Music Reviews

Oct 19, 1999 - The Adventures of Great Music and Playing at the Reno Phil

By Jack Neal

Much like those old-time Saturday afternoon movie serials kids at mid-century watched at the Bijou, the exciting adventures of conductor Barry Jekowsky and the Reno Philharmonic at the orchestra's MasterClassic's concerts continues to keep symphony fans on the edge of their seats.

Unlike the "Perils of Pauline," there's nothing cliffhanging about how these well-played concerts will turn out. That there's something special happening in Reno becomes clearer with every concert. That Jekowsky's musicianship and leadership is responsible for unleashing a golden age of listening that's rare for even the most sophisticated centers of art, is equally clear.

Tuesday's second subscription concert of the season at the Pioneer Center was played before a sold-out house. It was as exhilarating for its freshness as it was comfortable as old shoes for its familiarity. If the MasterClassics series can be criticized for anything, it would be for its draw on the repertoire of symphonic tradition. Of Dukas' "The Sorcerer's Apprentice," Enescos's Prelude on a Unison, Saint-Saens's Concerto No. 1 for Cello and Orchestra and Dvorak's Symphony No. 9, "From the New World," only the Enesco can be considered a change of pace. What makes Jekowsky's work impressive with works familiar and unfamiliar is his interpretive clarity and the feel he brings to what he conducts that it's being played with the care and thrill of a first-time performance. Add to those qualities the energy and finesse with which the orchestra brings Jekowsky's messages to audiences and the results are enormously satisfying.

Also impressive, is Jekowsky's penchant for hiring extraordinary young artists. The superb, young - she's 17 - American cellist Alisa Wielerstein played the Saint Saens with the orchestra's first-rate team work and she played it rapturously. She's not just brilliant technically, she's musically entrancing. A superb artist with the virtuosity of youth and the sublime musicianship of one many times her age, Miss Weilerstein's talent and passion for music is reminscent of the translucence of the late Jacqueline Du Pre. Miss Wiellerstein has - in addition to a glorious talent - star quality.

Of Saint Saens's many works for cello, the first concerto - notable for its elegance, charm, style and richness of melody - is his most distinguished. It's especially well suited to Miss Wielerstein's impassioned musicality and dazzling virtuosity. The orchestra's collaboration with the cellist via Jewkosky's sensitivity for the music and Miss Wielerstein's expressive needs created an entirely compatible and memorable performance.

The New World Symphony has a non-stop propulsion that seems to emanate from an unbridled American optimism - Dvorak, perhaps, via Walt Whitman. The reality is that Dvorak's symphony owes its inspiration to the African American music Dvorak heard in America. It's the plaintiveness and nostalgia of the symphony that is at the heart of Jekowsky's reading. Add to those yearnings, the joyous outbursts of revivalistic exuberance and soaring heavenward melodic lines that were so much a part of the conductor's take on capturing Dvorak's panorama of American sounds and the result was a performance of grace and grandeur. The solo utterances of many, but especially Mary Miller (flute), Andrea Lenz (oboe), Marianne Dodd (English horn), David Ehrke (clarinet), Robert Lightfoot (timpani) and John Lenz (French horn), were notable contributions to the success of the Dvorak.

Enesco's Prelude on a Unison (scored for violins, violas, cellos and tympani) is an exotic and haunting work. Powerful in its simplicity and the searing intensity of Jekowsky's conducting, the dramatic impact of the Enesco was, as young people say, awesome.

Thanks to Walt Disney and legendary conductor Leopold Stokowski, "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" is one of the big hits on classical music's all-time hit parade. Who can forget Mickey Mouse and his platoon of magical brooms trying to manage all those buckets of water in Disney's enchanting "Fantasia"? Jekowsky and the Philharmonic gave their own richly colored accounting of this tantalizing and visionary score; a robust momento of Stokowski's vibrant work that was as vibrant and colorful as "Fantasia" itself.

The next Reno Philharmonic MasterClassics concert will be Tuesday, November 16, 1999. The program will feature pianist Helen Huang and the music of Copland ("Appalachian Spring"), Mozart (Piano Concerto No. 23) and Beethoven (Symphony No. 7). Barry Jekowsky will conduct. All MasterClassics Concerts are at the Pioneer Center for the Performing Arts, 100 South Virginia Street, Reno. For information about upcoming Reno Philharmonic concerts and events and tickets call 775 323 6393.