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What do you get when you combine one of the world\u2019s great violin virtuosos with a string orchestra of young green hopefuls? A masterclass for certain, but how on earth were they going to keep up?<\/p>\n
Since 1997, Anne-Sophie Mutter<\/a> has been dedicated to fostering the Mutter Virtuosi, a small string orchestra formed as a way to give real-world performance experience to young hand-picked players from the Mutter Foundation. Guided by Ms. Mutter, the idea is to give them a taste of what it means to tour, and perform in some of the world\u2019s finest concert halls.<\/p>\n The issue comes when the young musicians are presented alongside a performer who is so extraordinary in her talents, that\u00a0it becomes a challenge to keep pace with her.<\/p>\n While some soloists are like a candle in a dark room, Mutter is more of a one-woman lighthouse, shining the way forward to the ships lost at sea. It didn\u2019t start off that way though.<\/p>\n Opening the evening was a freshly revised Ringtone Variations<\/em> by Sebastian Currier<\/a> for violin and double bass. It\u2019s a clever work, which plays upon a series of cellphone ring motifs entwined into a translucent fabric that explores the outer reaches of extended string technique. The piece could have been gimmicky in less reaching hands, but Ms. Mutter presented it with a gravitas that commanded attention.<\/p>\n Playing from some of the largest scores I have ever seen (contemporary composers have a thing for humongous scores), Ms. Mutter and a young Slovak double bassist, Roman Patkolo<\/a> showed the audience, in a blur of jittering bows and plum pizzicato, just why contemporary music should be part of all of our lives.<\/p>\n Preceding the intermission was a fitting nod to youthful virtuosity: Felix Mendelssohn\u2019s String Octet in E-flat, Op. 20. Written when Mendelssohn was just sixteen, it stands as a staple of youthful verve. Played at the speed of an Italian race car, Mutter\u2019s trademark vibrato was in fine form. With smiles of encouragement, the rest of the octet appeared to enjoy the limelight, but struggled with the tempi. The Presto in particular was a blast of quicksilver from which the Virtuosi barely got out alive.<\/p>\n Closing the evening was Vivaldi\u2019s Four Seasons<\/em>. Mutter stepped onstage in a yellow gown surrounded by the Virtuosi like a ring of fire. It was a contemporary take on the classic, which would have made the purists in the room roll their eyes \u2013 especially at the uninhibited use of rubato and rich vibrato, which was a bit like smothering a plate of Italian Saltimbocca in German Duckefett sauce.<\/p>\n![\"image2\"](\"http:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2014\/11\/image2.jpg\")
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