South Florida Classical Review

Lahav Shani conducted the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra Wednesday night at the Arsht Center in Miami.

The American and Israeli National Anthems resounded vociferously as the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra took the stage of the Arsht Center Wednesday night under the baton of Lahav Shani, the orchestra’s first native-born music director. A program of musical Judaica and a Russian masterpiece signaled that this is a winning marriage of conductor and orchestra. The venerable ensemble, which dates its roots back to 1936, was in stellar form with full- bodied, precise and sonorous playing across all sections.

Prayer by Tzvi Avni opens with a long incantation for violas. In the manner of Ernest Bloch, the brief string work alternates between a liturgical cast and more agitated neo-classical influences. It proved a fine display of the string section’s rich corporate sound. 

Cellist Haran Meltzer, the first of two orchestra members to take the solo spotlight, was the protagonist for Bruch’s Kol Nidrei. Meltzer brought a lean tone and depth of feeling to the melody of the traditional prayer that opens Yom Kippur services. In the central section, his agile bowing and fingering projected a flowing pulse. Shani was an attentive accompanist. Wind and harp lines had fine clarity and the orchestra, seemingly intuitively, held back to allow its colleague to be fully audible.

Leonard Bernstein’s Halil (flute) brought flutist Guy Eshed to the stage. The 1981 work finds Bernstein at his most Judaic, encompassing both tonal and atonal styles. Written in memory of a 19-year-old flutist who was killed while serving during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the 16-minute score mixes catchy West Side Story-like tunes with meditative recitatives that suggest Asian influences. Both virtuosic and prayerful, the piece is one of Bernstein’s better late compositions. 

Premiered by Jean-Pierre Rampal, the work demands full command of the instrument’s melodic and pyrotechnical sides. Eshed was fully equal to those challenges. His silvery tone blended beautifully with Bernstein’s scoring for strings and percussion with the simultaneous sounding of flute and bells creating a unique aural perspective. He sailed through the triple-tongued acrobatics with flair and aplomb. Shani and the ensemble offered a tense, riveting backdrop with the timpanist providing repeated thunder.

Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6 in B minor brought the full ensemble back to the stage.

The performance took a while to settle in. While the opening bassoon solo was well articulated, Shani’s pace in the introductory Adagio was leisurely to the point of sluggishness. When the big, surging theme finally arrived, the strings cut loose in lustrous form and the remainder of the symphony received glowing treatment. A taut Allegro ma non troppo allowed the winds and brass to stand out. 

The second movement waltz was spun with balletic effervescence to exhilarating effect. Even more excitement was generated in a crisp reading of the Allegro molto vivace. He maintained relentless momentum without allowing the march rhythm to turn into overdrive. 

The massive applause at the movement’s conclusion did not dispel the impact of the concluding Adagio lamentoso. Indeed, Shani drew out the contrasting moods, bringing impassioned fervor to the strings’ initial statement of the main theme. With fluid tempos and full-bodied ensemble playing, he fully projected the movement’s tragic gravitas.

The symphony’s quiet ending seemed appropriate at a time when the orchestra’s homeland is again engulfed in war. An audience that evidenced enthusiasm throughout the concert stood and cheered. One man in the front row unfurled an Israeli flag which Shani gestured toward approvingly. For his encore, Shani kept the mood solemn with a soaring, deeply felt rendition of “Nimrod” from Elgar’s Enigma Variations before, finally, leading the orchestra off stage.

Gianandrea Noseda conducts the National Symphony Orchestra in Carlos Simon’s Four Black Dances, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 and Brahms’ Violin Concerto with Hilary Hahn  8 p.m. Saturday at the Arsht Center in Miami.  arshtcenter.org

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