Caught up in the machine music vogue of the 1920s, Sergei Prokofiev declared his Second Symphony to be a work of “iron and steel”. Which should make it a perfect fit for an industrial town like Cleveland. That’s not quite how it came off in a program pairing Prokofiev with Anton Webern, but with Franz Welser-Möst on the podium, The Cleveland Orchestra pulled the evening out of the fire with a rousing rendition of Prokofiev’s aspirational Fifth Symphony.
If nothing else, the performance of Prokofiev’s Symphony no. 2 in D minor offered a reminder of why it’s among the least-played of the composer’s works. Simply put, it’s fiendishly difficult to bring order to the inventive chaos. The first movement is a thick, pounding wall of noise, the second a set of comparatively melodic variations on a theme, though still muscular and insistent. In this rendition, slashing strings and blaring brass dominated a frenetic first movement, then a slower pace in the second exposed layers of sound that tended to turn shrill at the high end. Despite some fine trumpet work in the opening and colorful clarity from the woodwinds, particularly the oboe, in the variations, the piece just never coalesced. Sans an organic core, the music caromed around the stage, clattering and hammering without offering much substance.
Just ten minutes long, Webern’s Symphony, Op.21, is even more challenging, a subdued twelve-tone exercise for nine instruments. The contrast with Prokofiev could not have been starker, and Welser-Möst was dead-on in his observation that “every meticulously chosen note” has meaning. Again, the execution by the players was superb, featuring clear, cool tones and muted atonal harmonies. But the larger picture never emerged, leaving the impression of an abstract series of sounds rather than a minimalist mosaic. Technically, the piece has a rather strict form which was difficult to discern in this performance.
Prokofiev’s grand Fifth Symphony seemed to energize both conductor and orchestra, with deft work on the podium shaping a robust, full-bodied sound. Deep cellos and then sweeping violins opened a first movement packed with so much drama and tension that it nearly gave off sparks. Powerful dynamics and sharp percussion gave the second movement a vibrant pulse, with Welser-Möst showing finesse in the quick turns of rhythm and timing and a knife-edge climax. The tight control missing in the first half of the concert came to the fore in the third movement, with the conductor giving shape and character to mostly gauzy material and adding just a touch of whimsy. The finale started soft and then quickly grew animated, even ebullient, suggesting a whirlwind dance in a colorful, driving clatter to a high-energy finish. This was the orchestra at its best, refined, richly melodic, every bar carefully calibrated without losing a sense of spontaneity.
The key to that is the musicians, who showed once again why The Cleveland Orchestra is ranked among America’s best. Individual pieces and performances may or may not work, but the playing is always at the highest levels – even when it’s struggling to be heard through the noise.
