Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center, Orchestra 4 Rear (Seat JJ11, $44).
Program
Night on Bald Mountain (1866-67; orch. by Rimsky-Korsakov 1886) by Mussorgsky (1839-81).
Violin Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 99 (1947-48) by Shostakovich (1906-75).
Symphony No. 5 in E-flat major, Op. 82 (1912-19) by Sibelius (1865-1957)
We got tickets for this concert because it was to be conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen. He was out with back problems and Zinman stepped in; they also changed the program. I am impressed that they could substitute with something as complicated as the Shostakovich piece on such short notice. It was last performed by this orchestra more than 2 years ago.
We decided to drive in. The tunnels were backed up, so we drove through Jersey City to reach Holland Tunnel, which was relatively easy. We also managed to park on 10th Ave, saving $30 or so in Lincoln Center parking fees. I talked to Chung Shu today and joked that we finally grew up and are now like Mr. Yang. Coming home was no problem either.
Our tickets were exchanged from another concert that we couldn't go to. Those were "best available seats" at $54 each; our downgraded seats were actually quite good, only complaint is they were a bit far from the stage. With a reasonable pair of binoculars, we were fine.
The original pieces that got substituted were by Lutoslawski and Szymanowski. I am sure I have as much trouble understanding their music as I would pronouncing their names. The gentleman sitting next to me was a bit disappointed, though. When we were chatting during a break, we discovered he also saw the concert where Vadim Repin broke his violin string and performed "the miraculous exchange".
The Mussorgsky piece is a "warhorse" and was pleasant to listen to. I was surprised at how fast it is played. The impressive thing was the orchestra was quite precise.
I hadn't heard Tetzlaff before, and the Shostakovich violin concerto was also new to me. The replacement program had several interesting observations on the piece, including the fact that it was dedicated to David Oistrakh, that Rostropovich despised Oistrakh (I wouldn't have expected that), and the obligatory remark that Shostakovich lived in difficult polititcal times. The soloist needed the music, which while a bit unexpected, was understandable since he wasn't planning on this piece.
What can I say about the performance? In a word, jaw-dropping. The first movement (Nocturne: Moderato) was straightforward enough, although a slow movement is a bit unusual for a first movement. The violin Tetzlaff uses (per Playbill) is modeled after a Guarneri del Gesu, made by the German violinmaker Peter Greiner. It projected better than most Guarnerius violins I have heard before, and had a good quality tone to it. I began to admire Tetzlaff as a virtuoso during the second movement (Scherzo: Allegro); many of the passages could be considered violent and we expected a string to snap at any time. While none did, (thanks to my binoculars) quite a few hairs on the bow did break. The third movement (Passacaglia: Andante) had such along introduction that I wondered whether the violin was going to have a part at all. The fourth movement (Burlesque: Allegro con brio - Presto) was the coup de grace. I couldn't find the right words to describe all the different difficult passages. Anne made the observation that Tetzlaff didn't even break a sweat, making the performance like a regular day at the office. He didn't move around much either. After the tremendous applause and several curtain calls, Tetzlaff played a slow piece with many double- and triple-stops.
After the violin concerto, Sibelius sounded staid, calm, and regular. It consists of three movements: (i) Tempo molto moderato - Allegro moderato; (ii) Andante mosso, quasi allegretto; and (iii) Allegro molto - Misterioso. Playbill quotes the composer saying this "... God opens His door for a moment ..." and "triumphal." And it was written in a major key. Still, the brightest of Sibelius is still a rather somber affair. It was relatively short at 35 minutes. However, it was "just another symphony" in my opinion. Perhaps I need to hear it more often. Embarrassingly, of the two tunes listed in the Playbill I managed to catch only the one by the horns.
On our way back, we heard the last movement of Saint-Saen's third violin concerto, followed by a piece by Martinu. Turns out it was a broadcast over WQXR of a concert we were at a couple of weeks ago. Only with proper sound engineering, the violin sounded loud and clear, and the piano part in Martinu appears so integral that Anne wonders why she had trouble hearing it live.
The concert we went to was the first of a series. I couldn't find any review of it yet.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment