Naumburg Orchestral Concerts (II of V)

Orpheus Chamber Orchestra (6/28/16)
Nobuyuki Tsujii, Piano

Beautiful concert. Slightly less than perfect weather. In fact, I know of one regular listener/attendee who skipped it because of weather possibilities. That said, here’s the program:

Coriolan Overture, Opus 62 (1807) – Ludvig van Beethoven (1770–1827)
Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major, “Emperor Concerto”, LvB, Opus 73 (1809–1811), I. Allegro; II. Adagio un poco mosso; III. Rondo: Allegro ma non troppo – Nobuyuki Tsujii, piano
Symphony No. 5 in C minor, “Fate”, LvB, Opus 67 (1804–1808) – I. Allegro con brio; II. Andante con moto; III. Scherzo, Allegro; IV, Allegro

Yep, an all-Beethoven program. And I enjoyed it. The Coriolan Overture actually had a false start, since this outdoor concert was being broadcast live on WQXR. The orchestra began, but then had to regroup, since the broadcast had not yet begun.

Sans conductor (an Orpheus trademark), the overture had a dramatic opening that had shifting moods, highlighted by the Naumburg banner as a visual accompaniment.

The first movement of the piano concerto had familiar themes that were somewhat interesting but fairly lengthy. The time- and weight-wise effect was really great. The second movement opened with strings only, then winds were added, plus a very gentle piano line. Just before the Rondo, a trio of dames traipsed in—really? You couldn’t wait for the end of the movement? Which was also the end of the first half of the concert? Despite the intrusion, the piano broke out into a strong theme that was then picked up by the orchestra, for a very strong finish.

After lengthy applause, Mr. Tsujii played two encores—a Gershwin piece and Liszt’s La Campanella. Thoroughly delightful and gratefully accepted. (As an aside, I have never experienced a solo encore at the end of the first half of a concert—but I'm thrilled that it happened.)

After intermission, we heard Beethoven’s Fifth. Ba-bum-bum-BUMMM! But so much more. The opening was played with a very brisk tempo, with the brass featured much more strongly than I remember. That said, I usually hear one movement at a time on the radio, and not the whole work in one sitting. The second movement opened with low strings, leading once again to very dense and rich passages, with a few grandiose passages midway through. The third and fourth movements blended together a little for me, but I was aware of a misterioso section followed by bolder brass, and then a quiet section (but with insistent rhythms) and a playful section. All in all—Beethoven at his best.

Once again, I know I’ve heard each individual movement from time to time on the radio, so the individual themes were familiar to me, but I usually don’t sit down to listen to a symphony all the way through on the radio. I’m glad I had the opportunity to hear a world-class chamber orchestra present it al fresco in NYC. I’m pretty sure it’s streamable (is so a word!) on WQXR.com.

ConcertMeister