Tradition, tradition!
Marimba master makes magic
by Christopher Key
If you look at it the way Tevye did, a tradition can be centuries old or as new as today. The Whatcom Symphony Orchestra made believers out of a lot of people this afternoon at the Mount Baker Theatre. The concert was entitled “The Grand Tradition” and the performances were grand, indeed. They ranged from Haydn to Rutschman with a couple of fascinating stops in between.
The concert got off to an entrancing start with Felix Mendelssohn’s The Fair Melusine Overture. The folktale from which it takes its name features a young man who is entranced by an alluring woman. The romance proceeds until he ignores her warnings and spies on her as she is bathing. Turns out she’s a fish from the waist down and she flees into her natural environment. Her paramour is so smitten that he follows her and dies in her arms. Mendelssohn’s music captures the aquatic adventure beautifully. Kudos to the brasses and woodwinds.
I’ve had occasion to mention percussionist Kay Riley once before when she dazzled everyone during the performance of Joseph Schwantner’s Chasing Light last fall. That time, she was surrounded by a forest of instruments and rather hard to see. Today, she was out front in Eric Ewazen’s Concerto for Marimba. Yes, you read that right. Ewazen likes to write for underappreciated instruments. Reilly, who teaches band to some very lucky kids at Squalicum High, delivered a virtuoso performance of this intriguing work and received a well-deserved standing ovation.
WSO percussionist Kay Reilly.
One of the best things about the WSO is the growing library of works commissioned in the Music by American Composers series. This afternoon saw the premiere of Dr. Edward Rutschman’s Renaissance Man: Portraits of Josquin des Prez. If the composer’s name sounds familiar, it’s because he provides the wonderful notes for the WSO programs and delivers pre-concert lectures. It takes a Renaissance Man to know one and Rutschman captures Josquin the way Leonardo captured Mona Lisa. The performance featured some very evocative work by tympanist Stephanie Straight .
If you’re going to talk tradition, what better way to wind up the concert that with Papa Haydn? He is known as the father of the symphony and the WSO gave a whimsical performance to one of his most famous children, Symphony No. 101 in D Major. This work has come to be known as “The Clock” because of the metronomic rhythms in the second movement. Haydn’s music is full of good humor and surprises, no doubt one of the reasons it remains popular 200 years after his death.
You have one more chance this season to enjoy this local treasure. The annual Pops Concert takes place Saturday, May 30, at the MBT. It features a plethora of local and regional performers paying homage to lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II, who, along with composer Richard Rogers, ruled Broadway for many years. Tickets are available by calling the MBT box office at 734-6080 and pricing information is at www.mtbakertheatre.com.
Incidentally, the WSO has just announced its 2009 – 2010 season and it looks like a dandy. For a season brochure, send an e-mail with name, address and phone number to Marketing@WhatcomSymphony.com. The WSO deserves full houses and I urge you to do your part.
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