What Allan is playing

[karlhenning]

This afternoon was Brahms rehearsal with Hamelin.  His view of the piece is not quite as elastic and weighty as those I've encountered before, but his interpretation and playing has a clarity that is refreshing.  It goes without saying that his technique is simply remarkable.  He gets through this concerto and it just sounds easy.

That, all of itself, is a fine accomplishment, of course.

[karlhenning]

Schoenberg went well and it's feeling very settled.  It has a wierd way of exposing more and more in a sort of exponential way every time we play it.  The note patterns become more and more familiar and you begin to understand who picks up where you left off or that you have the same stuff that someone else may have had much earlier.  The other thing I'm finding is that I'm thinking more and more highly of the piece as I slowly discover it's inner workings.  It's so highly detailed and everything just seems to make sense.  Like most good pieces it's as if not a single thing could be changed to make the piece better.

Très, très bien!

[toledobass]

That, all of itself, is a fine accomplishment, of course.

Like I said, Karl, it is refreshing to hear it not as the pianist vs piano battle royale that it can be. 

Also I forgot to add re: Schoenberg.  There is a chance we will play it twice.  Stefan remarked something to the effect that even as musicians who read music we need more than once to try to understand it. 

Allan

[toledobass]

We did in fact play the Schoenberg twice.  There were some rowdy coughers making their statement the first go.  The second was a little more fiery of a performance.  The audience had a good time with the double performances and offered up bravos at the end....all in good fun. 

Spirited playing in Beethoven and Brahms went rather well considering no dress rehearsal.  A bit of limpness in overall shape.  I think we underestimated it's symphonic proportions.   

Hamelin played a Weissenberg arrangement of En Avril a Paris as an encore, sweet, sentimental playing.


Allan   

[toledobass]

Another set of good performances down.  Last night Schoenberg also had back to back readings.  After stating our intentions of a second performance,  the audience accepted with pleasing laughter and applause.  I was glad to play it twice, the first was somewhat shabby and a little bit of a dissapointing reading to me. The second was much better and I had the added benefit of noticing some things that the bassi play in the beginning of the piece in retrograde and compacted to a few beats at the end....something akin to a harmonic epiphany, a 'holy shit!' moment for me.  The audience again accepted the second performance much more favorably than the first.

I think the Brahms also was better in some ways.  The first night the pizzicato in the 3rd movement were just impossible to unify.  It was just one of those nights where it doesn't happen no matter how much leading is going on and how much you are trying to play together.  Last night was beautifully together though.  The piece as a whole felt more unified too...not so section to section.

The evening ended with Hamelin playing Gearge Antheil's Jazz Sonata....funny and wild stuff.


Allan

[karlhenning]

Splendid, Allan.

[toledobass]

2 lighter concerts this week.  A concert for our 65th anniversary where the audience was able to vote on specific pieces for the program and a pops show with America!!!!

Allan

[toledobass]

A totally nasty week in Akron: Kids shows in the morning and our final classics concert of the season with Haydn's The Creation this weekend.  Assistant conductor Chris Lees is conducting the YP concerts and MD Chris Wilkins is conducting the Haydn.

Monday 7:30p Kids Show rehearsal

Tues: 5:30-6 Continuo rehearsal for me
         7:30 rehearsal Haydn

Wed: 9:45a Kids Performance
        12:30p Kids Performance
        7:30p Haydn Rehearsal

Thursday 9:45a Kids Performance
        12:30p Kids Performance
        7:30p Haydn Rehearsal

Friday 7:30p Haydn Dress rehearsal

Sat: 8p Haydn performance

I'm tired just looking at this schedule.  The hall is gonna feel like my home this week.

Allan

[karlhenning]

woof

[toledobass]

Well, one set of kids shows down.  More or less, the standard fare....this is the string section- perform string piece, this is the percussion section-perform percussion piece etc etc till we end with the Britten.  A highlight though, are two pieces that were winners of the Children's Concert Society composition contest.  The winners are siblings, one 7 and the other 9.  While both are very nice pieces,  I'm particularly impressed with the older's.  They play their composition on piano then we play a version that's been orchestrated by our conductor.  It's a short 25 measure piece that is very well balanced.  A high melody is later countered by something in the lower register.  Excellent accompaniment figures and inner voice stuff.  Most interesting to me is the use of a 6 measure phrase structure.  Remarkable to see such a young composer getting away from the 2 and 4 measure phrases that dominates the music they encounter in school.

