New York Philharmonic – Long Yu, conductor; Yo-Yo Ma, cello, Wu Man, pipa. March 7, 2019.

David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center.  Orchestra (Seat CC113, $62.50).

Program

Prelude to Khovanshchina (1874; orch. 1883) by Musorgsky (1839-81), orch. Rimsky-Korsakov (1844-1908).

A Happy Excursion, Concerto for Pipa, Cello, and Orchestra (2018) by Zhao (b. 1973).

Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Op. 74, Pathetique (1893) by Tchaikovsky (1840-93).

The title of the concert was “Yo-Yo Ma and Tchaikovsky,” so one can guess what the main attractions were, and this was mostly – but not completely – true.

The pipa rightfully had an equal billing in the concerto written by Zhao Lin.  While Wu Man (family name Wu) might justifiably be called “the world’s premier pipa virtuoso,” this had to be one of the few times (if not the first) the instrument appeared with the New York Philharmonic.

A Happy Excursion evidently refers to the chapter “逍遥游” in the writings of a famous Chinese philosopher and Taoist Zhuangzi.  The chapter is on the transcendence of everything; quoting from the Playbill: the perfect man has no self, the spiritual man has no achievement, and the true sage has no name.  (Being able to quote doesn’t equate to being able to understand.)  Which was well and good, I think I know transcendence when I hear it, or so I thought.

The♩ 25-minute work has three movements, simply marked: Movement I: ♩ = 66, II: ♩= 56; III: ♩ = 170.  When Ma and Wu came on stage, Ma took the mike and explained to the audience what the music meant.  He compared the three movements to three periods in Chinese history.  The first movement was before the kingdom was formed (I suppose that meant before the first emperor Qin?); the second movement was during the Tang dynasty, height of Chinese civilization where churches, temples, mosques, and synagogues coexisted (that is true, I am not sure it was a peaceful coexistence, though); the third movement referred to present day China, the golden age of culture (I am not sure I heard that right.)  While interesting and probably helpful to understanding the music, Ma’s description also caused confusion in my mind.  On top of that, Wu played a tune from the Tang dynasty rediscovered by Zhao and incorporated into the second movement; I could not tell how it was used.

The music was interesting enough, though.  The pipa is a rather soft-spoken instrument, but it came off quite well, especially in passages where it was the solo instrument or in a duet with the cello.  The only two techniques (and I am sure there are many) I know about – strumming and moving the strings on the frets – were put to great use.  Ma’s expression is usually that of joy as he performs; he was all serious tonight.

The four people standing are (L to R): Ma, Yu, Zhao, and Wu.  All (ethnic) Chinese affair. 

I wonder how many pieces Zhao has written that combines a western instrument with a Chinese one.  I did hear his piece “Duo” a couple of years ago, in Hong Kong, where the cello was paired with the Sheng.  There Ma was the cellist as well.  I also remarked that I wouldn’t have translated the title the way it was in the program.  Furthermore, “Duo” also references the Tang Dynasty.  Perhaps both pieces are silk road project-related.

Reading back over my Blog entry, I was quite impressed with Zhao as a composer back in 2016.  Not so much today.

Tchaikovsky’s Pathetique Symphony can be downright depressing, if performed well.  Most performances show off the orchestra’s skills, with repetitions of some nice melodies.  Most movements end in a whimper, so the fact that the third ends triumphally usually get some applause from those in the audience who think that is the end.  Yu led a very controlled performance, to which the players responded well; but that was about it, the pathos or sadness only came through occasionally, oftentimes because I was looking for it.

A large ensemble was used for both the Musorgsky and Tchaikovsky pieces.  There were 12 cellos, for instance.

The program began with a short but pleasant piece that Musorgsky sketched out for his opera.  He died with many compositions incomplete.  In this case Rimsky-Korsakov orchestrated what Musorgsky had done.

Around the second movement of the Tchaikovsky Yo-Yo Ma came to the audience (quietly, in Tier 2).  Anne remarked that he wasn’t that enthusiastic at the conclusion of the symphony either.

The New York Times review heaps high praise on both the Zhao and Tchaikovsky’s pieces.  I am not sure I share the reviewer's enthusiasm.  And the composer is Mr. Zhao, not Mr. Lin.

We took the train into the city, and grabbed a snack at Penn Station before returning home.