MCO delivers beauty in the bleak
12 January 2012
Winnipeg Free Press, by Gwenda Nemerofsky
Manitoba Chamber Orchestra; Scott Yoo, conductor; Karl Stobbe, violin
Westminster United Church; Tue January 10
Attendance: 450
Four stars out of five
Audience members leaving the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra’s first offering of 2012 at Westminster United Church Tuesday night were likely more pensive than usual on their way back to their cars.
In a program of intense and brooding music, the MCO and guest conductor Scott Yoo provided us with a bit of a musical education, with music many of us had seldom, if ever heard.
Canadian composer Serge Arcuri led the way with his 2001 work for solo violin and orchestra, Épisodes. Concertmaster Karl Stobbe filled the bill, showing his undeniable worth as soloist in this ever-changing piece. The first movement began slowly and mysteriously, as if warning of impending doom. It picked up speed and intensity, Stobbe playing galloping double stops that soon melted into a lamenting cry. This was solid, assured playing.
Seamless legato highlighted the second movement, while in the third, there was an urgency in both orchestra and soloist, as they pounded through frenzied passages. Arcuri, unlike many 21st century composers, still employs the violin’s best assets. With an accomplished soloist like Stobbe, this carried listeners along, maintaining their interest in the unpredictable storyline. The gentle ending seemed a fortunate resolution of sorts.
Petite Symphonie Concertante composed by Swiss composer in 1945 by Frank Martin opened with a tone row la Schoenberg from one half of the orchestra. Enter the other half in a more traditional style and together they produced a densely textured, quite indefinable sound. We all sat up a little straighter and perked our ears.
Heidi Gorton’s harp and William Bonness on harpsichord added an almost eerie quality, while Donna Laube’s piano was grounding in its playful line.
Yoo pronounced this to be one of his favourite pieces and he worked like ringleader, managing the two groups and soloist with ease and his signature energy. There were some lovely lyrical moments — in particular Dan Scholz’s heartfelt viola line, lovely work on harp by Gorton and Stobbe’s poignant solos.
This is fearless music that gives plenty for musicians and listeners to sink their teeth into — a fine marriage of disparate styles resulting in something fresh and satisfying.
Last and perhaps most moving was Richard Strauss’ monumental Metamorphosen. Written as a lament over the wartime destruction of the Munich, Dresden and Vienna opera houses and what Strauss felt to be irreparable damage to German culture, it is both technically and emotionally exhausting. Scored for 23 strings, it began with a gorgeous theme in the violas and cellos that was unmistakably melancholy.
Yoo and the MCO gave this their all. You could see it as well as hear it — and there’s no other way to give this incredible work its due. It was an opportunity for the musicians to pour their hearts into their playing and that’s just what they did. Relentless until the dismal end.
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Goodyear, MCO
première ambitious piece
25 November 2011
Winnipeg Free Press, by Holly Harris
Manitoba Chamber Orchestra; Anne Manson, conductor; Stewart Goodyear, piano
Westminster United Church; Wed November 23
Attendance: 620
3 1/2 stars out of five
Is there anything Canadian rising superstar Stewart Goodyear can’t do?
The New York-based musician has already demonstrated his Midas touch during virtuosic Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra performances, slipping his own improvised, knuckle-busting cadenzas into his concerti for musical sport. He made his Manitoba Chamber Orchestra debut 20 years ago performing Shostakovich’s Concerto in C minor for Piano, Trumpet, and String Orchestra, Op. 35 at the prodigious age of 13. The Juilliard graduate is in the midst of recording all 32 Beethoven piano sonatas that he learned while a student.
Increasingly, Goodyear has been turning his restless creativity to composition with the MCO première of his second piano concerto, Eclipse Wednesday night. The program led by maestra Anne Manson also included two classical favourites that sandwiched the decidedly contemporary work.
Eclipse is an ambitious piece that bristles with fierce intensity. Inspired by a friend’s poem written in response to the death of a spouse, the 20-minute, CBC/Canada Council co-commissioned work explores the strong feelings one might experience when joy becomes overshadowed by tragedy.
After a brief introduction by the strings, the pianist immediately launched in with his melancholic, rising motif theme that becomes a signature for the entire piece. Goodyear establishes a dialogue between his instrument and the orchestra with the latter interpolating its own statements, at times tumbling practically on top of the piano’s rapid-fire, dissonant runs.
