Week 35

Here we go again…

HAYDN Symphony No. 101 (The Clock)
INTERMISSION
SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No. 4
Bernard Haitink, conductor

RAVEL Menuet antique
LIEBERSON Neruda Songs
INTERMISSION
MAHLER Symphony No. 1
Kelley O’Connor, mezzo-soprano
Bernard Haitink, conductor

Monday
off

Tuesday
7:30 concert (Haydn/Shostakovich)

Wednesday
travel to New York

Thursday
12-2:30 rehearsal
8 concert

Friday
11-1:30 rehearsal
8 concert

Saturday
travel to [the city where we live]

Sunday
off

Yes, we are in New York again, I guess because each of our conductors gets a separate tour.

With two music director surrogates, the orchestra is comparable to the child with a pair of elderly doting uncles, each offering a clandestine trip to the corner ice-cream parlor. The child of course would say nothing, aiming a conspiratorial wink at the counter-man, surprised to see him back so soon. So the following will I am sure generate some displeasure, along the lines of the child getting a kick in the shins from a little nephew when, grabbing uncle Bernie’s sleeve, he tries to explain that uncle Pierre just treated them to ice-cream cones an hour ago.

As much as I like free trips here and there, sometimes I wonder why we do it. I’m also worrying more and more about carbon footprints lately. Even with the lavish expense accounts they surely demand, it might prove cheaper and more environmentally friendly to fly a handful of New York critics to come hear us at home. The notion Carnegie Hall ticket buyers are somehow more important to impress than our local audience may or may not be true, but it’s a little condescending. Instead of taking the dog and pony show on the road, maybe we could have offered our subscribers a third week of Haitink concerts.

The New York concerts seemed to be well received, so maybe it was worthwhile after all. Carnegie’s live acoustic created a few scary ensemble moments. In spite of its stellar reputation I’ve often had trouble hearing myself onstage there. A colleague sitting directly beside our section pronounced the basses ‘inaudible’ which, perhaps out of paranoia, I couldn’t help but think was uttered with a sense of relief.

Week 24

New York Tour concerts

A
PINTSCHER Osiris
BARTÓK Piano Concerto No. 3
INTERMISSION
DEBUSSY Images
Pierre Boulez, conductor
Mitsuko Uchida, piano

B
BERIO Quatre dédicaces
BERLIOZ Les nuits d'été
INTERMISSION
STRAVINSKY Petrushka
Pierre Boulez, conductor
Susan Graham, mezzo-soprano

Film Night
BEHEIM The General
Richard Kaufman, conductor

Saturday March 1
BERIO Quatre dédicaces
DEBUSSY Images
INTERMISSION
STRAVINSKY Petrushka
Pierre Boulez, conductor

Ars Viva program
Milhaud La Creation du Monde
Martin Concerto for Seven Winds
Bizet Symphony in C
Alan Heatherington, conductor

Monday
10-1 rehearsal
8 concert A (Carnegie Hall)

Tuesday
11-1:30 rehearsal
8 concert B (Carnegie Hall)

Wednesday
travel to Chicago

Thursday
off

Friday
10-1 rehearsal
2:30-5 Ars Viva rehearsal
8 concert (film night)

Saturday
3-5:30 Ars Viva rehearsal
8 concert

Sunday
2:30-5 Ars Viva rehearsal
7:30 Ars Viva concert

Sorry, I’m one week behind in posting.

The week began with our triumphal New York tour. It seems a bit silly to call such a short trip a tour, but it’s not a run out, and probably not a residency either. If you can believe it, we get commemorative T-shirts and stickers even for a trip of this length and they refer to this trip as a tour, so tour it is.

The New York audience received Boulez quite enthusiastically before the orchestra played a note, and although suffering from a nasty cold, the Maestro managed his usual self-control on the podium. In contrast to our hometown auditorium, Carnegie’s resonant acoustic always yields up a few (not always pleasant) surprises. At the Monday rehearsal, Boulez was able to give the Bartok and Debussy a little more of the attention they needed. The orchestra seemed more or less on its toes and both performances went well.

The Film Night program had us playing the score to a silent Buster Keaton film. The music, all of which sounded vaguely familiar, was I believe culled from various light classical composers. Playing for a silent film requires a good bit of concentration – the roadmaps are tricky, and it is one of the rare occasions where watching the conductor is almost absolutely necessary; a good test of how well ones synapses are firing. My only regret is that even when we are playing Dixie or Swannee River, we tend to sound like we’re playing Meistersinger. At least we do a pretty darn good Meistersinger.

The Ars Viva program is a pretty interesting collection of material. Although widely lauded as a masterpiece, other than the beautiful slow movement, I find the Bizet Symphony a bit predictable; but not bad for a 17 year old. I don’t even want to think of what I was doing at that age, if I could recall it.

New York

This week's programs

Tuesday and Saturday

Ravel Valses nobles et sentimentales
Ligeti Piano Concerto
INTERMISSION
Bartók The Miraculous Mandarin
Pierre Boulez conductor Pierre-Laurent Aimard piano

Friday

Mahler symphony #7
Pierre Boulez

Saturday

Bartók The Miraculous Mandarin
(Beyond the Score)

Schedule for the week

Monday
off

Tuesday
7:30 CSO concert

Wednesday
11-1 Teaching

Thursday
Travel to NY

Friday
10-12:30 CSO rehearsal
8 CSO concert (Carnegie Hall)

Saturday
11-1:30 CSO rehearsal
8 CSO concert (Carnegie Hall)

Sunday
2-5 CSO concert (Carnegie Hall)

Monday
Travel to Chicago