Five conductors for the price of one: It sounds like a good deal, and so it was Saturday night as the Toronto Symphony Orchestra launched its centennial celebrations in a well-packed Roy Thomson Hall. There have been some great concerts in this facility (and, before it, Massey Hall) but few as outrageously joyous.
The idea was to assemble all living music directors (minus Seiji Ozawa, in charge from 1965 to 1969, who sent his regrets) to perform in order of appointment. While this format might invite comparison as well as cooperation, it can be stated at the outset that all participants were in the conductorial equivalent of good voice and made the most of their opportunities. Bravi tutti, as they say — players definitely included.
First up was Sir Andrew Davis, music director from 1975 to 1988 and conductor laureate thereafter. Looking some 25 years younger than the strange number, 78, that turns up in reference sources, he lent elegance and transparency to Berlioz’s Roman Carnival Overture without sacrificing its boisterous qualities. Frederick Delius’s “The Walk to the Paradise Garden” (the intermezzo from A Village Romeo and Juliet in the Sir Thomas Beecham edition) was an exquisite exercise in pastel tones and gentle forward motion. By George, this Davis chap does British music well.
His successor, Günther Herbig, music director from 1989 to 1994, also proved to be something of an optical illusion at age 90. Suspending his long arms gracefully and cuing with precision, he made Wagner’s Tannhäuser Overture (Dresden version) a structural thing of beauty. Take note of the firm and balanced sound, quintessentially German, of the quiet opening chorale.
After intermission, we travelled north to Finland to hear the first number from the Lemminkäinen Suite of Jean Sibelius. Ostensibly about the amorous adventures of the hero of the title on an enchanted isle, this fascinating piece scans as a quantum field onto which elements from the orchestra pop in and out of existence in unpredictable but ultimately inevitable ways. At least such was the impression it made under the masterful direction – from memory – of Jukka-Pekka Saraste, 65 going on 50, music director from 1994 to 2001. If I were forced to pick a highlight, this would be it.
Not that there was anything lacking in the extrovert performance led by Peter Oundjian (music director from 2004 to 2018) of Alexina Louie’s exuberant fanfare The Ringing Earth. Give the TSO conductor emeritus (looking good at 66) an extra star for getting so much music out of Smetana’s prolix Šárka, third of the six pieces making up Má vlast. This was presented as a tribute to Czech-born Walter Susskind (music director 1956-65) and Karel Ančerl (1969-73). Marion Newman, the MC for the evening, also mentioned Luigi von Kunits (1923-31) and Sir Ernest MacMillan (1931-1956). Victor Feldbrill, resident conductor from 1973 to 1975, was given thanks in the printed program.
Finally, someone who more or less looked his age took the podium: Gustavo Gimeno, 46, music director since 2020, although he seems a more recent arrival owing to pandemic interruptions. We should feel assured by his subtle and evocative work in Ravel’s Rapsodie espagnole that the TSO has a future as well as a past. A percussionist by training, Gimeno can negotiate the most delicate rhythmic shifts with complete assurance. And what an ear for colour. Special effects were superb.
Of course, it took a first-class orchestra to make them so. It would be impossible to recount all the fine solos. English horn Cary Ebli and clarinet Eric Abramovitz distinguished themselves. A shoutout is owing former principal harp Judy Loman, out of retirement for the occasion. Members of the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra looked on from the choir loft. What a fine thing it would be if these seats were occupied more often.
The audience cheered heartily for the fabulous five, individually and then together, when they re-emerged to lead Dvořák’s lively Slavonic Dance Op. 72 No. 7 in tag-team fashion. Like all arts organizations, the TSO will face difficulties as it recovers from two years of hardship, but there can be no question, on the evidence of this wonderful evening, of the esteem in which it is held. The celebration has begun. Long may it last.
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