Concert Review: Inviting Us Together with Arx Duo and Symphony Tacoma, from Bartok to Beethoven to DiBerardino

Concert Preview: Bandoneon, Piano, Composing, Oh My!

Symphony Tacoma is proud to present Classics VI: Blues, Tangos, & Rhapsodies. Multi-Instrumentalist and Composer Claudio Constantini will share his unique style that fuses classical, contemporary and Latin music genres in his performance of two pieces—his own tango-inspired Concerto for Bandoneon and Gershwin’s gem of symphonic jazz, Rhapsody in Blue.

Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue is a piece that not only defines Gershwin; for many, it also defines America. The original piece, Rhapsody, was not ready in time for its scheduled premiere, resulting in Gershwin improvising, with the conductor only knowing when to cue the orchestra. Piano solos alternate with orchestral interludes, the Rhapsody is beloved by audiences all over the world.

Florence Price was one of the most versatile and accomplished American musicians of her generation. She was the first female African American classical composer to gain national fame. Price’s Ethiopia’s Shadow in America traces the American experience of enslaved Africans. The first movement depicts their arrival, the second portrays the development of faith, and the third shows adaptation into modern society. The work firmly places Price alongside other figures associated with the Harlem Renaissance, including William Grant Still, Langston Hughes and Duke Ellington.

Rounding out the evening will be Gershwin’s An American in Paris. Though reviews were mixed when originally premiered, time has proven An American in Paris to be a staple of the orchestral repertoire. “The opening gay section is followed by a rich blues with a strong rhythmic undercurrent,” Gershwin says. “This blues rises to a climax, followed by a coda in which the spirit of the music return to the vivacity and bubbly exuberance of the opening part…. at the conclusion, the street noises and French atmosphere are triumphant.”

Concert Preview: Symphony Tacoma present World Premiere, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 in Classics V

Symphony Tacoma is proud to present Classics V: Dancing Mallets & Pulsing Percussion. arx duo will perform, including the world premiere of Nick DiBernardino’s Double Percussion Concerto, on Saturday, April 22, 2023 at 7:30 PM in the Pantages Theater.

Percussionists Garrett Arney and Mari Yoshinaga make arx duo. Working closely with a large variety of composers and ensembles, arx duo is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization that expands the percussion repertoire by commissioning, performing and workshop pieces from artists all over the world. arx duo has served as educators at many universities including Peabody Conservatory, Michigan State University, and currently serve as faculty for the Curtis Institute of Music Young Artists Summer Program

Beginning the program will be Bartók’s Romanian Folk Dances. Originally composed for solo piano in 1915, Bartók developed an interest in his native folk music in his early 20s, noting, “I consider it my goal in life to continue my study of Romanian folk music, at least in Transylvania, and carry it to its end …”. Bartok traveled to Transylvania numerous times, where he recorded and transcribed the music of the local population. These folk tunes provided the tunes, rhythms and harmonies that inspired his own compositions.

Beethoven’s renowned Symphony No. 7 will close out the program, one of his best works according to Beethoven himself. The piece’s four movements leave a poetic impression on listeners, favoring so well it had to be repeated in concert four days later. Each movement varies- from an extensive, slow introduction, leading you into the most graceful, haunting ten minutes of music ever composed. This is followed by a frenzied scherzo movement, and finishing with incredibly high energy. While critics wondered if Beethoven was intoxicated at the time of the composition, French writer and Beethoven’s biographer, Romain Rolland, responded, “It was indeed the work of an intoxicated man, but one intoxicated with poetry and genius.”

Concert Review: Reconciliation 140 Years in the Making

Concert Review: ‘Tacoma Method’ Packs The Pantages

Concert Preview: Symphony Tacoma Brings World Premiere Of ‘Tacoma Method’

A compelling opera based on the expulsion of Chinese residents from Tacoma in 1885 will make its world premiere at the Pantages Theater on Feb. 25. As part of Symphony Tacoma’s regular subscription series, February’s concert, titled “Reconciliation,” will include excerpts from “Tacoma Method” composed by Pacific Lutheran University Professor of Music Greg Youtz and librettist Zhang Er, a Beijing born-and-raised Chinese poet now teaching at Evergreen College Tacoma. 

“Tacoma Method,” which was awarded major funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, is a most unique and captivating opera depicting the true story of a dark time in Tacoma history when all Chinese people living in Tacoma were violently torn from their homes and run out of town by a vicious mob. Forced to leave everything behind except what they could grab and carry in their panicked state, these Chinese citizens scattered for safety while their homes were ransacked and burned. 

Prior to the “Tacoma Method” premiere, a panel discussion will take place upstairs at the Pantages. Moderated by Chinese Reconciliation Project Foundation board member and University of Puget Sound Asian Studies instructor Lotus Perry, the panel will include Hosley, composer Youtz and librettist Er; mezzo-soprano soloist Hai-Ting Chinn who will be traveling from New York to sing an aria in the “Tacoma Method” premiere; Doug Andreassen from the Tacoma Historical Society; Tacoma Opera General Manager Lim Forgey; Symphony Tacoma Executive Director Karina Bharne and conductor Sarah Ioannides; and Andrew Gomez, University of Puget Sound Associate Professor of History.

“The idea is to give all these organizations a chance to talk about their own interest in these historical events – why it’s important to talk about this now, how they feel about it being done as an opera and why Symphony Tacoma is interested in doing these excerpts,” Youtz said.