December 16-22nd:

Holiday Spectacular

Brian Prechtl had a chance to sit down with David Levy, the Stage Director for the BSO’s Holiday Spectacular.

David, I understand that the Holiday Spectacular is based on a similar production that has been done at the Indianapolis Symphony called “Yuletide” How long have you been involved in that production?

My first “Yuletide” production was 12 years ago.

How did you get involved in that?

I wrote the script for the first 5 years in Indianapolis and when they suddenly were in need of a stage director, I thought, I could do this, and the producer had the same idea concurrently so I have been directing the show for 7 years including this years production which features Sandi Patti. When Jack Everly was asked to bring the production here he asked if I would be involved and so here we are.

How does the production here in Baltimore compare to what is being done or has been done in Indianapolis?

This show represents a lot of the very best material that we have used in many previous productions. We’ve learned a lot over the years. Obviously some pieces have worked better than others and the collection that we are offering is a sort of “best of” of the many years of shows that we have produced. Included in this production are the very best charts and arrangements that we have done.

What changes have you seen over the life of the production?

It's become much more theatrical – less of a concert and more of a Broadway type of musical. We craft numbers around specific performers, involve much more dance, movement and wrap the production in a much more seamless presentation than the typical concert experience.

What is the best thing about this Holiday Spectacular?

This is simply great family entertainment. It has something for everyone regardless of age. Fantastic singing and dancing, humor, visual spectacle, tap dancing Santas and of course the brilliant Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. This is such a super way to introduce the youngest members of your family to a symphony orchestra. These performances will entertain people young and old. Also there is some incredibly fresh local talent from the Baltimore School for the Arts as well.

Thanks for talking to us today, David.

My pleasure. This is my first time in Baltimore and it’s a delightful town. Also I’ve really appreciated the enthusiasm of all of the people that I’ve met here. It’s been a treat.

David Levy with our tap dancing star, Karen Callaway Williams

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December 13th:

Renée Fleming with the BSO

Visit Renée's Site

December 10th and 11th:

Handel's Messiah: Edward Polochick, Conductor and Continuo

Ed Polochick playing the harpsichord. This instrument was built by Mark Adler. It is a copy af an 18th century Flemish harsichord.

Nicole Cabell, soprano
Barbara Rearick, mezzo-soprano
Lawrence Brownlee, tenor
Michael Dean, Baritone

David Coombs, BSO Contrabassoonist, spoke with Ed Polochick about the Messiah.

Ed, what is it that is so special about the Messiah?

The Messiah is a fascinating work of great genius.  Handel composed it in only 3 weeks, in 1741. He was a manic depressive, and locked himself in his room for the entire time, getting food delivered, and passing manuscript pages under the door to the copyist.  One of my fantasies is to write a book or a play about the creation of the Messiah.  Because of the speed with which it was written, it is a very “bare bones” score – with ambiguous tempo markings, very few dynamics, and no ornaments indicated.  Handel relied on his performers to fill in the details.

The Oratorio form is basically an unstaged opera. It became popular in England at the time because opera was not allowed during Lent, and the public still wanted their entertainment.  Most of Handel’s Oratorios are on Old Testament themes and personalities, such as Israel in Egypt and Judas Maccabeus.  The Messiah was something different, even though the majority is still based on Old Testament texts.  As a matter of fact, the name of Christ is only mentioned in two of the 53 movements. But, the two most popular Choruses, the “Hallelujah” Chorus, and “Worthy is the Lamb”, are from the Book of Revelation. Handel, like Bach, knew his Bible very well.

The most astonishing thing about the Messiah is the overall form. It is really a series of Baroques dance suites: Allemandes, Courantes, Menuets, Gavottes, Gigues and other dance forms. The first 12 movements form one large suite, related by the tempos, the key relationships and the texts. The Pastoral Symphony through the end of the first part form another suite.  This is genius! This is what inspired me to create what I think is a unique version of the Messiah, unlike any that I have heard either live or in recordings.

The combination of swift tempos and immediate segues from movement to movement, give a breathless quality to the work which help to underline the dramatic intensity of the text.  It is truly brilliant tone and text painting – Handel was a true master!

We’ve been performing the Messiah every year since 1982. I know, because I’ve played every one! How has it changed over the years?

My basic conception of it has not changed, but it has evolved over time.  There are thousands of decisions to make about every detail of dynamics, articulation, ornamentation, and phrasing. Every year we find new insights, and tweak a few of our old ideas.  We have many of the same performers who have been with us every year since the beginning, so we have a great sense of continuity. You cannot learn this score quickly.  It evolves. The combination of this continuity, along with a little “new blood” each year, is the ideal recipe.  It would be almost impossible to recreate this Messiah anywhere else.

