David Hattner talks about the Portland Youth Philharmonic season

David Hattner and the PYP in action

This season marks David Hattner’s 6^th year as music director of the Portland Youth Philharmonic. So, it’s high time to find out what he and the orchestra have in store for this season.

How is the season shaping up? Did you have big turnover from last year?

Hattner:  We had a strong year and a small graduation of players. We also have well qualified players coming up through the ranks of our system. This season we will have a larger ensemble. Last year we had 94 musicians. This year, we will start at 113.

Wow! 

Hattner:  We need the large forces for Shostakovich’s Fourth Symphony. The season is built around that piece, and we will perform it in March. The Oregon Symphony performed it in 1985 with James DePreist, and that was probably the only time that that this work was ever played in Oregon. It will be a long time before it is played again, because of the mammoth forces required. It calls for 20 separate woodwind parts, eight horns, four trumpets, three trombones, two tubas, a big percussion section, and lots of strings.  It’s a very big piece. It’s over an hour long and technically very challenging. Shostakovich wrote it in the mid-1930s, but it was not premiered until 1961. 

Why was that?

Hattner:  He got into a lot of trouble with the Soviet authorities over an opera that he wrote, “Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk.”  The Symphony was a defiant statement about the state of affairs in the USSR, and he thought that with symphonic music he could get around the authorities. But his opera had been officially denounced, and he realized that he had no real artistic freedom to make such statements in his orchestral music. So he hid his Fourth Symphony until it was safe to bring it out. It has been played widely since 1961, but it is still an unusual event because of the costs of hiring the extra musicians that are needed. 

What is the piece like?

Hattner: It has three movements, but the outer movements are over 25 minutes in length while the middle movement is around seven minutes. The music is episodic and contrapuntal. It is whisper soft at times and brutally loud at others. The orchestra is used in unique and impressive ways. For example, there are long segments where only part or parts of the orchestra will play. There are many unusual and disturbing sounds and motives, all utilized with power and genius. It is one of the most remarkable pieces Shostakovich wrote.

Have you played it before?

Hattner:  I played it once in college and once as a professional with the Toledo Symphony back in the 90s under Maxim Shostakovich. It’s a great piece for a student orchestra if the players are up to it. Fortunately, PYP is a superb orchestra. They will respond to the challenge with a lot of hard work. This performance will be memorable for both the audience and the players. For Oregonians who love orchestral music, this is an event to attend!

Where do you get the scores?

Hattner:  We will borrow them from the Oregon Symphony. 

What other works will the PYP play on the program with the Shostakovich?

Hattner:  We will open the concert with a piece by Kevin Walczyk, who is an alumnus of PYP. It’s called Celebration Fanfare, which was written for Carlos Kalmar’s arrival as music director of the Oregon Symphony.  Walczyk is on the music faculty at Western Oregon University. The concert will also feature the winner of our annual concerto competition, held in October.

Let’s go backwards and talk about the first concert of PYP’s season.  That one is coming up on November 9th.

Hattner:  Opening night will start with Kenji Bunch’s Supermaximum.  We performed the original string orchestra version last spring and you can see it on YouTube.  He’s finishing a new version of this piece for full orchestra, and we will give the world premiere at this concert.  Kenji is also an alumnus of the orchestra. In addition to his excellent composing, he is also an outstanding professional violist.

Also on the program is the Grieg Piano Concerto, which will feature Hannah Moon, winner of our piano competition. This concerto hasn’t been played by PYP in 40 seasons. I am very happy to have this beautiful concerto return.  Besides being a terrific pianist, Hannah Moon is a member of the PYP viola section.  

The orchestra will also perform Howard Hanson’s “Elegy,” which he wrote in memory of Serge Koussevitzky, who was a longtime music director of the Boston Symphony and the founder of Tanglewood. The concert will close with Dvorak’s “Symphonic Variations.” This unusual work consists of a theme with 27 variations and a fugal finale in just over 20 minutes. Dvorak almost makes a catalogue of his composing styles in this work. It is beautiful, exciting and satisfying to play and conduct.

It’s great that you’ve engaged Kenji Bunch so quickly, since he returned to Portland.

Hattner:  Besides Supermaximum, Kenji is leading the PYP music theory program.  I also hope to play some chamber music with him. 

What do you have in store for you Concert at Christmas program?

Hattner:  The Concert as Christmas has become a special event for PYP. The concert hall is always very full, and the stage is also very full, because so many PYP alumni return each year for the opener to this program. This year it will be the overture to Verdi’s opera “Nabucco.”  

The concert also features our Young String Ensemble conducted by Carol Sindell, our Wind Ensemble, and our Conservatory Orchestra conducted by Larry Johnson. People can see and hear how PYP musicians progress at different stages in our program. Finally, the Philharmonic Orchestra closes the concert.  

The theme of the Philharmonic portion of this concert is encores. The PYP will play the overture to “The Secret of Susanna” (“Il segreto di Susanna”) a little comic opera by Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari. Incidentally, Susanna’s secret is that she smokes. [Laughs!] It’s a silly opera and the overture is a lighthearted romp. We will also perform the intermezzo from Puccini’s “Manon Lescaut.” The larger piece on the program is the “Le Corsaire Overture” by Berlioz. We will have some surprises thrown in.

Finally, you have the Spring Concert in May.

Hattner:  The main piece for that concert is Samuel Barber’s First Symphony, which he wrote when he was in his 20s. It’s an unusual work, one of the first symphonies in one movement.  But it has four distinct sections like a regular symphony. It has three themes that run through the entire piece. It’s a passionate, powerful, romantic work that should be played more often. The PYP has never done it before. I’m sure that it will appeal to the audience immediately.

We will also play the “Academic Festival Overture” of Brahms. It’s a natural graduation piece, and fitting for those musicians who will be leaving the orchestra. Another piece on the program is Holst’s “Hammersmith,” a prelude and scherzo originally written in the version that we are playing for wind ensemble and percussion.  This is a great opportunity to put our winds out front.  The piece is about the Hammersmith district of London where Holst taught at the St. Paul School for Girls. He wrote “Hammersmith” for the BBC Military Band, but they never played it. It’s a favorite of American colleges, and it’s a wonderful piece that depicts the Thames River running through the district and all of its cockney inhabitants.

The concert will also feature short solo by another competition winner. We sponsor two solo competitions every year.

How are your Camerata concerts going at Weiden+Kennedy?

Hattner:  They have really taken off! The setting is intimate and perfect for our chamber orchestra. We have a two concert series there. We are building the first program around Bach’s “Third Brandenburg Concerto,” which is for strings and harpsichord. Then we play two more contemporary works that reflect this music: Stravinsky’s “Dumbarton Oaks” and “Muse” by Christopher Theofanidis. Stravinsky quotes Bach in his work. It’s got the spirit of Bach in it and is a wonderful piece. “Muse” was written just a few years ago for the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. Like the “Third Brandenburg,” it is written for strings and harpsichord.  This should be a really fun program, and it gives the audience a chance to see the musicians up close.  It will take place on January 26^th.

