Brahms’ Double Concerto
Springfield Symphony Orchestra, Springfield, MA
November 19, 2016
by Michael J. Moran
In his “Rhodes’ Reflections” column in the program book, SSO
music director Kevin Rhodes describes this concert as “the Jurassic Park of our
season, in that everything is BIGGER! Instead of the usual single soloist
concerto, we have Brahms’ Double Concerto for Violin and Cello” and, in
Bruckner’s seventh symphony, a “cathedral of sound…an amazing work of beauty
which is almost too much to take in at once…but the experience of having done
so is unforgettable!”
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| Mark Kaplan, Violin & Clancy Newman, Cello |
In an interview with The Springfield Republican, Rhodes
recalled leading this concerto in New Mexico with violinist Mark Kaplan and
cellist Clancy Newman, where he found “that they are of two different
generations…made for an extremely rich musical pairing.” With the SSO, the same
pair fully engaged in what the maestro calls “essentially a duet…that is very
rare in Brahms.” Their close rapport heightened both the excitement and the
poignancy of the many solo passages they exchanged, and Rhodes drew warm,
vibrant support from the orchestra in all three movements.
During remarks before the Bruckner symphony after
intermission, Rhodes introduced four players of “Wagner tubas,” invented by
that composer to combine the sounds of the French horn and trombone in his
operatic “Ring cycle.” As Rhodes noted, they add “a unique sonority” to this
symphony’s radiant second movement, an elegy to the dying Wagner, Bruckner’s
musical idol.
Evoking the frequent description of Bruckner’s symphonies as
reflecting the mountains and valleys of his native Austria and the resonant
church organs he played for most of his life, the SSO’s towering performance of
this epic work was one of Rhodes’ finest achievements in his 16-year tenure.
All four movements feature strong contrasts of tempo and dynamics, and Rhodes
and his musicians made the most of them. Members of the brass section may have
been the stars of the evening, but woodwinds, strings, and percussion were
equally adept.
That the capacity audience was riveted throughout this
relatively unfamiliar 65-minute symphony and that the players have never looked
more enthralled with their craft are tributes to Rhodes’ inspirational
leadership. This is clearly a musical partnership built to last.
