Today is the last day of a three day visit home to Akron, Ohio. In these three days, I have tried to fit in visits with the most important people of my life- grandparents, aunts, lifelong friends, mothers, fathers, and the most adorable, lovable piece of fur, my cat Askia. Three days packed to the gills with meal upon meal, smile upon smile, one car ride after another. As much as I love all of these wonderful people, and miss them terribly when I am away, the real reason I came home was to see the Akron Symphony Orchestra's 60th anniversary concert.
This might seem a bit strange if you don't know me. After all, I live in New York, where I could have my choice of orchestra concerts on any given night. That said, my family's deep connections to this ensemble, and my experiences playing in the Youth Symphony and the Symphony Chorus throughout middle and high school, give me reason to celebrate the history of an institution which, for many people defines my home town.
The concert, led by conductor Christopher Wilkins, begins with Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings- a tribute to Ping Yu, long time member of the violin section, who recently passed away. The piece is pensive and probing. Like a vision in the mist over a steamy lake it hangs gracefully over itself, revealing a piece of regret and longing in the heart of each musician and audience member alike. We come next to Dave Brubeck's Ansel Adams: America. The composer is an Akron native. The piece accompanies a projection of Ansel Adams photographs which portray the agonizing beauty of the vast American West. After experiencing the grandest in nature, our focus is pulled homeward to travel a road not of place but of time.
Commissioned for this concert, Roger Zahab's Akron Chronogram is a deeply personal look back at the history and legacy of the sixty years worth unique individuals who, with their commitment and zeal, made the orchestra what it is today. And who better to write such a piece? Roger is a native Akronite, a successful composer, conductor, teacher and violinist, who received his early exposure to symphonic music thanks to the ASO. His work is always deeply personal, he explained in the pre-concert talk. He associates music with specific people. Chronogram takes the history of the orchestra and Roger's personal interactions with past and present members and directors, and weaves them together. Above the orchestra is a projection of a video created by Laura Bidwell, showing her visions of Akron. At the end of the piece, there is 60 seconds of "grand tuning" written into the score. The players are instructed to tune and play scales and difficult passages of the piece or other pieces. This brings us squarely back to the present. The players become once again themselves preparing for the next piece on the program, after inhabiting the souls of their forebears. Akron Chronogram captures the imagination for those of us who never met the people described by the music. We can wonder who they were, we can create our own stories of their lives. I can't wait to hear it again when it is aired on WKSU.org in a couple of weeks.
After an intermission, we have are treated to Dvorak's 9th Symphony "From the New World" inspired by the composer's time in America. There's nothing like a great and iconic symphony to send us out into the streets with gusto.
Thank you Maestro Wilkins, Roger Zahab, thanks to all of the musicians who played with their hearts on their sleeves, and to everyone who came before them. It was a concert I will never forget.
Akron, it is good to see you. To look out my living room window and see the same trees and the same roof tops that I looked at throughout my childhood. I may have changed, but you are still here, holding the past. Good luck, I'll be back soon.
Now to get ready for my 12 hour bus ride back to New York. Yippee!
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