Even with the “period” instrument and performance craze in the 50’s and 60’s, no one else ever figured out the obvious secrets of the score.  We should document our version. We should record it. People come to hear our Messiah and say “My God, I’ve never heard anything like this before”.

You conduct from the harpsichord. Does anyone else do that anymore?

There are fewer and fewer keyboard conductors. It’s a shame that the art of conducting from the keyboard is becoming so rare. In Handel’s time it was the norm.  I find that it brings me into the orchestra. We’re all in this together. Like performing chamber music.  People ask, “How can I direct without standing up with a baton in my hand?”  I can show how I want it played with my own playing.  I create moods with sound, which is much better than with gestures.

Having been on staff for 20 years, I had the wonderful opportunity to work with the BSO on innumerable occasions.  I miss these times immensely.  I love you guys.  You folks are so fabulous. I miss you, but at least I come back for the Messiah!

Visit http://www.sonoraproductions.com/polochick.html for more information about Ed.

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Soulful Celebration

Friday, December 9, 2005 at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall
Saturday, December 10 at the Music Center at Strathmore

Darin at Thursday's rehearsal

Here’s the 411 on Darin Atwater

Composer-in Residence with the Baltimore Symphony and Founder/Director of the Soulful Symphony
Age: 35
Born in: Washington DC
Principal instrument: piano

Brian Prechtl recently spoke with Darin:

BP: Tell us about some of your earliest musical training and experiences.

DA: I started playing the piano at age four. When I was in school I started playing the trumpet as well. But I really cut my musical teeth in church music.

When did you decide that you had more to say as a musician than simply performing?

I started composing when I got to Morgan State University. When I got the opportunity to use the sounds of the symphony orchestra along with voices I found a new world to explore.

What was the inspiration for the formation of the Soulful Symphony?

In February of 2000, with the performance of “Song in a Strange Land” the Soulful Symphony was born. This group represents an addition to the culture from an African American spirit, in the great tradition of the Dance Theater of Harlem and the Alvin Ailey Dance Company.

What accomplishments of the Soulful Symphony are you most proud of?

The fact that we are giving people another sense of what our community can offer is very exciting to me. Besides BTE and rap there are other options. What the Soulful Symphony provides is a new and fresh experience in a new time. It’s starting to have the effect of elevating the consciousness of the entire community – both White and African American.

What upcoming plans does the soulful Symphony have?

We are getting ready for another collaboration with the BSO. “Evolution of a People” will be presented as part of The 20th Annual Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on January 17, 2006. This work is a musical and photographic journey through the history of the African American and represents another collaboration with the Marsalis family. Wynton’s brother, Ellis is a brilliant photographer who lives right here in Baltimore. His work will be shown in concert along with the musical work creating a multi-media presentation. We also have some concerts coming up at Morgan State as part of a collaboration with the BMA, which will incorporate the art of Henry Tanner.

What Do You Hope for the Future of the Soulful Symphony?

We are still not exposing enough of our people to our music. African Americans are wildly American about everything except classical music. As such, we want to make an imprint on our community. Education is a huge priority. I believe that you have to work from the inside out with kids one-on-one. If you find them where they are you can show them that they are creators. This is the purpose of our K–12 program. It is an interactive experience for children in grades Kindergarten through 12th grade to do just that.

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December 1st-4th

John Pizzarelli and Conductor Andrew Constantine at Tuesday's Rehearsal.

Age: 45

Lives in New York City.

This is John’s first time performing with the BSO.

His concert this weekend is entitled “Let’s Fall In Love – a Tribute to Harold Arlen.

We had a chance to spend a few minutes with John backstage today and find out a little bit about him and his musical upbringing:

You come from a musical family.  Tell us a little about that.

My father Bucky Pizzarelli is a fantastic guitarist who has played with everyone from Vaughn Monroe to Stephan Grappelli and Les Paul. He’ll be 80 in January and is so busy, I can barely find a chance to play with him, but I try to work with him as often as possible.  I am doing a week with him next week at Birdland in New York. 

You must have met a lot of interesting musicians growing up in that kind of environment. 

I met people like Benny Goodman and Zoot Sims as a kid. 

Tell us a bit about your childhood.

I grew up in Saddle River NJ.  My first instrument was the tenor banjo, which I learned at age six and I picked up the guitar when I was ten.  I learned a lot of rock and roll songs off records as a teen.  My Dad saw that I had an interest and he played Django Reinhardt records for me.  That really got my attention, but when I first heard the Nat King Cole Trio that’s what got me into singing and playing the guitar.

