OVERNIGHT REVIEW: L.A. Philharmonic and "Glorious Percussion" at Walt Disney Concert Hall

By Robert D. Thomas
Music Critic
Pasadena Star-News/San Gabriel Valley Tribune/Whittier Daily News
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Los Angeles Philharmonic; Gustavo Dudamel, conductor, Glorious Percussion ensemble
Gubaidulina: Glorious Percussion; Brahms’ Symphony No. 2
Thursday, May 19, 2011 • Walt Disney Concert Hall
Next performances: Tonight and tomorrow at 8 p.m. Sunday at 2 p.m.
(NOTE: Tonight is a “Casual Friday” concert. The concerto will not be performed; the program will be Brahms’ Academic Festival Overture and Symphony No. 2.)
Info: www.laphil.com
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When Gustavo Dudamel first encountered Russian composer Sofia Gubaidulina’s concerto, Glorious Percussion, in Sept. 2008 as music director of the Gothenburg Symphony, he surveyed the humungous battery of percussion instruments surrounding the podium and thought to himself, “Oh my God! This is going to be loud!” He was right — the concerto was loud (in spots). It also lived up to its title.

For the U.S. premiere of this 35-minute piece, played by Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic last night at Walt Disney Concert Hall, the five soloists and their instruments sprawled over the front half of the stage with the orchestra crammed behind them. Dudamel looked like he was negotiating a maze finding his way to the podium — he was, in more ways than one.

The nearly invisible maestro was surrounded by the following: wood blocks, glass chimes, bamboo chimes, cabaza, hand drums, darabuka, bass drums, crotales, xylophones, marimbas, flexatones, triangles, suspended cymbals, drums, tambourine, agogo, and Javanese gongs. By my count, that added up to seven keyboard-type instruments, nine different drums and more than three dozen assorted gongs, cymbals and other instruments … and that didn’t include the timpani, wood blocks, sleigh bells, drum, bass drum, cymbals, suspended cymbal and tam-tam, played by members of the Phil at the back of the orchestra.

Playing this dizzying array of instruments were three Scandinavian percussionists — Andres Loquin, Anders Haag and Eirik Raude — plus Mika Takehara from Japan and Robyn Schulkowsky, who was born in the U.S. and now lives in Germany. They came together for the world premiere three years ago, followed that up with several performances in Germany and Switzerland, and this season are playing the work with the Netherlands and Helsinki Philharmonics. They liked each other enough to coalesce as an ensemble and appropriate the concerto’s title as their group’s name.

Just watching them move carefully but gracefully from one instrument to another without either knocking anything over or stumbling was fascinating. So was their playing: sometimes individually, sometimes all five playing together on three or four of the keyboard-type instruments, and once in a cadenza-like riff on the large drums on the very front of the stage. Their virtuosity on whatever instruments they happened to be beating, plucking, shaking, waving, rattling or bowing was stunning. This is one piece that you have to be in the hall to appreciate.

All of this was, indeed, glorious percussion; whether it was glorious music is a matter of taste. Gubaidulina — a youthful-looking 79 years of age — has a Tartar father and a Slavic mother and her music reflects that Europe/Asia background. Many consider her one of the great, albeit somewhat unknown, composers of her generation. What was most fascinating (to me) about this score on a first hearing was how she managed to connect sonically the various percussion instruments with the sections of the orchestra; sometimes it was hard to hear where one began and the other took over.

The orchestra — heavy on brass, light on woodwinds, with a large complement of strings plus two harps and celesta — had moments of lightness and others of ponderous gravity; I kept waiting for Bydlo (the oxcart from Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition) to appear on stage. Three times the orchestra comes to a complete halt and the soloists take over for short virtuosic cadenzas.

In his program note, John Henken wrote: “You do not have to be able to parse the ‘agreement of the sounding intervals with their difference tones’ to appreciate the distinctive spectral sheen on Gubaidulina’s chords, or identify the difference between a darabuka (Middle Eastern goblet drum) and an agogo (Yoruban single or double bells) to revel in the colors she produces from the percussion array.” Right on, John, and a good thing, too. Glorious Percussion was a lot to absorb in one hearing but the audience took it in stride and responded with a huge ovation, both for the performers and for the composer who came onstage to accept the plaudits.

After intermission, Dudamel and Co. tackled Brahms’ Symphony No. 2. If you were one of those kvetching about “The Dude’s” luxuriant tempos in the first symphony two weeks ago, then you had to be thrilled with his brash, in-you-face concept of the second. Others may not have been quite so enamored.

Last night sounded like an impatient young man was in charge. Dudamel enforced brisk tempos, particularly in the two outer movements — this was one of the fastest performances of the second that I can remember — and he continues to emphasize extremes in dynamics. The orchestra — perhaps still recovering from the sonic onslaught of the concerto — seemed edgy at first with a tone that was less mellow than one might have expected from this so-called Pastoral Symphony. However, by the final movement, the players were locked into Dudamel and their rhythmic precision — even at the breathless tempos — was impressive to the max.
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Hemidemisemiquavers:
• To a festival beset by several scheduling changes, add another this week: the originally scheduled Tragic Overture was cancelled due to what the Phil says was “the stage setup requirements for the percussion ensemble in Glorious Percussion.” In retrospect, the move made eminent sense although, considering Dudamel’s previous experience with the concerto, one wonders why the decision took until virtually the last minute to make.
• The decision left a short-ish program for tonight’s “Casual Friday” concert so Brahms’ Academic Festival Overture has been added to the Symphony No. 2 for this performance only.
• In his preconcert lecture, composer/conductor Russell Steinberg said almost nothing about the concerto, apart from reading portions of Henken’s program note. Steinberg admitted that he hadn’t heard the piece. You’d think that, knowing his assignment, Steinberg might have made it to a rehearsal. Instead, he focused on the Brahms. Perhaps Saturday and Sunday will be different.
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(c) Copyright 2011, Robert D. Thomas. All rights reserved. Portions may be quoted with attribution.

Comments

[vibram five fingers]

this was one of the fastest performances of the second that I can remember — and he continues to emphasize extremes in dynamics.

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