At the second concert at Weiden+Kennedy, we will continue our Beethoven cycle with his Third Symphony, the “Eroica.” We have already performed the First and the Eighth symphonies in this series. The “Eroica” will be performed with 40 players, which sounds small but it will sound very large in the Wieden+Kennedy. The Symphony is 45 minutes long, far longer than any symphony previously written and an excellent challenge for the orchestra.

What have you seen in your six years of conducting?

I really love this being the Musical Director of PYP. The student musicians are fantastic. They really listen to each other, and do whatever it takes to make excellent music. They are a real team, encouraging each other and keeping an eye on each other. They study hard and do what it takes to give great concerts. We’ve kept the level high, and I’m really proud of all of the musicians in the orchestra. They have rather diverse lives and do a lot of fantastic things outside of the orchestra. They are remarkable individuals, and it’s a privilege to lead them.

Energetic and fun “Anything Goes” bathes Portland in Cole Porter’s music

The national tour of “Anything Goes” steamed into town with lots of pizazz and razzmatazz on opening night, October 2nd at Keller Auditorium. This touring version is based on the 2011 revival of the original bubbly concoction that Cole Porter uncorked in 1934. The story unfolds on an ocean liner where a young man becomes a stowaway, because he in love with a young heiress, who is travelling with her fiancée, a British Lord, to marry him in England. In the meantime, a nightclub singer, who is the main entertainer on board, gives up on her hopes to land the young man and ends up unleashing the inner desires of the uptight British Lord. Along the way, a cast of wealthy travelers, gangsters, sailors, backup singers, and Chinese missionaries get mixed into the plot. With a few twists and turns and a nod to vaudeville, it all works out in the end.

Rachel York carried the show as the Reno Sweeney, the evangelist turned nightclub singer. She used a Mae West-like sultry voice when she was on the prowl and lit up the deck with her charismatic dancing and singing. The lovesick Billy Crocker was convincing portrayed by Josh Franklin, and Alex Finke made a fetching young heiress, Hope Harcourt. But both actors sounded sweet when they sang, but needed larger voices. Edward Staudenmayer created an outstanding Lord Evelyn Oakleigh, and his transformation from a gent with a stiff upper lip to a gypsy-intoxicated wild man was incredibly funny. Superb performances by Leslie Becker as Moonface Martin, Sandra Shipley as Mrs. Evangeline Harcourt, Dennis Kelly as Elisha Whitney, Chuck Wagner as Captain, and Joyce Chittick as the irrepressible Erma added a delightful undercurrent of humor throughout the show.

It was too bad that some of the lyrics and banter got lost, because the orchestra was too loud for most of the singers. It seemed to be problem with the mixing board, and that’s a problem that touring shows can have with the size of the Keller Auditorium, which seats 3200. But with all of the verbiage flying about, there was still a lot of enjoy, such as, “Who will lead this sinner through distilled waters?” There were also a lot of references to bygone personalities, like Fatty Arbuckle and highfalutin stuff like “The Flying Dutchman,” which didn’t draw many chuckles, but “You really know how to fill a girdle,” proved its mettle with an outburst of laughter from all corners of the hall.

In addition to witty lyrics and snappy music, this show has a big time tap dancing segment that goes overboard with outstanding choreography. It used volleys of dancers on the different levels of the ship. They came from the left and right side of the stage and formed intricate lines that coiled around each other. It was amazing. Director and choreographer Kathleen Marshall deserves the highest praise for that show stopping number.

Derek McLane’s three-tiered set design was the perfect backdrop for this show, allowing ample room for tricky dance moves and also simply for moving the story forward. The orchestra, made up of local professionals, was energetically led by Jay Alger. They played Porter’s jazz-inflected music with élan, and the audience left the theater with a smile in their eyes and their toes tapping.

Blechacz opens Portland Piano International season with impressive recital

Rafał Blechacz

Portland Piano International opened its 36th season with dynamic performance from Rafał Blechacz, at Lincoln Hall on Monday (September 30). Although he is only 28 years old, Blechacz has been a mainstay primarily on the European circuit ever since he won the Frederick Chopin International Piano Competition in 2005. The following year, he signed a recording deal with Deutsche Grammophon, and has released six CDs under the DG label, all of which have received favorable notice. Now Blechacz is touring the United States (he appears with the Alabama Symphony on October 5th), and PPI’s new Artistic Director Arnaldo Cohen made sure to snag him for back-to-back recitals in Portland. Both performances featured the same works by Chopin on the second half of the program. But Sunday afternoon’s performances offered works by Mozart and Beethoven during the first half while the Monday evening’s concert served pieces by Debussy and Szymanowski. Several years have flown by since PPI sponsored two concerts by one artist in its series. Judging from the very full concert hall on Monday night, that was an excellent gamble.

Blechacz began his recital with an inspired performance of Debussy’s “Suite bergamasque.” His playing showed lots of tonal color and lyricism. He dallied with a light, delicate tone but shifted deftly to more powerful passages, including some terrific sforzandos in the second movement. The final movement was playful, but he kept it reigned in.

Following the Debussy, Blechacz unleashed his Romantic soul and gave a tour-de-force interpretation of Szymanowski’s Sonata No 1. His playing was explosive, engrossing, and breath taking. It was as if an artillery of emotion was being volleyed from the keyboard. Tempestuous sections were followed by calm ones, and often there were passages that imitated the fluidity of Chopin. The fourth movement seemed to start out to of the depths of Poland, alternated between grand and intimate statements, and wound up in a wild, ecstatic finale. The audience responded with great enthusiasm, calling him back to center stage three times.

After intermission, Blechacz delved into the all-Chopin part of his program. His playing of the Nocturne in A-flat major (Op. 32 No. 2) had a beautiful, singing tone and full-bodied momentum. He held nothing back in his interpretations of the “Two Polonaises,” (Op. 40), which meant the very familiar and beloved No. 1 in A Major, “Military” and the lesser known No. 2 in C minor. Blechacz has a real passion for Chopin’s music. He seemed to explore the extremes of dynamics, including playing the “Military Polonaises” at a very loud volume, and creating the sense of tragedy in the Polonaise No. 2

This was followed by impeccable playing of the “Three Mazurkas” (Op. 63) and an outstanding performance of the Scherzo No 3 in C-sharp minor (Op. 39) with its powerful statements and contrasting crystalline falling arpeggios. An immediate standing ovation by the audience brought Blechacz back for four bows. He is a young pianist whose career is on the upswing, and it will be interesting to see which path it takes.

Jeffrey Kahane and Oregon Symphony create sublime Beethoven in concert full of diversity

Jeffrey Kahane

Whenever pianist Jeffrey Kahane stops in town, it’s a real treat, and his latest performance over the weekend with the Oregon Symphony was a case in point. Together, their artistry raised the bar with a sublime performance of Beethoven’s Third Piano Concerto at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall on Sunday (September 29). But that performance was just one high point of many in a program that offered a lot of variety with symphonic works by Béla Bartók, Franz Joseph Haydn, and Johann Strauss Jr. – all of which the orchestra, guided by music director Carlos Kalmar, played outstandingly.

