There’s Always Room for Cello

It was the 150th birthday of Richard Strauss this past June, and the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra is still celebrating. With Edo de Waart conducting, the orchestra presents three quite different works by the celebrated composer: his well-known tone poem, “Don Quixote”; his oboe concerto featuring Katie Young Steele; and “Metamorphosen,” written for 23 solo strings.

Inspired by Miguel de Cervantes’ novel, “Don Quixote” is one of Strauss’ many tone poems. He wrote it with ten variations, but MSO is only performing three plus the finale.

Susan Babini, the principal cellist for MSO, takes on the role of Don Quixote de La Mancha, the windmill-tilting, less-than-sane nobleman who imagines himself a hero and enlists his loyal neighbor Sancho Panza, voiced by Robert Levine on viola, as a squire. Babini must communicate the title character’s actions and feelings, and the tone and style of his voice change with each variation, in a roller coaster of emotions. It is a complex solo, yet Babini notes it’s always intricately linked to the orchestra and what it is playing. For instance, increasing dissonance throughout the piece signals the gradual deterioration of Don Quixote’s brain. Strauss pushed the limits of orchestral and instrumental techniques of the time.

Yet Babini says you can’t worry about the work’s difficulties. “You’re so focused on bringing it to life,” she explains. “It really is a fantasy. There’s so much drama and imagination and really, there’s no time to focus on anything else but how many different colors you can make for each variation, which has its own story and how to make that come to life through music.”

The work culminates in a finale which Babini considers “one of the most gorgeous moments in music making.” Don Quixote is lifted out of his delusion, gaining back cognition only in time for his death. It is a quite different piece tonally from “Metamorphosen” and the oboe concerto, but all three capture the composer’s brilliance, and let audiences experience the full range of his music making.

Babini is also principal cellist for the New Century Chamber Orchestra. The 19-member string ensemble is based in San Francisco and led by music director and world-renowned violinist Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg. She doesn’t conduct, however; the musicians perform without a conductor, so they must take care to listen to each other and move together. That means knowing 18 additional parts of a score, but it also gives them more freedom in interpreting a piece. A structure like that would be too complicated for a full orchestra like MSO, which looks to the conductor for the interpretation.

As Babini puts it, New Century and MSO are “incredibly different beasts.”

The cellist is on a leave of absence from New Century this season because it conflicted too much with MSO’s subscription concerts, but she intends to return in the future. It’s not common for a musician to be a principal instrumentalist for multiple ensembles, mainly because of scheduling issues. Despite the nerves and stress that comes with the double duty, Babini dearly loves both her orchestras.

“It’s sort of like having two different children. You don’t love one more than the other.”

11:15 a.m. Feb. 27 & 8 p.m. Feb. 28 at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. Tickets range from $22-102, available online or by calling 414-291-7605.

Kurt Ollman & Jack Forbes Wilson

These are two of Milwaukee’s brightest stars, though very different ones indeed. Vocalist Kurt Ollman has performed all over the world, from New York to Milan and with prestigious opera companies in Rome, Vienna and more. The baritone currently teaches voice at the UW-Milwaukee. Jack Forbes Wilson is one of the most sought-after performers in the city, whether as an actor, pianist, vocalist or teacher. Earlier this season, Wilson returned to the Milwaukee Rep’s stage to revise his titular role in Liberace! which broke the Rep Stackner Cabaret’s all-time sales record.

This dynamo duo will join forces this weekend to sing a selection of love songs spanning multiple genres and ranging from Broadway hits to contemporary indie ballads. Should be great fun.

8 p.m. Feb. 27 at the Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts. Tickets cost $25, available online or by calling 262-781-9520.

Classic Cadences

The Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra performs several times throughout the season, with varied repertoire. Its upcoming show, Classic Cadences, spotlights the group’s highly acclaimed chamber orchestra and percussion ensemble, giving audiences a chance to hear the city’s future maestros in the making.

7:30 p.m. Feb. 28 at Schwan Concert Hall at Wisconsin Lutheran College, 8800 W. Bluemound Rd. Tickets cost $12, available at the door or by calling 414-267-2950.