For its 27th annual Young Artists Competition, the Vancouver Symphony has expanded its horizons, making its quest for the best musicians a national one. The rewards for the winners are much higher than ever with $1,000 going to the bronze medalists, $3,000 to the silver medalists, and $5,000 to the gold medalists plus the opportunity to solo with the orchestra under the direction of Salvador Brotons.
So, the top prizewinners from the contest played their auditioned pieces with the hometown band on Saturday, January 22nd at Skyview Concert Hall. It was a veritable feast for the ears to hear flutist Nikka Gershman-Pepper, violinist Ezekiel Sokoloff, and pianist David Choi perform challenging works. Their polished interpretations were not dampened by the sparse attendance in the hall due to the still raging pandemic. In fact, the soloists – all teenagers – showed a high-degree of artistry that belied their years. Hopefully, their amazing performances were heard by a much larger crowd in the livestream broadcast.
The concert began with an outstanding rendition by Gershman-Pepper of the first movement of Saverio Mercadante’s Concerto No. 2 in E minor for Flute and String Orchestra. Swaying slightly as she played, the 14-year-old flutist gracefully expressed the piece with a beautiful, assured tone. She showed excellent breath-control by presenting a line strongly the first time and softly the second. Especially impressive was her cadenza where she flawlessly interspersed low notes in the midst of a series of higher ones and built the dynamics into an exciting forte. After finishing the piece with a thrilling final forte, she was rewarded with enthusiastic applause.
Next on the program came Prokofiev’s Concerto No. 2 in G minor for Violin and Orchestra, which was superbly played by Sokoloff (age 16). After creating the dusky yet lyric opening statement, he deftly dug into the fast and almost wild lines that followed lickety-split. The barrage rapid tonal changes against the orchestra had a mercurial quality that sparkled. Sokoloff delivered the second lyrical passage incisively before impeccably launching into another rocketing, sometimes dissonant, and technically devilish section – making it all look as easy as pie – and finished the piece with defiant pizzicatos. Awesome!
Choi closed out the first half of the concert with an exceptional performance of Liszt’s Concerto No. 1 in E-flat major for Piano and Orchestra. Choi, who is only 14 years old, brilliantly conveyed the virtuosic fireworks of this piece with fantastic control of the dynamics and an unbelievable ability to organically slow the pace and accelerate thrillingly. He executed the splashiest and flashiest of passages with ease yet never called attention to himself. He excelled with the rhapsodic themes and expertly wove the sound with the orchestra. With the orchestra rising to the occasion, Choi brought the finale of this piece to a triumphant crescendo that resonated into cheers from the audience.
After intermission, the orchestra delved into Elgar’s “Variations on an Original Theme” aka “Enigma Variations.” Urged on by Broton’s emotive conducting (all from memory), the orchestra had its most success with heart-felt theme of the famous Nimrod variation (9), the rollicking Troyte variation (7), and the last variation (14) with its majestic swells and accelerando to the finale. The violins were a bit ragged in the H.D.S.-P. variation (2), but the ensemble recovered in the next variation (3), in which the bassoons elicited humorous, wiggly, upward phrases. Solos by violist Angelika Furtwangler, cellist Dieter Ratzlaf, and clarinetist Igor Shakhman were highlights of the later variations. Some of the variations needed to be tauter in order to create more contrast, for example, between variations that are playful and delicate and others that are boisterous. Still, with Brotons coaxing, the ensemble transported listeners to Elgar’s unique musical concoction – with a glimpse into his family and circle of friends. Cheers!
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