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Two weeks ago, I finally found a performance in my price range: absolutely, positively FREE!!! It was even close enough to walk to! For one night only, The Dallas Symphony Orchestra came up to UNT's very own Murchison Performing Arts Center and treated any student who was interested to a completely free concert.
When I say it like that, it sounds like I owe it all to the generosity of the DSO, but really it was all thanks to UNT's Fine Arts Series. The Fine Arts Series is a 105 year old program dedicated to the cultural enrichment of the UNT student body, and they are doing an awesome job. They're responsible for a lot of really interesting events in the coming months, and not just musical ones, either. In the coming months, the FAS will bring everything from stand-up comedy to serious theatre. But for now, let's stick to the present.
Friday's concert was AMAZING. I have heard Beethoven's Ninth Symphony one hundred times in one hundred different ways. And most of the time it is completely, utterly mangled. When I looked down at the program and saw "Ode to Joy", I was instantly overcome with painful memories of middle-school orchestra concerts and pre-teen piano-recitals, tinny ringtones and amateur soprano solos. That poor, poor melody has had a tough life.
But this Friday, I heard the Ode to Joy as it was MEANT to be heard. The dynamics! The choir! The extremely passionate (and slightly odd) conductor! This was an Ode I'd never imagined. I was extremely moved by the performance.
This concert was also the first time I've ever witnessed a symphonic audience, too. There were definitely lots of students, particularly in the balcony, but there was also a great deal of seasoned symphony veterans. I could tell the audience had a tremendous appreciation and respect for the symphony, and that made the whole experience even more magical.
I am so glad I didn't wimp out when I saw this "tired, old melody" on the brochure. I have a feeling I am going to be spending a lot of my Friday nights at the Murchison this year.