Jeremy Denk with Michael Tilson Thomas & San Francisco Symphony
2013-11-07
Davies Symphony Hall
201 Van Ness, San Francisco, CA
8:00 PM, Thursday, November 7, 2013

[8:00 PM lights down, announcements]

1. [8:03 PM] Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827): Leonore Overture No. 3, Op. 72a (1806)
   [work ends 8:17 PM; pause to add musicians]

[8:20 PM MTT talks a bit about Mackey's piece]

Steven Mackey (b. 1956): Eating Greens (1993)
 
Part I: Religion, Food, Art; homage to Henri Matisse

1. [8:25 PM] (Lethargical) Reformation »
2. [8:2m PM] Waffling (sic) »
3. [8:30 PM] Whim and Rigor
    
   Part II: loose ends
4. [8:36 PM] The Title Is Almost as Long as the Piece Itself
5. [8:3m PM] Ouija (wee-gee) Baby
    
   Part III: Five Chords; homage to Thelonius Monk
6. [8:m PM] Bread and Wine
7. [8:m PM] Drunk Monk
   [work ends 8:47 PM]

[9:m PM lights down, announcements]

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1759-1791): Piano Concerto No. 25 in C Major, K.503 (1786)

1. [9:21 PM] Allegro maestoso
2. [9:25 PM] Andante
3. [9:33 PM] Allegretto
   [work ends 9:42 PM]

1. [9:50 PM] Aaron Copland (1900-1990): Symphonic Ode (1932/1956) (ca. 20 minutes)
   [work ends 10:13 PM]
   

• Jeremy Denk: piano; [only for the Mozart piece]
• Michael Tilson Thomas: conductor;
• San Francisco Symphony

Beethoven: Leonore Overture No. 3

Steven Mackey: Eating Greens

Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 25 in C Major, K.503

Copland: Symphonic Ode

Arrived very early and upgraded my seat to a prime view in Orchestra Center, then took a stroll around the neighborhood, spending money on gifts for myself and others – the holidays approach! Stopped for a quick bite – two large BBQ chicken tacos, watching futbol between Real Madrid and Athletic Center (ATH?) on the big screen up in the corner. Returned to Davies about 20 minutes before the show – plenty of time to check my coat and bags, wash up from dinner, and then settle down to write this note! I really enjoyed the first ten minutes or so in the near empty hall, listening to the percussion practice for the Mackey piece. Now that the hall is full of talking people, the murmuring of the musicians seems more like just another sort of noise, jostling for my attention amidst the acoustic mayhem of conversation, tuning scales and disjointed practice riffs.

Setbreak! Beethoven is generally a good choice, and I really enjoyed the Leonora opener. The repeated fanfare calls of the trumpet offstage made for a particularly cool spatial effect, sounding first and farthest from the upper balcony, then a minute or two later, much nearer and louder from the front of the grand tier.

I didn't expect MTT's introduction to the Mackey piece, and I found his commentary to be a far more helpful guide than the notes provided by the composer in the program. MTT made a point of describing the work as one propelled by an insistent, driving force, but I think that characterization is somewhat incorrect. Rather than running forward like a spring-driven clockwork or a speeding machine, I'd say that the piece is like a continually unfolding dreamscape, particularly during Part I. First this idea grabs the attention, and then a moment or two later another element pops up, and so on throughout the work. A fun work, to be sure, but one that obviously needs a lot of practice to pull off!

The following concerto by Mozart was lots of fun, and a good listening exercise as well, since it's so easy to get distracted by Mozart's hummable little melodies instead of actually paying close attention to what is really going on in the piece. Denk performed yeoman's duty in playing from memory while balancing his singular contribution against that of the orchestra. I was a little disappointed that he declined to offer us a lagniappe upon conclusion of the work, but perhaps the audience applause wasn't effusive enough to warrant such a gift.

As with the Mackey work, MTT spent a few minutes introducing Copland's Symphonic Ode to us, an effort for which I am quite appreciative. I was particularly intrigued by his comment that this work could be seen as foreshadowing that of Philip Glass, Steve Reich, John Adams and other modern composers writing in the so-called Minimalist style, and this set me to listening carefully during the performance. So do I agree? Well, kinda sorta. I found the resemblance to be rather slight. I'd describe Symphonic Ode as minimalist in the way that someone else might call Rhapsody in Blue a jazz symphony. Which is to say that the labels might help someone unfamiliar with the style to notice a similarity to other works. Having written that, I don't mean to disparage the work or the performance, which I enjoyed, but it made for a night of shifting perspectives … programming by contrast, I suppose.

This was the first of four performances of this program.

Stephen Smoliar posted a grumpy review for the Examiner.

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