UTAH SYMPHONY with Pavel Kogan conducting and guest artist Shlomo Mintz, violin; Thursday night at Abravanel Hall. One performance only.
There were surprisingly a lot of empty seats in Abravanel Hall at Thursday's Utah Symphony concert. But those who came to the concert were treated to an unforgettable musical evening.Violinist Shlomo Mintz was the featured soloist, and he gave a hypnotic performance of Paganini's demanding Violin Concerto No. 1 in D major.
Mintz is an incredible violinist. He handled the dazzling pyrotechnics of this concerto with ease. It was simply amazing watching him play all the double stops, runs, arpeggios and harmonics at the nearly superhuman tempos Paganini calls for. Yet Mintz played all this with the authority and command of the consummate artist, skillfully weaving the virtuosic passages into the musical fabric.
Mintz's interpretation was also expressive and very musical. He and conductor Pavel Kogan worked well together in the Paganini, and they gave their audience a wonderful musical experience.
There were a few flubs in Mintz's playing in the opening "Allegro maestoso," but they were negligible compared to his overall sparkling performance of this tour de force concerto.
Kogan and the orchestra also played Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 5 in E minor. The maestro gave a highly personal and emotionally charged performance of this magnificent symphony. The tempos were consistently on the fast side, but that only added to the force and energy of this driven interpretation.
Right from the opening notes of the "Andante" introduction, with its delightful clarinet solo -- beautifully played by principal clarinet Tad Calcara -- you sensed that this was going to be a special and deeply felt interpretation.
The "Allegro con anima" opening movement was powerful and dynamic, with Kogan highlighting the large-scale musical gestures in this movement. He also brought out the sensuous romantic character of the music with its rich orchestral colors.
Principal horn Bruce Gifford gave a poignant rendition of the solo that opens the second movement, "Andante cantabile." The entire "Andante," in fact, was grand and stirring in a simple and direct way.
The "Allegro moderato" was spirited and light, and it was a welcome contrast to the more weighty preceding movements.
The "Allegro vivace" finale was fiery and passionate. Kogan went for the dramatic gestures here, and he turned in a masterful performance that swept the audience off its feet.
Kogan also brought new life to Grieg's Suite No. 1 from "Peer Gynt," which opened the concert. He turned the four movements that make up this suite into brief but vivid tonal poems. It was unbelievable what Kogan could make of these charming vignettes. They were all fascinating and exciting and carefully sculpted and finely tuned.
You can reach Edward Reichel by e-mail at ereichel@desnews.com