Review: "Tantalizing Tales," HSO Masterworks series - abc27 WHTM

The harp's delicate sound may not be for everyone, but when played well this relative of the piano can inspire a deep emotional response akin to new love.

Rebecca Kauffman, a Lancaster County native who serves as Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra's principal harpist, beautifully demonstrated the instrument's range and capacity Saturday night at The Forum.  Her performance as soloist on seminal works for harp and orchestra by French composers Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel was nothing short of sensational. 

This HSO program is something of a harp sandwich, with Kauffman's solo work coming between two bold orchestral compositions by Czech Antonin Dvorak and Russian Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov that showed HSO maestro Stuart Malina in top form. The HSO Masterworks program, the fourth Masterworks program of the 2012-13 season, will be repeated at 3 p.m. today in The Forum.

The program opened with Dvorak's Othello Overture, one of a trio of works - the others are Carnival and In Nature's Realm - he composed around 1892 as an examination of the relationship between humanity and nature. While perhaps a tad heavy on the "dark and stormy night" hyperbole, it has stirring passages as well, and Malina was unstinting in sanding off any rough edges.

That brought Kauffman to the stage for two lovely works written in the first decade of the 20th century. Of particular note was her play on Ravel's haunting Introduction and Allegro, which he composed in 1905. Ravel is said to have written the piece in just a week, on a commission from famed French piano and harp manufacturer Erard.

That may be true, but there is no sign of hastiness in this glorious piece, which flows along on a swirling melodic pattern reminiscent of Saint-Saens. It transports the listener to a peaceful place where ripe berries hang and goldfish glide languidly in a pond. 

It's a place you don't like to leave, and Ravel's 11-minute composition is over all too soon.

Debussy's piece, "Danse Sacree et Danse Profane," - profane simply refers to secular here - is notable because it was written for a pedal-less chromatic harp developed at the end of the 19th century. The Pleyel company, a competitor of Erard, commissioned Debussy to compose a work for its new instrument.

The piece was well-received, but not the cumbersome and difficult to play instrument. Today the chromatic harp is found mainly in museums, and Debussy's airy composition is performed almost exclusively on the concert harp. Kauffman's expressive work with strings and pedals breathed life into these intoxicating melodies.

Kauffman is just the latest example of Malina's willingness to bring his principal musicians to the front of the stage for solo turns. It's a list that recently has included cellist Fiona Thompson, trumpeter Phil Snedecor and percussionist Christopher Rose, whose bravura performance of Jennifer Higdon's Percussion Concerto in 2008 is still talked about by HSO fans.

With Kauffman assuming the role of soloist, HSO needed another harpist to man the instrument for the Dvorak and Rimsky-Korsakov compositions. Fortunately they were able to obtain the services of her sister, Jane Kauffman Brye. Brye is a skilled harpist in her own right, serving as principal harpist for the Reading Symphony Orchestra and as a substitute player for HSO.

After intermission, the orchestra undertook "Scheherazade," a rambunctious four-movement symphonic suite that Rimsky-Korsakov created in 1888. It is based on the stories from "One Thousand and One Nights," also known as "The Arabian Nights." 

If this colorful work evokes visions of Sinbad the Sailor or Aladdin and his lamp, that's just what Rimsky-Korsakov had in mind. While the harp is definitely on board,  this work is driven by wonderful, voice-like solo lines for violin (played by acting concertmaster Peter Sirotin), clarinet, trumpet, bassoon and flute, among others. It's a potent swirl of music that melds both a Middle Eastern flavor and the dance-like meters so common to Russian composers.

The pace builds to a swift and beguiling conclusion, admirably orchestrated by Malina, who is often at his best directing complex works such as this. He clearly found this program engaging, which is not surprising, perhaps, as he is the one who selected them.