BY CELINE CHONG, LEAD WRITER (QLD)
Russian Marvels
Queensland Symphony Orchestra with Stephen Hough (piano) and Giancarlo Guerrero (conductor)
QPAC, 14 July
What’d you miss?
- A concert hall filled with eager ears
- Guerrero singing some Shostakovich as a warm-up for listeners
- Beauty, glory, and power
The anticipation was palpable as a cacophony of excited voices filled QPAC’s concert hall – there was no doubt that everyone took their seats in eager anticipation for the Queensland Symphony Orchestra’s latest Maestro series concert.
The program featured great ‘Russian Marvels’, which promised three much-loved works by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov and Shostakovich. And I think it’s safe to say that we, as an audience, certainly did our own share of marvelling – at the amazing display by the QSO, conductor Giancarlo Guerrero, and the multi-talented Stephen Hough at the piano, of course (did you know that he is also a composer, writer, and painter!?).
In tried-and-tested QSO fashion, the concert began with a relatively short piece to set the scene. This time, it was Tchaikovsky’s Marche Slave (Slavonic March), Op. 31, transporting us to Eastern Europe with its lilting harmonies. A darker sound from the string section was on show, and suited the lyrical yet plaintive mood of Tchaikovsky’s sombre march.
Two big works were lined up for the rest of the evening; completely contrasting in style and purpose, yet united as being Russian masterpieces. First was Rachmaninov’s Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini, and there was no shortage of spontaneity, fun, and exuberance in both Hough’s playing and Guerrero’s conducting. Hough and Guerrero both drove the orchestra, surging forward through the many rapid iterations of Paganini’s well-known theme.
Hough, though, kept his composure through the many rapid passages, while taking the time to savour each of the slow lyrical moments. Highlights of the beloved ‘Rach-Pag’ (Rachmaninov-Paganini) include watching the blur of Hough’s hands as he tackled the final sections of passage-work, and some definite moments of air-time during Guerrero’s conducting (he was literally jumping up and down!).
Finally, Shostakovich’s mighty Symphony No. 10 in E minor closed the evening. The mention of Shostakovich’s name brings with it thoughts of Stalin and the Soviet Union. Having a clear concept of the piece’s context and the composer’s state of mind when writing it is immensely powerful for an audience member, and Guerrero certainly took care of us in that respect. The engaging conductor took the liberty of giving a short and much-appreciated introduction before commencing the symphony; even singing the powerful D-Eb-C-B theme for us to take note (these notes spell out D-S-C-H in German – Dmitri Shostakovich!). It was a dark and powerful performance, finishing in triumph as the Shostakovich theme emerged to the frontline, no longer confined by the terrors of Stalin’s Russia…
Romantic lyricism, breath-taking virtuosity and the power of a mighty orchestra, the QSO’s performance certainly had it all, taking us on a journey to Russia in all its beauty, glory and power.
Image supplied.
