Kevin John Edusei makes his Seattle Symphony debut conducting Widmann, Strauss, and Beethoven (with Steven Osborne in the Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major); image (c) James Holt
An impressive Seattle Symphony conducting debut last night with Kevin John Edusei on the podium. Absolutely captivating account of Richard Strauss’s Ein Heldenleben, exquisitely tailored to give full weight to the more introspective moments — and reminding us that there’s even a touch of self-doubt in this score. The gorgeously shaped solos from concertmaster Noah Geller were especially thoughtful, while Jeff Fair and the horn section made a spectacular contribution. Overall I found this showcase of sonic theater more moving than usual in its effect.
Scottish pianist Steven Osborne emphasized poetry over heroics in Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto — sheer loveliness in the slow movement, where Edusei’s placement of the strings (basses and cellos to his left) enhanced the finely veiled sound. Osborne played the transition into the finale as if snapping out of a dream. The unannounced encore was apparently music of Keith Jarrett — an unexpected but beautiful choice.
A clever bit of Beethoven-related programming for the opener: German composer Jörg Widmann’s Conbrio, a deliciously paradoxical parody-of-pastiche that is serious and original, never actually quoting Beethoven yet evoking his personality at every turn through abstract gestures — as if trying to recuperate what it all once meant…. Two more chances to hear this excellent concert (Sat evening and Sunday matinee).
Quynh Nguyen with the London Symphony in the world premiere recording of Paul Chihara’s Concerto-Fantasy
This year’s edition of the Celebrate Asiaconcert presented by Seattle Symphony marks the 16th season of this annual tradition. Associate Conductor Sunny Xia will helm the orchestra in a program of works by two very special composers with Seattle connections, as well as classics by Beethoven and Grieg. The concert takes place on Sunday 28 January 2024 at 4pm at Benaroya Hall. Tickets are available to purchase here. There will also be a Celebrate Asia Market starting at 3pm before the concert and after the performance, featuring the Seattle International Lion Dance Team (at 3pm) and CHIKIRI and The School of TAIKO (post-concert).
The extraordinarily precocious Korean American composer August Baikis a graduate of the 2022-2023 SSO Young Composers Workshop, where his Chuseok Overture for Orchestra was first introduced. The Young Composers Workshop is a unique program that give students the opportunity to workshop compositions with an experienced local composer and Symphony musicians.
The wonderful Paul Chihara‘s new Piano Concerto-Fantasy will receive its US premiere, with Vietnamese American pianist Quynh Nguyen as the soloist. Chihara was born in 1938 in Seattle (and was forced with his family to live in an internment camp in Minidoka, Idaho, during the Second World War as a result of Executive Order 9066). Chihara wrote Piano Concerto-Fantasy for Quynh Nguyen as part of an intensive recent collaboration involving her recording of his complete piano works on the Naxos label. She gave the world premiere in October 2022 with the Vietnamese National Symphony at the Hanoi Opera House as part of a concert commemorating normalization of US-Vietnam diplomatic relations.
Chihara found inspiration for Piano Concerto-Fantasy “in traditional Vietnamese melodies and modes, as well as his own experiences composing scores for television and film about the Vietnam War,” according to Quynh Nguyen. The music, she adds, “embodies a sense of longing for the peaceful past and for the future and its possibilities. The piece is virtuosic and intensely melodic with French and Eastern harmonies and jazz-tinged sections, and phrases reminiscent of Russian classical works. These elements are juxtaposed within the story, reflecting my personal journey of studying music in Vietnam, Russia, France, and the United States, and how their diverse cultures have shaped my life. The concerto reinforces how music transcends politics, language and culture.”
The program will also include Beethoven’s Leonore Overture No. 3 and Grieg’s Peer Gynt Suite.
Conductor Kahchun Wong and Chorus master Joseph Crnko with Seattle Symphony and Chorale and soloists Katie Van Kooten, Sara Couden, Thomas Cooley, and Hadleigh Adams (left to right); image (c) Jorge Gustavo Elias
Seattle Symphony performed its very first concert on this day in 1903: 24 musicians conducted by Harry F. West (details in Greg Lange’s History Link article here).
Meanwhile, the 21st-century incarnation of SSO is ringing in the New Year with guest conductor Kahchun Wong at the helm in performances of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. Yes, it has become cliché to do the Ninth at year’s end, but last night’s opening performance for a very full house genuinely stood out as a memorable event — particularly in comparison with the disappointments of last year’s go.
The Singapore-born Wong conducted the entire score from memory, drawing on a fascinating and idiosyncratic repertoire of gestures to communicate with the musicians: sweeping, circular motions, painterly hand waving, finger wiggles, a variety of crouching positions and leaps. It was clear how deeply he has internalized this music, allowing him to keep it flowing on multiple tracks at once. Phrases had compelling, dramatic shape, while he kept the larger arc of each movement, and of the entire Ninth, continually in view. The thunderous dive into the first movement’s recapitulation, for example, was breathtaking — a rare instance where the shift to major sounds not triumphant but catastrophic.
Especially noteworthy: Wong’s astonishing sensitive to dynamics and ability to shape and blend the sound to such fine gradations. Crescendos in the first two movements in particular were extraordinarily effective and dramatic. For the Scherzo, he opted for a somewhat more-measured tempo in lieu of the infernal machine that is frequently whipped into operation, and he likewise steered clear of the speeded-up pacing that has become fashionable for the slow movement, making a proper differentiation between the Adagio and Andante double variations. Nothing extreme, just a thorough immersion in the musical thought and feeling itself. Again, Wong’s loving attention to details of texture — the gentle throb of the violas not as accompaniment but part of the Adagio’s first theme — added immeasurably to this interpretation.
