Modus Performs Brahms & Burckardt @ Merkin Concert in Review
Modus Operandi Orchestra
Justin Bischof, Music Director & Conductor
Eiko Kano, concertmaster
Merkin Hall at Kaufman Music Center, New York, NY
March 3, 2026
The Modus Operandi Orchestra (MOO), under the direction of Justin Bischof, presented a concert entitled “Brahms & Burckardt @ Merkin,” featuring three world premieres by composer Rachel J. Burckardt, tastefully sandwiched between masterworks by Johannes Brahms, at Merkin Hall on March 3, 2026.
As noted in the orchestra’s biography, MOO consists of “65 of New York’s finest orchestral musicians,” and it was immediately evident that the group is made up of players of the highest caliber. Among the musicians were familiar faces from leading orchestras such as the New York Philharmonic, the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, and the Cleveland Orchestra, as well as chamber and contemporary ensembles including the Attacca Quartet, The Knights, and NOVUS NY of Trinity Church Wall Street.
The program began with Brahms’s Tragic Overture, Op. 81 (1880). The orchestra produced a rich timbre and warmth well suited to Brahms. Observing such a large-scale work from close proximity felt almost indulgent. The experience differs greatly from hearing an orchestra on Stern Auditorium’s Perelman Stage at Carnegie Hall. While the overall orchestral blend may be less unified at such proximity, one instead hears the intricate details of the orchestration, articulation, and the subtle colors Brahms sought to convey. It offered a unique listening experience that the audience appeared to enjoy as much as I did.
A native New Yorker, award-winning composer, and multi-instrumentalist, Rachel J. Burckardt (b. 1954) has spent more than 45 years as both a church musician and a civil engineer. The program featured four of her works, including three orchestral world premieres. October Fanfare (1984/2025), heard here in its orchestral world premiere, was originally composed as a choral recessional for Ms. Burckardt’s wedding more than 41 years ago. The work pairs the main theme from her Fanfare in E-flat with verses from her setting of Psalm 150. Psalm 150—often favored by composers—has also inspired works such as Symphony of Psalms by Igor Stravinsky, Psalm 150 (1892) by Anton Bruckner, and Psalm 150, Op. 67 (1962) by Benjamin Britten. In Ms. Burckardt’s work, the brass writing effectively conveyed the grandeur of the text (NIV): “Praise the Lord, Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens.”
Aire Mount Auburn (2020) began with a solo harp, beautifully played by Kristi Shade. One could clearly hear the influence of traditional Irish music. Ms. Burckardt notes that her mother’s side of the family has Irish roots stretching back generations. The melody, drawn from the traditional Irish tune “Shane”—also associated with the hymns Be Thou My Vision and Lord of All Hopefulness—was later taken up by solo flute (Anna Urrey) and violin (Eiko Kano), the latter performed in a fiddle-like style. The result was both stylistically convincing and one of the most memorable moments of the evening.
The second world premiere, Variations on Afternoon Light (2025) further revealed Ms. Burckardt’s distinctive orchestral voice. The work takes as its starting point Afternoon Light, a composition by her close friend and collaborator Bill Desmond, originally written for electric guitars and percussion. Ms. Burckardt herself performed in Mr. Desmond’s ensemble Tone Poem, an unusual group that included hammered dulcimer, psaltery, guitars, piano, pan pipes, and charango. Perhaps influenced by this experience, the orchestration here felt especially imaginative. A solo harp reimagined the opening guitar theme, later punctuated by pizzicato strings. A particularly striking moment came in the form of a lyrical cadenza by oboist Hsuan-Fong Chen.
The final world premiere, Shloshah Tehillim (Three Psalms- 2025) emerged as the highlight of Ms. Burckardt’s contributions to the program. Given her decades of experience as a church musician, her deep understanding of sacred music was evident throughout. The work powerfully conveyed the devotional spirit of the texts. The first movement, Al Yedei Nechalei Bavel (By the Streams of Babylon), sets the well-known Psalm 137. Ms. Burckardt notes in the program that the original version used a complex layering of synthesizers, soloists, and choir, followed later by an “unplugged” arrangement featuring fingerpicked guitar arpeggios and solo tenor voice. Both versions evoke the melancholy and longing of the captive Israelites. In this orchestral adaptation, the layered textures of the earlier versions were effectively translated into orchestral color. The second movement, Rachamim (Mercy), merges Ms. Burckardt’s settings of Psalms 51, 103, and 106, while the third movement, Yerushah (Inheritance), sets Psalm 16.
Conductor Justin Bischof introduced the program by discussing the distinction between “radical” and “traditional” orchestral composition, citing figures such as Hector Berlioz and Arnold Schoenberg as examples of the former, and composers like Brahms and Antonín Dvořák as representatives of the latter. The evening’s program leaned toward the traditional side. Ms. Burckardt’s works largely avoided extended techniques, electronics, or improvisation, remaining grounded in Western classical tonality.
In an era when orchestral writing often incorporates a wide range of experimental techniques and multimedia elements, Ms. Burckardt chose a more traditional framework. Yet within those boundaries she expressed an authentic and personal voice, drawing on sacred and liturgical traditions, elements of jazz, and the lilting character of Irish melody.
This raises an intriguing point. One might also argue that Brahms himself was radical in his own way. Although his formal structures and orchestration were deeply rooted in the tradition of Beethoven, his harmonic language and rhythmic innovations—particularly his masterful use of hemiola—pushed the boundaries of what symphonic writing could be within that inherited framework. In doing so, he reshaped the course of orchestral music for generations that followed.
Erika Dohi