Strong textural writing included pizzicati and glassy harmonics in the strings as well as exploding octaves and exploitation of the keyboard’s extreme range. Goodyear’s harmonic language evokes mid-20th century American compositional techniques with syncopated rhythms teeming with jazzy influence. Still, Eclipse is a flashy work more to be greatly admired than easily embraced on one hearing.
Although the composer states in his program notes he intentionally crafted his work to juxtapose solo instrument with orchestra, at times this lack of cohesion felt jarring. Allowing more time to breathe (although this came during the piece’s extended cadenza) would have created greater communicability, and ultimately emotional resonance with the listener.
Haydn’s Symphony No. 53 in D Major, L'Imperiale is another exuberant piece that puts a smile on your face. The orchestra breezed through its four movements that ended the concert on a crowd-pleasing note.
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Ultimate success of musical recipe
boils down to matter of taste
3 November 2011
Winnipeg Free Press, by Holly Harris
Manitoba Chamber Orchestra; Ivars Taurins, guest conductor; The Winnipeg Singers
Westminster United Church; Tue November 1
Attendance: 625
3 1/2 stars out of five
Any good cook worth her salt will know how to balance ingredients, adding a dash of this, or soupçon of that, to bring out the flavour. The Manitoba Chamber Orchestra served up its own musical feast Tuesday night with a unique concert, A Handel Pasticcio, conceived and led by Tafelmusik Chamber Choir founding director Ivars Taurins.
The musical pasticcio — inspired by Italian cuisine, specifically a multi-ingredient pie — is essentially a medley that became popular as a composite form during the 18th century. Arguably, the centuries-old concept should be enjoying a renaissance in today’s age of sound bytes. It all makes perfect sense. Still, there is something vaguely unsettling about hearing a stream of twenty-five pieces flip flop between style, form, tonality and mood with scarcely a beat in between that become cumulatively jarring.
The program showcased The Winnipeg Singers, impeccably prepared by director Yuri Klaz, performing 11 choruses sung in English and Italian, interspersed among various orchestral marches, overtures, sinfonias and smattering of the baroque composer’s Concerti Grossi, Ops. 3 and 6 hand-picked by Taurins.
Certainly there were highlights: the sheer intensity of Jealousy, infernal pest (Hercules) with the 24-voice choir spitting out words like a lover scorned interpolated with the orchestra’s declamations; or Draw the tear from hopeless love (Solomon) filled with pregnant pauses and floating polyphony. The better-paced second half created a momentum of its own with three choruses performed back to back: Now love that everlasting boy (Semele); Doleful Tidings (Deborah) and Accorriam senza dimora (Parnasso in festa), with rousing finale The Mighty Power/Give glory (Athalia) bringing the crowd of 625 to its feet.
The maestro’s animated approach — where he seemed in a dance with the orchestra — coaxed clear textures and balanced melodic lines from the players. Trumpeters Brian Sykora and Paul Jeffery performed in perfect harmony in the opening overture, The Occasional Oratorio, with Sykora’s solo in March (Song for St. Cecilia's Day) as bright as his piccolo instrument.
MCO concertmaster Karl Stobbe, principal second violin Simon MacDonald and principal cellist Yuri Hooker wove their effervescent musicality throughout the concertino with the two violinists' crystal clear imitative entries in Concerto Grosso, Op. 3, No. 2 Vivace a particular standout. So too, were oboists Caitlin Broms-Jacobs and Tracy Wrights' languid delivery of the Largo’s theme from Concerto Grosso, Op. 3, No. 2. The MCO is known for taking artistic risks and this pasticcio concert proved to be no different. Nothing ventured, as they say, nothing gained. But as with any culinary — or musical — enterprise, its success (or not) ultimately comes down to a matter of taste.
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Solos make MCO season-ender
night to remember
20 May 2011
Winnipeg Free Press, by Gwenda Nemerofsky
Manitoba Chamber Orchestra; Anne Manson, conductor; Connie Gitlin, clarinet; Karl Stobbe, violin
Westminster United Church; Wed May 18
Attendance: 790
5 stars out of five
It’s always a little sad when you come to the last concert of the season. As happy you are to see the buds on the trees and feel the temperate air on your skin, knowing the music season is coming to a close makes it bittersweet
But conductor Anne Manson and the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra gave us a great send-off Wednesday night, with two stellar soloists making it a night to remember.
