Tanglewood, Lenox, MA
July 7, 2019
by Karoun Charkoudian
The audience received a rare treat on this special afternoon
at Tanglewood. Not only did they hear a full concert of John Williams’ most
iconic pieces, but Williams himself conducted the second half of the program.
Annie-Sophie Mutter was the other key ingredient, a world
renown, and veteran violin soloist. John Williams re-arranged many of his
scores especially for her. They, in fact, recorded together in the last year at
Sony Records to create her recently released album “Across the Stars.” This
concert was full of selections from that album.
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Photo by Stu Rosner |
In true Boston Pops fashion, every note was played in
perfect intonation and perfect unison. The afternoon opened with Star Wars
Galaxy’s Edge, a tension filled, high-energy piece where the Pops’ strong brass
section shined brightly. Theme from Jurassic Park followed, opening with
lyrical solos of French horn, flute, and harp, leading into the beefy section –
rich and thick, as if portraying earth coming to life.
And then she arrived on stage. A vision in green,
Annie-Sophie Mutter popped against the backdrop of white-clad musicians. She
lifted her violin and played -- with affection, with sweetness, with soul – she
was the heart of the orchestra.
In one of her opening pieces, Across the Stars, Mutter
played a duet with the pianist that made the audience melt. An excerpt from
“Far and Away” followed, where Mutter played her violin in Irish-Fiddle-style,
and with fervor! The first half closed with The Devil’s Dance from “The Witches
of Eastwick” where her playing was on fire – intense, rhythmic, and dramatic.
With Williams, she performed six more selections, among them “The Adventures of
Tintin,” fast and stormy, and the “Memoirs of a Geisha” selection ended with a
sensual violin and cello duet.
The concert ended with an uproarious standing ovation,
followed by three encore pieces each preceded by additional standing ovations.
The crème de la crème of the afternoon was to watch how Williams and Mutter
looked at each other – with deep mutual respect, admiration, and affection.
Neither one was willing to step out in front of the other -- into the limelight
of the audience’s adoration. Instead, they stood together and gazed at each
other with acknowledgement and warmth while the audience’s cheers thundered in
appreciation around them!