May 16 & 18, 2024
Atlanta Symphony Hall, Woodruff Arts Center
Atlanta, Georgia – USA
Robert Spano, conductor; John Tessier, tenor; Joseph Lattanzi, baritone; Cody Bowers, countertenor.
Igor STRAVISKY: Le sacre du printemps (“The Rite of Spring”)
Jonathan LESHNOFF: The Sacrifice of Isaac
Mark Gresham | 18 MAY 2024
Thursday’s performance by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus brought orchestra’s music director laureate Robert Spano to the podium for the second time in as many weeks for a program that paired Igor Stravinsky’s iconic ballet The Rite of Spring (“Le Sacre du Printemps”) and the world premiere of Jonathan Leshnoff’s oratorio The Sacrifice of Isaac. Each of these works explores the theme of sacrifice, but they do so in markedly different contexts and dramatic arcs.
Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring is a seminal ballet and orchestral work premiered in 1913 by Sergei Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, with original choreography by Vaslav Nijinsky. The music, groundbreaking at the time in its rhythmic complexity and dissonance, evokes the raw, primal energy of ancient pagan rituals. Stravinsky’s use of irregular meters, polytonality, and innovative orchestration creates an atmosphere of tension and unpredictability, mirroring the chaos and vitality of spring’s renewal.
The ballet’s narrative centers around a primitive Slavic tribe’s ritual to ensure a bountiful harvest, culminating in the sacrifice of a chosen maiden who dances herself to death. The music’s relentless drive and intensity symbolically represent this theme of sacrifice. The ritualistic elements are conveyed through repetitive, pounding rhythms and stark, angular melodies, reflecting the visceral force of the tribe’s communal worship practices, which not only underscores the visceral connection between humans and nature but also challenges the boundaries of musical expression, making it a cornerstone of early 20th-century music.
Although it is far from the only repertoire he is well-noted for, Atlanta audiences (and even some writers) have tagged Spano as having a close connection with Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring. Of course, he conducted it the last time the ASO performed it in 2014—not, as the program booklet says, Donald Runnicles, although Runnicles did conduct some Elgar and Wagner to open that shared-podium program, and the two conductors also played a two-piano version of excerpts from The Rite in advance of Spano conducting the orchestral version.
But Spano was also in the public eye as both composer and pianist in a collaborative performance project with choreographer Lauri Stallings and glo in September 2014 at what was then the Goat Farm Arts Center’s spacious Goodson Yard, in four consecutive days of performances, only the second time Stallings and Spano had collaborated.
In the two-part program, Spano composed and performed the solo piano music for the first part, “Cloth.” Bout for part two, “The Tower,” the music was Stravinsky’s Rite transcribed for four-handed piano and percussion, performed by Spano and pianist Pedja Muzijevic with then ASO percussionists Tom Sherwood and Charles Settle.
But that legacy is not over because Stallings and Spano will again collaborate on The Rite of Spring at the end of January 2025, this time the orchestral version with Spano leading the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra and Atlanta’s glo, with new choreography by Stallings.
In Thursday’s impressive iteration of The Rite, with Spano at the helm, the musicians of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra were unquestionably at the top of their game. It was a tautly-energized, thrilling performance by our major-league home team.
Composer Jonathan Leshnoff’s oratorio, The Sacrifice of Isaac, explores the biblical story found in Genesis 22:1-19, focusing on its emotional and spiritual complexities. Leshnoff faced the challenge of expanding the brief biblical narrative into a substantial musical piece. To do this, he incorporated texts from Jewish tradition, including the Talmud and Midrashic commentaries, which offer additional insights and narratives.
The oratorio begins with a traditional blessing from the Bible, sung by Abraham (baritone Joseph Lattanzi), setting up the paradox of blessing a child who is later to be sacrificed. As the story progresses from Sarah’s giving birth to Abraham’s instruction to sacrifice Isaac (tenor John Tessier), Leshnoff weaves in rabbinic texts to deepen the narrative. One Midrashic text depicts angels questioning God’s command, while another features Satan taunting Isaac. The voice of God (countertenor Cody Bowers) is also heard speaking (rather, singing) to Abraham at various points in the story, most notably in Aria 4 (“Take your son, your only son”), which finds symbolic parallel in Aria 5 (“Abraham saw the place off afar”) where the exchange is between Abraham and Isaac.
l-r: baritone Joseph Lattanzi, countertenor Cody Bowers, conductor Robert Spano, and tenor John Tessier with the ASO&C in Jonathan Leshnoff’s “The Sacrifice of Isaac.” (credit: Rand Lines)
As the tension builds to the climax, with Abraham about to sacrifice Isaac, the music reaches a peak but then abruptly halts. At this moment, Isaac sings “Yedid Nefesh,” an ancient liturgical text, expressing a soul’s longing for unity with its Creator—the only part of the oratorio sung in Hebrew.
Attributed to 16th-century Sephardic kabbalist Rabbi Elazar ben Moshe Azikri (Elazar Ezkari), “Yedid Nefesh” was included in his Sefer Charedim (“Book of the Pious”), an ethical and legal guide to everyday life. The poem reflects Azikri’s philosophy of intense divine love. The initial letters of each verse spell out the tetragrammaton, the four-letter name of God.
The oratorio’s narrative concludes with the angel stopping Abraham and the initial blessing being sung again, this time by Isaac, symbolizing the continuation of Abraham’s legacy. Leshnoff suggests that the story’s message is about reaching one’s potential even in the face of seemingly impossible demands and adverse situations that pose impossible choices.
The three soloists for the evening all ably executed their roles, and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus did a fine job for their part. Leshnoff’s music is well-suited to the capabilities of the rhythmically driven chorus, prepared by ASO director of choruses Norman Mackenzie. The music itself carries the chosen texts well, although it doesn’t illuminate or amplify them much. Nevertheless, Leshnoff builds a structural arch with the music that hangs together, even though the piece is almost too long to do so. Just when the mind is about to lose attention, something slightly different begins that attracts the ear. The libretto, the story, is much more the structural glue for this oratorio of largely introspective temperament.
The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, guest soloists, perform Jonathan Leshnoff’s “The Sacrifice of Isaac,” led by ASO music director laureate Robert Spano
Alas, I must end with this final news for loyal ASO fans: Mark Yancich, the ASO’s principal timpanist since 1981 (the Walter H. Bunzl Chair), will step down from that position after this week’s concerts. The image below is of Yancich performing in Thursday night’s concert.)
Yancich is well-recognized as one of the top timpanists in North America. He has appeared as guest timpanist with the Chicago, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Minnesota, and Ft. Worth Symphonies, and soloist with other orchestras, and in duo with his timpanist brother Paul Yancich in James Oliverio’s DYNASTY: Double Timpani Concerto with both the ASO and the Cleveland Orchestra.
His long-time presence as part of the ASO musical community will definitely be missed. ■
ASO principal timpanist Marck Yancich, performing in his final week with the ASO. (credit: Rand Lines)
EXTERNAL LINKS:
- Atlanta Symphony Orchestra: aso.org
- Robert Spano: robertspanomusic.com
- Garrick Ohlsson: garrickohlsson.com
Read more by Mark Gresham.
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