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SYMPHONY REVIEW
Brilliant Liszt, Splendid Performance January 18, 2002
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By William Wellborn
An all-Liszt program for a piano recital is not uncommon, but last Friday's concert by the San Francisco Symphony and guest conductor Sir Roger Norrington gave Bay Area audiences the opportunity to hear two works that are only occasionally encountered in orchestral concerts: the Totentanz, Liszt's third piano concerto in reality if not in name, and his monumental "Faust" Symphony. The latter is without doubt Liszt's orchestral masterpiece, and Norrington led the combined forces of the San Francisco Symphony, the Men of the San Francisco Symphony Chorus, and tenor soloist John Mark Ainsley in a performance of this work which will stay etched in this listener's for a long time.
The single-movement Totentanz is cast as a set of variations for piano and orchestra, the theme being derived from the well-known medieval death chant Dies irae. Although Liszt's image as a sort of musical Don Juan have been often recounted (as well as embellished), the Catholic faith was a profound influence on Liszt and in later years he took minor orders in the Church, becoming known as the Abbé Liszt.
The Totentanz reflects this religious influence and Liszt's fascination with the subject of death. The work's diabolical nature calls for a pianist with both a brilliant technique and fiery musical personality. Konstantin Lifschitz, the Ukranian-born pianist who made his SF Symphony debut with these concerts, seemed to possess more of the former than the latter, but his view of the work was nonetheless convincing on its own terms. Lifschitz has a fine technique and Liszt's writing seemed to pose no difficulties for him. In many sections of the work he found a kind of ominous and mystical stillness, as if he wished to suggest religious piety more than the diabolical elements. The benefit of this interpretation was a seriousness of purpose that avoided empty bombast and cheap display.
On the other hand, I found myself wishing Lifschitz would release some of his restraint and play with more abandon. A little more wildness in this music would certainly be in order. However, Lifschitz is a pianist with interesting ideas and I look forward to hearing him again. (I was told that on Thursday and Saturday evening Lifschitz played Liszt's Funérailles and La Campanella for encores, but Friday evening's audiences were not so fortunate.) Norrington and the orchestra provided fine support throughout and often supplied their own fire and incisiveness. One might say that Liszt's epic "Faust" Symphony is a work of Mahlerian proportions and Wagnerian expression; but this would distort history, for Liszt's concepts in the piece were innovative rather than imitative. Each movement is based on one of the three central characters of Goethe's Faust: the tortured philosopher Faust, the pure maiden Gretchen, and the devil Mephistopheles. It is a work that makes heavy musical demands on an orchestra and conductor, but Norrington and the SF forces proved more than capable, delivering a performance that was both moving and memorable. Although the opening measures lacked mystery, the performance quickly took flight and the Faust movement was soon a compelling and at times gripping musical experience. The ensemble was remarkably tight and precise, with Norrington maintaining both musical and rhythmic tension most effectively over this expansive movement. In this and all movements the conductor consistently elicited richly involved playing from the orchestra.
The simple beauty of the Gretchen movement was a marked contrast to the Faust's angst in the first movement. Here Norrington achieved a lovely transparency of texture with the intimacy and delicacy of chamber music. This was some of the finest wind playing I have heard from the San Francisco Symphony, much of it strikingly beautiful. Liszt set the Mephistopheles movement as a brilliant and extended scherzo. Here the searching opening themes from the Faust movement are transformed into a sardonic and mocking character. It was in this movement that the clarity and precision of the ensemble were at their most impressive, the fugato section in the string being especially riveting. Norrington proved once again that a conductor need not rant and flail to achieve a vibrant musical performance. His conducting technique was a model of both simplicity and musical effectiveness. Liszt's choral epilogue depicts Man's triumph of good over evil. The men of the San Francisco Symphony sang with their usual burnished sound and tenor John Mark Ainsley's singing provided both strength and tenderness in this brief but difficult part. To hold this massive seventy-minute work together is no small feat, and Norrington is to be commended for his masterful presentation of this neglected masterpiece. If Liszt were in heaven listening, I'm sure he would have been smiling in approval. (Pianist William Wellborn performs and lectures in the United States and Europe, and from 1995-97 was host of the program "Piano Legacy" on San Francisco station KDFC. Wellborn is on the faculty of the San Francisco Conservatory, where he teaches courses in piano, piano history, and opera.) ©2002 William Wellborn, all rights reserved |
