All Mozart at “Mostly Mozart”
The concert by the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra on Tuesday evening, August 2, 2011, was like a homecoming for me: Many of the players from previous years were there; some with somewhat graying hair; some having decided to give up their facial hair. Here was the familiar Bass player, and the Oboe player. And here is Violinist Krista Bennion Feeney, the concertmaster. And there were some new faces, as well: Perhaps a few recent Juilliard graduates, or some other musicians, eager to have the opportunity to play with the veterans at Lincoln Center. It was, in a sense reassuring that I might be in for an enjoyable couple of hours of fine music making. Mostly, I was right…
The program:
Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra
Opening-Night Program
TUE, AUG 2 at 8:00
Avery Fisher Hall
Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra
Louis Langrée, conductor
Christian Tetzlaff, violin
Antoine Tamestit, viola
Susanna Phillips, soprano
ALL-MOZART PROGRAM
- Overture to Le nozze de Figaro
- Sinfonia concertante in E-flat major for violin and viola
- Crudel?…Non mi dir, bell’ idol mio, from Don Giovani
- Bella mia fiamma… Resta, o cara
- Symphony No.36 in C major (“Linz”)
I really like Louis Langree as a conductor. He’s prepared, has the right style for doing Mozart, and an excellent connection with his players. The program began with a crisp reading of the overture to Le Nozze di Figaro. Yes… we hear it often, but it is a good attention getter, and it was performed beautifully, in a nice chamber music style last night. We heard great balance and fine listening by the musicians to each other.
The next work was one of Mozart’s all-time masterpieces, the Sinfonia Concertante for violin and viola. The soloists performed nicely, but somehow I wanted the music to soar more. It seemed to me that Mr. Tetzlaff’s violin did not have the carrying power that I wanted. We were told that he now performs on a German-made violin that was built in recent years; but my ears wanted a warmer, more powerful sound. I heard that sound from Mr. Tamestit, and the two soloists had a very nice ensemble style together.
For me, the highlight of the evening was the Linz symphony, which followed the two arias by soprano Phillips. The symphony was beautifully played, with excellent phrasing, and fine exchanges between the groups of wind players and the strings.
Here is one of the world’s great conductors, now deceased: Carlos Kleiber conducts the Mozart Symphony Number 36, first movement, with the Vienna Philharmonic:
Tags: Mostly Mozart, concert review August 2, 2011, Louis Langree, Christian Tetzlaff, Antoine Tamestit, Susanna Phillips