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Kansas City Symphony Music Director, Michael Stern returned to the podium this weekend, with the proud announcement of the birth of his second daughter, Nora Elizabeth Stern on Jan. 10th given at the top of his pre-concert talk.  His ebullient enthusiasm found fertile fodder in the program whose works shared the theme of renewal in nature.   

Stern began the program with an evocative performance of the Helios Overture, a seldom-performed jewel by Danish composer, Carl Nielsen that is more tone poem than overture.  The word 'Helios' is the Greek word for sun and the Greek Sun God.  Composed in 1903 while in Greece, Nielsen described his concept for the piece as beginning in 'Silence and darkness, the sun rises with a joyous song of praise. It wanders on its golden way - and sinks quietly into the sea'.  The work opened to a soft unison drone from the celli in dynamic ebbs and swells upon a low tone that sounded like the slumbering breath of God upon a still harbor.  Horns seemed to softly call the world awake in sustained fifths and fourths, and were soon joined by the strings in a gentle opening theme.  

Sunrise was painted sonorously by the gradual awakening of the orchestral forces, above which the horns soared in unison like the mighty sun god Helios riding his chariot high into the endless blue sky.  A trumpet fanfare opened the presto in hopeful, optimistic rhythmic drive, and fleet woodwind passages depicted the flurry of birds.  Stern directed the strings in a marvelously tight and bright fugal section, punctuated by the brass in its conclusion.  As in nature, where twilight proceeds from a calming bright into the dark stillness of night, the beautiful, calming sound of a horn sang its lullaby to the world, and the celli heaved one final unison sigh of slumber.  The orchestra magnificently painted Nielsen's creation in stunning clarity and spirit.  In accepting the appreciation of the audience, Stern beckoned Associate Principal Horn, Ryan Gruber to take a solo bow for his outstanding performance.  

Pianist, Kuok-Wai Lio made his debut appearance with the Symphony in a classical interpretation of the Piano Concerto No. 2 by Mendelssohn.  From the opening of the work, Lio, 19, already an acclaimed competition winner and star student at the Curtis Institute brought forth a beautiful full singing sound and sensitive, mature nuance of phrasing.  Apart from some spotty responses from the winds in the opening, who answered the baton instead of the soloist, the orchestral colors blended and contrasted in excellent balance throughout the work, and Stern led the forces to achieve together a marvelously homogeneous realization of Mendelssohn's masterpiece. The third movement displayed Lio's brilliant command of technique.  His flying fingers produced an easy, lovely melodic line that flowed to its happy full chord ending.

Mahler's Symphony No. 1 filled the second half of the program, in what can be rightfully claimed a triumph for the Kansas City Symphony.  Not so very long ago, Mahler Symphonies were not standard fare for orchestras, but they are now.  In 1979, as a student at the Karajan Orchestra Academy, I played extra horn with the Berlin Philharmonic in Mahler's 9th Symphony conducted by Leonard Bernstein in his historic first and only time to direct that orchestra.  It was the first time the Berlin Philharmonic played that work, but a few months later Karajan decided to do it, too, and he recorded it.  From then onwards, Karajan directed many more Mahler in concerts, and Bernstein continued to introduce Mahler in many of his concerts with orchestras throughout the world.  

Works that challenged professional musicians in 1979 are now standard fare for today's orchestral musicians.  It is an exciting and inspiring phenomenon to witness the bar of instrumental performance standards rising to new levels, and the quantum leap of musical development that is spreading like wildfire in concerts in Kansas City and around the world.  The performance Saturday night showcased brilliant horn playing throughout, in an impressive array of colors from lip trills to hand-stopping, lilting solos by Principal horn, Alberto Suarez, to my all-time favorite sight in the world, the row of eight horns standing to play the final triumphant horn melody at the conclusion of the work.  That said, the high point of the entire evening was delivered by Principal bass, Jeffery Kail, who opened the third movement with the famous forlorn tune of Frere Jacque played in minor tonality upon his solitary double bass, accompanied only by the slow heart thump of the timpani.  Kail's bass tone was so vibrant and clear that it rang in the hall luminously.

It is impressive to hear the consistently high performance standards met by the Kansas City Symphony.  Its performance of Mahler's first symphony Saturday night richly deserved the thunderous applause and endless calls for encore that swept the full house to its feet at its completion.  Although it may not yet be as polished and perfect as the Berlin Philharmonic, this Symphony orchestra has developed into a truly top-notch creative force - most worthy of the multi-million dollar performing arts center being constructed for its use in the near future.        


 

REVIEW:
Kansas City Symphony
with Kuok-Wai Lio, piano
Saturday, January 24, 2009 at 8:00 pm, 
Lyric Theatre, DowntownKansas City, MO
www.kcsymphony.org

By Gayle G. Hathorne

Classical and Vocal Contributor (Past writer)