thanks and congratulates his friend David for this. SLSO caps tribute to composer in Carnegie Hall performance By Sarah Bryan Miller sbmiller@post-dispatch > 314-340-82492 [Pictured: A scene from a performance at Carnegie Hall in New York City by the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra on Friday night, Nov. 22, 2013, of composer Benjamin Brittens opera Peter Grimes on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Brittens birth. In this photo, tenor Anthony Dean Griffey, center, as Peter Grimes, and from left, mezzo-soprano Nancy Maultsby as Mrs. Sedley, contralto Meredith Arwady as Auntie and sopranos Leela Subramaniam and Summer Hassan as Niece 1 and Niece 2.] NEW YORK • The music world’s yearlong centennial celebration of Benjamin Britten reached its climax Friday night, on what would have been the composer’s 100th birthday. At Carnegie Hall, the center of American observances, the spotlight was on David Robertson and the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, performing Britten’s masterpiece, “Peter Grimes.” “It’s one of the highlights of the season,” said Carnegie’s director of artistic planning, Jeremy Geffen. Carnegie was asked by the Britten-Pears estate to coordinate the Britten 100 events in New York, “and we talked to various institutions about what they might be interested in doing.” Robertson mentioned “Peter Grimes,” “and we were instantly interested in it, especially if the performance could take place (on Britten’s birthday). It’s one of those cases where someone suggests something and it immediately comes to pass. We just made it happen.” “Grimes,” the story of an outsider in an English fishing village, is a major production, with a big cast, a big chorus part and a big orchestra, in three hours of intense drama. It premiered in 1945, and while its sonic world is tonal and often beautiful, its difficulty level is definitely of the 20th century. “It is a really big challenge for any group to do it,” Robertson said. For the SLSO “to be afforded this challenge by Carnegie Hall reinforces what a world-class organization this is.” It’s an especially tricky score to do in concert; there’s a lot of interaction in the opera between the soloists and chorus, but here the orchestra is on stage, putting a physical barrier between the two. “Many people would be worried about doing this opera in concert with a symphony orchestra,” added Robertson. But the St. Louisans “are so good at listening that for me it’s an absolute joy to do that.” Mezzo-soprano Nancy Maultsby, who sings the role of the opiate-addicted widow Mrs. Sedley, agreed that “by its nature, there’s something slightly awkward about concert opera.” Staging and costuming help create a character, but in “Grimes” there was only a few suggestions of costuming. “It’s tricky, but it’s a good thing, bringing this opera to people who might not otherwise go to the opera. It’s also fun to do opera with an incredible orchestra like this one.” On Friday afternoon, Robertson rehearsed the chorus and orchestra, working the tougher bits, adding some needed pauses in the opera’s climactic moment, giving notes: The brass can be softer here, the chorus needs to watch the principals and engage more with them there. The offstage church scene, using half the chorus, was moved to the back of the auditorium’s main floor, with chorus director Amy Kaiser watching Robertson from a monitor. The timing was dicey; they had two minutes to make it back to their seats onstage before their first entrance. “We’re hoping they’ll make it,” said Kaiser. “Of course, they’re coming out of church. They can easily dribble onstage.” They had the help of a chorus wrangler to get them through Carnegie’s backstage maze of halls and stairways. What didn’t worry Kaiser was the performance itself; they’ve worked hard and prepared — and Robertson’s steady diet of 20th-century music has prepared them for the trickiest of scores. “For a symphony chorus, it’s remarkable,” she said. “They know what a great piece it is, and how important this is.” St. Louis tenor Keith Boyer, singing the role of the vicar and in the chorus, made his Carnegie Hall debut — and so did his son, Garrett, 12, in the silent role of Grimes’ doomed apprentice. Boyer wasn’t feeling any pressure, he reported. “I feel exhilarated — exhilarated to be in this space, with this cast, in this opera.” On Friday night, the onstage energy was palpable. The chorus engaged as instructed; the soloists and orchestra outdid themselves. When it was over, there was an explosive reaction from the audience and cries of “Bravo!” There were waves of raves as each participant came on stage: for Kaiser, who turned as if to embrace the chorus, and her singers; for each of the soloists, for Robertson and the players. The Boyers, father and son, took their last bow holding hands. Backstage, the mood was one of exhilaration. “I was so excited, moved, destroyed at the rehearsals,” said principal viola Beth Guterman Chu, whose solos were among the highlights of the opera. “Being onstage at Carnegie just brought everything together. I felt just how united 200 people working together onstage can be.” It was a mild evening, and performers and fans lingered outside the stage door. Grace Park, a young violinist in the Academy of Carnegie, Juilliard and Weill Music Institute, caught the mood of the evening: “This is one of the best concerts I’ve ever been to.” Sarah Bryan Miller is the Post-Dispatchs classical music critic. Follow Bryan on the Culture Club blog, and on Twitter at @SBMillerMusic. Copyright 2013 stltoday. All rights reserved.
Posted on: Sat, 23 Nov 2013 20:33:12 +0000
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