Kahane is a consummate artist who can performances sound personal and intimate, even when he is playing for 2,000 people. With Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3, he made phrases sound stately, fiery, serene, lilting, tender, and sparkle without using a flashy technique. Even when he performed the long cadenza in the first movement, Kahane, who is known for his ability to improvise and may have thrown in some of his own inventions, doesn’t draw attention to himself. The orchestra expertly supported him throughout the piece with finely honed dynamics. The thunderous applause from the audience brought Kahane back to the stage for several bows, and he responded with an encore, Mendelssohn’s “Song without Words.”

Bartók’s “Dance Suite” reflected a huge variety of intriguing sounds and mood that drew on Arabic, Hungarian, and Romanian folk music. It all started with an edgy ominous bassoon duet (Carin Miller Packwood and Evan Kuhlmann) that was picked up by pulsating and sliding tones from the trombones (Aaron LaVere and Robert Taylor), and then transferred to passages that were highlighted by enigmatic high sounds from the clarinet (Yoshinori Nakao). This somehow changed to passages that were rustic and later a splayed, open sound. The third movement (“Tranquilo”) featured lush strings and underscored by a woodwind choir. Some of the movements ended with a little punch of a chord. Hats off to assistant principal clarinetist Todd Kuhns, who deftly switched between different instruments to help create some of the arresting effects of this piece.

The orchestra’s performance of Haydn’s Symphony No 64 (“Tempora mutantur”) was expertly played by a chamber ensemble of 38 musicians and conducted by Kalmar without the baton. The quick first movement featured skipped along delightfully with the violins expertly tapering off phrases. The second movement featured several unusual pauses. A highlight of the third included the pair of French horns that sounded like post horns and the oboe duets. The witty fourth movement sprinted along but also briefly slowed down to a stop. The orchestra recorded this performance, for a release on its next CD, which will feature two other Haydn symphonies: No. 53 (“L’imperiale”) and No. 96 (“The Miracle”).

The orchestra then went in a completely different direction with Strauss’s “Tales from the Vienna Woods,” sounding as if the musicians had grown up in Vienna. Kalmar and company shaped each phrase naturally, including the phrases that have a dollop of hesitation. It all sounded terrifically fresh and off the cuff. They topped it off with “Leichtes blut” (“Light of Heart”), a waltz that featured the terrific piccolo artistry of Zachariah Galatis, who nailed a series of upward sweeping phrases with aplomb. Artistic Administrator Charles Calmer later explained to me that this waltz is “about being light headed from drinking too much—hence the hiccupping piccolo part.” That was a terrific topper for a diverse evening of music. It seems that Kalmar and the orchestra should do an evening of Viennese schmaltz sometime in the near future.

Glenn Reeves - former principal violist of the Oregon Symphony for 50 years passes

The Oregonian reported today the passing of Glenn Reeves, who was the principal violist of the Oregon Symphony for 50 years. He died on September 17th, at the age of 99. I interviewed Reeves about 10 years ago at his home in Tacoma and have the interview on a mini-cassette tape. I haven't listened to the interview in a while, but I recall that he said that he played for every music director of the Oregon Symphony (formerly the Portland Symphony) from Carl Denton through James DePreist. He explained that he didn't play for Carl Denton when Denton was at the helm of the orchestra, but he did play for Denton when Denton led high school orchestras, because after Denton was forced from his position at the orchestra, he taught music at Lincoln High School and led orchestra concerts that involved the area's students. Reeves told me that he auditioned  for the Portland Symphony when he was just 17 years old, and that the audition took place in Hoogstraten's hotel room. So, I'm going to have to listen to that tape again in the near future.

Portland Opera releases Galileo Galilei

Earlier this week, Portland Opera released its recording of Philip Glass's opera "Galileo Galilei" under the Orange Mountain Music label. This is such a new recording that it has not been listed in Amazon or on the Orange Mountain Music website. So, it looks like you have to call Portland Opera or go to its HQ to purchase a copy. Here are the particulars about the recording from the company's press release:

PORTLAND OPERA RELEASES A COMMERCIAL RECORDING OF THEIR
“ROCKING” 2011 PRODUCTION OF PHILIP GLASS’ GALILEO GALILEI

(Portland, OR) – Portland Opera is pleased to release the first commercial recording of Philip Glass’ Galileo Galilei, available September 25, 2013 under the Orange Mountain Music Label. Recorded live at the Newmark Theater in March 2012, this West Coast premiere was the Company’s first production of a 21st century opera. Galileo Galilei will be Portland Opera’s second commercial recording of a Philip Glass work, following the success of their 2009 recording of Orphée, which was voted among the “Ten Best of the Year” by Opera News.

“The productions and commercial recordings of Galileo Galilei and Orphée have been tremendous experiences for this company,” said General Director Christopher Mattaliano, “exploring a contemporary work by a living composer on the stage and then making the music readily available to a world wide audience is a great source of pride for us. This is also a landmark event for our Resident Artist Program and annual chamber opera, both of which have become keystones in our Company’s mission.”

Composed in 2002, Galileo Galilei is Philip Glass’ 18th opera, a chamber work in one act for nine singers and fifteen instrumentalists. The opera is based on the life of the Italian astronomer, Galileo Galilei (1564-1642), with a libretto by the noted American playwright and director Mary Zimmerman. Portland Opera’s production at the Newmark Theater, directed by Kevin Newbury, was praised by Opera News as “a production that was fluid and playful in the scenes of discovery,” and also for its, “ecstatic vocalise over a rocking, percussive orchestra.”

“We were delighted to have ANNE MANSON back for our second Glass recording,” said Director of Artistic Operations Clare Burovac. “She has an extraordinary feeling for the work of Philip Glass.” In a review of the Orphée recording in 2009, The New York Times declared, “the vibrant Ms. Manson works effectively to bring transparency and balance to the orchestra, without the loss of plush colors and harmonic intensity.” She was equally successful in Galileo Galilei, and Opera News agreed, saying “conductor Anne Manson held everything together, as central and as solid as gravity.”

The Galileo Galilei cast was primarily made up of the members Portland Opera’s 2011/12 Resident Artist Program. The company developed this program in 2005 to serve as a bridge between the conservatory and professional worlds, and a highlight is the Company’s annual chamber opera, which features these emerging artists in leading roles. Resident baritone ANDRÉ CHIANG sang the role of Younger Galileo with a “bold and resonant voice” (Portland Mercury), and bass NICHOLAS NELSON “sang with gravitas” (Opera) as Pope Urban VIII, Cardinal Barberini, and Simplicio. Seattle’s online news site Crosscut.com said “Young soprano LINDSAY OHSE presides over one of the opera’s loveliest scenes in the vocally soaring role of Galileo’s beloved daughter, Maria Celeste,” and Resident Artist “CAITLIN MATHES contributed an elegant mezzo” (Opera News). Former Resident Artist JOSÉ RUBIO contributed his “strong baritone” to the roles of Priest and Cardinal 3 (Opera News).

