Elgan speaks
...and her words thunder across the land

If I have to hear that piece one more time...

Saturday, Nov. 15, 2008
11:43 p.m.
Quite a while ago my husband the composer was requested by the conductor of the local symphony orchestra to create a piece of about 10 minutes’ duration. He did. I was paid for copying the parts, but he never received any money at all for the “commission”. In lieu of payment, he asked the manager to provide him with season’s tickets free of charge in the centre balcony for the rest of his natural life. For this reason, and this reason alone, did we have tickets for the symphony tonight. Our Serbian violist friend was playing with them, and for that reason alone did we actually go to the concert.

The programme consisted of two short works, Festival Overture by Dimitri Sh0stak0vitch and Le T0mbeau de NeIIigan by Jacques Hétu, one of Canada’s better-known composers (which were both played quite well, in spite of the fact that I had a coughing fit during the latter and had to run out of the hall so that I could hack with abandon in the lobby), followed by Carmina Burana by KarI Orff.

It was the single worst performance of that piece that I have ever had the displeasure of sitting through. The worst. The choir was absolutely terrible in so many ways, too many to enumerate here. The soloists were underwhelming. The baritone was good, but he seemed to have a cold, or something that was causing a bit of nasality, and he was flat a fair bit. The soprano was gorgeous and looked like a doll. Her dress was like a giant birthday cake. Hubby just loved it. She had a pretty enough voice, but it was almost inaudible at times. When she was singing with the choir, we could not hear her at all. The tenor was a counter-tenor. The reason this is wrong is that he sings about being a swan roasting on a spit. The whole idea is that he should sound like he is in pain, and that is why a tenor wails away at the top of his range, probably in pain. When a counter-tenor does it, it’s too easy. Also, there is no power in the bottom of the range for reasons I don’t wish to go into right now because it makes me sound too much like a singing teacher. Nevertheless, suffice it to say that I would rather have been home sleeping. But we went to pick up our Serbian violist and bring her home, which we did.

Apart from staying home and napping all day, that is all I have done. Oh, and yes, I’m starting to feel a lot better. Thanks again for your good wishes.

|

<~~~ * ~~~>