Opus Two (12/28/13)

Music of George Gershwin (1898–1937), William Terwilliger (violin), and Andrew Cooperstock (piano).

Selections from Porgy and Bess (1935) (arr. Jascha Heifetz) – Summertime/A Woman Is a Sometime Thing; My Man’s Gone Now; Bess, You Is My Woman Now; It Ain’t Necessarily So; Tempo di Blues
Short Story, for Violin and Piano (1927)
Three Preludes for Piano (1927) (arr. Jascha Heifetz) – Allegro ben ritmato e deciso; Andante con moto e poco rubato; Allegro ben ritmato e deciso
Excerpts from An American in Paris (1929) (arr. Jascha Heifetz/Ayke Agus)
Suite from Girl Crazy (1930/2012) (arr. Eric Stern – But Not for Me; Bidin’ My Time; Embraceable You; I Got Rhythm

First, this was some of the highest caliber playing I’ve heard in these free concerts at the Library for the Performing Arts. We actually got Summertime twice. It was played as a sort of lagniappe before Messrs. Cooperstock and Terwilliger took to the microphone in what was a bit of an old-fashioned concert/lecture. We learned that Gershwin (or the Gershwins) had written an earlier opera, “Blue Monday,” though I haven’t explored that info, yet, and that the first Heifetz arrangement we heard was made in 1944. Summertime had a rocking, lullaby accompaniment, with the tune presented in a straightforward manner. That was pretty much the tone of all of the Heifetz arrangements, though there was some exquisite writing for the violin. My Man’s Gone had an expansive opening from the piano, while the introduction to Bess was not exactly what was expected, but you knew that Bess was coming. Tempo di Blues seemed new to me, until I recognized the phrase, “There’s a Boat that’s Leaving Soon.”

From the stage, we learned that Short Story was the only Gershwin composition written for violin and piano and that, despite its charms, it never really caught on. I can fully see why, though, once again, this performance was completely enjoyable and well played.

The Three Preludes were all pretty much familiar to me. The second was relatively moody while the third was reminiscent of “It Ain’t Necessarily So” both rhythmically and in the tunes involved. Unfortunately the performance was marred slightly by the ringing of a cell phone in the audience. Turn the damn things off, or to vibrate. In fairness, there was not a specific announcement made ahead of time, but really?

An American in Paris was announced as 1928 from the stage, though the program said 1929. As an introduction, there was a film clip of the M-G-M musical, which I thought was not necessary at all. The juxtaposition of recorded music against what we were hearing live only made me appreciate the live sound even more. This arrangement for duo was just fine, though there were not imported French car horns as there were for the NY premiere of the original!

With the suite from Girl Crazy, we got a nice introduction to the popular/Broadway song form—AABA—a phrase, repeated, then a contrasting phrase (called the “bridge” or the “release”), followed by a return to the first phrase (usually musically, but with different lyrics). There was another film clip intro, which served no real purpose as far as I was concerned (though the audience seemed to appreciate Judy Garland’s singing). Mr. Stern’s arrangement was definitely an updating, in style, from the Heifetz arrangements. But Not for Me was cinematic, but still direct in terms of the tune. Bidin’ My Time had humor built into the arrangement. Embraceable You had a bit of a winding intro and then a lush laying out of the tune in the piano. I Got Rhythm jazzed up and tossed around the rhythm—to be expected. I have had the pleasure of singing an Eric Stern arrangement of a show tune (commissioned for the barbershop quartet I sang with at the time), and these arrangements pleased me just as much.

An encore was played—an Aaron Copland transcription of his “Hoedown” from Rodeo. While interesting, it was almost too frantic for my taste. I think I might have been happier sticking with all Gershwin. Still, as mentioned above, these two pros played marvelously, and it’s very clear that they are very well attuned to each other. What a great way to end a ConcertMeister year!

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Holiday Songbook, 2013 (12/14/13)

My regular reminder—Songbook is a performance of music written by up-and-coming (and sometimes already-established) music theater composers and lyricists. Holiday Songbook includes holiday songs composed for musical theater shows as well as songs composed especially for this event. This year there were two (different) performances—I caught the one on Saturday and there was another one Monday evening (12/16), that I couldn’t make, unfortunately.

There were 16 songs on display, so I’ll hit some of my favorites. Guess What? It’s Christmas! – Music, Brad Ross and Lyrics, Barbara Campbell – was a traditional, fun Christmas song and it was a great opener for the afternoon. Everything a Girl Wants – M/L, Tim Rosser/Charlie Sohne – is from a musical in progress that involves creation of toys. The song refers to a teddy bear, so a repeating tag line is, “Everything a girl wants—from a bear.” The Snow Queen, by Micah Young, was a real classical-style, story song based on the Hans Christian Andersen tale. It was a modern-day lied that was given a wonderful performance.

My Epiphany – Andrew David Sotomayor – was a paean to that unsung, until now, holiday that received a humorous and interesting treatment. You want humor? The Egg Nog Song – M/L, Derek Gregor/Sam Carner – delivered. Written especially for this event, it started off as a traditional holiday song until we got to the hook—somebody put acid (the LSD variety) in the eggnog. It gave a new meaning to this “magic” season, and it got real laughs throughout. Outcast Holiday – Eli Zoller – reminded us that Jesus was somewhat of an outcast, as are we all in some ways. It was almost like a folk song and was accompanied by a guitar and a mandolin—you don’t hear very many mandolins on stage these days.

The Prisoner’s Song – Joe Iconis – was the closer and was quite an audience pleaser, too. It had a call-and-response section (not usually my favorite performance device) that was used to good effect here.

