“The Montclair Orchestra’s last concert of its inaugural season was a flourish of orchestral color, bringing the audience along on a tour of France, Russia, Austria and back to France,” writes William Amory in the Montclair Local (Montclair, N.J.). In Le tombeau de Couperin, “The sweep of the very first phrases beckoned us into Ravel’s world of color. His prelude starts with a lovely chamber orchestra sound of mellow, fall-like colors, and was enhanced by conductor David Chan’s strong push and pull of Ravel’s beautiful phrases. [In] Mozart’s ‘Serenade No. 6’ … Mozart’s very traditional handing the solo part from instrument to instrument was here comically started at the very top of the string range, proceeding to the bottom…. Chan supplied unobtrusive comic gestures…. Milhaud’s ‘Le boeuf sur le toit’ brought out all the colors of the rainbow. Milhaud paints the vivid colors of a carnival street festival, and adds undreamed-of colors mixed in the juxtaposition of so many tunes in so many keys…. The arc of the concert was well conceived by Chan as a tour of symphonic color, and was expressed in excellent playing and great ensemble.” Also on the program was Tchaikovsky’s “Mozartiana” Suite. Music Director David Chan is also concertmaster of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. The ensemble’s founder is Andre Weker.
Posted May 17, 2018
