May 31, June 1 & 2, 2024
Bass Performance Hall
Ft. Worth, TX – USA
Robert Spano, conductor; Peter Steiner, trombone; Constanze Hochwartner, piano.
Jennifer HIGDON: “river sings a song to the trees” from City Scape
Kevin DAY: Departures
Gustav MAHLER: Sym[hony No. 5
Gregory Sullivan Isaacs | 4 JUN 2024
This past Friday evening, the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra (FWSO), under the direction of music director Robert Spano, gave a magnificent performance of Gustav Mahler’s monumental Symphony No. 5. The program wisely opened in a more tranquil manner with an older work (2002) by composer Jennifer Higdon. This slight piece is the center movement from her triptych, City Scape, derived from her recollections of her early years spent in Atlanta, Georgia. We were treated to a video “program note” with Higdon waxing nostalgic about the creek that flowed in front of her yard.
Her musical influence here is the memory of the pastoral élan created by relaxing beside the flowing water, with a soupçon of the nature-based impressionism you sometimes hear in the music of Respighi. The movement, with the Japanese-influenced title of “river sings to the trees,” opens with waterish sounds created by the percussion section using non-traditional techniques, such as stroking the gong with a violin bow.
The program meandered from that to something completely different—the world premiere of Departures, a pop-influenced double concerto for piano and trombone written by the locally based composer Kevin Day. This upbeat work is a triple commission by the FWSO, Texas Christian University (TCU), and the International Trombone Association (which happened to be meeting for their 2024 Festival here in Fort Worth from May 29 through June 1). In fact, the audience was packed with trombonists attending the meeting.
This new work, cast in three movements, was a breezy combination of jazz, pop, and even some hip-hop. There were also some lyric moments that showed off the trombone’s ability to spin a melody in its upper range. Although an enjoyable piece overall, the equally challenging piano part felt like an afterthought. It wasn’t as though the music assigned to the pianist was not as showy as that given to the trombone; it just didn’t have the same demanding presence as the much bolder voice.
Before the performance, The International Trombone Association Orchestra Recognition Award was presented to the FWSO by Lucas Borges, chair of the ITA Awards Committee, and David Begnoche, associate professor of trombone at TCU and chair of the TCU Brass Division. The award is given to an orchestra that has made a significant contribution to the artistic advancement of trombone performance and literature.
Mahler’s Fifth Symphony ended the program. Considering that the brass dominates this symphony, it is an excellent match for the program’s accent on trombones. But all of those instruments, from the horns to the rarely featured tuba, took full advantage of multiple chances to shine.
You always approach a performance of this massive symphony with some trepidation. First off, it is an extended sit with what was already a long program. Unlike Higdon’s tranquility and Day’s toe-tapper, Mahler’s 70-minute-long symphony is brimming with complex tragic music and requires considerable concentration to really appreciate its grandeur. It is a challenge for players, conductor, and audience alike. Although thrilling throughout, it can drag somewhat just before you reach the celebratory finale. That’s primarily due to some exhaustion for all concerned from delivering such a high level of intensity for so long a time. But this certainly didn’t happen on Friday night.
This performance has to rank among the best I have ever heard. Right from principal trumpet Kyle Sherman’s assertive delivery of the opening fanfare through the mediative “Adagietto” and arriving at the thrilling romp of the last movement, this was a riveting and overall exceptional performance.
Mahler uses the various choirs in the orchestra—strings, brass, winds, and percussion—as opposing forces with their own material and voice. Only Mahler’s skill as a conductor and orchestrator allows these choirs always to sound out but never compete. Of course, in performance, this is dependent on the conductor and musicianship of the orchestra.
Thus, the credit here has to go to the superb direction of Maestro Spano.
There is nothing flashy about Spano’s presence at the podium. In fact, he tends to occasionally mirror his hands, which is a big no-no these days in the endless crop of identical university-trained conductors. Instead of the huge dramatic gestures we often see, Spano controls every element and indicates every expression with deliberately concentrated and communicative gestures delivered from the center of the musical tornado that swirls around him.
In writing this review, it was tempting to list all of the moments that made this performance so memorable, but that would require an extensive essay of esoteric musings. So, let me leave you with this statement:
This was probably the best performance I have ever heard of Mahler’s Fifth, as well as from the FWSO. ■
EXTERNAL LINKS:
- Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra: fwsymphony.org
- Robert Spano: robertspanomusic.com
- Peter Steiner: steinerpeter.com
- Constanze Hochwartner: constanzehochwartner.com
- International Trombone Association: trombone.net
Read more by Gregory Sullivan Isaacs.
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