By Fran Gillespie
An oddly eclectic range of music awaited Doha’s concertgoers at the performance of the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra at the Aspire Hall on Saturday. It was conducted by the talented young American James Gaffigan.
Eine Kleine Nachtmusik [oh no, yawn] interspersed with little-known Mozart arias, some Debussy and Ravel and – what’s this? – a composition inspired by American aggression in Iraq? Surely not. But in the end these ill-assorted bedfellows all came together to make a delightful and satisfying evening, thanks to the magic wand of conductor Gaffigan.
When an orchestra and conductor have equally high opinions of each other, any performance is almost bound to be a success. “This orchestra is shockingly good,” declared Gaffigan in an interview with Gulf Times. “When I first came here I didn’t know what to expect.. to be honest I expected an interesting experience, that’s all. I never expected such a high level of music making.” That the orchestra responded with enthusiasm to his inspiringly energetic yet delicate and precise style of leadership was evident from the first notes.
Eine Kleine Nachtmusik is, for most people, the first piece composed by Mozart with which they become familiar, usually when very young. It’s almost as well known to most of us as nursery jingles, and so it takes an exceptionally sensitive handling to make the audience sit up and take notice, marvellous though this perfect little composition is. In this the orchestra succeeded, with a spirited and fresh rendering of the Rondo that set the scene for the rest. But familiar though it is, Eine Kleine is not a piece to be taken for granted, said Gaffigan.
“The most difficult thing on the programme for the orchestra tonight is not the Ravel or the Debussy, it’s the Mozart. Eine Kleine is a late piece and it’s difficult. I’ve heard great orchestras crash and burn on this. It’s a hard technical piece, it’s like being naked out there.”
Far from crashing and burning, the performance on Saturday was a delight, and the four movements, the Allegro, Andante, Allegretto and Rondo, which last in total only 16 minutes, were interspersed with arias on pastoral themes sung by the young German soprano Felicitas Fuchs. They seemed unfamiliar, but Fuchs explained, “These arias come from very early works of Mozart, rarely performed nowadays.”
Fuchs, who was educated in the UK at Wells Cathedral School and the Guildhall School of Music, has already appeared in Qatar this year, performing Zauberfl?te, H?nsel und Gretel and La Cenerentola with the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra.
The Aspire Hall’s acoustics are not the ideal background for a singer, but Fuchs’ powerful rendering of these early arias almost filled the space. Afterwards she said, “I’m very privileged to work with an orchestra like this; to gain such an experience is wonderful for young singers. With a newly put-together orchestra of young. talented musicians, you feel that they really want to achieve something. And in James Gaffigan I’ve found my favourite conductor!”
After the interval came Sabreen, composed by Mohamed Basha to express feelings on the American invasion of Iraq. A piece of dramatic film music, which originally accompanied a documentary film showing the aftermath of the invasion, it was enjoyable nonetheless with its sombre and threatening opening reaching a crescendo of wailing strings and loud tympanic sounds, and played with commitment and seriousness by the orchestra.
Undoubtedly the ‘star’ performance –of the evening was the superb rendering of Debussy’s ‘L’apres-midi d’un Faune.’ In this impressionistic piece, the musical equivalent of impressionistic paintings by Debussy’s contemporaries Monet, Degas and Renoir, a faun in a forest is represented by one and sometimes two flutes.
Unusually, Debussy introduced two harps, both with main parts, but no brass other than horns. The orchestra’s performance of this delicate, brilliantly orchestrated piece with its rich shading and fluid themes, with the flute duo’s soaring melody, was one of the finest performances yet by this young orchestra and a triumph both for it and the conductor.
Finally came the second suite from Ravel’s Daphnis and Chloe, another piece with a classical pastoral theme, and like the Debussy, composed for a ballet. Ravel did full dramatic justice to the theme of a nymph carried off by menacing pirates and finally restored to her lover Daphnis through the intervention of the god Pan. His ability to evoke a sunrise with twittering birds, menacing pirates, and the love of Daphnis and Chloe is the composer at his best, and enhanced by the superb playing of the orchestra under the direction of James Gaffigan.
Will this incredibly gifted young conductor return to Doha? “I’m so impressed with this orchestra and I can’t wait to come back again,” he said. “It’s not easy, because this orchestra is so new and my life is planned three years in advance. So it’s hard to set dates, but I always try to leave some time out for things like this.”
Festive music extravaganza
The Doha Community Orchestra (DCO), with the sponsorship of ConocoPhillips, is gearing up for the first concerts of its 5th season, an official said. “It (season) is set to be an extravaganza of festive music with two concerts early next month. The concerts will be events for all the family to enjoy, with the opportunity for audience participation in traditional songs,” the official added. The orchestra will be conducted by Brita Fay, formerly the Principal Conductor of the All City Youth Orchestra of Chicago. The Wind Band, conducted by Sanford Jones, will also be performing, the official said. Accompanying the Orchestra at these concerts will be the community choir Doha Singers, a mixed group composed of 50 members and directed by American School of Doha Choral director Bob Krebs. The concerts will include such favourites as “A Merry Little Christmas”, “Sleigh Ride”, “The 3-Minute Nutcracker”, “A Vaughan Williams Christmas” and “Stille, Stille, Stille”.
“They will open with a specially written festive fanfare, composed by John Evans, DCO trombonist,” the official added. More information could be had at dohaorchestra@gmail.com |
