New Jersey Symphony – Xian Zhang, conductor. October 6, 2018.

State Theatre in New Brunswick, NJ.  Orchestra (Seat F104, $51.)

Program

Speak Out (2016) by Whitley (b. 1989).

Lyric for Strings (1946) by Walker (1922-2018).

Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, “Choral,” Op. 125 (1822-24) by Beethoven (1770-1827).

Artists

Mary Elizabeth Williams, soprano; Elizabeth Bishop, mezzo-soprano; Lorenzo DeCaro – tenor; Reginald Smith Jr, baritone.

Montclair State University Singers, Montclair State University Chorale – Heather J. Buchanan, director

New Jersey Youth Chorus – Trish Joyce, artistic director

My first reaction to today’s program was “isn’t Beethoven’s Ninth enough for a concert already?”  Not only is the length (a bit over an hour) enough, the story it tells is also compelling, and needs no embellishment.

I may still harbor that sentiment, but I am glad I got to hear the first two pieces on the program.  Kate Whitley’s piece saw its US (and NJSO) premiere at these concerts, and Walker’s piece was last performed by the NJSO in 1989.

“Speak Out” is based on Nobel Peace Prize’s winner Malala Yousafzai’s speech to the UN Youth Assembly in 2013.  Malala’s being shot on her way from school in 2012 became a rallying cry for girls’ education, and she was awarded the Nobel in 2014.  Part of her text was incorporated in this composition, including the words “Today is the day of every woman, every man, every boy and every girl.  Today is the day we speak out.”  Whitley is a British composer, and Xian Zhang conducted the premiere of this work in Cardiff, Wales.  The Youth Chorus makes a beautiful sound, but it is relatively weak when up against a full orchestra.

George Walker was trained as a pianist, and held many firsts as an African-American: admitted to the Curtis Institute, chair of the Rutgers music department, and to win a Music Pulitzer Price.  Despite all that, his work is rarely performed, leading him to make the remark about winning the Pulitzer Price: “… it materialized in nothing.” “Lyric for Strings” is an orchestration of the slow movement of his String Quartet No. 1.  It was beautifully played (and written), my only observation is it doesn’t conform with the idea of “contemporary music.”  The composer passed away early this year, in August.  No doubt he was still alive when the program was finalized.

I have made many remarks about Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony before; however, I want to make some that are specific to tonight’s performance.

While familiar with most of the symphony, I do find the third movement less familiar.  One reason I have is I usually lose my attention (or even doze off) after the second movement, and pick things up again at the last.  Tonight I was fully awake during the whole performance, which is a tribute to the performance, especially given my somewhat jet-lagged state.

It is probably difficult to book soloists for this work as there is not a lot of singing for those voices.  I am sure our seats being in the sixth row contributed to it, but tonight’s four were impressive, starting with the booming voice of the baritone.  And the singers seemed to enjoy belting out the lines.

From left: Reginald Smith, Jr; Lorenzo DeCaro; Mary Elizabeth Williams; Elizabeth Bishop; and Heather J. Buchanan.

The orchestra in its enthusiasm sounded a bit sloppy at times.  It was still a thrilling performance, and the applause afterwards was one of the most sustained I have seen at a NJSO concert.

This was our first NJSO concert of the season.  I was waiting for discounted offers on the Red Bank Series, which never came, so I have been buying individual tickets for concerts I want to attend.  I have two more in my calendar, and will buy more if the price and timing are right.