Cleveland Orchestra @ Severance Hall 1/15 For about the first half of the Piano Concerto No. 3 of Bela Bartok, soloist Radu Lupu was "the unruffled." He just simply sits in a chair (rather than a traditional bench) and plays. All the notes, the dynamics, the emotion, the everything comes from his fingers to the keyboard, and magic emerges. It was gorgeous music-making that he and music director Franz Welser-Most indulged in, to the benefit of the mostly full house. But then, midway through the delicate and ethereal adagio religioso (second movement) we were all rudely interrupted by a cell phone. Mr Lupu seemed to shake himself a bit, then continued. More delicate music followed, as did yet another barrage from the bloomin' noisy thing.

This is such an insult to the performers, let alone the other members of the audience who have enough sense to either leave the contraption at home or at least turn it off during the concert! (Wouldn’t you think that after the first ring-ring-ring, the miscreant would have turned it off? But no. It was the same identical ring the second time.)

Other than that disturbance, the piano concerto was a marvelously wrought exhibition of 20th century, accessible music. It followed two somewhat delicate orchestral pieces: Atmosphères by György Ligeti, and Claude Debussy’s Nuages. Vastly different in approach and meaning, they were yet similar in some ways. Atmosphères consists primarily of layers and textures that are always moving and shifting, much like the waters of a fast-moving stream. Subtle changes occur in the layering, or density or volume mirror the clouds overhead, moving briskly in the breeze. Nuages are those clouds brought to shimmering life by the impressionist Debussy. It is very much like a mini-concerto for English Horn, in this instance beautifully played by Robert Walters.

There is no other music quite like that of Richard Strauss: it’s a category unto itself. I’ve heard there are actually people who don’t like it, but I find that hard to believe! Of course, he’s one of my favorites, due to the vibrant display of orchestral colors he conjures up so easily. His An Alpine Symphony, Op. 64, is considered a ‘tone poem’ although it’s called a symphony, and is indeed longer than many such designated works.

Imagine, if you will, a trip up the side of a mountain, a short respite once at the peak, and then a trip back down that mountain. Strauss describes this adventure in 22 short, connected and marvelously picturesque segments. Beginning with waking up in the early morning, even before the dawn breaks, (and which sounds very like the awakening described by Richard Wagner in the beginning of the first opera of his Ring cycle Das Rheingold) the sections describe a brook, a waterfall, a meadow, and and so on to the peak. The immense orchestra required for all this musical painting includes some brass players positioned offstage, as well as those readily visible at all times. There is a fabulous thunderstorm midway down the mountain that incorporates a wind machine and a thunder sheet (metal, not cloth).

The next to last portion, Journey's End portrayed a tranquil ending to the rather tumultuous hike, with an exquisitely played, reflective trio of organ (Joela Jones), horn (Richard King) and trumpet (Michael Sachs).

This weekend will again see Mr. Welser-Möst conducting in the final concert series before the troops head off to Florida and New York City. For tickets or additional information, visit the website: http://www.clevelandorchestra.com or call 231-1111.

From Cool Cleveland contriburor Kelly Ferjutz artswriterATroadrunner.com
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