I had the pleasure to attend Vancouver Symphony Orchestra’s concert featuring Debussy, Buckner and a contemporary Canadian composer Kelly-Marie Murphy’s work. The conductor of the night was Bramwell Tovey who has led the VSO group for more than 18 years so far and has had great achievements both domestically and internationally. I have always been obsessed with the opportunities of experiencing classical music in concerts and I enjoy playing some easier pieces myself on a piano, with not much expertise.
It was interesting how the concert had a notable emphasis on the charm of harp in a homophonic setting. The guest harpist Heidi Krutzen collaborated with the strings of the orchestra and presented the lovely yet ritualistic “Danse sacrée et danse profane” to open the performance. It was an elegant pair of dance pieces composed by the French Impressionist composer. During the pre-concert talk, it was mentioned that this dance piece was requested from an instrument manufacture to market a modern type of harp that they newly developed and was around ten-minutes long in total. The particularly slow and flowing “Secret Dance” was followed by the faster and more celebratory “Profane Dance” with no break in between. The harp was leading the melody for most of the time while the strings have simpler and more repetitive rhythm. The poetic and ethereal texture of the music was decorated with some occasional higher notes from the harp bringing a little extra vitality. The seamless connection between the strings and the harp brought the audience a pleasant sense of harmony.
The second piece was “En el escuro es todo uno(In the Darkness, All Is One)” by Kelly-Marie Murphy and was created for harp and cello based on the songs by Sephardic Jews. The piece was in four movements, “Lamenta”, “Si Veriash a la rana”, “Yigdal #2” and “Noches, noches, Buenos noches”. To my surprise, the music was not that difficult to appreciate and the composition was rather intriguing. It utilized the variety of the voices of an orchestra and was designed to be polyphonic. It was my first time in a concert to witness the percussions playing a big part of leading the melody. There was even a vase-like instrument that I still could not figure out what it was. The sound of clapping was integrated as well. While the first and the last movements remained slow and atmospheric, the second movement was fast and lively.
The third piece was “Symphony No.6 in A Major” by Anton Bruckner. Last year, I listened to his “Sinfonie Nr. 7 E-Dur” in a concert setting by Vienna Phiharmoniker and was blown away by the dramatic and energetic style of Bruckner’s work. This time, I came in with some similar iconic expectations and found the experience rather gentle and consoling. During the pre-concert talk, the host mentioned that the No.6 was the only symphony that Bruckner has never revised after completion and he was quite satisfied with it. The unusual harmony in this piece reflects the positive circumstance of the composer at that time who was gaining increasing respect and financial stability. Nevertheless, the overall impression was still sublime and powerful. It created more of a sacred atmosphere than the previous two pieces.
Overall, the event was rich in content and gave me a more concrete comprehension of Debussy and Bruckner’s work. VSO was an amazing orchestra and I shall look forward to attending their next performance. It was refreshing for me to appreciate a concert with a critical approach which was encouraged by our MUSIC 326 course. It has subtly empowered me to take away more from musical experiences.