Tribute at the Pittsburgh Symphony features superb ‘Romeo and Juliet’
Is “Romeo and Juliet” actually one of the world’s great love stories? I’ve always interpreted the play as the Bard satirizing teenaged romantic love, mocking the bewitched and besotted with that wicked pen of his.
(Romeo refers to his lips as pilgrims and says he wants to be a glove. It’s hard to take that too seriously.)
Tchaikovsky certainly read Shakespeare’s words for true, as there isn’t a hint of parody in his guileless first masterpiece, the “Romeo and Juliet” Overture-Fantasy. On Friday, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra delivered a stirring reprise to Valentine’s Day with this musical offering under the baton of Manfred Honeck.
The work is programatic, so it follows the broad strokes of the play quite closely: the somber, vaguely medieval prologue in the clarinets and bassoons, the angsty feud music captained by brass and percussion, Romeo’s theme in the English horn, Juliet’s music in the upper strings, and a funeral dirge towards the conclusion. The orchestra delivered each tune with utter sincerity and conviction — the brass in particular were superb, brilliant and forceful without overpowering the strings.
Another “Tchaik” favorite, the Serenade in C major for Strings, proved a diverting concert opener. The double basses were spread out behind the orchestra instead of their usual sequestration at stage right behind the first violins. This lent more heft to the sound overall, smooth and fluid without winds, brass or percussion to punctuate the timbre. The second movement waltz was pure grace in sonic form, and the subsequent slow movement elegy was hauntingly peaceful. Still, articulation was muddy in quicker passages, and guest concertmaster Alexi Kenney’s sound emerged from the texture almost as a solo voice at times.
Pianist Emanuel Ax performed Mozart’s Concerto No. 17 in G major following the intermission, a study in balancing delicacy with enthusiasm. Both orchestra and soloist proved more than up to the task. Mr. Ax also performed a special Valentine’s Day program on Thursday with various members of the PSO as part of the PSO360 series, which seats the audience onstage with musicians. The intimacy of this setup paired perfectly with Mr. Ax’s warm congeniality — he acted as emcee as well on Thursday — and he led the audience on an exquisite tour of the chamber repertoire that included Dvorak, Bizet, Mozart, Beethoven, Haydn and more. Sitting so close it’s easy to hear why he’s such a sought-after soloist.
There is one 360 concert left in the season in May with violinist Vilde Frang, tickets are still available at pittsburghsymphony.org.