To begin our overview of excellence in orchestral programming by U.S. orchestras, let’s begin with a concert from the DeKalb Symphony Orchestra, Tucker, GA (Group 8) from their 2025-6 season. These are the pieces on the program:
BERNSTEIN, Three Dance Episodes from On The Town SHAW, Clarinet Concerto COPLAND, Clarinet Concerto RACHMANINOFF, Symphonic Dances, Op. 45
This is a stylish and well thought out program of music the orchestra entitled, “Rhythms of a New Era”.
What I particularly like about the choice of pieces, is the inclusion of the brilliant Clarinet concerto by Aaron Copland paired with the concerto by the legendary clarinetist, Artie Shaw, with its super-high C note at the end. I would, personally, have paired the Bernstein excerpts from ON The Town with the Copland suite from The Tender Land as an alternative to the exuberant and much-loved Rachmaninov Symphonic Dances.
These musical selections are a source of extraordinary richness as a means to delve into the influence of Jazz on all forms 20th-Century music and, critically, providing the all-important contextual nuance in establishing the presence and need of a symphony orchestra to bring these piece to life.
The question has often been put, “Can we sell new orchestral music to a far larger audience?” The question itself places it roots in a moral, if not righteous, musical quagmire: the person(s) asking the question more likely than not holding an unshakeable belief the proposition is sound. Without condescension, they may well be right, but when asked if they can with all confidence assert a far larger audience will ensue based solely on that belief, the answer must be, “Truthfully, no.”
Artistic planning for large, middle-size and smaller orchestras alike requires confidence in the decision-making process that audiences will be so galvanized by the concert program – often in tandem with the artists performing the repertoire – they will be compelled to buy a ticket. It is the classic FOMO. I know, my wife and I do it all the time. The only problem is that we already belong to the tribe of the converted.
Artistic planning is a tremendously challenging job. I know this from planning seasons ahead for the Australian Discovery Orchestra; a 64-piece ensemble made up of some of Australia’s finest orchestral players, designed to be adventurous and forward-thinking in terms of repertoire choices. Given the ADO only rehearses twice before any concert which last no longer than one hour; a schedule that necessitates utmost concentration from the orchestra to get the job done in the allotted time, the choice of music performed has to meet the following minimal criteria:
The music itself has to warrant the time and effort spent on rehearsing it;
Given that we only play the program once, if you don’t buy a ticket, there won’t be another chance to hear it live-in-concert – and we often perform works never previously performed in Australia (or sometimes not anywhere in many decades);
The music must give the musicians performing it a level of gratification for the extraordinary efforts they make to convey the inherent beauty within the work, and
Audiences need to feel they have spent their time and money wisely.
But with all this in mind, does it mean the audience will come?
They will, but only well conceived and executed mechanisms are in place. To demonstrate this, I am going to do a series of posts on artistic programming by American orchestras across all 8 Groups (or tiers) and discuss what I believe is insightful artistic planning.
I was rather amused by this article in the San Diego Tribune from 13 August 2023 entitled, “Projections, props, dance and spoken word poetry are expanding the boundaries of classical concerts.”
I knew this wasn’t going to go down well when I read, “I truly feel like we’re seeing an artistic renaissance,” said La Jolla Music Society Artistic Director Leah Rosenthal. During the pandemic, many artists were sad, scared and frozen. But people are feeling inspired again, happy again, and free.”
So this statement is erroneous on a number of levels. Certainly, there were many orchestral musicians in the USA who suffered horrendously through the COVID lockdowns – not least the orchestra members of the Metropolitan Opera, or Opera Australia for that matter, and numerous other orchestras and chamber orchestras throughout the USA and the world – but that is another story for another time. Orchestra musicians, contrary to Ms. Rosenthal’s expressed view are a pretty inventive and disiciplined lot, so, to suggest that many of these artists were sad, scared and frozen is both hyperbole and sophistry in respect to her idea of cause and effect. They coped – we all coped – and we all helped each other during COVID and carried on the best we could, beause that is what we do thank you very much.
However, the underlying assertion behind this exaggeration is that COVID is responsible for the declining interest in, and attendance at, orchestral music concerts. Moreover, the fix according to this article is to play Saint-Saëns’ Carnival of the Animals reimagined as Carnival of the Animals – A Political. Jungle.
At which point, I ask you does re-inventing a work; a composition Saint-Saëns personally detested, reconfigured as social commentary on the deplorable events of 6 January 2021 at the Capitol, re-inivgorate audiences to Classical Music? Yes, it might invigorate or inspire the curators of such an idea – and cross-collaboration in music is nothing new – but, surely, the critical aspect of undertaking any concert experience in the orchestral music genre is to FOCUS ON THE MUSIC!
If you stop doing that then orchestral musicians, as an ensemble, become nothing more than conduits to satisfy one or two people’s personal response to, in this case, an abhorrent event further dividing the people of the United States.
IT’S MEANT TO BE ABOUT THE MUSIC. Carnival of the Animals is just froth and bubble, so how does performing this whimsical light-hearted fare of Saint-Saëns’ (however clever) correlate to a disgusting protest by an aggressive crowd of individuals?
What about designing an experience that allows an audience to get deeply inside – well, what the heck – let’s say Symphony No. 3 in C minor, Op. 78 or the marvellous Cello Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 33 by M. Saint-Saëns?
As I said in my previous post, come on folks, we’re (meant to be) smarter than this.
I have decided that it is a good idea not to have headings for these excursions of mine since I have been reading the formidable articles by Ted Gioia on his excellent Substack site entitled, The Honest Broker. The breadth and expertise of his writings, let alone his encycopedic knowledge of the Jazz repertoire is simple astounding. What may you ask is the relevance of this to Conducting?
The answer is embedded within the range and scope of the topics and musical idioms that come under Mr. Gioia’s gaze – if not microscope. As a musician, Ted is not delimited by his core Jazz expertise but by the intricate synaptic connections he makes across the entire gamut of the music industry. He is also not, as the Australian expression goes, “afraid to call a shovel a spade” when his ire is raised.
This leads to consider why the ‘Classical Music Industry’ – a term Richard Tognetti from the marvellous Australian Chamber Orchestra would argue now means nothing at all – seems unable to make similar neuronal associations toward solving the malaise of disinterest in falling audiences for orchestral concerts?
But is this true? The current season of the BBC Proms currently in full-swing is selling tickets in proverbial bucket loads – and audience reaction is, overall, ecstatic.
So we have a conundrum. It’s an age-old tension; a battle for supremacy between playing blockbuster warhorses and popular party-pleasers, as opposed to – and here is the elephant in the room to serve as the example – no-one wanting to go and see Simon Rattle conduct the first-ever complete concert performance of Schumann’s Das Paradies und die Peri on August 22 in Prom No. 49.
Cue great gnashing of teeth and projections of doom and gloom!
So here is a bit of news that might stagger some of my conducting colleagues – I don’t know anything about this work by Robert Schumann. Now, whereas if I was in London on that date, I would go simply out of curiosity, why would any person from the general public make any effort to go and see a part-oratorio – part-opera (even that terminology is problematic) that’s never been previously put together for a public airing?
No reason at all. And, by the way, Crystal Palace plays Arsenal on the same day in the new English Premiere League season, so this concert is going to interfere with Pub drinking time after the game – and we can’t have that!
In short, until we give audiences a reason to do anything, their discretionary leisure time will be appropriated by ANY other event that has a higher promotional profile – and let’s face it almost any other event has a higher profile than a classical music concert – except The Proms!
