A recent article published by Jay Nordlinger of the National Review describes his personal account of several days at the Salzburg Summer Festival. Each year, the festival plays host to some of the most highly regarded musicians in the world. The Vienna Philharmonic is perhaps the star attraction for patrons, as they are both the symphony in residence, as well as the opera orchestra for the event. These weeks present the absolute crème de la crème of the music world, and to say the least, ticket prices are exorbitant.

But it was not his glowing review of the Vienna Phil’s performance of Bruckner No. 6, nor his brief history lesson on the life and works of Luigi Nono, that kept me thinking long past the final sentence. It was his canning of a voice recital, given by Patricia Petibon in the House for Mozart, which has this kid writing into the early hours of the morning.

Nordlinger described it as a staged concert. In other words, props, toys, and anything else to add to the theatrics, was used at no concern to preserving an otherwise very orthodox concert series. At one point, Petibon’s accompanist started a metronome mid-performance (there are your new age percussion effects Mr. Cathey). She used fake sunflowers to (presumably) bring a more operatic feel to the stage, and her accompanist sported an Indian headdress during a piece by Aaron Copland.

My absolute favorite part of his piece:

Her entire concept is, to me, absurd, pretentious, and unnecessary. This is something the kids in the University of Michigan Music School would have cooked up, in the early 1970s, amid clouds of marijuana smoke.

Perhaps I love it because where I come from, such a statement could in fact draw more people to see a repeat performance the following night. Or, maybe because I find some irony in Nordlinger’s own fascination with talking about Petibon’s presentation. In his article, he spent more time talking about this grotesque recital, than anything else from the festival!

I am not familiar with the National Review, but I am quite aware of its political stance. To make a forthright statement, it makes Fox News look neutral. Extremely conservative is putting it lightly. It represents the center of the American Conservative movement, and its writers are of the best caliber. I find many columns, especially in the music section, can be incredibly fascinating (even for a left-winger such as myself). Even though I may come off as greatly critical of Nordlinger, I really enjoy his writing. Honestly, I would have been shocked if he had given Petibon’s recital, described as it were, anything better than a piss-poor review.

Petibon knew what she was doing. She is most acclaimed for her interpretations of French Baroque Music, not Schnittke. But, somewhere along the line she made a conscious decision to go ahead with the theatrics described. People would either love it or hate it. What was for certain, was that everyone would remember her recital in Salzburg.

For Nordlinger’s original article, pick up the September 7, 2009 issue of National Review, or click the link (subscription required).

“In Halls Great and Small” by Jay Nordlinger

Posted on October 16th, 2009 at 12:19 am | Filed under General |