New Jersey Symphony. Xian Zhang, conductor. June 8, 2019.

Count Basie Center, Red Bank.  Balcony (Seat K113, $25).

Program – All-Orchestral Season Finale

Selections from A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Op. 21 (1826, 1843) by Mendelssohn (1809-1847).

Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27 (1906-07) by Rachmaninoff (1873-1943).

The Program Notes actually titles this concert “Blockbuster All-Orchestra Season Finale.”  Somewhat of an exaggeration, but mostly true.

The two pieces offered interesting contrasts: Mendelssohn’s was “easy-going and light-hearted” (doesn’t mean it was not difficult to perform), and Rachmaninoff’s was emotional and romantic; Mendelssohn’s called for a “basic” set of orchestral instruments – the only non-conventional one is the bass tuba, Rachmaninoff included additional woodwinds and lots of percussion.

Who doesn’t know about A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a famous play by Shakespeare?  I don’t (embarrassment emoji).  I haven’t seen the actual play, but have seen adaptations of the story for ballet and opera several times.  In skimming over my blog entries on my prior encounters, all I know is it involves two pairs of lovers confused by some potion some fairies put on them.  And I remember how impressed I was with how well Puck danced in the ballet; that was in 2012, so some performers do leave a lasting impression.  Of course both the Overture and the Wedding March are standard entries in the classical repertoire.  The Program Annotator Laurie Shulman went into details of each of the movements, and they were of considerable help in my appreciation of the piece.  For the record, the intervening movements are Scherzo, Intermezzo, and Nocturne.

It is well-known that Rachmaninoff suffered from “writer’s block” for many years after the disastrous reception of his first symphony.  We have his psychiatrist to thank for getting him out of that state.  The best-known movement of the symphony is of course the third, it’s melody is simply ravishing.  What I didn’t know (or had forgotten) was that there was a hint of it in the first movement, and a repetition of it in the last.  In tonight’s performance, this movement was simply a highlight of the entire symphony, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  The tempo markings for the four movements are Largo – Allegro moderato, Allegro molto, Adagio, and Allegro vivace.

My seat was in the middle section of the balcony.  I had a good view of the stage, and the acoustics was good.  I do wish I had brought along my binoculars so I could see the soloists better.  What was unmistakable was that Zhang was more energetic than usual, for the entire concert, and that the orchestra musicians were equally engaged.

Curtain Call. Notice the new players (timpani and principal bass) and Fein in the percussion section.

I also notice a new person (Asian woman as far as I could tell) in the Principal Bass position, a new timpanist, and David Fein – who is listed as the Acting Principal for Timpani – at his “regular” post as the Percussion Principal, doing the triangle and the bass drum.

This was the last series of the season, which began equally ambitiously with a program with Beethoven’s Choral Symphony.  Impressive bookends of which the organization should be proud of.  I attended about ten NJSO concerts this season, a couple were still in the mediocre category, but I must say the trajectory is up.

Anne and I had to babysit this weekend.  I attended the concert by myself, taking the train home earlier this afternoon, and driving to Red Bank for the concert.