Trip back to hometown Cleveland always inspires

By Burt Saidel

A visit to Cleveland was more than a joyous Thanksgiving dinner with family. Cleveland is the home of one of the world’s greatest symphony orchestras and art museums.

For me, it is like a trip home.  I began attending both the museum and Severance Hall, the home of the orchestra, 55 years ago as I entered dental school at Western Reserve.

Severance Hall, in spite of many renovations is still a triumph of Art Deco elegance. The museum, however, is hardly recognizable from the majestic Greek revival building I loved so much.  The Greek facade is still there but engulfed by a bold black and white striped marble structure.  That is today; the museum is again grow ing and the familiar will be challenged by the new.

In the midst of major construction, the museum staff was still able to mount a huge and important exhibition, Barcelona!  It is a showcase of the art of Catalonia highlighting the productive period spanning 1868 to 1939.

I expected to see Picasso’s wide-ranging creativity and Art-Nuevo architect Antoni Gaudi’s fantastic structures to be the core of the exhibition.  Those works were there but lesser known artists became the “stars of the show.”

I made a new best friend in the painter Ramon Casas.  His paintings and illustrations each had that magical appeal. I will always treasure my introduction to my new friend.

The orchestra concert that evening was a new reading of three old friends.  The program, Mendelssohn’s “Scottish” Symphony, Rachmaninoff’s beloved Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini and Wagner’s Overture to Tannhäuser are standards. Young and handsome assistant conductor Andrew Grams made his debut in a pair of subscription concerts gaving the music his special interpretation.

The Cleveland Orchestra has its own sound, big and mellifluous, but filled with almost intimate details.  Each of the musicians is a virtuoso; each section is stellar.
The Mendelssohn is a big symphony filled with secret moments of intimacy and delicacy.  Grams chose to slow down the tempi in many sections.  The feeling was less familiar but the clarity and the dynamics were enhanced.  

The “Scottish” Symphony is a clarinet symphony.  The solos, not protracted but of critical importance, were played by the master of the instrument, Franklin Cohen
Pianist Stephen Hough was the soloist in the Rachmaninoff “Rhapsody.”  His piano had to play as many roles as there are variations in the familiar work.  The piano had to tease, sing, dramatize, show off, whisper and shout.  Each mood was accompanied by a similar or contrasting feeling from the orchestra.  Hough, with effortless technique, sculpted each note and brought a deeply satisfying freshness to this masterpiece.

The concert closed, unusually, with an overture.  Wagner’s opera Tannhäuser is a complex contest between sacred and profane.  The overture takes the audience through the entire journey.  Beginning with the soft but relentless chords of The Pilgrim’s Chorus, we are transported musically to the passionate paganism of the goddess Venus and her sybaritic entourage.  

The music was seductive in each part of the journey.  I must commend the horns, woodwinds and lower strings for making the seduction so compelling and irresistible. While the Venusberg music was rather tame, the total effect was full of grace well-mixed with power.

Pianist Eric Himy at Soirees Musicales

Pianist Eric Himy is unique among piano performers.  He is a recitalist who expresses his instrument with passion and dynamism.  

Impresario Don Hageman has invited Himy to appear at his prestigious Soirées Musicales many times. The result has been a devoted following in Dayton which is mirrored in many other concert venues.  We have, in fact, received notices from friends in other cities who join our enthusiasm for Himy’s bold and fiery piano style.
For the December recital at Shiloh Church, Himy gave his usual varied program.  Committed to expanding the piano transcription literature, he began the concert with his own setting of an aria by Antonio Salieri. I was impressed that he found the vocal range of the singer, probably a castrato, in his transcription.

A Mozart Sonata and Lizst’s familiar Fantasy on Don Juan were included in the program.  A highlight of the recital was an introduction of a new work by Spanish composer Elisenda Fábregas who was present at the concert.  Entitled Hommage á Mozart, the composer used many quotes but joined them by interesting and highly musical bridges.  Himy played the work with blinding speed which diminished its effect, demanding another hearing.

The music of Robert Schumann responds to Himy’s brilliant and free interpretation.  Schumann lived on the fringe of madness, finally falling completely under its tragic grasp.  I consider him to be the van Gogh of music.  Vincent, in his madness, saw brilliant swirls and blinding flashes of color. Schumann did the same musically.  

Often, Schumann’s works are given a reading which diminishes that effect.  Himy provided all of the colors and movement, making Schumann’s tortured world emerge as a world of beauty and excitement. In playing the Symphonic Etudes of Schumann, Himy included the  five posthumous variations. The result was a total experience, a lofty mountain peak of piano expression, a matchless experience for the listener.

Nutcracker to open Dec. 15 at Schuster Center

Hayley Basnett embraces tree...

Dayton Ballet’s timeless holiday classic The Nutcracker returns to the Benjamin and Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center for nine performances, Dec. 15–23.    

Choreographed by Karen Russo and Dermot Burke, Dayton Ballet’s The Nutcracker features the late local philanthropist, Virginia Kettering as a young girl dreaming about her Uncle Drosselmeyer’s handsome gift, a nutcracker.  She is joined onstage by an amazing group of characters – white mice, marching soldiers, Russian soldiers, a Chinese quartet, shepherds and their lambs, the Snow King and Queen and of course, the Sugar Plum Fairy.

Members of the Dayton Ballet II Senior and Junior companies, as well as over 80 children from all over the Miami Valley, will take part in this year’s performances of The Nutcracker.

Oakwood cast members include: Hayley Basnett, Madeleine Bee, Amanda Blust, Emma Bridgman, Alicia Cox, Elisabeth Crusey, Kate DeLon, Erin Donnelly, Mary Grace Donnelly, Emma Flanagan, Sara French, Joseph French, Jessica Garrity, Emily Haluschak, Sarah Haluschak, Maddie Hoffman, Rachel Hutchison, Hannah Knorr, Erin Lane, Isabel Lovett, Alexandra Millard, Abigail Seyfang, Lainey Teeters, Madison Teeters, Allison Trittschuh, Samantha Warwar, Hannah Warwar, Claire Weinstein, Madeline Welch, Katie Whitehair and Erica Ohmer.

Opening Act

Photo by Carol Judge

The Oakwood High School Orchestra had the opportunity to perform for the pre-concert crowd attending the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra concert held at the Schuster Performing Arts Center in Downtown Dayton on Friday, Dec. 1. The orchestra is conducted by Nan Watson.

top of page

December 12, 2006
Volume 15, No. 50

front page
arts
schools
sports
editorial
'round town
people
events
obituaries