Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra – Louis Langree, conductor; Stephen Hough, piano. August 11, 2018.

David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center.  Orchestra (Seat V7, $50).

Program: All-Mozart

Meistermusik, K.deest (1785).

Piano Concerto No. 21 in C major, K.467 (1785).

Requiem, K.626 (1791).

Artists

Jodie Devos, soprano; Jennifer Johnson Cano, mezzo-soprano; Andrew Stenson, tenor; Ryan Speedo Green, bass-baritone

Concert Chorale of New York, James Bagwell, choral director

 Many musicologists believe Mozart got only as far as Lacrimosa, although some think he had jotted down ideas for many other parts before he died, and those were used by Sussmayr to complete the Requiem.

This was the sixth MMF event we attended.  I discovered during these past several weeks that the Lincoln Center Festival was merged with the MMF, and that would explain why there were some non-musical events thrown into the festival, and why it lasted longer than it did in past years.  For the past several years I attended several MMF concerts every year, and I was confused, I wonder how the general public perceived this change.

The program started with a seldom-heard composition, a ceremonial piece composed based on a Gregorian chant melody associated with the Lamentations of Jeremiah, for a Free Mason installation ceremony.  What wasn’t explained in the Program Notes was why such dark words were used (… bitter herbs, … wormwood, … I am lost).  It was later adopted into K. 477 which honored two prominent Masons who had recently died – I wonder why any adaptation was necessary at all.

It was a beautiful piece, sung by a male chorus, and properly sets the mood for the Requiem. Only problem was this little gem of a concerto.

It is superfluous to say Concerto No. 21 contains “Madigan’s theme” as its second movement, and to me the concerto is defined by how that movement came across.  As with the violin concerto in the last concerto, I had in my mind how that second movement (Andante) should sound – slow, dreamy, and wistful.  Alas, it sounded a bit too rushed and mechanical for my taste.  Not a case of inadequate technique, just a matter of different taste.  The first and third movements (Allegro maestoso and Allegro vivace assai) were also familiar, and I enjoyed how Hough interpreted them; helped by my lack of a preconceived notion, no doubt.

Hough acknowledging the applause, with Langree looking on.

Hough played as encore “Traumerei” by Schumann.

I heard Mozart’s requiem performed by the MMFO in 2014, and I looked at that blog entry just now.  I must say my observations then continue to apply to tonight’s performance; which is not a complimentary remark.  The soloists were different from last time, but I wouldn’t characterize any of their singing as “good and strong.”

To be fair, the performance improved as the piece progressed, but it never approached a state where I could sit back and enjoy without cringing at this tentativeness or that imprecision.  Men and women were again interspersed, and I noticed that it wasn't a case of females singing tenor lines (for instance). I wonder why they were organized like this, it wasn't like they wanted or needed an additional layer of challenge.

The soloists were sandwiched between the chorale and the orchestra for the Requiem.

While I wish the Festival had ended on a more positive note for me, I was glad to be able to attend the events I did.  Not having to deal with horrific traffic, and the ease off-street parking could be found, certainly helped.  There was no pre-concert recital today, so we had time to eat the East Szechuan.

Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra – Louis Langree, conductor; Daniel Lozakovich, violin. August 8, 2018.

David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center.  Orchestra (Seat T108, $50).

Pre-Concert Recital

Rhapsody in E-flat major, Op. 119, No. 4 (1893) by Brahms (1833-1897).

Reminisceneces de Don Juan (1841) by Liszt (1811-1886).

Dominc Cheli, piano.

Program

The Chairman Dances (1985) by Adams (b. 1947).

Violin Concerto No. 3 in G major, K.216 (1775) by Mozart (1756-1791).

Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21 (1799-1800) by Beethoven (1770-1827).

I studied (in a cursory manner) Brahms’s piano compositions numbered Op. 11X (e.g., Op. 119, simply titled “Four Pieces”) many years ago, and retain some familiarity with the Rhapsody played in tonight’s preconcert.  I could make out the structure of the piece, but not the subtleties.  Nonetheless, it sounded more like a meditative piece rather than the brilliance and playfulness one associates with, say, ones by Liszt and Gershwin.