Filling out the critically acclaimed cast was countertenor JOHN HOLIDAY, who “sang with remarkably pure tone” (Opera), and Portland Opera veteran tenor RICHARD TROXELL who was praised by Opera for creating “a sympathetic elderly Galileo, recalling his life with a voice filled with anguish.” Mr. Troxell, Mr. Rubio, and Mr. Holiday all reprised their roles in the July 2013 production of Galileo Galilei at Cincinnati Opera.

“We are delighted to have the cooperation from all of the unions involved in this project, including the American Federation of Musicians, the American Guild of Musical Artists, and the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees” said Mr. Mattaliano. “This recording would not have been possible without them and we are truly grateful for their participation,” he added. Michael Riesman, music director and principal keyboardist of the Philip Glass Ensemble produced both Orphée and Galileo Galilei for Orange Mountain Music. Orange Mountain Music’s mission is to archive all of Philip Glass’ music so that as many of his compositions as possible are available commercially. The commercial recording of Portland Opera’s Galileo Galilei will be released complete with libretto and production photographs. Orange Mountain Music is distributed by harmonia mundi USA.

The commercial recording of Galileo Galilei features the following artistic cast:

ANNE MANSON - Conductor
RICHARD TROXELL -  Older Galileo
LINDSAY OHSE+ - Maria Celeste, Duchess Christina
CAITLIN MATHES+  - Maria Maddalena, A Scribe
ANDRÉ CHIANG +  - Younger Galileo, Salviati
NICHOLAS NELSON+ -  Pope Urban VIII, Cardinal Barberini, Simplicio
JOSÉ RUBIO+  - Cardinal 3, Priest
JOHN HOLIDAY*  - Cardinal 1, Oracle 1
MATTHEW HAYWARD -  Cardinal 2, Servant, Oracle 2
ANNE MCKEE REED  - Sagredo, Marie de’ Medici, Eos

+ Former Portland Opera Resident Artist
* Portland Opera debut

Portland Opera singers are members of the American Guild of Musical Artists (AFL-CIO) the labor union representing professional singers, dancers and staging personnel in the United States. This recording was produced with the generous support of Tremaine and Gail Arkley, Jeannine B. Cowles, Greg and Mary Hinckley, Louis and Judy McCraw, and Mrs. Philip H. Miller; as well as the National Endowment for the Arts and the Opera fund of OPERA America.

From the Oregon Symphony flows what you call music

Tōru Takemitsu

On Saturday evening (September 21) at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, the Oregon Symphony provided two distinct paths for concertgoers to lose themselves in music. One path led listeners into the meditative interior monologue of Tōru Takemitsu’s “From Me Flows What You Call Time.” The other path took the audience into the exterior, story-driven music of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s beloved “Scheherazade.” This unusual pairing was highlighted in the BBC Music Magazine as one of the very best concerts to attend this fall in North America. The orchestra, led by music director Carlos Kalmar, did not disappoint, giving an intensely calm interpretation of Takemitsu’s piece and a passionately dynamic version of Rimsky-Korsakov’s.

Completed in 1990, “From Me Flows What You Call Time” was commissioned by Carnegie Hall for the Boston Symphony Orchestra and its music director Seiji Ozawa, and chosen for the Oregon Symphony program in order to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Portland Japanese Garden, which sponsored the concert. Besides the orchestral ensemble, this piece required a huge percussion battery that involved glockenspiel, vibraphone, steel drums, cymbals, bells, gongs (including water gongs), crotales (small tuned disks), bowls, anklung (tuned bamboo rattles), darabuka (Arabic or Turkish drum), bells, almglocken, tuned log drums, tom-toms, marimbaphone, and five percussion soloists: Sergio Carreno, Niel DePonte, Jonathan Greeney, Luanne Warner Katz, and Michael Roberts. They moved very carefully among the arrangement of instruments and with an understanding of the highly symbolic nature of this work, which was inspired by Tibetan Buddhism. So there was a bit of choreography as Carreno, DePonte, Greeney, Katz, and Roberts slowly entered the stage from different corners of the hall after principal flutist Jessica Sindell beautifully intoned a five-note motive that was passed along to the orchestra. It was visually arresting to watch all of this slowly unfold. The percussion soloists sported Asian-styled jackets, which were similar in color to the ribbons extended above the heads of the audience. The ribbons, representing the five natural phenomena of water (blue), fire (red), earth (yellow), wind (green), and sky (white), evoked the concept of “Wind Horse” which links the elements and the human spirit to well-being or good fortune. The ribbons also were attached to a group of bells that were softly rung a few times later in the piece.

Much of “From Me Flows What You Call Time” seemed to involve a conversation of sorts between the orchestra and the percussion soloists, with the orchestra providing a light tonal foundation and then backing off. The shimmery sounds from the steel drums, the swirling tones from various cymbals, the delicate bells, and feathery gongs accented the quiet, introspective nature of this piece. The pace of the piece slowed down and seemed to lose a bit of momentum at near the end of a series of improvised solos, but perhaps that was the intent of Takemistu, who is quoted to have said, “I would like to achieve a sound as intense as silence.”

After intermission, the orchestra returned to familiar territory and delivered a thrilling performance of “Scheherazade.” Kalmar encouraged a full dynamic range, and his forces responded with stellar playing with silky strings, stirring brass, lush harp, and woodwinds that could set a scene that was smoky and faraway or jumping up and down right in front of your face. Concertmaster Sarah Kwak created sweet and evocative tones in her many solos, making it easy to let your imagination flow. The principal players of the orchestra, including cellist Nancy Ives, oboist Martin Hebert, clarinetist Yoshinori Nakao, bassoonist Carin Miller Packwood, flustist Jessica Sindell, harpist Jennifer Craig, trombonist Aaron LaVere, trumpeter Jeffrey Work, and hornist John Cox, also had many shining moments. The tempo in the last movement was very fast and loud, and it even caused a brief waggle in Cox’s sound. Work’s impeccable double- and triple-tonguing helped to propel the sonic story until it all crashed into sea foam at the end, topped off with the thrilling high notes from Zachariah Galatis’s piccolo. Kwak got the very last word with her serene high notes that vanished into the distance.

Kwak and Lewis team up for dynamic concert at the Old Church

Violinist Sarah Kwak and pianist Cary Lewis put their considerable artistic prowess on display on Sunday evening (September 15), delivering an incisive performance of works by Igor Stravinsky, Sergei Prokofiev, Francis Poulenc, and Richard Strauss to a very engaged audience at the Old Church. The level of difficulty of the pieces in the program was on the high side of the Richter scale, and both performers held nothing back, which made this concert a terrific way to start the fall season. In particular, the concert offered an opportunity to see Kwak, concertmaster of the Oregon Symphony, work her magic up close, and she mesmerized everyone.

The concert, sponsored by 45th Parallel and All Classical Portland (KQAC), started with Igor Stravinsky’s “Suite Italienne,” whose six movements are based on his ballet, “Pulcinella.” Kwak and Lewis seemed to enjoy the way that the music shifted from Baroque to Romantic and the quirky turns of phrase that is unique to Stravinsky, including some really odd passages for the piano in the sixth movement.