Allan

[Bogey]

A totally nasty week in Akron: Kids shows in the morning and our final classics concert of the season with Haydn's The Creation this weekend.  Assistant conductor Chris Lees is conducting the YP concerts and MD Chris Wilkins is conducting the Haydn.

Monday 7:30p Kids Show rehearsal

Tues: 5:30-6 Continuo rehearsal for me
         7:30 rehearsal Haydn

Wed: 9:45a Kids Performance
        12:30p Kids Performance
        7:30p Haydn Rehearsal

Thursday 9:45a Kids Performance
        12:30p Kids Performance
        7:30p Haydn Rehearsal

Friday 7:30p Haydn Dress rehearsal

Sat: 8p Haydn performance

I'm tired just looking at this schedule.  The hall is gonna feel like my home this week.

Allan

I hope you can hear my applause for your above efforts here Allan.  http://www.csysa.com/performance_calendar.php?time=2008-05-04  Maria Mandico was the flower girl in our wedding.  We plan on attending this performance. 

[toledobass]

Wow, I feel like a zombie....finished my completely nasty triple days.  That gives me a career record of 6 services in 26 hours, one that I don't think will be broken. 

One major mishap though.  The first concert of the second day,  I was trying as hard as I could to be present and focused and very nearly made it to the end of the concert unscathed.  In the Fugue in the Britten, I was seeing the light at the end of the tunnel and saw our enrance coming up.  I started playing while thinking it odd that our principal had missed the entrance.  Then 4 measures or so later I realize the something just doesn't sound right.  Yup....I came in a whole statement early.    So I was playing the bass part with the cello part,  a cool half step off from one another!!!  No wonder it sounded odd.  I looked up and everyone in my section was laughing.  I had to chuckle too.


Allan 

[karlhenning]

Wow, I feel like a zombie....finished my completely nasty triple days.  That gives me a career record of 6 services in 26 hours, one that I don't think will be broken.

Brutal, Allan!  Congratulations on survival!   

[toledobass]

oops...that should read 36 hours not 26. 

Allan

[karlhenning]

A typo is certainly understandable under the circs, lad.

[toledobass]

much obliged pardner.

[toledobass]

Odd schedule over the next little bit here.  We begin our time with Toledo Opera's production of Cavelleria Rusticana. The operas can be a little trying sometimes so at least this one is short in both actual opera length and work schedule.

Fri 25th 7:30p-10 Reading
Sat 26th  1p-4 Orch tech
Wed 30th Dress 7-10

Performances
Friday May 2 7:30p
Sat May 3  7:30p
Sunday May 4 2:00p

Allan

[toledobass]

Opera rehearsals are going fine.  The cast is superb,  some very good voices overall.  We'll see if any of them can act.

Here is a brochure for the upcoming season in Toledo.  Lots of great stuff and many TSO premiers.  I think it looks like a great year for the orchestra.  Please let me know what you think of the programs.


TSO 2008-2009


Allan

[bhodges]

Some great programs there!  Nice seeing Takemitsu, Adler, Kikta and Stucky mixed in there, plus the Mahler 2 and Bruckner 5.  Reminds me, too, that I need to see Bobby McFerrin do his improvisations live at some point.  He's amazing.

--Bruce

[Cato]

Allan!  How are things going with the Rachmaninov Symphonic Dances and the Second Piano Concerto?

In contrast to the Toledo Symphony, the Columbus Symphony down here is on the edge of bankruptcy and almost cancelled its remaining concerts because the bank accounts were empty. A millionaire angel rode to the rescue last week, but said don't expect a second miracle for next season.  There is talk of downsizing the orchestra to a chamber group of about 22: the musicians turned down a contract, so...

The contrast could not be starker: Toledo economically is in worse shape than the state capitol, the latter added 20,000 people to its population last year, while Toledo lost 2,000.

Of course, down here you have to compete with the juggernaut of OHIO STATE FOOTBALL!!!  110,000 people will spend hundreds for one football game, while the symphony orchestra plays to the crickets.