LSO Review of April 15, 2006 Concert

Conductor Robert Olson and the Longmont Symphony Orchestra have had a rather special string of concerts over the last few years, and if Saturday's [April 15] subscription finale in the Vance Brand Auditorium of Skyline High School was not quite on the level of some of these, it was still a solid offering.

Reaching across the county to appeal to patrons from Boulder is never a bad idea, and by bringing in three of the most familiar faces in that city's classical music scene as guest artists, Olson did just that. Pianist Larry Graham, violinist Annamaria Karacson, and cellist Charles Lee are recognized as among the top artists of the region, and have been playing together as a trio in recent years. Beethoven's so-called "Triple" Concerto is often used to showcase this particular chamber music combination on the orchestral stage.

The "Triple" is certainly not the greatest Beethoven, but it has its moments, and good players can bring out the most from them. In their reading with Olson and the LSO, the three soloists generally did just that, particularly Graham, who seemed to be putting all of his energy into making what is usually a very bland piano solo part actually sparkle with life. Lee was generally strong on the notoriously and unusually high solo cello part, although he had the occasional tuning problem. He and Karacson passed their interchanging parts between themselves with dexterity.

Olson showed the right amount of restraint with the orchestra in the long concerto, clearly keeping them in the background under the soloists, but emerging with just the right amount of discretion when the orchestra played without them. This was most evident in the closing third movement polonaise.

The concerto was preceded by an unusual concert opener, a short Entr'acte from Modest Mussorgsky's opera "Khovanshchina." Presented in an orchestral arrangement by Leopold Stokowski, the dark little piece, depicting a man's march to his execution, made some impact, especially the growling passages for low strings.

Olson chose to end his classical season with a symphony by Johannes Brahms. Any of the composer's four symphonic masterpieces is difficult to get completely right, and the Fourth, performed by the LSO, may be the trickiest of all.

The symphony's four movements each require a different approach. Olson was most successful in the austere but beautiful second movement, where the pacing was perfect, the orchestral playing was precise, and the climaxes effective. The equally dense first movement was adequate, but somewhat lacking in the seething fire appropriate at its close. The raucous third movement, with tinkling triangle, seemed a bit on the slow side, but the finale, a series of 30 variations over a repeated bass, was again paced and executed well. Only the "covering" of Kay Lloyd's beautiful flute solo by punctuating horn notes that were too loud was somewhat disappointing.

"Classical Drama: the Best of the Best" April 15, 2006 By KellyHansen Conductor Robert Olson and the Longmont Symphony Orchestra have had a rather special string of concerts over the last few years, and if Saturday's [April 15] subscription finale in the Vance Brand Auditorium of Skyline High School was not quite on the level of some of these, it was still a solid offering. Reaching across the county to appeal to patrons from Boulder is never a bad idea, and by bringing in three of the most familiar faces in that city's classical music scene as guest artists, Olson did just that. Pianist Larry Graham, violinist Annamaria Karacson, and cellist Charles Lee are recognized as among the top artists of the region, and have been playing together as a trio in recent years. Beethoven's so-called "Triple" Concerto is often used to showcase this particular chamber music combination on the orchestral stage. The "Triple" is certainly not the greatest Beethoven, but it has its moments, and good players can bring out the most from them. In their reading with Olson and the LSO, the three soloists generally did just that, particularly Graham, who seemed to be putting all of his energy into making what is usually a very bland piano solo part actually sparkle with life. Lee was generally strong on the notoriously and unusually high solo cello part, although he had the occasional tuning problem. He and Karacson passed their interchanging parts between themselves with dexterity. Olson showed the right amount of restraint with the orchestra in the long concerto, clearly keeping them in the background under the soloists, but emerging with just the right amount of discretion when the orchestra played without them. This was most evident in the closing third movement polonaise. The concerto was preceded by an unusual concert opener, a short Entr'acte from Modest Mussorgsky's opera "Khovanshchina." Presented in an orchestral arrangement by Leopold Stokowski, the dark little piece, depicting a man's march to his execution, made some impact, especially the growling passages for low strings. Olson chose to end his classical season with a symphony by Johannes Brahms. Any of the composer's four symphonic masterpieces is difficult to get completely right, and the Fourth, performed by the LSO, may be the trickiest of all. The symphony's four movements each require a different approach. Olson was most successful in the austere but beautiful second movement, where the pacing was perfect, the orchestral playing was precise, and the climaxes effective. The equally dense first movement was adequate, but somewhat lacking in the seething fire appropriate at its close. The raucous third movement, with tinkling triangle, seemed a bit on the slow side, but the finale, a series of 30 variations over a repeated bass, was again paced and executed well. Only the "covering" of Kay Lloyd's beautiful flute solo by punctuating horn notes that were too loud was somewhat disappointing.