The program was all Beethoven. And Beethoven from that
period of his creative life when he was actively pushing the boundaries of
classical form to the limit in the establishment of musical Romanticism.
The second half was devoted to a performance of the Eroica
Symphony. It is difficult to say anything new about work that is a pillar of
European culture, a work that is so often performed and recorded. But what was
really memorably original about this performance was its audience. It wasn’t
that the orchestra played badly and that our collective interest wandered. Far
from it! The concentration of this ADDA audience was almost audible at times,
or inaudible, if you see what I mean. The quiet passages were listened to with
such concentration and silence that every nuance of even the quietest music shone
clearly through.
Beethoven’s design
thus became completely visible. Obviously, this symphony was written to pay
homage to Napoleon, but then the replacement of a triumphal march for a funeral
march rendered the piece heroic, rather than laudatory. And what more, in this
performance, specifically as a result of its audience’s concentration, the
music allowed Beethoven’s purely
personal statements to be experienced clearly and intimately. It is often said
that the Eroica’s finale was Beethoven’s defiant
gesture to his worsening deafness, but in this performance, the suggestions of
doubt and insecurity were clearly in evidence. The result was a truly rounded
and complete experience, full of vulnerability and self-doubt, as well as
energy and heroism. How many pieces with a complete funeral march movement were
ever branded triumphal? I simply don’t know.
Here, and as much because of the audience’s concentration, we saw the full
picture. An encore came from a movement from Prokofiev’s Classical Symphony, and
it sent everyone home lighter.
The first half and been a complete gem. Beethoven’s Triple
Concerto is often problematic in performance. The solo parts are probably not
big enough to warrant booking three top-rated soloists. On the other hand, if
the playing is less than perfect, or of the featured ensemble does not gel, the
sense of a shared chamber music experience, which surely the composer intended
but on a larger scale, would be lacking.
In this performance, the ADDA orchestra was fronted by
a trio that regularly plays chamber music together, Trio Vibrart, Miguel Colom
on violin, Fernando Arias on cello and Juan Pérez Floristán on piano. Individually,
they were more than capable of playing concerto-like roles, but they also
brought the cohesion of a chamber group to the music. This had the effect of
thoroughly integrating the ideas, thoroughly integrating the chamber music of
the soloist group with the chamber music-like orchestral interventions and accompaniment.
The performance was not only a success: it transcended the concept of success.
As an encore, the Trio Vibrart offered an arrangement
of one of Ginastera’s Argentinian Dances. The contrast that this folk-inspired,
ever-so-slightly modernistic music presented brought the whole memorable
evening together. Bravi to all concerned, especially the audience!
