This past weekend was the first true test for the Evansville Philharmonic this season and, by all accounts, I'd say we passed with flying colors.
Our soloist, the great Russian (now Southbend resident) pianist, Alexander Toradze, arrived to rehearse with us on Friday night. The rehearsal was open to guests who were attending the Gala, many of whom had never experienced an orchestra rehearsal. All of those I spoke to were amazed at the intensity and focus displayed by all performers on stage as we rehearsed all the intricacies of the Tchaikovsky 1st Piano Concerto with Lexo (as everyone calls Toradze). His interpretation is full of surprises, his playing always exploring the extremes of emotions in the music and the polar extremes of dynamics. He is one of the most interesting, exciting and thoughtful pianists I've ever heard or worked with -- a true inspiration to all of us on stage!
After a festive and elegant pre-concert Gala dinner, which honored Neil and Karen Ellerbrook, the Victory Theatre filled up (it was the best attended Opening night concert we've had in the past 3 or 4 years), and I was honored (and surprised) to be presented with some gifts from the EPO in celebration of this being my 20th season (they were a beautiful pair of silver cufflings engraved with 'EPO AS 20', and a bottle of Italian wine - a 1996 Brunello di Montalcino - which I refrained from consuming during intermission) by Board President, Brian McGuire and Executive Director, Glenn Roberts.
We then had the audience join us in the traditional season opening playing/singing of the National Anthem, always an exciting ritual. After the SSB, the Orchestra launched into Wagner's Prelude to Die Meistersinger -- what a fantastic piece (and our tuba player, Melissa Williams handled the famous playing of the principal theme with aplomb). Toradze thrilled the socks off the audience -- no surprise there as he always has listeners mesmerized. And the Orchestra launched our Beethoven Symphony cycle with true verve and poise. After all the preparation -- from my first re-studying of the 7th in Italy to the rehearsals (all described in my previous posts) -- having a performance gel so well, and connect so viscerally with our audience, was the true payoff. Here is a link to Bill Nesmith's review in the Evansville Courier: http://www.courierpress.com/news/2008/sep/14/soloist-helps-philharmonic-open-season-on-note/ .
In case any of you in Evansville were unable to attend opening night (and for those of you who live anywhere else in the world), we are able to let you hear (and have to keep) the entire performance of our Beethoven 7. After working out all the logistics of getting this from the hands of our recording engineer, Kim Fillingham to our EPO IT guru, Adam Covey, and onto our website, we have TODAY our first music download available to anyone who goes to our website. Go to http://www.evansvillephilharmonic.org/music-downloads.html and you can easily download the Beethoven 7th performed by the EPO at our opening night concert, movement by movement. I hope you enjoy it!
Final note: If you listen to our performance of the symphony and have a score (or individual part) and metronome in hand, check our tempos against the metronome markings that Beethoven had his publisher include (next to the Italian tempo indication) at the start of each movement. Beethoven was convinced that, with the invention of Maezel's metronome, it would give all performers (even 200 years after its composition) the ability to know precisely how fast (or slow) each movement of a composition should be played. There is no need to guess at what Beethoven's intention for tempo was -- IF one heeds his specified metronome markings!
3 comments:
I have been very excited: looking forward to performing the Beethoven Symphony Cycle ~
Arturo Toscanini once referred to the timpanist as the “Second Conductor,” and in preparation of each Beethoven Symphony, the timpanist – like the conductor – studies each work with the orchestral part and the score: studying the role of the timpani with concern to balance, note duration, dynamics, and phrasing with the entire orchestra, and marking the part accordingly - for Classical (and Romantic) Era timpani parts are inaccurate concerning phrasing and note duration with regard to the complete orchestral score.
Performing the complete Beethoven Symphonies is the culmination of the technical, musical and ensemble challenges of the Classical Era repertoire for an orchestral timpanist. Beethoven’s writing for timpani was pioneering: including soloistic, rhythmically important, technically demanding, and linking passages, the use of dynamics, and the ranges of the pitches required for the instruments: including a diminished fifth [tritone] (Fidelio, 1805-1814), a minor sixth (Symphony No. 7, 1812), double-stops (Symphony No. 9, 1824), octaves (Symphonies Nos. 8, 1812; and 9), and solo passages (Symphonies Nos. 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9 and the Violin Concerto, 1806).
I look forward to the Beethoven Cycle – and an excited, engaging audience – in performing each work, and experiencing each musical and rewarding challenge ~
Todd Sheehan
Principal Timpani
Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra
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