MAHLER LETS YOUNG MUSICIANS SHOW MATURITY
Richard Dyer, Boston Globe, May 27, 2004
Posted: 2004-05-28 10:01:52
In his prefatory remarks from the podium before Tuesday night's concert by the New England Conservatory Youth Philharmonic, conductor Benjamin Zander announced that this would be the first performance of Mahler's Third Symphony by any youth orchestra in the world.
Whether or not that was the case, it was certainly a remarkable and inspiring account of a long and exceptionally difficult work by an exceptionally gifted and hard-working group of young people working under the direction of a much-admired conductor whose own lifelong Mahler journey has no end in sight. The Third is an exploration of the cosmos through music as well as the construction of a parallel or alternate cosmos in music.
Mahler has left an overwhelming hurdle in that first movement, which requires ferocious concentration, stamina, and a lot of all-out playing. When it is finally over, there is a lot of symphony to go, and most of the rest of it demands the utmost sensitivity and delicacy. Even the best orchestras find it hard to pull back, and the New England Conservatory Youth Philharmonic was no exception - the musicians would almost certainly have played the second part of the symphony better if they hadn't had to play the first part first.
Still, this would have been an outstanding achievement from musicians of any age. There was some splendid solo playing from the alternating principal horns (Alex Hall and Sheryl Hadeka), trombonist Jessie Nock, flutist Emi Ferguson, English hornist Maren Studlien, clarinetist Amy Chen, oboist Yuga Cohler, bassoonist Peter Kruskall, trumpeter Wynton McCurdy, and concertmaster Catherine Buzney. Boston Philharmonic principal trumpet Jeffrey Work stepped into an emergency and played the famous posthorn solo in a haunting and personal way.
With young players of this caliber and dedication coming along, one could feel reassured about the future of American orchestras. The picture will be a bit different - women now represent half the ensemble, sometimes on untraditional instruments for women such as the horn, trombone, and tympani. And four African-American members put the Youth Philharmonic well ahead of most established professional orchestras in that aspect of diversity.
The choral episodes were sweetly sung by the NEC Youth Chorale and the Boston singers, and mezzo Gigi Mitchell-Velasco sang her solo with rich tone, eloquence, and restraint. Zander charted a course through the symphony that was safe and experienced, but also risk-taking. He began the long finale with a heartfelt simplicity, and it rose to such an intense climax that a few bars before the end one of the principal players keeled over into the flute section. He recovered nicely in time for a solo bow during the prolonged and tumultuous ovations.