Kwak and Lewis followed the Stravinsky with Prokofiev’s “Five Melodies for Violin and Piano.” Kwak imbued the long, extended lines with this piece with a golden, rich tone. Other highlights from Kwak included trills in the lower register, double-stops, a ghostly-toned segment, playfully lyric lines, and whistling high notes – all impeccably done. Lewis supported her with lively accompaniment, especially when he played tantalizing lush passages that was juxtaposed with the vibrant sound of the violin.

Lewis introduced Poulenc’s “Sonata for Violin and Piano” with a few words that described the piece as moving between Stravinsky-inflected passages and lounge lizard passages. Although it was an apt description, both he and Kwak succeeded in elevating the music so that it did reveal the emotions of the composer, who dedicated the piece to the famous Spanish poet Federico Garcia Lorca. Some of the best moments occurred in the middle movement when violinist and pianist created a seesaw of turbulence that turned later into a haunting atmosphere of closely linked phrases and finally an upwards glissando that turned everything into a question mark.

The final piece on the program was Strauss’s “Violin Sonata in E-flat,” an unabashedly Romantic piece that the composer wrote when he fell under the spell of soprano Pauline de Ahna, who later became his wife. The passionate lyricism of Kwak’s playing served the music incredibly well. She created a variety of moods that shifted all over the place: stormy, wistful, restful, heroic and grand. Her singing tone made it all gorgeous to the ears.

The audience rewarded Kwak and Lewis with a standing ovation and were treated to an encore, a lovely rendition of Edward Elgar’s “Salut d'amour.” The next time these two perform, it would be great if more violin and piano students were in the audience. That would've made the concert even better.

Lang Lang and Oregon Symphony play Prokfiev

Lang Lang. Photo by Philip Glaser.

Thursday night, September 12 saw Lang Lang, perhaps the world's premier concert pianist, join forces with the Oregon Symphony under Carlos Kalmar to play Prokofiev's Concerto No. 3 for Piano and Orchestra at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall.

The orchestra opened with Copland's El Salon Mexico, a sort of tone-poem that established Copland's signature style. There were some fun moments; a drunken-sounding trumpet artfully played over purposely sloppy discordance painted a delightful mental picture. However there were hiccups in the infectious rhythms demanded by this work, and the orchestra sometimes felt sluggish reacting to the maestro. Everything was there...just not always at the exact right time. By the time it was done, one almost wished they could have just started the whole short work over from the beginning and played it one more time and it would've been perfect.

Fortunately, since the next work was Copland's Suite from Billy the Kid, the desired mulligan effect was pretty much there. From the hypnotically persistent ostinato at the beginning the OSO really hit its stride. This very programmatic piece was redolent with its images: the slow, ponderous, irresistible ambling across the vast oceans of grass, a card game in which one could almost see the expressions on the faces of the gamblers, a night under the brilliant prairie stars...By this time the OSO had warmed into the precise syncopations for which Copland is so famous. There were moments of unison between piccolo and xylophone that were genuinely exquisite, and when they nabbed young Bill Bonney, you could tell this was a crowd itching for a hangin'...

Lang Lang took the stage for the Prokofiev in the second half with his customary ease, projecting an air of quiet self confidence that soon gave way to his gesticulatory showmanship, and from a physical, from an attitudinal standpoint it is certainly clear why he is so popular.  However from a strictly musical standpoint, while the solo passages were smooth and wonderful to hear, he often feels too polite...he is too deferential to the orchestra. While certainly a brilliant pianist, he's not a 'natural born' concerto soloist, so to speak, in the way that say Van Cliburn was,  nor does he display the same seemingly limitless technical wizardry and natural feel for a concerto as Yuja Wang for instance. It would be quite something to hear him give a solo or chamber music performance.

That said, there was a lot to enjoy from his performance. In the first movement it was great fun to watch his left hand, like some manic bird pecking back and forth around his right as it rumbled up and down the keyboard. His physicality is a strength in live performance...he revels in his 'rock-star' status, and rightly so. In the second movement he played with delicacy and grace at a breathtakingly fast pace, executing the most complex, keyboard-spanning arpeggiation with a style that sounded like an effortless roulade. In the finale he certainly showed his technical chops, but like always, more was wanted...more forcefulness and musical presence.

The orchestra closed with the delightful Capriccio Italien by Tchaikovsky, appropriately bombastic and festive as this chestnut should be.

San Francisco Opera conjures powerful Mefistofele

San Francisco Opera’s production of Arrigo Boito’s "Mefistofele" is one that shouldn’t be missed. It’s a stunning production that tells the story of Faust and his bargain with the devil Mefistofele, broadly paralleling Goethe’s "Faust." The "Mefistofele" presented at the War Memorial Opera House featured the formidable Ildar Abdrazakov in the title role and international stars Ramón Vargas as Faust and Patricia Racette as Margherita. Although the three principals sang superbly in the opening night performance (Friday, September 6), it was the company’s opera chorus that carried the evening with stellar contributions from top to bottom.

Because Boito’s "Mefistofele" has so many big choral numbers, the chorus, prepared by Ian Robertson, plays a much larger role than in most other operas. The volume of 90 voices opened and closed the opera impressively as a massive heavenly choir, bedecked with golden crowns that twinkled in the galaxy. They were augmented with 30 children choristers, whose voices Mefestofele found most annoying. A colorfully resplendent chorus dominated the Easter Sunday scene and their bodies, in varying states of nakedness, stamped a lasting impression of gleeful decadence during the Walpurgis Night scene. (Please note that no children were involved in that scene.)

Preened to the max in red, Abdrazakov’s Mefestofele brimmed with confidence and swagger, which gave credence to his wager with God that he could win the soul of Faust. He almost sneered when he declaimed that the task was hardly worth the effort because mankind was such a feeble entity (“I can hardly bear to tempt them to evil”), and he lost no time signing up Faust and introducing him to Margherita.

As the disillusioned old scholar who becomes rejuvenated in body and spirit, Vargas sang brilliantly, especially when he expressed fear for Margherita’s wellbeing during the Walpurgis revels and also when he tried to get her to leave prison. Racette created a Margherita that convincingly changed from a girl smitten with the love for a dashing gentleman to a woman who was distraught and on the verge of a mental collapse. Her Elena was also wonderful, although the character – representing the legendary Greek beauty – has no real warmth.

The production, co-owned by San Francisco Opera and the Metropolitan Opera, was conceived by Robert Carson and premiered by San Francisco Opera in 1989 and presented again in 1994. Under revival director Laurie Feldman, it still packs a punch and makes the episodic nature of the story unfold in a fresh way. The red flames of hell, the sky blue of heaven, the super-sized telescope, the merry-go-round garden, the cat-walk-of-a-party-table at Walpurgis Night, and the theater boxes were some of the many visual delights. Perhaps the nudity wasn’t needed, but Walpurgis Night was supposed to have a bacchanalian quality; so it did work well. Plus, Mefestofele conducted the revelers from the front of the stage, whipping them into a state of exhaustion. The orchestra, led by music director Nicola Luisotti, played with intensity. Luisotti, in fact, had no problem with his musical forces. He did have a problem with the audience. Since it was gala night, there was a lot of chatter, and after the pause in Act II, Luisotti signaled the patrons to be quiet, but they ignored him. That caused him to turn around and say, “Please be quiet.” After a lot of “shhing” throughout the hall, the music finally got underway.

