St. Louis theatre calendar for the week of May 9, 2016

[Looking for auditions and other artistic opportunities? Check out the St. Louis Auditions site.]

For information on events beyond this week, check out the searchable database at the Regional Arts Commission's events web site.

Share on Google+

The Lemp Mansion Comedy-Mystery Dinner Theater presents Bullets in the Bathtub through July 30. The Lemp Mansion is at 3322 DeMenil Place. For more information: mansion.com

The Looking Glass Playhouse presents the classic musical Fiddler on the Roof Thursdays through Sundays through May 15. Performances take place at 301 West St. Louis Street in Lebanon, Ill. For more information, visit www.lookingglassplayhouse.com.

Tim Schall

The Sheldon Concert Hall presents Tim Schall in The Gaslight Generation Tuesday and Wednesday, May 10 and 11, at 10 a.m. "Clubs like The Crystal Palace lined St. Louis' Gaslight Square neighborhood and played host to the stars of tomorrow. Tim Schall takes a musical look back at this exciting time in popular music, with songs like “Moon River” and “Georgia On My Mind,” and tunes by beloved composers such as Hoagy Carmichael and Carole King. The times were a-changin' and so was the music!" The Sheldon Concert Hall is at 3648 Washington in Grand Center. For more information: thesheldon.org.

Upstream Theater presents Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie, with live music by Joe Dreyer, through May 15. "As Tennessee Williams'classic has entered our collective memory, it has moved from cutting-edge to canonical. Upstream Theater aims to take the piece out of the museum in a way guaranteed to move you, and move you to think. We are proud to present this production in conjunction with the inaugural Tennessee Williams Festival St. Louis." Performances take place at the Kranzberg Arts Center, 501 North Grand in Grand Center. For more information, including show times: upstreamtheater.org.

Family Musical Theater presents the classic Cole Porter musical Kiss Me, Kate running through May 15th. "The exciting story of Kiss Me, Kate involves the production of a musical version of William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew and the conflict on and off-stage between Fred Graham, the show's director, producer, and star, and his leading lady, his ex-wife Lilli Vanessi. A secondary romance concerns Lois Lane, the actress playing Bianca, and her gambler boyfriend, Bill, who runs afoul of some gangsters." Performances take place at the Ivory Theatre, 7622 Michigan. For more information, visit www.familymusicaltheater.org or call 314-571-9579.

Brian Owens

The Sheldon Concert Hall presents Brian Owens in Lean on Me Saturday, May14, at 11 a.m. "Acclaimed vocalist Brian Owens is quickly making a name for himself nationally as the new torch bearer for classic soul music in the tradition of Marvin Gaye and Sam Cooke. He returns to The Sheldon with a tribute to the legendary Bill Withers, performing hits including “Lean on Me,” “Just the Two of Us,” and more! " The Sheldon Concert Hall is at 3648 Washington in Grand Center. For more information: thesheldon.org.

The Emerald Room Cabaret at The Monocle resents Amy Armstrong in Mama's Big Ones, a musical tribute to Mama Cass Elliot of The Mamas and the Papas, Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., May 13 and 14. " Amy is the complete package - an exceptionally fine singer and dead-on comedienne, the total pro who is fresh and compelling and funny every night. Now she is bringing us her Mama Cass show, developed and honed on her tour of Mexican resort clubs this winter. Mama's Big Ones (the title of Cass's first solo album) takes us through her life and work. Though far from all, a big part of Cass's professional life was The Mamas and The Papas, whose California Dreamin' defined a sound for a generation. The performances take place in The Emerald Room at The Monocle Bar, 4510 Manchester in The Grove neighborhood. For more information: www.buzzonstage.com/st-louis.

The Bissell Mansion Murder Mystery Dinner Theatre presents Nursery Crimes through July 31. The Bissell Mansion is at 4426 Randall Place. For more information: bissellmansiontheatre.com.

Act Two Theatre presents Neil Simon's The Odd Couple (Female Version) May 11-22. " Unger and Madison are at it again! Florence Unger and Olive Madison, that is, in Neil Simon's hilarious contemporary comic classic: the female version of The Odd Couple. Instead of the poker party that begins the original version, Ms. Madison has invited the girls over for an evening of Trivial Pursuit. The Pidgeon sisters have been replaced by the two Costazuela brothers. But the hilarity remains the same. " Performances take place in the St. Peters Cultural Arts Centre at 1 St Peters Centre Blvd, St. Peters, MO 63376. For more information: act2theater.com.

Alton Little Theater presents the comedy Skin Deep Thursdays through Sundays, May 12-22, at 2450 North Henry in Alton, IL. If you like a show that is filled with laugh-out-loud humor then Skin Deep is sure to please. A large, lovable, lonely-heart, named Maureen Mulligan, gives romance one last shot on a blind-date with sweet awkward Joseph Spinelli; she's learned to pepper her speech with jokes to hide insecurities about her weight and appearance, while he's almost dangerously forthright, saying everything that comes to his mind. They were set up on the date by Maureen's sister Sheila and her husband Squire, who are having problems of their own: Sheila undergoes a non-stop series of cosmetic surgeries to hang onto the attractive and much-desired Squire, who may or may not have long ago held designs on Maureen, who introduced him to Sheila. " For more information, call 618.462.6562 or visit altonlittletheater.org.

The Tennessee Williams Festival opens on Wednesday, May 11, and runs through May 15 at multiple venues throughout the St. Louis area. Events include theatrical performances, films, exhibits, lectures, and even a Williams-themed St. Louis bus tour. For more informatoin and a complete schedule of events, visit twstl.org.

The Theatre Guild of Webster Groves presents Horton Foote's drama The Trip to Bountiful Fridays through Sundays through May 15. "Mrs. Watts, an aging widow living with her son & daughter-in-law in Houston, Texas, fears that her presence may be an imposition on her family especially her demanding daughter-in-law. Mrs. Watts imagines that if she can get away and return to her old home in the town of Bountiful, she is sure to regain her strength, dignity and peace of mind. This is the story of her journey as she attempts to run away and the kind people she meets along the way." Performances take place in the Guild theatre at Newport and Summit in Webster Groves, MO. For more information: theatreguildwg.org or call 314-962-0876.

The Two-Character Play

The Midnight Company presents The Two-Character Play by Tennessee Williams Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays at 8 p.m., and Saturdays and Sundays at 3 p.m., May 11-15. "Two actors, a brother and a sister, are stranded in a theatre, struggling to perform, struggling to survive." Performances take place at The Historic Mummers Theatre, 4504 Westminster in the Central West End. For more information: midnightcompany.com.

New Jewish Theater presents the musical Yentl May 11 - June 5 “Based on Isaac Bashevis Singer's short story “Yentl the Yeshiva Boy” and updated with new music and lyrics by Jill Sobule, “Yentl” tells the story of a young girl in 19th century Eastern Europe forbidden to pursue her dream of studying Talmud. Unwilling to accept her fate, she disguises herself as a man. But when she falls in love, Yentl must decide how far she's willing to go to protect her identity. This marks 40 years since the play - then without music - ran on Broadway. With parallels in Singer's short story coinciding with the burgeoning second wave of feminism, we find Yentl as an outsider seeking to find her own voice within a very proscribed world.” Performances take place in the Marvin and Harlene Wool Studio Theater at the Jewish Community Center, 2 Millstone Campus Drive in Creve Coeur. For more information: www.newjewishtheatre.org or call 314-442-3283.

