Above: violinist James Ehnes
~ Author: Oberon
Thursday January 25th, 2018 - A composer we love, an orchestra we love, a violinist we love, a conductor we love: my friend Dmitry and I had a great time at The New York Philharmonic tonight.
For this all-Prokofiev concert, The Love for Three Oranges Suite proved an imaginative opener. I've seen this opera only once, in Maurice Sendak's clever 1985 production for New York City Opera, and enjoyed it immensely. It was wonderful to encounter this music again, especially in Stéphane Denève's witty and wonder-filled interpretation.
The suite is in six movements, starting with Ridiculous Fellows which opens big and then gets subtle; the music is filled with a sense of irony, as is the entire opera. The Infernal Scene - a card-game played by Tchelio and Fata Morgana - sounds ominous and develops a churning feeling. Fanfares herald the famous March, which begins softly and soon struts boldly. The xylophone and muted trumpets add a toy-like sound, and the winds play over pulsing violins; this March is droll, almost tipsy. Limpid fluting from Yoobin Son delights in the Scherzo, and there's a really lovely viola passage for Cynthia Phelps. The violins and horns play in unison. The suite ends with Flight, an allegro with an agitated air. Maestro Denève was perfectly in his element for this coloristic music, and he gallantly drew Ms. Phelps to her feet for a solo bow, graciously kissing her hand.
James Ehnes's playing of the Prokofiev Violin Concerto No. 1 was truly ravishing. This concerto has become very familiar to me over time in Jerome Robbins's balletic setting, Opus 19/The Dreamer, for New York City Ballet; it's my favorite of all Robbins ballets.
The music commences with a soft shivering tingle, and the violinist takes up a plaintive melody. Mr. Ehnes plays with an innate sense of rhythmic surety and delicious subtlety of dynamics. The music is dreamlike (hence the title of the Robbins ballet) with the soloist playing over soft tremolos from the violas. From this shimmering atmosphere, the flute sings while the violinist plays in his highest range. Really luminous.
The Scherzo was taken at super speed, giving the music a wild quality. Mr. Ehnes's superbly scrappy attacks propel things forward; the music buzzes and the violin slithers. The last movement commences with Judith LeClair's bassoon theme, into which the solo violin insinuates itself in a melodic rise. Liang Wang's oboe enchants, and the music grows ethereal, with an atmosphere of swooning beauty. Prokofiev brings in the high harp, and the violinst plays gliding scales. A series of delicate, jewel-like trills in the stratosphere display Mr. Ehnes's clarity and control; the concerto ends in an iridescent glow.
Mr. Ehnes's sustaining of the intriguingly glistening atmosphere of the final movement held the audience under his spell; a warm ovation ensued, and Maestro Denève seated himself among the players as the violinist offered a heartfelt Bach encore. Called back for yet another bow, Mr. Ehnes was hailed by all the Philharmonic string players tapping their bows in unison: a lovely gesture of musical congeniality.
Above: Stéphane Denève, in a Genevieve Caron portrait
Selections from Romeo and Juliet completed the program. Myself, I think Cinderella is the more interesting of Prokofiev's two full-length ballet scores. But audiences never seem to tire of the familiar tunes of the composer's setting of the Shakespeare classic, and there was much brilliant playing in this evening's presentation; it's music Maestro Maestro Denève clearly savours.
This cinematic score impresses from the start, where a violent opening gives way to tender delicacy. Prokofiev's orchestration provides one delight after another; the solo clarinet, saxophone, and harp each summon up unique emotions, while a passage for flute and celeste and another for unison basses and celli are particularly ear-catching. The tender dawn music as the 'balcony scene' ends puts a lump in the throat every time. Although I could not glimpse all the solo players, special kudos to Liang Wang, Robert Langevin (flute), and Pascual Martinez Fortenza (clarinet). Artists of this calibre add so much to every New York Philharmonic concert.
We had greatly enjoyed our first encounter with Stéphane Denève's conducting in 2015, when he made his Philharmonic debut in a program we still talk about. I hope he will return often in future seasons.
This evening, the orchestra welcomed the Zarin Mehta Fellows: ten young musicians from the Music Academy of the West who have spent a week in New York City participating in an immersive program covering all aspects of the life of an orchestral player. One can only imagine their excitement at being onstage and playing with the wonderful artists of the Philharmonic.
~ Oberon