Tonight I went to a concert at the Uppsala Koncert & Kongress, the cube-ish building on the east side of the river that I’ve pictured a couple times before. The concert was headlined by Philip Glass, the well-known modern classical composer and pianist, and also featured Tim Fain, an American violinist. I’d known about Glass’s music for some time, so back in February when I saw that he would be here , I jumped on the opportunity.
The concert started at 7:00 in the evening, slightly earlier than I’m used to, and was on the top floor of the building, from which you had an excellent view of the cathedral, especially at the end of the concert when the sun was setting. There was a good crowd, but it was not sold out, and the average age was considerably younger, perhaps by 10-15 years, relative to what I’m used to in the States. This is not to say that the crowd was particularly young, rather that in my experience classical concert crowds aren’t very young in the U.S. I’d say the median age was probably somewhere in the 40’s. The audience was dressed somewhat less formally than I’m accustomed to in the U.S., perhaps due to the start time being 7:00 and thus affording less time to get home and change before the concert.
The concert started slightly after 7:00, with Mr. Glass himself entering the stage. Though 73 or 74 now, he looked quite good for his age, and clearly has maintained his skill both as a player and as a composer. There were some slight changes in the performance from what was printed in the program (in Swedish), and as such he announced the pieces before they were performed, in English.
The concert began with two of Glass’s Metamorphoses, numbers 2 and 4. These were pieces with which I was familiar, and it was the latter, already my preferred of the two, which really drew me in. Number 4 especially was enchanting, and being able to watch Glass play them on the Steinway and Sons was fascinating. His left hand hardly moved horizontally, forming the steady backbone of the piece, while his right hand moved dexterously (but rarely quickly) to play the highlighting notes that are essential for making the piece captivating and interesting.
Next, Fain came out to play Glass’s Partita for Solo Violin in Seven Movements. This was a new piece, composed just a few months ago, and this was the first time it was performed in Europe. From the first movement, Opening, you could tell that it was a Glass work, though this movement also had a hint of more traditional classical fare. The second movement, Dance #1, was less traditional, and although an very good piece, I couldn’t figure out how you would dance to it. Chaconne #1 followed. By this time it was quite clear that when Glass had said the Partita was an extended violin solo, he was not kidding. In whole it must have been at least 25 minutes, and Fain even slightly re-tuned his violin after the third movement, not that I could tell it was even the tiniest bit off. I missed the name of the fourth movement, but the fifth was Chaconne #2, followed by Dance #2 and Evening Song to complete the piece. I must say, it was clear why Glass chose Fain to play it, as he was impressive. At several points he was making music with the movement of the bow alone, even if his violin had been silent, and at other points his bow was moving faster than the eye could witness it. During one section lasting a minute and a half to two minutes, his bow probably never moved more than an inch from left to right, yet moved an incredible distance in that time. It was a virtuoso performance, and after the fifth movement, the crowd burst into applause, before allowing him to finish the Partita. Not only the finesse but the stamina as well was impressive. I also realized partway through that he had entirely memorized the piece, and indeed throughout the whole concert he used no sheet music. I wouldn’t be surprised to hear more about him in the future, and if this is any indication, at some point he will probably be a headline performer.
At this point Glass returned, and played three of his études for piano, numbers 1, 2, and 6. The second one I was already familiar with, and is available for free from the Amazon MP3 store if you’d like to listen to it. Once again the performance was very good, and I found I liked the sixth étude as much as the second with which I’m more familiar. Part of what I like about Glass’s pieces is they seem to have a very human element, something that usually seems less present in grand orchestral pieces with many different instruments. As the French might say, “ça me dit”, or “it speaks to me”. These études, especially #2 and #6, are good examples of this.
Thereafter, both Glass and Fain played duets of some of Glass’s film music. The first piece they played was France. This was probably the most traditional classical piece of the night. Following was The Orchard. This was a haunting piece, with both the piano and violin complementing each other well. Third, and last of the film pieces, as The French Lieutenant. This was my favorite of these pieces. Glass’s piano provided a sombre base to the piece, while Fain’s violin told a sad tale of the lieutenant, or in my imagination, likely a battle endured by the lieutenant’s troops the day before. I could picture the lieutenant looking out over the previous day’s battlefield from the top of a hill, mourning the loss of many of his men in a devastating defeat. In my imagination, the setting was likely in the 1700s, pre-Revolution, though I could see it being in the colonies after the First Empire as well. I have no idea if the film it was in was at all like this, but the piece certainly conveyed the human element, perhaps more precisely than usual in part due to its title.
The next duet was another newly-composed piece, Pendulum, which was also making its European premiere. The violin seemed to take the crucial role of showing the pendulum swinging back and forth and various sides trying to alter its course, with occasional tranquil periods and more periods of fervent struggle, with just as many times of, perhaps, balance, with a considerable amount of double stops. Again both performers did quite well, and the enthusiastic audience applauded loudly afterwards. Not to be disappointed, Glass and Fain did a double encore, with each performing a solo piece. I was unable to catch the names of them, but they were excellent selections. Fain’s piece, the first, once again demonstrated outstanding skill on both his and Glass’s part, and teased the audience with the ending of the piece twice before Fain actually played the finale, with great flourish and to the audience’s entertainment. Glass’s piece, the second, seemed the perfect piece on which to end a concert, but the audience was still quite enthusiastic. So, they decided to do a second encore, this time with Fain playing a short violin piece, which was also quite good. With the audience now content to let the performers rest for the night, the concert ended, everyone seeming to be quite satisfied.
In summary, if you like modern classical music, I’d highly recommend seeing either Glass or Fain in concert, and if they’re both playing at the same event, all the better. The concert was a great success with the audience, and I see no reason why it wouldn’t be elsewhere. It was a pleasure to not only hear music I was already enjoyed but had never heard in person, but also to discover new music, a good part of which I liked as much or better than what I already was familiar with.
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