Would you like to be on the radio? KDHX, 88.1 FM needs theatre reviewers. If you're 18 years or older, knowledgeable in this area, have practical theatre experience (acting, directing, writing, technical design, etc.), have good oral and written communications skills and would like to become one of our volunteer reviewers, send an email describing your experience and interests to chuck at kdhx.org. Please include a sample review of something you've seen recently.

St. Louis classical calendar for the week of May 9th, 2016

The Bach Society at St. Stainslaus Church

Share on Google+:

The Bach Society of St. Louis presents an Bach's Mass in B Minor on Sunday, May 15, at 3 PM at First Presbyterian Church of Kirkwood, 100 East Adams Ave. “Bach's monumental Mass in B minor, the first work performed by the Bach Society in 1941, celebrates our past, present and future. Joining the Bach Society Chorus and Orchestra as soloists are four guest artists from across the county: soprano Sherezade Panthaki, countertenor Jay Carter, tenor Kyle Stegall and bass-baritone Dashon Burton.” For more information: www.bachsociety.org.

The Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis presents the a cappella choir Cathedra on Friday at 8 p.m., May 13, at the cathedral at 4431 Lindell. "Established in 2010, Cathedra has already achieved high acclaim, not least for its “beautiful, blended sound” (The Washington Post). Specializing in music of both the Renaissance and Baroque and a champion of the modern-day composer, Cathedra is a highly skilled ensemble of professional singers and instrumentalists, dedicated to bringing the highest form of musical expression to music from across the ages." For more information: www.cathedralconcerts.org.

Nico Muhly

The Pulitzer Arts Foundation presents members of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra performing works by Nico Muhly on Wednesday, May 11, at 7:30 p.m. The performance takes place in the newly renovated space at the Pulitzer Arts Foundation, 3716 Washington. For more information: pulitzerarts.org/program/st-louis-symphony-concert-series.

Susie Benchasil Seiter conducts the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra in Pokémon: Symphonic Evolutions on Saturday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m., May 14 and 15. "Brought to life by the STL Symphony accompanied by exciting visuals on a giant screen, Pokémon: Symphonic Evolutions will take audiences of all ages on a powerful musical retrospective through the popular video game franchise's most memorable melodies. Performances take place at Powell Symphony Hall, 718 North Grand. For more information: stlsymphony.org.

The Town and Country Symphony Orchestra performs Dvorak's New World Symphony and Rossini's Semiramide Overture on Sunday, May 15, at 2:30 PM. "The Orchestra also performs in a variety of musical styles - classical, pops, Christmas pops, operettas, and oratorios." The performance takes place in Ridgway Auditorium at The Principia, 13201 Clayton Road. For more information: tcsomo.org.

The Tavern of Fine Arts presents a classical open stage night on Monday, May 9 from 7:30 - 9 PM. “Come by yourself or bring your quartet. Sight read through a Beethoven quartet or use this as an opportunity to put the finishing touches on that Hindemith Viola Sonata you have been working on. All ages and skill levels are welcome. We have a 6' grand piano and an accompanist.” The Tavern of Fine Arts is at 313 Belt in the Debaliviere Place neighborhood. For more information: tavern-of-fine-arts.blogspot.com.

The Tavern of Fine Arts presents soprano Kate Glass and pianist Jon Garrett in an evening of songs by Samuel Barber on Thursday, May 12 at 8 p.m. “Join Kate Glass, soprano, along with Jon Garrett, piano, to hear works from Samuel Barber's extensive opus for voice, including the unique and extraordinary 'Knoxville Summer of 1915.' She will survey music from his early years to his last Three Songs.” The Tavern of Fine Arts is at 313 Belt in the Debaliviere Place neighborhood. For more information: tavern-of-fine-arts.blogspot.com.

Anne Timberlake and Jeff Noonan

The Tavern of Fine Arts presents Anne Timberlake on recorder and Jeff Noonan on theorbo and Baroque guitar on Saturday, May 14 at 8 p.m. “Acclaimed recorder virtuoso Anne Timberlake offers a program for recorder that ranges from the Middle Ages into the High Baroque. A number of the pieces on the program focus on the Renaissance and Baroque technique of playing divisions or variations. These include a set of variations on John Dowland's famous Lachrimae Pavan by German composer Johann Schop as well as a set of divisions over a ground by English composer Godfrey Finger. In addition, the program features several works by early baroque composers, Austrian Heinrich Schmelzer and Italian Giovanni Pandolfi Mealli. Both composers wove virtuoso variations on a repeated bass line into their mid-seventeenth-century experiments with the newly-invented sonata. The High Baroque era is represented by two exciting and charming late sonatas by the Italian flute and oboe virtuoso Francesco Barsanti. Anne will be accompanied throughout the program by Jeff Noonan playing theorbo and he will offer a handful of solo pieces from the early seventeenth century for that instrument.” The Tavern of Fine Arts is at 313 Belt in the Debaliviere Place neighborhood. For more information: tavern-of-fine-arts.blogspot.com.

Symphony Review: A spectacular Holst "Planets" brings the St. Louis Symphony season to a close

Christine Brewer
Photo: Christian Steiner

Share on Google+:

The St. Louis Symphony is bringing its regular season to a spectacular close this weekend (May 6-8, 2016) with Maestro David Robertson leading a simply excellent performance of Holst's The Planets, preceded by an equally impressive Vaughan Williams Flos campi (featuring Associate Principal Viola Kathleen Mattis) and a powerfully neurasthenic Berg Altenberg Lieder with soprano Christine Brewer.

Holst was a relatively obscure composer teaching at the St. Paul's School for Girls in Hammersmith when his suite The Planets, composed between 1914 and 1916, had its first public performance under Adrian Boult and the London Philharmonic in 1918.  The piece was an immediate success—which was not, as it turned out, a welcome development for the rather shy and retiring composer.  Indeed, like many composers who became known for a single piece, Holst eventually came to actively dislike his Greatest Hit, feeling that it overshadowed his other work.

He had a point.  Holst's many choral arrangements, as well as his music for wind band, chamber orchestra, and symphony orchestra, are well worth hearing (his Fugal Overture and Japanese Suite are favorites of mine) so it's a shame that The Planets is pretty much the only thing that ever makes it on to concert programs.  But it's so engaging that it's easy to understand the appeal.

Holst was a mystic and astrologer who cast horoscopes for himself and his friends, so his planets aren’t so much astronomical bodies as they are aspects of the human psyche supposedly influenced by those bodies. Each one of the seven movements is a mini tone poem capturing, for example, mindless aggression ("Mars, the Bringer of War"), good-humored warmth (“Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity”), comic pomposity (“Uranus, the Magician”), or even the rage against the dying of the light and ultimate serenity that come with aging (“Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age”).

