Dynamic beginnings for
first RSO contestant – Saturday, September 29, 2007
Reviewed by Jan Stribula
The Ridgefield Symphony Orchestra kicked off its season and
its yearlong auditions for the post of music director on
Saturday night. The first contestant, Jonathan Schiffman,
kept with the theme of beginnings by programming two first
symphonies, those of Beethoven and Mahler.
In his remarks before the pieces, Schiffman noted that both
are works of 30-year-olds who were well known as performers
but trying to establish themselves as composers. Both look
back, Beethoven's to the classical models of Mozart and
Haydn, Mahler's to folk tunes and some of his own earlier
work, as well as ahead.
Beethoven writes a headlong "minuet" for his third movement
that abandons the stately grace of that traditional dance
and introduces us to the form that in his hands would come
to be known as the scherzo. Mahler explores orchestral
colors in ways that he would continue to develop as he wrote
his monumental later symphonies.
Beethoven's First was very popular in the composer's
lifetime; Mahler's First was not. Written 90 years apart,
they are milestones in the careers of two composers who
would define the very idea of the symphony for their
respective times.
After drawing out a cushioned sound for the opening chords,
which puzzled some listeners in Beethoven's time for their
seeming harmonic waywardness, Schiffman led an incisive
reading of the first movement, capturing its brash energy.
Sweet-sounding oboe playing and fine overall balance
distinguished the sound.
The second movement was both fleet and graceful, building
dramatically as it went along. The contrapuntal lines that
decorated the main theme were clearly set out. The sound
seemed a premonition of the character of the composer's
Sixth Symphony, the sunny "Pastorale."
The minuet/scherzo was robust and sharply accented, the wind
choir in the trio section one of the many chances during the
night for that section to shine.
The finale owes much to the legacy of Haydn but Schiffman's
reading seemed to emphasize Beethoven's own voice, in its
insistent rhythms and dynamic pop. Occasional string
passages were muddied and final chords tended to reveal
tuning problems, but the overall performance was full of
life.
Mahler's First opens mysteriously as well, with eerie
strings softly suspended above wind figures that evoke
gradually awakening nature. Schiffman effectively maintained
the tension of the scene and offstage trumpets were forceful
and sensitive.
The orchestra's brass got plenty of opportunities throughout
the piece and made a fine impression, trumpets especially.
The cello section phrased the folk song theme gracefully and
nice details like the hint of a sigh in the wind themes
added to the character of the music.
The rustic, dancing flavor of the second movement was
brought out pleasingly and the middle section was played
with the right rhythmic pull. The slow movement starts as a
setting of "Frere Jacques" in a minor key, weirdly scored
for the double bass. Overall ensemble was ragged in spots,
but the klezmer-like feeling of the rollicking dance tune
was especially effective.
The violins played their folksong theme with the right kind
of simplicity. As the music built up, the trumpets shone
again, setting the tone for the big bang of the final
movement. The tension of the first movement was recalled as
snippets of its themes reappeared and the orchestra was
still up to building to a final climax. If the horns (the
score calls for seven of them) could not quite match the
trumpets' brilliance, they were impressive overall as
sonority piled on top of sonority. The players seemed to
respond eagerly to their leader and he made a fine
impression as the first in a line of suitors for their hand.
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