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Classical music: unexpected joys and disappointments

Der Rosenkavalier brought together some of Richard Strauss' most memorable music with sumptuous stage settings and the inventiveness of romantic comedy. PHOTO: COURTESY OF NSO

I managed to miss some of the best things in classical music in 2007, I'm told. The year was dominated by the departure in the summer from the National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) leadership of Chien Wen-pin (簡文彬), but one of its highlights was the production of Richard Strauss's Der Rosenkavalier, imported from Germany's Oper am Rhein in Dusseldorf, that Chien conducted. Everyone I spoke to agreed it was a ravishing occasion, both visually and musically, and a fitting conclusion to Chien's six years at the helm.

I was, however, lucky enough to be in Taipei for the enchanting production of Engelbert Humperdinck's Hansel und Gretel, mounted by the Taipei Symphony Orchestra in the Metropolitan Hall. This was pure delight, and for adults as well as children. I was utterly taken aback by the beauty of the music as performed by the Taipei forces, as well as the evocative staging. I will never forget the second scene with the children sitting under the tree in the forest as night fell, the moon and stars coming out, and the mysterious figures who appeared as if from nowhere to stand guard over them.

Another unexpected joy was the final of the Young Artists Showcase (永豐愛樂古典菁英獎) competition held in the Zhongshan Hall in September, a joint presentation of SinoPac Bank and Philharmonia Radio Taipei. First prize went to the young violinist Chang Ching-ting (張景婷) who played Beethoven's normally over-familiar Violin Concerto as if it were written yesterday.

But I also missed the flute concert given by NSO principal flautist Anders Norell in April. Entitled A Musical Journey to England, it featured works by under-appreciated early 20th century English composers York Bowen, Gordon Jacob, Granville Bantock, Cyril Scott and John Ireland. I've watched a recording of this event, however, and it was clearly something extremely special.

But don't worry too much if you missed it too. Norell will be performing two concertos by contemporary American composer Lowell Liebermann with the NSO in April, 2008. One of the concertos is for flute and harp, and Norell's partner will be Shannon Chieh, also an NSO instrumentalist. The music is apparently colorful and in no way abstruse, and these will be their first performances ever in Taiwan.

For the rest, I personally found Lorin Maazel's master class for young conductors disappointing. Admittedly it wasn't intended primarily as a public show, and Maazel's concert with the NSO was very different (though the orchestra didn't play noticeably better than they always do, which is excellently). But the aspiring maestros will have carried away more the memory of their encounter with fame than any very specific lesson, I suspect.

Finally, it's sad to recall that Jose Carreras' concert in the Taipei Stadium last month was a lackluster affair. There must be hundreds of better tenors half his age these days, and it's unfortunate that a great name can still attract several thousand spectators to what was essentially a commercial occasion.
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