The MCO had to do an about-face for this concert. Originally scheduled to feature Winnipeg star soprano Tracy Dahl, a replacement had to be found when personal reasons forced Dahl to cancel her appearance. MCO principal clarinetist Connie Gitlin came to the rescue — and brought with her the much-loved Mozart Clarinet Concerto in A major (K 622).
Gitlin made it seem easy, her liquid tone seamlessly gliding through lengthy phrases, yet she barely stopped to breathe.
It’s rare for us to hear a clarinet soloist and Gitlin made the audience fall in love with the instrument. Her gorgeous, mellow lower register was rivaled only by her sweet upper register. Tonguing was imperceptible, yet the enunciation was there.
The adagio’s voluptuous melody (remember it from Out of Africa?) flowed with Gitlin’s limpid notes. Manson made the most of the long phrases, satisfyingly legato. If only the clarinet had been given a little more freedom; Gitlin’s playing here had a constrained quality, and while the orchestra provided the requisite big washes of sound, Gitlin seemed to hold back.
It was a joy to hear English composer Vaughn Williams’ meditative The Lark Ascending with concertmaster and violinist Karl Stobbe as soloist. His Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra colleague Gwen Hoebig lays claim to one of the most-played versions on CBC Radio, but she’d better watch her back. Stobbe’s rendition was a treat for the senses.
This demanding and virtuosic piece leaves the soloist wholly exposed, evoking the gentle bird, vocalizing as it sits perched on a branch in the English countryside. Stobbe’s tone was pure and fresh; his vibrato nicely subdued. His playing, while firm and steady, was imbued with emotion, phrases never seeming to end.
There were some lovely woodwind solos, although the French horn was a bit too insistent. Nevertheless, we could easily imagine the lark in this poetic reading. Manson infused the music’s folk aspects and atmospheric swells and ebbs with warmth.
Stobbe saved his best for last — a carefully crafted final solo passage that was superbly poignant. Bravo!
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Music breathes life
into seasons
15 April 2011
Winnipeg Free Press, by Gwenda Nemerofsky
Manitoba Chamber Orchestra; Scott Yoo, guest conductor; Winnipeg Soloists Choir; Elroy Friesen, Director
Westminster United Church; Wed Apr 13
Attendance: 750
4 stars out of five
Music reviewers often bemoan the inadequacy of words to describe musical performances. Not so composers and writers when it comes to describing nature. In the case of Winnipeg composer Sid Robinovitch’ contribution to Cantus Borealis: Song of the Forest, the 100 per cent organic nature of his compositional style became part of the landscape itself.
In a unique collaboration with writer Katherine Bitney, sound artist Ken Gregory and photographer Mandy Malazdrewich, Robinovith created this extraordinary piece of art that takes audience members by the hand and walks them straight into the forest with him. The colleagues spent several days each season in regions of the Manitoba boreal forest, listening, absorbing and observing the sights, sounds and smells of their surroundings. The project was a Manitoba Chamber Orchestra (MCO) commission supported by the Manitoba Arts Council.
They obviously emerged inspired, evidenced by the resulting product, making its Winnipeg premiere Wednesday night, conducted by Scott Yoo. The visuals were not presented, but we were nonetheless given a satisfying taste of the project.
Autumn began with Gregory’s soundscape of twittering birds, trees creaking and an ethereal reading by Bitney. A single beat was repeated in the timpani. The youthful Winnipeg Soloists Choir, comprised of members of the University of Manitoba Singers, began singing gently, quietly — almost prayer-like. Wind blew through the trees. We could almost smell the earth and leaves.
The orchestra joined in with rich, full harmonies. The singers were impressively involved, showing true enjoyment.
Snow followed without pause, the timpani pounding an ominous warning as voices grew more urgent. Wolves growled and singing became harsher, rhythms more changeable, and the strings manoeuvred through tricky intervals.
And then it was winter, with its impending danger, Robinovitch’s music clearly portrayed the severity of the season, the need for survival. The choir was responsive and expressive, enunciating with precision.
