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Fortunately, unlike Las Vegas, what happens in China doesn’t have to stay in China.
That’s good news for us music lovers who aren’t members of the Oberlin Orchestra. We may not have taken part in the group’s recent tour of China, but now, thanks to a new CD produced in-house by Oberlin, we can at least experience the audio highlights.
“We tried to be as honest as possible about how fabulous and how challenging it was at the same time,” says Dean of the Conservatory David H. Stull in describing the new recording, The Oberlin Orchestra in China, now available in the Oberlin Bookstore.
For those who don’t know, the Oberlin Orchestra recently undertook the most ambitious journey of any ensemble in Conservatory history, a two-week trek across China. From late December 2005 through the early days of 2006, the student players, under the assured leadership of conductor and Music Director Bridget-Michaele Reischl, performed nine public concerts in five major cities: Beijing, Shanghai, Anshan, Dalian, and Shenyang.
Dean Stull went along as overseer. With him were producer (and Oberlin Associate Dean) Michael Lynn and recording engineer Paul Eachus. Together, the team overcame such obstacles as damaged instruments, jet lag, strange pianos, frigid concert halls, and music stand shortages to lay down a CD that sounds to the listener as if every moment were brilliant fun.
Repertoire was a sticky issue from the beginning. Stull, Reischl, and others hoped to demonstrate the orchestra’s classical chops with meaty symphonic works, whereas the Chinese imagined a series of Viennese-style New Year’s Eve concerts or film-music showcases.
In the end, the parties agreed to compromise with lighter favorites like Dvorak’s Slavonic Dances, Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, and selections from Bizet’s Carmen. In addition, the orchestra played movie themes by John Williams and mastered native patriotic scores representing each city they visited. The only major piece from the tour repertoire that didn’t make it onto this live CD recording was Stravinsky’s Pulcinella Suite.
“Our repertoire was a bit unusual compared to a typical orchestral concert in the United States,” Stull says. “But we still viewed it as educational. The students came to realize that to play what we think of as ‘light’ music well actually requires a lot of investment.” And judging by the results, invest they did.
Carmen Suite
Check your pulse if you don’t find this performance thrilling. From the rollicking Les Toréadors theme through the boisterous, breathless Danse Bohème, this is high-test Carmen. Yet it isn’t reckless. Nestled between the two fast movements is a flawless Intermezzo laced with ethereal flute woodwind solos that somehow establish total tranquility without sacrificing momentum.
Ode to the Red Flag
If Brahms had written soundtracks for 20th-century Chinese cinema, they might have sounded something like this not-insubstantial score by contemporary Chinese composer Qiming Lu. A sweeping theme with a patriotic lilt gives way to a fresh, flowing melody in the strings. After some development, the original theme reappears against a vigorous ostinato and eventually blossoms into a burst of romantic fervor.
The Good News from Beijing
Markedly different from Ode, this 1976 piece by Lu Zheng and Hongye Ma works its magic by never slowing down. After a few tranquil horn-calls, it becomes a bouncing scherzo with nothing but glad tidings to report.
Jasmine
This brief but lush and immediately appealing orchestration of a folk song by Oberlin composition professor Lewis Nielson remarkably evokes the aura of a traditional Chinese instrumental ensemble.
On The Beautiful Blue Danube
No one could ask for a more polished performance of this chestnut by Johann Strauss, Jr. Conductor Reischl and the orchestra apply great tonal warmth and seize every opportunity for dramatic affect, holding back the familiar tune with enticing restraint. In their hands, Blue Danube is anything but fluff.
Slavonic Dances
A close connection between conductor and orchestra is what stands out in these two Slavonic Dances by Dvorak, Op. 46 Nos. 1 and 8. Illuminating the first are crisp accents and clear contrast between sections, while the second, full of precise syncopation and subtle tempo adjustments, is a model of collective control.
Rhapsody in Blue
There’s no trace of the trouble that nearly canceled this presentation of Gershwin’s jazzy classic. But knowing that the musicians triumphed over an unheated concert hall and an utterly foreign piano only renders piano soloist Thomas Rosenkranz’s distinctive, confident performance all the more captivating.
Soundtracks by John Williams
The unforgettable theme from Star Wars never fails to stir, especially in a professional-quality performance such as this one. But hold on for the real treat, the heartbreakingly tender violin solo from Schindler’s List, played breathtakingly by Conservatory student John Freivogel.
Finales
Chinese audiences have learned it’s time to go home when they hear Strauss’s Radetzky March. The Oberlin Orchestra complies with this tradition admirably while also throwing in some musical fireworks straight from the American canon: Sousa’s Stars and Stripes Forever. Next up for the orchestra and the Oberlin record label: Carnegie Hall.
Zachary Lewis is a freelance arts journalist in Cleveland.
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