Tzimon Barto towers above the rest of the orchestra like an in veritable giant among men figuratively and actually.
This T-rex
of the ivories, a man who enjoys body building when not bringing to life
the work of such composers
as Rachmaninoff,
may very well be as gentle as church mouse. Many men with sculpted muscle
would don
tight
fitting shirts to proclaim their low fat testosterone, Msr. Barto, though,
chooses to wear a loose fitting poet's
shirt
concealing his hard work with weights. His softer and perhaps more
sensitive side of Barto can be seen in
his delicate
manipulation of the piano keys. A very talented player and interesting
performer to see and hear.
The next
time you see his name get a ticket and be set for a wonderful performance.
Nadja
Salerno-Sonnenberg is a wonderful performer,
entertainer, and talented violinist. She has enough flair
and exuberance
to bring life to a score of notes written many years ago. Her pink
reflective blouse towering
above
her black pants embedded with a galaxy of reflective and refractive light
quanta moved with the energy
of an
expanding mass of stars. Whenever you see and hear a performer,
part of the show is the actual doing
of the
work. Ms. Salerno-Sonnenberg dresses to the nines and plays to the
tens. On a warm summer’s
evening
watching her play, the amount of energy given off from stage settled
on the audience and made their
hands
clap almost uncontrollably when her piece concluded. Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg
is a gifted performer
a well
worth your visit.
In the
Pavilion lightening bugs occasionally flitter by, illuminating a
space of the summers air to remind us of
the season
and assure us of our location. The sound in the Pavilion, at Ravinia
rivals the acoustics of some of
the better
indoor auditoriums found around the world. Even the lawn seats have
expertly placed speakers to
bring
the sound of the stage to audience on the grass.
In the
more quiescent moments of the early evening the hum of cicadas could be
discerned above or amongst
the notes
from Beethoven’s Ninth. There are times when you can hear the beating
heart of Ludwig in his
composition,
and times when the insects themselves seem to pause. The sounds elevate
in strength as the
piano
and strings bring you back to the glory of the tried and perfected work
of Beethoven's Ninth.
Gershwin's Cuban Overture could not have been more aptly performed unless the CSO were flown to Habana.
The conjured
images of street life in New York from the time of Gershwin transcends
the yesteryear and
brings
the feel of the past to life.
When
the B-52s hit the stage with this look
of Big Texas haired rock and roll being Tai-Chi-ed with corporeal
undulations
akin to campy chic, the crowd went wild. It was warm enough to cook
a breakfast and yet everyone
in the
Pavilion stood and danced in their seats. It was hot, but the performance
was even hotter. I bought some
B-52
albums the next day and look forward to their next Ravinia visit.
Mr.
Willie Nelson, class all the way, from
helping Farmers save their lands to bringing some of the best loved
traditional
music to America. Even his guitar has a story or two to tell.
Mr. Nelson's voice has a feel of genuine
charm
and nobility. There were cowboy hats in the Pavilion and boots to
beat all. He has fun on stage and his
timeless,
ageless sound will beckon us all back again.