Liszt’s piece is based on Mozart’s opera Don Giovanni.  While I am generally aware of the story behind the opera, I am familiar with only two of the tunes, one of them, “La ci darem la mano” is used extensively in this rather long composition by Liszt. The Program Notes notes that Liszt’s conception “rearranges the opera’s moods, offering doom seduction, and high living in that order.”  I was just blown away by how difficult the piece appeared (I looked at the score beforehand) and how Cheli seemed to coax the different moods from the piece.  A better knowledge of the opera probably would have helped with the enjoyment, but I was nonetheless mesmerized by how demanding the piece was.  At some point one wonders if the fingers move faster than a video camera can catch the movements (30 fps); I will do some calculations to find out.

Dominic Cheli put in impressive performances of works by Brahms and Liszt.

The “classical” parts of today’s program are from the respective composer’s early periods.  Mozart was all of 19 when he wrote his third violin concerto.  This is a piece popular with violinists early in their student careers, not too difficult, but has enough showmanship to highlight one’s skills.  Lozakovich, all of 16 years old, gave a lovely rendition of it.  As with many of these popular concertos, I have in my mind a way it should be performed.  So for me he put too strong an accent on some of the notes, and slowed down too much on some of the notes.  So there are different ways to get the job done, and the audience applauded after every movement.  This unfortunately became the practice for the entire concert.

Lozakovich and Langree after the Mozart violin concerto.

For encore Lozakovich played Bach’s Sarabande, a piece that was a bit beyond his grasp. A well-played Bach violin solo would sound like chamber music, here he was struggling to get the notes out correctly.

I wonder if this was an opportunity missed for this young man.

Many consider Mozart’s violin sonatas less intellectual (for lack of a better adjective) than his later works; I don’t recall similar remarks being made about Beethoven’s first symphony (he was 29 at the time.)  And it was indeed a full-blown, mature work, only “simple” when compared with his later symphonies.

This was a well-performed work.  Many different instruments got a workout, and met the challenges beautifully.

After Beethoven's First Symphony.

“Nixon in China” was one of John Adams’s operas, and “The Chairman’s Dance” was an elaboration of material from that opera, with a storyline somewhat like Salome (the Program Notes has Adams’s description of the scene.)  Unfortunately, the storyline was a lot more interesting than the music, which sounded a bit monotonous. There were some interesting percussion instruments scored, including these two plates that made a sound when rubbed against each other – I was wondering if static electric would be generated as a result.

The Evening's Program started with John Adams's "The Chairman's Dance."

Getting in for the pre-concert meant we had to hurry with our meal; today we had Chinese takeout.  Weather has been good so far: all our meals were eaten in the woods by the Opera House.

Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra – Christian Zacharias, conductor and piano; Rosa Feola, soprano. August 4, 2018.

David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center.  Orchestra (Seat V5, $50).

Pre-Concert Recital

Trio in E-flat major, K.498 (“Kegelstatt”) (1786) by Mozart (1756-1791).

Jon Manasse, clarinet; Shmuel Katz, viola; Drew Petersen, piano.

Program: All-Mozart

Piano Concerto No. 25 in C major, K.503 (1786).

Ch’iomi scordi di te … Non temer, amato bene (1786).

Bella mia fiamma … Resta, o cara (1787).

Symphony No. 38 in D major, K.504 (“Prague”) (1786).

We barely made it in time for the pre-concert recital this afternoon, and it was well worth it.  Kegelstatt means “bowling alley” which the Program Annotator insists has nothing to do with the piece. Manasse, however, referred to the simple game that inspired this composition.  He also mentioned Louis Langree started conducting MMF concerts 20 years ago – he became its music director in 2006.

I remarked a few days ago that my ears were simply not tuned to hear the viola.  The clarinet has similar softer qualities compared to the oboe, I usually can pick it out in an orchestra.  With only the piano as the third instrument, there were no issues today.  As quoted in the Program Notes, this was “a work of intimate friendship and love,” and it was pure joy to relax and listen to the give-and-take among the three instruments.

Katz, Petersen, and Manasse performed Mozart's Trio "Kegelstatt."

Both Manasse and Katz are members of the MMF Orchestra, Petersen is the 2017 recipient of the Avery Fisher Career Grant.  The 22-minute piece consists of three movements: Andante, Menuetto – Trio, and Rondeau: Allegretto.

