The concert is title
Cellissimo, which I have no idea what it means and the Conservatory does not
explain that. Probably that is the
category name of the concert, much like Piano Plus is a concert of piano plus
another instrument.
An interesting
repertoire was picked for Cellissimo. Three
Bachs before the Intermission, and Wagner and Verdi alternating after. Students showed off their technicality before
the Intermission through Suite No. 1 in G maj (BWV 1007), Suite No. 2 in D min
(BWV 1008) and Suite No. 3 in C Maj (BWV 1009).
This was one of the rare occasions where an entire piece, instead of
some of the movements of a piece, was performed. It felt more complete as the students
progressed through Prelude, Allemande, Courante, Sarabande, Minuet and finally
Gigue.
Two of the teachers
joined the students after the Intermission in presenting Wagner (Parsifal,
Tristan und Isolde) and Verdi (La Traviata, Nabucco and Aida). The concert closed with the Grand March from
Aida, which brought rousing applause from the audience. I’ve heard orchestra recordings of the Grand
March, but not one performing solely by cellists. Although the scale of 5 students accompanied
by 2 teachers definitely could not compare to the grandeur of a full orchestra,
it was still a very captivating Grand March.
Something I took away was the realization that symphonies and other
pieces that require a full orchestra were such that crescendos and decrescendos
could be achieved on a more spectacular scale than chamber groups and soloists. The dynamics after the Intermission were
certainly stronger than before the Intermission. I do not know if it was my imagination, but
it seemed like the 2 teachers, who sat on both ends of a semi-circle of
performers, were bowing more strongly, and the dynamics were more pronounced than
their students.
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