Cellist Andrew Shulman will be making his Utah Symphony debut next weekend in a big way, playing the 1946 Samuel Barber concerto.
Shulman is one of just a few cellists to make this immensely demanding and challenging work part of their repertoire. "I'm very much looking forward to coming and playing it," the British-born performer said by phone from his home outside Los Angeles. "Because it's ferociously difficult, not many soloists have it in their repertoire. But it's a magnificent piece."
The cellist is replacing Wendy Warner, who had been scheduled to play the Barber concerto before an injury sidelined her. "Wendy has made a fine recording of it," Shulman said, referring to Warner's 2001 recording with Marin Alsop and the Scottish National Orchestra. "She is championing the work."
Substituting for Warner will be especially grueling for Shulman, since his performances with the Utah Symphony mark the first time he's undertaken playing the Barber concerto in public. "I've had to move everything else out of the way to prepare it. Normally, I would have liked to have had a longer period of time to absorb it, but I can't turn down an offer to play it."
Since he agreed to fill in for Warner, Shulman has been asking around to find out just how often the Barber concerto has been performed. "Nobody plays it, despite the fact that it's a fine work." He considers the Barber to be on the same level as the cello concertos of Schumann, Dvorak and Elgar.
While he's been working on the concerto, Shulman said that he's been constantly reminded about what Serge Koussevitzky had to say about it. "Koussevitzky commissioned it, and when he finally had the score, he saw that it had the potential to be to the 20th century what the Brahms Violin Concerto was to the 19th."
Shulman has had a multifaceted career, starting as an orchestral musician. After studying at the Royal Academy and the Royal College of Music, Shulman was appointed solo cello of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic and the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields. At the young age of 22, he was offered the first-chair position with the Philharmonia Orchestra by conductor Riccardo Muti. Shulman stayed with the Philharmonia for the next 18 years. "London orchestras give their best musicians flexibility, in order to keep them. The Philharmonia has three principal cellos, and that allowed me to do solo work as well."
During his time with the Philharmonia, Shulman was also a member of the Britten Quartet, with whom he recorded 25 CDs, ranging from the standard repertoire to music by Arnold Schoenberg, Sir Michael Tippett and Alfred Schnittke.
After moving to the United States, Shulman joined the Los Angeles Philharmonic as principal cello in 1999. He remained with the orchestra until 2002. "Now that I've left the orchestra, I have more time to do a bit of everything again — everything that I enjoy doing." That includes doing a considerable amount of film and TV work, and taking part in Los Angeles' active chamber-music scene.
Since the mid-1990s, Shulman has also concentrated part of his considerable energy on conducting. "I've been increasing that part of my career, although I haven't conducted in the states yet."
Shulman also believes that conducting has helped him as a soloist. "In the Barber concerto, the cello is so intrinsic in the orchestral texture that it helps to know the entire score in order to know the solo part. It's a give and take." But he doesn't think he's stretching himself too thin. "A bit of mixture is good for me. Everything feeds on each other."
Music director Keith Lockhart will conduct this weekend's performances. In addition to the Barber Cello Concerto, the program also features Barber's "Medea's Meditation and Dance of Vengeance," the 1956 revised version of his symphonic suite "Medea," and two pieces by Richard Strauss — the "Dance of the Seven Veils" from "Salome" and the Suite from "Der Rosenkavalier."
If you go . . .
What: Cellist Andrew Shulman, conductor Keith Lockhart, the Utah Symphony
Where: Abravanel Hall
When: Friday, 8 p.m., and Saturday, 2 p.m.
How much: $12-$47
Phone: 355-2787 or 888-451-2787
Also. . .
Where: DeJong Concert Hall, Brigham Young University
When: Thursday, 7:30 p.m.
How much: $20, $16 students
Phone: 801-378-4322
E-mail: eriechel@desnews.com