Emanuel Ax has gained a reputation as one of the world's finest pianists for good reason. His performance of Ludwig van Beethoven's Piano Concerto #2 in B-flat Major, Op. 19 this past weekend with the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) was light, remarkably clear and effortless. Joining the BSO this week as a guest conductor was Jaap van Zweden, Music Director of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Zweden led the orchestra in a tasteful accompaniment to the Beethoven and followed it with a powerful rendition of Sergei Rachmaninoff's Symphony #2 in E minor, Op. 27.
Van Zweden set a delicate tone from the opening of the performance. Many conductors and orchestras play Beethoven's music with the heaviness and force his late work demands; van Zweden, though, chose to minimize the virility and strength so frequently associated with Beethoven's music, and instead emphasized its elegance and dance-like qualities. The concerto, after all, is one of Beethoven's early works, completed squarely within the Classical era in 1795, so this approach is entirely justified and rather refreshing.
Ax's playing was also gentle throughout most of the first movement and his quick passages were exquisitely even. Like the orchestral accompaniment, no notes stuck out of the texture.
Van Zweden's conducting was very demonstrative and detail oriented, and he almost appeared to be dancing much of the time. Ax's cadenza was a bit ponderous and far too long after the light movement that preceded it, but this didn't ruin what was otherwise an excellent first movement.
The second movement was significantly heavier than the first. It was hard to tell whether this was a conscious decision on van Zweden's part or whether it was something of a regression to the usual method of Beethoven playing, but either way it didn't leave as strong an impression as the first movement did. Ax's playing was still beautiful though, and he allowed himself to take on a more soloistic voice.
The third and final movement was even heavier than the second, although the music certainly called for it. Despite the increased weight, the orchestra still managed to maintain the playful character of a classical rondo, and pulled off all the various surprise key changes with aplomb.
Ax, not to be outdone, sold the sudden silences in the piano part so well that one had to wonder in a momentary panic whether the recording had been paused before recalling that it was a live performance. There were a few moments in this movement where Ax and the orchestra seemed to disagree ever so slightly on the tempo, but all in all, Ax was remarkably comfortable with the concerto and played with an uncommon sensitivity, particularly in the first movement. He drew a well-deserved standing ovation from the crowd, who were obviously thrilled to hear a pianist of his caliber.
While the three movements of the Beethoven grew progressively heavier in their tone, the Rachmaninoff took a quantum leap forward in weightiness. Having premiered just over a century after the Beethoven in 1908, it represents the pinnacle of the Russian Romantic symphonic tradition. Its four movements take about 60 minutes to perform, making it a test of endurance for any orchestra and a challenge to keep an audience engaged for an hour.
The BSO and van Zweden acquitted themselves admirably. He resisted the temptation so many conductors give in to: While the music is supremely expressive and jammed-pack with emotion, giving each phrase the time it "deserves" drags the piece out to painful proportions. Instead, van Zweden moved through at a relatively brisk pace, which allowed the audience to hear the larger arcs in Rachmaninoff's music. While this may somewhat diminish the impact of each melancholy line, it kept everyone's attention focused on the big picture.
Even at the commendably reasonable tempi van Zweden chose, the performance ran out of steam as the symphony progressed. The first movement was gloriously emotive, and the second movement was a satisfying and energetic contrast, but the naturally schmaltzy third movement leaned toward overbearing at times, and the fourth felt somewhat flat, adding nothing to the work as a whole.
Given the challenges inherent in performing such a massive work — and the effectiveness of the first half — the lackluster finish was a minor blemish on an otherwise strong concert. As with the Beethoven, the audience responded with great enthusiasm to the Rachmaninoff. Despite its flaws, it is a rhapsodically beautiful and supremely accessible work, the kind that many symphony-goers want to hear when they head to Symphony Hall.
