... attend a BSO concert at Symphony Hall?

Last Thursday, I finally attended my first BSO concert at Symphony Hall. You see, I've never been a big fan of going for classical music performances-- I always thought that music alone, no matter how alluring,  is not sufficient to keep me interested and I would surely fall asleep. The last time I went for a concert, I was a freshman in college. However, since Hilary Hahn was performing, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos was guest conducting and the BSO has a <40 = $20 deal, I figured, why not?

Upon entering Symphony Hall, I was immediately struck by its elegant and simple beauty-- it was a relatively intimate setting by concert hall standards with shallow balconies. Acoustically, it is supposed to be one of the top three concert halls in the world.

The evening started off delightfully with three pieces from Enrique Arbós' and Frühbeck de Burgos' orchestrations of characterful piano pieces from the Spanish composer Isaac Albéniz’s Iberia. 

Next up, Hilary Hahn performing Prokofiev's Violin Concerto No. 1 in D, Op 19. This was the performance I had basically bought the ticket for. I love Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet and thus had high expectations. Hilary Hahn wore a striking one shoulder dress in a brilliant red and showcased her technical abilities with this very technical piece, giving an almost flawless performance. The music itself did not quite live up to my expectations though and I was somewhat disappointed. Perhaps this is one of those pieces I will grow to love with time.

Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade Symphonic Suite, Op 35 was next and perhaps due in large part to having previously seen and had also thoroughly loved the Kirov's performance of the ballet (Incidentally, one of my favorite ballet dancers, Igor Zelensky, danced the role of the golden slave) set to (and also named) Scheherazade, this was, by far, my favorite part of the evening! There were two main musical themes that were repeated throughout the ~45 min performance that really grew on me. There is absolutely no way someone can actually fall asleep during this performance-- at times, the music was lyrical, bright and almost fleeting, while at other times, the music was powerful and majestic, relentlessly (in a good way) capturing the audience's attention. The BSO gave a brilliant performance-- no wonder the BSO is one of the "Big Five" American orchestras.

Doesn't this sound like a lovely way to spend an evening with friends?