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Home > Blogs > Arts and Entertainment > Archives > 2008 > September > 24
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
DPO with a twist
A French twist, that is.
The Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra opened its 2008-09 Chamber Explorations Series Wednesday evening, Sept. 24, at the Schuster Center with an all-French program of works.
The concert, which was to be repeated Thursday morning, featured pieces by early 20th century composers Marcel Ravel, Francis Poulenc and Darius Milhaud.
The three works have more in common than their composer’s era and country of origin; each has a narrative or programmatic backdrop, though the source material ranged widely in mood and purpose. Each also had beginnings in alternative performance arrangements.
Ravel’s “Le Tombeau de Couperin” (Couperin’s Tomb), originally composed as a piano suite, memorializes friends who died in World War I, with each of the four movements dedicated to a different man.
The chamber orchestra, under the direction of Music Director Neal Gittleman, gave a studied performance of the neoclassical work that while not blatantly somber, has the reflective effect of looking at a photo album after a loved one has died — the pages are full of life and even celebration, but there is keen awareness of absence and loss.
Poulenc’s “The Story of Babar the Elephant” is just that: Music to accompany a reading of the beloved children’s book. First improvised at the piano, Poulenc reworked the whimsical piece for a narrator and small instrumental ensemble.
The Philharmonic’s performance, conducted by Assistant Conductor Patrick Reynolds, featured the orchestra’s principal musicians, with Gittleman narrating while illustrations from the original book were projected on a screen hanging to the back of the stage.
Lastly, Milhaud’s “Le Beouf sur le Toit” (The Ox on the Roof), which began in the composer’s mind as a soundtrack for a silent Charlie Chaplin film, had its fruition as a ballet staged by surrealist Jean Cocteau. The orchestra, with Gittleman back on the podium, offered a fittingly lively rendering of the hurly-burly piece.
The Chamber Series is designed to be a little more casual than the traditional Classical Series. There’s complimentary pizza before the Wednesday evening performance and doughnuts and coffee prior to the Thursday morning concert. Gittleman usually gives informative introductions to each work, and the program is shorter than a standard concert format. (The evening concerts run from 6:30 to about 8 p.m., while the morning programs go from 10 to about 11:30 a.m.) Tickets cost less, too.
There’s much to recommend it — in addition to the interesting programming and the consistently fine playing by the musicians. So, it’s sad to see the hall as sparsely filled as it was Wednesday night.
Like French wine or bread, it’s best shared.
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Breeders set free concert
The Breeders, including Dayton sisters Kim and Kelley Deal, will perform along with the band The National in a free concert Oct. 16 on Fountain Square in Cincinnati.
The music will be part of “Vote Early, Rock Late,” a rally from 5 to 8 p.m. in support of the Democratic ticket of Barack Obama and Joe Biden.
To take advantage of early voting, which begins Sept. 30, chartered buses will be available to take registered Hamilton County, Ohio, voters to and from the Hamilton County Election Headquarters. Dayton concertgoers can just hang out and listen.
For more information, visit www.vote-ohio.net.
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