The Toronto Symphony Orchestra with Henning Kraggerud (violin) and Peter Oundjian (conductor) at Roy Thomson Hall, Sept. 23. (Repeats Saturday, Sept. 24 at 8 p.m. tso.ca)
A bit much of a late-romantic muchness: This was my opinion in advance of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra program of Friday night, which coupled Sibelius’s Violin Concerto and Rachmaninoff’s Second Symphony.
Happily, high-performance standards have a way of dissipating prior objections. Here was an evening that affirmed the calibre of the ensemble and the undiminished podium authority of Peter Oundjian at the beginning of his penultimate season as music director.
He was not starting from scratch in the Rach: The TSO had produced a so-so reading two years ago under David Zinman, which meant that this lavish score was still more or less in the minds and fingers of the musicians. Balances were better this time around and phrases more eloquent. The Allegro molto second movement was both mobile and transparent. Contrapuntal writing left no doubt of the orchestra’s virtuosity (or Rachmaninoff’s underappreciated skill). And you could not ask for a more songful second tune in C Major.
Of course, there are many heartrending melodies in this music, which manages to be personal and grandiose at once. Oundjian found their proper character without sacrificing the hour-long architecture. Perhaps there were traces of effort in the finale, which the conductor kept aloft with callisthenics. But I was surely not the only one to exit Roy Thomson Hall humming.
Our soloist before intermission was Henning Kraggerud, a 43-year-old Norwegian who also functions as artistic director of the Arctic Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra. Aha. Now we know who brought those cool temperatures to the GTA on Friday afternoon.
He made amends in Sibelius with dark tone, strong emotion and a free approach to tempo that conveyed an atmosphere of spontaneous expression. A few technical issues in the finale were easily disregarded. Yet much as I liked Kraggerud, I admired the orchestra even more. Woodwinds were sweet and brass were spot-on. Timpani made a stronger impression for being so subtle.
As for the strings, their cool intensity is suited to Sibelius. Often the TSO delegates this composer to a Scandinavian. Oundjian (who is partial also to violin concertos) sounded entirely in sympathy with the idiom. A composer as well as a violinist, Kraggerud furnished as an encore a folky duet (with principal cello Joseph Johnson) of his own devising. Not appropriate in my view, but the audience enjoyed it.
The formal part of the program started with Butterfly Wings and Tropical Storms by Randolph Peters. Whether this nine-minute piece of 2002 was rightly heard as an individual effort or as a pastiche of Debussy, Ravel and Stravinsky was a debate my guest and I had some trouble resolving. Either way, it was an expert piece of orchestration and earned a better-than-average ovation.
First came O Canada — this being the opening regular concert of the season. Perhaps the formula is worth repeating: Start with a recital by a star vocalist (Renée Fleming on Wednesday) that gives the orchestra a chance to get the kinks out after a long summer. Then get serious.
The Friday program is repeated on Saturday night. On Wednesday and Thursday Oundjian gets serious indeed with Mahler’s Third Symphony.
#LUDWIGVAN
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