Spring’s bittersweet melody moved throughout the orchestra, resonantly grounded by the double basses. Summer, in its bright major key, was delightful, the ladies singing delicate harmonies that unfolded like flowers.
This was a true representation of the seasons — each as musically and thematically different as the real thing.
The evening began with Yoo as soloist in a vigorous rendition of Bach’s Violin Concerto No. 1 in A Minor. Yoo opened with a very legato and deliberate reading, stately and majestic. His andante had a feeling of sweetness, Yoo evidently feeling connected to the work. The orchestra’s broad, sweeping phrases linked together seamlessly.
Only in the final movement did he falter. Fleeting thinness of tone and a tendency to to dig in too roughly interrupted the civilized Bach style with aggression.
Yoo and the MCO finished by taking us all on a ride with Mendelssohn’s Sinfonia No. 11 — full steam ahead.
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Soprano takes audience
dazzling journey
31 March 2011
Winnipeg Free Press, by Gwenda Nemerofsky
Manitoba Chamber Orchestra; Anne Manson, conductor; Isabel Bayrakdarian, soprano
Westminster United Church; Tue Mar 29
Attendance: 892
4 1/2 stars out of five
A troubadour can be defined simply as a wandering singer or minstrel or the term can be extended to a class of lyric poets who lived during the 11th to 13th centuries and wrote songs and poems, chiefly on themes of courtly love.
Knowing this hardly prepared Tuesday night’s Manitoba Chamber Orchestra concert audience for the dazzling debut of Serouj Kradjian’s Trobairitz Ysabella, created for and sung by his wife, the incomparable Armenian-Canadian soprano Isabel Bayrakdarian.
Based on the story of the real-life Ysabella, a female troubadour, Kradjian’s commissioned work is his interpretation of Ysabella’s enigmatic personal journey.
As mystical and arresting as this all sounds, it is the performance that brings it all to life. Bayrakdarian, fully embodying the character of the ancient troubadour, was utterly entrancing. We all believed she was the real Ysabella.
The work opened with an instrumental overture, full of tension in the strings and the incredible clarinet playing of Connie Gitlin, whining and wending its way through mysteriously exotic lines. Pastoral moments exploded with life and the abrupt ending provided an exciting segue to the singing.
Concertmaster Karl Stobbe gave a gypsy-twist to the introduction of A Woman from Perigord, two songs by Contessa del Dia, a famous contemporary of Ysabella. Bayrakdarian approached these with supreme sensitivity, her stately bearing enhancing the effect. Singing in the Occitane language, she turned sorrowful, the violins matching her grieving tone. A section of humming was deeply communicative.
From Jerusalem to Andalusia (in two parts) began with Gitlin’s clarinet creeping in on cat feet, while the violas introduced a stormy theme. Bayrakdarian sang in Hebrew, making this prayer reverent and passionate. Her ability to move from soft and gentle to a spine-tingling climax was astonishing. Gestures made with the most graceful arms seemed to be natural extensions of the music and her fine vibrato evoked undeniable emotion.
The pensive and atmospheric Part Two was sung in Arabic and featured Arabic drum and infectious rhythms. Bayrakdarian performed this with great freedom, despite its challenging intervals and meandering melody. Dance-like in feel, it showcased the unbelievable suppleness of her voice.
Conductor Anne Manson showed impressive versatility managing the many different styles in this new work that is full of fascinating challenges.
The finale Duel with Elias Cayrel is based on the sole surviving poem written by Ysabella. Bayrakdarian played the parts of Ysabella and Cairel, who courted her. Sung in English, it allowed us to revel in her impeccable diction. She acted out every word, every feeling, building dramatically until the final "ah," smooth and languid. Kradjian gave the clarinet the last limpid word.
It was clear that Kradjian drew great inspiration from this marvelous artist. The audience rewarded the performance with three curtain calls.
The concert began with a wonderfully authentic performance of Mozart’s Serenade No. 6 in D Major, K.239 with Stobbe at his lyrical best and Manson keeping the MCO tight and tidy.
The evening ended with Dvorak’s bucolic Serenade for Strings, played with gracious legato, with a waltz movement that Manson injected with a swaying flow. By the finale, however, the violins’ energy seemed to wane and shrillness ensued, making for an unfortunate ending.
