Cleveland Orchestra @ Severance Hall 4/29/10


It’s possible, I suppose, that somewhere there is a purist muttering to him or herself about the anachronistic yet highly enjoyable Cleveland Orchestra concerts of the last weekend. Can’t you just hear ‘but that is NOT an early music ensemble.’ Well, no it isn’t, but in this case, who cares?

What was on display, and what we heard, was a cohesive presentation that never lost its focus or intent: a conductor well-versed in 18th century music (Bernard Labadie); a soloist equally at home in that era or contemporary trumpet music (principal trumpet Michael Sachs) and an orchestra that plays whatever is on the music stands on a given day – and performs it magnificently. What’s not to like?

Two of the three composers on the program are acknowledged masters of their repertoire, while the third is someone we should get to know better, if possible. That gentleman is Johann Baptist Georg Neruda, born in Bohemia, but who moved to Germany and applied that country’s language to his name. Perhaps it was his time in Dresden, where he must have heard the music of Bach (some twenty years his senior) that influenced his composition style. Although the orchestra has not previously performed this work, it is nevertheless somewhat familiar to those of us who’ve heard the recording of this concerto as played by Mr. Sachs and former curator of the Norton Memorial Organ, Todd Wilson.

Mr. Sachs played on a standard trumpet with a lush robust sound that easily carried throughout the auditorium without ever sounding harsh. His attention to dynamics is awesome, as is his ability to compose meaningful and appropriate cadenzas where needed in the first and third movements. Those of the middle section were by Crispian Steel-Perkins, an English Baroque trumpeter. A reduced orchestra of strings and harpsichord provided the accompaniment.

Opening the program was a suite drawn from an early French opera Dardanus by Jean-Philippe Rameau. Last season we heard a suite from a different Rameau opera, complete with orchestral sound effects that made one wish for more such fun encounters. (That was in October, 2008, when guest conductor Nicholas McGegan led the orchestra in a suite of his own devising from Rameau’s opera Naïs. It was terrific!) So was this performance, to be sure. It was lively and engaging, from the castanets in one movement to the piccolos with bassoons growling around beneath them in the next, and the grand conclusion – a battle scene or earthquake or something equally noisy – wonderfully produced by percussionist Donald Miller.

The German born George Frideric Handel was very likely the part of England that King George I liked the best. After all, he could at least understand his favorite composer – they both spoke fluent German. Poor King didn’t do so well with the English language, but apparently he liked music, and for that we should be grateful. That – and the River Thames.

The huge river which winds through London provided a wonderful respite for the beleaguered King who wasn’t happy in crowds, yet needed to be out and among his people. Solution? Barges for him and his orchestra and other court favorites to cruise from town to Chelsea and back again. It is for this reason, we have the Water Music suites from Handel. There are three of them, and together they comprise wonderfully inventive and enjoyable musical entertainment. Two of them (Suite in F major and Suite in D major) feature horns and trumpets, and these frame the more delicate Suite in G major.

Primarily based on dance rhythms popular at the time, the suites are joyous, happy and celebratory all at the same time. In addition to those of concertmaster Jing-Min Amy Lee, delightful solos were provided by recorder artist Kathryn Stewart, whom we see more often with Apollo’s Fire. All the wind principals were featured at various times as was keyboard principal Joella Jones, who spent the evening busily occupied at the harpsichord.

This week, the orchestra is joined by its choruses and soloists in Carl Orff’s marvelously lusty ‘'Carmina Burana.” Robert Porco conducts. For complete details, visit the website: http://www.clevelandorchestra.com or call the ticket office at 216.231.1111.

From Cool Cleveland contributor Kelly Ferjutz, who writes: My most recently published book is Ardenwycke Unveiled (e-book and trade paper). Cerridwen has another contemporary romance from me, But Not For Love, currently available only as an e-book, but perhaps will be in print later this year. I hope to soon get around to completing some of the 30+ incomplete books in my computer!

By the way, Cerridwen has also accepted two of my short stories in their Scintillating Samples (complimentary reads) area: Song of the Swan and Unexpected Comfort. I love photography as well, as you can see here. Occasionally I teach writing workshops and sometimes do editing or ghostwriting on a free-lance basis. But over and above everything else, there's always been the writing. I can't imagine my life without it.

And now, after more than a few requests, I’ve started a blog about writing. You can find it here. I hope you’ll come visit.