Magnificent, brillant – the words are not strong enough - 18 November 2013
Three conductors during one concert, plus two soloists and an orchestra – The Krzysztof Penderecki Festival decided to host as many world-renowned artists as possible, who throughout this week will honor with their presence the jubilee of the composer’s 80th birthday. Yesterday’s concert proves that it was a great idea.
The first festival concert at the Warsaw Philharmonic was opened by the outstanding Estonian conductor Andres Mustonen leading the Sinfonia Varsovia orchestra. Mustonen’s vivid moves, full of energy, are like a dance and instantly rouse the musicians who fix their eyes on him. It was a great pleasure to watch the artists performing one of the most beautiful chamber works of Penderecki – written at the end of the 20th century Sinfonietta per archi. Mustonen and Sinfonia Varsovia created a great interpretation. Shimmering with colors, and above all, coherent and dynamic. Just as beautifully sounded their performance Sinfonietta No. 2, where the ensemble was joined by the Italian flutist Massimo Mercelli, who enchanted the audience with a melodious and at the same time slightly pugnacious and energetic sound.
After this part, on the stage appeared the American conductor Lawrence Foster, to perform together with the Warsaw orchestra Violin Concerto No. 2 “Metamorphosen”. The work was created with the thought of, and dedicated to the violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter, who is an unrivalled master of its performances and interpretations. The more difficult task laid before the Lithuanian violinist Julian Rachlin, when he undertook the performance of this work. Was he bothered about the genre and historical “burden”? This we don’t know. One thing is certain though – Rachlin fully devoted himself to the “Metamorphosen”. He united himself with every smallest phrase of the work, dedicated himself fully to it, and since he is an outstanding violinist, we could admire a truly masterly performance. Grasping and lyrical, full of ecstasy, yet sometimes lyrical and subtle. While Foster splendidly led the orchestra, which not only strongly supported the soloist, but was also an instrument that energetically reacted to his musical narration.
In the finale of the evening there was another meeting awaiting us with a great master of the baton, Lorin Maazel, who led Sinfonia Varsovia in the performance of Krzysztof Penderecki’s Symphony No. 4. It was a unique experience to watch and compare the work of those three, very different conductors. The greatest difference was between Maazel and Mustonen. The first is a volcano of energy on the stage. Maazel in turn, who was gaining his first experience in conducting already as an 8 year-old child (!) presents a style much more controlled, his gestures lack sharp dynamic and sudden moves. He knows exactly what he wants to achieve, as if reading the score he was running ahead of it with his imagination by at least several dozen bars. Also the orchestra is aware of this. Sometimes a short glance of the conductor in the direction of a specific group of instruments or the soloist suffices, and the rest seems happen by itself.
With this incredible imagination and a accumulated musical experience Lorin Maazel returned after 24 years to Penderecki’s Symphony No. 4, the premiere of which he performed in Paris in 1989, when it was commissioned by the French government on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the French Revolution. To say that he led it magnificently, brilliantly, in a masterly fashion – is as if to say nothing at all. Maazel once again proved to us, listeners, that Penderecki’s music is a magnitude of color, dynamics of tension and emotions.
Monday concert of the jubillee Krzysztof Penderecki Festival will probably become one of its greatest events. Phenomenal conductors, soloists, and above all – perfectly prepared for this uneasy program Sinfonia Varsovia. Orchestra, which, playing with incredible passion and expression, seems to go be experiencing a second youth. Their Sinfonietta per archi was one of the best presentations of this work which I have heard in the last ten years. It probably was the greatest revelation of the evening.
Tomasz Handzlik.
The first festival concert at the Warsaw Philharmonic was opened by the outstanding Estonian conductor Andres Mustonen leading the Sinfonia Varsovia orchestra. Mustonen’s vivid moves, full of energy, are like a dance and instantly rouse the musicians who fix their eyes on him. It was a great pleasure to watch the artists performing one of the most beautiful chamber works of Penderecki – written at the end of the 20th century Sinfonietta per archi. Mustonen and Sinfonia Varsovia created a great interpretation. Shimmering with colors, and above all, coherent and dynamic. Just as beautifully sounded their performance Sinfonietta No. 2, where the ensemble was joined by the Italian flutist Massimo Mercelli, who enchanted the audience with a melodious and at the same time slightly pugnacious and energetic sound.
After this part, on the stage appeared the American conductor Lawrence Foster, to perform together with the Warsaw orchestra Violin Concerto No. 2 “Metamorphosen”. The work was created with the thought of, and dedicated to the violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter, who is an unrivalled master of its performances and interpretations. The more difficult task laid before the Lithuanian violinist Julian Rachlin, when he undertook the performance of this work. Was he bothered about the genre and historical “burden”? This we don’t know. One thing is certain though – Rachlin fully devoted himself to the “Metamorphosen”. He united himself with every smallest phrase of the work, dedicated himself fully to it, and since he is an outstanding violinist, we could admire a truly masterly performance. Grasping and lyrical, full of ecstasy, yet sometimes lyrical and subtle. While Foster splendidly led the orchestra, which not only strongly supported the soloist, but was also an instrument that energetically reacted to his musical narration.
In the finale of the evening there was another meeting awaiting us with a great master of the baton, Lorin Maazel, who led Sinfonia Varsovia in the performance of Krzysztof Penderecki’s Symphony No. 4. It was a unique experience to watch and compare the work of those three, very different conductors. The greatest difference was between Maazel and Mustonen. The first is a volcano of energy on the stage. Maazel in turn, who was gaining his first experience in conducting already as an 8 year-old child (!) presents a style much more controlled, his gestures lack sharp dynamic and sudden moves. He knows exactly what he wants to achieve, as if reading the score he was running ahead of it with his imagination by at least several dozen bars. Also the orchestra is aware of this. Sometimes a short glance of the conductor in the direction of a specific group of instruments or the soloist suffices, and the rest seems happen by itself.
With this incredible imagination and a accumulated musical experience Lorin Maazel returned after 24 years to Penderecki’s Symphony No. 4, the premiere of which he performed in Paris in 1989, when it was commissioned by the French government on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the French Revolution. To say that he led it magnificently, brilliantly, in a masterly fashion – is as if to say nothing at all. Maazel once again proved to us, listeners, that Penderecki’s music is a magnitude of color, dynamics of tension and emotions.
Monday concert of the jubillee Krzysztof Penderecki Festival will probably become one of its greatest events. Phenomenal conductors, soloists, and above all – perfectly prepared for this uneasy program Sinfonia Varsovia. Orchestra, which, playing with incredible passion and expression, seems to go be experiencing a second youth. Their Sinfonietta per archi was one of the best presentations of this work which I have heard in the last ten years. It probably was the greatest revelation of the evening.
Tomasz Handzlik.
