25 X 2002 - 22:43 - prex3

(this is going to be very different from the other two entries entitled 'prex.' it seems i have developed very different ideas of what it means to offer a prayer, these days... i can't say the change is entirely unwelcome.)

A short review of Britten's War Requiem while my impressions remain fresh:

I'm used to the Britten/London recording with Vishnevskaya, Fischer-Dieskau, and Pears, so Masur's tempi with the SFS seemed a bit slow, especially during the Libera Me. After I'd grown used to it, I found I sort of liked it, although I still preferred the movement that Britten brought to his own movement. The pauses between full/chamber orchestra entrances were long enough to be eyebrow-raising; certainly the pauses before the boys' chorus came in (again especially during the Libera Me but also during the Offertorium) were just bizarre to me. Overall, though, I believe Masur did an impressive job with the piece.

The chorus, as I've grown to expect from the SF Symphony's chorus, was simply amazing, as were the SF Girls' Chorus and the Pacific Boychoir. The women could have stood being a bit louder -- especially during the sequence beginning "Recordare, Jesu pie..." in the middle of the Dies Irae, as it is my belief that this is one of the most sublime passages. The men were impressive with their power in the sequence beginning "Confutatis maledictis..." and also at the opening of the Dies Irae, but what was most impressive of all was the full choir as it entered its buildup to "Pleni sunt caeli et terra gloriae tuae" in the Sanctus. The following "Hosanna" was similarly powerful and sent chills down my back, as did many of the other choral passages. One that was especially haunting (last one, I promise!) was the juxtaposition of Owen's retelling of the story of Abraham and Isaac with the almost obscenely lively dance "quam olim Abrahae promisisti, et semini ejus." I could have asked for the ghostly repetition to be a little softer, but it was not lacking as it was.

(Having read several criticisms and analyses of the War Requiem in preparation for writing my research paper last year on oriental influence in Britten's music, I find my appreciation for just how clever he's been grows as I hear it -- finally! -- for myself in concert.)

The orchestra's playing could not really be faulted. Especial praise should go to the clarinet and oboe solos as well as to the harp and the offstage brass. From where I was sitting, Outwater's conducting seemed rather an interesting problem to decipher, but I gather it isn't as hard as it looks. Also, the bass and cello sections should get praise, because in this orchestra, they almost always should.

The soloists -- I believe that the nature of the text (Wilfred Owen's poetry) given to the male soloists requires a relatively clean attack, with some leeway given for scooping. The tenor scooped in almost every phrase, even places where it seemed obvious that the singing should be clearer than he was making it. That was disturbing. I liked the baritone's tone better, but he didn't seem to be singing loud enough for me to hear him. The soprano started the concert screaming and finally settled down to near-inaudibility by the end of the concert. It's a pity -- the rest of the forces were relatively well-together...

I'm not going to say much about acoustics, except to mention that I got there as the computer-driven arms were lowering the plastic sound-barriers into place. It was interesting -- one minute the trumpet was sharp and crisp, and then everything fell into place and it lost half its sound. Sometimes sitting in second tier has its disadvantages, although if you need cheap seats, the extreme sides of the second tier (although a little worse for seeing the orchestra) are angled so that considerably more sound bounces your way.

"Short review" -- ha. But I did enjoy it, and I was certainly glad of the opportunity to hear the piece. Also, despite being seated next to someone who was shushing people more loudly than they were rustling papers, I was able to focus more or less on the music throughout the whole piece. It didn't hurt that I ran into a number of people I hadn't seen in a few years, either.

I'm glad the concerts have sold out. I think people need to be hearing this piece right now...

"My subject is War, and the pity of War. The Poetry is in the pity.... All a poet can do today is warn. That is why true Poets must be truthful."

-Wilfred Owen