Hartford Symphony Orchestra, Hartford, CT
March 20–23, 2014
by Michael J. Moran
Guest conductor Michael Lankester was warmly welcomed to the
Bushnell’s Belding Theater for a program that played to many of the strengths
he demonstrated as HSO Music Director (1985-2000): an English symphonic
favorite; and a lesser-known Bruckner symphony.
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| Michael Lankester |
The concert opened with a deeply felt account of Sir Edward
Elgar’s masterpiece, formally titled Variations on an Original Theme, “Enigma,”
but usually called simply the Enigma Variations. Following a stately opening
theme, each of the fourteen variations depicts a friend or family member of the
composer, varying widely in pace and mood, from the tender first variation on
Elgar’s wife, Alice, to the “Presto” seventh variation on a high-spirited
friend, to the noble ninth variation (“Nimrod”), a tribute to Elgar’s
publisher, which is often played separately as an elegy.
Though some of Lankester’s tempos were daringly slow, all
sections of the orchestra did themselves proud in this loving rendition of a
work by a fellow Englishman that sounded very close to the conductor’s heart.
None of Anton Bruckner’s nine symphonies are programmed very
often, perhaps because of their enormous length, but the third appears less in
concert than the more familiar fourth, seventh, and ninth. So hats off to
Lankester for leading a monumental performance of the 67-minute piece after
intermission. Bruckner was a church organist for many years in his native
Austria, and the symphony’s huge sonorities resonated much like an organ in the
ample but intimate Belding acoustics.
With spacious tempos in all four movements, Lankester
emphasized its majestic grandeur, which evokes for many listeners the high
peaks and deep valleys of the Austrian Alps. The HSO brass made a glorious
choir in the symphony’s blazing climaxes, while the woodwinds played many
softer passages with contrasting delicacy.
During his tenure as HSO Music Director, Lankester showed a
special feeling for the English repertoire, with memorable local premieres of
contemporary works by John Taverner and Michael Tippett, as well as for
large-scale pieces like Mahler’s eighth symphony. Both strengths were well
served by this Elgar/Bruckner program, and much of the audience seemed anxious
for a return engagement soon.
