Last evening, the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra performed in Dunedin's Regent Theatre.
A big orchestra in a big venue - the perfect combination.
Acoustically bright and dry, or otherwise, depending on where you were seated, and the large audience rewarded with prolonged applause.
The performance was dedicated to Michael Gibbs, who played trumpet in NZSO for 41 years.
Conductor Edo de Waart crafted a fine interpretation for the opening Festival Overture (1940), by New Zealand composer Douglas Lilburn, with moments of delightful vitality, beautifully enunciated passages, and well-planned anticipation preparing every climax.
Double concertos were very rare when Romantic composer Johannes Brahms embarked on his Concerto for Violin and Cello in A minor Op.102 in 1887.
The passages of dialogue for two soloists require a sharing of the spotlight, and often a melding of the individual instruments to appear as one set of strings with a phenomenal register.
Nicola Benedetti (violin) and Leonard Elschenbroich (cello) certainly had individual moments of virtuosic flair while working in perfect partnership, dealing with the entwining themes and varied moods of this grand work.
The opening passage of the Andante achieved particular beauty, with calm legato and rich string timbre, and the soloists set a stimulating mood for the final Vivace, which moved through suggestions of gypsy folk and well-paced themes to the dramatic final.
One of Beethoven's most popular orchestral works is Symphony No. 5 in C minor Op.67.
The opening rhythmically stark motif of the Allegro con brio (sometimes referred to as a symbolic significance of Fate knocking at the door), returns phantom-like in various forms.
De Waart demanded an amazing variety of nuance, and every section responded magnificently.
Andante con moto brimmed with contrast, and the Scherzo Allegro and final Allegro were absolutely thrilling.
- Elizabeth Bouman
