James Levine Conducts Opening Night at Tanglewood
A Magnificent All Tchaikovsky Program
By: Charles Giuliano - Jul 04, 2009
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1841-1893)
Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Opus 74, “Pathetique”
Adagio- Allegro non troppo
Allegro con grazia
Allegro molto vivace
Adagio lamentoso-Andante
First performance: October 28, 1893, St. Petersburg. The composer conducted just nine days before his death.
Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, Opus 23
Allegro non troppo e molto maestoro-
Allegro con spirito
Andantino semplice-Prestissimo-TempoI
Allegro con fuoco
Yefim Bronfman, piano
First performance: October 25, 1875, Boston Music Hall, B.J. Lang conducting, Hans von Bulow, soloist.
The June Monsoon, 2009, took a break just long enough for the majestic, official opening night of the summer long Tanglewood Music Festival. Maestro James Levine conducted a stunning all Tchaikovsky program that clearly delighted the audience. After all the rain the lawn was soggy underfoot but there were several thousand enthusiastic music lovers spreading their blankets just beyond the capacity audience in the Koussevitsky Shed.
At least for this festive celebration the audience shrugged off the economic jitters and the generally miserable weather long enough to show their full support for the great traditions of Tanglewood and the Boston Symphony Orchestra.
Chatting with members of the PR staff last night during a reception for the media they described having to be in two places at once today. Tonight on the Esplanade in the Hatch Shell along the Charles River the Keith Lockhart, will conduct the annual Fourth of July concert that traditionally ends with Tchaikovsky’s “1812 Overture.” During its premiere the music concluded with the firing of a ring of captured French cannons surrounding the concert hall. On the Esplanade the evening climaxes with an array of fireworks.
Tonight, in Lenox, there will also be fireworks although somewhat less spectacular as those in Boston to follow a performance by the Pop artist, singer/ songwriter, Diana Krall. It is anticipated to draw another sold out audience. Tanglewood and the Fourth seem to make a natural blend. So much so that BSO organizers are taking a chance by shifting James Taylor, who has performed on the Fourth in recent years, to what is already a sold out three day program that ends the official season prior to the Labor Day Weekend long Jazz Festival. DonÂ’t be surprised tonight if Elvis Costello, yes, that Other Elvis, walks out on stage to jam with his wife. There are always lots of surprises at Tanglewood.
Concluding a busy and intense opening weekend we plan to picnic on the lawn on Sunday afternoon with a few thousand of our closest friends. Levine will conduct my absolutely favorite 20th century composition, Stravinsky’s “Rites of Spring.” In this case a Rite of Summer.
Chatting with Taryn Lott of the Tanglewood staff I expressed some sympathy on having to hop back and forth between Lenox and Boston. They will be on hand for the Sunday afternoon concert as usual. But there was a great smile on her face when she commented that tonightÂ’s guest artist for the Pops will be Neil Diamond. Spectacular. Of course you can see it all as usual on National TV. That is if you decide to stay at home on the Fourth.
The greatest pleasure of a Tanglewood season is the opportunity of experiencing a range of world renowned guest conductors performing with the BSO. There is the incentive to compare and contrast.
But nothing is quite like an evening with Maestro Levine. This is very much his own personal orchestra molded to his precise style and taste. He knows all of the musicians intimately and that is richly evident as in his understated manner he evokes just what he wants from them.
Last night we were able to savor all of the nuances of the range of instruments and sections of the complex and emotionally compelling Symphony No. 6 in B minor. The “Pathetique” begins so softly in the Adagio-Allegro non troppo that it is barely audible. When listening to it on a CD there is the impulse to turn up the volume. As the work develops there are powerful and sharply accented passages with the clash of kettle drums, an additional monster drum, and the clang of cymbals. Just as it started so softly the fourth movement Adagio lamentoso- Andante ends with subdued, melancholy playing.
In its rich range of orchestral colors and solemn mood this is the most emotional and compelling of all of Tchaikovsky’s works. It has been suggested that it was a premonition of his impending death, much like Mozart’s “Requiem.” Tchaikovsky died just days after the premiere of the work which he conducted. The circumstances are unclear.
In this performance Levine evoked all of the passion and poignancy of the great symphony. In the past year the conductor has had reminders of his own mortality. Just a year ago he left the orchestra just days after the opening of the Tanglewood season to undergo major surgery. Previously he had fallen from the podium and injured his shoulder. The greatest artists are capable of channeling these daunting life experiences into the expression of their work. One signifier of this impact is conveyed by the fact that Levine conducts sitting down. But it adds another touch as he likes to swivel about.
During the pause between movements, last night, he would turn and look out into the audience which applauded each movement rather than waiting for the end. They also chatted robustly which was clearly a distraction and annoyance to the Maestro. I expected him to say something to the audience but he would just spin back and start the next movement. It is nice to see all those people at Tanglewood but many of them just donÂ’t know how to behave. Being there is as much a privilege as an opportunity.
After an intermission Levine returned to conduct Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, Opus 23 with guest soloist Yefim Bronfman. The first notes of the composition were readily familiar to much of the audience. It started with Bronfman playing clusters of chords during the Allegro non troppo e molto maestoso. He is a very large man who brings force and power into his playing. It was compelling to see the manner in which Levine kept his attention on what Bronfman was playing while keeping the orchestra in perfect sync with the piano.
Tonight the Festival, in every sense of the word, continues with what will be a very different kind of musical experience. LetÂ’s rock. Well, not quite like Wilco last summer which blew the roof off the Shed. But at least a bit of Roll Over Beethoven. Be there.
DIANA KRALL FOURTH OF JULY CONCERT, WITH
FEDERICO AUBELE, 7 .P.M., SHED
Double platinum-selling recording artist Diana Krall brings her award-winning artistry to Tanglewood for one of the highlights of the summer, the annual Fourth of July concert. Krall is a singer and pianist known for her distinctive jazz stylings across a range of repertoire, especially tunes from the American songbook. The evening's opener is Argentine singer/songwriter Federico Aubele, who infuses a variety of musical styles, from reggae to hip hop, with the sensuous Latin rhythms of his native Buenos Aires. The evening ends with a bang, as Tanglewood offers patrons its traditional July 4 display of brilliant fireworks.
SUNDAY, JULY 5
BOSTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA,
JAMES LEVINE, CONDUCTOR, 2:30 P.M., SHED
BSO Music Director James Levine conducts the orchestra in one of the 20th century's most groundbreaking works, Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring. The program also includes Brahms' great Violin Concerto, with German violinist Christian Tetzlaff as soloist. Musical America's "Musician of the Year" in 2005, Tetzlaff is acclaimed for his musical integrity, technical assurance, and intelligent, compelling interpretations.
SUNDAY JULY 5, TUESDAY JULY 7, & THURSDAY JULY 9
CHRISTIAN TETZLAFF AND ALEXANDER LONQUICH PERFORM THE COMPLETE BEETHOVEN SONATAS FOR VIOLIN AND PIANO
The evening of July 5, Christian Tetzlaff, internationally recognized as one of the most important violinists of his generation, and renowned German pianist Alexander Lonquich, in his Tanglewood debut, play the first of three concerts in Ozawa Hall offering the exceptional opportunity to hear back-to-back performances of Beethoven's complete Sonatas for Violin and Piano: Program 1 (Sonatas 1-4, July 5); Program 2 (Sonatas 5-7, July 7); and Program 3 (Sonatas 8-10, July 9). These masterful works chart Beethoven's development as a composer from 1797 to 1812.
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