Since operagoers had just ponied up a lot of money for the gala, they were probably not going to be kicked out of the opera house. Most of them weren’t in their seats when the opera General Director David Gockley and two members of the board appeared on the stage to give their opening remarks at 8:05. Consequently, the first downbeat didn’t happen until around the 8:20 mark and the curtain went down on the final scene just a few minutes before midnight. At the beginning of Act IV (where Faust travels to ancient Greece), I saw a lot of empty seats. Perhaps they didn’t want to see the Epilogue where Mefestofele protested God’s pardon as Faust got hauled into heaven with the glorious sound of the chorus shimmering about him. It was spectacular.

Agnieszka Laska Dancers to take Rite of Spring to Chicago

The Chicago Philharmonic has invited Portland-based Agnieszka Laska Dancers to perform Stravinsky's "The Rite of Spring" (reviewed here) at its season opener on September 29 at at Pick-Staiger Hall in Evanston, Illinois. ALD was chosen from 30 different dance companies to perform with the Chicago Philharmonic, which is resident orchestra of the Joffrey Ballet. While in Chicago the ALD will also perform The Chopin Project with Polish pianist Igor Lipinski at Copernicus Center.

The total cost for the trip is $10,000, and most of it will be covered by the Chicago Philharmonic and the Copernicus Center. But ALD still needs $2,000 to pull it off. Ergo, ALD has started a Kickstarter campaign, which has raised $826 so far. Hopefully, the troupe will find some more donors to make their quest a reality. The two performances in Chicago are a terrific tribute to the talent of the company and its artistic director and choreographer Agnieszka Laska.

Musica Maestrale's Second Season: A Chat with Artistic Director Hideki Yamaya

On a delightfully sanguine late-August evening in my back yard about two weeks ago, I sat down over drinks with my friend Hideki Yamaya, an early music plucked strings expert and Musica Maestrale's Artistic Director. We had an informal chat about his group's upcoming second season, which premiers this Saturday night September 14th at 8 pm at the Community Music Center (3350 SE Francis St.) Tickets are $16 general admission or $14 for students/seniors, and can be bought here online or at the door. They will be playing with members of the Early Music Guild of Oregon

Musica Maestrale is an early music collective that specializes in small-ensemble chamber music from before 1800. For an in-depth look at their goals, make-up and perspective, as well as video and audio links to some performances, check out this article I wrote at Oregon Music News after talking with Hideki last year.

LW: Talking with Hideki Yamaya, the Artistic Director for Musica Maestrale

HY: That’s me

LW: That’s him. So there are some big changes this year…big developments as far as...

HY: I don’t know if it’s big. We have more board members…however we are looking for a new Executive Director. In the interim I’m filling that role, doing the administrative aspect of MM. What’s exciting is going to be the first concert of this season. It is a joint project with the Early Music Guild of Oregon, run by Phil and Gail Newman, whom you may know as the leaders of the Oregon Renaissance Band, of which I am also a part. This first project that we’re doing is a concert of ‘broken consort’ music.

LW: Broken Consort? What is that?

HY: That refers to the fact that this music is instrumental ensemble music, but it’s a consort made up of different instrumental families. So when you think about a consort, you usually think about a consort of recorders or a consort of viols…instruments all belonging to the same family. This [broken consort] ensemble is made up of instruments from different groups, different families.. This is also called a ‘consort of six’ because it requires six instruments, and it is also called an English consort.

LW: Now ‘English consort…’ does that suggest certain instruments when you use this term?

HY: Yes. It is almost always the same instrument makeup. It consists of either the treble viol or violin, recorder or renaissance flute, bass viol, lute, cittern and bandora. Now the cittern and the bandora are rarest of these instruments. The cittern is a plucked wire-strung instrument of four courses and it’s related to the mandolin family but the tuning is very peculiar, and you play it with a quill plectrum. The bandora is…kind of similar to a lute but it is wire-strung and it has six courses and it’s tuning is closer to that of the guitar. So those two instruments add that ‘twang’ to the whole sound. So you have this interesting combination of sustained melodic instruments and plucked, strummy instruments.

LW: This adds a percussive effect?

HY: Exactly. It’s a very unique sound.

LW: And this is all in the first concert?

HY: That’s right.

LW: So which composers are you playing in this first concert?

HY: Well, we are doing a whole bunch of stuff from two sources for this consort music. There’s [John] Dowland, good old Dowland, and [Thomas] Morley, and Richard Allison…those are the main composers. And we’re doing a couple sets of pieces by Matthew Locke, who is a little bit later, but he called some of his pieces broken consorts even though they require fewer instruments.

LW: So…heavy on the Englishmen?

HY: Yep, it’s an all English program. I think this might be the first time some of these pieces are going to be played with a full broken consort makeup. It’s rarely done, as you can imagine, because of the difficulty of getting all these instruments and players together.

LW: Well that sounds pretty exciting. Now that’s September 14th?

HY: That’s right. And then in December we’re going to do a fundraiser event which…

LW: Details to follow?

HY: [Laughing] Yeah. It will be a holiday themed food-and-music kind of event. And then the second concert is in January, and we’re doing yet another joint project, [this time] with The Ensemble.

LW: The Ensemble?

HY:  Yes, which is…do you know about them?

LW: It seems like I should, but…refresh my memory.[laughing]

HY: [It’s] Patrick McDonough’s thing, and he’s [doing] vocal music…I think he’s focusing on early music and contemporary music. Nothing in the middle. I heard them do Haydn’s…I forgot what it was…Stabat Mater, or some such sacred piece last year, and they did a really great job. Of course you know the choral singers in Portland, they are in all the groups [laughing] but he hand-picks them…people who can really do solo work. And so we’re doing a joint project with them which is going to be a part of the Celebration Works series at First Pres[byterian], and we’re doing a concert of Monteverdi madrigals.

LW: [Me salivating] Ohhh…do you know any of the ones you are doing?

HY: Yes…all the pieces are set already.

LW: Anything you can think of off the top of your head?

HY: Oh yes. The biggest piece we’re doing is Sestina. Sestina is a poetic form. The subtitle of it is…oh I forget. I’ll tell you later. But if you look up Sestina Monteverdi it’ll pop right up. [NOTE: I did, and the subtitle is Lagrime d’Amante al Sepolcro dell’Amata {Tears of a lover at the tomb of his beloved}. ] It’s a piece that’s about 17 minutes long, and it’s in four or…five parts maybe.

LW: Is that one of the dramatic madrigals…let’s say along the lines of Tancredi e Clorinda or something like that?

HY: It’s not, and it’s not staged. It’s all five voices throughout with optional continuo which…I’ll take that option. It’s better…more dramatic with instruments. It’s an incredibly beautiful piece.

LW: Does it tell a continuous story?

