The Grand Rapids Symphony has the new MusicNOW series, the West Michigan Symphony has The Block, and Classical Revolution has the bar scene: All ways that classical music is building a new, more youthful audience.
Ancient Rituals, Modern Approach: The Grand Rapids Symphony rehearsing at the Peter Martin Wege Theatre for Saturday’s MusicNOW series concert. (Photo/Local Spins)
When audiences sat down Saturday for the Grand Rapids Symphony’s first-ever MusicNOW contemporary classical series concert in the 300-seat Peter Martin Wege Theatre, they got a blast of unusual percussion, music played on conch shells, whistles and djembes, and a boundary-pushing vibe not unlike that of progressive jazz or psychedelic rock.
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In Muskegon, meanwhile, the West Michigan Symphony has opened up The Block, a new “inspirational” live music venue in what was once a basketball court with concerts ranging from solo classical piano to cabaret-style shows to klezmer-hued dance, rock and Renaissance to 12-string acoustic guitar virtuosity.
The Helix Collective plays West Michigan Symphony’s The Block on Oct. 12.
And Classical Revolution, the national movement which is bringing small classical music ensembles into pub and tavern settings, has regularly found a home – and an enthusiastic beer-quaffing audience – at Grand Rapids’ SpeakEZ Lounge.
This isn’t your father’s classical music.
West Michigan’s classical music scene is kicking things into another gear and getting a bit kicky in the process, cultivating a fresh – and often more youthful – audience that might previously have avoided centuries-old concertos performed in staid concert halls.
In a bid to “attract new and younger audiences” and enhance the experience for regulars “who have a particular appetite for contemporary music,” the Grand Rapids Symphony this season is debuting MusicNOW – three concerts at the Grand Rapids Ballet Company’s Wege Theatre at 341 Ellsworth Ave. SW spotlighting modern compositions by living composers, starting with Saturday’s “Musical Visions” which focused on Colorado Symphony timpanist Greg Hill’s innovative work. The event included the world premiere of Hill’s bracing “Ancient Rituals” – inspired by the rites of ancient cliff dwellers at Colorado’s Mesa Verde – and written for a chamber orchestra with four percussion soloists.
A TAUTLY ENGAGING, EXPECT-THE-UNEXPECTED EXPERIENCE
I got a sneak preview of that work during rehearsals led by conductor John Varineau and I was more than impressed: It’s a complex, challenging and unusual piece that’s a feast for the ears and eyes, and unlike any other classical composition I’ve ever heard.
Conductor John Varineau, left, chats with composer Bill Hill during Thursday’s rehearsal.
It’s the sort of music that leaves audiences with a tautly engaging, expect-the-unexpected experience while showcasing immensely talented orchestra musicians chasing ever-morphing tempos and dynamics. And it all oozes a groovy kind of experimental edge in a space much cozier than the Symphony’s usual home in DeVos Performance Hall.
Indeed, Hill revealed at rehearsals that part of his piece reflects the “strange, mystical but beautiful idea” of cave dwellers who believed that ingesting peyote allowed them to speak directly with their ancestors. Gee, almost sounds like a version of Pink Floyd’s early “Several Species of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving With a Pict.”
The bottom line is that the vibrant, edgy nature of this sort of contemporary orchestral approach — embraced by some insanely talented Grand Rapids musicians — mirrors that of prog-rock or progressive jazz, creating an entirely new classical music experience that can captivate a non-classical music audience. (Read more about the MusicNOW series in this GRNow story.)
‘MUSIC ABSOLUTELY FILLS THE ROOM’ AT THE BLOCK: MUSKEGON’S NEW MUSICAL HOTSPOT
The same might be said for the West Michigan Symphony’s The Block, an upper level, 144-seat performance space at 360 W. Western Ave. in Muskegon. Carla Hill, president and CEO of the Symphony, tells Local Spins that she immediately fell in love with the building, which also houses the Symphony’s new ticket office and administrative suite.
“It’s a three-dimensional performance with the artists entering the room by walking through the audience to get to the performance space. Musicians talk to the audience and give them information about the pieces they are performing,” she explains. “What we’ve seen happen is that the audience members are engaging with the musicians, listening to and reacting to their stories, and interacting with other audience members. At The Block, the music is immediate and enveloping and everyone is close to the artists. The music absolutely fills the room.”
Classical Revolution at SpeakEZ Lounge earlier this year. (Photo/Anna Sink)
Not surprisingly, Hill says she got “lots of inspiration” from Michelle and Gary Hanks, who turned an old Masonic Lodge in Spring Lake into the Seven Steps Up listening room, which regularly sells out its Pin Drop Concerts due to its stellar, up-close-and-personal vibe.
And not all of The Block’s live music offerings are strictly classical. On Oct. 12, the Symphony’s principal English horn Phil Popham and his Los Angeles-based Helix Collective present a “world dance club of Bollywood, Renaissance, salsa, klezmer, bluegrass and rock.”
That’s followed on Oct. 18 by genre-pushing contemporary pianist Kathleen Supove, whose most recent album is titled, “The Exploding Piano.” And on Oct. 26, Grand Haven’s internationally renowned 12-string acoustic guitarist Neil Jacobs brings his eye-popping Eastern European-, Gypsy jazz- and flamenco-inspired strains to the venue.
“We believe this will grow new audiences,” says Hill, noting The Block encourages folks to come an hour early to mingle, with food and drinks on hand.
CASUAL, NOT INTIMIDATING, A COOL VIBE AND A LOT OF FUN
Sounds a lot like a bar, and much like the idea behind Classical Revolution, which made its debut early this year at Grand Rapids’ SpeakEZ Lounge thanks to Rick Robinson, former bassist for the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. It’s such a popular concept, SpeakEZ has packed the place for these shows featuring small groups of classical musicians.
In the case of The Block, Hill says concertgoers “are getting to know the West Michigan Symphony organization in a whole new way, they are hearing from the musicians and getting to know them personally, and it’s just a lot of fun. It’s not intimidating. It’s very accessible. The hall has a cool vibe to it – think New York loft – and audience members like to be part of something that feels new and exciting. Audience members are coming back for additional concerts and tell us it’s because they like the space and like what we’re doing.”
And if it’s all taking the perceived stuffiness out of classical music in West Michigan, that approach seems to be working incredibly well.
— John Sinkevics
For a complete schedule and tickets to the Grand Rapids Symphony’s MusicNOW series at the Wege Theatre, (“Musical Visions” at 8 p.m. Saturday, “Music, Art, Dance” at 8 p.m. Feb. 8 and “Musical Connections” at 8 p.m. April 5), visit the Symphony’s website online here or call 1-800-982-2787. Individual concert tickets range from $18 to $26, with series discounts available.
For a schedule, directions, tickets and details about the West Michigan Symphony’s The Block, visit the official website at westmichigansymphony.org or call 231-726-3231, ext. 223. Tickets begin at $28.
Email John Sinkevics at jsinkevics@gmail.com.
Copyright 2013, Spins on Music
