Jesse Montgomery’s ‘Rounds’ Glows in MSO Performance

by

Jesse Montgomery is a composer who has become a center of attention in classical circles. This 41-old African American has shown, in a variety of works, her depth, imagination, and musicianship. She more than deserves more than passing consideration. 

Her one-movement concerto for piano and string orchestra, Rounds, was a co-commission from nine orchestras, including the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. The title refers to a treatment of the rondo form in various ways. The piece was also inspired by a contemplative, existential section from T.S. Eliot’s poem set Four Quartets. Possibly because it was to be played by so many ensembles, this seems one of the more traditional Montgomery compositions I’ve heard, firmly rooted in the piano concerto heritage. Frankly, I don’t see why any competent orchestra combined with an excellent pianist would not want to play the piece.

The music was written for pianist Awadagin Pratt, who was soloist with MSO. The opening piano writing is reminiscent of the music of Maurice Ravel, laced with delicately intricate figures. Colorful, thick chords shift the sound to something that could have been from Olivier Messiaen. Much of the piece is lyrical, though decisively interrupted by music of a more aggressive mood. 

The long piano solo cadenza, apparently partly improvised by Pratt, was an impressive display of virtuoso playing, but even that was spelled with lyrical, melody-driven stretches. Pratt was successful in any of the moods of the music, whether intimate and sincere, or grand fierceness.  

Richard Strauss’s Metamorphosen (which may be translated as Transformations) was composed near the end of World War II in Germany. While Strauss never commented, it has become accepted that the music is about painful nostalgia and the destruction of German culture. The string parts often divide multiple times. The harmony rarely resolves, as is common in Strauss. Phrases spill onto one another as the textures build.

email newsletter iconStay on top of the news of the day
Subscribe to our free, daily e-newsletter to get Milwaukee's latest local news, restaurants, music, arts and entertainment and events delivered right to your inbox every weekday, plus a bonus Week in Review email on Saturdays.

SIGN UP

Perhaps because the parts divide so much, there was a limit as to how much sound the ensemble could conjure, despite conductor Ken-David Masur’s insistent gesturing on the podium. It was certainly a good performance, but honestly, I’ve heard this music presented more persuasively. 

A little slip of a piece by Felix Mendelssohn, Overture to Die Heimkehr aus der Fremde (The Return from Abroad), opened the second half. It’s pleasant stuff, but I doubt that this composer was capable of writing something comic, as this seemingly intends to be. It’s understandable that such a work was programmed before Robert Schumann’s Symphony No. 4. Masur chose to perform the original 1841 version, rather than the more often played 1851 revision. 

To my ears, this symphony doesn’t make a great impact in either version. While it seems that Masur is most interested in core German repertoire (although we have heard little of it from him so far), there is only so much an orchestra can do with this piece, even a good one such as MSO. There are no big solos, with modest brass and woodwind writing. There’s nothing really wrong with the piece, except revealing that Schumann was perhaps better suited to other forms. 

I found my mind wandering. What brought the young man in a Packers shirt, sitting alone, to this concert? I have noticed a wider variety of ages in the audience at this new hall. It can’t be because of the ticket prices. 

When we see audience members above 50, it’s logical (though maybe risky) to assume that concertgoing has been, to some degree, a part of their musical, or at least social life. Are the younger audience members there, of which there were many, because they play or played an instrument? Had music been part of their family life? Was there something or someone in their past that prepared them to attentively listen to a Schumann symphony? Considering the audience has always fascinated me.