ArtsBeat

Last week, on an hour-long car trip, I turned on WNED-FM and heard the most amazing rendition of one of Richard Strauss' suites from his glittering opera "Der Rosenkavalier." It was so vivid, so over-the-top. As I listened, I began thinking, you could call this interpretation self-indulgent, if you wanted to be crabby. But I loved it. And believe me, I am fussy about "Der Rosenkavalier."

I got so absorbed in what I was hearing that I kept getting lost on the way to my destination, which was way the heck out in Alden. I don't know my way around Alden and listening to this music did not help. Does anyone else have problems listening to classical music while driving? Because I know I do.

Then it occurred to me: I'll bet this is the Buffalo Philharmonic! Because first of all, I heard coughing in the background -- the telltale sign of a live performance, and perhaps a Buffalo performance because people here always seem to have that Buffalo cough. Next, it was Friday morning, and though I am usually at work and can't listen regularly, I seemed to remember that WNED aired BPO performances on Fridays.

Finally, as I thought about it, I remembered that the BPO and Music Director JoAnn Falletta had played the Suite from "Der Rosenkavalier," and I had loved it. What didn't strike me until now, though, was how distinctive that performance was. When I heard it Friday, it just jumped out at me as different. It was so lively, so dramatic. And as I said, with "Rosenkavalier," I am tough to please, because I love the opera so much and I take it so personally. I had just heard a performance of a suite from the opera conducted by Jesus Lopez-Cobos, and it hadn't cut it for me.

It's so much fun to compare performances by different orchestras and conductors. Sometimes even if an interpretation isn't my cup of tea, I admire the musicians for attempting it. This morning I tuned in to WNED in the middle of Mozart's 39th Symphony. When it got to the finale, I loved it because it was just so lightning-fast. I love that movement fast and this was the fastest I had ever heard it. It was just whipping. By the time it was halfway through, I had kind of decided it was a little too fast for me. This is how you think when you're a Mozart maven, which believe me, I am.

The conductor was Leonard Bernstein. I stuck around to find out. And even though his tempo was a bit brisk for my personal taste, I like him for having done it. Someone has to do it, so we know what that extreme sounds like.

Back to the BPO's "Rosenkavalier" suite. It, too, stood out as a kind of extreme. In that case, I loved it. Vive la difference!

And vive la BPO, which really does have a sound all its own. WNED-FM airs "Philharmonic Friday," every Friday at 10 a.m. -- I just checked -- which features tapes of BPO performances. Tune in and hear for yourself.