Needless Distraction? Or Added Dimension? SF Symphony plays with visuals

Projected above the orchestra in three large panels was Tal Rosner's short film: Restless ocean waves, filtered through computer-generated circles. Two women at the beach, tug at some seaweed.  At first, we only see them from far away or out of focus. Only well into the piece, after we've probably wondered for a while what their faces look like, do we actually see their expressions.  It is revealed that one is substantially older than the other  They walk away into the mist. The CGI circles come back to end the piece symmetrically.  The dramatic return of a couple big circles coincided perfectly with a huge orchestral stop-- a nice touch and a difficult bit of synchronization to achieve, with Rosner in the control booth almost like a member of the orchestra.

Meanwhile, shinning shimmering music is played: myriad intertwining notes in the strings-- an undercurrent of emotions while lonely melodies in the brass float on the surface.  There are plenty of details in Thomas Adés' Polaris: Voyage for Orchestra, and it could easily stand as a beautiful piece by itself.  The film could not stand by itself without the music-- but this is by design, I would imagine, because the film is an accompaniment to the music, not the other way around.  This is not a cinematic film score-- not a complete movie in the traditional sense. The slow pace, and vague enigmatic plot is as sparse as possible, allowing the music to remain center stage.

This is not the first collaboration by Israeli Rosner and Londoner Adés, who are in a civil partnership since 2006 and also created a piano concerto with visuals in 2008.  Homosexual artists have been a mainstay in the elite world of conductors and composers for quite a while now-- from Benjamin Britten & Peter Perry to Leonard Berstein, Aaron Copland, MTT, just to name a few.  The interaction between romantic relationships and artistic collaborations always yields interesting results.

But the main question: do the visuals add value or interest to the piece? Or does paying attention to the film distract us from the details in the music?

Stravinsky's Petrushka, played after intermission, is another example of music that was composed with distractions in mind, this time ballet.  But there were no dancers on stage, and I can’t imagine being able to focus on the full glory of Stravinsky’s orchestral details if there were beautiful dancers bouncing around.

And certainly with Mozart, (The Haffner Symphony was played as a warm-up or a curtain raiser or an audience retainer) the ultimate master of absolute music, any added visuals would only take away from the purity and balance of of the composition.  

On the other hand, a common complaint against the symphony in general is that it bores many audiences.  They can’t just sit and listen.  They need a visual.  They need words. Do visuals make orchestral music more palatable to the casual listener?

The combination of different media opens the door to more possibilities, more expressive options through use of new technologies-- opportunities for artists to innovate.  

The San Francisco Symphony played with their usual crisp accuracy and and graceful ease.  In Petrushka, the trumpet solos by Mark Inouye were strong, agile, shining like gold.  Tim Day’s flute solo in the middle of the piece was magical.  But over all, 100 percent the orchestra seldom gives.  It’s another professional day on the job, especially in the outer string parts.  Are they not glad to be playing in one of the most skilled collection of musicians in the world? Should they not play as if their lives depend on it? Not if they are tenured.  And with almost 100 performances per year and even more rehearsals, who can blame them?

The concert ended with an encore: Stravinsky’s fun Scherzo à la Russe, because at around 10pm, as MTT said, "the night is still young."