Milwaukee Symphony unleashes joyous roar of Beethoven's Ninth
The Milwaukee Symphony opened the final weekend of its classics season Friday evening with the joyous roar of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9.
The orchestra and chorus, led by conductor Jun Märkl and joined by soprano Heidi Stober, mezzo-soprano Kelley O’Connor, tenor Anthony Dean Griffey and bass Morris Robinson, gave a wonderfully nuanced, articulate performance of the enormous composition, giving depth and meaning to its most delicate, intimate moments, and thrilling power to its biggest, most iconic passages.
Märkl and the orchestra captured the mercurial moods of Beethoven’s instrumental writing, giving musical and emotional meaning and context to each shift, and executing the entire work with a close eye to details of crisp, clean rhythms, and seamlessly blended or deliberately contrasting sounds. Their constantly forward-moving energy and tempos were tailored to the musical intent of each section, including a wonderfully unhurried pace that opened the third movement.
RELATED:Millennials are going to the Milwaukee Symphony — as key players in the orchestra
RELATED:Milwaukee Symphony's $89 million concert hall will have huge impact on downtown's west side
The Milwaukee Symphony Chorus, prepared by director Cheryl Frazes Hill, gave an immaculate performance, combing technical discipline and musical abandon. Pristine pitch and rhythm, along with controlled, balanced dynamics, were the foundation for exceptional, soaring choral singing.
The vocal soloists were a remarkable well-matched quartet of singers, which actually didn’t seem likely after Robinson’s commanding exhortation to sing a joyful sound. He produced a big, ringing sound, full of warmth and focus, which made the audience sit up and take serious, immediate notice.
He was matched beautifully by Griffey’s big, colorful tenor sound and the facile work and superb blend of Stober’s soprano and O’Connor’s mezzo-soprano.
The audience erupted into a loud, long standing ovation following the piece’s final notes.
The program’s first half opened with a beautifully executed, colorful rendition of Joan Tower’s “Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman, No. 1," written for brass and percussion, which included some flashy timpani work and fascinating percussion sounds.
Leonard Bernstein’s “Chichester Psalms” followed, featuring the chorus and boy soprano soloist Evan Bagwell. Märkl, the orchestra and the chorus brought tremendous clarity, finesse and cohesion to piece, putting exquisitely wrought details in the spotlight.
Bagwell gave a delicate, if a bit tentative at times, rendition of the piece’s boy-soprano passages.
The MSO will repeat this program at 8 p.m. Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday in the Marcus Center's Uihlein Hall, 929 N. Water St. A limited supply of tickets are still available. Visit mso.org or call (414) 273-7206.