Posts tagged spco

Soovin Kim’s performance with The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra was impressive for many reasons, not the least of which is for the fact that he had 4 days to prepare. As a truly polished professional, Kim friggin’ nailed it. At the Theoroi’s pre-concert talk with Rob Hubbard, arts writer for the Pioneer Press, Rob mentioned that he would be easier than usual on Kim due to the fact that he got the call just a few days prior, but there really was no need to give him a break. Kim’s presence on stage was overflowing with confidence and joy.

There’s a difference between the way you listen to music live versus how you hear it when it’s on your iPod, the radio, in the background at a restaurant, or in the car. Live performances like Kim’s go beyond the sound of music. It’s an experience that involves a room, an audience, an energy form the audience, lighting, acoustics, and, most importantly, a closeness and intimacy with the artists creating their art right there in front of you. This holds true for any type of performance wether it be a chamber orchestra, a theater performance, a hip-hop festival, a sporting event, or a DJ at a night club. I love listening to music and watching performances, but more importantly, I love experiencing live events.

The interesting thing about going to different types of shows is the difference in the type of people in attendance. I once went to the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and a Blue Scholars show in one night (not kidding). SPCO = old white people who are probably upper middle class and educated. Blue Scholars = young culturally diverse crowd drinking PBR Tallboys and smoking spliffs. 

What I would love to do is watch the SPCO in a less formal venue where I can stand up, move around, and throw back a few beers during the show. Why not? On the flip side, I don’t want to be one of two spectators at the 7th Street Entry for a hip hop show who was born in the 1970s. Yes, that was actually determined when Macklemore asked the crowd if there were any children of the 70s and I and one other dude started cheering.

So, now I’m on a mission. I want to find out what it was like to attend an orchestra concert during the 18th century. Was it as “stuffy” as it is today? Or did people loosen up, relax, and play it less formal? There clearly were no hip hop shows to distract the younger folks, so did more young people attend the symphony performances? 

If you know any good resources where I can find out this information, please let me know!

Tonight’s performance of Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony took me back several years. Ever since I took a class in college dedicated to Beethoven’s nine symphonies, I rarely pass up an opportunity to hear a performance. Luckily, the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra has a pretty regular selection of Beethoven. During the class back in 1998, I made my first visit to an SPCO concert to hear Beethoven’s Fourth Symphony as part of my final project. I learned quite a bit about the historical context in which music was performed, and, believe it or not, back in 1806 the music was not intended to be listened to from a compact disc in a college lecture room with frequent pauses for instructor commentary.

The music is so much richer when you can see the performers, hear the reverberations of the room, and feel the vibrations. Also, musical performances are not perfect in the same way that recordings are mastered. The little imperfections make it real, like the orchestra members shuffling around, turning pages, making mistakes (Rarely) and the animation of the conductor. All of these effects are lost when you listen to recorded music. That’s not to say recorded music is bad, but a LIVE performance by the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra is really, really hard to beat!