Violinist Lin, Copland symphony both display virtuosity
by Kelly Dean Hansen

The new season of the Longmont Symphony under conductor Robert Olson aims to mix familiar classics with more contemporary masterpieces. The season schedule is unusually slanted toward twentieth-century works, most of them challenging and not commonly performed. While perhaps a bit of a risk, this programming underlies the confidence that Olson places in his orchestra and his audience. No longer a mere “community orchestra,” the LSO can be counted on to deliver satisfying performances of the most advanced repertoire. Saturday’s season opener in the Vance Brand Auditorium of Skyline High provided two virtuoso performances, one featuring a splendid young violinist, and the other showcasing the abilities of the orchestra members themselves.

The concert opened with the very familiar, but extremely difficult violin concerto by Tchaikovsky. Guest violinist Joseph Lin provided the LSO audience with a technically flawless rendition of the work. The long first movement was particularly dazzling, especially the extended cadenza, whose exposed high harmonics were played with piercing clarity. Lin’s performance of that movement was good enough to inspire an extended ovation, which is highly unusual in the middle of a work. The slow “Canzonetta” and the fiery finale were certainly no letdown after this. Lin’s melodic lines in the Canzonetta were particularly beautiful and sustained. The orchestra’s accompaniment was in many ways as enjoyable as the playing of the soloist. At three different points in the first movement, the full orchestra erupts into a triumphant statement of the main theme, and each time, Olson and the players matched Lin’s intensity.

Aaron Copland’s Third Symphony of 1946, is an intricate and difficult score. Filled with complex rhythms, shifting meters, and dense counterpoint, it requires intense concentration from the players and conductor. An unusually bold choice for Olson, the work obviously inspired the best in the players, and the audience responded warmly to the symphony, which bears the composer’s distinctive fingerprints that are found in his more popular works such as “Appalachian Spring” or “Billy the Kid.”

Unlike those pieces, the Third Symphony is a true magnum opus, consisting entirely of Copland’s own ideas and abandoning the folksong and hymn tune quotations that are often found in his other scores. One of those ideas, heard at the opening of the last movement, has almost reached folk status itself. A self-quotation from his “Fanfare for the Common Man,” it has gained great familiarity through its use in broadcasts of the Olympic Games and other events. But the symphony is much more than this fanfare, played with appropriate nobility by the LSO brass section. The noble, stately first movement, the rhythmic intricacies of the scherzo-like second movement, and the ethereal slow movement, with its unnaturally high violin notes, were all conveyed convincingly by the players and conductor. Most impressive of all was the main portion of the finale following the famous fanfare. The sustained contrapuntal fabric and the ever-increasing rhythmic intricacies were breathtaking. Special recognition should be given to the four members of the flute/piccolo section, pianist Erin Whitney (in a non-soloistic, but challenging part), and the entire percussion section.

A community like Longmont is fortunate to have such a talented ensemble. Saturday’s concert indicated, if anything, that the LSO’s concerts are every bit as fulfilling an experience as those of the more prominent ensembles in Boulder and Denver. This area has an unusually rich offering of symphonic music throughout the year from these ensembles and the Colorado Music Festival orchestra in the summer. With such ambitious concerts, such difficult works, and such an excellent conductor, the Longmont Symphony is an integral part of that richness.

The LSO season continues on November 15 in a concert featuring pianist Robert Weirich and conductor Brian St. John in works by Smetana and Bernstein. For tickets, call 303-772-5796 or visit www.longmontsymphony.org.