Every year, the Sarajevska Filharmonia puts on a New Year's Eve Concert, and it is a highly recommended attraction for tourists and locals alike. Ticket holders enjoy a a break from the orchestra's pops concert with a cocktail hour serenaded by chamber groups from the orchestra during intermission. This year's program consisted of popular classical repertoire including the Overture to Fledermaus, the Drinking Song from La Traviata, and Radetzky March. It was quite well-received by the audience. Our last official piece of the program was the Waltz from Khatchaturian's Masquerade Ball. In addition to the image that Matt put into my head about the piece (people dancing and suddenly realizing that their masks were stuck to their face) somebody had the bright idea of letting loose a bunch of red and gold balloons. They were flying and popping all over the place, adding to the ambiance of the piece. It was actually a pretty cool effect to close out the concert.
From a musician's point of view, even though the content of the program was quite light, it was still challenging to keep concentration throughout the duration of the concert. I have noticed that I have difficulty getting into the groove of performing here, and I think that it has to do with the nature of our performance space. In the majority of orchestras in the US, musicians file out on stage at their own pace and begin warming up there. This allows woodwind players to create their little nest of cases, reeds, water, and other necessary items for their performance. However, in Europe, everyone files onstage at once, leaving very little time for nesting before the concert master comes out to tune the orchestra. I should be used to it, since that's what I have had to do at Northwestern for the past 7 years. However, I find myself extremely distracted backstage in Sarajevo. It is dark, slightly chilly, and without chairs. We wait roughly 30 minutes, chatting amongst ourselves to pass the time until we file onstage in a semi-organized fashion. Upon arriving at my seat, I often find myself slightly discombobulated for the first few minutes of the program, and the performance passes like a dream.
In addition to switching from the comfort of being behind a curtain to being thrust into the blinding light of spectators and paparazzi, a pops program produces other obstacles with concentration. We played about 20 pieces of music during each half of the concert. This requires context switching between each of those pieces. They vary from transparent and exposed arias to comfortably unison marches, and the flow of music making is disrupted as applause fills the hall between each piece.
Perhaps another reason I was a little distracted during concert was the thoughtful gift my bassoon colleague gave me. It was an old bottle filled with lozovaca, a type of rakia made with grapes. (Don't worry. I didn't drink it until after the concert.) I wasn't entirely sure what to expect when he told me about it earlier in the week, but I was quite impressed when he gave it to me. It was a glass bottle covered in old leather, one of Bosnia's famous exports. As you can tell from the picture, it has a lot of character and will be perhaps my most prized souvenir.
After the concert, our Otes gang and several other members of the orchestra stayed in the theater to celebrate. The orchestra manager arranged to have a party in the theater on account of how late it would be by the time we finished the concert. It was complete with delicious, catered food, loud music/karaoke, and good people. Drinks were BYOB, so we shared everything from beer and wine to rakia and rum. I arrived at the party around 10:30, and before I knew it, it was already 2012. The changeover was a little bizarre though. In the US, we typically countdown the seconds to midnight, highlighting the suspense and anticipation of the new year, but that didn't happen here. One minute, we were eating, drinking, dancing, and listening to traditional Bosnian music. Then seemingly out of nowhere, everybody was wishing each other a happy new year (sretna nova godina) and the best of luck. Another US tradition is kissing someone special at midnight, which was also a non-issue here. I kissed everybody at midnight...European style.
The party continued for another few hours after midnight. During that time, we saw our conductor dance and our colleagues sing karaoke. It was one of the most enjoyable New Year's celebrations I've had and one that I am not likely to ever forget.
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