I was interested to read the responses of other group members to this
concert, and I thought I'd post my own.
I thought this concert was very interesting and enjoyable, if uneven.
A very young British conductor, Daniel Harding, was making his debut
with the orchestra. The first item on the program, Berg's "Lyric Suite,"
was--along with being back in Philadelphia for a visit after recently
moving from there--our main reason for attending. It was very beautifully
played, with stunningly delicate quiet playing. Those Philadelphia
strings.... I thought the interpretation downplayed the work's fire, drama
and intensity, however. I would say "Karajanesque," except that Karajan
does a much better job of delivering these particular qualities than
Harding did. As a performance emphasizing tonal beauty and lyricism,
though, I thought it was very good.
The second item on the program, Grieg's _Piano Concerto_ was one I had
mixed feelings about. I do not like this work much. It's always seemed
to me to be a bunch of sentimental, bland big tunes strung together, with
no architectural interest. A blind spot of mine, I confess. I have never
heard the pianist, Olli Mustonen, live or on record, however. What I have
read about him piqued my interest quite a bit, so I was happy to have the
chance to hear him play, even if I would have preferred hearing a different
work.
Well, after he started playing I didn't care, as his performance was IMO
brilliant, thoughtful, edgy and intense. I would put it up there with
some of the my favorite piano concerto performances in recent years in
Philadelphia (by Argerich, Grimaud, Pollini, and Uchida). Mustonen's
playing was remarkably articulate, and he used staccato much more than
I've heard other pianists use. But not only staccato--other parts were
played with a lovely, flowing legato--sometimes sounding almost like
Debussy. At other times, his playing was wild, crazily dramatic. Tempos
varied considerably, including a quite slow performance of the first
movement. Normally I might well have been annoyed by such slow playing,
but I thought he maintained momentum superbly while highlighting and
exploring many colorful, surprising moments which could be overlooked
at a faster pace. In short, a performance of prismatic variety. I only
wish that more Romantic "warhorses" could be played in this way. I
don't think I will ever like the Grieg Concerto, but I can't imagine
hearing a better performance of it.
I should point out, though, that my spouse and I may be the only people
who felt this way. I heard lots of muttering during intermission ("A
performance for the aesthetically challenged," "Pick up the pace!" and
"He wants to be seen as the artiste"), and the Philadelphia Inquirer's
reviewer's comments on Mustonen were scathing. He heard some inaccuracies
in the performance, which there may have been (of course only performances
with no mistakes can be good). This critic assumed that Mustonen must
think of himself as a performer with great individuality--and then scoffed
at the notion. I couldn't disagree with this attitude more. What is
Romantic piano playing supposed to be about?? Should it sound like
lullabies, or studies?
The critic seemed mostly bothered, however, by Mustonen's hand gestures,
as were some of the other audience members I overheard. One person was
sure that Mustonen could not really have been sweating when he wiped his
brow. He was doing it to appear artistic. The Inquirer's critic devoted
most of his comments to these hand gestures. Well, I was sitting where
I couldn't see them, but even if I had I can't help wondering why this
matters. Performing is very hard to do, and psychologically risky, so if
performers want to dance, or gesture, or chew gum who cares? I listen to
music with my ears.
The final work on the program was Schumann's 3rd Symphony. I felt that
this was the weakest part of the concert. The Orchestra often sounded
out of sync, remarkably, especially in the strings and at the beginning
of movements. The textures did sound heavy too. I was reminded of a
recent post on RMCR, by Tony Movshon I believe, which pointed out that
the flaws in Schumann's orchestration are much more obvious in live
performance. The best parts of the performance were the big, solemn,
massive tuttis towards the end--great brass playing, especially the
trombones. The weakest part--anytime the music was supposed to dance.
I have never heard Sawallisch's Schumann, so I can't compare except to
say that I strongly suspect the orchestra would have *sounded* much better
if he had been conducting, at the very least.
Perhaps Harding, who's all of 24, is still working out his approach to this
tough work. He seems like an alert and skilled conductor, but beyond that
I can't discern very much about his approach. He provided good
accompaniment for Mustonen.
I'll be eating my heart out later this year, when Sawallisch conducts
_Missa Solemnis_, all you lucky Philadelphia residents. Stay tuned for
reviews of El Paso SO concerts, though...
Brian
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