Those portraits are brilliant exercises in orchestration. Holst calls for a massive ensemble, including harps, celesta, organ, and rarely heard instruments like the bass oboe (its mournful sound used most tellingly in “Saturn”, beautifully played by Phil Ross).  When the full forces of the SLSO were deployed in playing that score—as in the relentless 5/4 death march of "Mars", with its angry fanfares that go nowhere—the sound was as overwhelming as it was precise. 

But it was in the individual solos that you could hear the real strength of this band.  That included Tim Myers on tenor tuba in "Mars", harpists Allegra Lilly and Megan Stout and keyboard player Peter Henderson on celesta in "Mercury", and Roger Kaza and the other horns in "Venus, the Bringer of Peace"—which also featured Concertmaster David Halen, Principal Cello Danny Lee, and Mark Sparks's flute section.  Karin Bliznik's trumpets were wonderfully clear in "Jupiter" and Andrew Cuneo's bassoons had great comic bite in "Uranus", a movement which seems to owe a little something to Dukas's Sorcerer's Apprentice.  There were many others as well, but you get the idea—we have a great bunch of musicians here.

David Robertson
Photo: Scott Ferguson, St. Louis Symphony

Mr. Robertson conducted a beautifully shaped performance the brought out all the nuances of the score while still respecting the big, climactic moments.  His "Mars" was hair raising, his "Venus" was sheer serenity, and the relentless tread of the passing years in "Saturn" was heartbreaking. 

Most remarkable of all, though, was his treatment of the final movement, “Neptune, the Mystic.” The score calls for a wordless women’s chorus "to be placed in an adjoining room, the door of which is to be left open until the last bar of the piece, when it is to be slowly and silently closed." The final bar of the music, for voices alone, is "to be repeated until the sound is lost in the distance."  Mr. Robertson's approach was to put the women of the SLSO chorus in the halls outside of the dress circle so that, at least from our seats in the orchestra parquet, their voices seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere.  The final fade-out was so subtly done that it was almost impossible to be sure that the piece had really ended; surely those two chords were still being sung somewhere?  Leonard Slatkin and Courtney Lewis did something similar when they conducted The Planets here in 2013, to equally magical effect.

The concerts opened with a far less familiar work by Holst's friend and fellow composer, Ralph Vaughan Williams.  Written in 1925, Flos campi (Flower of the field) is a remarkably beautiful piece written for the unusual combination of viola and mixed chorus along with the orchestra.  Cast in six movements and played without pause, it's a series of reflections on texts from one of the most openly sensual bits of the Bible, the Song of Solomon.  The texts for each movement are printed in the score and, for these performances, were projected on a screen above the orchestra.

By turns poetic, sensuous, pastoral, and even cinematic, it's quirky stuff.  The writing is often very contrapuntal but at the same time completely transparent, so the effect is one of lyrical beauty—all of which came through clearly in this performance.  Kathleen Mattis delivered the solo viola part with real passion, including the arrhythmic, bitonal opening duet with Jelena Dirks's oboe.  Mr. Robertson conducted with great sensitivity and the chorus sang their often complex part to perfection.  You couldn't have asked for a more blissful opening number.

That made for a very effective contrast with the music that followed.  Alban Berg's Fünf Orchesterlieder nach Ansichtskarten-Texten von Peter Altenberg (Five Orchestral Songs to Picture-Postcard Texts by Peter Altenberg), Op. 4 (a.k.a the Altenberg Lieder) were written around the same time as The Planets, but are as far away from Holst's picturesque mysticism as it's possible to get.  The five short songs (one is only a page long) use as their texts elliptical and eccentric poems of Peter Altenberg (real name: Richard Engländer), who sent them to friends on picture postcards—hence the title of this work.

Berg set these elusively bleak poems to intense and unsettling music scored for a large orchestra—around 100 players—that is generally deployed in small groups, so the sound overall is one of chamber music-like delicacy.  That means that individual performers and sections are often very exposed and that there's no room for anything less than very polished and sensitive playing—which is exactly what we got on Friday night.  For her part, soprano soloist Christine Brewer sang and acted Berg's songs with real conviction, combining her customary technical prowess with a real commitment to the text.

A final note: on Friday night, Mr. Robertson took a few moments at the top of the second half to say farewell to second violinist Deborah Bloom, who is retiring after 42 years with the orchestra.  He praised both her musicianship and her dedication to the orchestra's community partnership program with local schools—an essential aspect of the orchestra's mission, if we hope to keep the classics alive.  I thought it was a gracious gesture, and a reminder of why Mr. Robertson has such a good relationship with the musicians.

The final presentation of this concert on Sunday, May 8 concluded the regular season, but the orchestra will be presenting a number of "special event" concerts in May and June.  For more information, visit the orchestra web site.

Symphony Preview: Hit and Miss

Share on Google+:

Unless you've sung in a choir or played in a concert band, you probably know Gustav Holst (1874-1934) only as the composer of his popular orchestral suite The Planets, Op. 32, a performance of which concludes the St. Louis Symphony's regular season this weekend, May 6-8, 2016. Singers will probably know Holst's many choral works, and recovering band geeks like yours truly are likely to be familiar with his two suites from 1909 and 1911, or his Hammersmith: Prelude and Scherzo from 1930. For everybody else, it's The Planets.

Gustav Holst in 1921
Photo: Herbert Lambert

Written between 1914 and 1916, The Planets was an immediate hit and made the previously unknown Holst something of a celebrity. This was not, as it turned out, a welcome development for the rather shy and retiring composer. Indeed, like many composers who became known for a single work, Holst eventually came to actively dislike his Greatest Hit. "Holst never wrote another piece like The Planets again," writes Kenric Taylor at gustavholst.info. "He hated its popularity. When people would ask for his autograph, he gave them a typed sheet of paper that stated that he didn't give out autographs."

If you've never heard The Planets before, you're in for a treat. I remember my delight the first time I heard this wonderfully cinematic seven-movement suite performed by the Vienna Philharmonic under Herbert von Karajan on a 1961 London Records disc. Back then my stereo wasn't much to brag about and the recording itself was a bit murky, but even so, from the first aggressive measures of "Mars, the Bringer of War"--an alarmingly mechanistic march in 5/4 time--I was hooked.

Inspired by the mythological and astrological aspects of the planets, the seven movements turn the heavenly bodies into characters and provide musical portraits of each one. "Mars" is all futile violence and dissonant brass. "Venus, the Bringer of Peace" floats in on a gentle horn solo, wafted along by flutes and strings. "Mercury, the Winged Messenger" zips along its triplets tossed around by the harp, strings, woodwinds, and celesta. And so it goes. Pluto hadn't been discovered yet and earth, of course, doesn't count in astrology, hence the seven movements instead of nine.

Ralph Vaughan Williams
in 1922

Holst actually got two hits out of The Planets, as it happens. The big, noble second theme from "Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity" proved to be so popular that Holst later used it as a setting for Cecil Spring-Rice's poem "I Vow to Thee My Country." That version of the tune became a kind of second national anthem in England, along the lines of "America the Beautiful" over here.

