Program
Doublespeak by Loggins-Hull.
Piano Concerto No. 22 in E-flat Major, K. 482 by Mozart.
Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14 by Berlioz.
This is the season finale, and the program is certainly one worthy of it. Emanuel Ax, Symphonie fantastique, what more can one ask for? And it was a satisfying evening.
The evening started with a 13-minute long piece by Alice Loggins-Hull that was commissioned by NJ Symphony. The Program Notes contains a description of the piece, "graciously" provided by the composer. In addition to describing each of the three (continuous) movements, Doublespeak "explores the tension between truth, perception, and language in modern life." I am usually positive about Loggins-Hull's writings (have heard maybe three pieces of hers before), today I can at best be neutral.
The description of the movements helped. In the first movement ("The Party") I could tell the piano is tapping out the Morse Code (not that I remember much of it), that was about it. I tried to listen to the "We Shall Overcome" theme but couldn't get it. The second movement ("Connection") has these digital blips that suggests the constant technology in modern day life. The finale "Hold" has a bass ostinato (I was thinking pedal point, but different concepts). I couldn't catch these simple concepts I thought I should get. (Probably didn't help that I forgot what I was to listen for.) Next time I will pay more attention. Loggins-Hill has been popular the last couple of years, so there is a likely next time.
McDaniel conducted the premiere of Loggins-Hill "Doublespeak."
My recollection was that Emanuel Ax used to be a lot more active in the area. Well, I still seem to see him once every few years, so that recollection is not quite correct. And if one goes check on his website, one would see a very busy concert schedule. It is particularly impressive that he is still at the top of his game at 77.
As usual, I cannot tell a good Mozart from a great Mozart. But it was easy to be absorbed into the performance, and how the piano interacted with the orchestra. I am not familiar with this particular concerto, and playing it doesn't look like a walk in the park. Musicologists point out this is the first piano concerto in which the we find the clarinet (instead of the oboe) in the orchestra. Cadenzas were Ax's, although they were all fleeting. While the applause was enthusiastic by NJ standards, Zhang had to encourage the audience to clap more so Ax could come out to take a second bow. He didn't do an encore.
Idee Fixe and Dies Irae are two things to look for in Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique, and they were hard to miss. The next thing is the visualization of the movements (some macabre), which is relatively easy to do. Lastly, one laments the failed marriage between Berlioz and Harriet Smithson. (Not part of the program in this symphony.) Meanwhile, the music itself is just pleasant to listen to.
Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique is always a crowd pleaser.
I just found out Berlioz and Smithson are buried together despite Berlioz's having remarried after he and Smithson divorced.
Attendance was better than usual, but many seats in the balcony were unoccupied. We actually sat in seats one row behind so we could get an unobstructed view of the stage.
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