Saturday, June 26, 2021

"Delusions" - Yaron Gottfried conducts the Netanya Kibbutz Chamber Orchestra at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art. Solo violin - Roi Shiloach

Roi Shiloach (musicethica.org)

Yaron Gottfried (yarongottfried.com)

 

Conducting the Israel Netanya Kibbutz Orchestra’s penultimate event of its 50th concert season, a concert somewhat enigmatically titled “Delusions”, was Yaron Gottfried, who had held the position of music director and principal conductor of the Netanya Kibbutz Orchestra between 2002-2013. Soloist was violinist Roi Shiloach. This writer attended the concert at the Tel  Aviv Museum of Art on June 22nd, 2021.

 

In keeping with Gottfried’s affinity for imaginative and innovative programming, the evening opened with his new full orchestration of Peter Warlock’s “Capriol Suite” (1926), undertaken especially for this concert. Actually, Peter Warlock was the musical nom de plume of British composer Philip Heseltine (1894-1930). Considered one of his most popular works, the “Capriol Suite'' was originally written for piano duet. Warlock later scored it for both string- and full orchestras, although, nowadays, it is mostly heard in the string orchestra setting. The “Capriol Suite'' is a set of dances based on melodies from a manual of Renaissance dances by the French priest Jehan Tabourot (1515-1595) but Warlock’s free treatment of the tunes is reason enough to regard the work as an original composition. Written in the harmonic language of the early 20th century, the composer nevertheless addresses the customs and style of Elizabethan England. Gottfried’s setting sits well with the NK forces; as he juxtaposes sectional timbres, for example, in his effervescent, jocular treatment of Bransles (4th movement) and in “Mattachins'', a sword dance (6th movement), the latter’s harmonic content replete with dissonances, Gottfried evokes the men dancing and clashing their swords on different beats with swiftly changing orchestral colours. And how lyrical and tender the trumpet solo is in the pastoral “Pieds-en-l’air” (5th movement), then to sign out on a diaphanous cluster. Gottfried’s use of percussion is subtle, as in the delicate, courtly “Pavane” (2nd movement). A delightful concert experience, both audial and visual.

 

During the summer of 1838, Felix Mendelssohn wrote to his long-time friend and collaborator Ferdinand David: “I would like to write a violin concerto for you next winter. One in E minor runs through my head, the beginning of which gives me no peace.” Throughout the compositional process, the composer regularly consulted with David over questions regarding violin technique; David was also responsible for the cadenza. From the beginning of their collaboration, David and Mendelssohn had agreed that this concerto should not be a vehicle for empty showmanship. Premiered in March 1845, the outcome was a serious, exquisite Romantic concerto. Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64, his last large orchestral work, ranks among the finest violin concertos written in the 19th century; in fact, it has been one of the most frequently performed violin concertos in history. Roi Shiloach’s seamless performance of it displayed playing of total conviction, of depth, warmth and humanity, his technical mastery a means to expressing his personal rapport with the work. Moving into the cadenza, one had the feeling that he was rediscovering each motif, and taking the necessary time to do so. In the Andante movement, pensive and rich in songfulness, conductor and soloist kept a safe distance from the excessive sentimentality heard in some performances. The final movement, bristling with roulades, scales, and rapid passage-work in virtually every measure, emerged playful and joyful, as Shiloach presented each gesture with colour and variety. Attentive balance between orchestra and soloist characterized the performance, which was enthusiastically received by the audience. For an encore, Shiloach took the listener into the contemplative, somewhat mysterious mood of the Lento e sotto voce movement from Paul Ben Haim’s Solo Violin Sonata in G (1951).

 

It was in June 1788 that Mozart began work on his final trilogy of symphonies (the "Jupiter" is the third) completing them all in less than two months. The NKO concert concluded with W.A.Mozart’s Symphony No.41 in C major, K.551, the “Jupiter” title attached to the work after Mozart's death, probably by the violinist/impresario Johann Peter Salomon. From the three grandiose and powerful opening octave strokes introducing the Allegro vivace movement, the audience in the Tel Aviv Museum's Recanati Auditorium knew it was in for an exciting, inspired performance. Powerful tutti, contrasts and some charming, cantabile melodies pervaded (one little melody, launched by the violins quotes Mozart’s comic aria, "Il bacio di mano" -"A Kiss of the Hand"). The players gave poignant expression to the gentle forward motion and yearning of the Andante cantabile movement, to be followed by the Minuetto - a formal dance for an imperial ballroom - its pleasing Classical clarity joining Mozart’s pure sense of joy, together with some delightful woodwind playing. It was Schumann who ranked the symphony, in its majesty of conception, as "wholly above discussion", but it is indeed the unprecedented fugal finale with its overwhelming sense of richness, splendour, and pizzazz, that is the work's most dazzling movement. Addressing its intricate contrapuntal web, Maestro Gottfried presented it with hearty spirit, as the work and the event drew to a close in a flourish of brass and timpani.  






 

 

 

 

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