ORCHESTRA MIAMI MEDIA
Video Media
Barber: Knoxville: Summer of 1915
Susana Díaz, Soprano
Piazzolla: Primavera Porteña
Tomás Cotik, soloist
Verdi: Overture to La Forza del Destino
World Premiere: L.A.tude
by James Stephenson
Schubert: "Italian" Overture in C Major
Schubert: "Tragic" Symphony in C Minor
RAI: The Ricordi Opera Gala (in Italian)
North American Premiere: Scherzo in A Minor/Trio in F Major by Puccini
Saint Säens: Overture to an
Unfinished Comic Opera
Schubert: "Unfinished" Symphony
1st Movement
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Articles and Reviews
"Many listeners were clearly experiencing classical music for the first time; under the circumstances, even their applause between movements of a symphony was a positive and heartening reflection of their appreciation for the art. Conductor Elaine Rinaldi’s comments preceding the performances proved engaging, giving listeners just enough information to aid in their enjoyment.
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Rinaldi opened with the Overture and finale from Beethoven’s only ballet score The Creatures of Prometheus. The slow introduction was broadly stated and she adopted a brisk tempo for the main Allegro section. Strings were accurate and unified and the flutes encompassed the secondary subject with spot-on cohesion. Familiar themes from Beethoven’s Egmont incidental music and the final movement of the “Eroica” Symphony form the basis of the ballet’s concluding sequence. Rinaldi’s unhurried pacing accented the charm of this setting (as compared to the theme’s heroic nature in the symphony). She infused high spirit into the coda. When will a contemporary choreographer set this entrancing Beethoven opus?
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The opening bars of Mozart’s Overture to Don Giovanni were solemn, evoking the statue of the Commendatore and the fate that befalls the opera’s lecherous protagonist. Rinaldi took the succeeding allegro at a lively clip. The well-articulated reading radiated the opera’s dramma giocoso spirit.
Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 4 in A Major (“Italian”) is one of the composer’s sunniest works and Rinaldi’s iteration was appropriately high spirited. In the first movement, she evoked rich sonorities from the strings and the important trumpet parts came through with clear impact.
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The warmth of the wind playing added depth to the stately evocation of a religious procession (which Mendelssohn witnessed in Naples) in the Andante con moto. A bright and incisive Con moto moderato (third movement) set the stage for the whirling final saltarello. With sharp string attacks and winds floating the dancing motifs, Rinaldi ratcheted up the tension and excitement. Mendelssohn’s buoyant evocation of Italy proved the perfect finale to send the listeners out into the warm night air.
Larry Budmen, The South Florida Classical Review
"Under the direction of Elaine Rinaldi, the orchestra’s founder and artistic director, the ensemble gave a verdant, lively performance of one of Beethoven’s happiest, most tranquil works (Symphony N. 6 "Pastorale").
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Rinaldi showed firm control over the orchestra, bringing the ensemble to a precise but unforced deceleration in the opening theme. There were intonation issues in the strings, and moments that could have used more sense of structure, such as the climactic points of the first movement. But on the whole, the musicians performed in a natural, relaxed manner that brought out the spirit of the music.
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The second movement features bird calls in flute, oboe and clarinets, and these were performed with a crisp assertiveness that created a vivid, picturesque effect.
Winds and horns played in a lively, expressive manner in the third movement’s county folk dance. Again, there were a few rough edges in the ensemble, but this was one of those rustic works where that didn’t matter as much. And the storm movement that followed came off with gruff precision, with rumbling timpani, and vivid effects of thunder, lightning and rain in the full orchestra.
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The concluding Allegretto vividly expressed a sense of quiet delight in nature. The serene melody built to an ecstatic expression in the full orchestra, with transparent textures topped by shimmering violins.
David Fleshler, South Florida Classical Review
"The Masonic Funeral Music was given a powerful sense of mourning from the initial bars. Rinaldi gradually built volume and depth of emotion to a strong but properly restrained climax. The strings under concertmaster Gennady Aronin played with strength and full tone and there was fine solo work by clarinetist Richard Hancock and oboist Erika Yamada."
Lawrence Budmen, South Florida Classical Review- More Masonic Mozart
"The orchestra was also up to the challenges, which include creating sounds not often heard from the strings: screeching, rattling, hissing, sometimes an overall cacophony. Cellist Aaron Merritt’s solo in “Autumn” was a highlight. He exhibited a deep tone with a bit of edginess appropriate to the score. Cotik, Rinaldi and the orchestra provided impressive advocacy for a multifaceted work that deserves to be heard more often.
Dave Rosenbaum, South Florida Classical Review- 10th Anniversary Celebration;
Piazzolla's Four Seasons of Buenos Aires, Tomás Cotik, violin soloist
“Rinaldi concluded the generous program with a strongly played, solid reading of the Symphony No. 41 in C Major (Jupiter), Mozart’s last and arguably greatest symphonic essay. Tempos were moderate and the momentum well sustained. A nice mix of drama and lyricism pervaded the second movement Andante cantabile with Rinaldi playing the pauses and sudden full ensemble outbursts for maximum effect. Aided by the excellent acoustics, fugal writing in the finale came through splendidly with impressive playing from all sections and especially strong contributions from the horns and timpani…. Throughout the concerto (Mozart Concerto for Clarinet), Rinaldi offered strong support, her tempos astutely judged.”
Lawrence Budmen, The Miami Herald, Masonic Mozart
“A highlight of the performance was the work of Orchestra Miami, conducted by Elaine Rinaldi. In addition to providing sympathetic support to the singers, the orchestra shined when performing on its own, with rich string tone and poignant wind playing in passages such as the wistful music that accompanies Amahl’s mother as she tucks him in for the night.”
David Fleshler, The Miami Herald- Amahl and the Night Visitors
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