A&E
Jon F. West showcases powerful pipes while singing in his concert on Saturday night
By Dylan Horgan ’17
September 29, 2016
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I am not a connoisseur of classical music. I’m not even confident that I possess an average familiarity with the genre. Anybody reading this review who considers themselves an aficionado will most likely be struck by my staggering ignorance. However, staggering ignorance can be usefully applied to provide a completely outside perspective. Or, it might just make for an interesting read. I’m relying on the latter being true.
Entering this concert hall, the disparity in median age from the concerts I normally attend was evident. This isn’t a denigration of any kind. Everyone has felt isolated from the seemingly predominant tastes of their generation at some point, and I’ve always felt a lack of connection with contemporary trends (“Oh, like that snobby guy I hate?” you might ask. “Yes, that is me,” I respond). This was still the most extreme step into the past I’ve ever taken. Mid-show, while attempting to type a few notes on my luminous smart phone, I received an absolutely withering gaze from an older gentleman sitting in my row. It’s rough knowing that you’ve undoubtedly provided material for someone’s scathing anti-Millennials rant. I put away the phone and decided to actually experience the show.
Jon Fredric West, Lecturer in Music at Hamilton College and Professional Opera Singer, certainly has a powerful voice. I imagine this statement is akin to noticing that Usain Bolt can run really, really fast. It still seems worth noting however, since two other talented singers took the stage that night and neither could really match the concussive, trumpet-like blast that is West’s heldentenor voice. A heldentenor is essentially a singer that possesses both the range and “powerful, clarion” sound of a heroic tenor along with a more typical “baritonal quality” (as Wikipedia describes it). These characteristics are evident even to a philistine like myself. There’s a commanding, intimidating presence to West’s singing that is largely absent from his normal speaking voice. Still, I imagine falling asleep in one of his classes would be an inhumanly difficult undertaking.
He performed pieces plucked from the Opera canon, along with a few folk songs. Hearing West’s wide vibrato grace the simpler melodies of traditional music made for an admittedly strange contrast, but I’d describe it as a pleasant, intriguing strangeness. He performed both Italian and German opera, as well as more modern pieces such as a composition from The Rake’s Progress by Igor Stravinsky. West’s stentorian tenor was particularly well-suited for the German pieces, reaching soaring heights over the dark, dramatic piano chords. Maybe most impressive was his boundless endurance, never cracking nor seeming to back off even the most challenging high notes. He complemented his vocal performances by (to my surprise) passionately, physically acting out the emotions of every song. To a new viewer these gesticulations can seem a tad corny and melodramatic, but eventually I found myself enjoying watching someone take such earnest pleasure in performance.
I will admit I did not go home and fill my ipod with a mountain of opera music after the concert. However, it was nice to step foot in an unfamiliar world. A world that I suspect I am probably not finished learning about.