Concert-goers
had a real treat last night to the tune of one Sol Gabetta who played at the
Kennedy Center’s Concert Hall with the National Symphony Orchestra under the
baton of Chief Conductor of the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra and Principal
Guest Conductor of the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, Mr. John Storgårds. His conducting alone was enough to move
mountains, and so did the concert proceed with the ‘Variations on a Theme by
Frank Bridge’ by Mr. Benjamin Britten, who is celebrating his centenary this
year. IN any regard, it was a piece fit
for a king with string, string, string.
And evoked for one the peacefulness of the English countryside, for
indeed the ending gave a kind of pallor of a certain dying of the light in the
distance that one could hear stretching way out into the yonder horizon across
the fields.
Next on the program, came Sol onto
the stage in a flowing red dress which suited her Argentinian, tango-style on
the cello. She rocked and swayed
back-and-forth in a tango-esque manner which suits her instrument. Indeed, she could not have managed the kind
of back-and-forth melodies which she played across the cello last night if she
had not undertaken this style of playing.
Just as she had shown herself to do two years before in the Shostakovich
Sonata for Cello and Piano, so she did last night. Her glorious instrument made sweet melody and
the orchestra was well in-tune as well, for not only did Sol play, but also did
she flourish in the playing of the Concerto, which was of course
memorized. Her style is different from
that of the late Mstislav Rostropovich.
One finds that Rostropovich’s playing is rather more forward and he has
a sound which is very good, but not quite as sexy as Sol, if I may be so
bold. In any case, it was a marvelous
concert to which the audience responded with a standing ovation immediately
after her performance. It was such to
move mountains indeed, and everyone was very appreciative of the temperature
which had certainly been raised that night by Sol’s playing on the cello. One could well imagine how Sol could be taken
up into the heavens on a cloud of angels with her playing: Just how magnificent
it truly was. It was all one could have
hoped and more.
The tempo during the piece changed
as well and this change was heightened by the changing moods in the piece and
Sol’s solo playing which highlighted the grandiose scheme of Shostokovich, who
truly knew what he was doing when writing for the cello. He had enough long-bows to satisfy the
enthusiast and the Sol’s plucking was demonstrative and done with aplomb. She may be the next Jacquoline Dupré. For
truly one stands mesmerized when confronted with her sweeping playing and
etc.
Then audience members were treated
to a final triumphant “Spring” Symphony by Robert Schumann which rocked the
socks of all in attendance that night.
It was truly big and significant.
