Originally published on Shahrvand English (N° 25) – April 12, 2005
I simply could not hold back the well of illogical, nationalistic pride, as [wikipopup]Peter Oundjian[/wikipopup] invited Behzad Ranjbaran up to the stage before the commencement of the second half of the final night of theToronto Symphony Orchestra’s New Creations Festival. The first half of this wonderful week-long musical feast featured Montreal’s Jacques Hétu, and the vivacious and celebrated 89-year-old French composer, Henri Dutilleux.
Prior to the performance of each piece, the composer was asked onstage to give a brief description of the motivation for the piece. Hétu’s piece was motivated by the poetry of an 18-year-old Quebecois from the turn of the century, and Dutilleux’s pieces were based on correspondences by famous characters from history.
The second half of the program featured Ranjbaran’s Violin Concerto, which was commissioned and performed for 37-year-old American virtuoso, and long-time friend and collaborator of Ranjbaran, Joshua Bell.
Behzad’s Tale
Ranjbaran explained that he had written this piece around the same time that he was completing his Persian Trilogy. The trilogy was performed and recorded by the London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by JoAnne Falletta in the fall of 2004, to much critical acclaim. The music is centred on sagas from the Shahnameh (the Book of the Kings), written by Ferdowsi, the 11th century Iranian poet. Ranjbaran went on to explain how these same thoughts were still swirling in his head while he wrote the violin concerto.
His other motivation was his friendship with Joshua Bell, or rather his admiration for the virtuoso’s musical palette and colour. Bell is well known for his technical proficiency as well as his poetic musicality, not to mention his multimillion-dollar 1713 Stradivarius violin, which has a more colourful history than most of the musicians who’ve played it in their lives. Bell also reached popular and mainstream prominence by performing all the music composed by John Corigliano for the movie, The Red Violin, which won the Academy Award for Music in a Film.
Then, Oundjian returned to the podium, and on came Joshua Bell.
I have a love-hate relationship with modern classical music. It can often be too self-indulgent in its quest to break new ground, and in the end, simply be an empty exercise in avant-garde expression. However, Ranjbaran’s music, as he himself admits, is much more classical and romantic in its approach, choosing not to forgo melodies and harmonies for the sake of being groundbreaking. And what melodies!
With the epic opening chords, the violin bursts forth with an unforeseen fire and sense of foreboding and wisdom. It brings forth melodies which have whispered into the ears of the composer, borne on a nightly breeze from the heart of the kaveer (desert), telling tales of all that it has witnessed in its ageless life. And then it slows down until all that we are left with are the feathery strokes of the harp. And then the violin enters. Ranjbaran likened his approach to writing the music for the violin, to that of a narrator telling a story, as the kamancheh, the Persian spiked fiddle, does in traditional Persian music. And thus the violin begins to tell its tale. Bell seems to be channelling that very life, through his playing, animated and jumping with every motif and harmony that he creates.
Though clearly classical in its structure and style, the first movement introduces some motifs whose ancestry is clearly from Ranjbaran’s homeland. And yet, expressed with orchestration, which at times is reminiscent of Brahms or other ancient masters.
The second movement, and adagio-like slow movement tells a story as sad as it is romantic. The orchestra and the soloist wind their way through their slow musical narrative, with precision and passion. The movement, which is solitary, with its constant dialogue between the violin and the orchestra, feels at times similar to stories of the Thousand and One Nights as told by Scheherazade.
The piece is at once a contradiction and amalgamation of two different styles, of two different cultures. Nowhere is this more evident that in the dynamic and virtuosic final movement. The third movement a sort of summation of the entire piece, recapitulates all the motifs and melodies from the first two, and brings them together in new ways, and yet at times simply feels like the beginning of something new. Ranjbaran has managed to create music that is at once an amalgamation of romantic poetry, which is the essence of Iranian culture with the epic sweep of its spirit, and all of that in the framework of western classical music, which in the end only serves to makes the piece more coherent and beautiful. The perfect mixture of the old and the new, the east and the west.
The entire concerto, and especially the final movement, demands nothing short of absolute virtuosity, and Bell delivers it with copious amounts of pizzazz and astonishing vivacity. His animated style of playing only adds to the fire that burns at the heart of the music. The sweat pouring down his face, as he almost dances through the music, is a testament to the effort the music demands. It might sound like exaggeration, but as the piece nears its climax and end, it’s surprising that the almost 300-year-old violin does not catch fire from the intensity of the performance, but then again, perhaps it is in part due to the fiery spirit of the instrument that it is able to so aptly capture the feel of the music.
Peter’s Tale
None of this would have ever been possible if not for the foresight and pioneering spirit of the TSO’s new music director, the ebullient and effervescent Peter Oundjian.
For those who have followed the TSO, the last few years have been difficult. After the departure of Jukka-Pekka Saraste, the orchestra was without a full-time director for some years. Finally last year, the appointment of Peter Oundjian was announced. From those I spoke with, the reaction was mixed. He was not as well-known as the former director, and somewhat of an unknown commodity.
It was with this spirit that we went to the first concert of the year at Roy Thompson Hall. The year looked very promising with works such as the timeless, St. Matthew’s Passion of Bach; Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto, and Third Symphony; as well as Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances; and Mahler’s Tenth Symphony, to name just a few. The program also included world-renowned names such as Richard Goode, Yo-Yo Ma, Leila Josefowicz, as well as the brilliant young Lang Lang.
From the moment he took to the stage with his ever-present smile, his infectious passion for music, and his friendly approach towards his audience, it was clear that this year would be much better than we could have imagined. As the year progressed, with his numerous radio appearances, his pre-show explanations of the music, and his idea for the annual New Creations Festival, one could not help but warm to him. And he has shown that the future looks very bright for the TSO. In North America next year, only Toronto and Chicago will host performances of all of the Beethoven piano concertos, performed by the irrepressible Evgeny Kissin.
On Thursday night, he displayed another aspect of his character. Following his explanation of the inspiration behind the violin concerto, Ranjbaran started walking offstage so that the performance could start. Oundjian grabbed his arm, and brought him back to the microphone, and asked Ranjbaran, to please explain what it was like to grow up in Iran, while attending the Tehran Conservatory of Music.
That one little gesture meant the world to me, because it showed a person who truly lives in accordance with what he preaches – that is that music is an international language. Here is a true bridge-builder, a person whose aim is to clear all misconceptions and differences, to bring people together through music, and to show that we are all the same.
When the piece ended, for a moment the hall was silent, and then erupted in a standing ovation, as the ever-smiling Peter Oundjian embraced Joshua Bell, and then beckoned Ranjbaran to come on stage. And as the three took their bows, the crowd roared on.