Opening the concert will be a pair of works that are likely to be much less familiar: Ralph Vaughan Williams's Flos campi (Flower of the Field) from 1925 and Alban Berg's Fünf Orchesterlieder nach Ansichtskarten-Texten von Peter Altenberg (Five Orchestral Songs to Picture-Postcard Texts by Peter Altenberg), Op. 4 (a.k.a the Altenberg Lieder), from 1912. Both have been performed by the SLSO only once--the former in 1975 under Leonard Slatkin and the latter in 1966 with Eleazar de Carvalho at the podium--and neither one has exactly been on the "Top 40" with orchestras elsewhere.

In the case of the Vaughan Williams, it's partly a matter of the forces involved. In addition to the orchestra, Flos campi is scored for solo viola and mixed chorus--an unusual enough pairing to make programming it problematic. And the piece itself is a bit of an oddity in the composer's output. Cast in six movements and played without pause, it's a series of reflections on texts from one of the most openly sensual bits of the Bible, the Song of Solomon. By turns lyrical, sensuous, pastoral, and even cinematic, it's quirky stuff. Composer Phillip Cooke has called it "one of the silliest, most baffling and (in some parts) most un-Vaughan Williams piece that RVW ever wrote; it is part pastoral elegy, part crazy pagan party." But he then goes on to confess, "I love it."

The score is dedicated to the noted English violist Lionel Tertis and was, in fact, first performed with Tertis as the soloist in 1925 with Sir Henry Wood at the podium. Like Tertis, Vaughan Williams dearly loved the rich, dark sound of the viola and loved writing for it. Discussing the origins of Flos campi, Vaughan Williams's wife Ursula noted that "The viola with its capability of warmth and its glowing quality was the instrument he knew best."

Alban Berg

A different kind of darkness figures prominently in the Berg song cycle, which takes as its text the elliptical and eccentric poems of Peter Altenberg (real name: Richard Engländer). Engländer/Altenberg was an odd duck. "He is reputed to have spent most of his adult waking hours in coffeehouses," writes James Guida in a profile of the poet in The New Yorker, "and the sleeping ones in a hotel that was little more than a brothel. As for writing, his chosen medium was a feuilleton-style prose poem of anywhere from a sentence to a few pages in length, and he did wonders with it." He sent some of those little poems to his friends on postcards, and it's five of those that Berg set to intense and cryptically passionate music.

Like all of Berg's music, the Altenberg Lieder cram a lot of information into a very small amount of time--ten to twelve minutes in most performances. "Each of the songs is symmetrically conceived," writes Alexander Carpenter at allmusic.com, "that is, each begins and ends with similar, if not identical, harmonic or motivic gestures. The songs make considerable use of canon, passacaglia, and variation form." It was all apparently too much for the Viennese audience at the work's 1913 premiere, who booed and hooted like the Paris audiences at the first performance of Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring that same year.

Alas, Berg lacked Stravinsky's massive ego and talent for self-promotion, so instead of turning the audience reaction to his advantage, he retreated from composing songs entirely, choosing instead to concentrate on his orchestral works and his celebrated operas Wozzeck and Lulu. He might have achieved even greater things, but when the Nazis came to power he was denounced as a composer of entartete music ("degenerate music") and then had the misfortune to die in 1935 at the age of fifty from an infected insect bite. Such is the impact of dumb luck on human affairs.

The Essentials: David Robertson conducts the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and Chorus along with soloists Christine Brewer, soprano, and Kathleen Mattis, viola, on Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m., May 6-8. The program consists of Vaughan William's Flos Campi, Berg's Altenberg Lieder, and Holst's The Planets. Performances take place at Powell Symphony Hall, 718 North Grand.

Symphony Review: Cage Match

Shannon Wood at a preview concert
Photo: Maureen Byrne, St. Louis Sympony

Share on Google+:

[Note: This article was originally published at Classical Voice North America.]

For the penultimate concerts of the current season, on April 30 and May 1, David Robertson and the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra chose a striking contrast of music old and new, pairing Schubert’s monumental Symphony No. 9 (“The Great”) with William Kraft’s Timpani Concerto No. 2 (“The Grand Encounter”). The Schubert was completed just before the composer’s death in 1828, while Kraft’s concerto was first performed in 2005 and then, in a substantially revised version, in 2007. Even so, they both present significant challenges to performers and audiences alike.

SLSO principal timpani Shannon Wood, the soloist in Kraft’s concerto, has an impressive resume as both performer and composer, and he delivered a bravura performance of this demanding work.

Special mallets used in the performance
Photo: Maureen Byrne, St. Louis Sympony

Unlike many of the timpani concerti that have emerged over the last 50 years or so — Michael Daugherty’s Raise the Roof, for example, or Philip Glass’ Concerto Fantasy — Kraft’s work emphasizes the timpani’s melodic role as much as its rhythmic one. It does this, in part, by calling for an unusually large array of 15 tuned drums, arranged in a circular “drum cage” surrounding the soloist and ranging in pitch from a low C below the bass clef to an A above – a span, as Wood pointed out in a pre-concert interview, of nearly three octaves. That extended range is most apparent in the Lento second movement, which exudes the kind of concentrated and somewhat eerie lyricism I associate with the music of Alban Berg, as well as in the unsettled opening of the third movement. But the bottom line is that throughout the work, the soloist is called upon to perform in ways that go above and beyond the usual demands on a timpanist.

Kraft’s concerto, to quote Wood, “stretches the limits of the performer. It’s very athletic, and the range of motion is vast. The work also demands the player to stand while pedaling, which is challenging.” In fact, watching Wood perform, I was struck by how much the work called for the precision and grace of a dancer as well as musical skill. Attired in slacks, shirt, and sneakers, Wood didn’t just play his drums; he virtually danced around that drum cage.

Challenging as the concerto is for the soloist, it can also be a tough nut for the audience to crack. In avoiding the clichés of what, in a 2007 interview, Kraft called the “rat-a-tat, boom-boom music” written for solo percussion since the mid-20th century, the composer has gone to the other extreme and produced a work that, for much of its length, lacks a strong rhythmic pulse and sense of momentum. There are compelling moments, as when the soloist is “trading licks,” jazz-style, with the substantial battery of instruments played by his fellow percussionists. There are even some remarkable solo passages for other instruments, including a virtuoso flutter-tongued flute cadenza leading up to the intense concluding Epilogue. But overall, this work felt episodic and more appealing to the head than the heart.

David Robertson
Photo: Dan Dreyfus, St. Louis Symphony

That said, Robertson and the orchestra did a splendid job with it. Kraft’s score demands a high level of playing from the orchestra as well as the soloist, and the SLSO musicians did not disappoint. Individual lines were clear, the balance with the soloist was excellent, and the percussionists – Will James, John Kasica, Tom Stubbs, and Alan Stewart – skillfully managed a vast variety of instruments. That assortment included an array of gongs, marimba, xylophone, tuned cowbells, and, of course, lots of drums. Peter Henderson also deserves praise for his work on prepared piano.

