2008 Woodie Awards
National symphony delivers
Orchestra performance enjoyed by all listeners, novice to connoisseur
Haley Dreis
Staff Writer
Issue date: 2/15/08 Section: The Mix
While football fans are always pumped for the Superbowl, classical music lovers in Columbia had been waiting for the National Symphony Orchestra concert Tuesday night at the Koger Center.
The Symphony opened with a piece from one of Mozart's most famous operas, "Overture to The Magic Flute." The piece excellently epitomized Mozart's light and noble nature for those who were not familiar with the Mozartian style.
"Prayer in Time of War," by William Schuman, shed light on an interesting perspective of World War II. It was enjoyable to hear a modern musical take on a major historical event. Elements of prayer pervaded the song with meditative, lush melodies. But there were still pulsing sections to demonstrate the militant background.
"The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra," by Benjamin Britten, was an appropriate piece to perform for new classical concertgoers. The purpose of the piece was to entertain and educate the audience about the instruments within and the elements of the orchestra. The work spanned introductions of the entire orchestra, beginning with an introduction of the flutes and piccolo and ending with the percussion section.
"Pictures at an Exhibition," originally written as a piano suite by Modest Mussorgsky, was orchestrated by Maurice Ravel. Mussorgsky alludes to an exhibition of several of Hartmann's watercolors and drawings in his piece. The piece showed off a superb brass and woodwind section, with clear and even tones through softer sections and fluctuating dynamics.
After a standing ovation, the orchestra performed an encore from the ballet "Appalachian Spring," by Aaron Copland. While the choice of piece did not show off the orchestra's flair and excitement, it was short and enjoyable.
Cheers from the audience cued the conductor Emil De Cou to direct a whimsical version of "Stars and Stripes Forever," by John Philip Sousa. De Cou went offstage, came back and began turning pages for the musicians on stage and then started clapping along with the audience. Their finale made the experience for the audience enjoyable and engaging.
The Symphony opened with a piece from one of Mozart's most famous operas, "Overture to The Magic Flute." The piece excellently epitomized Mozart's light and noble nature for those who were not familiar with the Mozartian style.
"Prayer in Time of War," by William Schuman, shed light on an interesting perspective of World War II. It was enjoyable to hear a modern musical take on a major historical event. Elements of prayer pervaded the song with meditative, lush melodies. But there were still pulsing sections to demonstrate the militant background.
"The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra," by Benjamin Britten, was an appropriate piece to perform for new classical concertgoers. The purpose of the piece was to entertain and educate the audience about the instruments within and the elements of the orchestra. The work spanned introductions of the entire orchestra, beginning with an introduction of the flutes and piccolo and ending with the percussion section.
"Pictures at an Exhibition," originally written as a piano suite by Modest Mussorgsky, was orchestrated by Maurice Ravel. Mussorgsky alludes to an exhibition of several of Hartmann's watercolors and drawings in his piece. The piece showed off a superb brass and woodwind section, with clear and even tones through softer sections and fluctuating dynamics.
After a standing ovation, the orchestra performed an encore from the ballet "Appalachian Spring," by Aaron Copland. While the choice of piece did not show off the orchestra's flair and excitement, it was short and enjoyable.
Cheers from the audience cued the conductor Emil De Cou to direct a whimsical version of "Stars and Stripes Forever," by John Philip Sousa. De Cou went offstage, came back and began turning pages for the musicians on stage and then started clapping along with the audience. Their finale made the experience for the audience enjoyable and engaging.
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