South Florida Classical Review

Gerard Schwarz conducted the Frost Symphony Orchestra Saturday night.

When Gerard Schwarz takes the podium of the University of Miami’s Frost Symphony Orchestra, he regularly inspires the student musicians to play at a level above their weight. 

That was definitely the case Saturday night at UM Gusman Concert Hall when Schwarz opened the orchestra’s season with a Mozart-Tchaikovsky program. Despite what must have been limited rehearsal time in the first weeks of the school year, Schwarz commanded the kind of precision and alert articulation that many a professional ensemble would be proud to display.

The Symphony No. 6 in B minor (“Pathetique”) was Tchaikovsky’s swan song,  with the 1893 premiere occurring only days before the composer’s death. While there is pathos and tragedy in the score’s pages, the symphony’s four movements contain a huge variety of emotional impulses and varied expression. Schwarz’s reading fully conveyed the music’s conflicting moods and character. As so often the case with this conductor, he produced a performance that emerged fresh and enlivening, blowing away the cobwebs of lethargic  tradition.

The variety of dynamics that Schwarz achieved was impressive. Evoking a sense of mystery in the slow introduction to the first movement, the softness of the initial bassoon solo set the tension in motion, making the contrasts to come all the more effective. Schwarz’s fluid pacing of the big thematic motif avoided exaggerated theatrics, and the ensuing Allegro ma non troppo emerged brisk and fierce with seismic  brass volleys. Across the board, wind solos were distinct, precisely pitched and detailed.

The brightness and deft phrasing of the second movement waltz was imbued with balletic spirit. From the first figurations of the martial Allegro molto vivace, the playing was incisive and crisp and that light touch permeated the entire movement, making the impact of the climaxes especially potent. 

Schwarz fully registered the darkness of the concluding Adagio lamentoso without overt melodramatics. He drew a huge sonority from the large string section and powerfully projected the depths of despair in the cello and basses’ final lines.  A cheering ovation followed this outstanding traversal of a repertoire staple.

The program’s first half was devoted to a Mozart symphony and concerto. Schwarz is an old hand at Mozart, having directed Lincoln Center’s Mostly Mozart Festival for nearly two decades. 

The Symphony No. 35 in D Major (“Haffner”) sparkled under his baton. He took the Allegro con spirito marking of the first movement seriously, with playing lithe and incisive. Bringing out inner details, the conductor made the often obscured wind writing fully audible. Two trumpets had strong presence and the four basses provided a solid foundation for the energetic strings.

Despite the reduced forces, Schwarz evoked warm, mellow ensemble from the strings in the Andante. Big-band Mozart took sway in a forceful Menuetto, though the gracefulness of the trio section provided nicely variety. Inflected with rhythmic urgency, the final Rondo brought the symphony to a delightful close.

The Flute Concerto No. 2 in D Major is a transcription of Mozart’s concerto for oboe, but its melodic elan and richness works equally well on the flute. 

Chi Ting, a Frost student,  had many friends in the audience who greeted her with cheers. She is clearly a versatile player who was fully in command of the work’s challenges, displaying a bright and evenly produced tone. Her articulation was consistentlt accurate and intonation exact. 

She proved particularly effective in capturing the operatic bel canto aura of the second movement Adagio non troppo. The sprightly main subject of the concluding Rondo danced with verve. Graduate conductor Walter Klauda offered a subtle, finely nuanced accompaniment.

Gerard Schwarz conducts the Frost Symphony Orchestra in Eugene Goossens’ Jubilee Variations, Tchaikovsky’s Variations on a Rococo Theme (soloist TBA) and Brahms’ Symphony No. 3, 7:30 p.m. October 17 at UM Gusman Concert Hall.  frost.miami.edu

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