Tag Archive for: MN Orchestra

Tony Ross – Cellist Extraordinaire

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Marlene’s Musings
February 22, 2019

I have known about Tony Ross for years.  When I played clarinet in the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, he substituted in the cello section a few times. Soon after, he auditioned for the Principal Cello spot in the Minnesota Orchestra and won.  None of us were surprised.

When I became Music Director of the Wayzata Symphony, I mustered my courage and asked him to play a concerto with us. How lucky we were when he said yes and even suggested to perform David Ott’s Double Concerto with his wife, Beth Rapier, Assistant Principal Cello of MN Orch.

Tony is a musician’s musician – phenomenal technique, gorgeous sound, heart-stopping expression.  But, beyond all of that he is so genuine and generous. He performs with us because he believes in community and that music is for everyone, as performers and listeners. No matter what, it’s all about the music with him. He always offers spot-on, constructive comments to help us lift the music off the page.

His performances of Weinberg’s Fantasy for Cello and Orchestra are coming up soon – February 24 at Wayzata Community Church and March 3 at Orchestra Hall. They will be fifth and sixth times he has performed with us. How lucky for us!

I am so happy we get a chance to showcase his incredible artistry as he performs a piece he requested and one that has never been performed in Minnesota. Who better than Tony Ross to introduce it!

 

An Amazing Season To Come!

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Marlene’s Musings
September 12, 2018

I am studying like a fiend, preparing for the first concert of our 10th Anniversary Season.

When I thought about repertoire to celebrate 10 years, I had to include Beethoven Symphony #5. I know it is familiar to everyone and most musicians have played it many times, including me as clarinetist in the SPCO. But, every single time I play or conduct this piece, I just cannot believe the brilliance of Beethoven. I always discover exciting new things. When I was a kid I wondered what all the Beethoven hoopla was about – I preferred Stravinsky, Rachmaninoff and Mozart – but as soon as I played my first Beethoven symphony I was hooked. In all fields, there are iconic figures who catapult us forward into brave new worlds. Beethoven was one of those figures.

His 5th symphony is a remarkable display of ingenious, ground-breaking creativity. I can’t wait to show some examples of that at our concert on Oct. 14.

One of my favorite soloists from the past 9 years is Manny Laureano, Principal Trumpet of MN Orchestra. Manny is a spirit-above-ego guy. It’s all about the music with Manny and how it connects to community. When I asked him to perform on our opening concert he immediately agreed and even suggested a piece – one he had premiered a couple years ago. Michael Gilbertson’s Trumpet Concerto opens with a 3-part trumpet fanfare – showcasing the skills of WSO trumpeters, Ben Alle and Miriam Dennis. The piece is full of beautiful melodies, driving rhythms, intriguing harmonies and lots of challenging technique for the entire ensemble.

Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man is the quintessential American piece – open, welcoming, powerful. It will be a great way to start the season.

And the Grand Finale? I hope you’ll be there as we include 100 string students from Wayzata High School and singers of the Edina Chorale to join us in performing the Ode To Joy from Beethoven’s 9th Symphony.

Happy Birthday to us!

2015-16 Season Preview: Climbing Higher

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Marlene’s Musings
July 5, 2015

The WSO has so much in store for the 2015 – 16 season: A world premiere, a composer in residence, well-known soloists and as always, we perform works from the standard repertoire as well as unfamiliar, fabulous creations.

KuenzelBWwebKarim Elmahmoudi-HeadshotOctober 11, 2015: Adam Kuenzel and Orbit: A Symphonic Fantasy
Guest Artist: Adam Kuenzel, Principal Flute, MN Orch
Pre-concert talk with composer Karim Elmahmoudi: 2:00
Concert: 3:00 Wayzata Community Church

MahrTimothywebDianaLeeLucker4November 22, 2015: Minnesota’s Own
Guest Composer: Timothy Mahr
Guest Artist: Diana Lee Lucker, Organ
WSO Concerto Competition winner: Tori Okwabi, Clarinet
3:00 Wayzata Community Church

patrick-harison1February 14 and February 21, 2016: Twist of Tango
Guest Artist: Patrick Harison, Accordion and Bandoneon
Feb 14: 3:00 Wayzata Community Church
Feb 21: 3:00 St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church Mahtomedi

MariaJette2May 1 and May 7, 2016: Maria Sings Maria
Guest Artist: Maria Jette, Soprano
May 1: 3:00 Wayzata Community Church
May 7: 7:30 Trinity Lutheran Church Stillwater
All of our concerts are free and open to the public with no ticket required. I hope to see you at any or all of our exciting programs!

Osmo Vänskä Joins the WSO!

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Marlene’s Musings
September, 2014

OsmoMarleneI’m SO excited to be starting my 5th season conducting the WSO – and what a season it will be! We open with Osmo Vänskä playing Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto! Since my first exposure as a young clarinetist, I have welcomed every opportunity to delve deeper into this beloved masterpiece. To have Osmo Vänskä in the house to perform it is such a thrill. NOT TO BE MISSED!

Two other audience favorites round out the first program. Sibelius wrote the tone poem, Finlandia, at a time when Finland was under oppressive Russian rule. The hymn heard near the end of the piece became Finland’s national anthem and continues to be heard whenever a Finnish athlete wins Olympic gold.

Grieg’s Peer Gynt Suite contains some of the most recognizable tunes in the orchestral repertoire – Morning, Solveig’s Song, Anitra’s Dance, In the Hall of the Mountain King. WSO’s amazing musicians will bring their A-game to lift the music off the page.

