Concert Review: MSO's Opus One offers opulent evening of casual fun
Musicians take charge of stage
The premiere performance of Opus One was all about firsts.
Thursday night offered the first public presentation of the new conductorless series by Memphis Symphony Orchestra musicians. It showcased Beethoven's First Symphony and Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 1.
And it was the first time I heard Ryan Fleur, the MSO's president and CEO, say with a bit of wonder, "I don't have to do anything tonight!"
Oboist Joey Salvalaggio is one of the organizers of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra's Opus One series, which debuted Thursday evening at One Commerce Square in Downtown Memphis.
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That was because Opus One, while composed of MSO musicians, uses minimal staff support from the symphony organization. The players not only made beautiful music, they worked the PA system, moved the chairs, selected the hors d'oeuvres and did the publicity for their new baby.
And without a conductor or a podium, rehearsals were very much a collective event, with details open to discussion and debate among the musicians.
The result was a gorgeous performance in what used to be a grand bank lobby at One Commerce Square in Downtown -- another indication that Opus One is about doing things differently, including going to nontraditional venues.
As concerts go, it was an informal affair, something along the lines of a concert in the park, with imbibing, munching, chatting and texting during the performance.
But it was, after all, intended to be more festive than formal, proven by the post-intermission program of big band tunes from charts played by orchestras on radio broadcasts from the Peabody Hotel back in the 1930s and '40s. From Bach to fox trots, all in one delicious evening.
The sound in the enormous Ionic-columned room was diffused and rounded, a lovely effect for the music, a tougher acoustic for the PA system, though. Still, that was a minor distraction. The triumph came in the rest of it, from the tasty food to the crowd that packed the place, making it an auspicious first indeed.
Comments » 1
BogeyMan writes:
You forgot to mention that, in comparison to conventional performances, the tickets were a bargain. Who needs a staff or, for that matter, a music director anyway?
I think the MSO may have just learned a valuable lesson about survival in troubled times.
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