(Daniel Boico)
An exceptionally fine evening of music made for a memorable
concert. (Review by Michael Green)
An exceptionally fine evening of music was provided by the
KZN Philharmonic Orchestra and an outstanding pianist in the third concert of
the orchestra’s summer symphony season, in the Playhouse, Durban.
The programme was all Russian, the conductor was the
Israeli-American Daniel Boico, a familiar and much admired figure here, and the
pianist was the Romanian Daniel Ciobanu.
Ciobanu is 25 years old, and I am among the many who believe
that he will soon become a major international star of the keyboard. Earlier in
the week he had given a dazzling display for the Friends of Music. With the
orchestra he scored a triumph in Sergei Prokofiev’s vivid and very difficult
Piano Concerto No. 3.
This work, dating from 1921, is far more accessible than
much 20th century music. It has plenty of good tunes and a kind of compulsive
energy that excites the listeners.
Ciobanu performed with great panache, confidence and power,
and the balance with the orchestra was first-rate. This music is often very
loud, but one could always hear the detail. When he finished with a final
flourish the audience gave him an excited standing ovation.
In response he played a delightful jazz encore that
mystified all. What was it?, they were asking.
I was given the answer after the concert by the pianist
himself. It was a piece called Tom and
Jerry by the contemporary Japanese woman composer Hiromi Uehara.
The concert opened with the Prince Igor Overture by
Alexander Borodin (1833-1887), a medical scientist who was a highly original
part-time composer.
The major work of the evening was Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No.
6, the Pathetique, first performed in 1893 nine days before the composer’s death
after drinking cholera-infected water.
Accident or suicide? Nobody is sure, but the symphony is a
wonderfully emotional farewell to the world.
Three years ago Daniel Boico conducted the KZNPO in an
excellent performance of this symphony, and that success was repeated this
time. Boico is a highly expressive conductor, and his total involvement with
the music extracted full value from Tchaikovsky’s brilliant and sometimes
heart-rending score. The orchestra’s strong string sections were always heard
to good effect and there was a notable contribution from the woodwind players.
After the final dark notes had died away there was a
perceptible, respectful silence from the audience before they burst into
prolonged applause, bringing a memorable concert to an end. - Michael Green
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