Macdonald succeeded in
marshalling the orchestra as an equal partner rather than mere ‘packaging’ for
the soloist, and the result was a thrilling display of combined musicianship. (Review
by David Smith)
KwaZulu-Natal Philharmonic Orchestra
World Symphony Series, Spring Season, Concert 3 (November 14,
2024)
Rory Macdonald (conductor), Olga Kern (piano)
The Playhouse Opera
Rossini’s overture to his opera Semiramide (Venice, 1823) has long had a life of its own outside
the theatre. The lovely initial melody on a quartet of horns, the
characteristic Rossinian crescendos, and sustained energetic outbursts all hit
home, and Rory Macdonald, the Scottish conductor in charge for the night, ran
as tight a ship as possible.
The upper strings lacked the incisive brilliance to rattle the windows at the climaxes, but this was chiefly due to a lack of numbers. Yet this famous composition somehow did not sit well with the programme it initiated: compared with the ebb and flow of the other pieces, the music runs on rails, and is to that extent anachronistic for our time.
The Third Symphony by Sibelius that followed took us decisively away from this highly formal world. This is a less familiar item full of charm and interest, and used the same orchestral forces as the concerto that followed, yet deployed them in a multi-layered and exploratory manner.
A great surprise was the immediacy of the low strings, especially at the start, where they managed a palpable sound despite their small number. Macdonald’s reading was responsive to the textural colours and contrasts, and moved along alertly, though it never felt driven and possessed a welcome unaffectedness, if not understatement. While this was not an account marked by great subtleties, his approach had a positive profile, and he must be thanked for opening this door onto the sounds of the mature Sibelius.
Without doubt, the much-trumpeted appearance of Olga Kern as the soloist in Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto was the focus of interest in the season, as well as its fitting conclusion. This is the signature work of a handful of virtuoso pianists of whom she is one of the most widely known. To them, the concerto is hardly a challenge any more, despite its formidable technical hurdles. When it finally happened, it felt like ‘Tchaikovsky plays Olga Kern’! There is no denying the element of visual attractiveness to her presence: her dress a cone of swirling black and gold, and her blond hair shaking in the light. But the sound was the thing, as she negotiated tremendous pile-driving chords, thundering double-octave passages, and speeds at the limit of human execution. In a word, hers is a power-house approach.
Macdonald succeeded in marshalling the orchestra as an equal partner rather than mere ‘packaging’ for the soloist, and the result was a thrilling display of combined musicianship. While there are some opportunities in this timeless work for poignant reflections and stately breadth, that was not really her reading, and there must have been few in the audience who regretted it.
With the three spring season concerts of the KZNPO over, the orchestra’s fans and supporters have to wait until late February for further symphonic adventures, and then in a ‘summer season’ of just two evenings.
The orchestra will now be occupied with carol concerts and with Tchaikovsky’s The Sleeping Beauty in a production with Joburg Ballet (December 13-14). Tchaikovsky’s score probably counts as much as two large symphonies, and offers a masterwork for choreography alongside his Swan Lake. In the new year, the orchestra will be playing in the pit for a run of My Fair Lady (March 8-16). It behoves the public to support their home ensemble in these highly enjoyable endeavours. - David Smith
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