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Arts & Entertainment, Music

What We’re Hearing This Month: Classical Music Picks for April

Spectrum Dance Theater's production of “A Cruel New World/the new normal” (Photo: Nate Watters)
Spectrum Dance Theater’s production of A Cruel New World/the new normal (Photo: Nate Watters)

This month, head to the classical concert hall for some serious time-traveling. Experience a cantata that was lost to the world for hundreds of years, then expand your horizons with new local music that’s hot off the press. No matter if you’re a fan of modern dance, medieval literature, or sports and games, there’s something on the calendar for you this April.

Apr. 5 – 6 — Lost to the world until 2001, Handel’s cantata Gloria was rediscovered at the Royal Academy of Music library. Now’s your chance to hear this recovered masterpiece in Seattle. This weekend, Pacific MusicWorks performs Gloria as part of an all-Handel program, which also includes the celebrated cantata Apollo e Dafne.

Benjamin Bagby performs Beowulf in the medieval bardic tradition (Photo: Gilles Juhel)
Benjamin Bagby performs Beowulf in the medieval bardic tradition (Photo: Gilles Juhel)

Apr. 6 — Calling all Renaissance fair devotees, Lord of the Rings fans, and classical literature aficionados! Experience medieval storytelling with Benjamin Bagby’s retelling of Beowulf. At this presentation hosted by the Early Music Guild, Bagby recounts the epic tale in Old English (modern English subtitles provided) while accompanying himself on the Anglo-Saxon harp.

Apr. 10 — Head to Town Hall for an evening of playful new music inspired by games. Joined by ever-ebullient cellist Joshua Roman, the Talea Ensemble performs light-hearted works from the 20th and 21st centuries, including pieces by Milton Babbitt and John Zorn. With a program featuring titles such as “Pong,” “Deuce,” and “Match,” this concert has a serious emphasis on fun.

Apr. 11 – 13 — Spectrum Dance Theater‘s Donald Byrd celebrates ten years as artistic director by returning to his roots with a re-staging of A Cruel New World/the new normal, Byrd’s first original work with the ensemble. A commentary on life in a post-9/11 world, the production makes use of the expansive Emerald City Trapeze Arts Aerialdrome. What tricks is Byrd hiding up his sleeve for this unusual choice of venue?

Apr. 13 – 14 — Drawing inspiration from the tempting songs of the mythical Sirens, contemporary choral ensemble The Esoterics explores the theme of call-and-response in vocal music. The program touches on an intriguing variety of topics, jumping from Homer’s Odyssey to the Iraqi War and even touching on popular television drama The Wire.

Apr. 19 & 21 — Experience chamber music up close with Simple Measures. The chamber music collective brings together stars of the local classical music scene for intimate performances. This month, new Seattle Symphony concertmaster Alexander Velinzon joins forces with cellist Rajan Krishnaswami, pianist Mark Salman, and clarinetist Sean Osborn for a program of works that explore the musical element of harmony.

Apr. 26 — The musicians of the Seattle Symphony are more than just talented performers — they’re skilled composers as well. Hear world premiere performances of compositions by Symphony musicians Seth Krimsky, Ben Hausmann, and Jordan Anderson at this late-night concert, the third installation in “Untitled,” a popular new series featuring 20th century and contemporary music.

Apr. 27 – 28 —  The Auburn Symphony pulls out all the stops with two dramatic masterpieces: Strauss’ Death and Transfiguration and Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring. Both works tell powerful musical stories. Death and Transfiguration follows the meditations of a dying artist as he recounts scenes from his life, while Stravinsky’s infamous ballet depicts a ritual sacrifice in primeval Russia.

Apr. 28 — Celebrate with the talented young musicians of the Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra as they commemorate seventy years of music education and outreach. Hear performances by SYSO’s four orchestras, watch archival films of landmark moments in the organization’s history, and support the young classical musicians of the future.

Arts & Entertainment, Music

Joshua Roman’s TownMusic Series Begins with a Trio Treat

Joshua Roman (Photo: Tina Su)

Joshua Roman needs no introduction to Seattle, where he has been the fair-haired darling of classical groupies ever since his appointment as principal cellist for the Seattle Symphony in 2006, a two-year stint which he left to pursue a varied solo career.

However, his appeal to Seattleites, not to mention his fine playing and eclectic musical ideas, inspired Town Hall to engage him to spearhead a new series called TownMusic in 2007.

