Star-Ledger: ‘A season opener for cool cats’
The Star-Ledger praises ‘the French’ and ‘the flash’ of the NJSOs season-opening concerts with saxophonist Branford Marsalis:
The New Jersey Symphony Orchestra kicked off its 93rdseason this weekend with a program that featured a few things French, as well as a little flash.
The French things were courtesy of Maurice Ravel and Darius Milhaud, two composers NJSO Music Director Jacques Lacombe clearly enjoys playing, and the flash was delivered by guest soloist, Branford Marsalis (making his NJSO debut) and his gleaming, gold saxophone.
[The program] began with Ravel's "Valses nobles et sentimentales." Lacombe conducted this French chestnut with gusto, employing his full body in his sweeping gestures. The French-Canadian maestro brought snap to Ravel's waltz passages and coaxed lovely sounds from the woodwinds in this bouncy, sixteen-minute piece ...
Sure enough, the schmaltzy side of Williams could be heard in "Escapades," a 2003 riff on the composer's score from "Catch Me If You Can." The third section of the piece, titled "Joy Ride," featured both the generic, tinkle-y string sounds of his "Home Alone"-type scores, as well of some of the formulaic, "urgent" tunes that called to mind the themes he's churned out for NBC News.
But also on display was Williams' genius for orchestration and, of course, melody. The twelve-minute piece opens with playfully jazzy vibraphone riffs, followed by the orchestra snapping and "shush"-ing, giving the piece an instant cool-cat, 60's feel. Lacombe kept it all balanced, from the rumbling chords of the basses, to Marsalis' cool sax playing. The conductor even kept the horns in check when they threatened to overpower the soloist.
"Escapades" second movement, "Reflections," opens with an extended sax solo, which Marsalis played with assurance and style. Here, Marsalis and the orchestra showcased Williams at his best: a simple melody, set against a carefully orchestrated background. It evoked the haunting "Love Theme" Jerry Goldsmith wrote for "Chinatown," and was the highlight of the concert.
"Escapades" ends with a flourish. At one point towards the finish, Williams calls for a break and lets the saxophone, vibraphone and upright bass jam as a jazz trio. And the three — Simon Boyar on the vibes, veteran bassist Paul Harris and Marsalis — simply crushed it. All three took solo bows at the end and earned loud ovations.
After the break, Marsalis returned to play Milhaud's lively "Scaramouche." He had no problem bringing life to the doodley-doodle melodies Milhaud wrote for the sax ...
One part of the 35-minute (Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition.") was noteworthy: "The Old Castle" passage, which features a part for alto saxophone. When you heard the clear tone and looked closely up at the stage, who was seated with the orchestra? Without any fanfare or fuss — or listing in the program — Marsalis was there with the band, his graceful horn playing meshing perfectly with the woodwinds seated around him. Talk about a class act.