An obviously leaner orchestra took the stage for the Schubert Ninth, a work that, in its day, was also seen as quite a challenge. Usually referred to as “The Great” to distinguish it from the earlier and less expansive Sixth Symphony, also cast in C major like the Ninth, the last of Schubert’s symphonies was never performed in public during the composer’s lifetime. The premiere didn’t take place until 1839 – 11 years after Schubert’s death – under the baton of Felix Mendelssohn, and even then musicians viewed it as too long and too difficult to play.

They had a point about the length. Clocking in at around 50 minutes, the Ninth would have seemed gargantuan at the time, dwarfed only by Beethoven’s Ninth from four years earlier (1824). Still, it’s hard to hear the Schubert Ninth now and not be completely captivated by the endless flow of irresistible melodies and the rhythmic drive that runs throughout.

Robertson’s tempo choices, while a bit on the stately side at times, nevertheless contributed to a performance that was beautifully proportioned and served to clarify Schubert’s ambitious musical architecture. The solid orchestral playing was highlighted by some especially fine work from the horns, led by principal Roger Kaza. I’m still partial to the “original instrument” approach to music of this period, exemplified by conductors like Sir Roger Norrington and Sir John Eliot Gardiner, but this performance reminded me of the virtues of the “big band” version.

Chuck's Choices for the weekend of May 6, 2016

As always, the choices are purely my personal opinion. Take with a grain (or a shaker) of salt.

Share on Google+:

New This Week:

Ben Nordstrom

The Emerald Room at the Monocle presents Ben Nordstrom in Diary of an Almost Grown-Up on Friday and Saturday, May 6 and 7, at 8 p.m. "Do you ever think to yourself, “Maybe next year I'll start to feel like an adult?” Then the next thing you know, you're geeking out over the casting announcement of the next Star Wars movie or playing whiffle ball in the toy aisle at Wal-Mart. In his return to the cabaret stage, Ben explores the insecurities and follies of stumbling from childhood to adulthood. Do we ever really grow up? The musically eclectic evening will include funny, fresh material from new composers Joe Iconis and Ryan Scott Oliver, as well as songs by Stephen Sondheim, the Beatles, Rodgers & Hammerstein, and Paul Simon." Justin Smolik is pianist and music director for the show. The performances take place in The Emerald Room at The Monocle Bar, 4510 Manchester in The Grove neighborhood. For more information: www.buzzonstage.com/st-louis

My take: Ben is a familiar face to theatre fans locally, with many shows to his credit at the Rep, Stages, and other professional companies. Reviewing his performance as J. Pierrepont Finch in Stages' How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying last July, for example, I wrote that "Mr. Nordstrom hits exactly the right combination winsomeness and winking slyness, along with a fluid sense of physical comedy." He also did a nice set as part of Neal Richardson's solo cabaret debut last weekend. Expect an entertaining evening.

---

The Glass Menagerie
Photo: ProPhotoSTL

Upstream Theater presents Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie, with live music by Joe Dreyer, through May 15. "As Tennessee Williams'classic has entered our collective memory, it has moved from cutting-edge to canonical. Upstream Theater aims to take the piece out of the museum in a way guaranteed to move you, and move you to think. We are proud to present this production in conjunction with the inaugural Tennessee Williams Festival St. Louis." Performances take place at the Kranzberg Arts Center, 501 North Grand in Grand Center. For more information, including show times: upstreamtheater.org.

My take: This radical re-thinking of the Williams classic starts with the assumption that, as a "memory play," it need not concern itself too much with realism. So, in this version, Tom is an elderly man man near the end of his life instead of a younger man still finding himself. Both Tom (J. Samuel Davis) and his mother Amanda (Linda Kennedy) are black while his sister is white, and the sister in this production is actually disabled instead of simply frail. As Steve Callahan writes in his review for KDHX, this doesn't necessarily work at all times. "The Upstream production of The Glass Menagerie will leave you wondering about many things," he says. "But that's good! Do see it. It's well worth your time." And, of course, there's the fact that Davis and Kennedy are very accomplished actors.

---

KTK Productions presents the comedy Laughing Stock through May 8. "A hilarious backstage farce and genuinely affectionate look into the world of the theatre. When the Playhouse, a rustic New England Summer Theatre, schedules a repertory season of Dracula, Hamlet and Charley's Aunt, comic mayhem ensues. We follow the well-intentioned but over-matched company from outrageous auditions to ego-driven rehearsals through opening nights gone disastrously awry to the elation of a great play well told and the comic and nostalgic season close." Performances take place at Southampton Presbyterian Church, 4716 Macklind. For more information: kurtainkall.org or call 314-351-8984.

My take: In his review for KDHX, Steve Callahan says that, despite less than ideal pacing, KTK's show "is a most enjoyable evening...you'll have a fun and laugh-filled time at KTK's Laughing Stock".

---

The Cabaret Project presents its annual Trivia Night Fundraiser on Friday, May 6, from 7-10 p.m. "Show us how much trivial knowledge you have stuffed in your brilliant mind! This is our annual fundraiser to support the St. Louis Cabaret Festival in July 2016 and our new educations programs. PRIZES FOR TOP TWO TABLES! RAFFLES, 50/50 and GENERAL FRIVOLITY GUARANTEED.” Hosted by Phil Donato, The Trivia Guy. Contact Tim Schall at info at thecabaretproject.org to join the fun! Doors open 6:30, Trivia begins at 7:00 p.m. Water, soda light snacks provided. For more information: thecabaretproject.org.

My take: Let me be up front here and admit that I'm on the board of The Cabaret Project. But having said that, I should point out that the reason I'm on the board is that TCP is doing important work in promoting, developing, and sustaining the art of cabaret in St. Louis. Right now we do that mainly by sponsoring the monthly open mic night at Tavern of Fine Arts and bringing St. Louis audiences the annual St. Louis Cabaret Festival, but fundraisers like this one will enable us to expand into other areas such as education and audience development. So come on down and show your trivia smarts; we'd love to see you. And you might even wind up sharing a table with some local cabaret stars.

Held Over:

The Sound of Music
Photo: Matthew Murphy

The Fox Theatre presents the classic Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The Sound of Music opening Tuesday, April 26, and running through May 8. "The hills are alive! A brand new production of THE SOUND OF MUSIC, directed by Jack O'Brien, is coming to the Fox. The spirited, romantic and beloved musical story of Maria and the Von Trapp Family will once again thrill audiences with its Tony®, Grammy® and Academy Award® winning Best Score, including "My Favorite Things," "Do-Re-Mi," "Climb Ev'ry Mountain," "Edelweiss" and the title song." The Fox is on North Grand in Grand Center. For more information: fabulousfox.com.

My take: I haven't seen any reviews yet and my schedule probably won't allow me to see this, but how can you go wrong with this Rodgers and Hammerstein classic? The original stage show isn't as sentimental as the often-criticized film and a big revival is long overdue. This particular production has been gathering very positive reviews as it makes its way across the USA.

