{"id":40078,"date":"2016-11-18T10:49:00","date_gmt":"2016-11-18T15:49:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/?p=40078"},"modified":"2016-11-18T10:49:00","modified_gmt":"2016-11-18T15:49:00","slug":"scrutiny-a-mixed-programme-with-mixed-results-marks-patricia-kruegers-toronto-symphony-farewell","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2016\/11\/18\/scrutiny-a-mixed-programme-with-mixed-results-marks-patricia-kruegers-toronto-symphony-farewell\/","title":{"rendered":"SCRUTINY | A Mixed Programme With Mixed Results Marks Patricia Krueger\u2019s Toronto Symphony Farewell"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"TSO
TSO | Patricia Krueger and Gianandrea Noseda take a final bow at Roy Thomson Hall (Photo: Jag Gundu)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Toronto Symphony Orchestra, with conductor Gianandrea Noseda, pianist Stefano Bollani, and organist Patricia Krueger. Roy Thomson Hall. Repeats Nov. 19<\/a><\/span>.<\/h3>\n

It is always a pleasure to hear the Toronto Symphony at its best, as was the case on Wednesday night at Roy Thomson Hall. Guest conductor Gianandrea Noseda, a regular visitor who first arrived on that podium nearly 15 years ago as a hot young conductor, is now a seasoned and much-lauded veteran of the world\u2019s finest symphony and opera orchestras. His iron-clad command of the music is remarkable, and he has an unerring sense of where everything needs to go, from the first note to the last.<\/p>\n

That command was in full, splendid display in this Toronto visit. It\u2019s too bad that the programme itself, and the work of one of the soloists, didn\u2019t rise to Noseda\u2019s own Olympian level. It\u2019s a double shame, because this programme, which repeats on Saturday, marks the official farewell of keyboard player and percussionist Patricia Krueger, after four decades with the TSO.<\/p>\n

Krueger had her golden moment at the end of the evening, in Camille Saint-Saens\u2019 majestic Symphony No. 3, known as the \u201cOrgan Symphony.\u201d At the helm of the Gabriel Kney pipe organ console, angled at the front of the stage to show off her handy footwork, Krueger\u2019s assurance matched Noseda\u2019s. As one of the few organ concertos in the mainstream repertoire, this work from 1886 largely has the King of Instruments working alongside the orchestra, rather than dominating it. Krueger has played it many times, and the piece\u2019s many charms were on full display, complete with sweet middle section and rollicking finale.<\/p>\n

The opening work was by Alfredo Casella (1883-1947), a nearly forgotten composer being championed by a number of fellow-Italians these days, including Noseda.<\/p>\n

The quickest way to describe Casella\u2019s Elegia eroica<\/em> is alternately bombastic and lugubrious. Written in the dying days of World War I, it clearly reflects the agony of the times in sharply drawn orchestra textures that span the full dynamic capabilities of a large ensemble. The world would not be the same after this war, and Casella\u2019s 16-minute work clearly portends some sort of new European order with its clashing dissonances that slowly dissolve into a sort of lullaby. One isn\u2019t sure if it\u2019s a lullaby of death or sweet rest \u2013 an uneasiness of intent that one would hear in the work of a younger generation of composers like Dmitri Shostakovich.<\/p>\n

The piece was a great way to show off what an orchestra can do, and the musicians of the TSO acquitted themselves beautifully. But I would venture that the piece itself is much more interesting for someone trying to analyze it than trying to sit back and enjoy it. I doubt it made many people dash home to find out more about Casella\u2019s other music.<\/p>\n

\"TSO
TSO | Conductor Gianandrea Noseda and pianist Stefano Bollani (Photo: Jag Gundu)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The filling in this musical sandwich was Maurice Ravel\u2019s well-loved Piano Concerto from 1931, which prances and sings and rollicks along. The guest soloist was Italian jazz pianist Stefano Bollani, a multi-faceted and sharp-witted artist who is making his TSO debut with this work (which he played from a score).<\/p>\n

I wish I could say that a jazz musician brought some compelling insights to Ravel\u2019s jazzy score, but the effort fell strangely flat. The biggest problem was with dynamics. Bollani has a very light, deft touch, which barely made the New York Steinway audible during most of the performance. The piano part was too quiet and, unexpectedly, too soft-edged and purposeless, with odd phrasing set in sharp counterpoint to the precise, balanced and colourful sound coming from the orchestra.<\/p>\n

Bollani, dressed casually in jeans and a rumpled shirt in contrast to the TSO musicians in white tie and tails, did little to redeem himself in a very clever but overly glossy take on some ragtime by Scott Joplin. But he did tug mightily on the audience\u2019s heartstrings in his second encore, an intimate meditation on the late-and-lamented Leonard Cohen\u2019s Hallelujah.<\/p>\n

Overly clever programming, like mixing an obscure work in with two very popular ones, and asking a musician from outside the genre to provide insights may look good on paper, but it doesn\u2019t always translate into a powerful musical night out.<\/p>\n

Here is hoping that Noseda can return again soon in a more coherent presentation of his uncommonly fine skills. And we do have one more opportunity to witness Krueger\u2019s fine artistry at Roy Thomson Hall when she joins the TSO in its annual performances of Handel\u2019s Messiah.<\/p>\n

Bollani is not taking a night off between TSO performances. Instead, he switches from classical to jazz on Friday night to jam with his Danish Trio and Toronto\u2019s Roberto Occhipinti Trio at Koerner Hall. The more intimate venue should be much more conducive to his skills at the keyboard. Details, here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

#LUDWIGVAN<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

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Overly clever programming mars an otherwise graceful end of an era for the TSO’s Patricia Krueger. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":40081,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[5723,76,19,4937,52],"tags":[1414,6534,6388,3359,3403],"yst_prominent_words":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2016\/11\/Pat-Krueger-G.-Noseda-@Jag-Photography.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-aqq","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40078"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40078"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40078\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":40085,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40078\/revisions\/40085"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/40081"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40078"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=40078"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=40078"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=40078"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}