Category: Portland, OR

Hercules vs. Vampires comes to Oregon

By Lorin Wilkerson

“Cigars, cigarettes? Sweets, flair?” If you heard these sing-song syllables from a beautiful cigarette girl ringing out over a noisy theater the last time you went out, you either last went to the movies in the 1950s, or attended the premier of the Opera Theater Oregon/Filmusik production of Mario Bava’s Hercules vs. Vampires this weekend. (Of course the cigars are bubblegum and the cigarettes chocolate or mint, but with all proceeds going to OTO, the ambience is what counts.)

This isn’t the first joining of forces between OTO, Portland’s homegrown alternative opera troupe, and Filmusik, a project that re-imagines the sonic world of classic cinema through brand new sound- and vocal tracks. It’s not the first collaboration, but to date it may be the most brilliant. Thanks to the combination of Los Angeles composer Patrick Morganelli’s inspired short opera composed specifically for this film, the sterling quality of the OTO singers and Erica Melton’s expert direction of the Filmusik orchestra, Hercules vs. Vampires (It. Ercole al Centro della Terra) was a high-caliber musical experience coupled with the guilty pleasure of watching a campy old movie. In short, it was exactly the type of experience that Filmusik seeks to impart and contintually does, in fresh new iterations time and again.
Continue reading Hercules vs. Vampires comes to Oregon

Das Rheingold as Baywatch

By Lorin Wilkerson

On Wednesday night at the Clinton Street Theater in SE Portland, Opera Theater Oregon debuted what must surely be the world premier of any Wagner opera to be set as an episode of the once-popular, vapid TV series Baywatch. Das Rheingold may not seem at first like a suitable thematic partner for a show whose main claim to fame was a horde of buxom young women and bronzed, muscled men running around the beach (often in slow motion) rescuing people, preventing crime, and solving mysteries, but glimpse underneath the surface dissimilarities and a surprising mesh occurs.

Continue reading Das Rheingold as Baywatch

Review: Ancestors of the Guitar

By Lorin Wilkerson

In a concert entitled ‘The Ancestors of the Guitar,” Portland lutenist/guitarist Hideki Yamaya presented an insightful look into three early instruments on Friday night, January 29th at the Little Church in NE Portland. Despite a delayed start as the artist waited for latecomers (there was a mistake in The Oregonian directing listeners to the Old Church downtown), the small hall was nearly full as Yamaya played several sets, first on the vihuela, then on a Renaissance lute, and finally a Baroque guitar. Throughout the performance Yamaya put the intimate setting to good use, taking time to set the works in their historical and social contexts, frequently interpolating vignettes on the evolution of the guitar and other plucked string instruments.

Continue reading Review: Ancestors of the Guitar

45th Parallel debuts in Portland

By Lorin Wilkerson

Saturday night, January 16th, marked the inaugural concert of a new Portland chamber music group that goes by the name of 45th Parallel.  Its goal is to make a home for chamber music by talented local musicians, to “bring Portland’s rich chamber music culture out of the living room and onto the stage.”  Last night’s concert at the Old Church was rich indeed, featuring a sort of A-list of some of Portland’s finest string players, in this case all members of the Oregon Symphony (and other groups).  The evening featured three works, by de Bériot, Verdi and Tchaikovsky, all of which works were influenced by opera or ballet.

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Portland Opera’s Orphée intriguing and convincing

Photo credit: Portland Opera/Cory Weaver
Photo credit: Portland Opera/Cory Weaver

It has been a pretty heady week for Portland Opera. The company took a gamble in producing Philip Glass’s Orphée on Friday evening (November 6) at Keller Auditorium and emerged a winner. This rarely heard opera retells the Orpheus legend according to the vision of Jean Cocteau, and it held a near-capacity audience spellbound. Continue reading Portland Opera’s Orphée intriguing and convincing

Oregon Symphony collaborates with two guests and finds Ravel a gem

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The Oregon Symphony made music with two guest artists on Saturday evening (October 31st) at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall. The ensemble was led by Claus Peter Flor, a German conductor who is the music director of the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra and is well-known for his work with the Dallas Symphony over the past decade. Guest violinist Stefan Jackiw, a 29-year-old American virtuoso also made his debut with the orchestra, which played works by Ravel, Mozart, and Beethoven. Continue reading Oregon Symphony collaborates with two guests and finds Ravel a gem

Portland Baroque Orchestra celebrates youthful works of Mendelssohn

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The sound of a loud pop greeted the audience at the Portland Baroque Orchestra concert on Saturday evening (October 24) at Kaul Auditorium. It also surprised violin virtuoso Monica Huggett, because she just broke her E string about five seconds after beginning the first piece. After halting the orchestra, Huggett excused herself for a few minutes in order to attach a new string, and the audience got a chance to take a quick breather and reflect on the informal freshness of such a thing. Perhaps even Felix Mendelssohn, who was noted as a super straight-laced kind of guy, would’ve relaxed. In any case, after returning to the stage, Huggett and her ensemble whipped up some froth in a program that featured Mendelssohn’s music, all from during his early years. Continue reading Portland Baroque Orchestra celebrates youthful works of Mendelssohn

Third Angle brings the newest of sounds from China in stellar concert

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There’s a huge landscape for new music in China, and the Third Angle New Music Ensemble explored a bit of that territory in an exciting concert on Friday evening (October 24) at the Fields Ballroom in the Portland Art Museum. That landscape (both external and internal) is being discovered and given a voice by Chinese composers who are fusing sounds from the East and West in exciting ways. Third Angle found a way into the heart of these sounds and delivered intriguing performances of music by Chen Yi, Jia Daqun, and Ye Xiaogang. To make the concert even more special, Xiaogang was present, as was special guest soloist, the zheng virtuoso Haiquiong Deng.

Continue reading Third Angle brings the newest of sounds from China in stellar concert

Oregon Symphony receives $1.45 million!

Good news in Portland. Four foundations have awarded the Oregon Symphony $1.45 million to support its budget. Kudos go to the James. F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation, the Meyer Memorial Trust of Portland, The Collins Foundation, and the William Randolph Hearst Foundation. This calls for a major fanfare! Congratulations to the orchestra and its administrative staff. Continue reading Oregon Symphony receives $1.45 million!

Three Bs get A+ treatment from the Oregon Symphony

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One of the great things about a fine orchestra is how it can play a work really fast, yet not sacrifice anything in terms of articulation and phrasing. That’s what I heard on Sunday evening at the Arlene Schnitzer concert hall when the Oregon Symphony under the direction of Carlos Kalmar performed a blitzschnell version of Beethoven’s 7th Symphony. Only the best orchestras can get away with this sort of thing without blurring the lines in the music and causing sonic train wrecks instead of giving shape to the music and executing pinpoint stops. I heard Gustavo Dudamel and the Israeli Philharmonic Orchestra tear through Tchaikovsky’s 4th Symphony with lighting speed in New York City last November to great effect, and the Oregon Symphony was just as scintillating with the Beethoven. Continue reading Three Bs get A+ treatment from the Oregon Symphony