---

Trash Mabceth

Equally Represented Arts presents Trash Macbeth running through May 7th. "Lady Macbeth says, 'What's done cannot be undone.' But can it be repurposed? Based on Shakespeare's iconic tragedy, ERA's experimental production Trash Macbeth resuscitates meaning within a climate of destruction, reestablishes the societal norms of America's most traditional era, and reframes the value of our revered Shakespeare, housewifery, and garbage. Trash Macbeth is a full-length, theatrical production created by an ensemble of theatre artists with text from Shakespeare's Macbeth, Emily Post's Etiquette, the book of Revelations, Dr Benjamin Spock's Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care, and 1950's era advertisements." Performances take place at The Chapel, 6238 Alexander Drive. For more information: eratheatre.org.

My take: In a review of the original St. Louis University production of this last October, 88.1 KDHX reviewer Sarah Richardson wrote that "[t]he fates that are spun and the lives unwound in this tragedy reach astounding dramatic heights thanks to a marvelous alchemy of all the elements of theatre: design, staging, performance, and text...A delicious, theatrical nightmare par excellence." Reviewing the current version for KDHX, Steve Callahan calls it "a most remarkable evening of theatre." This is a chance to see the play done by the ensemble whose founder, Lucy Cashion, created the piece for St. Louis U. last fall. Ms. Cashion has made a name for herself locally for her ingenious reworkings of classic plays.

St. Louis theatre calendar for the week of May 2, 2016

[Looking for auditions and other artistic opportunities? Check out the St. Louis Auditions site.]

For information on events beyond this week, check out the searchable database at the Regional Arts Commission's events web site.

Share on Google+

Kirkwood Theatre Guild presents musical The Addams Family, based on the cartoons of Charles Addams, through May 8. "Gomez and Morticia are worried about their daughter Wednesday...she's showing signs of "normal” behavior and they can't help but wonder where they've gone wrong. The change in behavior is explained when they find out their little girl has done something unthinkable...she has fallen in love with a kind, smart, and handsome young man who comes from a respectable family from Ohio. When the boyfriend, Lucas Beineke, and his parents are invited to join the Addams family for dinner, Wednesday asks her family to act as ordinary as possible and Lucas warns his parents to be open-minded. As with most family gatherings, the evening includes a giant pet squid, a secret potion, and an uncle announcing he's in love with the moon...you get the picture. Join the creepy, kooky and always lovable Addams family as they deal with their own version of growing pains." Performances take place in the Robert G. Reim Theatre of the Kirkwood Community Center, 111 South Geyer Road. For more information, call 314-821-9956 or visit ktg-onstage.org.

Bullets Over Broadway
Photo: Matthew Murphy

The Lemp Mansion Comedy-Mystery Dinner Theater presents Bullets in the Bathtub through July 30. The Lemp Mansion is at 3322 DeMenil Place. For more information: mansion.com

Thursday, May 5 at 8 p.m., the Peabody Opera House presents the Broadway musical Bullets Over Broadway, based on the film by Woody Allen. Bullets Over Brodway is he story of a young playwright who, desperate for financial backing, accepts an offer he can't refuse from a mobster looking to please his showgirl girlfriend. The Peabody is at 14th and Market streets, downtown. For more information, visit peabodyoperahouse.com or call 314-622-5420.

The Emerald Room at the Monocle presents Ben Nordstrom in Diary of an Almost Grown-Up on Friday and Saturday, May 6 and 7, at 8 p.m. "Do you ever think to yourself, “Maybe next year I'll start to feel like an adult?” Then the next thing you know, you're geeking out over the casting announcement of the next Star Wars movie or playing whiffle ball in the toy aisle at Wal-Mart. In his return to the cabaret stage, Ben explores the insecurities and follies of stumbling from childhood to adulthood. Do we ever really grow up? The musically eclectic evening will include funny, fresh material from new composers Joe Iconis and Ryan Scott Oliver, as well as songs by Stephen Sondheim, the Beatles, Rodgers & Hammerstein, and Paul Simon." Justin Smolik is pianist and music director for the show. The performances take place in The Emerald Room at The Monocle Bar, 4510 Manchester in The Grove neighborhood. For more information: www.buzzonstage.com/st-louis

The Looking Glass Playhouse presents the classic musical Fiddler on the Roof Thursdays through Sundays, May 5-15. Performances take place at 301 West St. Louis Street in Lebanon, Ill. For more information, visit www.lookingglassplayhouse.com.

The Glass Menagerie
Photo: ProPhotoSTL

Upstream Theater presents Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie, with live music by Joe Dreyer, through May 15. "As Tennessee Williams'classic has entered our collective memory, it has moved from cutting-edge to canonical. Upstream Theater aims to take the piece out of the museum in a way guaranteed to move you, and move you to think. We are proud to present this production in conjunction with the inaugural Tennessee Williams Festival St. Louis." Performances take place at the Kranzberg Arts Center, 501 North Grand in Grand Center. For more information, including show times: upstreamtheater.org.

Family Musical Theater presents the classic Cole Porter musical Kiss Me, Kate opening on Friday, May 6, at 8 p.m. and running through May 15th. "The exciting story of Kiss Me, Kate involves the production of a musical version of William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew and the conflict on and off-stage between Fred Graham, the show's director, producer, and star, and his leading lady, his ex-wife Lilli Vanessi. A secondary romance concerns Lois Lane, the actress playing Bianca, and her gambler boyfriend, Bill, who runs afoul of some gangsters." Performances take place at the Ivory Theatre, 7622 Michigan. For more information, visit www.familymusicaltheater.org or call 314-571-9579.

KTK Productions presents the comedy Laughing Stock through May 8. "A hilarious backstage farce and genuinely affectionate look into the world of the theatre. When the Playhouse, a rustic New England Summer Theatre, schedules a repertory season of Dracula, Hamlet and Charley's Aunt, comic mayhem ensues. We follow the well-intentioned but over-matched company from outrageous auditions to ego-driven rehearsals through opening nights gone disastrously awry to the elation of a great play well told and the comic and nostalgic season close." Performances take place at Southampton Presbyterian Church, 4716 Macklind. For more information: kurtainkall.org or call 314-351-8984.

The Bissell Mansion Murder Mystery Dinner Theatre presents Nursery Crimes through July 31. The Bissell Mansion is at 4426 Randall Place. For more information: bissellmansiontheatre.com.

The Emerald Room at the Monocle presents Rocky Horror and a Little Bit More Cabaret on Saturday, May 7, at 10:30 p.m. "Enjoy the hits of the "Rocky Horror Picture Show" live! Now a monthly tradition at The Emerald Room at The Monocle! " Justin Smolik is pianist and music director for the show. The performance takes place in The Emerald Room at The Monocle Bar, 4510 Manchester in The Grove neighborhood. For more information: www.buzzonstage.com/st-louis.

Curtain's Up Theatre presents the musical School House Rock Live! Thursday through Sunday, May 5-8. Performances take place at the Alfresco Art Center, 2401 Delmar in Granite City, IL. For more information, visit curtainsuptheater.com.

The Fox Theatre presents the classic Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The Sound of Music running through May 8. "The hills are alive! A brand new production of THE SOUND OF MUSIC, directed by Jack O'Brien, is coming to the Fox. The spirited, romantic and beloved musical story of Maria and the Von Trapp Family will once again thrill audiences with its Tony®, Grammy® and Academy Award® winning Best Score, including "My Favorite Things,” "Do-Re-Mi,” "Climb Ev'ry Mountain,” "Edelweiss” and the title song." The Fox is on North Grand in Grand Center. For more information: fabulousfox.com.