HY: It’s the lamentations of a lover at the grave of the beloved. Pretty dark…

LW: One of those light-hearted 17th-century…

HY: [Laughing] Yes. All the singers should be great. Mel Downie Robinson will be singing, and she’s great…so I’m looking forward to that. It should be a good project. That piece comes from book six of the Madrigals…I think the bulk of it [the concert] comes from books six and seven, and then some other pieces here and there. The third concert is going to be me and John Lenti who plays a lot with Portland Baroque Orchestra. It’s going to be lute duets and theorbo duets…it’s going to be a pluckfest. Good stuff.

LW: So the lute enthusiasts had better turn out for that one.

HY: Yeah…they'd better. [Laughing.] Everyone should. Again, these are going to be pieces that you will rarely hear [live] because of the instruments involved.

LW: Well that’s always the fun of baroque music, because there’s just so much variety as far as instrumentation.

HY: Exactly.

LW: I mean, you don’t want to call them undiscovered, because someone knows they’re out there, but there's just a treasure trove of largely untapped compositions that’s almost bottomless at this point. It’s not the stuff that people have been playing and recording for the last hundred years, and you’re like ‘oh, I’ve got four CDs of that in my collection…’

HY: Exactly. It’s not Vivaldi’s Four Seasons in this program [laughing.] And that’s going to be in February. Now the last two concerts have not been set yet.

LW: Ahah! TBAs?

HY: Yeah. One of the things I was thinking about fell through so…I still have to come up with those. But it will be decided very soon. I’m still looking forward to doing a full season of five concerts. Just have to keep it going…keep us in people’s consciousness.

 [We chatted for a while about the first season, as well as some of the goals/needs of the second season, including his desire to develop a larger audience of around a hundred or so on a regular basis.]

LW: It takes some time to develop that groundswell, even when the quality is good and the music is good…I think that’s one of the problems inherent in living in such an arts-saturated town like Portland. People have so many choices so that even when it’s something that’s pretty unique like MM it’s still…not to call it ‘clutter,’ but it’s just that people have so many excellent options from which to choose that a new ‘start-up’ can get lost.

HY: Exactly. And since we don’t really have money yet we can’t really spend money on advertising or fancier programs or posters and things. We’re going to start applying for grants. Since we have one season under our belts we feel like we’re in that position now. And we’ve also got to find someone who wants to take on the job of being Executive Director.

LW: What is MM looking for in an ED?

HY: I’m hoping this organization will grow, but I don’t see it becoming a full-time position for anyone.

LW: So it’s a volunteer position?

HY: Not exactly…it might start out that way but we’re hoping to soon move into a position where we can pay someone, just like I want to be paid for the work I do [laughing.] But you know it’s something where if someone were to do administrative work for a few organizations like this, it could be a full-time job.

LW: What kind of duties are involved with being an ED?

HY: Someone who is in charge of all the logistics…getting a venue, getting all the programs printed, flyers printed, all the e-mailing, maintaining the website, publicity…someone who’s good at talking up what we’re doing and asking for money.

LW: Someone who knows what they’re talking about…someone who knows how to gab about the right things? Not necessarily someone who has a PhD in 16th Century music but…

HY: They would have to be knowledgeable to a certain extent, but I could take over when it comes to talking specifics about the music. Someone with good organizational skills. Of course that ED doesn’t have to do all that him or herself…they can delegate. We have a board of four right now….we might like to have one more person on the board right now and I think I know who that might be.

LW: Well thanks for talking with me Hideki, and I’m genuinely excited about MM’s second season.

HY: Me too . Thanks!

Superb Renaissance recorder concert by The Royal Wind Music ensemble at Boston Early Music Festival

The Royal Wind Music at Jordan Hall

One of the very best concerts I heard at the Boston Early Music Festival a couple of months ago was given by The Royal Wind Music, a European ensemble that plays a panoply of Renaissance recorders. By panoply, I mean that the concert featured recorders that ranged from a 12-inch sopranino to a 10-foot plus sub-contrabass.There were at least 30 different kinds of Renaissance recorders on the stage of Jordan Hall (New England Conservatory) played at the concert on Sunday afternoon, June 16th. Some pieces featured all 13 musicians of the ensemble, while other selections required fewer performers. When everyone played the full range of recorders (as in the photo above), they sounded like a soft pipe organ. Only the tallest players could handle the sub-contrabass, which also required a lot of breath-output. The speed, accuracy, and delight with which the musicians played the shorter and higher-sounding recorders reminded me of virtuosity of Michala Petri, except that I was witnessing a whole fleet of Michala Petris! The musicians come from eight different countries, but they all studied at the Amsterdam Conservatoire, and they are led by the Paul Leenhouts, who founded The Royal Wind Music and is currently Professor of Music Director of Early Music Program at the University of North Texas .

The Royal Wind Music ensemble specializes in music written between 1520 and 1640. The group's program at the Boston Early Music Festival, entitled "Angeli, Zingare e Pastori: Symbols and Allegories in Italian Renaissance Music", featured works by composers, most of whom I probably haven't heard before: Alessandro Orlogio, Innocentio Alberti, Simone Molinaro, Vincenzo Ruffo, Girolamo Cavazzoni, Tarquino Merula, Gioseffo Guami, Jacopo Corfini, Paolo Agostini, Ascanio Trombetti, Giovanni de Macque, Girolamo Frescobaldi, Orazio Vecchi, Salomone Rossi, and Giovanni Maria Trabaci. The only two familiar names were Andrea Gabrieli and Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina. All of the pieces were memorized and sometimes Leenhouts played an instrument rather than direct. Many of the pieces were originally written for voices, but have been arranged by Leenhouts. Some of the works had a more prayerful or angelic (Angeli) sound, others were more playful and dance-like, which suggested the shepherds (Pastori). I don't recall any piece that suggested gypsy (Zingare), but it must have been in the program. Overall, I was elevated by the perfection of music-making and the music of this ensemble. It would be really terrific, if they could visit Portland some day.

Oregonian, EM Lewis, named Resident Artist in new Composer Librettist Development Program

EM Lewis, who is best known as a playwright has been named a Resident Artist in the new Composer Librettist Development Program that is part of American Lyric Theater and funded by the Andrew Mellon Foundation. Lewis has been writing in Princeton for the past three years, and has returned to her home-base in rural Monitor, Oregon (just a few miles east of Woodburn).

Here are the particulars from the American Lyric Theater press release about this unique program, followed by more information about Lewis:

Lawrence Edelson, Producing Artistic Director of American Lyric Theater (ALT), announced today that the company has been awarded a $150,000 grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to support capacity building and the national expansion of the company's Composer Librettist Development Program (CLDP), the only full-time professional mentorship initiative for emerging operatic writers in the country.

The new grant will allow ALT to expand the CLDP from a 10-month program offered annually, to a comprehensive three-year artist mentorship cycle through which artists will not only receive personalized mentorship, but also be commissioned to write new operas. In addition, newly acquired HD videoconferencing equipment will increase the geographic scope of the program, allowing gifted emerging artists with an interest in writing for the opera stage to participate regardless of where they live. Previously, the CLDP was only able to serve artists living in the metropolitan New York City area. 8 new Resident Artists have been selected to join the CLDP beginning in September, selected from a national pool of applicants: 4 from the New York City area and 4 from cities across the nation.

