A tribute to the music of John Williams.

A “Close encounter” with compositional greatness at the Niagara Symphony Orchestra

A “Close encounter” with compositional greatness at the Niagara Symphony Orchestra
Review by Danny Gaisin

It was a quad of firsts for this ancient scrivener; 1st visit to St. Catharine’s FOPAC, first un-comped concert in 60 years; 1 st major event since COVID; and first used my hearing aids. As a recent (6 week) peninsula immigrant visiting such a magnificent hall was a treat. The ambiance & acoustics are nonpareil. That a town with a rather small population could attract a ninety percent occupancy for a classical event is truly impressive.

The occasion was a tribute to the musical outpouring of John Williams. His prodigious creative portfolio has underscored so many of Hollywood’s blockbusters. Who hasn’t seen ‘Jaws; “E.T.”; “Star Wars”; ‘Close Encounters” or any of the Harry Potter franchises and exited the theatre humming a movies musical theme.

Guest conductor Evan Mitchell also assumed the emcee role iterating both fact and legend about the composer. His ‘mike’ comfort & erudition enhanced the event as did the effective engineered lighting. From the familiar opening notes of the ‘star Wars’ theme, to the memorable and emotional bicycle scene that ends ‘E.T’s hopeful reunion with his galactic family, this was more than a concert; it was an experience.

The faultless flute solo by Doug Miller during ‘Marion’s Theme” was also impressive by his foregoing the physical histrionics usually associated with flautists. Another impeccable solo riff was performed by French horn maven Iris Krismanic whose clarity reminds one of the recordings of the BSO’s Jamie Summerville.

While the NSO was rendering the score from ‘Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind’, it mentally evoked the climactic scene where the Alien spaceship and Earth’s scientific staff at the Devil’s Tower site, are attempting to communicate with musical notes. This O.F. (old fart), whose memory occasionally lapses uses the vowels as an aide memoire. Think “A E I O U” and the tonal theme emerges!

A rather unusual instrument for a classical symphonic orchestra is an acoustic guitar. For the Schindler's List segment, The Bradley Thachuk interpretation added a radical enhancement to the piece. Somehow, it added an evocative essence to the visually horrendous subject matter that the movie portrays.

The FOPAC season closes for the summer with this event, but the area has many other cultural opportunities and venues. Niagara Stone Road takes one to SHAW; Carousel Players; & both the Artist’s Centre and Conservatory operated during this season..so does Mandeville Theatre. Check the Niagara Arts Review website (on-line in foreseeable future) for more information and dates.