Yannick and the Orchestra: So far, so good (1st review)

Do they like him? Do they really like him?

Some promising clues surfaced at Friday night's Philadelphia Orchestra concert, conducted by music director-designate Yannick Nézet-Séguin. The musicians seemed especially alert, watching for the conductor's cues with unusual care, and seemingly sitting just a bit closer than usual to the edges of their chairs. The looming weariness of recent concerts was, perhaps, supplanted by"“ happiness?

Oh, and another thing. They sounded terrific. It's tremendously gratifying to hear this band deliver the glorious roar that emanated from Verizon's stage.

The gargantuan Mahler Fifth Symphony was the evening's showpiece. Central to the success of this concert was the rhythmic freedom, within a steady pulse, that gave the Orchestra the confidence to bloom a bit more than usual. In the wonderful Scherzo, one of Mahler's most ingenious creations, Nézet-Séguin conducted with a subtle swing that gave the music a remarkable buoyancy. This section is, by itself, as long as a Mozart symphony, and yet it was disappointing to hear it come to an end.

Joyous horn

The Scherzo was also an opportunity to showcase the superb playing of principal hornist Jennifer Montone, who stood for the duration of the movement, practically transforming it into a horn concerto. Her tones alternated between a joyously braying blare and sweet whispers. Montone may have a modest stage presence, but she can take credit for firmly anchoring a once troubled section of the Orchestra.

The Adagietto, famous as the sound track for the Visconti film version of Death in Venice, was delivered at a nicely flowing pace, the lushly exotic harmonies as agonizingly beautiful as ever. That said, Nézet-Séguin rendered the music somewhat more chaste than it can be, as if this were too early a date to engage in the sort of eroticism that's latent in Mahler's score.

The Mahler Fifth is a symphony that gains in interest and complexity as it proceeds. The first two movements are rather noisy and belligerent, and here, Nézet-Séguin sounded somewhat seduced by the great sound of his new ensemble, with tempi a shade on the slow side. When a composer uses dance rhythms— and Mahler's music is chock full of them— it's reasonable to expect that the music, when played, can actually be danced to.

Personal approach

In the Haydn "Military" Symphony, Nézet-Séguin signaled a personal approach to the music of the Classical era. Unlike many of his major league colleagues, he largely avoids the habit of mimicking the stereotypical practices of the period music movement, such as overly quick tempi and crisply articulated dotted rhythms.

This isn't to say that Nézet-Séguin's Haydn is old-fashioned or muddy in texture. The same natural pulse that enlivened the Mahler was here as well, with tastefully placed accents and a sweetly colored sound.

Everyone"“ conductor, orchestra and audience— seemed to bask in the ovation that erupted after this concert. Of course, all of those same forces badly want this new partnership to succeed, after a dismal period of rudderless activity by this jewel of the musical world. It's way too early to tell if everyone lives happily ever after. But if good wishes mean anything, this deal is all but done.♦


To read another review by Dan Coren, click here.
To read another review by Victor L. Schermer, click here.
To read another review by Robert Zaller, click here.
To read another review by Steve Cohen, click here.
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