Rogue Valley Symphony season finale with bassist Gary Karr (Koussevitzky, Paganini, Rossini, Sibelius)

It’s a fact. My friend Martin Majkut, conductor of the Rogue Valley Symphony Orchestra, gets jazzed about each one of his upcoming concerts. His excitement is palpable. As the face of the organization, he is as dynamic in his one-on-one marketing as he is with a baton in his hand.

So I would forgive him if he ever over-sold the product he’s presenting. But the truth is, after having attended the first four of this season’s concerts, I can’t say he’s exaggerated one whit.

The last concert, which featured the wickedly challenging Symphony No. 5 by Prokofiev provided ample proof. While Majkut didn’t refer to it as “a test” for his musicians, this piece, which unleashes a percussive arsenal, most certainly tested his players’ professionalism, pride and capacity to take the symphony to a higher level. With its often-frenetic pace, the symphony is a physically and mentally demanding marathon. Without such an intense focus, it’s a piece that could have easily devolved to mud.

Majkut’s players responded to his challenge. The performance was a triumph and one that was as much fun for the conductor as any he’s shepherded this year. His energetic squat-thrust conducting style during this piece was as entertaining as the music.

The performance was a triumph and one that was as much fun for the conductor as any he’s shepherded this year.

Now, in the run-up to this weekend’s series of concerts, Majkut has been his usual effusive self with regard to the presence of guest artist Gary Karr, whose bass solos will be featured in a Concerto for Double Bass and Orchestra by Serge Koussevitzky and Paganini’s “Moses Fantasy.” According to Majkut, Karr has no equal…Anywhere.

And, frankly, after reading the notes posted on the Symphony’s web site, I’m even more intrigued to see him work. Here’s a quote I’m borrowing from the Program Notes:

Why does he play the bass? An official chocoholic, he once told an interviewer, “If chocolate could sing, it would sound like a double bass. That was my thought the day I first pulled the bow across the strings. It sounded like chocolate. If it weren’t for the double bass I’d weigh 500 pounds–I get my fix by playing a note.” Perhaps just as important, he was born into a family with seven generations of bass players. “I was surrounded by music. My sister played harp. Funny how we both chose such large instruments. Our family was the first in the neighborhood to have a station wagon. We needed a big car to lug the instruments.”

The concert line-up also features Rossini’s “La Gazza Ladra” and the Sibelius Symphony N. 2.

While the Ashland concert Friday night is sold out, tickets remain for performances on Saturday in Medford and on Sunday in Grants Pass. The acoustics at the Performing Arts Highs School in Grants Pass make the drive from Ashland worthwhile.

For Tickets call 541-552-6354.