Trash Macbeth
Photo: eratheatre.org

Equally Represented Arts presents Trash Macbeth running through May 7th. "Lady Macbeth says, 'What's done cannot be undone.' But can it be repurposed? Based on Shakespeare's iconic tragedy, ERA's experimental production Trash Macbeth resuscitates meaning within a climate of destruction, reestablishes the societal norms of America's most traditional era, and reframes the value of our revered Shakespeare, housewifery, and garbage. Trash Macbeth is a full-length, theatrical production created by an ensemble of theatre artists with text from Shakespeare's Macbeth, Emily Post's Etiquette, the book of Revelations, Dr Benjamin Spock's Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care, and 1950's era advertisements." Performances take place at The Chapel, 6238 Alexander Drive. For more information: eratheatre.org.

The Theatre Guild of Webster Groves presents Horton Foote's drama The Trip to Bountiful Fridays through Sundays, May 6-15. " Mrs. Watts, an aging widow living with her son & daughter-in-law in Houston, Texas, fears that her presence may be an imposition on her family especially her demanding daughter-in-law. Mrs. Watts imagines that if she can get away and return to her old home in the town of Bountiful, she is sure to regain her strength, dignity and peace of mind. This is the story of her journey as she attempts to run away and the kind people she meets along the way." Performances take place in the Guild theatre at Newport and Summit in Webster Groves, MO. For more information: theatreguildwg.org or call 314-962-0876.

The Cabaret Project presents its annual Trivia Night Fundraiser on Friday, May 6, from 7-10 p.m. "Show us how much trivial knowledge you have stuffed in your brilliant mind! This is our annual fundraiser to support the St. Louis Cabaret Festival in July 2016 and our new educations programs. PRIZES FOR TOP TWO TABLES! RAFFLES, 50/50 and GENERAL FRIVOLITY GUARANTEED.” Hosted by Phil Donato, The Trivia Guy. Contact Tim Schall at info at thecabaretproject.org to join the fun! Doors open 6:30, Trivia begins at 7:00 p.m. Water, soda light snacks provided. For more information: thecabaretproject.org.

Would you like to be on the radio? KDHX, 88.1 FM needs theatre reviewers. If you're 18 years or older, knowledgeable in this area, have practical theatre experience (acting, directing, writing, technical design, etc.), have good oral and written communications skills and would like to become one of our volunteer reviewers, send an email describing your experience and interests to chuck at kdhx.org. Please include a sample review of something you've seen recently.

Symphony Review: A jolly evening of "Music You Know" at the St. Louis Symphony

Celeste Golden Boyer
celestegoldenboyer.com

Share on Google+:

Since the inception of the "Music You Know" programming in November of 2014, I have become a great admirer of the St. Louis Symphony's concert series devoted mostly to relatively short works -- most of which are likely to be familiar to SLSO regulars -- paired with an equally accessible new piece.

Yesterday (Friday, April 19, 2016) was the last concert in the 2015/2016 series sponsored by the Whitaker Foundation, and like those that have gone before, it was a jolly business all the way around, with Maestro David Robertson conducting and chatting about the music in between selections.

The fun began with a pretty much perfect run through the lively and tune-filled overture to Leonard Bernstein's 1956 operetta Candide. A standard encore for the orchestra on its tours, the piece is an ideal distillation of Bernstein's skills as a melodist and orchestrator, as well as a display of the sunny optimism once characteristic of America.

Up next was an equally accomplished performance of the "Dance of the Hours" from Amilcare Ponchielli's 1876 opera La Gioconda. It was distinguished by, among other things, some lovely work by harpists Allegra Lilly and Megan Stout in the opening measures, along with pristine playing throughout the piece. It has become hard to take this music seriously after the comic demolition jobs it received from Walt Disney in Fantasia in 1940 and Allan Sherman in his 1963 LP My Son, The Nut, but a performance this good makes it easier to banish thoughts of dancing ostriches and Camp Granada.

The first half concluded with the Chaconne in G minor for Violin and Orchestra, a work attributed to Baroque composer Tomaso Vitali, despite the fact that it contains some very un-baroque key changes. Whatever its origins, Second Associate Concertmaster Celeste Golden Boyer did a splendid job with the solo part, delivering all the dark passion inherent in the music.

The second half started with another winner, the prelude to Engelbert Humperdinck's 1893 opera Hänsel und Gretel. Humperdinck (the original German composer, not the 1960s singer who appropriated his name) was a protégé of Richard Wagner, and there's more than a hint of Die Meistersinger in the piece, especially in the big contrapuntal section towards the end. It's big, complex music and the SLSO musicians more than did it justice. A shout-out is due to Roger Kaza's horns for the powerful, burnished sound of their many exposed passages here.

David Robertson
stlsymphony.org

More images from Fantasia are inevitably summoned up by the next selection, Paul Dukas's popular 1897 tone poem The Sorcerer's Apprentice, partly because -- as Mr. Robertson reminded us -- the music so vividly depicts the story that Disney's animators put on the screen. It's a piece filled with brilliant orchestral details, from the delicate opening measures for flutes, clarinet, harps, and strings, to the comically animated broom depicted by the bassoons, to the massive orchestral climaxes as the hapless apprentice tries to bring that broom under control. This was another bravura performance by the orchestra, with tips of the hat due to (among others) Andrew Cuneo's bassoons and the flutes under Associate Principal Andrea Kaplan.

The new work was next: Cyrillic Dreams by cellist and composer Stefan Freund, an associate professor at the University of Missouri and co-founder of the new music ensemble Alarm Will Sound. Inspired by a visit to Moscow and St. Petersburg, the work is essentially a short concerto grosso in which a solo string quartet consisting of the leaders of the first violins, second violins, violas, and cellos is set against the orchestral strings. The work opens with soaring, yearning opening theme on cello, which is then taken up by the viola, the violins, and eventually the full orchestra. Over the ensuing nine minutes the music rises to rapturous heights in a way that reminded me of the Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis by Vaughan Williams.

Stefan Freund

The solo quartet consisted of Principal Cello Daniel Lee, Assistant Principal Viola Jonathan Chu, Associate Principal Second Violin Kristin Ahlstrom (substituting for the originally scheduled Allison Harney), and (substituting for the originally scheduled David Halen) Associate Concertmaster Heidi Harris. They sang with their instruments flawlessly, as did the entire string section. If only the audience member with the nonstop cough had been polite enough to leave the auditorium instead of hacking all the way through the piece, the experience would have been ideal.

The evening came to an appropriately blazing finish with the horns and brasses in particularly fine form in Wouter Hutschenruyter's orchestral arrangement of "The Ride of the Valkyries" from Wagner's Die Walküre.

"Just look at this orchestra's recent birth rate," quipped Mr. Robertson at one point during the evening: "They are a happy group of active people." Indeed they are, and their joy in making music inevitably spills over into the audience.

