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A Star Is
Born in OC - New Segerstrom Concert Hall Celebrates Mozart's 250th |
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Mozarteum Orchestra SalzburgIvor Bolton, conductor
Angela Hewitt, piano;
Louis Lortie, piano Performance of Sunday, Sept 17,
2006 at
The new Segerstrom Hall's smooth exterior and white-walled, glassy lobby may seem a bit cold, even bland, at first sight, especially when compared to the extravagantly flamboyant Walt Disney Hall. But that first impression would soon prove to be misleading, as I entered the 2000-seat auditorium via a side corridor, to a delightful view of a 3-tiered horseshoe bedecked in velvet and ivory -- with chrome organ pipes and geometric lamps adding a classy touch of Art Deco. It rivals the auditoriums of the finest opera houses in Europe that I have seen.
But how well does it sound? That's the $200-million-dollar question. Many builders favor the traditional horseshoe shape less for its sightlines than for its acoustics. The proof is in the pudding when the Mozarteum Orchestra sounded the first notes in Mozart's Symphony No. 1 (K.16) and a crisp, warm swathe of sound swept over my forehead and enveloped me with a deep, satisfying glow. Happily, the hall is not so 'alive' as to reflect the faintest audience noises (like the Disney). The new Segerstrom is a perfect soundboard for great music.
The first symphony by the 8-year-old Mozart, with its exuberent
outer movements and calming andante (with a surprising dark
undercurrent), already foretold the great things to come.
The Mozarteum Orchestra clearly delighted in this work
with virtuoso strings and mellow rustic horns
that were unmistakably Viennese. But wasn't until after 1778, the
year Mozart's beloved mother died, that his music acquired a new
depth and expressive power (all the great operas from Idomeneo
on were written after '78).
The E-flat major Concerto for 2 Pianos (K.365) was a product of 1779. Why 2 pianos? It may be interesting to note that the Sinfonia Concertante for violin & viola (K.364) also came from the same period. Concertos for two, even three, instruments were all the rage in Vienna and Salzburg at the time, and Mozart, to improve his cash flow, was only too glad to supply them. Less weighty than the Sinfonia Concertante, this double concerto for pianos nevertheless conceals much subtle detail beneath its urbane exterior. Canadian pianists Angela Hewitt and Louis Lortie played in perfect harmony in their extended dialogs --sometimes echoing, sometimes embellishing each other's phrases. And when they combined, as at the close of the slow movement, they produced textures of delicious richess, with the orchestra contributing a backdrop of ravishing sonorities. Their playing of the final Rondo was superbly invigorating.  German soprano Mojca Erdmann is like a supermodel
who sings, too. Making her U.S. debut with arias from the
singspiel Zaide (K.344), "Rube
sanft, meine holdes Leben" and "Tiger! Wetze nur die
Klauen", Ms. Erdmann demonstrated her easy clear high notes,
stylish singing and considerable sense of drama. It was an
auspicious debut and I hope to hear (and see) more of her.
The concert concluded with Mozart's last Symphony No. 41
in C Major (K.551). Particularly fine
was the playing of the slow movement by the Mozarteum Orchestra,
capturing fully its myriad of emotions contained within a perfect
classical frame. Maestro Ivor Bolton had been
heretofore a most sympathetic accompanist, but here he more than
held his own, delivering an incisive and exhilirating account of
this great symphony -- brimming with the good humor of opera
buffa in the allegros and deeply moving in the andante.
Two encores were offered to the wildly enthusiastic audience:
March in D Major (K. 335 No.1) and
Andante from Cassation (K.63). When it comes to Mozart,
there is no such a thing as too much of a good thing.
For upcoming events at the Segerstrom Hall, visit
www.ocpac.org
Truman C. Wang is editor-in-chief of Classical Voice, whose articles have appeared in the San Gabriel Valley Tribune, the Pasadena Star-News and other Southern California publications. |
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