MSO’s Orchestral Colors and Memorable Melodies

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I found much to enjoy in a program featuring three Mexican musicians: visiting conductor Ivan López-Reynoso, pianist Jorge Federico Osorio, and a piece by composer Silvestre Revueltas.

Revueltas’s suite Redes (Nets) comes from a 1936 film of the same name, about exploited fisherman fighting an unjust system. López-Reynoso seemed to have a good rapport with the players, drawing vivid colors out of the orchestra. The brass achieved great power in the opening, and throughout I was especially struck by the low strings. Every cello/bass feature had a satisfying weight and full tone. The memorable main theme from the film repeated frequently, with the strings ratcheting up the intensity as it developed. I was impressed by López-Reynoso’s shaping of a slow build near the end.

Jorge Federico Osorio joined the orchestra for Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 1. He has performed and recorded all of five of Beethoven’s concertos, and his chemistry with this music was evident; he played the concerto with a winning combination of easy manner and nimble fingers. The first movement’s passagework was incredibly precise and clear, but always with a spark of personality. In the cadenza he applied lots of rubato, and stretching of tempos, getting the most out of every moment. While this added interest, one sequence of clattering chords up and down the keyboard got muddled in too much pedal. The slow movement was given a gentle, tender reading by all involved, with Osorio projecting a beautiful singing tone. The rollicking finale came off well, always spirited. As an encore, Osorio played Manuel Ponce’s Intermezzo No. 1. Again, he used this solo moment to show a sense of rubato and breath. Phrases were nicely shaped, and everyone seemed grateful for one more chance to hear his lovely tone ring out into the hall.

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Pictures at an Exhibition, the Mussorgsky piano suite brilliantly orchestrated by Ravel, has all the hallmarks of a classical hit: fun orchestral colors, memorable tunes, and bite-sized movements that have taken on life outside the full piece. The woodwind section excelled in “The Old Castle” movement (including the saxophone, always a treat) and in “The Ballet of Little Chicks”. In the latter, they were as perfectly perky as one could hope. I thought the tuba solo in “Cattle” was a bit unfortunate. Brass were inconsistent in other places but proved they were capable of glory at moments like in “Catacombs”. In the sixth movement, “’Samuel’ Goldenberg and ‘Schmuÿle,’” the conductor got wonderfully hefty sounds out of the cellos and basses. The full string section tore into “Baba Yaga” with grit and Catherine van Handel offered a fine bassoon solo. “The Great of Kiev” provided all the necessary catharsis and grandeur, with López-Reynoso’s gestures as satisfying to watch as the huge sounds that resulted.

Energetic Conducting

This pairing of musical guests really worked. Ivan López-Reynoso is an energetic conductor who knows what sounds he wants, and the players seemed to respond to him. I could go on and on about how I’ve never heard the low strings sound quite like that. Additionally, Jorge Federico Osorio brought a special touch to the Beethoven concerto and made me want to seek out his recordings of other repertoire. Pictures at an Exhibitionhas become such a mainstay that I expect we’ll be hearing it every couple years, and indeed the MSO last played it in 2019. I think this had a slight edge over the 2019 reading; in addition to the woodwinds seeming to level up every year, the new hall enhanced the orchestral sound and allowed details to come out. As Maestro Ken-David Masur said to me in an interview around the time the hall opened, it really is like a new instrument, and for years we will be discovering what it can do for the ensemble.

The Bradley Symphony Center, since opening in 2020, continues to provide an elegant and well-appointed space for the Milwaukee Symphony. But as a seasoned attender of concerts here I must share a venue-related tip: the seats in Balcony Left, Row K 12-17, have nonexistent legroom. It was so tight that someone in my row left early due to discomfort. I can’t speak to the surrounding rows, but I think it’s worth a serious study and attempt at improvement.