2014-12-28

【Aiden in English】

        Vienna is a capital city of Austria, which is famous for its lavish music concert. “Salute to Vienna＂brings the joyful waltzes to the New Year and becomes so popular that it has affected people all around the globe. This performance is being done everywhere during the holiday season as a gala goes on like it was back to 1899 in Vienna. Today, Salute to Vienna is taking place on its grand stage at the Verizon Hall of the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia. Mom and I are determined to see it. 

        Salute to Vienna is usually cheerful and happy with the music of “Waltz King” Johann Strauss Jr. as ballet dancers glide across the stage to the sounds of “The Blue Danube”. We were on the Tier 2 floor and the air was buzzing. The spirit of the holiday season was here and it gave me a big first impression. As we got situated, the lights dimmed and on came the Philly Pops Orchestra. When the shiny trombones led the sleek clarinets and the glamorous violins, the cellists slowly took their seats on the other side. More and more instruments entered the stage. Finally, the conductor, András Deák who dressed in a black suit walked onto his podium with his baton and the audience hushed. Without any waiting, the orchestra lunched into a quick and fast piece, Overture to Countess Maritza by Emmerich Kálmán, to open up the concert. It featured loudness and softness, forte and piano. The dynamics increased and decreased the tempo like a wave crushing against the shore. It stunned the audience with a dazzling performance. 

        Followed by “Heia in Den Bergen” from Gypsy Princess by by Emmerich Kálmán, a soprano, Sera Gösche, sang it well especially with her beautiful staccato. It sounded like a blue jay’s chirps.

        Then the ballet dancers articulated their classical walk in the Pointe shoes. As the next song began it was all too obvious for a Johann Strauss’ Waltz. They moved with a three-beat rhythm and executed some spins and twirls as Kiss Waltz played. The waltz comprised melodies and the orchestra picked up the pace. Around and around they went gracefully until the song stopped. 

        Soon came on a tenor, Michael Heim who reminded me about Andrea Bocelli’s vocal. He could really change movement quickly, which always sounded a good quality for all musicians. 

        Just like this, the performers rotated singing, dancing, dancing, singing, and all the way to the end. Mom asked me to listen to the last piece for its tradition. It was called Radetzky March by Johann Strauss. The song initiated with a fast, enthusiastic, and upbeat tone. The conductor then began clapping to the best motioning for the audience to do so, too. We clapped along with him. At the end, he faked a clap, which threw the audience off beat and we laughed loudly. 

        Salute to Vienna was absolutely a cool year-end show. It started off awesome and ended on a perfect note, musically and literally.

【红霞译文】

        奥地利首都维也纳素以华美的音乐演唱著称，“向维也纳致敬”以其欢快的华尔兹舞曲将新年礼赞带入千家万户。每逢元旦到来之际，世界各地的人们仿佛看到了1899年时维也纳宫廷所举行的贺岁盛典。今天，“向维也纳致敬”来到费城金梅尔表演艺术中心威瑞森大厅，我和妈妈定要一饱眼福。

        “向维也纳致敬”通常都以圆舞曲之王──小约翰•施特劳斯明快甜美的华尔兹和波尔卡舞曲贯穿节目始末，芭蕾舞演员在乐曲“蓝色多瑙河”的伴奏下翩翩起舞。我们登上二楼，热烈的场面以及喜悦的气氛首先给我留下深刻的印象。等到我们就座以后，灯光渐暗，费城通俗乐团隆重登场。长号锃光，单簧管黑亮，小提琴抢眼，大提琴手慢慢站到对面，其他成员也各就各位，最后走上舞台的是身着黑色西装手拿指挥棒的乐队指挥安德拉斯•迪克，这时大厅安静得鸦雀无声。乐团即刻奏起快速的《卡尔曼•马里查伯爵夫人》“序曲”，刚中有柔，柔中有刚，轻重缓急拿捏得十分得体，音乐旋律高潮迭起，宛若波浪冲击海岸，深深打动了观众。

        接着女高音赛若•盖佘送上《卡尔曼•吉卜赛公主》中一首抒情片段“山中告别”，我觉得她把断音部分处理得不错，听起来像只蓝喜鹊引吭高歌。

        芭蕾舞演员脚穿足尖鞋，昂头挺胸优雅地登台。不用多说，这回准要表演约翰•施特劳斯的圆舞曲。当乐队奏出“吻之舞”时，他们闻歌起舞，随着优美的旋律跳起节奏感强情绪饱满的三拍子华尔兹，扭呀扭，转啊转，浪漫地勾勒出一幅幅令人陶醉的图画，直到音乐结束。

        不久，男高音迈克•海姆向观众献唱，其歌声让我情不自禁地想起意大利歌唱家安德烈•波切利。迈克能自如地掌控音区的变化，这对达到一定水平的歌唱家来说非常重要。

        再往后的节目均由艺术家们轮番出台，唱完了跳，跳完了唱。妈妈提醒我注意最后一首保留曲目，即约翰•施特劳斯“拉德斯基进行曲”。这首乐曲引子钪镪有力，节奏激昂，旋律丰富。其间，指挥安德拉斯带领观众随力度的强弱和节奏的快慢来一起鼓掌打拍子，我们积极互动，临结束时，他有意将手悬在半空不动，结果大家无法控制自己的节奏而抢拍了一下，逗得全场观众放声大笑。

        “向维也纳致敬”称得上年终难得的娱乐演出。无论从音乐角度还是字面意义上说，它自始自终带给人美的享受。