See you on October 12th!

Mozart and Brahms

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Marlene’s Musings
November, 2013

Marlene_ErinKeefe_2013WebsiteAt the age of 13, Mozart became concertmaster of the Salzburg court orchestra. Responsibilities for that position included conducting from the chair (Conductors, as they are today, were not a part of the orchestra) and performing as soloist. In 1775, between April and December, at age 19, Wolgang composed 4 violin concertos for that purpose.

We’ll be playing the 4th with Erin Keefe, new Concertmaster of the Minnesota Orchestra. Fiendishly difficult, it is the Mozart Concerto that violinists choose to show off.

The apparent ease with which Mozart created masterpieces was not a characteristic of Johannes Brahms but how could anyone follow in Beethoven’s titanic footsteps? When asked why he had not written a symphony, Brahms lamented, “You have no idea how it feels to hear behind you the tramp of a giant like Beethoven.” It took twenty years of trial and error before he completed his first symphony at age 43. Embracing and expanding upon Beethoven’s symphonic expertise, Brahms created a masterpiece which garnered him a spot in the 3 Big Bs – Bach, Beethoven and Brahms, each with a singular voice reflective of the changing world around them. Brahms symphony is a brilliant example of the extroverted emotionalism of the period of Romanticism.

Combining Mozart and Brahms in one concert will reveal a study in contrasts and musically illuminate the dramatic changes for humankind during the hundred-year-period from 1775 to 1875.

A Concert You Don’t Want to Miss

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Marlene’s Musings
September, 2013

It has been a fabulous summer!

I have been to a few music festivals, conducted lots of repertoire, met fantastic musicians and learned a ton. But, I miss the WSO and really look forward to getting back on the podium in front of those great musicians who are also some of the greatest people on the planet.

TonyMarleneWebsiteOur first rehearsal is coming up on September 22, 2013. ALL DVORAK! Antonin and Tony – that’s our title for this concert. Tony Ross, principal cellist of MN Orchestra, will play Dvorak’s cello concerto – arguably the most famous of the genre. I can’t wait!

I’ve wanted to program The Noon Witch for a long time. The music tells the story of an unruly little boy whose mother scolds him and threatens that if he doesn’t cease and desist his annoying behavior, the noon witch will take him away. The boy’s behavior is portrayed by agitated and dissonant oboes, and 12 chimes signal the coming of the witch. I don’t want to reveal too much but even without the story the music is brilliant!

Dvorak’s 16 Slavonic Dances were the pieces that made him a household name. We will be doing #9 which opens with the sounds of a raucous party in the Bohemian countryside. The middle section, in the minor key, presents a reflective, mournful melody. Then we return to the fun of the folk music for which Dvorak was fiercely proud.

This is a concert you don’t want to miss.

2012-13 New Season!

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Marlene’s Musings
August, 2012

MarleneWithClarinetI am excited about another WSO season, having been fueled by a wonderful summer of conducting and playing. For 25 years I have spent summers in Jackson Hole, Wyoming performing as part of the Grand Teton Music Festival. It’s a place where superb music making and majestic mountains inspire me to feel gratitude for the life I have. Musicians come from all over the country – New York Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, Detroit, Milwaukee, Colorado, just to name a few – to make music with life-long friends and to hike up arduous paths to crystalline mountain lakes. Donald Runnicles, in my opinion, one of the world’s great conductors, leads the orchestra. Each week is a different program, but a stand out for me this summer was a concert version of Wagner’s Die Walkure with soloists from the Met and Berlin Opera. Spellbinding!

In mid-July I flew home to conduct the showcase concert for The Young Artist World Piano Festival. A competition is held to choose winners to play with the orchestra. There are two categories: under 12-years-old and over 12-years-old. This year, the winner of the younger division was William Yang, the wunderkind who played with WSO in February 2012. He performed the 2nd and 3rd movements of Mozart’s most difficult concerto, K. 466. It was INCREDIBLE! The winner of the older division performed the 1st movement of Beethoven’s 3rd piano concerto in c minor (same brooding key as his 5th symphony, Coriolan Overture and Pathetique Sonata). The cadenza under the adroit musicianship of Evren Ozell had us all tearing up.

Then it was off to Brainerd for the Lakes Area Music Festival. This was my third year, the first two as clarinetist and this one as conductor and clarinetist. Unlike other festivals around the country this one pairs professional players from the Minnesota Orchestra, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Detroit, Milwaukee and Chicago Symphonies with freshly graduated musicians from Juilliard, Eastman School and Music, Rice University and others. It is somewhat similar to the Teton Festival in that musicians are brought to a gorgeous area and housed in lovely abodes, but this festival provides mentoring for the young and some humble pie for the old! You can imagine how delightful it is to conduct an orchestra made up of both.

Now I’m ready to tackle the huge amount of study required for the WSO’s fourth season.

mannylaureanowebresCheck out this line up of guest artists:

  • Manny Laureano, principal trumpet, MN Orchestra
  • ANCIA Saxohpone Quartet, Selmer and VanDoren sponsored soloists
  • Kaleena Miller, tap dancer extraordinaire whose group, Rhythmic Circus, will be performing in New York City for a couple months this season
  • Edina Chorale, Minnesota BoyChoir, Karin Wolverton, Gabriel Pressier – for our performance of Carmina Burana in Feb and March 2013

 

There will be a lot of familiar repertoire, some rarely performed jewels and a premiere or two.

I look forward to sharing the incomparable WSO experience with you.

Tag Archive for: MN Orchestra

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