Tuesday, December 12, 2023

Vancouver Symphony brightens packed house with festive music



You could practically feel the vibe at Skyview Concert Hall as long lines of patrons delayed the start of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra’s holiday pops concert (January 9). The packed house eagerly greeted music director Salvador Brotons and the orchestra, which spiced up its seasonal colors with splashes of red bow ties, ribbons, socks, scarfs, vests, and Santa hats. The festive spirit aptly fit the concert program, which offered selections from the world of animated films in the first half and Viennese favorites plus a little French ballet music in the second., setting a wonderful tone to close out the year.

The music-making took flight with a splendid performance of Vince Guaraldi’s “A Charlie Brown Christmas” in an arrangement by Davis Pugh. Augmented with a lively trap set, the orchestra immediately put the audience in a good mood with the jazzy, breezy sounds from the film. The sinewy strings deserved kudos for creating the swirls of falling snow – a magical winter scene.

The Concert Suite from Alan Silvestri’s music for “The Polar Express” in an arrangement by Jerry Brubaker featured a bombastic opening in the grand Hollywood tradition. The quickened pace of train ride heading to the North Pole propelled the piece forward, and it ended with a majestic blend from the brass and horns.

Wonderfully raspy trumpets and trombones accented “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” by Albert Hague and Theodore Geisel (arranged by Jerry Brubaker), and that gave the piece a smoky, jazz-club-like atmosphere. The strings excelled with the melodic line and principal trumpet, Bruce Dunn and the horns made the most of their exposed sections.

An arrangement of music from “Frozen” (written by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez) included foot stomping by the musicians, tricky licks for the trombones and horns, an anvil-like clang, sweet solos by concertmaster Eva Richey and Ann van Bever on the English horn. The best part came at the end with the sweeping rock beat of “Let it Go,” enhanced with a bit of glee from an electric guitar.

Switching things up a bit, the orchestra performed the world premiere of Kurt Rosenberg’s “Strolling Down Brighton Pier,” which featured the thrilling voice of baritone Anton Belov. The lyrics told of a young woman who would walk out to the beach of the seaside town, waiting for her lover, a military man, who would return home. The piece had a bit of nostalgia and poignancy, but it didn’t quite fit with the Christmas theme of the evening.

Belov and forces swept the audience into the Christmas spirit with a heartwarming rendition of Irving Berlin’s “White Christmas” in an arrangement by John Moss. Belov put a pillowy soft high note at the very end of the piece, which made it glow.

A tour of several seasonal tunes in Bruce Chase’s “Around the World at Christmas Time” rounded out the first half of the concert – with the brass choir putting a lot of verve in the final number, “Go Tell it on the Mountain.”

After intermission, the orchestra launched into Franz von Suppé’s “Morning, Noon, and Night in Vienna Overture” with vim and vigor. Principal cellist Dieter Ratzlaf provided an elegant contrast to the boisterous opening with his melancholic solo. That segued nicely to a mixture of effervescent Viennese waltzes and polkas.

Three selections from Leo Deibes “Coppélia” gave listeners a delightful taste of French ballet music. The brass got a tad too loud in the Prelude and Mazurka from Act I, but the robust running line for the principal trombonist Li Kuang was impressive. A highlight from the Entr’Acte and Waltz from Act II was the evocative playing of principal flutist Rachel Rencher, and the orchestra executed several sharp attacks in the final Waltz and Czardás.

The orchestra had a fun time with Johann Strauss Jr’s “Tristch-Tratch Polka,” especially when the players got to let out a “Hooo!” Strauss’s “Vienna Blood” also received a spirited performance with some well-turned dynamics.

The good mood continued with three encores, starting with Leroy Anderson’s frolicking “Sleigh Rode,” in which Dunn created an outstanding neighing sound at the very end of the piece. Strauss’s “Pizzicato Polka” featured an animated Brotons leading the plucking strings, and the concert concluded with Brotons guiding an enthusiastic audience to clap with gusto during Johann Strauss Sr’s “Radetzky March.” That capped off a festive evening with the local band.

PS: The concert on Sunday afternoon was sold out. Hmm… perhaps next year the VSO will add a third concert…

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