The atmosphere was buzzing at Disney Hall Friday night as the classical music literati were out in force to hear the world premiere of a Dmitri Shostakovich opera fragment that no one knew he had actually written. In 2004, a musicologist discovered a 13-page piano and vocal score of the prologue in a Moscow archive. With the blessing of Shostakovich’s third wife and widow, the music was orchestrated, and it was the privilege of the Los Angeles Philharmonic and conductor laureate Esa-Pekka Salonen to present the piece. Along with a heartbreaking rendition of Shostakovich’s “Symphony No. 4,” it was an indelible evening of music.
The opera “Orango” was to be a scathing comedic satire of the West and a celebration of the 15th anniversary of the October Revolution, but for reasons not quite clear, it was abandoned in 1932. Orango is a half-human, half-ape creature created when a French biologist impregnated a female ape with his own sperm. The prologue deals with the revelry of Soviet citizens being treated to entertainment, including the caged Orango, whose bizarre life story of bourgeoisie success and downfall would have been recounted in the opera’s three unwritten acts.
As semi-staged by director Peter Sellars, it was a contemporary Vaudeville-like experience, with flashy lighting and casually-dressed cast members and choir planted in the audience. Sometimes, though, his choice of projected imagery, like those of Occupy Wall Street and planes dropping bombs, while in-sync with the nearly 80-year-old libretto’s satirical theme, was a little overbearing and on the nose.
The music itself was, in a word, fun. Shostakovich incorporated many different styles to create a rebellious, exciting landscape of music, from marches and ballets to jazz idioms akin to German composer, Kurt Weill; all tongue-in-cheek. Salonen’s trademark sound, a stainless steel sheen that emphasizes clarity and rhythm, had large doses of zeal and power. The Philharmonic was entirely on task, complemented by sharp singing from soloists and choir.
The fourth symphony is Shostakovich’s supreme credo; his most personal work. Its first two movements were already finished when, in January of 1936, he was formally denounced by a Stalin-inspired editorial in Pravda, the government newspaper. Its December premiere was cancelled and Shostakovich wouldn’t hear it performed until 1962.
Salonen’s take was a cerebral one but not without moments of the composer’s brash frustration and defiance in the face of Communism and artistic repression. The third and final movement, written after the denunciation, was absolutely chilling. With its opening funeral march, it was a graveyard tour of musical ideas that would never be heard. The mourner in Salonen’s interpretation was not an emotional, weeping wreck but instead, pale and blank-faced with a coldly detached sadness. The closing moments illustrating the slow death of a vibrant spirit were devastating. The Philharmonic delved deeply and uncomfortably into a terrifying moment in history; it was hard not to be moved.
Ebner Sobalvarro is a Los Angeles-based classical music and jazz aficionado. Having studied English at Boston College, he shares his passions for music at his blog cornerbooth.tumblr.com. Email him at ebner.sobalvarro@gmail.com.