Michael Tilson Thomas
http://michaeltilsonthomas.com has
been Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra www.sfsymphony.org since 1995. He is
Founder and Artistic Director of the New World Symphony, and Principal Guest
Conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra. In addition to conducting the
world’s leading orchestras, he is also noted for his work as a composer and a
producer of multimedia projects that are dedicated to music education and the
re-imagination of the concert experience. He has won eleven Grammys for his
recordings, is the recipient of the National Medal of Arts and is a Chevalier
dans l’ordre des Arts et des Lettres of France.
In this year’s season, he has been celebrating both his 20th anniversary as Music Director of the
San Francisco Symphony and his 70th birthday with a United States and
European tour with the San Francisco Symphony, a tour of New York and the west
coast of America with the London Symphony Orchestra, appearances in New York
and Washington, D.C. with the New World Symphony, and concerts with the Vienna
Philharmonic Orchestra and Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
Michael Tilson
Thomas’ latest live recording for the San Francisco Symphony’s own record
label, SFS Media www.shopsfsymphony.org/shop/SFS-Media
, features two works by Beethoven. For
the Piano Concerto no.3 in C minor he
is joined by Emanuel Ax http://emanuelax.com
and for the Mass in C major, by the San Francisco Symphony Chorus www.sfsymphony.org/About-Us/Musicians-Conductors/SFS-Chorus
and soloists, Joelle Harvey (soprano) www.askonasholt.co.uk/artists/singers/soprano/joelle-harvey
, Kelley O’Connor (mezzo-soprano) www.kelleyoconnor.com , William Burden (tenor) www.opus3artists.com/artists/william-burden
and
Shenyang (bass-baritone) http://imgartists.com/artist/shenyang
 |
| SACD 821936-0064-2 |
Recorded live at the Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco in
2013 the opening of the Allegro con brio of
Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3 in C
minor, Op. 37 receives nicely crisp, rounded phrasing from the orchestra with
some lovely string counterpoint. When Emanuel Ax enters he is beautifully paced
with lovely phrasing, building to some
terrific passages full of drive and power, yet with such fine clarity. Michael
Tilson Thomas accompanies most sensitively, with Ax building moments of fine
tension. Indeed the orchestral support is powerful and sensitive in equal
measure. Throughout, Ax brings his superb touch with a cadenza full of strength
and supreme fluency, beautifully developed with a lovely build up to the coda.
Ax brings much poetry to the opening of the Largo. When the orchestra enters Tilson
Thomas draws some beautifully shaped phrases from his San Francisco players.
There is some beautifully nuanced playing from both soloist and orchestra, with
much poetry and subtle dynamic changes.
A beautifully sprung, buoyant Rondo: Allegro brings more fine, crisp phrasing from Ax as well as
some wonderfully fluent passages. There are some very fine orchestral passages as
Tilson Thomas builds the music with superb fluency from Ax as we are led to a wonderfully
done coda.
This is a wonderful performance from these artists. The
enthusiastic applause is kept in but otherwise one is hardly aware of the
audience. The SACD layer of this disc
reveals a very fine recording.
The live 2014 recording of Beethoven’s Mass in C Major, Op. 86 is from the same venue. The San Francisco
Symphony Chorus brings a lovely rich opening to the Kyrie before they are joined
by the orchestra. Soprano, Joelle Harvey is in fine voice as is bass-baritone
Shenyang, surging to some fine peaks. Indeed the line-up of soloists when tenor
William Burden and mezzo-soprano Kelley O’Connor join is very strong indeed. Michael
Tilson Thomas keeps a beautifully focused musical line.
There is quite a stunning outburst from the chorus and
orchestra as the Gloria opens, this
choir proving particularly flexible and fluent. Tenor, William Burden is very fine here before
a heartfelt contribution from mezzo, Kelley O’Connor. There are fine contributions
from rich, firm bass-baritone, Shenyang and a pure voiced soprano, Joelle
Harvey. The choir rise to some fine moments with Tilson Thomas never allowing
the music to flag. The conclusion is full of strength, buoyancy and incisiveness.
The chorus and orchestra bring a tremendously dramatic Credo with really incisive singing and
orchestral playing. Again the four soloists are very excellent, blending so well.
Tilson Thomas shapes and controls impressively, building moments of drama and
excitement brilliantly. The fugal choral passages are wonderfully done.
There is a sensitively controlled Sanctus from both choir and orchestra, rising to some fine dynamically
contrasting passages as well as some finely woven passages for the soloists. It
is impressive how Tilson Thomas builds certain passages, always aware of the overarching
structure with a beautifully shaped prelude to the dynamic coda.
Again Tilson Thomas shapes the Agnus Dei so well with a beautifully controlled ebb and flow to the
music. The soloists bring some fine textures as the pace quickens with taut
choral and orchestral moments before the lovely coda.
If the performance of the Mass is less exceptional than the
concerto it is only that the concerto is so fine. This strong performance of
the Mass brings so much to enjoy.
The recording is again excellent. Applause is kept in at the
conclusion but again the audience is commendably quiet.
This is a disc that I will be happy to pop into my player on
regular occasions for a fine Beethoven concert. There are useful booklet notes.
No comments:
Post a Comment