LA Phil brings 'New World' to Seoul
.jpg?w=728)
The Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra performs John Adams’ “City Noir” under the baton of Gustavo Dudamel at the Seoul Arts Center, Thursday. / Courtesy of Kumho Asiana Cultural Foundation
By Kwon Ji-youn
A smattering of applause broke out in the audience when the first half of the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s Seoul performance drew to an uncertain close Thursday night, as guests, unsure of whether the piece had come to an end, waited anxiously for Gustavo Dudamel to lower his baton.
Somehow, Dudamel and the “LA Phil” had managed to cram all its instruments and instrumentalists onto the Seoul Arts Center stage, with two harps on the maestro’s left and a celesta to his right ― the young Venezuelan conductor opened with a forceful musical statement in the form of John Adams’ “City Noir.”
Resplendent saxophone solos did thrill audiences throughout, but never before has a conductor’s movements on stage been so central to understanding a piece. “City Noir,” an ode to old Hollywood, is what the composer calls “jazz-inflicted symphonic music” of the 1920s through ’50s, a true “California experience.”
It was commissioned for the 2009 opening night Disney gala of Dudamel’s first season as LA Phil music director, and explores the rundown and sensational 1940s and ’50s, which sired film noir. Adams writes that “City Noir” was suggested by his reading of the so-called “Dream” books by Kevin Starr, a multivolume cultural and social history of California.
Even those unfamiliar with the whisking and complex American symphony in three movements could not help but enjoy it. The first movement, “City and its Double,” began with a sudden wave of sound. No motif or idea seemed to last, the pauses were pregnant and when the strings jumped in, they layered on winding and riveting phrases that were more hinged on technical virtuosity than melodic progression.
The music pulsed on as aggressive solos in the trumpet, trombone, horn, viola and double bass punctuated the movement, and Dudamel used his entire body to ensure the dynamics were not lost in the orchestral convolution. Dudamel’s baton remained airborne for several minutes after the piece had dissolved, leaving the final notes lingering for quite some time.
After an anxious 20-minute intermission, Dudamel returned to the stage with a persuasive and cogent “From the New World.”
It was the perfect end to a perfect night. Antonin Dvorak’s renowned ninth symphony featured exquisite solos of the flute and English horn.
The second movement brought to mind an elderly man as he pushes his way through a thick fog, turning on gas lamps as he goes.
The forte and pianissimo contrasts were jarring, and fingers twitched in the audience as the orchestra plunged into the popular fourth movement. Dudamel was in control from start to finish, and his all-consuming force lasted until the very last note with which a true standing ovation erupted.
Not once did Dudamel take a solo bow. When he was not conducting, he stood off the podium, wandering among orchestra members to congratulate them one by one.
The stands remained full as encore performances went on to feature Dvorak’s “Slavonic Dance Op. 46, No. 8 in G Minor” and Leonard Bernstein’s “Waltz from Divertimento.” The Slavonic Dance very much evoked the sorrows of the Slavs, an Indo-European ethno-linguistic group living in Central Europe, while the waltz gave the principal strings a chance to flaunt their finesse. Especially memorable were solos in the viola and cello.
The highlight of the night came when Dudamel bent down to gift his baton to a member of the audience sitting in the front row.
Gustav Mahler’s “Symphony No. 6 in a minor” (Tragedy) was featured on the first night of the orchestra’s performance in Seoul, Wednesday.