CHICAGO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Goodspeed Hall
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Since the early 80s, however, Bolcom’s star has been rising steadily. His 1984 setting of William Blake’s Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience is a three-hour multimedia extravaganza that seems to connect with today’s audiences. The 1987 Twelve New Piano Etudes earned him further recognition from the east-coast establishment as well as a Pulitzer Prize. And on Saturday his much-ballyhooed McTeague, an operatic update of Frank Norris’s muckraking classic, premieres at Lyric Opera. If the 80s belonged to Philip Glass and his lulling minimalism, the 90s could belong to the postmodern expressionists, including Bolcom and John Corigliano, who pack classical and pop styles and instrumentations into emotionally urgent, socially relevant, yet wryly entertaining commentaries on the latest social and political issues.
By this point Bolcom’s purposeful subversion of the listener’s expectations is apparent. In the next movement a macabre Ravel-esque waltz is interrupted by a hymn on the xylophone. Just as suddenly, the music turns sentimental and poplike, capped by a schmaltzy interlude from the violins. Monastery bells usher in the finale (subtitled “Machine”). The ensuing brass chorale is deliberately off pitch, relieved at one point by a baleful outburst from the trombone. The music then turns frenetic, building up suspense: Is it headed toward a clear resolution? Not surprisingly it isn’t. Instead it chugs along in syncopation and finally runs out of steam.
Engrossed, a bassoon solo composed in early ’89, is a straightforward, almost boring showcase that conjures up a melancholic air. Yang, who seems fond of the tonality of wind and brass instruments, might have thought rhythmic contrasts alone could sustain interest in such a piece. They can’t, but Lewis Kirk’s playing was quite good.
