It’s about 3:00 p.m. on Friday afternoon, and at this morning’s rehearsal we in the orchestra were given the brochures for the 2008-2009 season of the Oregon Symphony.<\/p>\n
Here are my first impressions, literally written on the spot with little or no forethought (just like usual, I know…):<\/p>\n
The design of the brochure seems cleaner than in previous seasons. The layout of the various series is also much clearer than in years past. All of Classical A is on one page, all of Classical B on the next. Very nice – because any moment of confusion might cost some ticket sales. People don’t want to think, especially if it’s an impulse buy (I know, I know, for most of us plunking down a minimum of $224 for both the A + B classical series is far from an impulse purchase, but it IS give giving time – symphony subscriptions make great Valentine’s Day gifts – and for a good number of our patrons, $250 isn’t a huge amount of money to spend for a whole season of symphonic goodness).<\/p>\n
The promotion for the Itzhak Perlman concerts is brilliant – if you buy both series in subscription, you get a free ticket or tickets to the Perlman concerts (presumably with the same seat choice). Plus, if you only want A or B, you can add the Perlman on to the existing roster of concerts. Good move.<\/p>\n
It’s a very minor quibble, but the photos of the orchestra include some close-ups of people who are either no longer in the orchestra, or were one-year substitutes. It’s not that we don’t love them, but I think that, whenever possible, the photos of the members of the orchestra should be up-to-date.<\/p>\n
Ok, enough of that – here are some of what I think will be the highlights of the next season:<\/p>\n
To make it a bit more concise, I’ll lump in comments by either soloists’ instrument(s) or by composer.<\/p>\n
We’ve got some great violinists coming next season: Jennifer Koh, Itzhak Perlman, Joshua Bell, Baiba Skribe, <\/strong>and our own concertmaster Jun Iwasaki.<\/strong><\/p>\n I’m really looking forward to Jennifer Koh’s<\/strong> Brahms Violin Concerto<\/strong> since it’s one of my favorite violin concertos, and she’s a terrific young fiddle player.<\/p>\n Joshua Bell<\/strong> hasn’t been here for some time, and he’s playing another great concerto which I’ve never heard him play, either live or on recording, the Mendelssohn violin concerto<\/strong>. That will be great fun.<\/p>\n Baiba Skribe<\/strong> is far from a household name here in America, but she’s making waves in Europe already. I heard her play on a radio broadcast of the Shostakovich 2nd Violin Concerto on KBPS-FM, and it was amazing! To hear her play the Tchaikovsky violin concerto<\/strong> (also not done here recently) will be a great treat, I’m sure.<\/p>\n And Itzhak Perlman<\/strong> will perform the 1st concerto of J.S. Bach<\/strong> as well as conduct a full program – more on that later.<\/p>\n The coming season brings Stephen Hough, Freddy Kempf, Garrick Ohlsson, Valentina Lisitsa, Thomas Lauderdale,<\/strong> and Horacio Guti\u00c3\u00a9rrez<\/strong>. What a line-up!<\/p>\n I’m particularly looking forward to the return of audience and orchestra favorite Stephen Hough<\/strong>, who, as usual brings unusual repertoire – this time the Tchaikovsky Second<\/em> Concerto<\/strong> (has anyone ever heard other than the First concerto?).<\/p>\n I’m also looking forward to hearing Valentina Lisitsa<\/strong> play the Grieg Concerto<\/strong> at a concert she’s actually been booked to play, rather than filling in at the last moment – she’s a great pianist who sounds better and better each time she visits.<\/p>\n Freddy Kempf<\/strong> electrified the audience and the orchestra with his virtuosity in Prokofiev’s Second Concerto (which he learned specially for the occasion) a few seasons ago, now he returns with the beloved Prokofiev Third Concerto<\/strong> – that will be loads of fun.<\/p>\n Thomas Lauderdale<\/strong> is best known as the frontman\/pianist for the local phenomenon Pink Martini, but he’s also a very, very good classically-trained pianist. He has long had a special affinity for the Gershwin’s <\/strong>Rhapsody in Blue<\/em> – in my opinion he offers one of the most compelling interpretations of this great standard that I’ve ever heard – so his performance of the Concerto in F<\/strong> should also be exceptional.<\/p>\n Last, and certainly not least, the pianist\/rock star Lang Lang<\/strong> will open our next season with the Rachmaninoff Second Concerto<\/strong> – this guy is currently the reigning enfant terrible of the classical music world, and truly has the capricious ways of a pop idol – Schnitzer Hall will definitely be the place to be for classical music lovers in the know that night – I can’t wait to experience the Lang Lang phenomenon.<\/p>\n We’ve got some vocal works to look forward to as well. Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony<\/strong> will open the season, along with the Vaughan Williams Serenade to Music<\/em><\/strong>, which is for a large ensemble of solo singers – both will definitely test and show off our own Portland Symphonic Choir<\/strong>. Two of my favorite pieces which feature soprano will also be performed: Barber’s Knoxville, Summer of 1915<\/em><\/strong> and Mahler’s Fourth Symphony<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Here’s my list of what made my ears perk up: Rachmaninoff Symphony No. 3<\/strong>, Dvorak Symphony No. 6<\/strong>, Strauss Dance of the Seven Veils<\/em><\/strong>, Mozart Symphonies Nos. 36 and 40<\/strong>, Bruckner Symphony No. 7<\/strong>, and Sibelius Symphony No. 1<\/strong>.<\/p>\n As for new or newish pieces – I’m really looking forward to the Stravinsky Symphony in C<\/strong>, which is one of the jewels of his neo-classical period. The Chairman Dances<\/strong><\/em> of John Adams<\/strong> is also a welcome return visitor to our stage. Aaron Jay Kernis’s Too Hot Toccata<\/em><\/strong> should entertain audiences while simultaneously making the orchestra sweat and pant. Hugely popular (and critically acclaimed) composer Oswaldo Golijov<\/strong> finally has a work performed by the OSO: Last Round<\/em><\/strong> – it’s about time! A world premiere by Thomas Svoboda<\/strong> – Vortex for Orchestra<\/em><\/strong>, is a welcome and much-needed addition to a largely conservative season – I wish we did more major premieres.