Jose-
How was the concert and how was Dinner? Pictures Please!
The whole concert experience was quite wonderful.
Again, as I was walking up to the Disney Concert Hall, I was awed by the building itself. Those sweeping and swooping steel panels just seem so right. Once I was inside, it turned out there was a pre-concert lecture. I sat in for a few minutes, but since I needed lunch, I headed on down to the Cafe. What a neat place to eat, and the prices were very reasonable. I had a very generously-portioned Poached Salmon salad - just $7.25! *And since the WDCH is right near the Court House, they offer a discount for jurors during the week at the Cafe!
As for the concert itself....
When I bought my ticket, I had toyed with purchasing an "Orchestra View" seat - a seat on stage, behind the orchestra - but since there were soloists involved, I wanted to sit in front of the orchestra. Well, I guess I must have mumbled, "I'd rather sit in the balcony", and found myself in the Orchestra View Section seated right behind the String Bass section. I was a bit worried that the sound would be compromised, but it turned out that I had nothing to worry about. It was also fascinating to watch Essa-Pekka Salonen conduct - he truly has great "stick technique".
The first half of the concert was devoted to Hindemith's "Mathis der Maler Symphony". A lot of time Hindemith can come across a bit dry and academic - as DR JMK can attest to - but this was not the case this afternoon. And by sitting so close to the orchestra, the clarity of the orchestration was practically crystalline.
During intermission, I went ahead and scouted out some empty seats in the Terrace Level, and was able to "legally" make the move for the second half of the concert. -I went and asked an usher if it would be OK for me to change seats, and she pulled up a print out of the empty seats and told me where I could sit! Now that's COOL!
Mahler's "Das Lied von der Erde" comprised the second half of the concert. What a beautiful, emotional and moving piece of music. The two vocal soloists did a fine job, although I felt that the afternoon belonged to the mezzo-soprano - I sensed a bit of fatigue in the tenor's voice, he just wasn't "pinging" over the orchestra. But, all in all, it was an ideal way to spend a Sunday afternoon.
-And the inside of the concert hall is another stunner - including the very funky arrangement of the organ pipes. I think I would have picked a more subdued color scheme for the upholstery - it's all bright oranges, reds, greens - but it works well with all the blond wood.
