One of the most distinctive voices of our time filled the small, acoustically perfect space of Princeton University’s Richardson Auditorium on January 31. It was a controlled voice that murmured a Spanish lullaby, then rose to greet “a colorless moon” in a surrealistic love poem, and finally, modulated between whispers and shining tones against a harp ostinato in two stanzas by Emily Dickinson.
These are the Three
Songs, settings of verses by three women poets, that title the Princeton Symphony Orchestra’s concert in a season
dedicated to creative women. The singer is Dawn Upshaw, the work an appealing
blend of South American and Eastern European influences, with a touch of
minimalism, by the Argentinian composer, Gustavo Golijov.
The work, which came second on the program after Kodaly’s
Dances of Galanta, is tonally elusive. There are places where it seems that an
instrument—one of the strings, perhaps a woodwind—may have briefly wandered from the path,
but it is all by design, a design which creates a sense of wondering as well as
wandering, a sense of freedom lightly controlled. Under the direction of the
PSO’s music director, Rossen Milanov, the orchestra at times supported the
soprano soloist, sometimes floated beneath her like a cloud. Small dissonances
faded as Ms. Upshaw caressed the words, a liquid clarinet solo gently tugged at
our attention, and then the singer’s glorious voice swelled with a large,
satiating sound. Sublime.
Impressive though a visit by Ms. Upshaw may be, the other
three works on the program were each in their own way masterpieces of balance
and feeling. The Kodaly, which opened the program, kept a moderate pace for its
first expression, perhaps a tad too slow for my taste, but not for that of
others. However, the variety of dynamics and tempi that followed made me
realize this was a sensible, deliberate choice: passionate, heart-racing stuff!
The final work on the program, the Mozart Symphony #38, the
Prague, painted the Viennese master in a robust and hearty mood. This is full,
modern orchestra Mozart, and it is a memorable experience to see and hear.
Just before the Mozart, the nearly full-house audience was
treated to a work by a contemporary, Jing Jing Luo, who has been composer in
residence in Princeton for nearly two weeks. Ms. Luo’s work, Tsao Shu, refers to a form of Chinese calligraphy in which hundreds of characters are drawn with a single brush stroke. The piece was of modest
proportions, about 10 minutes in length, and featured some tangy percussion sounds
as well as the rarely seen technique of violins playing individually, little
snips of glissandi, with some occasional
bowing on the bridge. I liked the use of the bass drum, staggering dissonance
in small doses, and what sounded to my ears like a toy piano (out of view). At
times, the flutes fluttered like shakuhachi. A
bright, spritely, well balanced composition, for which the composer took a well
deserved bow.
My interviews with Ms. Upshaw and Ms. Luo appear in the
Princeton Packet here: http://tiny.cc/o6qs8x
The PSO’s programs are just about ideal, combining intelligent,
heart-felt interpretations of classical stalwarts with new music by living
composers. The next concert in the series will feature Caroline Shaw,
violinist-composer, and works by Sibelius, Shaw, and Brahms, at 4 p.m. Sunday,
March 13. http://tiny.cc/vkrs8x There is abundant parking throughout
Princeton, N.J., and metered parking is free on Sundays. Photo below of Dawn Upshaw with the Princeton Symphony Orchestra by Carolyn Dwyer.
--Linda Holt
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