Capital Region Performance Gallery

by Dick Frantzreb

(Note that the following is not a critical review. Instead, it is a description of what it was like to attend this concert from the perspective of the average, moderately well-informed audience member.)

The weather tonight was wretched — wind and heavy rain. Still, just about all of the sold-out crowd made it, including elderly couples struggling under a shared umbrella, people in walkers, women dressed in evening wear and risking their coiffures. Entering Stage 1 of Harris Center, I was first struck by how many of the 850 seats were filled and then by how completely the 68 orchestra members of the Folsom Lake Symphony filled the wide and deep stage. When it was time for the concert to start, we were greeted with a welcome over the PA system that ended by introducing Concertmaster Anita Felix.

After the orchestra had tuned, Music Director and Conductor Peter Jaffe ran out on the stage, shook hands with the Concertmaster, and without pause, he made a sweeping gesture with his arm for the orchestra to stand and be acknowledged. Then without further ceremony, he began the first of tonight’s selections, an orchestral medley of music from George Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, arranged by Robert Russell Bennett. Despite its audience capacity, Stage One of Harris Center feels like a small, intimate venue, and as the orchestra began to play, I felt absolutely enveloped in the big, rich sound they produced.

(Click here to open the concert program in a new window.)

This was my first time to hear this particular medley, but it gave a good feel for the many songs from this distinctly American opera — music so familiar to all but the youngest in the audience. In fact I heard humming nearby for at least one of the selections. For the most part, this is happy, vibrant music, and I especially appreciated the jaunty trombone part in “I Got Plenty O’ Nuttin” or the violin solo in “Bess, You Is My Woman Now,” during which Jaffe seemed transported by its beauty. The tempos were brisk, and for me, there were times when the energy was so intense that I couldn’t help but smile.

For players, the physical expression of the emotion of the music they’re playing is almost imperceptible — maybe in their face or in subtle body movements. The emotion mostly comes out in the music they’re making. It’s different for the conductor. He’s the focus of the audience’s attention, as well as of the attention of the players. And as the music progresses from one mood to another, he’s the “performer,” giving expression to what he’s feeling — and helping us in the audience appreciate the emotive potential of the music. We only saw Jaffe’s tall figure from the back, but his directing from one theme to another of this medley was a physical workout, as he used grand gestures to encourage one instrumental section after another, signal an entrance, or emphasize a new thought. He was a picture of joy as the medley concluded, and he was not alone, as smiles broke out throughout the orchestra, especially from principal cellist, Alexandra Roedder who I couldn’t help but notice had been having great fun with the music.

Camille Saint-Saëns, Piano Concerto No. 2 in G minor, op 22

After the applause subsided, Jaffe — still out of breath — spoke, bidding us a good evening (which we returned to him) and apologizing for the delay in allowing the audience to enter the theater — a delay which had been due to a prolonged photo shoot. He went on to speak about Tien Hsieh, the featured soloist for Saint-Saëns' Piano Concerto No. 2, noting that, though a resident of Folsom, she has an international career that has has taken her far beyond California and the Sacramento region. He also made a point to assure us that the proper pronunciation of “Saint-Saëns” includes voicing the final “s” of the name.

Before going further I have to emphasize that the purpose of this review is to simply recount what it was like to experience this concert from the audience’s point of view. I claim no expertise in music history, composition theory, or performance technique — but I believe that makes me representative of the great majority of my fellow audience members on this night. I make this point because these virtues are represented in the brilliant program notes penned by Maestro Jaffe’s wife, Jane Vial Jaffe. (Click here to open these notes in a new window.)

Let me add that someday I hope there will be a progressive musical organization that will make such notes available in advance of a concert, online or by direct e-mail to ticket buyers. And I hope that at least a few of these ticket buyers will read these notes before attending the concert because they can greatly enhance one’s appreciation of the performance to come. There is simply not enough time, especially in view of the many distractions, to appreciate such notes in the brief period between entering the concert hall and the beginning of the performance.

At the conclusion of Jaffe’s introduction, Tien Hsieh entered the stage, shook hands with the Concertmaster, took her seat at the piano and immediately began the solo introduction to the concerto. I was instantly struck with the fluidity of her playing of the initial cadenza. She leaned over the keys and her hair covered her face, so my complete attention was on her fingers. I first wrote in my notes that this was “an exhibition of mastery.” Moments later I wrote that the supple movements in her playing bespoke a technique that was “super-human.” Turning from technique to overall impression, I found myself appreciating the mellifluous sounds of the piano and the crisp playing in the orchestra, and it occurred to me that the success I was witnessing from the stage was not musicians making the music beautiful, but releasing its inherent beauty.

