“An orchestra is best measured when a tree is down,” writes Mark Swed in Tuesday’s (5/18) Los Angeles Times. “When felled mid-concert with a neck sprain as he began his last program of the season with the Los Angeles Philharmonic in Walt Disney Concert Hall, Gustavo Dudamel was relieved by associate conductor Lionel Bringuier. … The situation was not quite that dramatic but ultimately more difficult last weekend when the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra’s music director, Jeffrey Kahane, was forced to cancel his last program of the season because his mother was gravely ill. A single replacement for Kahane was hardly possible with a week’s notice (if at all) for the original program. … [Composer] George Tsontakis led his new piece, ‘Laconika,’ himself and proved to be a more than competent conductor. A young pianist, Shai Wosner, squeezed the Beethoven [Third Piano Concerto] into his schedule, making his debut with the orchestra conducting a concerto few do from the keyboard and, again, with skill. But perhaps the most touching part of the evening, Sunday in UCLA’s Royce Hall, was the Bizet. Concertmaster Margaret Batjer led it from her seat in the orchestra. The leading was less conducting than coordinating. The performance was alert, lively and sparkled. The playing was beautiful and collegial.”
Posted May 19, 2010
