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University Centre Auditorium
April 7, 2018
Elgar and Mahler were contemporaries (the former was born three years earlier and died 23 years later, mind), but we (or at least, I) don't often link them. Elgar's reputation is as an out-of-fashion English nationalist of a bygone and somewhat disreputable era, while Mahler is the ultimate Romantic tragician, but the programme of the UVic Orchestra's last concert of the season put the lie to those stereotypes and gave me reason to ponder their similarities and differences. They both are unabashed Romantics, with elements of Brahms and Wagner throughout their writing. And they were both looking back; there's an argument to be made that Elgar was already yesterday's news when he composed the concerto in 1919, and I was struck by the fact that Mahler's first symphony is much closer in spirit and execution to Beethoven's sixth (from 80 years previous) than Stravinsky's "Rite of Spring", which approached much the same programmatic theme 25 years in the future. But in these works specifically, Elgar's introverted, soul-searching cello concerto is very different from Mahler's extroverted symphony.
The concert programme notified us that cellist Claire Dresselhuis was the 2017 UVic Concerto Competition winner, as well as the university's Solo Bach Competition. Based on her performance of Elgar's concerto, Ms. Dresselhuis is indeed a very talented musician, and deserving of recognition.
The opening of the concerto puts the cellist front-and-centre, with a long, sweeping melody that calls attention to the soloist's technical talent and musical thinking. Dresselhuis clearly "gets it", immediately demonstrating both skill on the instrument and a sense of what this music is about. This was evident throughout the concerto's four movements; her playing during the passages in the lento and adagio movements at the heart of the concerto was particularly good, and a convincing exhibit to Mstislav Rostropovich's argument that a young person brings an appropriate freshness to the concerto.
The orchestra, led by Ajtony Csaba, provided wonderful support. I was struck by the consistency of tone and balance in the orchestra, particularly in the many quiet passages. And the concerto is full of extended crescendos that take their sweet time to reach a climax; under Csaba's leadership, these were rendered with a splendid sense of controlled power and energy.
At the conclusion of the concerto, Ms. Dresselhuis and the orchestra were recognized with a well-deserved standing ovation.
Mahler's symphonies are undoubtedly a challenge for any orchestra; the youthful players of the University of Victoria Orchestra gave a dynamic and convincing reading that (for the most part) belied the difficulties in the First.
In the opening of the symphony, Mahler immediately challenges the players in two significant ways. First, the tempo is slow and, in Mahler's directions, "schleppend" (dragging). The controlled pace exhibited in the Elgar was again in evidence, perhaps ever more so, and Csaba maintained a sense of restraint, even reluctance, that didn't bring the forward momentum to a grinding halt. The second challenge is something that recurs throughout Mahler's canon: the orchestration routinely exposes solo players, often those playing the most difficult-to-control instruments. In the opening bars, there were a few missteps in places where the pianissimo levels, with barely any air going through the horn or bow on the string, didn't come off.
But those rare moments failed to spoil the overall effect, as the performance as a whole was gripping. The second movement's country dance was played with a delightful gusto, and the crescendo that opens the fourth movement was executed brilliantly. The brass section was notable throughout, from the off-stage trumpets in the opening measures to the horn fanfare near the symphony's conclusion.
Both the Elgar and Mahler works were given performances that were spirited and memorable. And although a number of the orchestra's membership, including some in key chairs, are graduating and were recognized at the concert's end, there's more than enough talent left on the stage that we can be sure that next season will bring more great performances.
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