Now beginning its sixth season, the series of five concerts ranges from the wacky (A Little Nightmare Music, this November) to the intellectually adventurous (violinist Jennifer Koh’s exploration of Bach, his influence on and connection to composers in all genres, next February), to the purely classical as in the opening performance last Tuesday. Roman performs in three of them.

For this concert, Roman, pianist Victor Santiago Asuncion, and violinist Dale Barltrop performed trios by Beethoven and Schubert as well as a recent work by Dan Visconti, a composer whose work Roman has brought here before.

From the first notes of the Beethoven, it was clear that this threesome is of the caliber we’ve come to expect in the UW Series at Meany Hall or at the Seattle Chamber Music Festival. Moreover, Town Hall has the intimacy for chamber music that the size of Meany Theater obviates, and the warm acoustics support the performers as they don’t at Nordstrom Recital Hall.

Barltrop is beginning his fourth season as concertmaster of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, and met Roman at the Cleveland Institute of Music where both were studying. Both have been avid players of chamber music, and Barltrop and Asuncion both studied at the University of Maryland.

They are not listed in the program as a named trio. But having heard them, I can hope that they decide to perform together on a regular basis. This concert was part of a short concert tour which began in Memphis and from here headed to Vancouver and then goes to Australia.

Their Beethoven, the early Trio in B-Flat Minor, was a joy. First noticed was Asuncion’s playing, his runs so clean, so light, so expressive, his phrasing so beautifully shaped. But Barltrop’s and Roman’s playing was equally sensitive, all three of them building to climaxes, ratcheting back to sudden softer sections, full of verve and attack but without aggression in an eloquence which held and absorbed the listener.

Their Schubert, the Trio in E-Flat Major, combined thoughtful undercurrents with bubbling charm, somber at one moment, full of excitement here, lightheartedness there. At all times the three played as with one mind, always balanced so that no instrument overwhelmed the others but came to the fore at the appropriate moments.

Visconti’s Lonesome Road, in its Seattle premiere, is an 18-minute work in seven short movements which purports to portray that American vacation standby, the crosscountry roadtrip. Apparently the movements can be played in any order, and for this trip it seemed they were driving in circles. I heard, I thought, something from Tenessee, down to New Orleans with more than a hint of jazz, out to Kansas with one of that state’s huge summer storms, and back to a bit of Kentucky bluegrass, always with the feel of cars whizzing by and fading in the distance: A well-designed, amusing work easy to hear and never becoming boring.

I’d go with keen interest to hear any of these performers again, separately or together as a trio. The audience, a good size for any concert so early in the concert season, seemed to feel likewise, judging by its response.

Arts & Entertainment, Music

What We’re Hearing This Month: Classical Music Picks for September

Alas, the sunny days of summer are winding down. However, as fall approaches, classical music ensembles around the city are gearing up for a new season of performances. This month, both the Seattle Symphony and Town Hall begin their 2012-13 concert seasons with spectacular opening night programs. Also on the calendar this September is the 100th anniversary of John Cage’s birth. Performances celebrating the famed composer’s life are scheduled around the country, with Seattle being no exception.

Violinist Joshua Bell joins the Seattle Symphony for their Opening Night Concert & Gala (Photo: South Florida Classical Review)

The weather may be cooling off, but things are just starting to warm up in concert halls around the city…

Sep. 7 – 9 — John Cage, anyone? Innovative vocal ensemble The Esoterics celebrates the composer’s 100th birthday with three evenings of concerts. They’ll be performing 42 of the 92 works in Cage’s Songbook, as well as three of his “Number Pieces“: Four2, Four6, and Five. This ambitious series of performances has plenty to offer for Cage fans and newbies alike.

Sep. 11 — Town Hall kicks off its 2012-13 TownMusic series with an evening of piano trios. Cellist Joshua Roman, who serves as music director of TownMusic, will be joined onstage by Vancouver-based violinist Dale Barltrop and pianist Victor Santiago Asuncion. The program will be a mix of old and new, featuring beloved works by Beethoven and Schubert alongside a piece by up-and-coming composer Dan Visconti.

