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December 27, 2007
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Classical countdown: Best of 2007 Classical music may embody timeless beauty, but the local scene in 2007 was rife with change. Here’s a look back at some notable developments (hey, a double music pun!) of the past year. • Bye bye orchestra: After three decades of musical excellence, the New Hampshire Symphony last spring cancelled all remaining concerts and suspended operations due to persistent financial problems. Though conductor Ken Kiesler’s efforts often resulted in fantastic performances, the Manchester-based orchestra wasn’t able to build the financial and audience support needed to survive. At the time of the closure, trustees said the group might resume concerts in the future, but so far nothing has happened. • Hello orchestra: The demise of the New Hampshire Symphony gave Manchester the dubious distinction of being one of the largest cities in the United States without a professional symphony orchestra. To fill the gap, the Palace Theatre launched a new ensemble and on short notice scheduled concerts for the 2007-08 season. Led by local music director Robert C. Babb, the “Palace Festival Orchestra” launched itself with an all-Beethoven concert on Sept. 30. Next up: a New Year’s Eve performance at the Palace Theatre on, of course, Tuesday, Dec. 31. • Backstage opera: Another local group, Opera New Hampshire, also ran into financial difficulties this past spring, forcing the abrupt cancellation of a performance of “Manon Lescaut” scheduled for May at the Palace Theatre. This led to a break with the group’s long-time supplier of operas, DiCapo Theatre of New York, forcing Opera New Hampshire to find a new performing group with which to work. Opera New Hampshire returned to the stage in October with a production of “Tosca” staged by Teatro Lirico D’Europa, a Bulgarian-based touring group. Looking ahead, Opera New Hampshire will skip its traditional spring performance again this year, but come back in 2008-09 with performances of “Carmen” and “Aida.” • Changes in Nashua: After 27 years on the podium, Royston Nash stepped down this past spring as conductor of the Nashua Symphony Orchestra, prompting the group to launch a year-long “audition” process to find his successor. Three guest conductors have already led the orchestra this fall, with a fourth scheduled to conduct in March. After that, a decision will be made. • Steady as she goes: Amidst all the changes elsewhere, some local groups made it through 2007 making more music than news. Conductor Anthony Princiotti led the New Hampshire Philharmonic in another season of memorable and challenging concerts; Robert C. Babb and the Concord-based Granite State Orchestra continued to deliver solid performances; artistic director Phil Lauriat brought Granite State Opera to new heights in Concord and Portsmouth; conductor David Feltner brought the Nashua Chamber Orchestra to new places; music directors Dan Perkins and Ryan Turner kept honing the talents of their groups, the Manchester Choral Society and Concord Chorale, while Diane Cushing settled in as music director of the Nashua Symphony Chorus; and meanwhile, the 2007 schedule was filled with concerts by smaller groups and ensembles making some wonderful music. If all this continues, there’s a lot to look forward to in 2008. 2007 Classical Honor Roll 10: Saturday, Feb. 3, Nashua Symphony performing Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade. Led by outgoing music director Royston Nash, the performance was thrilling, all brilliance and bluster and great fun to listen to. Solo work from violinist Elliott Markow and cellist Harel Gietheim was top notch. 9: Saturday, June 2, Nashua Chamber Orchestra playing Robert Edward Smith’s newly commissioned concerto for English horn led by David Feltner with Cathy Macintyre as soloist. Written in a conservative idiom, Smith’s three-movement piece was a solid piece of workmanship that fit the English horn perfectly, acknowledging its fundamentally mournful qualities but also bringing out a lightness and grace that’s not often heard from it. 8: Sunday, Jan. 21, Greater Manchester Youth Symphony Orchestra performing the ‘Danse Baccanale’ from “Samson and Delilah” by Saint-Saëns. Led by conductor Ben Greene, the kids put it all together with this score, which builds to a thundering sustained climax that can fill a hall with glorious big sound, if the will to make it is there. 7: Saturday, March 10, Nashua Symphony Orchestra playing a “Ripple Effect” concert of new music led by guest conductor Karla Lemon. It was a daring program — two seldom-played classics, plus three brand new pieces written in collaboration with local high school students. Though audience attendance was below average, the Ripple Effect concert came across as one of the more original and worthy programs of its kind. 6: Sunday, April 5, Manchester Choral Society performing the new ‘Zulu Mass’ by African composer Qinisela Sibisi. Under conductor Dan Perkins, the new work unfolded with clarity and direction. As the singers worked their way through the Zulu text, the performance remained well-grounded. The performance drew a huge crowd and the audience openly cheered this brand new work. More, please! 5: Sunday, May 13, Granite State Opera performing the double-bill of ‘Cavalleria Rusticana’ and ‘Pagliacci.’ Aided by a superb cast of strong singers who acted up a storm, each gathered the needed momentum to deliver that final and fatal and satisfying punch that characterizes the best live performances. Vocally, ‘Pagliacci’ was thrilling, and never more so than when tenor Daniel Rodriguez (famous as New York City’s “singing cop”) was belting out his big moments as Canio, opera’s iconic sad clown. 4: Sunday, Sept. 30, Palace Festival Orchestra making its debut with an all-Beethoven concert conducted by Robert C. Babb. No opening night jitters here. Heard from the balcony, the sound was a wonder to behold — springy but not cold, energetic but not hyper, balanced but not without character. The playing was always good, and at times superb. If the orchestra can keep this level of playing up, then there’s no doubt about it: classical music is alive and well in Manchester. 3. Sunday, Nov. 11, Granite State Opera staging Donizetti’s opera “Lucia di Lammermoor.” In the demanding lead role, soprano Barbara Kilduff was absolutely outstanding. Kilduff’s agile voice brought all aspects of the part to life with passion, and her amazing rendition of the opera’s signature “mad” scene in Act 3 brought prolonged and thunderous cheers from the crowd at the Portsmouth show. I have never heard or seen this part sung better. 2: Saturday, Oct. 27, New Hampshire Philharmonic performing Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 9. Under conductor Anthony Princiotti, musicians in all sections played the heck out of this difficult and challenging score. The result was a performance that didn’t just hold together, but was thrilling to hear and sparkled in all the right places. Let’s hope they take on similar 20th-century scores in the future. 1: Saturday, March 17, Granite State Symphony Orchestra playing Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5. Led by Robert C. Babb, the Concord-based group played the absolute heck out of a selection of colorful Russian standards, capped by an exhilarating run-through of Tchaikovsky’s big Symphony No. 5 that just totally, totally got to me. Rather than a package tour of familiar turf, the Granite State Symphony’s Tchaikovsky 5th was real honest-to-God real-time adventure that gave voice to and celebrated life’s bitter lows and dizzy heights. I was actually in tears at the end. The performance was that good.
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12/20/2007 What Santa should bring 12/13/2007 He's everywhere!
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