At Seoul Arts Center, the Bamberg Symphony under Jakub Hrůša delivered a performance that at once honoured tradition and illuminated fresh, contemporary perspectives on the standard repertoire. Their opening work, the overture to Wagner Die Feen (The Fairies), served primarily as a brisk, atmospheric curtain-raiser. Though concise, it carried an undercurrent of drama that foreshadowed the evening’s delicate balance between grand gesture and painstaking clarity, a duality that would surface more fully in the main programme.
The first half centred on Bruch's Violin Concerto no. 1 in G minor with Bomsori Kim. This collaboration garnered particular interest because the violinist recently recorded it with Hrůša and the Bambergers for a DG release, which has drawn considerable acclaim. Adding historical lustre to the occasion, Kim’s mentor, Professor Young-uck Kim, famously performed the same concerto with this orchestra over half a century ago, creating a neat continuity between past and present.
Right from the outset, one could detect that Hrůša’s disciplined yet pliant approach was sharply defined. His tempi were taut, but his phrasing allowed ample space for the orchestra’s rich textural tapestry to glimmer with near-cinematic vividness. In turn, Kim’s projection was notably more assertive than in her previous outings. There was a forthrightness to her bowing that occasionally bordered on brashness, yet this quality underscored the romantic fervour at Bruch’s core. Especially in the Adagio, she wove an elegant, almost prismatic cantilena, capitalising on her instrument’s capacity to articulate colour shadings with singular warmth. By the finale, soloist and orchestra were an integrated force, letting fly a forward drive both electrifying and cohesive, an impression likely to linger for those familiar with this concerto’s storied performance lineage.
It was in the second half, though, that Hrůša’s broader interpretative philosophy came into sharper focus, as he led a powerfully structured reading of Beethoven, Symphony no. 7 in A major. While some current “fusion” interpreters might opt for a slightly faster pace in the first movement, Hrůša took a more measured route, avoiding any headlong plunge into sheer rhythmic vitality. Instead, he granted each instrumental layer crisp definition, most notably the violins, which subtly softened their volume at times to reveal inner voices and secondary lines that often go unnoticed. By slightly easing the emphasis on the violins where they typically dominate, giving greater density to less-prominent elements, Hrůša created an effect that allowed listeners to perceive the work’s larger design more naturally.