Mahler Symphony No. 3

Mahler Symphony No. 3

Saturday, June 20, 2015

8 PM

Symphony No. 3 in D minor - Gustav Mahler

Kräftig, Entschieden

Tempo di menuetto: Sehr mässig

Comodo, scherzando, ohno Hast

Sehr langsam, misterioso

Lustig im Tempo und keck im Ausdruck

Sehr langsam und durchaus mit inningster Empfindung

Christianne Stotjin, mezzo-soprano

Northwest Boychoir

Women of the Seattle Symphony Corale

This was my final concert for the 2014-2015 season, and needless to say I was excited heading into the concert, as it's not every day someone performs a Mahler symphony. Most are marathon affairs, and the third symphony is no exception, with the performance clocking in a shade under 2 hours from start to finish. I was impressed by the overall body of work , but as usual, I was not blown away by the performance. Most of the piece was technically sound and everything was together for the most part (and they even sent the trumpet player up high into the balcony for the 3rd[?] movement), but there were some things that stuck out (including the dude two rows in front of me and the guy next to me who were both using their phones during the performance).  Firstly, it is my belief that no one individual should stand out during the performance, but at every performance, there is one guy in the first violin section who sticks out like a sore thumb. He is much more animated than the rest of the section (and by a long shot), and it's always a little unnerving for me to see a head (and the musician) not quite in sync with the rest of the section, bobbing and swaying excessively to a point where I feel it is distracting. Additionally I didn't feel that the soloist was able to project into the hall, as I had some difficulty hearing her in the middle of the orchestra-level seating.

As the season has concluded, you are now free from hearing me write about my Seattle Symphony performances until September! Rejoice!