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| Maestro David Greilsammer (Miri Shamir) |
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was never well-behaved enough to please the
church – the Archbishop of Salzburg’s steward once kicked Mozart down the
stairs. Yet, Mozart "still leads all the charts. Over 12,000 books have
been devoted to his life and his music…he makes plants grow better, cures
epilepsy and manic-depression, and even makes your baby smarter", writes
Hermione Lai (Interlude, September 6th, 2021). One of the Mozart buffs of the
current international music scene is pianist/conductor David Greilsammer, who
both soloed and conducted at the Israel Rishon LeZion Orchestra's opening
concert of the 2021-2022 season. This writer attended the event at the Tel
Aviv Performing Arts Center on October 10th, 2021.
The program opened with the brief Overture to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's
opera "Cosi fan tutte". The beginning Andante section,
juxtaposing full orchestral chords with a lyrical oboe melody, also splicing in a
brief allusion to a phrase Don Alfonso sings near the end of the opera, is
followed by fleet and vibrant woodwind exchanges in the Presto section,
creating an air of electric expectancy and providing a delectable start to an
evening of music.
In 1784, Mozart wrote
six magnificent, ground-breaking concertos, most of which were intended for
performances before Viennese subscription audiences, who clearly enjoyed the
concerts. The Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No.17 in G major K.453 is one of
the few not originally composed for Mozart himself to premiere. It was intended
for one of his pupils, Barbara von Ployer, whose father, Gottfried Ignaz von
Ployer, a Viennese agent of the Salzburg court, hired an orchestra for the
first performance. Sometimes dismissed as not being very grand, due to its light
orchestration, employing neither trumpets, drums nor clarinets, it is,
nevertheless, clear that Mozart's orchestration has transcended his time!
And it is the very transparency of Mozart's writing here that emerged so
delightfully articulate in the hands of the Rishon LeZion Orchestra players,
with Greilsammer weaving cascades of arpeggios through the orchestral weave of
the serene opening Allegro movement. Following lovely oboe and flute utterances
issuing in the tranquil second movement (Andante), Greilsammer sculpts the
essence and meaning of each of its sections with both strength and humility,
his deft dexterity masterfully illuminating the sensitive and personal
hallmark of the movement. For the Allegretto movement's glittering rococo set
of variations, Greilsammer's rich palette of colours gave rise to Mozartian
elegance, joy and whimsy. As to the cadenzas, here was Greilsammer at his most
original, skilfully dovetailing motifs of the concerto with inspiration of
the moment - a series of clusters, slivers of an Israeli song, etc.- a
veritable stream of consciousness and presented to the audience with the wink
of an eye. I think Mozart, known for his humour, his spontaneity and, indeed,
his ability to improvise, would have enjoyed those moments, being well
entertained by them, as was the audience at the Tel Aviv Performing Arts
Center.
So much has been written about the genesis of Antonín Dvořák's
Symphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95 “From the New World” (1893), written when the
composer was director of the National Conservatory of Music in New York City, at
this time taking a great interest in Negro and Indian music. Basically, all the
melodies in the symphony are Dvořák's own. In fact, European audiences found
the symphony to be as Bohemian as anything Dvořák had ever written, with Kurt
Masur referring to it as "a great tragic symphony written on the theme of
homesickness". Addressing the work's finest details, Maestro Greilsammer
brought out its gorgeous melodiousness and vivid orchestral colour, its
emotional span running from tender lyricism to towering intensity, with Dvořák's
imposing tutti and marvellously poignant solos drawn together in a performance
that breathed freshness and the joy of music-making. For me, one of the work's
most moving elements of the "New World" is the Largo movement’s cor
anglais theme accompanied by muted strings, here played in all its nostalgia
and mystery by Michael Dressler.
David Greilsammer's
energy, ingenuity and joie de vivre flowed freely throughout the evening's
program. The Jerusalem-born artist resides in Geneva, where he serves as
musical/artistic director of the Geneva Camerata, one of today's most daring
and innovative orchestras.
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| David Greilsammer,Doron Toister (Miri Shamir) |
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