The 8 new Residents Artists who have been invited to join the CLDP this season are composers Clarice Assad (New York, NY), Elizabeth Lim (New York, NY), Evan Meier (Silver Spring, MD), and Kamala Sankaram (Brooklyn, NY); and librettists Rob Handel (Pittsburgh, PA), EM Lewis (Woodburn, OR), Jerome Parker (New York, NY), and Niloufar Talebi (San Francisco, CA). Biographies of the new Resident Artists can be found at:

http://www.altnyc.org/composer-librettist-development-program/resident-artists/

The new Resident Artists will be introduced to the public during a salon featuring their work at the National Opera Center, located at 330 7th Avenue in New York City, on Wednesday, September 18, 2013.   The evening will begin at 7:00 pm with a wine a cheese reception and an opportunity for the public to meet the artists, followed at 7:30 pm by a short performance.

Founded in 2007, the CLDP is a tuition-free program that includes a core curriculum of classroom training and hands-on workshops with some of the country's leading working artists and has been regularly recognized for artistic excellence by the National Endowment for the Arts. The principal faculty for the 2013-2014 CLDP includes composer/librettist Mark Adamo, composer Paul Moravec, librettists Mark Campbell and Michael Korie, stage directors Lawrence Edelson and Rhoda Levine, and dramaturg Cori Ellison. Recent guest teachers and lecturers have included composers Kaija Saariaho, Anthony Davis, Ricky Ian Gordon, Nico Muhly, Stewart Wallace, Christopher Theofanidis, and John Musto, and librettists Stephen Karam, Donna DiNovelli, and Gene Scheer. Biographies of ALT's mentorship team and faculty may be found at:

http://www.altnyc.org/composer-librettist-development-program/faculty-and-mentorship-team/  

In addition to ongoing classes and workshops, composers and librettists in the program have the opportunity to take part in residency observerships at The Metropolitan Opera. Additional networking and membership resources are provided through ALT's partnership with OPERA America.

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EM Lewis received the 2012 Fellowship in Playwriting from the New Jersey State Council for the Arts, the 2010‐2011 Hodder Fellowship at Princeton University, and both the Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award for Song of Extinction and the Primus Prize for Heads from the American Theater Critics Association. Her plays have been produced around the world, and published by Samuel French.  She is the Dramatists Guild representative for New Jersey.  Recent productions include Song of Extinction at the Guthrie and Hostos College; Heads at Missouri Valley College; Talking to Westfield at Premiere Stages; and the world premiere of Goodbye, Ruby Tuesday at HotCity Theater.  Upcoming productions include Heads at the Pittsburgh Playhouse, Reading to Vegetables at University of Washington, and the world premiere of True Story at Passage Theater in New Jersey.  Current projects include an epic Antarctic adventure story called Magellanica: A New and Accurate Map of the World, an intimate two-person play called The Stone Languages, and The Gun Show.  Lewis was born and raised in rural Oregon, lived in Los Angeles for quite a while, and most recently was writing full-time in Princeton for the last three years.  She currently lives on her family’s farm in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. Residence: Monitor, OR.

Idaho forest fire causes cancellation of concerts at end of Sun Valley Summer Symphony season

Forest fires have caused the Sun Valley Summer Symphony to cancel the last four concerts of its season, according to the orchestra's web site. The Sun Valley Summer Symphony is the nation's largest privately-funded series of free concerts. This year was its 29th season with concerts that included tenor Nicolas Phan, pianists Orion Weiss, Joyce Yang and Orli Shaham, violinist Midori, and narrator John Glenn

 According to this OPB report, the Beaver Creek Fire has already cost $11 million to subdue.

Das Lied von der Erde receives new recording in chamber version by the Martingale Ensemble

In the autumn of 1918, at the end of the First World War, Arnold Schoenberg founded the Society for Private Music Performances (Verein für musikalische Privataufführungen) in Vienna, Austria, with the purpose of performing contemporary music for an audience that was firmly committed to hearing new work. Over the next three years, until 1921, the Society gave 117 concerts of works by composers, such as Stravinsky, Bartók, Debussy, Ravel, Webern, Berg, Scriabin, Suk, and Mahler. Many performances featured orchestral works that had been distilled into versions for chamber orchestra. One of these was an arrangement by Schoenberg of “Das Lied von der Erde” (“The Song of the Earth”), which Mahler had finished 1909. Schoenberg began his arrangement in 1920, but he apparently abandoned it in 1922 when the Society went bankrupt. German composer Rainer Riehn took up Schoenberg’s sketches and completed the arrangement in 1983, and it is this version for 14 musicians and two singers that the Martingale Ensemble under the direction of Ken Selden recorded last year. Featuring tenor Robert Breault and baritone Richard Zeller, the album, on the MSR Classics label, has just been released, and it’s a revelation to hear the breadth of Mahler’s angst-ridden music in this reduced yet elegant version.

Mahler wrote “Das lied von der Erde” at a time in his life when he experienced a lot of disappointment. In 1907, anti-Semitism forced him to resign from the artistic leadership of the Vienna Court Opera, that summer his eldest daughter died at age of 5, and Mahler himself was diagnosed as having a serious heart defect. In the midst of this turmoil, Mahler became inspired by Chinese poetry that had been adapted by Hans Bethge and set six poems to music in a form that has been described as a hybrid symphonic song-cycle. Much of the text is dark and filled with anxiety.

It is fascinating to hear how a spare group of instrumentalists evoke the main orchestral themes. Schoenberg/Riehn use all sorts of unique combinations to create the  some of the same kind of sounds that larger forces make in Mahler’s original, for example, the first song “Das Trinklied vom Jammer der Erde” (“Drinking Song of Earth’s Sorrows”) ends with low notes from the piano and a few other instruments rather than with the low brass. Of course, the lushness of a full orchestral sound is missing, but the bare, exposed lines in the chamber version can drill just as far into the heart. The musicians, consisting of members from the Oregon Symphony, Third Angle New Music Ensemble, the Florestan Trio, Northwest New Music, and 45^th Parallel find just enough Viennese schmaltz to make the music ring true.

Breault fills the drinking songs with gusto and bravado of a man who feels that life is futile. His tone is slightly reedy, but the passion of his delivery imbues the music with a firm sense of conviction.

The most unique feature of this recording is use of a baritone instead of the traditional mezzo-soprano for three of the songs. This is the first recording I have found that has tried such a combination, and it works well because of the warmth of Zeller’s voice. When he sings of beautiful maiden who yearns for the handsome young man in “Von der Schöenheit” (“Of Beauty”), he delivers the text gorgeously.  And he sings the last words of the piece “ewig… ewig” (“forever… forever”) in a haunting way that lasts and lasts.

Ken Selden sets excellent tempos throughout and shows extra attention to dynamic details.  This recording is the second one in which Selden has mined a gem from Schoenberg’s Society for Private Musical Performances. The first one, released in 2011, was a chamber music rendition of Mahler’s Fourth Symphony and of Debussy’s “Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun” with the Martingale Ensemble (reviewed here). Both recordings are available on Amazon.