Copland, Chausson, León, Bizet: Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Dame Felicity Lott (Soprano), Carnegie Hall, New York, 1. 4.2008 (AM)

Copland: Three Latin American Sketches (1971)
Chausson: Poème de l’Amour et de la Mer, Op. 19 (1882-1883)
Tania León: Acana (2008)
Bizet: Symphony in C Major (1855)

Dame Felicity Lott

We must have all heard of Orpheus’ one (supposed) shortcoming: that the musicians start and end a passage in perfect unison, but in between they are prone to go their separate ways. Well, if this concert is any indication, it may be safe to say that this is no longer the case (not that I think it ever was). Apart from the Chausson songs, this program with its emphasis on fast and rhythmic works demanded razor-thin precision for any plausible outcome. Orpheus, in their top form, was happy to oblige.

The Three Latin American Sketches, Copland’s final orchestral work, follow an allegro-andante-allegro pattern. Estribillo, with its syncopated phrases suggests a grueling dance. The orchestra’s bass section provided the energetic pace throughout the movement keeping the rest of the musicians finely, but never overtly, in check. Meanwhile, transition to the exact opposite slow, lyrical Paisaje Mexicano was a clear demonstration of Orpheus’ agility. This sketch features a passage in which there is an elaborate play within the orchestra in which propositions by the woodwinds are answered by the strings. Orpheus’ execution here was an excellent illustration of how balanced and fine tuned they are as a group. The final sketch, Danza de Jalisco, featuring alternating meters, fast staccato sections in the strings and frantic dance tunes was performed brilliantly with maximum lucidity and diligence. I must make a  mention of Ms. Laura Frautschi here, the first violinist and concertmaster for this piece on her absolute control of the orchestra.

The second portion of the evening featured Ernest Chausson’s Poème de l’Amour et de la Mer (Poem of Love and the Sea). Dame Felicity Lott, the soloist for the evening, appeared on stage with her blue/violet dress flowing very much like the subject of the song she was about to sing: La Fleur des Eaux (The Flowers of the Waters). With the orchestral buildup of the first verse giving way to the opening lines for the soprano, it was immediately established that this pairing between Orpheus and Dame Felicity was going to be very special. The opulent melodies evoking images of the sea rising and falling were impeccably mirrored by her supple vocal abilities. The second poem, La Mort de L’amour (The Death Of Love), started in a cheerful pedantic scale for the strings and woodwinds, in complete contrast with the title. As the song progressed however, the orchestra took the sanguinity down notch by notch and soon we found ourselves listening to a desperate woman weeping over a love now lost, very convincingly sung. Chausson’s orchestration here is genius: we move, very slowly, from happy strings to forlorn woodwinds echoing the gradual rise of anguish in the text. The collaboration was once again in top form, particularly during the brief but very touching duet between the soprano and the cello. Dame Felicity was called on stage multiple times—perhaps one more and she could have given us an encore.

Following the intermission Tania León, whose work Acana would receive its New York premiere, was invited onstage to give a description of the piece, co-commissioned by Orpheus with SUNY Purchase. She touched on a few points that turned out to be the keys to its appreciation. Acana’s initial bars are written for solo trumpet, which plays an enigmatic tune. The score turns to full blast immediately following this passage with every member of the orchestra trying to keep up with the extremely complicated rhythms—so complicated, in fact, that we are only aware of their existence by their many repetitions. The percussion section seemed to have the hardest task in this performance where Ms. Maya Gunji scrambled between several instruments. The music itself leans toward ambiguity; it seems like it is not sure where it wants to go and I was only assured that I had been listening to the same composition when the opening trumpet melody returned in the end. It is very hard to believe that an orchestra devoid of a conductor is able to pull off such dense and multifaceted piece of music without losing its grip.

The evening came to a close with the crowd pleaser: Bizet’s Symphony in C Major. The allegro must have been too easy for Orpheus, for they played it swiftly without a trace of hesitation. Bizet’s melodic abilities surface in the andante movement with its yearning oboe tune over pizzicato strings playing trios and the short but delightful fugue episode. Orpheus’ delicate handling of this movement followed by their meticulous treatment of the vigorous finale once again confirmed to us that the orchestra was prepared to play any type of music tonight.

Alain Matalon

Photo: Felicity Lott ©Steve Sherman

Back to Top                                                    Cumulative Index Page