San Juan Symphony breaks new groundBy Charlie Langdon -
Special to the Herald
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 Judith Sainte Croix, the composer of "Vision II," tells the story of herinnovative composition recounting the Cherokees' Trail of Tears. |
The performance of "The Song of the Earth" was surely a large step toward fulfilling conductor and Music Director Arthur Post's stated intention to "break new ground for symphonic music in the Four Corners."
Under Post's baton and aided by special guests flautist R. Carlos Nakai, bassoonist Stephanie Przybylska and composer Judith Sainte Croix, the orchestra deftly performed 10 compositions or segments of compositions in 90 minutes. Each piece enhanced the cumulative impression of a musical journey over the spacious West.
Perhaps the concert's finest moments were offered by Nakai's celebrated skills with the American Indian flute, and Sainte Croix's composition, "Vision II." The audience obviously loved them. Each was given a standing ovation.
From the first note, Nakai's plaintive and meditative phrasing takes listeners to new places of solitude and stark beauty. His performances of "Shaman's Call," "Shaman's Call - Echoes," "Daybreak Vision" and the "Zuni Corn Grinding Song" were memorable. And, yes, Nakai evoked "Echoes" in the second "Shaman" piece.
Nakai surely added melodious elements to Sainte Croix's gripping and mournful musical chronicle of the Cherokees' arduous removal from the southeast to Oklahoma, along the "Trail of Tears."
The 15-minute work was composed for a small ensemble. Sunday it was performed by violinist Mikylah Myers McTeer, cellist Katherine Tischhauser, oboist Pamela Epple, violist Ginger Lawrence and percussionist John Pennington, plus Nakai. At specified points in the performance a musician murmurs the brave reminder "Gah-noh-dah," ("I am alive" in Cherokee). It's dramatically effective. Furthermore, the string instruments sometimes imitate the sounds of birds and other creatures.
 Music Director Arthur Post, right, thanks bassoon soloist Stefanie Przybylska, left, and flute soloist R. Carlos Nakai after their opening duet with the San JuanSymphony on Sunday at the Fort Lewis College Community Concert Hall. |
Przybylska's bassoon brought uncommon gravity to the first movement of John Williams' "The Five Sacred Trees," a composition based on Celtic prayers. Post's program notes emphasize that the wooden bassoon itself is a tree. The work was elevated to further majesty with the spirited accompaniment of the 70-plus-member orchestra.
Conductor Post obviously enjoys his work. His conducting style is notable for big gestures and a good deal of energetic body language. He smiles often. He's having fun. Furthermore, he manifests total control of the orchestra.
Finally, Post deserves recognition for crafting a daring program of brief, disparate, yet harmonious pieces. He has a sure sense of how to assemble a concert that combines a large number of musical elements to complement a theme as vast and various as our region.
In less than three full seasons, Post has taken the San Juan Symphony to new heights of excellence. And it's apparent that the best is yet to come.
Charlie Langdon is the Herald's senior critic.
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