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Hubbard  Street Dance and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra: Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Xian Zhang, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Symphony Center, Chicago 10.4.2009 (JLZ)

Ottorino Respighi: Trittico botticelliana
Maurice Ravel: Le tombeau de Couperin
Gabriel Fauré (orchestrated by Henri Rabaud): Dolly, op.56
and
Slipstream Choreography: Jim Vincent,  Music: Benjamin Britten: Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge, op.10


With its focus on the chamber orchestra, this recent program of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in conjunction with the Hubbard Street Dance Chicago brought to Symphony Center some rarely heard – and seen – works that demonstrate the capacity for intensive artistic collaborations. While the choreography of Jim Vincent, the current director of Hubbard street Dance, was the point of interest in the second half of the program, the first portion was an excellent selection of three works for chamber orchestra which show the Orchestra’s wonderfully integrated ensemble.

The program opened with Respighi’s Trittico botticelliano, the composer’s three-movement work based on paintings in the Uffizi Gallery: “Spring,” “The Adoration of the Magi,” and “The Birth of Venus.” With its shimmering string sonorities and fanfare-like motives in the brass, the first movement was a signal way to start the program. The ensemble worked well together under the direction of guest conductor Xian Zhang, whose precise reading allowed the various details of the score to emerge clearly. This was particularly effective in the second movement, “The Adoration of the Magi,” which involved an intricate combination of motives from Christian chant “Veni, veni Emmanuel”, and traditional musical gestures which evoke the orient, ideas with connections to music found in Saint-Säens’ Samson et Dalila as well as other well-known works. Zhang did well in creating a convincing tableau, which followed with the impressively sonorous “Birth of Venus.” 

Equally colorful, Ravel’s Tombeau de Couperin evinced some stylistic differences in the details that separate part of its composer from others in his generation. Zhang established the tone in the Prélude, the first of the four movements that comprise the orchestral suite, which Ravel arranged from the six-movement version he had original written for solo piano. Each of the pieces had its distinctive character, with the familiar Rigaudon notable for Zhang’s brisk tempo, which gave the work momentum in reaching a satisfying conclusion. The final work in the first half of the program was the Dolly Suite of Gabriel Fauré, which is also derived from a work that its composer conceived for piano. In arranging the Dolly Suite for orchestra, Henri Rabaud created an idiomatic score, which stands well on its own merits. If the scoring, at times, resembles some of Fauré’s contemporaries, like Emanuel Chabrier (especially his tone poem España), it is credit to the Rabaud for capturing the style.

The climax of the program was the collaboration with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, and Jim Vincent’s choreography entitled Slipstream, which makes use of Benjamin Britten’s Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge. The intricate variations are a fine work for string orchestra, and the choreography by Vincent supports the work without competing with it aesthetically. The contemporary focus of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago finds excellent expression in the choreography conceived for it, and the shifting textures of Britten’s music are an excellent way to make use of the modern dance. The Variations evoke a sense of movement, since they involve dances or marches throughout the work, as implied in the titles of the sections: Introduction and Theme; Adagio; March; Romance; Aria italiana; Bourrée classique; Wiener Walzer; Moto perpetuo; Funeral March; Chant; Fugue and Finale.

In creating the ballet, Vincent wisely avoided interpreting the titles literally and, instead, built on the musical structure. The various groupings of male and female dancers intersected well with passages for solo dancers, and the troupe worked together to reflect the intensity of performance that emerged from the Orchestra, which was seated upstage and in full view of the audience. Motion was not limited to the gestures of ballet, but also included gestures with arms and hands that fitted well with the music. Likewise, the use of light projected on the stage reinforced the movement on stage, with colors tastefully shifting at appropriate moments. The projected images of dancers in shadow were another detail in the overall presentation, which fit nicely into the choreography and also the musical score. Most importantly the sense of timing fitted the performance, and the coordination between the podium and the dancers on stage pointed to the careful rehearsing, which created such an effective performance. The result was an intensely moving performance, as evident in the moment of silence at the end.

The Chicago Symphony gave a powerful performance of Britten’s Variations, which stands out for the focused sound of the strings involved. From the dais at the far end of the stage, the sound projected nicely into the hall, with the sometimes intricate textures emerging clearly. Moreover, the colors that resulted from the CSO’s sensitive playing were was as evocative as the movement on stage in the performance of Slipstream. In this collaboration, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra brought two strong civic ensembles together in a memorable performance at Symphony Center.

James L Zychowicz

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