The Mississippi Symphony Orchestra at the Belhaven
University Arts Center, January 9, 2010
The Annual Mozart-by-Candlelight program opened with the
Overture to Cosi fan tutte, K.588, played with enthusiasm and a
generally full sound. Mozart's Symphony #4 in D, K.19, followed,
notable because it was composed when Mozart was 9 years old.
Then we heard the Mississippi Chorus Chamber Choir in the
"Regina Coeli" K.276. In my experience performances with chorus
and orchestra often turn into a who-can-sing/play-louder
contest, and when that happens the instruments almost
always win. That didn't happen here, for two reasons:
first, because Mozart (and Haydn before him) understood
the dynamics, with lighter scoring especially for solo
voices, and second, because Conductor Crafton Beck also
understood the dynamics and restrained the instruments
as needed. I remember a program a number of years ago
at St. Richard Catholic Church when a single cello almost
overpowered the Jackson Choral Society! It would have
been nice, however, if the Mississippi Chorus could
have been elevated on higher risers, which would have
prevented the "grazing effect" which occurs when people
speak or sing to an audience from a spot where much of
the sound has to pass through an assemblage of people,
whose clothes absorb much of the sound. I have always
thought that choruses should be placed in front of
orchestras (although that's not always practical);
in the case of opera, the singers are elevated well
above the orchestra pit.
Conductor Beck was generous with helpful verbal comments;
among the most interesting that Concertmistress
Marta Szlubowska has been playing an Amati violin for
the last two months. It was made by Nicolo Amati
(1596-1684), the teacher of Stradivari. Beck also
suggested we might be able to hear it in the very familiar
piece that followed, Serenade #13 in G major, "Eine Kleine
Nachtmusik", K.525 ("A Little Night Music"). I listened
carefully and thought I heard an unusually liquid sound
at a few places when the texture was thin and the sound
subdued, but I couldn't be sure. It would have been helpful
if Szlubowska had demonstrated by playing the Amati in a
short antiphonal duet, with a colleague playing her other
instrument.
To see a Nicolo Amati violin, Click
Here or Here
The program closed with Mozart's Symphony 40 in g minor, K.550.
Beck considers this one of his all-time favorites, partly
because it is so well-proportioned and so well-crafted.
It was a splendid performance, with a very satisfying full
sound, sometimes interspersed with softer antiphonal-like
passages. I think also that the players themselves were
inspired by the music; they probably could hear each other
better than in other venues, as discussed in the next
paragraph.
I don't remember the MSO sounding this good at Mara Hall.
As many will recall, the Belhaven U Arts Center Auditorium
began as a large church sanctuary. It has a hard ceiling
and brick walls, and although the reverberation is modest,
sound does prosper greatly. Part of that is because the
stage itself is actually out in the same room as the audience
(rather than in an offset smaller room with sound-absorbing
drapes) and back of the stage is another brick wall. This
allows the sound to "couple" to the room. I have only one
minor suggestion for improving the Belhaven U hall; a center aisle
would be helpful. To get to a seat in the middle of a row
requires crawling over lots of people. But a center aisle
would cost about 100 seats. This small matter aside, this is
an excellent venue for performing groups, and we are grateful
to Belhaven U for making it available to the community.
- Glenn A. Gentry