Naumburg Orchestral Concerts (7/31/18)

Orchestra of St. Luke’s

Concerto for Strings in C Major, RV 117 (1720/24) – I. Allegro alla Francese; II. Largo; III. Allegro – Antonio Vivaldi (1678–1741)
“In Furore Iustissimae Irae,” RV 626 – I. Allegro “In furore iustissimae irae”; II. Recitativo “Miserationem Pater piissime”; III. Largo “Tunc meus fletus evadet laetus”; IV. Allegro “Alleluia”, Sherezade Panthaki, soprano – Vivaldi
Four Seasons (1721–25), Concerto for Violin in E Major (“Spring”); G minor (“Summer”); F Major (“Autumn”); F minor (“Winter”), Krista Bennion Feeney, violin – Vivaldi

This final concert of the Naumburg Concerts series was an all-strings affair, with a harpsichord added for a couple of the pieces, on an all-Vivaldi program. The first movement of the opening piece was gentle and lilting and had some nice harpsichord touches. The second movement was slower but still retained the delicate, gentle feel, and was surprisingly brief. The third was much quicker and bright, without being overpowering. The entire piece was a pleasant opener for the concert.

The second work was described from the stage as a motet, but it seemed to me as though it was a solo cantata for soprano and strings. The first movement had characteristic Vivaldi rhythms and sounds, including the rapid bowing of strings to create rhythmic excitement and energy. There was a good balance between the conductor-less orchestra and the vocal soloist. It was a straightforward structure with an ‘A’ section followed by a contrasting ‘B’ section and then a return to ‘A’. The vocal writing had a lot of tricky runs and melismas—many notes and phrases on a single vowel sound. The second was calmer, with a simpler setting of text. A ringing phone at the end of the second movement was a distraction for some audience members though it did not seem to affect the performers. The third movement was also very calm, with the text laid out clearly and cleanly. I took a few moments to put my head back and just watch cotton-puff clouds float by overhead. There was a little more embellishment in the middle section while the repeat of the first section included added flashy touches. The final movement was very brisk and celebratory and contained a great many runs and melismas that Ms. Panthaki tossed off quite easily and beautifully.

The second half of the concert was a presentation of all four of Vivaldi’s Seasons. In a sort of nod to Peter and the Wolf, or a Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra, the WQXR host, Terrance McKnight, had the soloist play some of the individual themes of each piece and give a description of a sort of ‘program’ associated with each of the four. It worked pretty well. Some of the movements would probably seem very familiar to many of you, but it was nice to hear each three-movement piece fully realized and played straight through. The concertmaster (not Meister—and in this case, the master was female) played all of the solos in all four of the individual Concertos and did a great job. I just sat back and enjoyed all four.

It was a fitting way to end a summer season of concerts, and I fully plan to be in attendance next summer for Naumburg’s 114th season.

ConcertMeister