Slick sounds of Philharmonic Pops worthy of bravo | Philharmonic review
William Nesmith
Courier & Press correspondent
Sunday, February 8, 2009
After a couple of weeks of reading by flashlight, cooking over a Diamond match and sleeping in enough clothes to outfit a squad of infantry, it was a delight to spend the evening with the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra and the music of the Waltz King. Not the Strauss guy, the REAL Waltz King, Richard Rogers.
I suppose all of the Strauss fans will bombard me with outrage and vituperation. But think about all the terrific Richard Rogers songs that are, in fact, waltzes with lyrics: "Wonderful Guy," "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'," "This Nearly Was Mine," "Hello, Young Lovers.". All waltzes. And all just perfectly wonderful tunes.
What: Broadway vocalists Melissa Errico, Gary Mauer and Marc Kudisch will join the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra and chorus as guest soloists for a Pops program "A Rodgers & Hammerstein Celebration."
STORY TOOLS
If I were ever the subject of one of those profiles that asks me what people would be surprised to know about me, I would first of all say, "I am wafer-thin and cute as a button" and then admit I'm a sucker for Rogers and Hammerstein.
So Saturday night's installment in the Evansville Philharmonic's Pops series was one that I enjoyed immensely, even if I didn't clap along with "Oklahoma" like the rest of the capacity crowd.
The guest artists of the evening, Melissa Errico, Gary Mauer and Marc Kudisch each have an impressive resume. For instance, Errico and Kudisch each have been nominated for Tony Awards, and Mauer recently has been seen on Broadway as the Phantom in "Phantom of the Opera." These are big leaguers, and it's easy to see why, with their extraordinary voices, perfect diction and deep understanding of the songs.
Early on I feared that the sound system would ruin the evening, as I could hear the soloists perfectly but the orchestra not at all, and I do not exaggerate. The singers were miked so high, they literally swamped the 50 or 60 musicians pumping away behind them. I was much relieved when, after a couple of songs, this was fixed. But it was unfortunate.
The program itself was a basic "greatest hits" list from all the most famous Rogers and Hammerstein musicals, with a small amount of commentary by the soloists.
The orchestra was in great form and sounded as slick and Broadway brassy as you could wish.
I have in the past said some, uh ... uncomplimentary things about the Philharmonic Chorus. (And I heard some fairly uncomplimentary things back.) But on Saturday night, the chorus sounded better than I have heard it since the departure of former director Theresa Cheung. Their new director, Dennis Malfati, has retooled the sound and somehow helped the men find their voices.
What was recently a fairly feeble set of tenors and basses has been replaced with guys who can sing "There is Nothin' Like a Dame" and make it work.
Perhaps it's practice and coaching, or perhaps its threats and blackmail, but whatever Malfati is doing has paid off. I look forward to hearing the chorus again. Bravo.
http://www.courierpress.com/news/2009/feb/08/slick-sounds-of-philharmonic-pops-worthy-of/
|