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Something old, a couple new,
passionate direction from Mr. Yoo
24 February 2011
Winnipeg Free Press, by Holly Harris
Manitoba Chamber Orchestra; Scott Yoo, guest conductor
Westminster United Church; Tue Feb 22
Attendance: 550
3 1/2 stars out of five
The Boston-based conductor/violinist has frequently appeared with the MCO, with his last concert almost exactly one year ago. As a staunch proponent of new music, Yoo founded Boston’s Metamorphosen Chamber Orchestra that, notably, has premiered 59 works by 30 composers since its inception.
The Canadian premiere of Jeffery Cotton’s Lyra was composed during his 1999-2003 tenure as Metamorphosen’s composer-in-residence. MCO fans will remember his mythological Pyramus and Thisbe performed here in October 2009.
The introspective piece is inspired both by the celestial star Alpha Lyrae as well as Cotton’s desire to create a piece that speaks directly to the heart, composed after a four-year period of artistic silence. Lyra shimmers with lushly orchestrated harmonies, with added textural effects ranging from string plucking to snapping for contrast. However, its overt romanticism becomes interrupted by an agitated, recurring repeated note motif that began to feel like an unwelcome guest. It would have been more than enough to hear this work in all its unabashed beauty, unafraid to speak in a purely emotionally voice.
American composer John Adams’ Shaker Loops first began life as string septet in 1978, before morphing into a string orchestra arrangement in 1983. Based on analog tape loops that enter in and out of phase, the minimalistic work’s clever title refers to both the constant tremolo required of the musicians, as well as ecstatic dances performed by traditional Shaker colonies during worship services.
The hypnotic, four-movement work begins with a single, germinal idea before unfolding like a continuously shifting kaleidoscope of sound. This is a brutishly difficult work, with Yoo keeping a firm grasp on the orchestra, precisely cuing each of the many, dizzying array of staggered entries.
Brahms’ strongly Beethoven-influenced String Quartet in C minor, op. 51, no. 1 bristles with taut energy as it moves through its four thematically interwoven movements. The challenge becomes striking the balance between clarity of the voices and emotional thrust.
Yoo’s fuller orchestral arrangement added gravitas as a fascinating reinterpretation of the original quartet. However, balance became an issue, with the lower strings often overpowering the violins and violas. MCO concertmaster Karl Stobbe’s eloquent solo recalled the work’s smaller chamber roots while adding its own grace note.
The orchestra responded to Yoo’s passionate direction that, at times, felt distracting with every shaken fist and audible exhalation. The music needs to breathe — good performances always do — but sometimes even its leaders can inadvertently get in the way.
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Prodigious pianist doesn’t disappoint
Young phenom leaves audience in awe
13 January 2011
Winnipeg Free Press, by Gwenda Nemerofsky
Manitoba Chamber Orchestra; Roy Goodman, conductor; Jan Lisiecki, piano
Westminster United Church; Wed Jan 12
Attendance: 919 (sold out)
Five stars out of five
It’s hard to believe that Frédéric Chopin was a mere 20 years old when he composed the rhapsodic Concerto No. 1 in E Minor for Piano and Orchestra. Even harder to believe is that a 15-year-old pianist would be performing it all over the world nearly 200 years later.
That is just what Calgary-based musician Jan Lisiecki is doing. The talented youngster is leaving international audiences in awe everywhere he goes.
Wednesday night he packed Westminster United Church for his debut with the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra. The guest conductor was past MCO conductor Roy Goodman, currently principal guest conductor of the Auckland Philharmonia, the English Chamber Orchestra and the Västerås Sinfonietta (Sweden). Goodman prepared the concerto’s arrangement and it was entirely satisfying. It managed to make a small orchestra sound full and strong.
Would the high school student live up to his billing as "one of the most sensational young artists to emerge in Canada in the past decade..." In a word: yes.
The tall, lanky Lisiecki strode onto the stage — a poised young man with a head of wavy, flaxen hair. As the orchestra began its lengthy introduction, he sat with his arms hanging at his sides, looking relaxed as he absorbed the mood of the music.
Goodman gave the powerful opening good nuance and flow, his expressive hands reaping ardent playing from the orchestra. He has certainly retained his signature vigour and energy.
