Concert Review
Introduction to Music

2/1/2014
Park University
Erin Rosario

Name: Erin Rosario
Course: Introduction to Music
Date: February 1, 2014
Concert: Oakland East Bay Symphony
Type of concert: Symphony orchestra
General reaction: This was my first attendance at a symphony concert so I wasn’t certain what to expect. The Paramount Theatre in Oakland, CA held the three hour concert and set the mood for this event. The following pieces were played for the performance: Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture (1869), Dmitry Kabelevsky’s Cello Concerto No. 2 (1964) with David Requiro, cello, Conrad Susa’s The Blue Hour, and Edward Elgar’s Enigma Variations (1898-1899). The music conductor for this event was Michael Morgan, who began conducting at the age of twelve! The walls and ceiling were beautifully crafted with intricate details entwined with blue and gold colors. The theatre was also well constructed to amplify the sounds of the acoustics from the musical instruments. All of the musicians seemed very well prepared as they warmed up prior to the performance. Throughout the concert it was apparent from the attentiveness of the audience, whom you never heard a sound from, the importance and talent of this show. Throughout the performance the musicians put their emotions into each piece and displayed how much technicality is needed for every piece. I enjoyed when cellist, David Requiro was featured in the song by Dmitro Kabalevsky, Cello Concerto No. 2 in C Minor, Op. 77. This song was technically challenging and swept from lightning fast-bravado to lush melodic passages. He was brought on the stage after the first piece and actually faced the audience. Being able to see this view of his playing was astounding; his technicality, emotions, and precision that were put into the song was inspiring. I would definitely recommended being able to watch and listen to this.
Composition I liked best: The piece I enjoyed the most was The Blue Hour by Conrad Susa, an American composer of our time, particularly known for his operas. Susa passed away on November 21, 2013 at age 78, he was a distinguished educator and creative composer with hundreds of works to his credit. Conrad’s work was said to be tonal and melodic, ranging across a variety of styles: a single composition might include aspects of Baroque music, tango and jazz. The conductor introduced this piece and told the audience that Susa was inspired and this piece is an attempt to produce in sound the complexity of experience which floods the soul in that magical moment before sunset. At that time, “the light blurs familiar outlines, suffuses shapes with unexpected colors, and seems to stop time itself; reality is suspended. Loved ones are suddenly near. The past is present, and we are saturated with sweet pain.” (Susa) Throughout the piece, the different instruments were isolated to display their importance and significance of telling this story. The different instruments helped illustrate this piece; as the sunset occurs different elements come in and out of the picture, such as a radio being played in the background, the waves from the ocean, or the breeze on your face. What I heard was music of private sensuality, brimming with alertness but unhurried, at ease. Susa takes an ordinary moment in the day, and transfigures it and puts a halo around that time and makes it extraordinary. For this piece, I closed my eyes and could visualize what was happening as it brought a smile to my face.
Composition I liked the least: Tchaikovsky's Romeo and Juliet Fantasy-Overture. Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky was born in Kamsko-Votkinsk, Russia, on May 7, 1840, and died in St. Petersburg, Russia, on November 6, 1893. The first performance of the Romeo and Juliet, Fantasy Overture took place in Moscow, Russia, at a concert of the Musical Society on March 16, 1870. In 1869, Tchaikovsky was inspired by his own tortured personal life and Shakespeare’s tragedy, and the two collided to produce this piece that lasts approximately twenty minutes. The Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture is scored for piccolo, two flutes, two oboes, English horn, two clarinets, two bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, bass drum, cymbals, harp and strings. The fantasy-overture opens with an extended lengthy hymn-like introduction with the clarinets and bassoons intoning the somber theme before it presents the two main theme groups: tyrannically brutal music representing the conflict between the Capulets and the Montagues, and a rapturous love theme for Romeo and Juliet. During the conflict between the two families, the music becomes violent and fast themed between the strings and woodwinds, and thundered by the orchestra, depicting the warring Montagues and Capulets. The love theme dominates as the exposition of the principal themes draws to a hushed close. After the love theme plays in the minor mode, it transforms into music that is serene and choral like, ending the piece on a victorious note. Personally, I could not seem to follow the story of the piece, and thought that the whole story had been told before it was over; I felt like it was much longer than twenty minutes long. It seemed to rely heavily on the violins and cellos to set the somber and dark mood for the piece.
Overall performance: Every piece was played beautifully and professionally. The music conductor kept the orchestra in time and kept the tone of the music right to communicate changes in tone or tempo to the whole orchestra. It was inspiring to the see the talent and dedication that each musician had, and astounding to hear that the conductor and one of the musicians had been performing since such a young age.
References:
Gereben, J. In Memoriam: Conrad Susa. San Francisco Classical Voice. Retrieved from: http://m.sfcv.org/node/44056
Kerman, J., & Tomlinson, G. (2012). Listen. (7th ed.). New York: Bedford Martin's.
Onstage Publications Advertising Department. 2013. Oakland East Bay Symphony 2013-2014 Season. Onstage Publications.