Story by JAMES BASH
Photographs by JOE CANTRELL

There are many songs, including opera arias (such as the “Brindisi” from La Traviata) and choral numbers (such as “In Taberna Quando Sumus” from Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana), associated with drinking – but how about associating purely orchestral works with special liquid concoctions?

That was the theme of Portland Chamber Orchestra’s December 29 concert at Beaverton’s Patricia Reser Center for the Arts. Led by the energetic conducting of Interim Artistic Director Deanna Tham, PCO gave a “Mixology Party,” pairing unique, tasty libations with the first three pieces on the program. Afterwards, patrons were invited to a nearby watering hole, Loyal Legion, to see if the drinks matched up with the music – a festive idea for the holiday season.

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The concert consisted of an excellent mix of music that stretched from the Baroque era to a piece written in 2010. We heard J. S. Bach, Igor Stravinsky, Claude Debussy, Kenji Bunch, Carl Reinecke, and Leonard Bernstein. None of the selections were of the typical holiday variety, but the featured soloist, Zach Galatis, highlighted the first half of the concert with his impeccable performance of Reinecke’s Flute Concerto and returned in the second half to dazzle the audience with his voice in two numbers from Bernstein’s West Side Story. 

Well-known as the acting assistant principal flutist and solo piccolo with the Oregon Symphony, Galatis superbly elicited the lovely melodies of Reinecke’s Flute Concerto. After delivering the pleasant and dreamy passages of the first movement, he mined the reflective lament of the second movement and then delightfully wrapped things up by delivering the cheerfulness of the final movement.

In addition to his wizardry with the flute, Galatis is quite the vocalist – he has duetted with Kristin Chenoweth – which makes him a legit double-threat talent. So, in the PCO concert, he showed off his exceptional vocal skills with thrilling performances of “Maria” and “Tonight” from West Side Story. That really warmed up the hall, and the audience rewarded him with a thunderous ovation.

The concert began with J. S. Bach’s English Suite No. 3 in an arrangement for orchestra by Joachim Raff. Tham and forces deftly shaped the six movements (a prelude and five dances). Concertmaster Aromi Park and the strings conveyed the spirit of each dance with élan, which was especially enhanced by the soft, low rumble that Dwayne Corbin created on the kettle drums in the “Sarabande.”

Stravinsky was influenced by Baroque music, especially Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto, when he wrote his Concerto in E-flat, also known as Dunbarton Oaks, which was the name of the estate owned by Robert and Mildred Bliss, who commissioned the piece for their thirtieth wedding anniversary. PCO conquered the many changes in meter and numerous exposed passages for specific instruments and every section of the orchestra. The music sounded off-kilter, odd, slightly punchy, and sometimes amusing – the full quirkiness that is so Stravinsky. 

In Kenji Bunch’s Nocturne for String Orchestra, PCO delved into close pitches and occasional glissandos to create a haunting, midnight atmosphere that was underscored now and then with tension. It seemed that one or another section of strings would drop out and sneak back in again – apropos of the nocturnal feel of the music.

All was sunny and carefree with Debussy’s Petite Suite (orchestrated by Henri Büsser) when the orchestra launched into “En Bateau” (Sailing) with the sound of Principal Flutist Amelia Lukas floating effortlessly. “Cortège” carried the playfulness even further. The orchestra expertly conveyed the refined sentiment of the “Minuet,” and capped the piece with a robust “Ballet.”

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At the top of the concert, Tham mentioned that she had discussed the music with personnel at Loyal Legion, which invented the special beverages for each of the first three pieces. She mentioned the ingredients for each as well, and I did try one of them – entitled something about the equinox – afterwards. It had a spicy kick to it, and that matched well with the entire concert, which – with its wide-ranging selections – celebrated the holiday with a new twist.