Mike Stanley Concert Report: Berklee College Symphonic Orchestra Program: Symphonic Poem: Aaron Gage (b.

1992) Romeo and Juliet, Suites No. 1 and 2: Sergei Prokofiev (1892-1953) 1. 2. 3. 4. Montagues and Capulets The Child Juliet Masks Death of Tybalt

Danzn No. 2: Arturo Mrquez (b. 1950) -IntermissionCommunion: John Patitucci (b. 1959) Celebrating Sinatra: Arr. By Manny Albam 1. Ill Never Smile Again 2. All the Way Across the Crystal Sea: Arr. By Claus Ogerman 1. Across the Crystal Sea 2. Saga of Rita Joe Voyager: John Patitucci (b. 1959)

On April 3rd, in Northeasterns Logan Hall I attended a performance by Berklee Colleges Symphonic Orchestra. The first thing that came to my attention was how strikingly beautiful and Im sure acoustically friendly the Hall was. The balcony was ornate and curved, the ceiling sloped downward and there was a magnificent organ behind the players. The program consisted on a very diverse number of pieces from a very contemporary and dissonant piece by John Patitucci called Voyager, which took full advantage of the number of ugly sounds string instruments can produce, to a delightful and beautiful Latin Dnzon by Arturo Mrquez, to a piece composed by a Berklee student. There was also a variety of instrumentation. Initially there was a full orchestra, and then they added and subtracted instruments throughout the performance. At one point there were two drum kits on stage, no brass, and only several strings. It was actually a very nostalgic event for myself. Between the names of players being screamed by friends during the intermission and the subtle directions being given to struggling trumpets by the conductor I felt as though I were back in High School Orchestra. I was enormously impressed with the overall quality of the performance and sound. The strings were crisp and in tune. All the brass was brilliant and full sounding. There were several French horn and trumpet solos that I was very impressed with. There were several occasions where I was cognizant that these were student performers. The percussion section was over aggressive at points and almost drowned out a glorious violin solo in the Dnzon. In addition, through out the Romeo and Juliet selections there were a very large number of sour notes out of the strings and trumpets. Either they did not have enough time to rehearse these

pieces long enough or the brass sections were particularly difficult. Being a horn player I can recall the dread of extremely high, sudden, and inharmonic sections, which are hard to identify what note youre trying to play in your mind. In terms of the technique used by the musicians I was astounded. Besides the Romeo and Juliet selections the strings were bright and crisp, the horns were full and brassy, and the voices of each section listened well to each other. Any and all soloists were confident, present, and played skillfully. Dynamics were used well to create different feels and to differentiate the pieces. Each piece was perhaps seven to fifteen minutes long and yet they were able to keep each selection feeling new and fresh. I enjoyed the diversity of the pieces played throughout the evening. However, some of the pieces were not always enjoyable to listen to. As mentioned earlier the Romeo and Juliet sections were not performed as well as they could have been, and they were very dreary and dissonant at times. Of course this was the point, and the same point was used in several other pieces throughout the evening such as John Patituccis Voyager. In fact, when listening to the final section of the Romeo and Juliet pieces I was envisioning someone dying and lo and behold the title of the final selection was The death of Tybalt. However, another section that I did not particularly enjoy was the Celebrating Sinatra pieces. In essence the selections turned into a fairly competent saxophone solo drowning out a small strings section and a weak vocalist. I did enjoy some of the pieces immensely however, in particular Dnzon No. 2 by Arturo Mrquez. The Dnzon was absolutely beautiful. It took full advantage of

all the instruments capabilities. The strings sections would be used in these gorgeous flowing melodic lines one moment and then in the next would become a part of the percussion section, as short staccatos would add emphasis to the timpani. Likewise, the horns were used to build the piece into a huge crescendo, to create a delightful counter melody to oppose the strings, and to create dissonant harmonies. To me it seemed as though every section was able to have several purposes throughout the piece. In this piece there was also this fabulous violin solo accompanied by nothing more than a wood block and slight bongo. I could have sworn it was improvised as well; it remained near to the theme of the piece, yet contained enough variety that I felt the player was adding his own influence. Besides that, he broke time and clearly the conductor was watching the player for the queue to bring the percussion section back into the piece. In Addition, I enjoyed the piece titled Voyager by John Patitucci. The piece was clearly very contemporary and featured the piano. It began with a very long and colorful section full of experimental sounds. The strings were being used for their dissonant and harsh qualities. The brass section was clearly having fun as they were encouraged and pointed out by the conductor to make low rumbling noises similar to fart sounds. I found myself with the image of traveling through space with explosions and objects whizzing by. The song eventually moved into actual notes. The string section slowly turned into a very dreary sound, while the piano and horns were playing pentatonic chords and notes. The sound was very open, ambiguous and large and I began to get the feeling of fear and anxiety, while not a very pleasing sound I could appreciate the effect. The piece eventually did take a

more melodic turn and in the end and in fact sounded like blues progressions with a rock beat created by a kit. It was a very odd combination to have in one piece but I did enjoy it. While not a normal concert in my books in the least I did very much enjoy this performance. I was able to listen to so many different types of music in one evening. I felt that if the conductors goal was to use every instrument in as many different ways as possible he definitely achieved it. I will absolutely be returning to see the BCSO again.