Count Basie
Theater, Red Bank, NJ. (Balcony, Seat E111, $38).
Program
Musica celestis (1990, arr. 1991) by Kernis (b. 1960).
Variations on a Rococo Theme for Cello and Orchestra, Op. 33 (1876) by
Tchaikovsky (1840-1893).
Symphony No. 6
in F Major, “Pastoral,” Op. 68 (1808) by Beethoven (1770-1827).
Tonight’s
concert was the first of the Red Bank series this season. My expectations on attendance were so low
that, even with an entire section in the balcony unoccupied except for one row
(ours), I thought the turn-out was okay.
The orchestra section seemed quite full, which was good. We moved to the second row of our section so we could have more leg room.
With the
exception of the first piece, which was premiered by NJSO in this series of
concerts, the program can be characterized as comfort food, which was quite
okay with me as I was not looking for a lot of intellectual challenge.
The Tchaikovsky
piece is described as the closest thing to a concerto that Tchaikovsky wrote
for the cello. It certainly was
difficult enough, at times calling for fingering that went higher than the
fingerboard, if I observed correctly.
However, structured as a theme, seven variations, and two cadenzas, it
would never be mistaken for a concerto.
Perhaps a very long (at 18 minutes) movement.
I enjoyed the
piece as consisting of nice tunes, with some intellectual challenge in trying
to follow the structure, and a showcase for the virtuosity of the soloist. This was the first time we saw Gerhardt, and
he came through brilliantly, working very well with the orchestra. There were a few intonation problems during the
fast and high-pitch runs. Given the
spacing between notes for a cello, I wonder if it is possible to get every note
correct under such circumstances.
I looked and
listened to the music before the concert, and was surprised to see what I heard
(from YouTube) was quite different from the score I had. I do not know if tonight’s performance also
incorporated a lot of artistic freedom.
Gerhardt and Zhang at conclusion of Tchaikovsky's Variations.
Beethoven’s
Pastoral Symphony is familiar to many.
Zhang did say a few things beforehand: Beethoven was an “angry” man who
would escape to the woods to calm down; she also described what the movements
were trying to depict; and asked some musicians to demonstrate the birds and
thunder. I also read that this is one symphony
where the sudden contrasts so characteristic of Beethoven are kept to a minimum,
more so than his “even-numbered” symphonies.
I am sure I knew
all that, but it was good to have all that refreshed for this performance. This was one of the few occasions that I
could just sit there and let the music take over. Gerhardt was actually sitting at the rear of
the cello section playing along.
Gerhardt sat in the cello section during the Beethoven symphony. Zhang patted his shoulder as acknowledgement during curtain call.
The program led
off with Aaron Jay Kernis’s arrangement of his own string quartet. It was quite easy to follow, although
LiveNote would again be very useful. The
thing I found curious was I seemed to hear many more than five voices at several
instances (there was also a bass section.)
The National
Anthem was not played, so it was probably reserved only for the season-opening
concert.
As usual,
getting to and leaving Red Bank were straight-forward affairs.
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