<\/p>\n So, that’s that – my initial responses to the 2008-2009 season, I was literally flipping through the brochure as I was typing this – from my brain to your eyes with no filter in sight.<\/p>\n In my next post I’ll cover the remainder of the series (Pops, Specials, Kids, and Inside the Score).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It’s about 3:00 p.m. on Friday afternoon, and at this morning’s rehearsal we in the orchestra were given the brochures for the 2008-2009 season of the Oregon Symphony. Here are my first impressions, literally written on the spot with little or no forethought (just like usual, I know…):<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":303,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-747","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-orchestra-world"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pa8kC-c3","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":475,"url":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2007\/10\/11\/oso-classical-series-b-concert-1\/","url_meta":{"origin":747,"position":0},"title":"OSO Classical Series B – Concert 1","author":"Charles Noble","date":"October 11, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"This got buried amidst all of the intervening news of last week, and I thought that those of you who are coming to the concerts this weekend might be interested in doing some advance listening in preparation for the concert experience. So pardon the duplication of posts. This year I've\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "the orchestra world"","block_context":{"text":"the orchestra world","link":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/category\/music\/the-orchestra-world\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/10\/spacer1.gif?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3310,"url":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2009\/11\/02\/busy-times\/","url_meta":{"origin":747,"position":1},"title":"busy times","author":"Charles Noble","date":"November 2, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"As we edge our way into November, and I reflect on what's going on in the classical music scene here in Portland, I'm finding it remarkable what all has happened already, and what's about to happen. At the Oregon Symphony, we've just completed our third Classical series concerts. The Vancouver\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "music"","block_context":{"text":"music","link":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/category\/music\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":279,"url":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2007\/04\/16\/adam-flatt-to-newport-symphony\/","url_meta":{"origin":747,"position":2},"title":"adam flatt to newport symphony","author":"Charles Noble","date":"April 16, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Click for photo: Adam Flatt It's always gratifying to hear of a great musician and person who manages to succeed in this tough business. I just learned that my old buddy Adam Flatt (who was a conducting apprentice here in Portland just after I arrived) has been appointed as the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "the orchestra world"","block_context":{"text":"the orchestra world","link":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/category\/music\/the-orchestra-world\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":21172,"url":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2021\/03\/14\/what-i-would-have-been-playing-this-month-march-2021-edition\/","url_meta":{"origin":747,"position":3},"title":"what I would have been playing this month – march 2021 edition","author":"Charles Noble","date":"March 14, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"March is often one of the busiest months of the season for the Oregon Symphony (aside from the run up to the Christmas holiday). This month would have brought three Classical series concerts, with some really great repertoire, the return of a favorite guest conductor, and a look at an\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "covid-19"","block_context":{"text":"covid-19","link":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/category\/covid-19\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":329,"url":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2007\/05\/21\/an-orchestras-life\/","url_meta":{"origin":747,"position":4},"title":"an orchestra’s life","author":"Charles Noble","date":"May 21, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Tonight is the last concert of our 2006-2007 classical subscription series (we've got two more after this: the Evelyn Nagel donor concert and a runout to George Fox University in Newberg). It's a fitting culmination to this season in several ways. First, we play Schubert's \"Unfinished\" Symphony. This is a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "the orchestra world"","block_context":{"text":"the orchestra world","link":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/category\/music\/the-orchestra-world\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":453,"url":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2007\/10\/03\/new-feature-oso-imixes\/","url_meta":{"origin":747,"position":5},"title":"new feature – OSO iMixes","author":"Charles Noble","date":"October 3, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"This year I've decided to add a new feature to the blog for Oregon Symphony concertgoers: the iMix. An iMix is a published playlist of songs from iTunes gathered into a central location. For each Classical series concert, I'll be publishing a iMix of the works on the program, all\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "iMix"","block_context":{"text":"iMix","link":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/category\/music\/imix\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/10\/spacer.gif?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/747","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/303"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=747"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/747\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=747"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=747"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=747"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Pianists<\/h3>\n
Vocal Works<\/h3>\n
Orchestral Works<\/h3>\n
“Contemporary” Works<\/h3>\n