Classical Symphony's "likeable music'

Karl Middleman always produces likeable concerts, and the latest outing by his Philadelphia Classical Symphony maintained the tradition. The opening item was, in fact, about as likeable as music can get.

Einojuhani Rautavaara wrote his Divertimento for Strings in 1953, when composers mostly churned out the kind of academic music that made audiences cringe, but it's a divertimento in the Mozart and Haydn tradition— a bit of music that's supposed to divert and please.

It opens with a driving motif by the violins, continues with a second movement adagio that's as pleasant as a relaxed early evening, and ends with an energico last movement that communicates its energy with size rather than speed before finishing with a bangy finale. (Yes, string orchestras can bang.)

Middleman followed that extreme example of likeability with a piece that added a touch of wildness and instrumental novelty. The saxophone arrived in the 1840s, after orchestras had become standardized, and it still hasn't worked its way into a permanent spot on the orchestra repertoire. But it's a beautiful instrument, with the poetic qualities of the horn, and Classical music audiences lately are encountering more young saxophone players and performing pieces that exploit its unique qualities.

The soloist for this concert, Jonathan Hulting-Cohen, is so young that he's still working on his bachelor of music degree, even though he's already maintaining a globetrotting schedule.

Frenzied personality

Luciano Berio's Chemins IV, for soprano saxophone and 11 strings, was originally composed for oboe in 1975 and arranged for saxophone in 1993. It's definitely not an attempt to reproduce the mellow, evocative saxophone music I heard in smoky 1950s nightclubs. Berio's solo line presents us with a sax that has acquired a metallic sound and a frenzied personality.

At the climatic final moments, the sax plays over frantic strings like a lone piper, surrounded by antic crowds, playing at some epochal event such as the collapse of a major civilization.

Reliable composer

Middleman then handed the baton to the composer Jan Krzywicki, who conducted the premiere of his Concertino bucolico for clarinet, bassoon, harp and string orchestra. Krzywicki is one of the Philadelphia area's most reliable composers, and his concertino added another winner to the successful Krzywicki premieres I've heard over the years.

Middleman commissioned the Concertino specifically for a concert featuring two soloists: the Philadelphia Orchestra's principal clarinet, Ricardo Morales, and its principal bassoonist, Daniel Matsukawa. Krzywicki remarked that it was a pleasure to write a piece for two musicians of this caliber, and his piece took full advantage of their ability. He pushed the boundaries of both instruments and found sounds in the bassoon that we don't normally hear.

Notwithstanding the talents of the two soloists, the Concertino is also a true ensemble piece. Krzywicki's string writing always blends with the solo parts and adds to their effect. The harp plays a secondary role, but its little flourishes make an important contribution.

Krzywicki's five movements depict the passage of the day, from dawn to dusk— a movement that's also, he noted, the pattern of life. The clarinet gets most of the solo work as the music proceeds from morning to the bustle of midday (and midlife), but the bassoon plays a beautiful, moving solo as the day nears its end.

Krzywicki's final touch was inspired by the Italian countryside where he composed the piece. He had heard that the shepherds nearby played to each other across the hills in the evening, and the Concertino ends with a mellow duet that captures that image.

The saxophone we love

The second half opened with another modern divertimento: American composer Roger Boutry's Divertimento for Alto Saxophone and Strings. This time the saxophone sounded more like the saxophone we all know and love.

A bouncy, slightly jazzy allegro opened the proceedings; the slow movement oscillated between the mellow world of the night club sax and the fairyland of Mozart's horns; and Boutry's entertainment ended with a showy, unaccompanied solo and a bustling, driving finish.

A place for Richard Strauss

The afternoon ended with Richard Strauss's 1947 Duet Concertino for the same combination of soloists and strings Krzywicki employed. Middleman noted that Strauss never published a program for this piece, but just before he died he said it was about Beauty and the Beast. Middleman then proceeded to demonstrate, with musical examples played by soloists and orchestra, how Strauss's score could fit into such a program.

It's a plausible idea, given that Strauss's best known works include program music like Don Quixote and Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks. It's also a good example of the thoughts and musical insights that Middleman dispensed from the podium between the musical events.

At times I felt Middleman might be engaging in too much commentary, but his remarks were so interesting that I couldn't tell you what he should have deleted. And the music was so good that there was no danger it might be spoiled by too much conversation.