Michael Gravel Edmonton Writer

Roby Lakatos Shakes it up with the ESO

On Saturday evening my wife and I had the opportunity to slide down to the Winspear for the ESO’s latest performance in the Robbins Pop series. The event featured the orchestra with The Roby Lakatos Ensemble, a six-piece Hungarian folk/roots group. As I’ve written before, my wife and I are currently enjoying the hell out of our season passes to the Classic Landmarks Series. We’ve come to love (and even depend on) symphony nights, so it was a special treat to see an additional performance, especially one that was outside of our current series.

The atmosphere at the Masters series can be a little on the heavy and stodgy side at times (I’ve seen more than a few people stumble out of a concert with steam emanating from their ears) so I was really curious as to how the “lighter” approach of the Robbins Pops series would translate for the crowd. Would I see any tattoos or facial piercings? Leather jackets at least? Well, the age range was wider. Plenty of young people (a few with lip rings) and a good helping of older folk. This crowd felt different, funkier, a bit edgier (as edgy as a symphony performance can be, that is). It was a nice change.

We had floor-level seats for the performance, which were a switch from our usual perches in the upper circle. Gotta say, I know why the most expensive seats are at the back of the hall, one level up from the floor. The sound quality from our seats was a bit on the muddy side. Had trouble distinguishing the different instruments at times. I also missed seeing all the performers, as strange as that may sound.

The night opened with remarks from conductor Bill Eddins, who, as I’ve said on many occasions, has to be the coolest guy in the world. Eddins described Roby’s music as what inspired masters like Liszt, Brahms, and others. His advice was to “hang on”, because tonight was going to be a wild one. It was that and more. The Roby Lakatos Ensemble strolled on stage with the confidence and swagger of a street gang. Black tuxes, slicked-back hair, and some central-European attitude. Decked out in bright red pants and a glitter vest, Roby was a commanding, charismatic presence. Before the ensemble struck a note I knew we were in for a fantastic night.

Across the evening’s two halves, Roby and his cohorts took the audience to the heights and quiet depths of traditional folk / gypsy music. He jammed his violin with the conviction of a man who was born with the instrument in his hands. His band was equally impressive – especially cimbalom (a concert dulcimer – here’s the Wikipedia entry) player Jeno Lisztes, who never broke a smile, but was nonetheless the crowd favorite after Roby. The ensemble soared with foot-tappers that begged for dancing, then slowed things down to hold the audience rapt on the edge of a bow. Often in the same piece, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to dance or just sit with my hand on my chin and soak in every note.

During the break I planned to get a traditional symphony treat – a Haagen Dazs ice cream bar. Crazy thing was, the lineup for ice cream was damn near longer than the queue for booze. I settled for a chocolate chip cookie and a latte instead. My wife and I watched people flow out of the main hall with mile-wide smiles. The delight was palpable, and I wished that the performers could see everyone so happy to be there and so thoroughly entertained.

The second half brought more stunning music, including a moving version of John William’s Schindler’s List, rendered with exquisite beauty by Roby and with just the right touches from the orchestra. Throughout the evening I felt the sensuousness of Roby’s arrangements. The pieces often started with slow romance and built up steam into full-fledged, red-blooded passion. It made sense, then, that the final (official) piece of the night featured a duet with Roby and one of the female violinists from the orchestra. They traded passages and I marveled at the beauty of it; the humanity of it. The simplicity of a man and a woman trading violin riffs until their notes smoldered into each other. This was music for the body as much as the mind.

However, Roby and his band weren’t done. They kicked out FOUR encores. Four! The ensemble would leave the stage to a standing-o and Eddins would just wave them back. I pity the few who left the auditorium early, thinking the show was done. The encores were the band in play mode, letting their hair down. We heard Rachmaninoff and stunning displays of technical skill from Lisztes, the never-smiling cimbalom player. The looks on the faces of the orchestra players were priceless. By the time the last bow was taken, each player owned a big smile and many were laughing behind their instruments. Damn inspiring. That’s what music should do, shouldn’t it?

Entry #119 · March 14, 2010 in