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Last night, as a much needed break from deadline day, I attended ASO's Devolution: Concerto for Orchestra and DJ.  Because I was a music major and grew up in classical piano training, normally when I attend a symphony the repertoire is familiar and I'm the youngest person in the crowd.   (Although, less so I suppose, as each year passes.)  The January 13th performance was an exception to every rule of my experience.  The audience was a wide spectrum of ages, colors, and classes.  I felt that all of us were enthralled in our collective exposure to something new.

You can tell, number one, that Conductor Morgan is an educator, that he has an academic approach to interpreting music to audiences.  He began the night with an unorthodox greeting to the audience, microphone in hand, and demonstrated some of what we'd be hearing in the first piece of the night, Lollapalooza by composer John Adams.  He began with two guestimations of the meaning of the word "lollapalooza"  He used two sections of music, one from the opening section and one "starting on measure 24" of the piece to show the audience.  Morgan was affable, warm, funny, and dynamic. 

Once the symphony began the piece, movements flowed from Morgan's body as though an afterthought, so natural he was with the wand.  His body danced as he rocked his conducting through meter shifts and accent beats.  The piece was walluping fun, if for nothing else, watching Morgan's effortless grace before an orchestra.  Morgan showed remarkable leadership -- to play under an unfamiliar conductor can be daunting and make one feel uneasy.  Adams' piece is no easy piece, either, with strange accents and time changes, there was no chance for a musician to fall alseep on the job of counting.  It was obvious the group was in capable, clearly communicating hands. 

When the piece was finished, Morgan once again took up the microphone to tell the audience what a remarkable experience it is to work with Paul Miller, aka DJ Spooky.  He described Miller as one of the most knowledgeable persons he'd ever met.  It's significant in this arena to see two worlds percieved by popular culture to be in conflict - hip-hop/trip-hop and classical/art-music - to be locked in such mutual admiration.  When DJ Spooky walked onstage, he was as a gracious, charming face, talking to the audience with zeal for information and love for music. 

DeRitis, the composer of the evening's featured piece, Devolution was also present.  DeRitis explained his ideology behind conceiving the piece as a way to play DJ himself in a way, mixing and remixing his own score, adding an electronic element using turntables and a laptop to the conventional arrangement of instruements, which also adds an element of chance. 

DeRitis' composition was a fantastical experience, strings so quickly moving from one ostinato to another -- it's a little like a DJ was mixing the orchestra, but even moreso, it was a little like when your favorite record begins to skip right at this brilliant moment...  You push the needle gently forward on the tracks.  Once more, it settles into another skip.  It's a worn record so every time you move the needle forward, it finds another rut and skips... and you just let each skip play out for a moment or so, listening to the piece differently than you ever have... Weaving in and out of these ebbing orchestral "loops" were squeals, whirs, and noise tracks from the turntables.  Flying over and under the main themes were hints and then giant builds of Beethoven's 7th, of Ravel's Bolero, both pieces based on thematic repetition. 

When I go back on Sunday, I will make a clearer distinction of form being used - was it A-B-A?  A-B-C-A?  All I know is that when it was time for the traditional "cadenza" portion of the concerto, DJ Spooky was the soloist.  Such a wonderful forum to see him there, manipulating his strange, modern instrument in front of the orchestra, so deftly, and having so much fun.  Out of the club and into the bright light of a concert hall. 

The third piece I was not expecting, but it was DJ Spooky's own Winds of Change.  I'd missed the performance of it at the Civil Rights Institute earlier this week.  It was such a delightful surprise, like dessert you didn't know was being served...  Winds of Change featured a video montage of powerful images from the Civil Rights era, from Dr. Martin Luther King's most famous speach to firehoses blasting protesters, images of famous abolitionists, suffragists and American activists.  The music and film melded together into one experience, emotional and prying. 

There was an after party, and I lingered for a few moments, said hello to some friends, but it was time to get home for last minute editing and proofing.  It's been just enough time now that I can't wait to go to Sunday's performance.

Sunday at 3:00 p.m., the ASO presents Reflect & Rejoice: A Tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr.  The event features a reprise of both Devolution and Winds of Change.  Michael Morgan and DJ Spooky will both be present.  If you missed Thursday night, Sunday might be an even better opportunity, as it will also include the Alabama A&M Choir and a whole lot more music.  Click here for ticket information.  I will see you there!

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