By Thanassis Vavlidas
17/2/2014, Athens State Orchestra in connection with Paris (“Onassis Cultural Center” known as “Stegi Grammaton ke Technon”)
The musical avant–garde in France and, in particular, Paris at the beginning of both the 20th and the 21st century was the underlying subject of the compositions performed by the Athens State Orchestra on 17th of February. This concert inaugurated the collaboration of the Orchestra with the “Onassis Cultural Center”. At the beginning of the program, the pianist Titos Gouvelis vividly presented a brief analysis of the compositions.
The first composition, “Incompatible(s) IX for large orchestra” (dedicated to Nikos Mamangakis) was commissioned by the Orchestra and was performed for the first time worldwide. The Greek composer Nikolas Tzortzis (1978- ) studied music in France and currently lives there. The influence of Peter Eotvos’s example is obvious – the piece is also dedicated to him and to Konrad Stahl, who gave the composer the opportunity to stay at Edenkoben and write this piece. Original sound effects derive from the different position of some instruments like the clarinets in the orchestra, or from instruments consistently playing high notes. The third part, which comprehensively represents the composer’s ideas, is the most interesting one.
The second composition performed was the “Piano Concerto for the left hand” by Maurice Ravel (1875 – 1937). The work was commissioned by the Austrian pianist Paul Wittgenstein (1887 – 1961) who was wounded during World War I and lost his right arm. Ravel was inspired by the technical challenges of the project. As the distinguished French composer stated, “In a work of this kind it is essential to give the impression of a texture no thinner than that of a part written for both hands”. Wittgenstein himself stated, “Only much later, after I’d studied the concerto for months, did I become fascinated by it and realized what a great work it was”. In 1933, Wittgenstein played the work in concert for the first time. Stefanos Thomopoulos, the concerto’s pianist at this present performance, who has also worked in France for many years, succeeded in transmitting to the audience the stylistic mixture of jazz influences and dramatic elements with excessive clarity well supported by the orchestra.
The third composition was a pleasant surprise: “Rage in the heaven city” by Raphael Cendo (1975 - ). The composer, who studied music in Paris and followed a class of computerized music at IRCAM, has developed his own theory about music: “The phenomenon of satiation in the acoustic field is an excess of material, of energy, of movements, of timbre.” The piece is written for big symphonic orchestra and is dedicated to Fausto Romitelli, an Italian composer who died prematurely. It is mainly a piece of phasmatic music where the sounds remind us of the voices coming from whales, seagulls and wild birds, much like the “Cantus arcticus” by Einojuhani Rautavaara. The conductor Vassilis Christopoulos managed to bring on the surface the virtues of the piece and tame the sounds of wind instruments, which have a significant role in the piece.
Last but not least was the composition of Igor Stravinsky, “The Firebird Suite” (1919 version). Stravinsky (1882 – 1971) wrote this piece between 1909 and 1910 for the famous Sergei Diaghilev’s “Ballets Russes Company” for its 1910 Paris season performances. The ballet is based on Russian folk tales of the magical glowing bird that can be both a blessing and a curse for its owner. Based on the Russian tradition and adopting the style of Rimsky–Korsakoff’s orchestration, Stravinsky managed to present a new orchestral sound with new harmonies and complicated rhythms. Athens State Orchestra’s conductor did his best to conceal some difficulties that arose during the performance. Nevertheless, we certainly felt the pleasant odor of the piece.
Thanassis Vavlidas
Member of the “Union of drama and music Greek critics”