Lisiecki’s prodigious artistic gifts were apparent immediately, as he displayed the contrasting power and delicacy dictated by the composer. The lyrical melodic line was simplicity itself, clear and unaffected — truly lovely. His instinctive sense of rhythm translated into eloquent, flowing phrases.
Light, twinkling runs, extraordinary musicality and flawless technique made even the most complex of passages seem like a walk in the park. Lisiecki expressed palpable emotion without a hint of sappiness, bringing the true meaning of the music directly to the rapt listeners. The lyrical solo section, accompanied by a gorgeous cello line by Yuri Hooker, spoke to us with honest feeling, bittersweet, yet beautiful.
The Romanze was taken especially slowly. Lisiecki, eminently patient, made it unfold like a delicate flower. He has a true sense of beauty to be able to play like this. His graceful right-hand notes fell on our ears like tiny, poignant bells. Seamless phrasing and an innate sense of timing made this a gem.
The MCO dug right into the joyful Rondo, Lisiecki giving it plenty of bounce, in Polish folk dance spirit. This was a decidedly tempered version, not the utterly carefree fling some pianists adopt. There was an innocence and freshness to the movement that was entirely Lisiecki’s own — a wondrousness that was refreshing.
As his fingers blurred to the finish, the audience erupted in an immediate roar, jumping to their feet in a loud standing ovation. Lisiecki rewarded them with Chopin’s Nocturne in C# Minor as an encore.
What an auspicious way to start off the MCO’s new year.
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Ehnes brings home
a perfect Christmas gift
23 December 2010
Winnipeg Free Press, by Gwenda Nemerofsky
Manitoba Chamber Orchestra; Ehnes/Armstrong/deMaine Trio
Westminster United Church; Wed Dec 21
Attendance: 904
Five stars out of five
When Manitoba-born and raised violinist James Ehnes decided he would be home for Christmas, music lovers of all ages came out of the woodwork to hear him. And as if a performance by this international virtuoso wasn’t enough, he brought with him two phenomenal colleagues: Americans Robert deMaine on the cello and pianist Andrew Armstrong.
On Tuesday night, Westminster United Church was packed to the rafters for this early Christmas treat from the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra. The trio had performed the same program in Ehnes’s hometown of Brandon the night before.
Recently returned from a three-concert stint in Sydney, Australia, Ehnes — a month short of his 35th birthday — showed no sign of performance fatigue.
The trio took form when the three kept running into each other performing at the Seattle Chamber Music Society’s Summer Festival, where Ehnes is associate artistic director. Armstrong has a long list of recordings and appearances with major orchestras to his credit, while deMaine, currently principal cellist with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, still finds time to record and perform as a soloist to great acclaim. Combined, they are a match made in heaven.
From the opening phrase we knew this was a calibre of playing rarely heard in Winnipeg. Every phrase, every note is crafted to perfection, nuanced with a deep understanding of the music and where it’s going. There were no loose ends, no "off" notes.
Armstrong set the scene, introducing Ravel’s taciturn Piano Trio in A Minor, introspective at first, then bursting into free, unabashed passion. DeMaine’s gorgeous, substantial tone conveyed great feeling, while Ehnes’s confident precision is a joy to witness. Armstrong’s delicate touch provided a winsome interlude. The Pantoum was animated, yet controlled. It showcased the ensemble’s exactness as the music ebbed and flowed, building in intensity and drama, while technically astounding.
The finale sparkled with life, with the strings’ stylish bowing and springy spiccato along with plenty of piano bravado. Even the prolonged trills moved in and out of the shadows. These three musicians feel the music in their bones — communicating this not only in their playing but in their body language and facial expressions.
Tchaikovsky’s Opus 50 trio in the same key was the other work on the program. This formidable 50-minute marathon was full of soulful solos, glittering and emotional pianism, sensitive and resonant cello lines, and the sweetest of sweet violin tone. The lengthy first movement is followed by a delightful theme and variations, each bringing with it a new form. Violin and cello took turns on the dance floor in the vivacious waltz that gave Strauss a run for his money and the dizzying fugue scampered energetically throughout. This was an incredible reading of an incredible work.
