It's A New World For Symphony Orchestras

Both the left and the right coasts of the US are helping to usher in a new world for symphonic music.

American orchestras have never really been able to make the medium its own. The conductors are almost always European old guys, and the music is heavy on the side of romantic standard classics.

But now, New York and Los Angeles are helping us to embrace the 21st century. Both orchestras have welcomed new conductors this season and I predict they will change the face of American symphonic music forever.

The venerable NY Phil choose to follow aging Lorin Maazel with the 42-year-old, American born, Alan Gilbert. Few people have heard of him although he has built a nice career in Europe. Both his mother and father have played in the Phil so the orchestra felt like he was one of theirs.

The LA Phil went off-shore to shock the work by hiring a fiery conductor of a mere 28 years of age. Gustavo Dudamel has conducted the Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra in his native Venezuela. If you go to You-Tube, you'll be able to see this intense conductor with his exciting orchestra of kids. They've also cut some CDs that sound like a professional ensemble.

Although both conductors will be a fresh of breath air blowing away the cobwebs of orchestra concerts, my money is on Dudamel for sending a shock wave through the country. He will not only bring a new energy to this never-changing medium, but will also show the US what can be done with youth orchestras. He might bring back public school music education from the near-dead. His opening concert will be on PBS on October 21. Watch for it.

So far the critics have been kind to Gilbert, and absolutely swooning for Dudamel. Let's wait and see how the music world changes in the next few years.

The Patter Boy

On Saturday, October 10, the newly enlarged Wharton Center (at a cost of $18.5 mil) had its grand opening featuring pianist/singer Michael Feinstein.

First a word about Wharton. The new face of the 27-year-old hall looks beautiful, although most of the additions will not be seen my the majority of the concert going public. The administrative offices are greatly expanded, but so are the backstage areas, dressing rooms, green room and donor entertaining areas. The rest of us get to see the lovely ticket space and the massive gift shop - which are great.

The Great Hall and its lobby have not been changed, and they look a bit shabby next to the opulence of the newly restored areas. I am sure the main concert hall will be refurbished soon.

Now for Feinstein. I felt the publicity for the Feinstein show did give the full story. Anyone who knows Michael Feinstein knows his performing style, and there was nothing from Wharton to expect anything different.

Michael Feinstein always appears by himself, alone with his trusted Steinway grand. He sings the songs of Gershwin and Berlin, et al, in his lovely tenor voice, sitting at the keyboard with his head turned toward the audience.

For this show, dubbed "The Sinatra Project", the perky Feinstein appeared on stage in front of a 17-piece kick-butt big band. I've rarely seen him without the piano on his lap.

This was a different Michael Feinstein. The Wharton concert program made no mention of the band, let alone the brilliant arranger and band leader, Bill Elliot. However, the band was so superb that I was often pulled away from the headliner just to listen to this terrific, highly professional band.

But even though Feinstein was in an unfamiliar space, he always knows how to please an audience. He has the best patter of any performer I know. The crooner tells wonderful, memorable stories and his charming manner makes you think that he sincerely wants to be here to entertain you.

At 52 years old, Feinstein still has a boyish appearence that is engaging and endearing. Also, he has a wonderfully light voice, that gives the Sinatra canon a sincere quality it never had before.

So, it was hard not to be enchanted by the concert, even though it was something that no one really expected.

Brouhaha @ Boarshead

When Lansing's theater community was all atwitter earlier in the summer because Boarshead Theater let popular artistic director Kristine Thatcher go, a little noticed event was occurring in Grand Rapids.

On June 17th, Opera Grand Rapids broke ground for a $2 million opera center. The new building will sport 14,000 sq ft. for rehearsals, practice rooms, costume shops and storage facilities. It will be named the Betty Van Andel Opera Center.

Boarshead decision makers have taken the brunt of much criticism for the Thatcher decision, demonstrated by the many letters-to-the-editor sent to the Lansing State Journal as well as the City Pulse. Irate long time subscribers have shown their pique by refusing to re up for the 2009-10 season. John Dale Smith, executive director, has unfairly been singled out as the bad guy by many.

In speaking to board members, it appears that the release of Thatcher from her contract was a financial decision only. With benefits, she cost the theater company approximately $77,000 per year, a princely sum for an arts organization under sever financial pressure.

The issue at Boarshead is not Thatcher, but Lansing's difficulty in supporting its arts organizations. And the outcry over Thatcher's dismissal was more emotional than objective.

