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Canadian composers show a few tricks up their sleeves

By: Holly Harris

Posted: 01/31/2012 1:00 AM | Comments: 0 (including replies)

THE Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra's 21st New Music Festival may be celebrating Nordic culture all week long but its third program showed that Canada's composers have a few tricks up their collective sleeves as well.

Monday night's concert titled Shauna Rolston: City Suites featured four works including the world premiere of WSO composer-in-residence Vincent Ho's City Suites: Concerto for Cello and Orchestra.

Ho is no stranger to NMF audiences. As a champion of new music, the popular composer has firmly entrenched himself in the hearts and minds of this city's music lovers.

His newest work composed for Canadian superstar cellist Shauna Rolston, and conducted by maestro Alexander Mickelthwate, derives from his earlier orchestral composition Nighthawks. It, in turn, was inspired by American artist Edward Hopper's evocative 1942 painting Nighthawks depicting lonely souls at a late-night diner.

The first movement Silence opens with Rolston's bluesy, rhapsodic solo that fills the air like a plaintive cry. Ho is not afraid to push his players to their limits with Rolston's compelling artistry an easy match for being called to play in the extreme ranges of her carbon-fibre instrument.

Black Breathing begins with an orchestral growl before breaking into driving rhythms and rapidly shifting metres. Once again, Rolston furiously bowed the length of her cello's neck with the second movement ending not with a bang, but a whimper.

What a pleasure to hear Nighthawks again, as a wonderfully atmospheric piece where the horn players silently blow air through their instruments juxtaposed with shimmering strings.

New Dawn begins simply with ringing piano notes and a funky drum set. This final movement felt, at times, too much of a good thing, and perhaps it may continue to evolve.

The concert opened with the North American premiere of Icelandic composer Danel Bjarnason's Emergence with the WSO led by Richard Lee. This wonderfully communicative piece begins with hushed tone clusters performed by the strings that quickly escalate to sudden outbursts of sound.

Its four movements: Silence; Black Breathing; Interlude; Emergence are accessible yet satisfying.

The program also included Brandon composer Jesse Plessis' Tender is the Night that was awarded the Canadian Music Centre's Emerging Composer top prize. The six-minute piece showed Plessis' skillful hand at crafting textures that pulse with life.

Also featured was acclaimed Canadian composer Alexina Louie's Pursuit: Concerto for String Orchestra and Orchestra performed by the WSO Clearwater String Quartet consisting of concertmaster Gwen Hoebig; Karl Stobbe (violin); Daniel Scholz (viola) and Yuri Hooker (cello).

The NMF continues tonight with Groundswell and the Bedroom Community, at the Winnipeg Art Gallery, 7:30 p.m.

holly.harris@shaw.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition January 31, 2012 C3

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