Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012, January 22, 2002, Page 8, Image 8

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FEATURES
Symphony to play Stravinsky
■The Eugene Symphony
will perform early works
of the Russian composer,
including “The Firebird”
By Lisa Toth
Oregon Daily Emerald
As the last of 83 musicians
straggled in the door and those
who were already seated finished
warming up their instruments, the
members of the Eugene Sympho
ny began their second rehearsal of
the evening.
Thirty-three-year-old music di
rector and conductor Miguel
Harth-Bedoya, wearing jeans and a
blue T-shirt, collectively and calm
ly took his place in front of his
players Sunday,
“It has to be a little more melod
ic,” he instructed, raising his arms
and wand, signaling that he want
ed to repeat the measure.
And what ensued was a beauti
ful blend of music that filled the
practice room, which }ie de
ai_,nut;u a£> iuu Lilian a icn^iiiiy, vvilii
its low ceiling.
Harth-Bedoya would draw out
each line, surrounded by har
monies of flutes and the staccato
notes of the French horn. But a few
seconds later, he would raise his
palm high in the air again — calling
the playing to a dead halt.
“It has to be articulated. ... You
have to raise the fortissimo (loud
ness),” he said, as he conducted
Igor Stravinsky's Symphony No. 1.
Gentle but firm in his criticism,
Maestro Harth-Bedoya demanded
that everything from the climax of
the kettle drums to the intensity of
the oboe meet the tempo he desired
and flow precisely.
During a brief break, as he took
frequent gulps from a cup of de
caffeinated coffee, Harth-Bedoya
confidently detailed his musical
choices for the Stravinsky Show
case. The concert will be per
formed Jan. 24 at the Hult Center
for the Performing Arts in Silva
Hall, and Jan. 25 in Florence.
The all-Stravinsky evening high
lights the Russian composer's early
works (1905-1920) when he was
composing ballet music, starting
with his Symphony No. 1, followed
by the delightful innovations of
“Pulcinella” and concluded with
the dance score that catapulted
Stravinsky to fame: “The Firebird.”
Harth-Bedoya said Symphony
No. 1, composed between 1905-07,
is a piece written during Stravin
sky’s youth that led him to become
one of the most innovative com
posers in the 20th century.
“It’s the Stravinsky none of us
think of,” Harth-Bedoya said.
This piece of repertoire, Harth
Bedoya said, hasn't been played re
cently in Eugene and focuses com
pletely on the orchestra, without
any featured guest artists.
Harth-Bedoya said he feels a cer
tain attachment to the musical
score because Stravinsky wrote it at
a young age, and Harth-Bedoya
himself is a young conductor.
Harth-Bedoya added that he
wanted to showcase the fairly con
temporary composer’s traditional
works and rhythmic innovations.
The conductor said the program
can appear heavy on paper, but he
hopes the audience will be able to
easily digest the musical choices.
“I hope that the menu we se
quence will work for the listener,”
he said.
Deanna McGlothin, 30, who
plays the French horn in the sym
phony and also serves as personnel
manager, said the three featured
works are very different, despite all
Conductor Miguel Harth-Bedoya leads his musicians through rehearsal in Studio One at
the Hult Center in practice for the Stravinsky Showcase to be performed Jan. 24 and 25.
coming from the same composer.
“All of the pieces share strong
rhythmic motives, yet are very
strikingly different in the
moods that they portray,” she
said. “Stravinsky’s ‘Firebird’
appeals to the primal nature of
the listener, with the accented
rhythms in the lower strings
and soaring melodies.”
She said “Pulcinella” is styled af
ter the Neopolitan master Giovanni
Pergolesi, with “dance-like
rhythms and a baroque-string
sound punctuated by winds.”
“The Symphony (No. 1) is not as
well known,” McGlothin said. “It is
packaged in classical sonata form,
yet is very different from your typi
cal symphony. It is quite exciting to
listen to.”
During the concert, Harth
Bedoya said he never plans to leave
the audience unattended, sharing
with them throughout the perform
ance guidelines as to what they can
expect from the music and “making
it personal.”
He will also host a free preview .
with concert highlights at noon
Jan. 23 in the Hult Center’s Studio
One, and a conductor’s talk at 7:15
p.m. on Jan. 24 in Silva Hall be
fore the concert, which begins at 8
p.m.
Eugene Symphony marketing
director Patricia Cusick said for
college-age audience members,
the symphony pushes the “limits
of classical music — it has that
edge to it that young people can
appreciate.”
Cusick said this particular sym
phony may also draw ballet lovers
because Stravinsky started out writ
ing ballet scores. She added that
she hopes students and staff in the
University’s School of Music al
ready have an interest in this type
of performance.
“Just because it is not pop culture
doesn’t mean it’s not a worthy
event,” she said. “There’s no ac
counting for musical taste.”
Harth-Bedoya’s final season
For Harth-Bedoya, Thursday’s
concert also has another signifi
cance besides highlighting Stravin
sky, being that his six-year tenure
and final season as director and
conductor of the Eugene Sympho
ny is coming to an end.
Growing up in a musical house
hold in Lima, Peru, Harth-Bedoya,
said he came to Philadelphia to
study music. He holds conducting
degrees from the Curtis Institute of
Music and The Juliard School. His
first professional appointment in
America started in 1996 in Eugene.
“I have really enjoyed my time
in Eugene — the society, culture,”
he said.
Currently, Harth-Bedoya said he
has taken on two other music di
rector positions, one with the Fort
Worth Symphony Orchestra in
Texas and the other with the
Auckland Philharmonia Orches
tra in New Zealand. Harth-Bedoya
also said he has about 12 other
guest-conducting engagements
every year of both symphonies
and orchestras, with his last one
in Eugene in May.
McGlothin said the conductor
has definitely left his mark here.
“I remember the conductor
search that gave us Miguel,” she
said. “After I had seen all the can
didates, I knew he was the one that
would continue to lead the orches
tra toward the artistic excellence.
... His energy and passion have in
spired us, and we will remember it
and never accept anything less.”
For ticket information call the
Hult Center Box Office at 682-5000,
visit www.eugenesymphony.org or
the EMU Ticket Office.
E-mail features/Pulse editor Lisa Toth
at lisatoth@dailyemerald.com