Jeudi

Now that Jazz Fest is over, it's the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra's time to shine. From Thurs.-Sat., our local symphony orchestra is getting set to put on its own three-day string of widely varied music that both showcases Louisiana and gives the populace a chance to hear some of the best music from other shores. And, there will be guest stars.

On Saturday night, it'll really feel like Fest never left. The free show will be at that other great gathering place of New Orleanians: outside the Superdome in Champions Square, and the audience is encouraged to bring out the lawn chairs and grab a spot, and some libations.

The LPO is set to join up with the 6th Ward's pre-eminent local entertainer Kermit Ruffins for a concert that seems designed to harken back to Ruffins' hero Louis Armstrong.  While symphonies often get the reputation for being buttoned up musical elitists, the LPO is not that kind of group. Being a musical group in New Orleans, they've been known to team up with many a jazz musician in their day, including the likes of Terence Blanchard and Ellis Marsalis in recent years. Ruffins' reputation is a bit, shall we say, hazier. But as Vanity Fair's Mark Hertsgaard put it, he has "that dazzling smile that audiences and cameras alike find irresistible." Fresh off a winning set at JazzFest and an appearance at the International Jazz Day celebration in Congo Square last week, Ruffins is firmly cemented as a face of New Orleans music, no matter how unambitious he tries to come off. Plus, he'll have no problem dressing up for the occasion. 

Ruffins' musical skills are never in doubt, and those are sure to be on full display as he and the orchestra will tackle classics like "Ain't Misbehavin'" as well as Armstrong's "Struttin' with Some Barbecue" and "What a Wonderful World." As the evening is co-sponsored by the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation, all of the music in the program is designed to celebrate Louisiana culture and heritage. Showing off some of the key musical currents that go into the mixture of South Louisiana music, the orchestra sans Kermit, lead by the always lively conductor Carlos Miguel Prieto, will perform some Latin dance music that the New Orleans style is partially built on. The program will feature Gershwin's Cuba Overture, better known as "Rumba!" and Jose Pablo Mancayo's take on the Mexican "Huapango."

On Thursday and Friday, the orchestra moves indoors for performances at the Mahalia Jackson Theatre in Treme and the First Baptist Church in Covington, respectively, to play an all-Russian program that features two of the early 20th centuries foremost composers. Pianist Yakov Kasman will join the orchestra to perform Sergei Rachmaninov's vaunted third piano concerto. 

An artist-in-residence and professor at the University of Alabama-Birmingham, Kasman was a piano prodigy who has gone on to play with more than 50 orchestras around the world, and make highly-praised recordings of some of the most vibrant piano works. On Thursday, he has the task of tackling a piece that stands as one of the gold standards of the piano repertoire because it has the kind of melodies that you'll be humming long after it's over, and because it is really hard to play. Merciless on the ivory tickler, Rach 3 was that infamous piece that forced Geoffrey Rush's character in Shine to have a breakdown.

Composed by Rachmaninov while he was getting ready for a concert tour in the United States in 1909, the concerto was a success from the moment it premiered in New York. Those who are lucky enough to sit where they are looking over The Russian-born soloist's shoulder are likely to see only a blur, as long, demanding passages are the norm throughout the work, garnering it the title of the world's toughest piano piece. Preparation might not always involve a mental breakdown that forces a master pianist to drop the insturment for years, but there is drama that plays out as the piece unfolds that forces the audience to the edge of their seat. As long as they aren't completely entranced by the gorgeous melody, the audience is often sitting breathless for the piece, waiting to see if the soloist can indeed conquer this mountain of a work.

Whetting the appetite is another great Russian's work. Dmitri Shostakovich's 15th Symphony - his last - may not have all the cat-and-mouse Stalin-baiting of works from his prime during the 1930s and World War II. But it still displays the adventurousness of the great composer's work. And, for opera fans, there's plenty of music you might recognize, as Shostakovich quotes from Wagner's Ring cycle and Tristan and Isolde as well as Rossini's William Tell. And they called Danger Mouse a pioneer.

For ticket information on latter pair of concerts, visit here.