Phila. Orch: Highpoint first, and downhill from there
A curious program. The slam-bang showstopper that might typically end the concert began Thursday's Philadelphia Orchestra program under Yannick Nézet-Séguin - and at an energy level that the rest of the evening wasn't about to match due to the nature of the music. In theory, I like such reversals, but not with the popular Rainbow Body by Christopher Theofanidis.
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A curious program.
The slam-bang showstopper that might typically end the concert began Thursday's Philadelphia Orchestra program under Yannick Nézet-Séguin - and at an energy level that the rest of the evening wasn't about to match due to the nature of the music. In theory, I like such reversals, but not with the popular Rainbow Body by Christopher Theofanidis.
Although there are links to be made with Schubert's Symphony No. 8 ("Unfinished") and Mozart's Mass in C Minor (also unfinished), the new and the old clashed in so many ways.
Nézet-Séguin's reputation for speedy tempos was contradicted by the Schubert, which was conducted in the manner of Carlo Maria Giulini, with slow tempos that might have stretched the music to the breaking point without such searing introspection. The performance looked back from Schubert's even-less-finished Symphony No. 10, where this bubbly Viennese songwriter became more emotionally candid, and experimented with harmonies that rustle with dissonances anticipating Mahler.
Mozart's Mass in C Minor made a far rarer appearance. Often overshadowed by the famous Requiem, this unfinished work (he never got around to the "Agnus Dei") is a product of the composer's early maturity (1783), showing J.S. Bach influences, but also giving show-off solo opportunities to his soprano wife, Constanze. His vocal writing for her is like nothing else in his output, often exploring her distinctively low range.
Perhaps in the interest of maintaining unity with more serious sections of the Mass, Lucy Crowe used an unusually white, choirboylike sound. Mezzo-soprano Kate Lindsey infused her long-sustained notes with a masterful command of color and vibrato. Male soloists Nicholas Phan and Philippe Sly were so underutilized, I hope they didn't have to travel far for this gig.
The Westminster Symphonic Choir was close to ideal, its transparent sound readily revealing the dense counterpoint of the double choir passages. This piece really needs to be heard in person (as opposed to YouTube) because the composer seemed particularly keen to reveal compositional integrity at the expense of his innately operatic dramatization.
And Rainbow Body? The piece, premiered in 2000, feels great on first hearing, as an ultraflashy orchestral piece based on a melody by the 12th-century mystic Hildegard of Bingen. In less-adorned form, Hildegard's sacred songs emerge as miracles of concentrated expression. But in an extravagant setting packed with orchestral effects, the piece felt like Leopold Stokowski's more vulgar J.S. Bach transcriptions. Let's hear something else from Theofanidis.
The orchestra's musicians went on strike Friday night, so it is unclear whether additional performances scheduled for Saturday and Sunday will occur.
Additional performances: 8 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Kimmel Center, Broad and Spruce Streets. Tickets: $40-$140. Information: 215-893-1999 or philorch.org.