Next at Powell Hall: David Robertson conducts orchestra with tympani soloist Shannon Wood on Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m., April 30 and May 1. The program consists of William Kraft's Timpani Concerto No. 2, "The Grand Encounter," and Schubert's Symphony No. 9. Performances take place at Powell Symphony Hall, 718 North Grand.

St. Louis classical calendar for the week of May 2, 2016

The Arianna String Quartet

Share on Google+:

The Touhill Performing Arts Center presents The Arianna String Quartet in Beethoven's Triumps on Friday, May 6, at 8 PM. "The ASQ's season finale begins with Edvard Grieg's electrifying String Quartet in G minor, Op.27, an audience favorite that soars with a breadth of expression and powerful resonance like no other in the string quartet repertoire. The Arianna Quartet brings their 2015-16 series to a close with Beethoven's monumental late string quartet, the Quartet in C# minor, Op.131. As a musical testament to the power and fragility of the human experience, Beethoven's creation is a timeless masterpiece that offers hope, strength and insight into the complexity of humankind's emotional and intellectual existence." The Touhill Performing Arts Center in on the University of Missouri at St. Louis campus. For more information: touhill.org.

The St. Louis Children's Choirs present their Spring Concert on Sunday, May 7, at 2 and 7 p.m. "Music Makers, Children's Choirs 1A, Chorale 2A and 2UC, and Choristers will perform a variety of music to include Broadway songs, world music, classical favorites, and music from Americana." The concerts take place at in the J. Scheidegger Center for the Arts on the Lindenwood University campus in St. Charles. For more information: slccsing.org.

Christine Brewer
christinebrewer.com

David Robertson conducts the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and Chorus along with soloists Christine Brewer, soprano, and Kathleen Mattis, viola, on Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m., May 6-8. The program includes Hosts's The Planets, Vaughan-Williams's Flos campi, and Berg's Altenberg Lieder. Performances take place at Powell Symphony Hall, 718 North Grand. For more information: stlsymphony.org.

On Monday, at 8 p.m., The Tavern of Fine Arts presents classical guitarist Bryan Albert in an evening of raditional classical and jazz tunes, 90s alternative, and Mr. Albert's own compositions. The Tavern of Fine Arts is at 313 Belt in the Debaliviere Place neighborhood. For more information: tavern-of-fine-arts.blogspot.com.

Symphony Preview: Somethig old / something new / it's new music / from Mizzou

You might have noticed that there's no Friday, April 29, performance this weekend of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra concert featuring William Kraft's Timpani Concerto No. 2 and Schubert's Symphony No. 9. That's because Friday's "Storytelling" program is the last of the season's Whitaker Foundation "Music You Know" concerts. David Robertson is on the podium, SLSO violinist Celeste Golden Boyer is the soloist, and here's what you can expect.

Share on Google+:

Leonard Bernstein in 1971
en.wikipedia.org

Bernstein: Candide Overture -- Leonard Bernstein's 1956 operetta Candide, based on the satire by Voltaire, has been through almost as many changes as its titular hero. By the time it opened on Broadway, it had already gone through a string of lyricists (including Dorothy Parker and James Agee) and over a dozen revisions by Lillian Hellman of her original book. Various incarnations of the show continued to pop up for the ensuing decades, including a 1973 Harold Prince "revival" that jettisoned half of the score and (after moving to the Broadway Theatre the following year) ended up over $150,000 in the red despite a string of Tony and Critics Circle awards. Somehow, the lively and tune-filled overture has remained largely intact.

Ponchielli: "Dance of the Hours" from La Gioconda -- Fans of Disney's Fantasia will, of course, recognize this as the music that accompanies a zoological ballet, while fans of the late Allan Sherman will immediately think of his hit "Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah (A Letter from Camp)." Some of us think of both simultaneously, but that's another story. In Ponchielli's opera (which still gets performed now and then, especially in Italy), the title of which translates literally as "The Happy Woman," the ballet sequence comes towards the end of an otherwise dramatically grim Act III, the action of which includes the apparent suicide of the protagonist.

Vitali (orch. Charlier): Chaconne in G minor for Violin and Orchestra -- The chaconne is a series of variations on a repeating figure in the bass line. The form was popular during the Baroque period, which is when Tomaso Antonio Vitali (March 7, 1663 -- May 9, 1745) was composing. This chaconne is just about the only one of his works which is played with any frequency these days--which is somewhat ironic, given that it's not entirely clear whether or not he actually wrote it. This arrangement is by Léopold Charlier, about whom even less is known than about Vitali. Celeste Golden Boyer will be the violin soloist.

Not this guy

Humperdinck: Prelude to Hänsel und Gretel -- Engelbert Humperdinck (the original German composer, not the 1960s singer who appropriated his name) was a protégé of Richard Wagner, so it's not surprising that the prelude to his 1893 opera sounds more than a little bit like the one his mentor wrote for Die Meistersinger (note, in particular, the contrapuntal section towards the end). It's big, complex music for a modest fairytale story.

Dukas: The Sorcerer's Apprentice -- Speaking of Fantasia, Paul Dukas's popular 1897 tone poem has, perhaps, become far too closely associated with a certain animated rodent for its own good, so it's always good to hear it live, in an environment in which those delicate opening measures can emerge from complete silence. The inspiration for both the music and Disney's animation was a 1797 poem by Goethe, Der Zauberlehrling. Dukas wrote other works that deserve at least as much attention as this one, by the way. His 1896 Symphony in C, for example, is a very dramatic and colorful piece that deserves far more attention than it has gotten.

Stefan Freund
music.missouri.edu

Stefan Freund: Cyrillic Dreams -- The "Music You Know" concerts always include at least one work that you probably don't know, but should. This time around, that work is by a composer who is an associate professor at the University of Missouri, the cellist and one of the co-founders of the new music ensemble Alarm Will Sound, artistic director of the Mizzou New Music Initiative, and the principal conductor and music director of the Columbia Civic Orchestra. Which is not a bad collection of accomplishments for someone in his early forties. The composer is quoted in Eddie Silva's program notes as saying that Cyrillic Dreams was inspired by a series of dreams in which he was surrounded by the daunting and foreign letters of the Cyrillic alphabet, as well as by "the colorful domes and clamorous bells of Moscow and St. Petersburg," which he visited in 2008.

As my friend Dean Minderman pointed out to me in a recent email, this is one of just eight works by living composers on this year's schedule, and marks the second time in three seasons the SLSO has played a work by a Missouri composer. The last time it was Stephanie Berg's entertaining Ravish and Mayem back in 2014.

Wagner: "Ride of the Valkyries" (arr. Hutschenruyter) from Die Walküre -- Maybe you associate this music with the words "kill da waabit." Or possibly with "I love the smell of napalm in the morning." Or maybe just with the image of women in helmets singing very forcefully. It is, in any case, an integral part of the musical DNA of the Western world and an appropriately rousing final work for the concert.

The Essentials: David Robertson conducts the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra with violin soloist Celeste Golden Boyer on Friday, April 29, at 8 p.m. The performance takes place at Powell Symphony Hall, 718 North Grand.