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Kansas City's Online Journal of the Performing Arts

The Kansas City Chamber Orchestra closed their concert season last Friday with an ambitious program featuring Mozart’s legendary Requiem in D minor. In spite of a few typical live-performance setbacks, Mozart’s Requiem coupled with a Stravinsky concerto made the program all the more interesting. Under the direction of Bruce Sorrell, the Kansas City Chamber Orchestra is a tight group with a polished sound. If they only had had just a bit more energy this particular night, it would have been an even better performance.

After a few short announcements, the Orchestra began the evening with Stravinsky’s twelve-minute Concerto in E-flat (“Dumbarton Oaks”). The well balanced dynamics across the ensemble and warm and steady tone on sustained notes in the string section allowed individual solos to come out, especially the brilliant French horn solo in the third movement. The driving rhythms, length and upbeat mood of this work were an appropriate compliment to Mozart’s Requiem on the second half of the program. Unfortunately, the Orchestra’s delightful performance of the Concerto was somewhat diminished by a late start and lengthy intermission.

A work shrouded in mystery and intrigue, Mozart’s Requiem in D minor, KV 626, was the star of the concert. The chorus, comprised of members from the Village Presbyterian and St. Paul’s Episcopal Churches, and Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral, started out particularly strong in the first two movements (“Introitus” and “Kyrie”) with clear diction, precise cut-offs, and good balance with the Orchestra. However as the piece progressed the chorus’s volume occasionally overtook the orchestra and it lost its initial effective blending and balance, becoming soprano-heavy and an individual voice easily picked out of the group here and there. The chorus excelled with the richest, more powerful sections of the mass, such as the “Confutatis” and “Lacrimosa” sections of the third movement (which were by far the two best sections overall) and during the fourth movement (the “Offertorium”).

The Orchestra performed more consistently, yet lacked the higher energy level displayed by the chorus. The woodwinds had wonderful solos throughout, and the strings played their passages with a seemingly effortless quality, whether a lilting arpeggio or rapid scale. They maintained steady tempi with nary an intonation issue at all. I wish they had not been covered by the chorus quite so much, but perhaps part of that balance issue was due to the acoustics of the venue. I felt that although I was fairly close to the ensemble, the sound they produced seemed distant, as though it floated straight to the ceiling and stayed there.

The highlights of the evening were the soloists on the Requiem. Soprano Rebecca Lloyd, mezzo-soprano Denise Knowlton, tenor David Adams, and bass John Stephens were masterfully emotive, each with a clear tone and excellent intonation and diction. While individually striking, the quartet didn’t blend as comfortably as I would have liked, however they were still strong and impressive together, especially during the alternating duets during the “Benedictus” movement.

The Kansas City Chamber Orchestra presented a very solid concert of compelling music that had the packed audience riveted and on their feet by the end. It was a pleasure to hear the Requiem in its entirety and the Chamber Orchestra gave a respectful and admirable performance.

REVIEW:
Kansas City Chamber Orchestra
Mozart’s Requiem
Friday, June 11, 2010
Village Presbyterian Church
6641 Mission Road, Prairie Village, KS
www.kcchamberorchestra.org

By Kristin Shafel Omiccioli

Editorial Assignments Executive Editor; Traditional and New Classical Contributor

Kristin Shafel Omiccioli, a native of Madison, WI, holds composition degrees (M.M., B.M.) from the UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance. Kristin's compositions have been performed at national and regional new music festivals and conferences throughout the United States. During her time at UMKC, Kristin also focused on double bass performance and arts administration. She was a student leader and performer in many of the Conservatory's student organizations and ensembles, including Musica Nova, Composers' Guild, the Conservatory Student Association, the orchestras, and Wind Symphony. Her composition instructors were James Mobberley, Paul Rudy, Zhou Long, and Chen Yi, and her bass instructor was Sue Stubbs. Formerly a guitarist, Kristin performed with big bands and her own jazz combo in Madison, WI, having studied jazz guitar and theory with Roger Brotherhood in Madison and jazz voice and theory with Hal Melia in Kansas City at UMKC.

Kristin enjoys being active in the performing arts community. She has volunteered with the Chamber Music Society of Kansas City and Charlotte Street Foundation, and has played in the bass section of the Northland Symphony Orchestra, among other bass gigs around the metro. Kristin currently serves as principal bass for the Kansas City Civic Orchestra and Heritage Philharmonic, and is a section bassist for Kinnor Philharmonic. She joined the writing staff of KCMetropolis.org in February 2010 and has been KCM’s executive editor since July 2011. Read her blog at mylittleheartmelodies.com.

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