Some years ago, Lieberson stumbled over the sensuous poems of Pablo Neruda in an English translation while in an Albuquerque airport bookstore, and was immediately drawn to them. The more he read, the more he thought of setting some of them to music. It was a rather drawn-out process of settling on the five songs he would use, while eliminating the 95 that he couldn’t use, at least in this first song cycle. (We can always hope for another one!) Following the same arch as the poet, he chose five that more or less echo times of the day: morning, noon, night, and evening.
Written as an enlarged love song to his wife, the songs are ravishing, especially as performed by the magnificent Ms. Hunt Lieberson, who was making her Cleveland Orchestra debut. Her gorgeously-colored voice soared or coaxed, as required by the songs. Guest conductor Robert Spano was an attentive collaborator, alert to her every nuance. Musical markings for the five songs are an excellent indication of their meaning: languid, brilliant, largo, passionate and peaceful. Lieberson kept the Spanish language of the originals and the music easily reminds the listener of their origins, with their sultry, sensuous melodies and rhythms.
At the conclusion of this marvelous love-fest, the composer joined his wife on stage in an embrace—and kiss—obviously inspired by the performance. It was truly special and will remain in my mind as one of the highlights of this season, regardless of the other concerts to come.
For some strange reason, the other three works on the program did not seem to catch Mr. Spano’s usual attention to detail. The usually exhuberant and sensuous Rapsodie espagnole by Maurice Ravel never really caught fire, although the orchestral playing was mostly wonderful. There were a few instances of not being quite together, and there really was no sense of passion, so customary in Ravel.
The Mathis der Maler Symphony of Paul Hindemith fared some what better, but again, the performance just didn’t quite demonstrate the power and simplicity of the music or the orchestra. Very strange, indeed. It wasn’t until the final movement “The Temptation of St. Anthony” that the performance more nearly resembled that of the orchestra we’ve come to know and love. Beginning with the silken sound of the strings, through the the silvery notes of the flute, under which there were the three crashing chords, and even including the rather jazzy syncopation (really!) that led to the ending, this was as it should be.
And finally, the brass came to glorious life in the Overture to Tannhäuser by Richard Wagner. One of the composer’s favorite themes is that of sacred and/or profane love, and even in this brief introduction, one senses both sides of the story. The convincing performance provided needed balance to the concert.
It’s the Lieberson collaboration that will remain in memory, however.
For tickets or information about upcoming concerts, call (216) 231-1111, or visit the orchestra’s web-site: http://www.ClevelandOrchestra.com
From Cool Cleveland contributor Kelly Ferjutz ArtsWriteratAdelphia.net (:divend:)