Free concert in a cool city's park
Last night, as Obama packed out a stadium and I'm sure many of you watched his speech, agrathea and I were sitting in a park here in Portland, with many thousands of others. The park is right on the river, just off the heart of downtown, featuring some nice views and a fountain, but we were all there because it was the 13th annual Waterfront Concert, part of the Oregon Symphony in the Neighborhoods project. There was hardly an empty spot to be found, and looking around at the sea of humanity one could not even make out the green of the grass, as far as the eye could see. Often crowds like this bother me, but somehow this mass-sharing of a mildly wonderful event made the experience much more enjoyable. Children sat alongside the elderly, and every age group in-between. Some had even brought their dogs. The river was also filled with an extended audience in their boats. The feeling in the air was one of relaxed comfort and gentle enjoyment.
This free concert featured Liszt, Schubert and others, including José Pablo Moncayo. Some fun choices, a few crowd pleasers and wonderful guest segments from local ballet and Opera houses. Oregon Ballet Theatre presented Tchaikovsky's White Swan pas de deux from Swan Lake and Portland Opera Studio Artists presented Giuseppe Verdi's Traviata, Act I: Introduction and Libiamo ne'lieti calici. Earlier they had also featured (from 5-7pm) the Portland Youth Philharmonic, and what a wonderful experience it must have been for those kids.
It's not ideal because for many the view was not great and to be heard they had to make use of giant speakers, but it was still a mildly magical event. The weather cooperated and we enjoyed clear skies and temperatures in the sweet seventies.
The grand finale, inspired by a similar event in Boston, featured Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture, with members of the Portland Youth Philharmonic taking lead roles in the orchestra. It all ended with the firing of real cannons (along with giant clouds of smoke, and really, for the 1812 Overture nothing less than real cannons will do) and a substantial fireworks display. The fireworks were shot from a long ship, at anchor out on the river and went on for a good 20 minutes.
We'd found a decent seat near the stage, down by the river, on the rocks on the riverbank. Most had preferred sitting on the soft green grass facing the stage, but a few dozen of us were happy facing the river, and looking over at the stage whenever the whim hit us. It put us much closer than our late arrival deserved.
All in all a fairly, um, classic evening. Marvelous. It's on our calendar for next year.
Yes, we watched a re-run of Obama's speech when we got home.
This free concert featured Liszt, Schubert and others, including José Pablo Moncayo. Some fun choices, a few crowd pleasers and wonderful guest segments from local ballet and Opera houses. Oregon Ballet Theatre presented Tchaikovsky's White Swan pas de deux from Swan Lake and Portland Opera Studio Artists presented Giuseppe Verdi's Traviata, Act I: Introduction and Libiamo ne'lieti calici. Earlier they had also featured (from 5-7pm) the Portland Youth Philharmonic, and what a wonderful experience it must have been for those kids.
It's not ideal because for many the view was not great and to be heard they had to make use of giant speakers, but it was still a mildly magical event. The weather cooperated and we enjoyed clear skies and temperatures in the sweet seventies.
The grand finale, inspired by a similar event in Boston, featured Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture, with members of the Portland Youth Philharmonic taking lead roles in the orchestra. It all ended with the firing of real cannons (along with giant clouds of smoke, and really, for the 1812 Overture nothing less than real cannons will do) and a substantial fireworks display. The fireworks were shot from a long ship, at anchor out on the river and went on for a good 20 minutes.
We'd found a decent seat near the stage, down by the river, on the rocks on the riverbank. Most had preferred sitting on the soft green grass facing the stage, but a few dozen of us were happy facing the river, and looking over at the stage whenever the whim hit us. It put us much closer than our late arrival deserved.
All in all a fairly, um, classic evening. Marvelous. It's on our calendar for next year.
Yes, we watched a re-run of Obama's speech when we got home.