CONCERTS

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New York

ECCO (EAST COAST CHAMBER ORCHESTRA)

PEOPLE’S SYMPHONY CONCERTS WASHINGTON IRVING HIGH SCHOOL 1 MAY 2022

‘Exaltation’ from Adolphus Hailstork’s Sonata da chiesa (1992) was a fitting opening for the East Coast Chamber Orchestra’s thoughtful and energetically performed programme. The group started with fantastic energy and a characteristic richness of sound, and in the sombre movements the players found a deep beauty, not least Ayane Kozasa’s viola solo in ‘Adoration’. I would have appreciated an even more transparent sound in ‘Grant us peace’, but overall the ensemble’s intensity proved captivating in this meditative work.

The second movement of Jennifer Higdon’s Concerto for Orchestra (2002) followed, performed with vigour and tremendous energy. The clarity of the opening pizzicatos set the stage for the cascading layers of runs and virtuosic passagework, all of which was executed with fervour and excellent articulation.

The opening sweep of sound in Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings was a powerful reminder of both the humanity and otherworldly beauty of music, and ECCO brought tenderness and passion to this well-known work. If at times the semiquavers became a little laboured in the opening movement, there were some nice colours and apt rubato in the Waltz and the violins were impressively unified in the Elegie. The group brought a controlled energy to the Finale and a Bach chorale closed the concert with elegance and repose.

LEAH HOLLINGSWORTH

NIKOLAJ SZEPS-ZNAIDER (VIOLIN)

CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA/FRANZ WELSER-MÖST CARNEGIE HALL 1 JUNE 2022

For some reason, Szymanowski’s Violin Concerto no.2 seems not as widely known as its predecessor, making this rare bit of fireworks all the more welcome. Of course, it helps to have colleagues such as the Cleveland Orchestra and Franz Welser-Möst – who usually make annual treks to Carnegie Hall – in their first appearance here in three years.

It also helps to have violinist Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider (above right), whose assurance in this relative rarity can only be applauded. From the initial Moderato, packed with fiery doublestopping, Szeps-Znaider roamed the composer’s expansive halls as if he had built them himself – impressive for a concerto not in the fingers of most violinists. Between the second and third movements, a cadenza by Paweł Kochański (on a par with that in the First Violin Concerto of Shostakovich) landed like a blazing spaceship, before the orchestra swooped in to resume the drama.

In the final Andantino – Molto tranquillo, the violinist’s dialogue with the ensemble was compelling, answering the lower strings with articulated melodies and wide-ranging splashes of colour. After the whirling conclusion, all personnel on stage – and the enthusiastic audience – applauded the violinist.Maybe his advocacy will increase the work’s visibility.

The evening opened with George Walker’s Sinfonia no.4 (2012), a single, powerful movement sub-titled ‘Strands’, with the Cleveland strings on sleek form. That same string power showed up later to fuel an extraordinary Schubert Ninth Symphony, with every bar playing to the strengths of both conductor and orchestra.

BRUCE HODGES