The most prominent aspect for me about the three pieces performed were how different and distinct each of them was from the other. The musicians, and Jonathan Girard as conductor, were phenomenal, as expected, and did a great job at conveying each piece in its uniqueness.
The first piece was A Northern Suite by John Adams, which was a very modern piece both in terms of when it was composed, and the musical style. It encapsulated the sounds of nature, and focused on the experiences in nature that clearly reminded me of the nature in our own backyard here in Canada. The mountain ranges, glaciers, clear blue winter skies and dark green forests. If this was a Renaissance choral piece, I would be tempted to use the word “madrigalism”, but instead of a voice imitating what it was talking about, there were instruments imitating nature’s sounds in a way that not only captured them effectively, but also brought to the surface their beauty and magnificence. To say the least, it made me yearn for a long hike into the wilderness and a night spent under the stars.
The second piece was a jump back in time with Concerto for Clarinet and Orchestra, Op. 36, by Françaix. This piece featured a soloist on the clarinet who played with incredible emotion during the slower moments, and displayed his skill in the faster, more complex parts. For the most part, the texture was homophonic, with the clarinet providing a dominant melody and the orchestra backing him up, though there were moments where the clarinet dropped out entirely in which the orchestra took the lead. Overall, it was a pristine piece of grounded music that provided a great contrast to the first piece’s more ethereal presentation.
The final piece that came after the intermission was Debussy’s La Mer (which literally means “the sea” in french) and it did a mind-blowingly good job at embodying the sea in all its beauty and might. Much as the sea itself, this piece alternated between calm moments that sounded quite peaceful, to raging oceans of sound bringing forth images of waves crashing down on each other. The first movement started off slowly and rather quietly, but I felt perhaps a sense of foreboding as if there might be a storm brewing on the distant horizon. But the time the third movement had started, the waves had begun to build and the music became more tumultuous. The complexity of this piece, and all the individual elements that Debussy was able to bring together to create an immersive experience of the sea continue to astound me, and when it was over, I was surprised to discover that I wasn’t dripping wet with salty ocean water. If you want to stay dry, but love the ocean, this is a piece for you!
Before the symphony started, I had no idea how the three pieces could possibly fit together, but in many ways, their differences only emphasized the unique qualities each one brought to the table and highlighted three different approaches to music.