Unlike some contemporary music, it did have rhythm; however, neither Shirley nor I could discern the "three part harmony nine times over a motionless pedal point in the bass instruments" as promised in the program. It was well preformed and entertaining enough but just not our cup of tea.
Flaherty is the John P. and Magdalena R. Dexter Professor in Music and Director of the Electronic Studio at Pomona College. He and his wife Cynthia Fogg, also on the Pomona faculty, joined the orchestra as soloists (cello and viola) for the performance of his "In the Midst of Darkness, Light Persists." He wrote this piece for the La Mirada Symphony orchestra. It's a little hard to describe. Much of it revolves around the interplay between two somewhat dissident sounding piccolos playing the highest and on occasion the loudest notes they can reach and the cello and viola duet playing their lowest notes. At times, the conductor, Eric Lindholm, seemed to be beating a steady beat and energetically cueing various sections of the orchestra while the individual members of the orchestra did as they pleased. These sections sounded to my untrained ear much like the warm-up before the concert begins when each member of the orchestra is in his or her own little world. Occasionally I thought I heard sounds that resembled human voices. Whether they were expressing pain or pleasure, I could not tell. Suddenly, out of the seeming chaos would come delightful snippets of rhythm and harmony that were things of beauty. Again, well performed and entertaining but not our cup of tea.
After the intermission, we both enjoyed the Shostakovich symphony. Shostakovich died in 1975. The Allegro was marvelous, among the best I have heard. I always enjoy the allegro. This one has the best qualities of a march without being overly marshal in tone. A little theme, played on the piccolo, was echoed by other instruments throughout the symphony. Debra Hurwitz, the concertmaster, did a great job on a somewhat difficult solo of the piccolo tune. The Moderato was waltz like. The woodwinds led us back to the piccolo tune. The Presto, Largo and Allegretto were preformed without a break. There is a certain light heartedness, even playfulness to the whole symphony that brings considerable pleasure. The two of us enjoyed this piece without qualification.
These evening are extremely enjoyable. Even the pieces we had trouble understanding were entertaining. And we look forward to the future programs in the series. Such events are common at colleges and universities. If you haven't taken advantage of them this semester or quarter is a good time to start.
Update October 9, 2006: Fixed typo
Posted by Duane Smith at October 8, 2006 10:15 AM | Read more on Odds and Ends |
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Comments
Minimalist music is a bit like Wagner. It's OK in small doses, but it doesn't come in small doses. It should come with a health warning about risk of losing the will to live after a while.
Against that, my daughter's violin teacher gave her Fratres a few months ago - the fiddle & piano version - and being accompanist-in-waiting for the family I was under orders to learn it. The piano part is a lot less technically challenging than the fiddle part, fortunately. Didn't think I'd like it, but it turned out to be one of those few pieces that made me wish I could play the violin myself.
Don't think I could sit through a performance without fidgeting, though.
Posted by: Gav at October 9, 2006 10:45 AM
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