The DeKalb Symphony Orchestra’s March 22 concert at Georgia State University’s Marvin Cole Auditorium was an evening of high ambitions only partially achieved. Despite playing to an enthusiastic audience that numbered near capacity, the symphony’s focus seemed lost in what can best be described as a transitional phase in its organization.
The DeKalb Symphony Orchestra has been on an ongoing hunt for a new permanent conductor, a lengthy and arduous process that has come down to four finalists: Paul Bhasin, conductor of the Emory University Symphony Orchestra; Sean Vogt, director of Clayton State University’s Director of Choral Activity and conductor of the Spivey Hall Masterworks Chorus; Michael Giel, Dunwoody High School director of orchestras and Capitol City Opera conductor; and freelance conductor John Clanton. Each conductor is taking a turn at the podium during the orchestra’s spring run.
Vogt, conductor of the evening’s performance, comes with a background rich in sacred music that includes his current role as Director of Music at Holy Innocents’ Episcopal Church in Sandy Springs and his previous stint as Choirmaster at the Cathedral of Saint Paul, Mother Church of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.
It would be easy to place him at the top of the heap on credentials alone. Yet, Vogt’s performance was one of crippling restraint, his motions barely amounting to more than a gentle metronome. Given that this evening was devoted to music used to honor different royal families of the world, the lack of vigor was sorely noticeable, kneecapping the intensity of the grandiose music on display.
The evening commenced with a performance of the Ukrainian national anthem as a show of solidarity with those currently withstanding the Russian onslaught. It was a grand gesture delivered with good intentions but it would see the first of a series of slips that continued throughout the evening.
At first I registered a slight dissonance in the bass horns — a couple of low notes that felt slightly out of tune. The following piece, Tchaikovsky’s “Coronation March,” was presented as a thematic counterbalance since it was written for Alexander III, a Russian czar known for advocating peace. It should have been magnificent, full of pomp and circumstance, but was instead lethargic and punctuated by the recurring slip-ups.
The second piece, C.H.H. Parry’s “Bridal March of The Birds,” chosen for the evening’s program due to its use during the marriage procession of Prince William and Kate Middleton, was still shaky in its overall tone, and I noticed a brashness to the sound that had me questioning the acoustic quality of the facility.
My concerns would become more focused during Edvard Grieg’s “Våren” (“The Last Spring”), which saw tremendous strain in the sound quality of the string section: What should have been wistful and sentimental was instead tense and grating. The last straw came during Beethoven’s “King Stephen Overture,” when a violinist noticeably failed to stop in time with his section mates. Overall, the orchestra displayed a community-theater level of performance.
The evening’s first half concluded with its most enjoyable segment, a set of pieces from the John Williams score for “Star Wars: A New Hope.” Typical of movie soundtracks, they were intensely focused on the melody and largely devoid of the kind of structural intricacy that had befuddled the DSO during its earlier foray into Beethoven. All in all, it made for a pleasant close to a lackluster first half.
The evening’s second half would be its humble redemption, thanks to a guest performance by the always stellar Julie Coucheron for Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 in E Flat Major, op. 73. Coucheron is a dynamic performer known for captivating displays of virtuosity. For once Vogt’s humble conducting seemed appropriate, the orchestra respectfully in the shadows of Coucheron’s commanding presence.
The DeKalb Symphony Orchestra will continue its “Masterworks” series on May 10 with conductor Michael Giel and special guest cellist Barney Culver. The series’ fourth and final installment will take place on June 21 with conductor John Clanton and guest pianist Joseph Holt.
Jordan Owen began writing about music professionally at the age of 16 in Oxford, Mississippi. A 2006 graduate of the Berklee College of Music, he is a professional guitarist, bandleader and composer. He is currently the lead guitarist for the jazz group Other Strangers, the power metal band Axis of Empires and the melodic death/thrash metal band Century Spawn.
Credit: ArtsATL
Credit: ArtsATL
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