Sep. 15 — The Seattle Symphony begins the 2012-13 concert season with a festive evening of American music. This year’s Opening Night Concert & Gala features superstar violinist Joshua Bell performing Bernstein’s Serenade. Also on the program is Copland’s inspiring Lincoln Portrait, which will be narrated by former Washington State Governor Daniel J. Evans.

Oct. 1 — Author Paul Elie visits Town Hall to discuss his book Reinventing Bach. His multimedia presentation, which includes clips of performances by Glenn Gould, Pablo Casals, and Yo-Yo Ma, will explore how contemporary artists and musicians keep J.S. Bach’s music fresh and relevant in today’s world.

Arts & Entertainment, Music

Cheers for Joshua Roman’s TownMusic All-Cello Celebration

Joshua Roman (Photo: Tina Su)

Joshua Roman’s TownMusic series wrapped up Tuesday night at Town Hall, with music entirely for four to eight cellos. Some might think a grouping like this could be boring, but it’s not the first time at Town Hall we’ve had only cellos, and it’s a wonderfully rich, reverberant sound. Roman turns out not only to be a fine emcee as he introduces music or musicians, his choices are eclectic and enlivening, and his programming well arranged.

Thus the first half of the program had to do with spiritual life and death, beginning and ending with arrangements by Roman of Radiohead’s “Street Spirit” and Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven.” In between came Piazzolla’s La Muerte del Angel and his La Resurrección del Angel, either side of Richard Strauss’ “Beim Schlafengen (Going to Sleep)” from Four Last Songs, and followed by La deploration (lament, sorrow) sur la mort de Johannes Ockeghem by Josquin, and Arvo Pärt’s Fratres.

They made for a consistently engaging group of works, with successful arrangements of the Strauss by Walter Gray and the Josquin by Charles Jacot. Four cellists performed most of this: Roman, Julie Albers from Atlanta, Richard Belcher from New York, and Efe Baltacigil, just ending his first year as principal cello of the Seattle Symphony.

“Street Spirit” translated well into a restful and relaxed introduction to this concert theme, while the unmistakable Argentinian idiom of Piazzolla flavored his two works. A canon and a romantically soulful melody imbued the first, and a declamatory role followed a hypnotic start in the second, with a more agitated vigor toward the end. In both of these Baltacigil took the lead, while Belcher and Albers had the melody in the Strauss.

Roman chose throughout most of the concert to anchor the lowest accompanying musical line, handing the limelight to his talented colleagues, each of whom played with expressive warmth and an easy technique which seemed to release the sound rather than pull it out of the instrument.

The reduction of vibrato in the lower voices gave a pure sound to the Josquin polyphony, where Belcher’s tone floated lightly above, much of this very soft and fading out at the end.

For the Pärt, the four cellists were joined by four more, Jacot, Gray, Roberta Hansen Downey, and Meeka Quan DiLorenzo (the last three Seattle Symphony cellists and Jacot a member of the Pacific Northwest Ballet orchestra and frequent Symphony sub), plus a drummer in a minor role, Antonio DiLorenzo.

Fratres, a gorgeous, moving work with two soft continuing drones at the side (Roman and Jacot), alternated a slow melody like a peaceful hymn tune often using harmonics with plucks, taps, and bounced bows in brief.

All of these works were so varied in approach, though never very loud, that they consistently held the attention. Not so “Stairway to Heaven,” which in comparison sounded dull, repetitive, and unimaginative.

A commissioned world premiere by Mason Bates for solo cello followed intermission. Bates, who writes successfully for large orchestra incorporating electronics into his music, commented on the challenge of writing for one acoustic instrument, saying that he had eventually realized that there is a wide range of musical variety in the tone of that one instrument.

However, his realization did not really come to fruition in his Town Hall Analog. His 15-minute work largely comprised arpeggios from bottom to top of the instrument, sometimes plucked, sometimes with a harmonic and a longer note with more character at the top. The whole was quite spare. There was little by way of phrasing, development, or an arched shape to the piece, and Bates failed to take any advantage of the depth and sonorities of the cello, making it feel more an intellectual exercise. Roman performed this without a score, giving it a well-considered performance.

Totally different and much more appealing was Anne Wilson’s moving Lament (in Memory of Matthew Shepard), for solo cello with cello quartet. Here the solo was taken by Albers. It’s programmatic, but not overtly so, finely harmonized and with all the emotional content lacking in Bates’ piece.

