Word: orchestras
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...cello, best known for a series of unaccompanied suites by Bach, is the orchestra's most solitary instrument. It is also one of the most intimate, a result of its proximity in range and expression to the human voice, and also the posture of its player, which is one of embrace. In Rostropovich's hands, this potent mixture of the familiar and the solitary turned the cello into an instrument of dissent, embodying the lone, heroic voice in its 20th century struggle against oppression...
Particularly in the cello concertos of Dmitri Shostakovich and Witold Lutoslawski, written for Rostropovich, he set his instrument in conflict with the orchestra, a doomed but determined voice in a struggle against the collective. But no matter how isolated he seemed on stage, Rostropovich was not without an ensemble; his allegiance was with the audience, which responded instinctively in support. "I give people music and beauty," he once said. "In exchange they give me love and recognition...
Sometimes, the struggle against authority was literal. On Aug. 21, 1968, the day Soviet tanks rolled into Czechoslovakia to crush the Prague Spring, Rostropovich played with the U.S.S.R. State Symphony Orchestra in London. Watched by hovering KGB minders - "Sputniks," the musicians privately called them - he was greeted by shouts of protest. But his performance of the mournful, defiant concerto by the Czech composer Antonín Dvorák brought the hall to a comprehending silence. "As I played, I saw the dead in the Prague streets through my tears," he later said...
...Daphnis et Chloé.” The musicians took liberties with tempo and dynamics that would likely have been impossible if dancers had had to keep up, but for the BSO, the piece was a fitting rollercoaster ride of an ending. The balance between the sections of the orchestra was precise in this piece, and the ensemble succeeded in producing a full and lively sound that evoked visions of the ballet’s pastoral, frolicking nymphs...
...pace of the evening was noticeably swift, making the show feel like a tour of Ravel’s work. Levine, the competent guide, was in his element as he drew from the composer’s varied repertory and led the orchestra in a crisp performance. Neat and unwaveringly professional, the program was deliberate and impressive. Sometimes raw exuberance would break through, and it was these moments that revealed that the Boston Symphony Orchestra is only improving with...