This concerto was in 3 movements, and at the conclusion of the first movement Conductor Jaffe relaxed and turned with a smile to Hsieh. Somehow this gesture, plus the extraordinary display of virtuosity that we had observed in Hsieh, made many of us in the audience oblivious of the fact that there were two movements to come. I’d say that half of us broke into applause, violating the canon that applause should only take place at the end of a piece with multiple movements. Not one person made this mistake again, so surely we could be excused for this gaffe, considering the extraordinary performance we were witnessing. The exceptional playing of Hsieh continued to dazzle during the succeeding two movements of this concerto. I noticed Jaffe often turning to glance at Hsieh, and as I listened, I had the sense that the coordination between Jaffe and Hsieh, between orchestra and piano, was flawless.

The third movement is described in the program notes as a “tarantella” (a rapid dance), and indeed its tempo felt frenetic to me. Then I realized that Hsieh had kept up an extraordinary output of energy for a long time with virtually no break. Furthermore, I can’t help but admire her ability to memorize, not only the incredible detail in the piano score, but the nuance with which it is to be delivered. Then it occurred to me that dozens of concert pianists accomplish this same feat, so I went to YouTube and observed the playing of a half-dozen other performers. I’m still convinced that Tien Hsieh’s playing was extraordinary.

Apparently, many people in audience shared my enthusiasm because at the end of the piece they broke out, not only with sustained applause but with whoops. And then with most of the audience on its feet, Hsieh was called back to the stage for a few more moments of appreciation. I’d encourage you to read Jane Jaffe’s description of Saint-Saëns and this particular work, but I feel confident that on this evening you didn’t have to be familiar with this concerto or with Saint-Saëns in general to appreciate that you were being taken on an extraordinary musical journey and that you were observing exceptional musicianship.

Nicolay Rimsky-Korsakov, Scheherazade, op. 35

At the close of a 20-minute intermission, the lights in the theater dimmed once more and Conductor Jaffe again ran out onto the stage. He began by speaking to us about the piece to come, Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade. He mentioned the literary work, The Arabian Nights, on which the music was based, and he offered comments on the composer, how his experience is reflected in the composition, and on the different ways in which the piece might be understood. The fundamental idea of the story is that the Sultan Schahriar was in the habit of executing his wives after their first night together — until Scheherazade so entranced him with her stories that he let her live for “a thousand and one nights.” You can get a good idea of all this from Jane Jaffe’s excellent program notes. Her husband, Peter, simplified a bit by telling us that “this guy was the ultimate SOB of all time.” He went on to explain that we’d recognize the Sultan's theme in the menacing music at the start of the suite, which would be contrasted to that of Scheherazade herself in the solo violin music, played by Concertmaster Anita Felix. Jaffe noted, as does his wife in her notes, the various story lines that Rimsky-Korsakov originally identified with his music. But Jaffe concluded that it’s futile to try to match a preconceived plot line to “one of the best romantic adventures ever written.” Instead, the many music moods of the piece make it clear that a story is being told, and their variety allows listeners to let their imagination fill in the details.

As the music commenced, I could imagine Peter Jaffe acting out his own story. I’ve never known a conductor to stand still, and many — certainly this one — appear to dance as they guide the music. So as each of the four movements progressed I saw him up on his toes, lifting a foot and putting it down for emphasis, bending, twisting, straightening to his full height — all the while dictating tempo, entrances, cut-offs, and dynamics with broad gestures. Finger vibrato is the back and forth wrist and hand motion that string players use to produce a richer tone. And Jaffe, a violinist and violist among his other accomplishments, would often turn toward his string players acting out finger vibrato with one hand while directing with his baton in the other hand.

I don’t know anyone familiar with Scheherazade who doesn’t love this piece. With our imaginations engaged, we in the audience heard many memorable, transporting themes, often triggered by incidental solos from different parts of the orchestra. Jane Jaffe observes that Rimsky-Korsakov’s score gives a featured passage to almost every instrument in the orchestra. And, indeed, I was conscious of many moments of what occurred to me as virtuoso solo instrument playing.  For example, I noted the performances of clarinet and oboe, and then I stopped keeping track — except for the fine, recurring violin work by Anita Felix.

Along the way, I heard a march, a shipwreck, and a celebration, and a variety of other musical pictures as Conductor Jaffe seemingly coaxing each bit of fancy out of his players. In the fourth movement I was dazzled by the insanely fast tempo required of so many instruments, to which they responded, whether as an ensemble or in incidental solos, with remarkably intricate playing. It was an amazing display of discipline, sustained effort, and controlled passion that rose to a grand conclusion.

With the last of these sound pictures concluded, my seat mate observed that the “music was spellbinding.” As for the rest of the audience, they were past being “spellbound,” on their feet and venting their enthusiasm for what they had been hearing. Conductor Jaffe reached to Concertmaster Felix for a heart-felt hug, and with the applause continuing, he recognized each section of the orchestra, many of them earning cheers from the audience.

Page through the attached concert program or attend a concert like this sold-out event, and you can see that the Folsom Lake Symphony has earned an enormous degree of community support. That's because it is clearly a first-rate music organization, as evidenced by the soul-nourishing experience they delivered on this cold, rainy Saturday night.

For more information on the Folsom Lake Symphony, visit their website at www.folsomlakesymphony.com.  And here is Tien Hsieh's website:  www.tienhsieh.com.