Lastly, the eight cellos played the first of Villa-Lobos’ Bachianas Brasileiras, the composer’s take on Bach, Brazilian-style. The cellos mostly played in pairs, their synchronicity extraordinary and the whole highly satisfying. Ensemble work was excellent, throughout the concert, matched not only in being together but with matched tone in each piece, and all of them first-class musicians. It was particularly good to hear Baltacigil in a prominent role.

This was a long concert, more than two and a half hours, but the jam-packed Town Hall audience would likely have been happy to stay for more.

Arts & Entertainment, Music

Joshua Roman’s All-Star Cello Extravaganza Rolls Into Town Hall

Joshua Roman and an all-cello ensemble perform music by Mason Bates, Richard Strauss, Astor Piazzolla, Hector Villa-Lobos, Arvo Pärt, and Led Zeppelin at Town Hall Seattle on Tuesday, June 19, 2012, at 7:30 p.m.

Cellist Joshua Roman has been making waves in Seattle since 2006, when he was named principal cellist of the Seattle Symphony. After a two-year tenure with the Symphony, Roman left to pursue a solo career, but has remained a strong force in the local classical music scene. As artistic director of Town Hall’s popular TownMusic concert series, he’s brought innovative classical music programming to Seattle audiences, with a special focus on new music and emerging artists.

The 2011-12 TownMusic season concludes this Tuesday with an all-star cello concert featuring Roman and seven prominent local cellists. The diverse program spans centuries and genres, including Strauss art songs, Piazzolla tangos, and a Led Zeppelin cover arranged by Roman himself. Performances feature a variety of cello ensembles, ranging from solo cellist to cello octet.

Joshua Roman (Photo: Tina Su)

The highlight of the evening will be the world premiere of a work for solo cello by composer Mason Bates, continuing the TownMusic tradition of premiering a commissioned work at the final concert of each season. An acclaimed performer, composer, and DJ, Bates is taking the classical music world by storm with his unique blend of orchestral and electronic sounds.

Roman plans to carry TownMusic’s winning blend of ambitious programming, exciting new works, and emerging talent into the upcoming 2012-13 season. “Next season will retain the diversity of style and era that has been showcased in previous seasons, but with a few twists,” he said, writing from Nova Scotia, where he recently completed a two-week residence at the Scotia Festival of Music. “There will be familiar faces as well as some new ones that we’re excited to introduce to Seattle.”

Although next season’s lineup won’t be revealed until Tuesday’s concert, Roman hinted at the surprises in store. “We’re adding the element of humor. It’s something which we can all relate to, and is often overlooked during our pursuit of the ‘seriousness’ in music.”

TownMusic’s owes much of its success to Roman’s fresh perspective on classical music. To him, it’s a continually evolving art form that honors the past while adapting to the current cultural climate. “If you really look at the history of classical music over the last few centuries, rather than just the last 50-60 years, you see that one of its biggest strengths has been the ability to adapt to cultural changes and needs. Sometimes ahead of the curve, and sometimes with a bit of a lag, but always changing.”

This viewpoint has inspired him in the choices he’s made with TownMusic. The series offers something for everyone, from world-class performances of chamber music favorites to genre-blending new works inspired by rock, pop, electronica, and jazz. Often, music representing these two extremes appears in the same concert program.

Roman emphasizes the importance of experimentation in his role as TownMusic artistic director. “There is a way of thinking that is ‘this is how it’s been done, and so it should always be done this way’, but I think that is an unproductive mode to be in. These days, as orchestras are trying new things every season, its easy to see the need for flexibility as a presenter.”

The concept of flexibility extends to Roman’s view of himself as a performer. “I think we need to be adapting more as musicians. The era of recording changed the game and brought new levels of technical proficiency and competition to all corners of the music world, but in the pursuit of ‘perfection’ some important musical elements can become undervalued. Great musicians of the past wrote, played, and presented music, even if they were better at one than the others.”

Roman stresses the importance of these skills to today’s classical musicians. “In my own experience, writing music has helped me understand more of how a composer might think, and therefore enhanced my interpretations and ability to focus on the ‘what’ and ‘how’ in music, not just try to hit each note perfectly.”

Tuesday’s concert perfectly embodies Roman’s philosophy of musical flexibility, incorporating his talents as a performer, arranger, and concert presenter. Though he will be performing as a soloist, Roman is also enthusiastic about his role as a collaborative musician. “I’ve chosen some points during the concert to highlight the other cellists in the core quartet, so I’ll get to play ‘second fiddle’ on several of the pieces, something I’m really looking forward to.”

