The handful of people who attended Saturday's concerto and aria competition in Kay Spiritual Life Center learned just how much talent hides in AU's Kreeger music building.
Violinist Alyson Slack won the competition and the opportunity to play with the AU symphony orchestra in its spring concert with her phenomenal performance of Jean Sibelius' Violin Concerto in D minor. Slack said she was thrilled to be able to play the concerto with the orchestra, despite her apprehension about the competition.
Michelle Crosby took second place with Max Bruch's Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, and Julia Block took third place with Alexander Glazunov's Saxophone Concerto in E flat. Flutist Tara Francke and pianist Ryan Morin also advanced to the final round.
The competition started with preliminary rounds, in which 11 competitors had 10 minutes to play or sing for the judges, who graded performances on a scale of one to six. The five competitors with the highest average score moved on to the final round.
The competition highlighted the fact that the Department of Performing Arts is considered one of the most underrated programs at AU. From the lack of publicity for events like the concerto competition, to the oft-forgotten Kreeger building that houses the music department, one would think that AU doesn't even have a music department, let alone a good one.
But the 11 AU musicians who performed proved skeptics wrong, showing their own talent as well as the caliber of the music department's faculty.
The final round gathered a small audience, but the competitors delivered nonetheless. Francke's jazzy flute concerto by Otar Gordeli improved in the finals with stronger high notes and less audible breaths. Francke also toned down her movement, which was energetic enough to be distracting in the first round. Her performance was seamless and smooth, with breaths in well-chosen places.
Block introduced the audience to classical music for the saxophone. Block had impressive quick notes, along with a good ear for dynamic differentiation. Her fugue movement was stronger in the first round than in the final, but was still a lot of fun to listen to with its playful rhythms and interaction with the piano.
Crosby also played well, highlighting the fact that the acoustics in Kay are perfect for violin. The space amplifies every note and nuance of phrase in the best possible way, sweetening impossibly high notes, and adding to the deep, rich quality of the violin's lower register.
The highlights of the evening were the performances by Slack and Morin. Both played devilishly hard pieces, and did so with an astonishing degree of technical mastery and musicality. Both are natural performers with stage presences so commanding it is nearly impossible to look away.
Champion Slack defied gravity. The Sibelius piece she performed calls for angular jumps, octaves, double stops moving in opposite directions and notes almost off the fingerboard. Yet Slack played even these stratospheric pitches with a sweet, clear tone. Playing with an almost athletic intensity, Slack somehow kept hold of the violin while her left hand zoomed up and down the length of the fingerboard and her bow hand jumped several strings. Her performance was riveting, and her concentration and compassion were contagious.
Though they weren't the stars of the performances, accompanists Barbara Wilkinson and Danielle DeSwert never ceased to amaze. They played eight concertos each over the course of the competition and did so as more than just place-fillers for an orchestra. Throughout the nearly four hours of music, DeSwert and Wilkinson played difficult, probably quite exhausting pieces with sensitivity and artistry.
Slack will perform with the AU Symphony Orchestra on April 9 at 8 p.m. and April 10 at 3 p.m. In the event that scheduling allows a longer concert or that Slack cannot play, Michelle Crosby and Julia Block will perform. Both performances will be held in Kay, and tickets for AU community members are $8.