What about the rest of your family, are they musical?

My brother Martin plays bass with the group.  I’ve got two sisters but neither is a professional musician.  Mom still holds down the fort in Saddle River.

Where have you been playing lately and what comes next for you?

Before this we’ve been in Brazil, Spain and Asia. After this I’ve got a week in New York and then we’re off to British Columbia.

How did you come to start playing with orchestras and how do you find the experience?

We’ve done the Harold Arlen show a lot this year. Earlier in the year We did the show in Buffalo NY where Harold Arlen is from. We’ve done it with the New York Pops and we’ll be doing it with the Boston Pops next year.  Playing with an orchestra is nice because you get two days in a city.  Often when playing in our combo version, we do one hit per city which gets tiring.   We’ve taken our combo setting and expanded it for the full orchestra so the essence of the style is in tact, but we get a fatter, richer texture.  It’s fun.

John's official website is: www.johnpizzarelli.com

BSO Associate Conductor, Andrew Constantine 

 Percussionist Brian Prechtl sat down for an interview with Associate Conductor of the BSO, Andrew Constantine.  Here are some of his reflections on what it’s like to be on the conducting staff:

It must be difficult to have nothing to do on the podium and then suddenly being responsible for two programs in one week.  What is that like?

It is very challenging.  It means that I come to work with the best part of 30 scores.  I have to think about not only the two programs I am responsible for this week, but next week as well.   Besides having a run-out to Wye Mills and some education concerts next week, I have to dash off to Syracuse to do a Messiah at the end of it all.

It sounds like you are busy. What else do you have going outside of the BSO as far as conducting?

Besides the Messiah in Syracuse next week, I will be going back to England in January for a concert with the Bardi Orchestra.  This is an orchestra that I was affiliated with before I came to Baltimore.  Ilya Finkelshtyn, the BSO’s Principal Cellist, will accompany me to play the Dvorak Concerto.  We’ll also perform Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony.  While in the UK I will speak to the NESTA foundation, which gave me a fellowship – a pile of money to pursue my conducting career path.  At the moment I am using it to commission new works.  The speech will be about the business of making music in the US and is aimed at industry specialists that direct conservatories.

Can you give us a snapshot of what differences you see between the orchestral music business in the US compared to the UK?

Somebody on the outside can’t see the enormity of what goes on in an organization like the BSO. In the US there is more of an “institution” as the norm than in the UK.  Here at the BSO we see ourselves as a resident orchestra serving a constituent community that is almost like a congregation if you like – committed and loyal and who have expressed that over many years of support.  In the UK there’s very little of a regular audience.  They exist in pockets like Manchester or Birmingham but in London you never know who is in the orchestra. In the UK orchestras there is much more of a feeling of a self-run orchestra in terms of management.  We don’t have anywhere near the kind of support staff that you have here in the US.  There is good and bad in that of course.

What part of this job do you find the most challenging?

The most challenging aspect is the job of getting everybody to recognize that the role of education in a symphony orchestra is paramount to our future success.  Something that has occurred to me is that if you try to pick up an audience after they’ve gone past their formative years the task is enormous compared to what you net.  In the US American football is huge, but as a Brit I can’t make heads or tails of it.  However, if you put a rugby or a soccer game on I’ll sit there for hours because it was part of my beginnings.  It’s just because that seed was planted in me as a small boy and we need to learn from that.  We can’t leave the task of planting that seed until too late.

What part do you find the most tedious?

That would be sitting on my backside not doing anything but ostensibly being ready to jump up in a flash to replace any ailing maestro.

What is the most rewarding part of the job?

What’s rewarding is to get to the end of a project and find how the orchestra invariably rises to the task of anything put in front of it. This orchestra never settles for playing blandly or presenting anything second rate.

Where do you see yourself making the biggest difference, artistically here in the community of Baltimore?

Because we are on the crest of a wave after the extremely successful presentation of “The Mystery Express” for the recent Music For Youth concerts, I can’t help but focus on that.  If there is any kind of legacy that we (myself and those dedicated to education) will leave, it is that we have furthered the role of education here at the BSO at a time when some might challenge its economic place in the organization.  We’ve managed to show that it is possible to generate something from within the orchestra that is valuable and worthy of widespread recognition.  This continues the tradition of 80 years of music education in the Baltimore Community

For more about Andrew, check out his website: www.andrewconstantine.com

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