By Lyn Bronson

Maestro John Larry Granger and the Santa Cruz Symphony introduced a new work by composer Stacy Garrop on Sunday afternoon, January 13, at the Mello Center in Watsonville in the Symphony’s third concert of its current season. This was a repeat of the concert held the night before at the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium.

When I first read about Ms. Garrop’s new work entitled Thunderwalker, the first image that came to my mind was that of a score for a possible continuation of the made-for TV series “Twin Peaks – Firewalker.” However, it was anything but. Anyone who remembers the Twin Peaks score will recall its funereal pace and the maudlin, soupy emotions it evoked.

Thunderwalker, on the other hand, crackled with energy and vitality. Its performance on this occasion demonstrated that Ms. Garrop is a skilful composer with a interesting message and all the necessary means to convey this message in a meaningful and effective manner. Not surprisingly, this performance made a strong impression on the audience.

Ms. Garrop was inspired by the image of Thunderwalker as “a huge God-like creature who lives in the sky and whose footsteps fall loudly among the clouds.” The structure of the work hearkens back to the 18th century in that its first movement is a fugue, the second is founded on a passacaglia-like bass figure, and the third movement is a scherzo/trio.

Ms. Garrop’s clever use of instrumentation added immeasurably to the effectiveness of the score. Her writing for strings, winds and percussion, and especially the excellent piano effects demonstrated a high level of mastery and artistry. Ms. Garrop is sending us a message that contemporary music is alive and well, and the message came through strong and clear.

The remainder of the afternoon’s concert was somewhat problematic. Part of the problem may be the slightly muffled acoustics of the Henry J. Mello Center. In addition to the slight lack of clarity, the volume and resonance of the sound doesn’t leap out and grab you. Thus, I tended to feel somewhat detached and remote from the music being performed.

The afternoon’s soloist was the fine young American pianist Robert Thies in the Shostakovich Concerto No. 1 for Piano and Orchestra, Op. 35. This concerto is unusual among piano concertos in that it never tries to be profound or take itself too seriously. There are a lot of humorous passages in this work, and Mr. Thies for the most part succeeded admirably in achieving the light touch required. Where the performance was lacking was in an occasional absence of rhythmic impetuosity and vital urgency. Especially in the last movement, I was waiting for the performance to explode with a violent and vigorous sense of humor. This effect was finally achieved in the closing pages and thus the performance ended with a satisfying climax. There is a wonderful and very prominent part for solo trumpet in this work, and Warren Bartold did himself proud.

The closing work of the afternoon’s concert, Mozart’s “Jupiter” Symphony, also left something to be desired. I once again felt a slight detachment from the performance and, although I couldn’t decide whether it was the laid back acoustics of the hall or Maestro Granger’s direction, once again I had a curious feeling that I was waiting for something to happen.

The Santa Cruz Symphony’s next series of concerts will be in the middle of February with an interesting program that includes a lesser known overture by Carl Maria von Weber, an interesting new work by Kirke Mechem for orchestra, chorus and soloists, and concluding with Ravel’s orchestration of Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at and Exhibition.”