All posts by Dana Wen

Arts & Entertainment, Music

Classical Music on the Cheap: Opera at the Library

Classical music often gets a bad rap as being a status symbol for the wealthy.  There’s a popular misconception that classical concerts are prohibitively expensive affairs attended by snobbish rich folks. Author and classical music critic Alex Ross sums it up well in his recent post in The New Yorker‘s arts & entertainment blog:

If popular stereotypes about classical music held true, the genre should have had no social or political relevance in 2011, one of the darkest and angriest years in recent American history. Classical music is, we are given to understand, the playground of the one per cent, the province of the super-rich. When concerts are depicted in the movies, you see élites in evening wear gazing snootily through archaic eyewear at misbehaving interlopers.

In reality, the price of a Seattle Symphony or Seattle Opera ticket is comparable to a seat at a rock concert or sports event. There are also plenty of free and nearly-free classical concerts that are every bit as exciting as the high-profile celebrity recitals and opera productions. Discounts and deals on tickets abound. Classical music is actually quite accessible to everyone–you just have to know where to look.

In this new monthly series, “Classical Music on the Cheap”, I’ll explore different ways of enjoying classical music in Seattle without breaking the bank.  So whether you’ve resolved to spend less, get out more, or expand your musical horizons, be sure to check out Seattle’s vibrant classical music scene this year.

This month, I head to your local branch of the Seattle Public Library for a free preview of Seattle Opera’s production of Attila, the 1846 opera by Giuseppe Verdi. The previews began this week and continue through next week in preparation for the opening night of Attila on January 14. Several branches around the city will be offering previews, which feature a lecture, musical excerpts, and video clips. Learn about the history and story of the opera and get a behind-the-scenes peek at the Seattle Opera production.

If live music is what you’re after, SPL’s Central Library hosts a free monthly concert series presented by the Ladies Musical Club of Seattle. This month’s recital is on January 11 at noon and features works by Rachmaninoff, Mendelssohn, Czerny, and Arutiunian. Violinist Candice Chin, clarinetist David Frank, and pianists Jim Whitehead, Risa Jun, and Yelena Balabanova will perform. If you work downtown or on First Hill, this concert series offers a great excuse to get out of the office at lunchtime. The Ladies Musical Club also offers free concerts at other Seattle venues, including the Seattle Art Museum, the Frye Art Museum, and local retirement communities.

The Central Library also hosts other free concerts and musical events from time to time.  Check the Central events page for a schedule and more information.

Arts & Entertainment, Music

Seattle Symphony Rings in the New Year With the Ninth

The Seattle Symphony performs Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony on Saturday night, December 31, at 9 p.m.  at Benaroya Hall. Saturday’s New Year’s Eve concert will be followed by a gala celebration with drinks, dancing, and a midnight countdown. More details and tickets are available at the Seattle Symphony website.

Gerard Schwarz

It’s safe to say that virtually everyone knows Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. The work’s famous “Ode to Joy” melody, taken from the final movement of the Symphony, is one of the most recognizable tunes in Western music. The Ninth’s uplifting message and epic scale, which combines orchestra, chorus, and vocal soloists for a grand finale, makes this piece a favorite for the holiday season.

The Seattle Symphony has an annual tradition of ringing in the new year with performances of Beethoven’s Ninth, and this year, Conductor Laureate Gerard Schwarz returns to the podium at Benaroya Hall for these popular concerts. Performances began on Wednesday evening and will be held nightly, culminating in a special New Year’s Eve concert and gala on Saturday night.

Last night’s performance brought a festive atmosphere and diverse crowd to Benaroya Hall. It marked a special day for the Seattle Symphony: The 108th anniversary of its first concert.

Although this fact wasn’t mentioned at last night’s concert, everyone seemed to be in a celebratory mood, from the musicians to the audience. The program was very family-friendly, featuring vivid and colorful pieces guaranteed to enthrall both children and adults alike. In addition to Beethoven’s Ninth, the Seattle Symphony performed a suite of excerpts from another holiday favorite, Engelbert Humperdinck’s fairytale opera Hansel & Gretel.

The program opened with the Suite from Hansel & Gretel, which is comprised of five musical interludes taken from scenes in the opera. Humperdinck, a colleague of Richard Wagner, took cues from his celebrated contemporary by using rich orchestral textures and complex harmonies, evoking a fairytale landscape both enchanting and perilous.

After a majestic brass fanfare at the beginning of the suite, the woodwinds paint a whimsical picture of Hansel and Gretel frolicking in the forest and eventually stumbling upon the witch’s gingerbread house. Humperdinck’s writing calls for a rich string texture, which helps create drama when the witch is defeated and the children dance a celebratory waltz. The Seattle Symphony string section was up to the task, creating many lovely and exciting moments.

The audience returned from intermission eager for the epic majesty of Beethoven’s Ninth. The work opens dramatically, beginning with small chirps from the string section and building until the orchestra is playing in full force. Maestro Schwarz did an excellent job of maintaining the dramatic sound over the course of the first movement. The second movement is dominated by a fugue theme that begins in the string section and echoes throughout the movement, and the French horn and woodwind sections gave particularly fine performances here, especially Seth Krimsky on bassoon.

After a slow and lyrical third movement, the fourth movement begins with a roiling storm that musters the entire orchestra. As the storm subsides, strains of the “Ode to Joy” theme begin to peek through, finally emerging in full form in the low strings.  The doublebass section sounded fantastic in those first, muted statements of the theme.

Greer Grimsley

After the “Ode to Joy” theme is tossed around the orchestra a few times, the chorus and vocal soloists step in with tidings of joy and praise. The text they sing is based on a poem by Friedrich Schiller, with alterations by Beethoven himself. This year, the four soloists joining the Symphony are soprano Christine Goerke, tenor John Mac Master, and the husband-and-wife team of mezzo-soprano Luretta Bybee and bass-baritone Greer Grimsley.

Grimsley’s powerful voice made a majestic entrance and set the mood for the rest of the epic finale, which brings together orchestra, chorus, and soloists in various configurations. Mac Master was spot-on in the famous tenor solo.  The Seattle Symphony Chorale, led by Joseph Crnko, gave a spirited performance that added even more excitement and energy.

Last night’s rousing performance inspired and excited many audience members. As I was exiting Benaroya Hall, I kept overhearing people raving about how much the musicians and singers seemed to enjoy themselves. Clearly, the tradition of celebrating the New Year with Beethoven’s Ninth remains alive and well in Seattle.