An image of fierce war headgear jumps out from publicity for the first program, February 5 and 8, of the newly announced season of the Jalisco Philharmonic Orchestra, held at Teatro Degollado in Guadalajara. And the program notes are peppered with words like “conflict,” “historical tension” and “resistance.”
Consisting of orchestral-choral works (with the Zapopan Municipal Choir and alto Julietta Beas), “Cuauhtémoc” by Jalisco native Jose Rolon, and the “Alexander Nevsky” cantata by Sergei Prokofiev, the program makes you wonder if it was influenced by recent events in Venezuela and Minneapolis.
But no. “War is often a theme in classical music,” an OFJ musician commented. “So is peace.”
Still, a martial theme seems evident in other programs besides the first one, including the eighth and final one on March 26 and 29, with Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, whose massive first movement features heavy, menacing march themes. (The OFJ musician immediately selected it as his favorite, mentioning “dances and colors in the music” and “rich harmonies.”)
But non-martial themes characterize other programs this season. For example, the English musical tradition is seen in the sixth program, March 12 and 15, highlighted by tenor Cesar Delgado and Venezuelan horn player Daniel Graterol in a Benjamin Britten work written in the midst of World War II. The theme culminates in Edward Elgar’s Symphony No. 1 (mentioned affectionately by my musician informant).
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