Boston Symphony Orchestra
February feels like the ‘New November’: concerts of real interest during the weekdays and too many great concerts during the weekends.
After the “Lobgesang”’s premiere, Robert Schumann declared this movement “a glimpse of heaven filled with Raphael’s madonnas,” and Saturday’s performance by the BSO came about as close to that as one could imagine, sensitively phrased and beautifully blended.
Guest conductor Giancarlo Guerrero, music director of the Nashville Symphony Orchestra, is a big man who conducts with big gestures. In the first half of “The Rite of Spring” I wasn’t quite sure if his podium mannerisms (which culminated in jumping jacks during the concluding “Dance of the Earth”) were helpful or distracting.
While I’m not necessarily sold on this particular interpretation of Mahler Symphony no. 1, it was a thoughtful reading led with conviction; conductor Ludovic Morlot drew a committed performance from the BSO, and that counts for something.
It was clear from the moment Ludovic Morlot mounted the podium that he and the Boston Symphony Orchestra possess a strong chemistry: the players clearly respect him and they responded to his leadership with precision, energy, and feeling.
It’s “Mahler Unleashed” month at the New England Conservatory. I heartily recommend all of the “Mahler Unleashed” events.
Throughout his career, conductor Kurt Masur has focused primarily on conducting the standard German repertoire, and now, at age 84, his mastery and understanding of this music is unmatched.
Despite some interpretive shortcomings, Sean Newhouse, the orchestra’s 30-year-old assistant conductor has solid technique, and a major orchestra whose players, management, and audience believe in him.
October offers an embarrassment of musical riches. The Boston Symphony Orchestra, without a music director, is still putting on impressive programs, including several this month.
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