We played the first of our three concerts of this weekend’s Classical set last night, and it was quite frankly loads of fun, at least for me, anyway. And I know that a lot of my colleagues in the string section are feeling the same thing. Pinchas Zukerman is in town wearing two hats: conductor and violinist. And he brought his wife, cellist Amanda Forsyth, to join him in Brahms’ great Double Concerto for Violin, Cello and Orchestra.
It’s been a great set of rehearsals leading up to the concerts. Zukerman has a relaxed and genial approach to working from the podium (at least as a guest conductor, I cannot speak for how he works with his orchestra, the National Arts Center Orchestra in Ottowa, Ontario, Canada) and clearly knows the music inside and out.
On Thursday afternoon, we rehearsed the Brahms, with Pinky (as he is commonly known) playing the violin and cello parts while leading us through the tutti passages with his bow as a baton. His approach is a bit old-fashioned – his Beethoven is not of the sleek, lithe, and quicksilver variety that Carlos has engendered in the works of the Classical Viennese masters – but the sound he’s getting from the strings is lush and soft, with a bit of steel holding it together. He talks about a sound of “chocolate” quite a bit, and it’s a good image (even if it does make my stomach rumble as the morning rolls along).
The Brahms, however, is the gem of the concert. Both players are quite evenly matched, which is no mean feat considering Zukerman’s near legendary technical and musical command. But Forsyth is a tremendously strong player, with a big sound, lots of charisma, and clearly can stand up to and toss back whatever her illustrious husband can throw at her!
So, if you were on the fence about this concert – make a point to get to one of our remaining concerts this Sunday and Monday evenings (or if you’re in Salem, at Willamette University on Tuesday night). You won’t be sorry!
UPDATE: Here’s David Stabler’s review of last night’s concert from Oregonlive.com.