Also in contrast to last year, the Seattle Symphony Chorale sounded much better prepared and present, producing waves of glorious sound, as well as genuine mystery in the section where Beethoven re-enacts Gregorian chant — though the unnecessary use of amplification was an unfortunate choice. The soloists — soprano Katie Van Kooten soprano, alto Sara Couden, tenor Thomas Cooley, baritone Hadleigh Adams — didn’t blend particularly well, though some individual contributions made a powerful impact (especially Cooley’s exhortation in the high-flying march variation).
In Wong’s reading, only the “terror fanfare” that initiates the finale disappointed as too restrained. But his understanding of this massive structure as a miniature drama came through resoundingly, making for the finest overall Ninth I’ve heard in several years. Nothing else shares this program, so the focus is entirely on Beethoven. Even if you think you’ve heard the Ninth enough times for now, this one is worth seeking out. Wong returns to conduct Mahler’s Third in April. And judging from this success, we may be seeing a good deal more of him ….
David Robertson led the Seattle Symphony; photo by Brandon Patoc
SEATTLE — So far this season, the Seattle Symphony has played under no fewer than seven conductors as part of its central masterworks subscription series. The musicians have shown remarkable flexibility in adapting to a dramatically varied range of podium styles and personalities for each program as the search for a permanent music director continues.
Guest conductor Dalia Stasevska leads the Seattle Symphony and electric bass soloist Lauri Porra; photo (c) Brandon Patoc
My review of this weekend’s program with guest conductor Dalia Stasevska:
Having missed Stasevska’s SSO debut in March 2022 — a week after Putin invaded Ukraine, the country in which she was born — I was particularly interested in experiencing what all the fuss is about firsthand. Her ability to transmit a sense of focused, joyful discovery while shaping a performance impressed me. The charisma is real. …
Mahani Teave, shown here at a Harriman-Jewell Series recital, will appear at Benaroya Hall Oct. 14 with the Seattle Symphony. (Courtesy of the Harriman-Jewell Series)
I’ve been fascinated — and moved — by Mahani Teave’s story since first writing about her two years ago (link to my New York Times story here). The pianist from Rapa Nui is now in the middle of her inaugural North American tour and comes to Seattle this weekend.
Unlike the rest of her tour, which has been focused on solo recitals, this stop involves a piano concerto and marks Teave’s debut with the Seattle Symphony. She will perform Mozart’s D minor Piano Concerto, K. 466, with SSO assistant conductor Sunny Xia on the podium, on 14 October at 7.30pm at Benaroya Hall. Teave will also play two new solo works inspired by Rapa Nui musical tradition. The other orchestral pieces include Aaron Jay Kernis’s Elegy and Juhi Bansal’s Songs from the Deep.
Ludovic Morlot conducts the SSO and soprano Alexandra LoBianco in excerpts from Götterdämmerung; photo (c)Brandon Patoc
My Bachtrack review of opening night at Seattle Symphony, which paired pieces played on the orchestra’s first-ever concert in 1903 and at their concert inaugurating Benaroya Hall 25 years ago. The fact that about two-thirds of the seats remained empty didn’t dampen the musicians’s spirits, but what a pity that so many missed out on a substantial, gloriously played program — not the lineup of frothy showpieces that orchestras so often put together for their season curtain raiser.
Review:
Though it ended with the downfall of a whole civilization, the Seattle Symphony’s opening-night concert radiated the excitement of a brand new season just getting under way, with all its attendant fresh hopes.
Osmo Vänskä led the Seattle Symphony in a breathtaking account of Mahler’s Symphony No. 2. (Photos by Carlin Ma)
I reviewed the final concert of the Seattle Symphony season — an excellent performance of Mahler’s “Resurrection” Symphony No. 2 with guest conductor Osmo Vänskä:
SEATTLE — The Seattle Symphony’s season of guest conductors concluded with a visit by Osmo Vänskä. On June 24, he led a breathtaking, meticulous performance of Mahler’s Symphony No. 2. Conventional program structure offers a chance to experience each visiting conductor’s skills with a variety of pieces and styles. But with the entire concert devoted to this single work, Vänskä took on the additional test of sustaining the musical narrative over the length of a feature film.
I reviewed this past weekend’s Seattle Symphony program with guest conductor Marin Alsop:
There was nothing star-crossed about Marin Alsop’s guest appearance with the Seattle Symphony. Fortune turned its wheel to allow for a happy, if long-overdue, collaboration following an absence of almost two decades from Benaroya Hall….
Music from Shostavich’s Fourth, Fifth, Eighth, Tenth and Eleventh Symphonies was performed live to Eisenstein’s film. (Seattle Symphony photo)
I wrote about a very interesting film + live symphony event at Seattle Symphony with guest conductor Frank Strobel:
In 1925, Sergei Eisenstein made cinematic history with the release of Battleship Potemkin, his feature debut. Dmitri Shostakovich, still a precocious teenager, was hard at work on his First Symphony, which also caused a sensation when it was premiered the next year by the Leningrad Philharmonic.
MEMETERIA by Thomas May 