December 13, 2009
There was a notable addition to this evening’s LACO concert, and ‘notable’ is an understatement. There was a remarkable addition (there, that’s better) in the form of soprano Laura Claycomb, who joined the Orchestra on 3 of the 5 pieces performed tonight. I don’t know how often LACO performs with singers, but this is the first time I’ve seen it, and it was a lovely change that I hope they’ll do again. In the first half of the concert, Ms. Claycomb performed 8 pieces by Aaron Copland that basically turned Emily Dickinson poems into songs. Now, I don’t know much about classical music, but I’m certain that I know less about poetry. In addition, I’m by no means a fan of Dickinson, and haven’t even read much or her work, if any, for that matter. So the combination of orchestral music and poetry resulted in a 20-minute WTF moment for me. I enjoyed that I could follow along in the program (since the poems were printed in their entirety), but that’s about it. I can’t think of better words to use, but I just didn’t get it. The addition of music didn’t help me appreciate or understand the poems any further, and the songs just seemed strange to me.
But Ms. Claycomb’s voice was amazing, and thankfully, it was showcased again in the second half, when she let down her hair – literally (it was up in some sort of twist in the first half, and down after the intermission). I’ve been to a handful of operas in my life (although not in the past 3 years or so), but I’ve always forgotten, until someone is singing in front of me, how breathtaking and powerful the human voice can be. And I use breathtaking because it’s so incredibly impressive to watch and listen to Ms. Claycomb hit those notes, and hold them, and hold them, and hold them, and finally take a breath. It’s exhausting just to watch! I especially enjoyed the evening’s final piece, from “Grossmachtige Prinzessin” (gesundheit!).
And then there were the two pieces that didn’t include Ms. Claycomb, and those were both thoroughly enjoyable as well. The Strauss Sextet was elegant and beautiful, and I think had the smallest number of musicians I’ve seen on the LACO stage – what an evening of firsts! And, of course, the concert started off with another major first – the West Coast Premiere of Derek Bermel’s “A shout, a whisper, and a trace.” Mr. Bermel spoke briefly before the piece, sharing his inspiration, which was Bela Bartok’s letters when he was living (and dying) in New York City. The resulting piece was fantastic – it captured the almost-dizzying energy that large vibrant cities had, and ultimately settled into an almost-creepy, unsettling tone that kept me listening, and kept me wowed.
I’m repeating myself when I say I love being a part of new things at LACO concerts, but it’s a point that worth making multiple times. Between the new (to me, at least) addition of a soprano to this evening’s concert, and the West Coast premiere of the Bermel piece, it was a satisfying, fulfilling evening. And I can’t wait for what’s to come in January!
1 comment
Thanks David! I wonder if you noticed all of the percussion in the Bermel piece. Particularly, did you hear the siren at the end of the piece? That was one of my favorite additions, and I thought you might get a kick out of it... just curious!