鈥淚n prchestra there are so many colours. [There are] so many different sounds鈥� The percussion, and brass, all the strings and winds鈥� You [can] just come and let the sound enrapture you and embrace you.鈥�
Fountain School Professor Peter Allen speaks passionately about music, making a strong case for why those unfamiliar with classical pieces should take the plunge with the 蘑菇AV Symphony Orchestra鈥檚 December 3 concert Commemoration & Celebration at Pier 21.聽 聽 聽
The concert occurs nearly 100 years to the day after the Halifax Explosion, at the time the largest artificial explosion in history, one that decimated much of Halifax and Dartmouth, claiming the lives of close to 2,000 people.
Picture the scene that day: in horrific slow motion, two ships collide in the harbor, sparking a fire and subsequent explosion that sends shockwaves over 20 times the speed of sound as far as Prince Edward Island and Cape Breton. The impact is so catastrophic that in the 1940s, Robert Oppenheimer and his research team will study it closely in their work developing the atomic bomb. Chaos erupts through a cacophony of sounds; windows shattering, fires blazing and people screaming as they lay trapped in their homes.
While it may seem impossible to derive music from such explosive tragedy, Allen, a native Haligonian, has succeeded with his arrangement Variations on the Halifax Explosion. This commemorative piece unfolds the 鈥渇irst 12 minutes after the explosion... [The] damage to the land [and the] people. The anger鈥� the confusion鈥︹��. Allen鈥檚 piece challenges the orchestra鈥檚 musicians emotionally as well as technically, as the music involves a dramatic range of sounds and textures.
Paying tribute
This particular 蘑菇AV Symphony Orchestra concert, much as its title suggests, has another, more hopeful, side to it: it will honour pianist Lynn Stodola, New York Times acclaimed pianist and beloved longtime 蘑菇AV professor.
She will be performing Beethoven's optimistic and celebratory聽Piano Concerto No. 3聽to acknowledge her final teaching year at 蘑菇AV. Allen reflects that he 鈥渢hought it would be a good way to honour [Lynn] and celebrate the work that she鈥檚 done with Dal and the community.鈥� The concerto鈥檚 musical language depicts an intense emotional journey from despair to delight in its three movements.
The dual themes of commemoration and celebration will be wedded at the end of the concert in 鈥淭chaikovsky's titanic聽Symphony No. 6 in B minor,听笔补迟丑茅迟颈辩耻别.鈥� First performed in 1893, only nine days before Tchaikovsky鈥檚 death, this piece was described by the composer as 鈥渢he best thing I ever composed or shall compose. 聽Tom Service writes in The Guardian that 鈥�[笔补迟丑茅迟颈辩耻别 is] a work whose existence proved to [Tchaikovsky] that he had found a way out of a symphonic impasse, which represented a return to the heights of his achievement as a composer鈥︹�� The themes of memory and lamentation in the piece serve as an apt vessel for Stodola, and provide sounds of endings and the concept of new beginnings.
When asked about the concerts themes, principal violist Zachary Levin says 鈥淸It has a] pretty diverse musical selection. I didn鈥檛 grow up in Halifax, so I didn鈥檛 have the history [of the explosion] instilled in me. It is a very important event to recognize鈥� Just over the past couple of years I鈥檝e seen how significant it is.鈥澛� On performing alongside Stodola, Levin says she鈥檚 inspiring to watch. 鈥淚 really enjoy her playing.鈥�
To many, the idea of attending an orchestral concert can be daunting, especially to those unfamiliar with classical music. For anyone who may be hesitant, Peter Allen wisely suggests to go along for the ride.
鈥淪ometimes audience members put too much pressure on themselves to [understand everything] 鈥� Just come and experience it.聽 It鈥檚 like looking at a piece of art.聽 Do we all interpret the same thing? 聽Surround yourself with the sound鈥� That鈥檚 the great thing about coming to the orchestra.鈥�
Commemoration and Celebration takes place on Sunday, December 3 at 2 p.m. in Kenneth C Rowe Hall at Pier 21. Advance tickets are available from the .
