UTAH SYMPHONY CHAMBER ORCHESTRA, David Park violin, Abravanel Hall, May 14
It's been several years since David Park, the Utah Symphony's assistant concertmaster, soloed with the orchestra. But Thursday, he was the featured soloist as the orchestra played its final chamber concert of the season, with assistant conductor David Cho on the podium.
Park played Mozart's First Violin Concerto, supplying his own cadenzas for each movement. Surprisingly, this concerto has never been performed by the Utah Symphony before now.
The First is actually well suited for Park. It has some quite bold writing for the solo violin — for its time, at least — while also containing some of Mozart's most lyrical writing that is found in his early works (he composed this concerto when he was merely 17).
Park did a fine job with it, giving a dynamic performance in which he deftly integrated the bravura writing of the outer movements into the music's overall rich expressiveness.
The Adagio is one of Mozart's loveliest and, considering his youth, quite amazing for its emotional depth and expression. Park infused his playing with eloquent lyricism that captured the aria-like character wonderfully.
Cho offered fine accompaniment and kept the orchestra and soloist nicely balanced. And the orchestra's playing mirrored that of Park's in its clear, crisp phrasings and in its clean articulation.
The concert opened with Mozart's Symphony No. 35 in D major ("Haffner"). It's one of Mozart's brightest works, and Cho captured the airiness of the work with his interpretation. It was a high-energy account that was filled with vibrancy and high spirits.
The evening concluded with Haydn's Symphony No. 45 in F sharp minor ("Farewell"), with Park assuming his place as concertmaster. Cho captured the dynamic vitality of the opening movement and of the Presto section of the finale. The performance was driven and wonderfully dynamic.
In keeping with the story associated with this work (Haydn used it to give his patron, Prince Eszterhazy, the hint that the musicians needed a vacation), the musicians gradually left the stage, and the stage and house lighting dimmed, until only Park and acting principal second violin Wen Yuan Gu were left to end the work. It was theatrical — and effective.
e-mail: ereichel@desnews.com