All of the composers, lyricists, accompanists, and vocalists acquitted themselves well (with a few minor fluffs). But some of the backstories were really fun to hear. One gal had learned her song on the day of the performance and did a bang-up job. Two sisters, who are writing partners, had only rehearsed with each other via phone, including delays in the two different speakerphones. The afternoon’s musical styles included folk, country, traditional, rock’n’roll, and Sondheim-esque treatments, among others.

The program was produced by Erica Ruff and directed and hosted by John Znidarsic, the man with the red hat. I really wish that I could have heard Monday night’s version, especially as it was all different songs, but I’m sure glad that I got to experience this holiday treat!

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Blasts from the Past, Sort of (11/16 and 23)

Pre-Thanksgiving concerts that I’m just now getting around to blogging about. Saturday the 16th found me at Bargemusic again, and I’m delighted to report that they had a printed program available. The performers were Branko Simic, violin; Ian Tyson, clarinet; and Judy Pang, piano. The program of all-living composers: Serenade for Three, Dances, Songs, Variations – Peter Schickele (1935–); Tibetan Dance, Prelude, Song, Tibetan Dance – Bright Sheng (1955–); and Trio for Clarinet, Violin and Piano – Paul Schoenfield (1947–).

The first movement of the Schickele was rhythmic, playful, and focused, reminding me of the music of Aaron Copland, while the second contrasted with a slower, calm beginning that included a repeated note in the piano with filigree work from the violin and clarinet. The third movement was perky again, with a sense of real Americana, reminiscent of a barn dance cum jazz dance in honky-tonk style, with touches of humor. (As a side note, Mr. Schickele has a very humorous side in his persona as PDQ Bach.)

The Bright Sheng offering opened with transparent writing that included more modern and dissonant harmonies. The second movement was a violin/clarinet duet, also with very modern harmonies, though not so far afield as to be off-putting. The final movement was rhythmic, almost imitative of drumming, followed by fragmented melodic phrases. The movement then bounced back and forth between cacophonous sections, rhythmic and fragmented sections, finishing with a bold, cacophonous flourish.

The beginning of Mr. Schoenfield’s piece had a klezmer-like feel, with a wailing clarinet line and bending of pitches from the violin and clarinet, with an Eastern European feel. This was followed by a tuneful minor key march, a contrasting calmer section, and a return to the klezmer sound while maintaining a mystical quality. The third movement began with solo clarinet, joined by the violin, and then the piano. The meandering phrases had a somewhat amorphous effect that then segued into the fourth movement, with all three instruments being equal partners with dance-like rhythms, tempos getting faster, then relaxing a bit, and then—off to the races! The piece finished with a bang. It was quite a pleasure to hear an afternoon of music by living composers.

The following Saturday found me at a vocal recital featuring Marco Stefani, tenor, and Brent Funderburk, piano. The program included three Haydn songs, a Handel aria, three Schubert lieder, and an aria from Mignon, by Ambroise Thomas. After intermission, there were three Liszt songs and a Rossini aria from La Cenerentola.

Mr. Stefani produced a clear voice with good diction and declamatory phrasing in the Haydn songs. I felt that some of the rapid settings of the lyrics ended up with some of them getting lost. The Handel aria had nicely adapted phrasing and interesting treatment of many of the repeats of the refrain. While the Schubert songs were nice, they seemed to be the same type of singing over and over, with not much variation. The Mignon aria sounded somewhat more comfortable, as if it might have been in Mr. Stefani’s repertoire longer than the earlier songs.

The Liszt songs were a return to the same declamatory singing and phrasing, while the La Cenerentola aria was once again more comfortable, including some of the more rapid, florid passages. All in all, the program was successful, though I would have liked to hear a bit more subtlety and variation. Mr. Funderburk was an excellent accompanist and partner throughout the entire concert. I’m glad I heard the recital, but I wish I had liked it a little better. But, hey! the price (free) was right.

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Man with the Bag (12/7/13)

'Tis the season, and the PhilHallmonics were back at the Bruno Walter Auditorium with a program of holiday favorites. Phil Hall (piano) with a bass player and a reed player (saxophone, oboe, clarinet, and flute, if I’m remembering correctly), plus ten Ladies, all in a program staged and choreographed by Sharon Halley, provided a really fun afternoon. I saw the first of two performances on Saturday.

The program was a very nice mix of secular and serious (though not overly religious), with some broad (pun intended) humor, a bit of dancing, solos and ensemble numbers (with real harmony), and an appearance by Santa (including a breakaway Santa suit!). While some of the ladies were more polished performers than others, there were no clunkers amid the 32 numbers on the program. Unfortunately, there were a few technical glitches resulting in some microphone “pops” and a bit of feedback.

Highlights included I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm, I’ll Be Home for Christmas (simple, yet effective), a jazzy version of The Christmas Waltz, Christmas Time Is Here (for all you Peanuts fans), A Marshmallow World/You’re All I Want for Christmas, and Silent Night (piano, bass, and reeds).

Serious presentations included A La Nanita Nana, Sweet Little Jesus Boy, I Remember, and Hallelujah (not the one you’re thinking of), while On This Winter’s Night added a touch of country and Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! gave us a bit of the old soft shoe.

In the humor department, Mister Santa involved the use of potholder Santas—I’m a sucker for that sort of thing! Suzy Snowflake, Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, Mele Kalikimake, The Man with the Bag, and the finale, A Swingin’ Christmas, also added dashes of humor.

All in all, this was a fun way to ease into the holiday spirit. Thank you, PhilHallmonics and thank you, Lincoln Center Library for the Performing Arts.

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