Review
This is the 2nd in the series of 4 autumn concerts. Just before the concert, an announcement was made to re-shuffle the program so the short Mozart ?Magic Flute? overture comes before the lengthy Vivaldi ?Four Seasons?. A sensible move. This way, the orchestra not only had a short piece to warm up, late-comers could also get in without missing the Vivaldi. In addition, a lanky, bespectacled conductor (I didn?t catch his name) replaced the usual Carlos Pianitini on the podium. Only later would we find out he was more than Piantini?s equal.
The Vivaldi ?For Seasons? is an ultra-popular Baroque masterpiece that needs no introduction. Even the most avid haters of classical music can recognize it in a snap. Many in the audience broke into a knowing smile when the piece started with the familiar tune in ?Spring?. The soloist is Pavle Vujcic, a jovial-looking violinist with Clintonesque features who has been concert master of the orchestra since 1983. His technique is relatively fluid, a few intonation slips aside. The tone is on the thin and squeaky side, which ironically works to his advantage in turbulent sections (such as fast passages in ?Autumn? and ?Winter?) where his violin sound needs to slice through the thick orchestral accompaniment. In some other sections, he is less persuasive. And his projection in the initial movements seems underpowered. The cello section is also unresponsive when engaging in dialogues with the soloist The woodwind section is probably the most professional. Vujcic does project the lyrical sections in slow movements quite well, where cantabile is called for. However, I personally would prefer a wider vibrato, as he can sound cut-and-dry sometimes.
The second half consists entirely of Mozart?s final symphony: No. 41 ?Jupiter?. The orchestra?s previous renditions of Mozart in the past always gave me pause. In all honesty, the Orquesta Nacional is at best a mediocre ensemble even though there are quite a few outstanding individual players. The violin section is consistently weak, where scratchiness and out-of-tune playing aggravates on the ear, particularly for audience sitting in the first 10 rows of the hall. The principal cellist is hopeless (he botched a passage so badly during last year?s gala that Pl?cido Domingo stared at him on stage. All that was capture on TV broadcast for posterity !) and the French horns sound more flatulent than a bunch of bean-eaters. In short, it?s a prescription for disaster in Mozart playing, where consummate finess is de rigeur .
But this time I found much to admire. Much of the orchestra plays more or less in sync, and the sense of forward momentum and thrust is unmistakable. There is an apparent relish and joy in the music making that I?m willing to overlook the various little defects. The conductor knows what he is doing and more or less coaxes the results from his players, something one cannot always say about Piantini. The finale, where Mozart weaves a four-part fugue to dazzling effect, pulls off very well and ends the concert in high note. By far the most consistent players are the woodwind section, particularly the flutists and clarinetists. Their sound is consistently mellow and full-bodied, like well-aged wine.
The next concert is on Oct 1st, where 3 prize winners from Spain?s Santander International Piano Competition will share the stage to perform piano concertos by Chopin, Ravel and Bartok. Now this is something to look forward to !