From fiery intensity to playful lyricism, the Ehnes/Armstrong/deMaine Trio transitioned seamlessly, perfectly matched phrase by phrase, with faultless intonation and balanced voicing. You couldn’t ask for anything more.
The resounding and immediate standing ovation was 100 per cent deserved.
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Young Newfoundland tenor
Adam Luther excels as storyteller
26 November 2010
Winnipeg Free Press, by Gwenda Nemerofsky
Manitoba Chamber Orchestra; Anne Manson, conductor; Adam Luther, tenor
Westminster United Church; Wed Nov 24
Attendance: 400
Four stars out of five
Neither sleet, nor snow, nor wind, nor slippery streets could keep people away from Wednesday night’s Manitoba Chamber Orchestra concert. And while the 550 who bought tickets did not all show up, 400 hardy Winnipeggers trudged up the stone steps of Westminster United Church for a dose of musical warmth.
It was worth battling the elements to hear young Newfoundland tenor Adam Luther. We were introduced to this wonderful new voice on the Canadian music scene thanks to music director/conductor Anne Manson who worked with Luther last year when conducting the Canadian Opera Company.
He burst into song with a youthful vigour that made us all sit up and listen. Impeccable diction enhanced every word of Vaughan Williams’ On Wenlock Edge based on A.E. Housman’s poem cycle, A Shropshire Lad. Originally written for tenor, piano and string quartet, Manson augmented the song cycle, employing all the MCO strings. Brandon-based Michael Kim was the pianist.
Luther proved to be as effective a storyteller as he is a singer, bringing the music to life with his exuberant style that included facial expressions. He represented the storm with shining eyes and vocal intensity, then moved seamlessly into the mellower From Far, From Eve and Morning, his approach sweetly delicate with a full range of subtle colours.
This is a versatile artist, able to convey many moods, projecting with ease, remarkable musicality, not to mention projecting a captivating voice. When a singer performs with this much joy and earnestness, he deserves our attention. Here’s hoping this is the first of many visits to Winnipeg for Luther, whose career is one to watch.
The evening began with American Henry Cowell’s Hymn and Fuguing Tune No. 2, a work illustrating some of the best features of the excellent strings of the MCO. Full of complex, dense textures, the hymn was pensive, while the fugue was richly lyrical, with phrases flowing from one to another. Manson’s strongly articulated gestures conveyed the force and intensity this substantial, though brief piece required.
Manson selected a piece dear to her heart, Apollo by Stravinsky, as the final work. And while it had its moments, particularly concertmaster Karl Stobbe in some strongly attacked and finely played solos, it lacked the visual quality of the ballet for which it was written. The result was a bit of a letdown.
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A Fabio evening for chamber music fans
21 October 2010
Winnipeg Free Press, by Gwenda Nemerofsky
Manitoba Chamber Orchestra; Odaline de la Martinez, conductor; Fabio Zanon, guitar
Westminster United Church; Wed Oct 19
Attendance: 710
Four stars out of five
Ninety-eight-year-old Westminster United Church is built tough. It withstood thunderous applause and raucous foot stomping Tuesday night. No, it wasn’t a rock concert — it was the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra with guest soloist Brazilian guitarist Fabio Zanon. A healthy-sized audience, bolstered by the large local classical guitar community, packed the hall to hear this superb artist who last performed in Winnipeg in 2005.
On the podium was Cuban-American conductor Odaline de la Martinez, a petite bundle of energy who never let her smile leave her face.
In keeping with the Latin personnel, much of the evening’s repertoire was also Latin-themed, with Villa-Lobos’ Concerto for Guitar and Small Orchestra our first peek at Zanon. De la Martinez received the Villa-Lobos Medal from the Brazilian government and Zanon wrote a book on Villa-Lobos last year, so we knew we were in good hands.
Dense orchestration in the opening movement sometimes made it difficult to decipher the guitar amidst the orchestra. Despite the amplification provided, Zanon’s busy hands produced only soft sounds that many of us strained to hear.
The second movement was more audible, as Zanon played with reverent style and sensitive vibrato. He possessed an elegant clarity and his upper register’s tone was sweet and poignant. During the cadenza, you could have heard a pin drop in the hall. We knew we were in the presence of a master.
There is an intellectual (but never dry) approach to Zanon’s playing; it is precise, but still allows for some measured wildness. Feather-light touches on the fingerboard produced notes that dropped like crystals on our ears.
