Winter : Act-Belong-Commit MetSO Young Artists (MYA) Concert Series 2021
MetSO Young Artist - 2021
Conductor
Metso Concert 25 July 2021
Thoughts from
a New Spectator
I have been a member of Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra for nearly 30 years and Sunday’s performance is the first time I have been a part of the audience….and wow, was I impressed. So I felt that I could jot down a few of my thoughts about the performance.
What a fantastic orchestra Metso has become! The audience was treated to 1st class musical entertainment played by a dedicated group of amateur musicians.
Amazingly high standards of playing were displayed by so many highly skilled musicians:
Ensemble playing was excellent
The players constantly responded to the conductors call for expressive dynamics
Being a string player I found it a delight to watch the careful attention to synchronised bowing done by each of the string sections
I enjoyed listening to the wind section with their smooth harmonies. I don’t want to single out any specific players BUT, I thought the Cor Anglais and the Bass Clarinet brought out their wonderful unique sounds to enhance the windies
I think that the large brass section had an absolute ball all day, especially with the Franck Symphony
Zoe McGivern, one of the Metso Young Artists for 2021, showed us what a gifted musician she is. She chose to play the extremely difficult Arutiunian Concerto and she pulled it off magnificently (having played trumpet in my youth I can appreciate it is a difficult piece of music). Zoe has poise and stage presence in bundles. When she followed this up with an encore, Bernstein’s “Somewhere”, she showed us the beauty of a love song played on a brass instrument. It blew me away. Thank you, Zoe.
Last, but definitely not least, is the huge contribution given to the performance by our highly esteemed conductor, Burhan Guner – he extracted so much expression with his ability to maintain strict tempi throughout the many tempo and key changes. We are so fortunate to have his guidance in lifting the standard of playing throughout the orchestra.
I particularly love the feel of warmth and inclusiveness expressed by all the members of Metso. It is truly a privilege to be a part of this great orchestra.