First up was Beethoven No. 6, aka the Pastoral Symphony. The first movement was a light, evocative piece, and sort of reminded me of a non-winter version of the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy. The second movement was a bit richer and fuller, getting more musical support from the big instruments, and the third was a combination - heavy and strong with soft interludes.
After intermission we heard Ravel's Concerto in G Major, which confused me at first. It wasn't exactly discordant, but certainly wasn't terribly rhythmic either - especially the first and third movements. The whole piece had elements which were reminiscent of jazz and big band swing. At the break I looked at the program and that made perfect sense; it was composed 1929-1931.
Our last piece was Debussy's La Mer, which started out a bit dark. It grew flowery but a tad melancholic as well, like there was a shadow of sadness just below the surface of the music (or the water, as the case may be). Through the end of the movements it gets more lively and jarring, with dramatic shifts in volume and timbre, which I can forgive because of the starring role given to the contrabassoon. (Why do I like the contrabassoon? I don't really know, but why not? It looks cool, it sounds cool, it's fun to say.)
I'm jealous!
ReplyDeletePerhaps you can do musical reviews for the P-D? Great descriptions here -- like verbal pictures for your artistically handicapped audience! Can almost hear the music.....
ReplyDeletelove
Mom
The best part was sitting down a full 30 seconds before it began - walking fast has its rewards ;o)
ReplyDeleteCULTURE!!!
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