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Comments from ACO's January 21, 2001 "Berlin 1931" Concert The second concert of the ACO's 2000-2001 season gave a salute to Nicolas Slominsky, composer, pianist and conductor, who, in 1931 and 1932, presented historic concerts in New  York, Havana, Paris, and Berlin, offering new voices in American music by his pioneering friends  and colleagues including Henry Cowell, Carl Ruggles and Charles Ives, and the Cuban Amadeo  Roldán. In Europe, these concerts represented the first complete orchestra programs of American music. The program in Berlin, recreated here by ACO, included Charles Ives' Three  Places in New England, Adoph Weiss' American Life, Carl Ruggles' Men and Mountains, Henry  Cowell's Synchrony, and Amadeo Roldan's Suite from La rebambaramba. Another question proposed to our listeners was if they thought the public perception of this  music has changed in the last 70 years. In addition, how they thought a European concertgoer  in the 1930's would react, and how does it compare to the way it sounds today. click here to read these comments. All around, people had great things to say about the pieces and performance. "Loved it. Brilliant theme. Excellent performance." "The only thing that surprised me was that the quality of the pieces by Ruggles, Cowell, and Roldan was equal to the Ives." "I was surprised to hear such an avant-garde style being played. It is a great thing to know that the classical music world is still trying to progress the music. Too often classical music is too retrospective. The whole program was innovative." "I appreciate this friendly, musical, competent orchestra and its intelligent devoted conductor." "The idea-wonderful-1931!!" "Very enjoyable" "I'm glad that I attended the concert and the pre-concert lecture was a bonus." Charles Ives: Three Places in New England For a highly dissonant and complex piece, many for the Ives very accessiable: "Charles Ives, gorgeous." "The Ives, what a great piece it is. How well played today." "Ives is so rich, so new, full of emotions, events; more exciting and daring than most music of the 90's." "The transparency of the Ives, wonderful performance." "Its liveliness, especially Ives." "I like Ives!" "Charles Ives-American folklore" Adolf Weiss: American Life One tough critic discussed the Weiss: "American Life: Nice opening; nice sound, too repetitious. Not enough musical idea to justify the length of the piece, even though it is short. Good idea, not enough after that." Carl Ruggles: Men and Mountains Another critical reaction, now at the Ruggles: "Men & Mountains: Pompous 1st movement! Grand? Or grandeloquent! But I feel him reaching to say something. 2nd Mov., held me attention all the way. 3rd Movt., Well, I've certainly heard worse, the grandiosity of it is not interesting to me. Like being confronted with a huge chunk of marble, with a few lines chiseled in it." Henry Cowell: Synchrony One person was quite moved by the Cowell: "Musical! Interesting! The most interesting textures, emotional range. Does for the listener what, in my opinion, music does so well-carrying a person along through a journey of emotional states to a conclusion that seems inevitable." Amadeo Roldan: Suite from La rebambaramba The rhythm in the Roldan took the audience by surprise: "Amadeo Roldan combination of modern harmony/disharmony with rhythmic elements." "Roldan-Rhythm" "I especially enjoyed the last piece [Roldan]." "Suite from La Bambaramba-its Latin rhythm. Something different for a concert hall." "The Roldan composition is very modern!" "I must applaud your programming of the 'Latin-toe-tapper' as a sort of consolation piece for those who were challenged by the first 4 numbers." "My visceral reaction to the Roldan vs. the intellectual reaction to the other 4 pieces." "The most accessible-but for me, overblown means the rather simple end. I would not bother to hear this again." There were mixed feelings as to whether the perception of this music has changed in European and American audiences during the last 70 years: "It hasn't because it is not heard/promoted." "I don't think there has been much change. Europeans might have thought of it as interesting, but nothing more than that." "Current audiences probably more used to bombastic, huge orchestra sounds- Hollywood and TV melodramas, with the soundtracks. Are current audiences more accepting of dissonance? Probably. But I think current audiences may be getting to the point where they want to enjoy music. Are not so willing to accept the notion that they ought to like something." "I would guess that this music would be more acceptable today than in the 1930's. I think that very few Europeans in the 1930's would like it." "People today find it less dissonant because we are surrounded by dissonance." "It doesn't create such dislike as it once did with many American audiences; of course, European concert-goers back in the 1930's were much more open minded. Latin American pieces definitely. Then and now intrigued audiences, especially works with an ethnic flavor. The Roldan piece as a result is refreshing." "It is apparent that the concert-goer of today has probably not changed very much from our counter parts of 70 years ago. Ives' observation that people need to get their ears out of the easy chairs still holds true today." "I don't think there has been much change probably in 1930's. Europeans might have thought of it as interesting, but nothing more than that." "I don't believe there is any "Public Perception" of this music. There really hasn't been much of a public for it. By the 1930's the avant-garde had already pushed music to the outer limits. Post Sacre, there was no more shock effect. So today's audience reactions are probably comparable to those of the 1930's. Good is still good and boring is still boring." "There were always aware and adventurous listeners. Any art cannot be judged by immediate success with the masses. Play for the few." "This music, once seemed so radical, seems easily listen able today." "Sadly, more a case of dwindling perception rather than changing. At this juncture in time it's up to folks like yourselves to keep a light burning in these particular windows. It breaks my heart..." "People are tired of seeing whole programs of Mozart, Bach, Brahms, etc. It is time the classical music world started looking to the future for ideas to become innovative."