Splendid start to the KZNPO summer symphony season. (Review
by Michael Green)
Music spanning a century and a half provided a splendid
start to the summer symphony season of the KZN Philharmonic Orchestra, in the
Playhouse, Durban.
The composers were Dmitri Shostakovich, represented by his
Piano Concerto No. 2, written in 1957, and Ludwig van Beethoven, with his
Symphony No. 6, the Pastoral, dating from 1808.
The Shostakovich concerto was played by the English pianist
Joanna MacGregor, who last appeared in Durban in 1998. She gave a brilliant
performance of a tuneful, rhythmical, percussive work, easy on the ear, the
composer in relaxed mood.
Joanna MacGregor is a flamboyant type of pianist, from tip
to toe, and she brought the large audience to a pitch of excitement, with
applause, shouts and cheers at the end. She responded with an encore, a
virtuoso version of the Libertango by the Argentine composer Astor Piazzolla,
and this too was received with great enthusiasm.
The conductor of the evening was a newcomer to Durban, a
very interesting and accomplished man named Kwamé Ryan. Born in Canada, he
grew up on the Caribbean island of Trinidad, had his musical education in
England, and has over the past 20 years conducted many top-class orchestras in
Europe and America.
He is a delightfully persuasive figure on the podium,
directing the orchestra with skill and accuracy while not afraid to show his
own enjoyment of the music.
The programme opened with Beethoven’s imposing Prometheus
Overture, and after the interval we had the beautiful five-movement Pastoral
Symphony, Beethoven’s tour of the countryside he loved so much.
The orchestra were in top form here, with fine contributions
all round, from the powerful string sections to the flutes, oboes and clarinets
with their bird calls in the second movement. - Michael Green
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