SanJuan Symphony shines in season debut
By Judith Reynolds -
Special to the Herald
October 7, 2003
Last Sunday, with music evoking distant stars, a shimmering lakeat night and the dry, menacing desert, the San Juan Symphony opened its 2003-04season. With works celebrating the Southwest, the orchestra declared itselfcentral to the life of this community.
Music Director Arthur Post boldly launched his second year witha program titled, "Land Alive." No familiar European standards lulled the audience into comfortable reverie. Post chose music from the 20th centuryinspired by ideas of place, that haunting mix of wilderness and civilizationthat each of us must reconcile in some way. What’s at issue is not justcultural stimulation – high art that enriches life – but relevance.
"Land Alive" delivered on its promise by offering avariety of music. Opening and closing with solos by American Indian flutist R.Carlos Nakai, the concert began and ended with a quiet, meditative frame.
Post brought Nakai back three times for orchestral pieces byJames DeMars, an Arizona composer who merges strains of American Indian,African, Asiatic, Arab and European music.
DeMars’ "Far From Water" spun out from Nakai’sopening solo into a delicate web of sound. "Crow’s Wing," a trio forflute, oboe and English horn, brought chamber music into the midst of a bigsymphonic concert. "Lake That Speaks" returned Nakai to his soloistrole, balanced by rich strings and sprinkled with new sounds: for example, KevinMartin’s bowing, not striking, the vibraphone.
The orchestra performed "Three Jemez Landscapes," byNew Mexican composer Michael Mauldin, without pause. Post managed transitionsseamlessly, bringing out echoes in the final section, "PalizaSun-Cliffs," as if they were the last vestiges of sunlight through clouds.And without fanfare we heard the new concertmaster, Mikylah McTeer, for thefirst time in a lovely, if brief, solo.
Early in the program, Henry Brant’s tone poem, "On theNature of Things," turned out to be an inspired choice. Before the musicbegan, John Wagner, 17, a student at Durango High School, spoke the text fromLucretius’ "De Rerum Natura." Its theme about change in natureunderscored the whole concert.
The composer’s unorthodox "spatial" technique ofplacing musicians throughout the hall, with strings remaining on stage, workedbeautifully, especially with Post facing the audience as he conducted. If everthere were a technique to make the audience feel a part of a performance, thisis it. And there were elegant solo contributions from flutists Rochelle Mann andBarbara Moore, clarinetist Mark Walters, oboist Pamela Epple, bassoonist KentMoore, French hornist Richard Dolph and glockenspieler Kevin Martin.
With the addition of Aaron Copland’s film music from "TheRed Pony," the audience could relax into familiar, comforting sounds. Likethe DeMars’ pieces, the Copland sections appeared on both halves of theprogram. All those beautiful open fifths and sweeping unison lines showed offthe orchestra’s fine tuning ability and unity of expression.
It was Silvestre Revueltas’ "Sensemayá" thatbrought a dark, Darwinian balance to the program. This powerful, relentlesspiece is about fear and survival in the wild.
Composed by a man swept up in the cultural rebirth of theMexican Revolution and later the Spanish Republican cause, "Sensemayá"has been called the Mexican "Rite of Spring." And so it was:elemental, energetic and full of menace. Musically dissonant and churning withrhythmic complexity, "Sensemayá" had to be a challenge – the workthe musicians seemed to relish and one that clearly quickened the audience.
Innovative programming is always a risk. With "LandAlive," Post is on to something enjoyable and meaningful. This is musicthat speaks to us of our time and our place.