Despite the familiarity of the name Christian Zacharias, I could find no reference of him in my blog entries.  In any case, I am not a great fan of conductor/soloists.  Perhaps an exception can be made in cases of easy-to-digest music such as a Mozart composition (I know, Mozart can be very complicated …)  Tonight I was okay with it.  Other than a somewhat over-pedaled initial passage, the piece was generally the way I like it: light and crisp.  Zacharias continued to gesture the orchestra as he was doing his part on the piano: I wonder if that is necessary.  The movements are Allegro maestoso, Andante, and Allegretto.  The cadenza was composed by Zacharias.

Zacharias performed Mozart's 25th Piano Concerto in this All-Mozart Program.

I visited Prague a few months ago for the first time, and found it a bit touristy, crowded, and somewhat chaotic.  That evidently wasn’t true in Mozart’s time, and the Prague symphony was a delight to listen to.  It was one of his more “solemn” pieces, beginning with a heavy-duty unison in adagio.  The symphony has three movements: Adagio – Allegro, Andante, and Finale: Presto.

Between the two orchestral pieces were sandwiched two songs by Mozart.  Both “That I forget you … Fear not, my dearest beloved” and “My dearest love … Stay my dearest” are much darker than their titles would suggest.  Both were accompanied by the orchestra; a piano part was also included for the first aria.  This was Feola’s debut at the MM Festival, and she sang clearly and beautifully, conveying the emotion of the text very well.  She will debut at the Met at the next season.

This was Rosa Feola's debut at the MM Festival.  She sang beautifully.

All the works performed tonight are dated 1786, with the exception of the second aria (1787).  Not being a connoisseur of Mozart’s music, I often find tedious a concert that’s all-Mozart.  For tonight we had in addition a trio for the pre-concert.  Surprisingly I found it quite “bearable.” Either I am coming around, albeit slowly, or the variety of compositions (not three symphonies in a row) makes it interesting for us intellectually challenged.

I was a bit worried whether it would be difficult to find off-street parking on a Saturday afternoon; it wasn’t a problem at all.  We had to wolf down the street food that we bought to make it to the pre-concert recital, though.

Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra – Louis Langree, conductor; Joshua Bell, violin. July 31, 2018.

David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center.  Orchestra (Seat V5, $50).

Pre-Concert Recital

Violin Sonata No. 3 in D minor (1886-88) by Brahms (1833-1897).

Stephen Waarts, violin; Henry Kramer, piano.

Program

Tromba Lontana (1985) by John Adams (b. 1947).

Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor (1868) by Bruch (1838-1920).

Symphony No. 2 in D major (1877) by Brahms.

The Brahms sonata was performed by a very young-looking violinist.  I have attempted to play all three of Brahms’s violin sonatas; indeed the first was one of the pieces I played for an exam I took as a violin student (and passed.)  They are all lovely pieces, with much give and take between the violinist and the pianist.  The violin parts were difficult enough, I am still amazed – despite my familiarity with the music – how much more complicated the piano part appeared.

In any case, this was a lovely performance by two upcoming artists.  The violinist was a bit too technical in my view, so the emotional aspects were a bit reserved.  However, somewhere I heard Brahms gets better as a player matures, so I am sure Waarts will get there.

This is one of the few four-movement sonatas that I know of, and the movements are Allegro, Adagio, Un poco presto e con sentiment, and Presto agitato.  Anne told me she knew the piece from beginning to end, either it was because I played it a lot (many years ago), or that it was often on our stereo (also many years ago.)

Waarts and Kramer after performing Brahms's third violin sonata.

One can really ask the question why the John Adams piece was program in a Mostly Mozart Festival, but the Program Notes at least make it sound interesting.  It was part of a commission of “fanfares” for the Houston Symphony, but no one who hears the piece would associate it with a fanfare, especially for the trumpet.  Phrases like “profoundly evocative sound of two faraway trumpets” and “behind them, the orchestra tintinnabulates gently …” (I had to look up the word, it was invented by Edgar Allen Poe to describe the lingering sound of a bell.)  In reality, the two trumpets were situated *behind* the orchestra, and were only at the two ends of the orchestra.  Many percussion instruments were used, including the musical saw.

Even for the short four minute duration, the music sounded exactly as the composer intended it: … passes by almost unnoticed like nocturnal clouds.  I may have taken his statement out of context, and it wasn’t meant as a compliment.