The concert isn’t just an opportunity to grow musically. For Roman, it’s a labor of love. “(It’s) something I have wanted to put on at Town Hall Seattle for a few years now,” he said. The concert pays tribute to the cello, showcasing what Roman describes as “its inherent range of expressivity, color, and sexiness”. “The cello is not only a unique voice, but a versatile one, so the repertoire was chosen to reflect this ability to be vocal, to be rhythmic, to be ethereal, and to rock out.”

Roman relishes this opportunity to collaborate with others who share his passion for the cello. Among the cellists joining him on stage are several Seattle Symphony members, including current principal cellist Efe Baltacigil. It’ll be a veritable Seattle cello family reunion. “It is a great joy to work with colleagues you haven’t seen in awhile. Cellists tend to be a cool bunch of musicians to hang with!”

Arts & Entertainment, Music

Joshua Roman Plays Bach Suites for a Full House

Joshua Roman (Photo: Tina Su)

From the time he first arrived five years ago, a tousle-headed, lanky kid of 22, to take up the position of principal cellist for the Seattle Symphony, Joshua Roman has been a pied piper. Almost any time he has appeared here as soloist, with an orchestra, in chamber music or in recital, he has drawn an enthusiastic crowd of people who might otherwise not go to a concert.

During the two years of his position with the orchestra here, before he took off on a solo career, Roman worked hard, playing all sorts of music in all sorts of venues, with all sorts of groups. He has a natural facility for conecting with an audience. While still here, he was appointed artistic director of TownMusic at Town Hall, and given the opportunity to craft programs which reflect his varied musical influences and ideas.

Since leaving, he has expanded what he did here to the world stage, but he remains dear to the hearts of Seattle fans who turn out in droves to hear any performance he gives.

Last Sunday, Roman returned to Town Hall for the first of the 2011-2012 TownMusic series, to play all six of the Bach Cello Suites in a marathon solo performance. The concert started at 4 p.m. and, with a couple of fifteen-minute breaks and a two-hour dinner intermission, it lasted until after nine.

Town Hall was sold out, and the audience made clear its pleasure in every note Roman played.

Bach wrote these dance suites between the ages of thirty-two and thirty-eight, no one knows for what occasions or what instrument, though they seem to suit cello or viola da gamba best. Many of the most famous cellists of the past century have performed them, such as Pablo Casals, who disinterred them from undeserved oblivion, YoYo Ma today, and baroque cellists like Anner Bylsma.

The suites attract continuing interest from performers, who revisit them time and again as they grow and mature, and find new insights into them. Roman is by no means the first young cellist to tackle them, and like his predecessors, he is likely to come back to them again and again.

Sunday’s performance was technically excellent, and there were some parts where he found the musical depths and portrayed them sublimely. Such was his entire performance of Suite No. 3 in C Major. Roman seemed in the groove, one with his cello. His tempos felt just right, his cello sang, the musicianship came through and the result was moving and wholly absorbing.

His performance had felt a bit scattered to that point, as though he had not had time to settle in, though he rose to the heights in his performances of the Sarabande in the Suite No. 1 which sounded like an extended soliloquy, and the familiar Prelude in Suite No. 2 with expressive phrasing.

Unfortunately the lengthy intermission came at the end of Suite No.3, and Roman did not again achieve the heights of No 3.

To my mind Roman was accenting the wrong note in each phrase of the Prelude in Suite No. 4, changing the shape. It is perfectly permissable for a player to phrase as he understands the music, and often a player can convince the listener that this interpretation is perfectly acceptable, if it is coherent. I was not convinced here. (Several times the Allemandes felt too fast for the music, particularly in Suites 1 and 2, but most of the Sarabandes were thoughtfully played, introspective or like a private prayer.)

The last Suite, No. 6, is bright and cheerful. It’s also the most difficult to play. Roman had no trouble with the fast and tricky sections high on the top string in the Prelude, playing them with lovely tone, some of it at warp speed.

All in all, the performance consistently engaged the interest but was somewhat uneven, often good, rarely great. It would be enlightening to hear Roman play the Suites again, maybe in twenty years, and then again in forty (for another generation).