Tania Miller is a hit at the OSQ

The Orchestre symphonique de Québec broadcast its first concert of the year on Thursday evening, recorded a day earlier at the Grand Théâtre, a concert marking the debut in the capital of the Anglo-Canadian conductor Tania Miller, director emeritus of the Victoria Symphony Orchestra. Sibelius’s Symphony No. 1 was the core of the program, preceded by a few “hors d’oeuvres” featuring violinist Mark Fewer. It’s hard to understand why we – as far as we are concerned – had never heard of Tania Miller. She is a true artist with a remarkable intelligence of the text and a beautiful sensitivity. She succeeds in giving coherence to Sibelius’s score, which is not given in advance given its often fragmented and profuse character.

The beginning of the first movement begins with a very subtle solo by clarinetist Stéphane Fontaine, whose almost impalpable pianissimos admirably set the table for what was to follow. The conductor adopts generally quite wide tempos, which suits this work very well in the immediate wake of Tchaikovsky. This does not prevent her from sparring an exhilarating più stretto (a kind of accelerando) a little further in the movement. A special mention also for Andante, in which the conductor demonstrates an innate sense of song.

The evening had previously started with Aaron Copland’;s famous Fanfare for the Common Man, post-Pearl Harbor patriotic rallying music, and then with the equally famous “Nimrod” from Elgar’s Enigma Variations, chained almost directly.

The three Episodes for violin and strings by Quebecer Serge Arcuri were a nice surprise. It is a dark work, without concession, with pleasantly raw dissonances. Conductor and soloist delivered a convincing interpretation, but it seemed to us that the soloist could have varied the climates more by putting more aggressiveness, more hardness in the rapid movements.

In Zigeunerweisen, by Pablo Sarasate, Mark Fewer has, as it should be, displayed panache, even going with a few ornaments of his own. If the sixteenth notes in the treble are not always clear in the final part, the musician nonetheless demonstrates a great bond with the conductor and the orchestra.

4 Comments

  1. seguridad cibernetica para niños

    Simplemente quiero decirles que soy un principiante en los blogs y ciertamente me encantó este sitio de blogs. Lo más probable es que esté planeando agregar su blog a favoritos. Seguramente vienes con increíbles artículos bien escritos. Muchas gracias por compartir tu blog.

    Reply
    • Tania

      Hello – I am new to the management of my website, and I have just come across your kind comments. I appreciate them very much and that you have read some of the blogs that I have written. I plan to do a better job of managing these as I continue to write, and I hope you will stay in contact. Many thanks! Tania

      Reply
  2. rusia mujeres solteras

    La experiencia que tiene en este tema supera con creces el contenido de otros artículos que he leído en línea. Realmente sabes cómo escribir contenido persuasivo. Gracias.

    Reply
    • Tania

      Hello – I’m so sorry that it has taken me so long to reply. I am only reading your comment now as I haven’t done a good job of maintaining my site, and I vow to do better! Thank you kindly for your comments. Best wishes, Tania

      Reply

Leave a Reply to Tania Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *