Word: hro
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...there was a music performance concentration, I probably would have concentrated in it," says Shasa R. Dobrow '97, a bassoon player in Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra (HRO) who decided to concentrate in biological anthropology instead...
Still, the audience, bolstered by a large contingent of beaming parents, was undaunted. HRO could do no wrong on Friday night and it wasn't just because of the paternal and maternal affection that radiated from the three-quarters-full auditorium. The orchestra earned its ovations, moving through three very dissimilar pieces with grace and energy; the sheer scale of the undertaking, especially in a work as complex as "Petrushka," was impressive...
Soloist Shoshana "Shasa" Dobrow '97 won HRO's Concerto Competition with the piece and it must be a godsend for a bassoonist--there's not much opportunity to shine with the instrument. Probably the best-known bassoon writing is Stravinsky's, such as the solo that begins "The Rite of Spring;" but Stravinsky produces a plaintive, wailing tone which is far from Weber's classical vocabulary...
...evidence in "Petrushka," a complex work which incorporates Russian folk tunes and avant-garde rhythmic experimentation. Just the number of instruments involved was impressive: everything from piano, harp and celeste to xylophone, snare drum and triangle found a place on the crowded stage. It makes one wonder what HRO would do if the admissions committee ever forgot to admit a harpist...
Some parts of the ballet are simple and lyrical, such as a pastoral-sounding flute solo; others, like the bassoon's aggressive blats, are humorous. The most characteristic and memorable passages, however, are those involving several different rhythms and themes played simultaneously in different parts of the orchestra. That HRO could remain crisp and confident in even the most jagged parts of the score is worthy of applause. Katherine Evans' trumpet solos had a gorgeous tone seldom heard from student brass players and won her a well-deserved ovation. Friday night proved once again how lucky we are to have...