World premiere of La vita nova, based on Dante Alighieri, at the Renaissance Theatre Berlin & Bayer Kultur, Leverkusen, March 2010:
“In his début as a composer for the stage, Uri Rom demonstrated his ability to play skilfully with compositional styles ranging from Renaissance to our days and to add a personal touch without losing track of the broader context. The wide stylistic variety is also mirrored in the versatile use of the ensemble, numbering five musicians – the guitarist also plays percussion instruments while the clarinettist occasionally switches over to the flute. Rom opts for a daring mix of harp with electric guitar, oboe d’amore with saxophone, adding effective percussion accents. A nine tone theme, corresponding to the role of the number nine as a symbol for Beatrice alluded to in the text, functions as a leitmotif, linking the various emotional domains.
The composer is further capable of writing ‘sweet’ melodies to match the richly nuanced singing of the soprano, ranging from bel canto (occasionally sung in Italian) to a ballad-like style, theatrical music at its best. Rom’s musical language alludes to madrigals, Stravinsky and Puccini. And, when in a feverish dream Dante has his heart eaten by Beatrice, the composer employs an excessive sprechgesang à la Schönberg’s ‘Pierrot Lunaire’, which is then followed by operatic arioso phrases in a free tonal style.
... The soprano Janet Williams triumphs with her personality, power of expression and intensity... and her rendering of Dante’s Beatrice sonnets makes not only the languishing poet at his desk, but also the audience rave in excitement... From a musical point of view the evening was a gain.”
(Peter P. Pachl, Neue Musikzeitung, March 15th 2010) | For samples please click here.
“The composer Uri Rom captures Dante’s verse in a variety of melodies, now a Tuscan folk song, now an aria, now a lied. Accompanied by an ensemble of five musicians, the performance time and again develops into a small-scale opera... The audience listens spellbound.”
(Ulrike Borowczyk, Berliner Morgenpost, 25. März 2010) | For samples please click here.
Modern Times, fantasia for violin, cello and piano, at the 19th Freden music festival on August 2nd 2009:
“Thundering applause for Uri Rom – camerata freden performs the work commissioned from him, ‘Modern Times’, and inspires an enthusiastic audience reaction at Freden’s concert barn... camerata freden played ‘Modern Times’ - a lively, sparkling piece... The composer received a thundering applause”
(Susanne Diehl, Alfelder Zeitung, August 4th 2009) | For a recording please click here.
“Notwithstanding the impression that this movement is possibly too long for a horn concerto by Mozart... Rom succeeds in supplying a solution that is very near to Mozart’s musical idiom, and is at the same time well considered in every repect and artistically convincing. At any rate, the composition which had its world premiere on November 26th 2006 at the Chamber Music Hall of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra sounds distinctly like Mozart... This is surely the best thing one could say of this kind of restoration endeavours.”
(Ulrich Konrad, Acta Mozartiana 2007/1+2) | For a recording please click here.
World premiere recording of the opera Die Schweizer Familie (Weigl/Castelli):
“Uri Rom directs the Chorus and Orchestra Dreieck in a fine performance with some attractive musical moments. Everyone contributes to a strong performance which never seeks to over-do the work’s fragile charm.”
(Robert Hugill, MusicWeb International) | For samples please click here.
“The conductor Uri Rom directs the Chorus & Orchestra Dreieck, with musicians from Germany, Austria and Switzerland. They attain a light, lively Singspiel tone and keep track of the numerous ensembles, while properly avoiding any sentimentality. The young and motivated ensemble succeeds in capturing and conveying the charm of this work, which lasts a little longer than two hours, and also manage to make clear what once made the piece so successful.”
(Uwe Schneider, Klassik.Com 7. Mai 2006) | For samples please click here.
