Chase on a "Wing of Dream"
Appearing with Susanna Mälkki & the Helsinki Philharmonic, Claire Chase soars with Kaija Saariaho’s “L’Aile du songe.”
Much has changed in classical music during the more than twenty years since the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra last performed in D.C. One example (among countless others) is Washington Performing Arts President Jenny Bilfield’s noting the program’s axis of women artists during her introduction from the stage of the Kennedy Center Concert Hall: composer Kaija Saariaho, flutist and music advocate Claire Chase, and conductor Susanna Mälkki. Twenty years ago, the prominent presence of a single woman on a program in any capacity other than as a member of the orchestra would have been worthy of attention. On Monday night three were placed front and center. That’s not really a novelty at this point — it’s the result of a long-overdue, ongoing evolution. I look forward to the day when such programming is as commonplace as the three Bs used to be, and not worthy of special notice. It’s not far off, but before my observation is misconstrued, let me be clear: it’s people like Jenny Bilfield who have been instrumental in driving this change, and let’s be grateful for them, because above all else, Monday night’s performance was a demonstration of why we should still be interested in attending live classical music concerts.
Monday’s concert was the first orchestral performance I’ve attended in over three years, and I was skeptical going in, despite my positive past experiences with Chase, Mälkki, and the music of Saariaho (all on the West Coast). Since the onset of the pandemic, I’ve gotten out of the habit of attending performances and the one classical concert I attended left me wondering if I could ever enjoy the classical music concert experience again (a recital by a pianist I greatly admired that was so dispiriting I couldn’t even bring myself to write about it). In fact, nearly every performance I’ve experienced during the past three years has left me cold in one way or another, and since the main reason I started writing about the arts was to encourage people to partake in them, I saw no reason to write about these disappointing evenings. There were two notable exceptions- Paul McCartney’s concert in Baltimore last summer, and the Tedeschi Trucks Band at the Warner Theater a few months back. Other than that it’s been one bummer after another, though I have to admit I had fun attending a Jonas Brothers concert with my wife and our youngest daughter sometime during 2022. I saw no need to write about these shows- we were all just trying to find happiness and comfort, and maybe hope for normalcy in the future, where we could. But now that I’m on the subject, I should tell you the Tedeschi Trucks Band are one of the best live acts I’ve ever seen during my 45+ years of attending rock shows.
But I’ve digressed.
Monday’s concert was an all-Finnish affair. In addition to Saariaho’s “L’Aile du songe” (Wing of Dream, 2001),” the Helsinki Phil performed three works by favorite native son Jean Sibelius: “Lemminkäinen’s Return” from the Lemminkäinen Suite; the Symphony No. 2 in D Major, and for an encore, an ebullient Finlandia. Each made a strong case for the national flavor, especially the 2nd under Mälkki’s unhurried yet forceful lead, and the orchestra’s horns and brass alternately gleamed or blazed brightly depending on the passage. Mälkki shaped the work’s well-known contours with modernist hues, delineating its three-note motif in ways that sounded fresh and distinctive yet anchored in tradition. “Lemminkäinen’s Return” was a swashbuckling 7-minute romp performed by the 90-odd musicians at full force. When Mälkki announced the encore, I heard a woman behind me gasp “Oh, I’m dying!” The audience, which was far from filling the hall, contained a multitude of delighted compatriots who rewarded the musicians with a lengthy and rousing roar of applause at the conclusion.
There’s no doubt the musicians have absorbed Sibelius’ music into their core, but it was Chase’s riveting performance as the soloist in “L’Aile du songe” that made this concert a special experience. Chase has the charisma of a rock star, and performs like one: as she plays she alternates between leaning back on her right foot, then leaning into her instrument for emphasis with sinewy grace. At one point she sustained notes that became so delicate and gossamer thin they simply dissolved into the air around her. According to the program note by Jaani Länsiö, Saariaho’s piece is” based on the collection Oiseaux by French Nobel Prize-winning poet Saint-John Perse describing the flight of birds and life’s mysteries in metaphors through an abstract and multidimensional language,” and in the hands of Chase and orchestra, especially in her interaction with the string section, this came through with impressive clarity.
During one part of the work they were so seamlessly interwoven it was almost impossible to differentiate Chase’s flute from the violins as they created what sounded like a reverse portamento -- like a heavy bird descending ominously to catch its prey before swooping back into the sky with its catch. The piece is chock full of these delights and I wished I had more familiarity with it going in. This was the third or fourth time I’ve seen Chase perform, and it left me convinced she is one of the great musicians of our time.
And what about Mälkki? At this point it is ridiculous -- and embarrassing -- that no American orchestra made her its Music Director or Principal Conductor. This concert tour comes at the end of her seven-year tenure leading this orchestra, after which she will become chief conductor emeritus. So far there is no confirmation she will succeed Dudamel at the LA Phil, even though she recently completed three years there as their Principal Guest Conductor. In February, Lisa Hirsch posted a breakdown of openings and possible candidates. I don’t have firsthand experience with many of the names on Lisa’s list, but of those with which I am familiar, none delivers such consistent quality from the podium as does Mälkki.
Photo: Harrison Parrott.