The second concerto Zanon selected was Quebec composer Jacques Hétu’s Concerto for Guitar and String Orchestra, op.56. Hétu died earlier this year and this was a grand tribute to the distinguished musician. The work is intriguing, shifting from violent in its motion and waves of power to subtle and lyrical. The second movement had a rocking action like a lullaby and Zanon’s duet with concertmaster Karl Stobbe was touching.
Zanon picked his way through the endless sets of runs and gymnastic phrases of the third movement, staying totally relaxed throughout. He has that trademark guitarist’s demeanour — laid back, not effusive. His playing may be showy but he remains calm, cool and collected.
How the Norwegian Grieg managed to make his way into a program of Latin-themed music we’ll never know, but we were all glad he did. De la Martinez and the MCO went to town with the melodic Holberg Suite, giving it a vivid, committed performance. The Sarabande was ultra romantic with gorgeous cello solos and the stately Gavotte was upright and proper. It was a cheery way to start the evening.
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Musical royalty Hamelin’s artistry kicks off MCO season
17 September 2010
Winnipeg Free Press, by Holly Harris
Manitoba Chamber Orchestra; Marc-André Hamelin
Westminster United Church; Wed Sep 15
Attendance: 735
Four and a half stars out of five
Canadian musical royalty Marc-André Hamelin held court Wednesday night as Manitoba Chamber Orchestra launched its 2010/11 season with an evening of sublime artistry. The internationally acclaimed pianist known for his formidable technique and warmly gracious stage presence personally chose two classical masterworks for his first MCO appearance since May 2008, led by maestra Anne Manson now in her third year with the organization.
Born in Montreal, the Boston-based artist has built his illustrious career championing relatively obscure repertoire. He has, remarkably, recently chosen to return to his musical roots and now dedicates the lion’s share of his performing and recording activities to the great classics.
Haydn’s Piano Concerto in D Major, Hob. XVIII:11 is a light-hearted confection brimming with sunny optimism. It’s not, arguably, an overly taxing work technically speaking, relying instead on jokey wit and easy charm to communicate. However, those are petty details in the hands of a true artist. Hamelin approached the three-movement work like a glistening jewel, replete with quicksilver runs and sparkling melodies during the Vivace before seducing the ear with his silken improvisatory style solo in the Un poco adagio. He then immediately launched into finale Rondo all’Ungherese:Allegro assai with every sprightly phrase in place, as freshly animated as if this were his first time playing the piece.
By contrast, Mozart’s Piano Concerto no. 24 in C Minor, K. 491 roils with unsettled turbulence and darkly dramatic flourishes, as only one of two piano concertos composed by the wunderkind in a minor key.
Special kudos must be given for Hamelin’s own composed cadenza performed during the first movement Allegro. Equal parts fantasia and a richly chromatic excursion into the concerto’s thematic material, the soloist brought fascinating, new colour to the work while also lending a contemporary spin. Mozart would surely have loved it for its daring spirit of adventure that saw the piano eventually floating back to the orchestra for its re-entry.
A second star of the night became the nine-foot Steinway piano valued at $125,000 trucked in from Toronto especially for the concert. It’s likely the first time -- if not only -- local music lovers have heard an instrument of this calibre in their own fair city.
The program also included Mozart’s Symphony No. 29 in A major, K. 201, popularly known as the theme for 1984 film Amadeus. Despite a sluggish Allegro moderato, the orchestra eventually found its footing before ending the finale Allegro con spirito on a high note.
The crowd of 735 gave a rousing standing ovation with cries of bravo for the artist. An encore would have been the icing on the cake in a program that will remain a season highlight.
Anne Manson / Music Director and Conductor
MCO’s 2011/12 season is sponsored by The Great-West Life Assurance Company. Support has been received from Media sponsors Winnipeg Free Press, CBC Radio One 990, CBC Radio 2 98.3, Espace musique 89,9 and Golden West Radio. Heartstrings gala sponsor: Mann Financial Assurance Limited. Sponsor of open dress rehearsals: Canadian Bridge Federation. Arts Accessibility Program: Sun Life Financial Touring support: Travel Manitoba.
© 2011 Manitoba Chamber Orchestra
