Photo Credit: Eric Richmond
The Saturday evening Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra concert began with disorientation. The program listed Don Juan by Richard Strauss, the music I had studied before the concert, but the piece I heard obviously was not that. I spent the next 15 minutes 90% sure I knew what music I was hearing, Dances of Galánta by Zoltán Kodály, but not entirely. It was like one of those dreaded blind listening tests in music school. It felt like a dirty trick that the title of the piece played first was announced—and mumbled at that—only after we heard it. I didn’t see the insert tucked into the program, concealed by a tri-fold, until the next day. Note to MSO: If you change not only the program, but also the conductor, please make an announcement before the concert.
OK, vent over. Todd Levy was his best self in a big solo in the Kodály piece, expressive and with refined tone. Substitute guest conductor Stefan Asbury brought out the playful humor in the music, effortlessly moving from one tempo to another.
Augustin Hadelich returned to the MSO to play György Ligeti’s Concerto for Violin and Orchestra, premiered in 1992. This experimental work was challenging listening, but the audience hung in there, with rapt attention. Hadelich is one of the great technicians of his instrument, displaying remarkable playing. The final movement featured a fierce and fast extended cadenza that was breathtaking. The reduced orchestra was challenged as well, and unsurprisingly came through as an impressive ensemble. To reward the audience, Hadelich followed the concerto with a brilliant encore performance of Caprice No. 21 by Niccolò Paganini.
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Asbury led a crisp account of Symphony No. 2 by Ludwig van Beethoven, stressing sharp and swift contrasts in volume. It was lovely to hear the orchestra so fluently play soft sections, with principal bassoonist Catherin Chen’s buttery tone as a highlight.
I’ve sat in just about every area of Uihlein Hall, and for classical concerts I highly recommend center-ish in rows S, T or U on the main floor. Five rows closer and the sound changes significantly to a less well-mixed blend.
