Windhorse a rough ride

June 2, 2007 performance reviewed by Ronald K. Baker.

The skies turned black, rain came down and thunder roared as patrons hurried from their vehicles prior to show time Saturday evening. It was an inauspicious beginning. A lively, albeit less-than-capacity, crowd gathered in the cavernous ante-room sipping beverages and trying to converse in a space with acoustics somewhat reminiscent of a middle school gymnasium.

After they had settled into the concert hall, David Fleming, the theater's artistic director, welcomed the audience . He noted that the venue was committed to presenting both world-class performers as well as the best of local talent. With that he introduced the group, Windhorse, and its leader Larry Chernicoff, from the South County town of Ashford. They were warmly welcomed then took a few moments to tune up in typical orchestra fashion.

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The opening piece, "Windhorse," (same as the ensemble) featured gentle entrances by the percussionist followed by the cellists. There were some mournful passages on the string bass and some evocative moments by Chernicoff on vibes. The composer's daughter, Lydia, added pensive contributions on the violin with a tone belying her 19 years of age.

While there may have been audience members who knew what they were in for, others clearly did not. The improvisations quickly stepped outside the realm of traditional harmony resulting in both furtive glances and shifting in chairs by some. Unfortunately it was largely downhill from there.

The next selection, "Timeless," might just as well have been titled "Endless." It was based on three simple chords that soon waxed dirge-like. The artistic license exercised by the soloists began to result in a diminished audience response best characterized as a mix of curiosity and incredulity.

The composer introduced each succeeding selection and conducted each opening with such broad strokes of the right hand that one would have thought a Sousa march was to follow. He inscribed a huge "L" in the air certainly leaving no doubt about the downbeat but having none of the nuances of various styles of conducting. In fact, as the orchestra entered, sometimes almost timidly, it seemed like a non sequitur. Once satisfied concerning their entrance he retired to the piano, vibes, and in one instance, to some additional percussion instruments behind the players.

The concertmaster, Tim Moran, led the group when the beat was suspended now and again. The percussionist took a solo on a large hand drum using the entire dynamic range from soft to loud. It revealed both the amazing acoustics of the theater itself and his virtuosity as he milked the instrument with all ten fingers. On this occasion and several to follow, he elicited the warmest responses of the evening.

Chernicoff, it turns out, has a curious fascination with dissonance. Music in the Western Hemisphere typically depends on careful placement of semi-tones to distinguish one tonal center from the next. The bone-jarring scraping of two adjacent tones along with a general disdain for theme or melody resulted in an unpredictability that soon grew tiresome. The individual players further seemed to eschew this convention as subsequent sounds ranged from cacophony to chaos. Simultaneous improvisations lacking any harmonic continuity as a backdrop provided moments that were not just unsettling but downright abrasive.

Following intermission, Shane Shanahan continued his outstanding work on percussion. Tomas Ulrich on cello could not be faulted for his enthusiasm, but seemed always over the top with flailing, plucking, strumming, and wildly sliding notes whereupon the beauty of the sound of the instrument was seldom evident.

The high point of the evening was a duet featuring Tim Moran, a seasoned jazz player on alto sax, accompanied by Chernicoff on piano. Occasionally the group came together and sounded somewhat like Paul Winter's "Winter Consort." But, all in all, the evening was not for the faint of heart. Many rose for a standing ovation as the concert came to a close. The restive and warm post-thunderstorm air outside was welcome respite for many others.