Lang Lang
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(first published at www.cincinnati.com)
You’ve heard of the “Butterfly Effect” – how (theoretically) a butterfly flapping its wings in Brazil can cause a tornado in Texas?
Pianist Lang Lang is no butterfly, but there has been a “Lang Lang Effect” named after him, too. Following his performance at the televised opening ceremonies of the Olympic Games in 2008, it has been estimated that over 40 million Chinese children began to play piano. As one of three Creative Directors for the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra‘s 2011-12 season, the Chinese megastar, 29, performed Liszt’s Piano Concerto No. 1 before a large and enthusiastic crowd Friday night at Music Hall.
Guest conductor – and not to be ignored as the CSO searches for a successor to music director laureate Paavo Järvi – was German-born Jun Märkl in his CSO debut. Not only did Märkl lead a fine accompaniment for Lang Lang, but a well-crafted and stirring performance of Brahms’ Symphony No. 4.
Lang Lang’s choice of concerto was appropriate, since Liszt, along with violinist Niccolo Paganini (whom Liszt consciously emulated), was the “rock star” of the 19th-century. Lang Lang himself has called Liszt “my piano hero” (the name of one of his CDs). Still, there was nothing in his performance to suggest virtuosity for its own sake. It was a highly musical reading that sighed as well as sizzled, and the CSO’s Steinway has rarely sounded so powerful or so pearly.
The opening Allegro maestoso (all movements are played without pause) was filled with drama, not theatrics. The second movement (Quasi adagio) featured gorgeous and often delicate interaction with the CSO winds, while percussionist Richard Jensen wielded the all-important triangle deftly in the Allegro vivace. The closing Allegro marziale animato ended with a headlong Presto surge by Lang Lang, prompting an immediate standing ovation. After greeting the crowd and complimenting the CSO, he performed an encore, no knuckle-busting showpiece, but Liszt’s gentle Consolation No. 3 in D-flat Major.
Jun Märkl
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The CSO responded even more keenly to him in the Brahms Symphony, yielding a performance that balanced classic and romantic expression. (Märkl led both works from memory.) The opening Allegro, a kind of waltz in duple meter, was noble and affective, with a warm string sound. The second movement (Andante) was lyrical and flowing, with super-soft string pizzicato at one point.
Märkl pulled out all the stops in the Allegro giocoso (joyous), before launching into the great variations finale, where each statement of the eight-bar theme was distinctly and beautifully shaped. Principal flutist Randolph Bowman’s limpid solo was a standout, and Märkl emphasized the tragic nature of the symphony with a heart-rending return of the theme as originally stated. In response to another standing ovation, the CSO players showed their regard for Märkl by affording him a solo bow (i.e. refusing to stand when signaled).
Tickets for tonight's repeat (scarce) begin at $10, available at (513) 381-3300, or visit www.cincinnatisymphony.org