We saw Bell in March with the St. Martin in the Fields orchestra, performing the second concerto by Wieniawski.  Bruch’s concerto is probably better known, and is more “intellectual” than the more flamboyant Wieniawski work.  The three movements are Vorspiel: Allegro moderato; Adagio; and Finale: Allegro energico.  I remember remarking the last time I saw Gil Shaham that there was a little “day at the office” feel to his performance, Bell certainly was putting in everything he had, if the profuse sweating was any indication.  In any case, he made great music with the orchestra, and brought out both the virtuoso and emotional aspects of the concerto.

Langree and Bell after performing Bruch's first violin concerto.

For encore Bell played a piece from the movie "The Red Violin" in which he was the violinist.  That was 20 years ago.  The composer was John Corigliano.  The piece certainly ended with a theatrical flourish.  I am sure Bell has progressed a lot as an artist, but wonder how tonight's performance would compare with what he did 20 years ago.  I probably saw the movie inside a plane, and enjoyed the violin music as well as the story.

David Wright’s writeup was uncharacteristically short today.  He did put in a couple of interesting facts: (i) Bruch started sketching this work when he was 19 (he was 30 when it was completed, though); and (ii) Joseph Joachim considered Bruch’s “the richest and most enchanting of the four” violin concertos by Beethoven, Brahms, Mendelssohn, and Bruch.  That was one man’s opinion, I like them all.

I am quite sure my familiarity with Brahms’s second symphony stems from my days in the Cornell Symphony.  This is one symphony where I can catch several things at the same time, which makes any listening quite interesting.

The movement markings are uncharacteristically complex for a work by Brahms: Allegro non troppo; Adagio non troppo - L’istesso tempo, ma grazioso; Allegretto grazioso (Quasi andantino) – Presto ma non assai; and Allegro con spirit.  The horns led off the second movement, and they sounded chaotic.  The woodwinds did much better with the start of the third movement.  Despite these and other miscues, I thought this was a good performance.  Perhaps most surprising was how grand the sound was despite the relatively small orchestra.

The traffic reports were not encouraging when we were driving up, yet we got to the area early enough to eat some street food before hitting the recital.  It was also straight forward coming home.

Daedalus Quartet. July 25, 2018.

Richardson Auditorium, Princeton University.  Balcony (free).

Program

String Quartet No. 5 in A Major, op. 18 by Beethoven (1770-1827).

Chaconne (2016) by Lerdahl (b. 1943).

String Quartet No. 3 in B flat, op. 67 by Brahms (1833-1897).

Artists

Min-Young Kim, violin; Matilda Kaul, violin; Jessica Thompson, viola; Thomas Kraines, cello.

The two long pieces in the program are in the standard quartet repertoire, and the musicians put in a very enjoyable performance.

The four movements of the Beethoven piece are Allegro; Menuetto; Andante cantabile con variazioni; and Allegro.  For the Brahms piece the four movements are Vivace; Andante; Agitato (Allegretto non troppo); and Poco Allegretto con Variazioni.  It just occurred to me many quartets have four movements, in that sense more akin to a symphony than a concerto, although concertos are usually symphonic in nature.

The violist Thompson talked a bit about Fred Lerdahl, who teaches at Columbia.  The quartet and he has had a long history of collaboration, and the quartet has performed the cycle of Lerdahl’s three quartets.  This work was written for the quartet, and contains the “signature” of notes that spells out part of “Daedalus.”  I couldn’t quite make out the notes the violin was trying to sound out, and she had to attempt it a couple of times to get it right.  Per this website, the notes are D-A-E-D-A-Eb.  The most well-known Chaconne is of course the violin solo by Bach.  Tonight’s piece was also based on an 8-measure melody, which I couldn’t catch, and things went downhill from there.

The program had three movements associated with Chaconne, it was wrong information.  Turns out they were from another piece that was performed last year.

Anne couldn’t come because of babysitting duties.  Peter C came along.  We met up with the Yee’s as usual at Panera Bread.  I was lamenting to David that (i) listening to modern music requires too much use of my left-brain, he also thinks modern music appeals more to logic than emotion; and (ii) I have trouble picking out the viola lines.  So for this concert we both listened to the viola intently.  Beethoven’s was quite hopeless, but the viola’s parts fared better with me for the second two pieces.

I managed to make three of the four concerts this season, and I am glad I did.