Concert Review: Shenzhen SO - Ehwald - Ning Kam

Concert Review: Shenzhen SO - Ehwald - Ning Kam

23 September, 2011, Shenzhen Concert Hall
Shenzhen Symphony-Christian Ehwald-Ning Kam
All Shostakovich

For some reason, the Shenzhen Symphony loves to program the Shostakovich Violin Concerto No. 1. Just three months after the forgettable performance by child prodigy Gao Tianyang came this much better performance by Singaporean Ning Kam.

The press release touted the tone of her 1793 Storioni. Indeed, her tone was surprisingly beautiful and supple. More importantly, commitment and temperament were evident from the first note. In the rapid passages, I felt she short-changed the notes a little too much in exchange for a lighter dancing-on-the-strings feeling, and the fully macabre nature of the work was again not brought out in full, but it was a winning performance. The audience loved her and her Gershwin encore.

This was the second all-Shostakovitch concert I heard under Ehwald. The previous one in 2009 featured the same concerto, given a stunning performance by Antje Weithaas, still the benchmark! This time the Symphony No. 8 was played with some of the same quality as the previous No. 10, and I quote myself:

"...A similar Germanic resilience pervaded the symphony...The complete grip of architecture and non-sentimental approach reminds me of performances of the several Shostakovich symphonies that I have heard conducted by the excellent Gunther Herbig on record (Berlin Classics; available in the library). As in the concerto, I'd prefer a little more abandon and sardonic wit. The orchestra tried very hard, but their grasp of Shostakovich, in contrast to Brahms, was not quite that of the HKPO (in performances by the likes of Jaap Van Zweden and Mark Elder and I now add Lazarev)..."

In Ehwald's hands, the inner movements fared better than the outer ones. In fact, in those movements the playing had quite a bit more bite than the previous No. 10. In contrast, the outer movements seemed a little plain. The SZSO could do better in Shostakovich, as evidenced by the brilliance of Zhang Guoyong's No. 15 and Fred Buttkewicz's No. 11.

I must cite the astonishingly virtuosic playing of the percussion section. That lady bass-drummer was perfectly in sync with the tympanist. Thrilling!

Concert Review: SZSO-Weithaas-Ehwald

Concert Review: SZSO-Weithaas-Ehwald

September 17, SZ Concert Hall
Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra-All Shostakovich

I had come across Antje Weithaas (impressive biography here) several times previously in various chamber music compilations from Lars Vogt's excellent Heimbach "Spannungen" Music Festival (EMI, some available from the library; also AVI). I also admire her perfection in leading the magnificent Arcantro Quartet, whose Bartok cycle sets new standards.

I was curious how Weithaas would fare in a big concerto. And was I surprised! She gave possibly the most accurate rendition of the Shostakovich Concerto No. 1 I have ever heard live or on records. With perfect intonation and beautiful tone (playing on a modern violin), she seemed to have played more notes than I have ever heard. More importantly, she has a natural inclination for phrasing and architectural integrity. Dynamics were also perfectly graded. I think all these reflect her considerable chamber music expertise. More surprising, unlike some chamber musicians she had enough volume for this big piece, and one can see her bio above shows appearances with many prestigious orchestras. The orchestra was with her all the way. If I have any reservation about the performance, it was that in this tightly argued performance, perhaps German reserve prevented full display of the macabre. Still, what a find, and I count myself lucky to have heard her!

A similar Germanic resilience pervaded the Shostakovich Symphony No. 10, conducted masterly and symphonically by Christian Ehwald. The complete grip of architecture and non-sentimental approach reminds me of performances of the several Shoatakovich symphonies that I have heard conducted by the excellent Gunther Herbig on record (Berlin Classics; available in the library) . As in the concerto, I'd prefer a little more abandon and sardonic wit. The orchestra tried very hard, but their grasp of Shostakovich, in contrast to Brahms, was not quite that of the HKPO (in performanecs by the likes of Jaap Van Zweden and mark Elder). I eagerly look forward to the same symphony conducted by the legendary Rozdhestventsky.

The crowd was impressively quiet, and applause warm and sustained. The vista is changing fast up North.