May 23 Vallejo/Vacaville Arts and Entertainment Source: ‘Birthday Bash’ Concert pays homage to Beethoven and Gershwin

Whether it’s in his concert programming or among his international choruses, conductor Urs Leonhardt Steiner is constantly seeking out unique pairings.

For his latest endeavor, the Golden Gate Symphony music director will lead his chorus in a birthday celebration of the 100th and 200th anniversaries of Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 9” and George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue,” respectively. The “Ode to Joy” concert unites more than the two composers. It will bring together chorus members from Benicia, San Francisco and Steiner’s home state Scuol, Switzerland for a concert tour of those three cities.

“It’s an unusual marriage, so to speak,” said Steiner. “Not too many organizations do something like that.”

Despite rehearsing separately across the Bay, and also across continents, Steiner says it’s important to view the chorus as a single entity. Once the members from San Francisco, Benicia and Scuol unite for the final weeks of rehearsal, these same members will continue to perform at all the concert locations.

“That’s the rule,” said Steiner. “This is one big chorus.”

By “big,” Steiner means the eighty singers, 10 of which traveled from Scuol, who will take the stage at Benicia Clock Tower on May 25 for the opening of the three-concert tour. Once they are joined by orchestra members, the number of performers on stage easily mounts to 100.

This is exactly the type of community that invigorates Steiner’s work with the symphony. Not quite a family reunion, and more celebratory than a diplomatic visit, this cross-cultural concert is about bringing music to different locales, fostering community and increasing musical access on a global scale.

“Beethoven has never before been performed in my home state,” said Steiner, anticipating his return to Scuol for the June concert. “So it will be a world premiere in my state. Which is kind of interesting because you would think that the whole of Europe would have played his music.”

But, as is the case with Scuol, Steiner says many small communities have lacked the sheer musical force and space to take on the composition. “You have to be really innovative,” said Steiner, whose trip home will also see him revisit his hockey days as the chorus uses the stadium for their performance.

Commemorating the 200th anniversary of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony was an obvious program choice, but it wasn’t until later that Steiner learned of the double birthday within his program.

“I was not totally aware of the Gershwin anniversary,” said Steiner. His primary motive in choosing George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” was to incorporate composers of different nationalities.

“I wanted to bring an American piece to Switzerland,” said Steiner. In doing so, Steiner thought the compositions would help highlight the trans-continental aspect of his chorus.

“The musical language of Gershwin, this marriage between jazz and classics, is amazing and is an icon in the United States,” said Steiner. “And so was Beethoven’s Ninth. It is the most listened to piece of music, more so than the woman on top of the world right now—Taylor Swift.”

Both of these compositions, though separated by 100 years, were revolutionary and heralded in a new era of music for their time. Beethoven’s Ninth marked the first time a chorus was used for a symphony, departing from its strict usage for the church.

Gershwin would follow suit with a similarly shocking introduction: jazz. “This type of music in the concert hall was unavailable at the time,” said Steiner. “Both of them had a very strong spirit of adventurism.”

The pieces also lend themselves to the celebratory theme of the concert. “You listen to Gershwin and you want to start dancing immediately,” said Steiner, who acknowledged a similar element with Beethoven. “The difference is, you have to suffer more in the Beethoven.” Throughout the four movements, Beethoven’s insistent, ongoing theme exceeds what was typically 15 minutes to five times that length.

At the time it was written people refused to sing it, remarked Steiner. “Even today people complain how hard it is,” said Steiner, reflecting on how it is equally regarded by choruses as a challenge and a privilege to sing.

IF YOU GO:

• WHAT: “Ode to Joy” Big Birthday Bash
• WHEN: May 25, 3 p.m.
• WHERE: Historic Clock Tower in Benicia, 1189 Washington St., Benicia
• TICKETS: General admission $32, www.cityboxoffice.com/ggsoc