Highlight of the
evening was Jeneba Kanneh-Mason’s relaxed and beautiful rendering of the
concerto (Review by Barbara Trofimczyk)
KZNPO Symphony Concert at the Playhouse Opera Theatre on
Thursday October 31, 2024.
Conductor: Marcelo Lehninger
Soloist: Jeneba Kanneh-Mason
Programme:
Corialan Overture
(Beethoven); London Symphony (Haydn);
Piano Concerto no.2 in F Minor (Chopin)
Thursday’s symphony concert was a splendid opening to the
orchestra’s Spring Season, the first of three concerts in this series.
The three works on the programme were played in an unusual sequence ending with the concerto rather than the symphony. There could be a number of reasons for that, but it certainly worked well – two well-contrasted “classical” works and the “romantic” one to follow, the superb performance by soloist, Jeneba Kanneh-Mason, leaving one at the end of the concert with a warm response to Chopin’s distinctive and unique pianism.
That’s not to say that the classical works were not on a par! Conductor Marcelo Lehninger made sure of that!
The overture, although romantic in its theatrical and descriptive reference, is essentially classical in style and structure, which enables it to stand on its own as a popular concert item.
Haydn was affectionately known as the “Father of the Symphony” due to his lifelong association with the growth and development of the symphony. The London Symphony is the last in his symphonic oeuvre and was written at the height of his fame and popularity as a composer in London. Symphony No.104 abounds in all the rich compositional elements of his mature classical style, themes and motives with character, contrasts and development, consistent use of the brass, woodwinds and strings in varying textures, sound colour and dynamics, to mention but a few! Conductor Marcelo Lehninger captured these elements perfectly in a very satisfying performance of this symphony by the orchestra.
Highlight of the evening was Jeneba Kanneh-Mason’s relaxed and beautiful rendering of the concerto. Expressive, and with a technically fluent display of Chopin’s decorative somewhat improvisatory style, and with Marcelo Lehninger following precisely the soloist’s personal nuances, conductor, soloist and orchestra were at “one” in this fine performance of Chopin’s concerto.
The encore, a quietly expressive performance of Debussy’s musical gem Girl with the Flaxen Hair, brought an ecstatic audience to their feet. – Barbara Trofimczyk