Once again, NZSO shows world class
Review
Music by Shostakovich and Grieg New Zealand Symphony Orchestra conducted by Jaime Martin with Simon Trpceski (piano) Michael Fowler Centre, July 13. Reviewed by John Button
Over the years we have heard some astonishingly fine Shostakovich from the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra.
Who will forget the intensity of Alexander Lazarev with the Eighth Symphony at an early Festival of the Arts, or the sheer authority of both Kurt Sanderling and Maxim Shostakovich with the Fifth Symphony in the now distant past?
But did any of these performances equal the sheer intensity, married to both stunning precision and awe-inspiring breadth, of this performance?
Conductor Martin’s superbly knowing vision drew playing that swept all before it. Who will forget the wonderful build-up to the shattering climax of the first movement, or the vehement bit and intensity of the so-called ‘Stalin’ allegro?
And the last two movements had a spectacular vision that led to a conclusion that left us in no doubt that this is, surely, Shostakovich’s finest symphony.
Amid all this scorching playing it would be easy to forget the contribution of a number of principals within the orchestra – the wonderful playing of guest principal Horn David Evans, or that of principal bassoon Robert Weeks and cor anglais Michael Austin.
I suppose it would be easy to forget, after all this, the wonderfully poetic account of Grieg’s evergreen piano concerto from Simon Trpceski, or his novel encore – a movement from a Grieg Violin Sonata with Trpceski joined by NZSO concertmaster Vesa-Matti Leppanen.
The concert opened with Shostakovich’s cheerful, bright Festive Overture – extremely well played if not really preparing us for the searing intensity of the Tenth Symphony, and the reminder that the NZSO is, currently, an orchestra of top international quality.