A decade after their last visit to New York, the London Philharmonic Orchestra returned with a generous, emotion-laden program led by Principal Conductor Edward Gardner, alongside violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja, both making their debuts in the Carnegie Hall’s renowned Stern Auditorium.
In Britten’s harrowing Sinfonia da Requiem, Gardner brought tremendous emotion to the opening Lacrymosa and conveyed the despair of the second movement Dies irae with razor-sharp precision. The final Requiem aeternam was distinguished by an especially tender rendering of the flute theme.
Next came a sensational performance of Shostakovich’s Violin Concerto no.1, featuring the Moldavan-born Patricia Kopatchinskaja. Among the most haunting and passionate works in the violin repertoire, it was written in 1947-1948, during a period of extreme cultural suppression by the Stalinist regime and not premiered until two years after Stalin’s death. Permeated with a sense of desolation, it is a testament to the composer’s resilience in one of the most turbulent times in Soviet history.
Kopatchinskaja’s playing was breathtaking, quickly immersing herself in this introspective music. From the soft and simple phrases of the enigmatic Nocturne, she shifted into the demonic Scherzo, delivered with astonishing speed and intensity. With each variation of the Passacaglia, her solo line became more vigorous, leading into a whirling, dramatically compelling cadenza. As the music increased in speed and complexity, she became more animated, leaping up and down and occasionally stomping as the conductor turned her pages. As the frenetic Burlesque finale sped to a conclusion, one could only marvel at her virtuosity and commitment. Gardner led throughout with exceptionally concentrated focus, drawing expressive support and impressive, muscular sound from the orchestra.
After the dark drama of the first half, the mood turned more upbeat with Tania León’s Raices (Roots), a 2024 LPO commission. A vibrant work that taps into the composer’s Afro-Cuban heritage, the score is an intricately layered tapestry of musical influences – Latin-American rhythms, jazz and modernist techniques. Conceived as a single 15-minute movement, it has three main sections. After a brief, feather-light introduction in string harmonics, the dance-like first part explodes in a blaze of habanera rhythms from the piano, percussion and strings. Then comes a traipse through a tropical woodland amid chirping woodwinds and other forest sounds from the low brass. The conversation between Latin-American and jazz influences continues as a meditative vibraphone, accompanied by soft, exotic percussive sounds brings the piece to a gentle close. Gardner elicited a joyful and transparent account, illuminating the score’s complex textures with spirit and skill.
The performance of Sibelius’ exhilarating Fifth Symphony – inspired by the natural grandeur of the composer’s native Finland, in particular the sight of 16 soaring swans – was graceful and vibrant, brimming with ardor and drama. The majestic atmosphere of the opening paragraphs was vividly conveyed by the LPO horns and woodwinds, with a potent sense of mystery emerging in the development. The transition to the Scherzo was masterfully handled, and the forthright sound of the pizzicato strings and staccato flutes in the central Andante was particularly notable. But it was the fervent and characterful playing in the final Allegro molto movement, where the rustling tremolo strings ushered in the mighty horn theme that was most impressive in this exhilarating account of this powerful work.
For an encore, the orchestra offered a moving rendition of Nimrod from Elgar’s Enigma Variations, a quintessentially British ending to a spectacular evening of music-making.