We remember Kristie Thatcher as the cute ingenue who starred in musicals, comedies, and dramas throughout Lansing. As a young adult she left for Chicago and continued her acting career and become a playwright of note. To our delight, Kristie decided to come back to her home town to be the artistic director at Boarshead. Everyone was thrilled.

Although cutting Thatcher loose was probably the correct financial decision to make, the board obviously did not understand the strong support and affection the charismatic personalty has in Lansing.

Now back to our western Michigan neighbors: The Van Andels gave $1 million as the lead gift for the Grand Rapids opera building (Lansing doesn't have a local opera) and the community responded by raising the other $4 million and surpassed its goal by $75,000.

Sadly, Lansing has no sugar daddies who can cough up million dollar gifts like the Van Andels - although Lansing always manages to find money for a baseball stadium, a new city market and other developments. Michigan's capitol city has no performing arts center or a suitable building for its only professional theater. Midland, a much smaller city, has had a lovely arts facility for several decades.

In contrast, Boarshead sits on a lonely corner on the south end of downtown Lansing, across from the bus station and the State Journal. There are no restaurants , coffee shops or gathering places nearby for patrons to socialize after the plays. Boarshead's building used to be a car dealership and was purchased by the city in hopes that it could become a parking lot some day.

Clearly, downtown Lansing is not a friendly place for the arts. The Lansing Symphony performs on the MSU campus in East Lansing, and the Lansing Concert Band plays in various venues throughout Ingham county (as well as Dart Auditorium at LCC) but without a more substantial arts presence in Lansing it seems like the award-winning Boarshead will always be fighting for survival. Lansing remains the only state capitol I am aware of that does not have a performing arts center near downtown.

The Boarshead Thatcher problem is not a Boarshead problem, it's a Lansing arts problem. If Mayor Virg Bernero wants to build a world class capitol city, he must see the importance of an arts center downtown with two performance spaces - a theater, and a 1000-1200 seat auditorium.

Ironically, to attract new students in the era of "schools of choice", area high schools are adding beautiful auditoria throughout the Lansing area. If high schools can build these impressive houses of music and art, why can't the city of Lansing?

Chamber Heaven

We don't have enough chamber music in Lansing

The only two outlets for small instrumental ensembles seem to be the Lansing Symphony Chamber Concerts and Michigan State University School of Music's faculty and student concerts.

Maybe because of chamber music's infrequency here is why March 20th's concert at the music school's auditorium seemed like such a miraculous gift.

The program was part of the 12th annual Cello Plus weekend, organized by MSU cello professor Suren Bagratuni.

There were concerts on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, but regretfully I only attended
Friday's concert. On this particular evening, Bagratuni only programmed two chamber works: the rarely heard String Quintet Op 111 in G major by Brahms and the famous Souvenir de Florence, a string sextet, but Tchaikovsky.

We must begin by talking about the extraordinary musicians - none of whom were born in the US. Sitting in the first violin chair throughout evening was Ilya Kaler, a brilliant Russian who has been compared to Heifitz both in style and perfection and I must that that the comparison is apt.

Literally on second fiddle was a 27-year-old graduate student (Walter Verdehr, teacher), Carlota Amargos Rubio, a strong impressive violinist who kept up this crowd of strong, dominant players. Two superb violists were Yizhak Schotten, viola professor at U of M and MSU's new plum in the string faculty, violist Yuri Gandelsman who served as principal viola in the Israel Philharmonic. Rounding out the group was Suren Bagratuni, virtuoso cellist and his student, Victor Coo (Tchaikovsky only).

The Brahms is a forceful and heavy piece that challenges the mind and the heart. These strong players displayed wondrous technique and musicianship. With just one more instrument than a string quartet (a viola), it was amazing how the music sounded so totally different, almost like a full orchestra. The orchestration was dense and although they played superbly, the ensemble was sometimes overly gruff and aggressive. It was almost like the world-class string players were trying to out-do one another.

But everything came together in the ravishing Souvenir de Florence. This beautifully romantic work was played with spectacular technique but also with great warmth and delicacy. Violist Gandelsman stunned the audience with his full and sensuous tone. Kaler, who was impressive through the concert, was astounding in this piece. Often, The Souvenir can sound sugary and sweet, but in the hands of these musicians, the music transcended the slurpy factor. The true, dark Russian soul of the Tchaikovsky came through.

The ensemble playing was masterful The melodic lines were passed from one play to next with playfulness and sensitivity. The audience sprang to its feet when the music ended and would not let the musicians leave the stage. They were brought back for five or six ovations. Everyone in the auditorium knew that they had hears something very special that night.