The guest conductor (picture below) in this concert comes with impressive credentials, having studied violin with Yuri Yankelevich, chamber music with Maria Yudina and conducting with Kirill Kondrashin.  As a conductor in the former Soviet Union, Markiz has worked with Sviatoslav Richter, David Oistrakh and Emil Gilels.  Emigrating to the Netherlands in 1981, he founded his own orchestra, the “Nieuw Sinfonietta Amesterdam”, in 1988 and served as Principal Conductor and Artistic Director until 1997.  He is presently their Principal Guest Conductor.

Tchaikovsky “Mozartiana” suite is based on Mozart’s lesser known musical themes, and Tchaikovsky was inspired to write it due to the centenary of the first performance of Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” in 1887.  Markiz, resembling Kurt Masur at times, adopted a Romantic approach to the music, and the opening Gigue and following Menuet were rendered delightfully, sounding like Mozart serenades.  The third movement, adapted from the motet “Ave Verum Corpus”, had a hushed reverence, appropriate for its title Preghiera, which means a prayer for divine guidance.  The famous Theme and Variations, which is actually based on a theme by Gluck that Mozart used for his own keyboard variations, had great bounce, and the orchestra displayed much brio.  An engaging performance indeed.

Nella Hunkins has been the Principal Cellist of the SSO since March 2001.  She comes from a family of Juilliard musicians, and studied with Leonard Rose and Janos Starker before obtaining a Fulbright Scholarship to the Paris Conservatory to study with Andre Navarra.  Hunkins entered the stage in flowing white robes, looking every bit of a Greek goddess, her cascading blonde locks tied up in a tight bun.  Her playing of the Rococo Variations was a joy to behold, her sound firm and gentle.  Hunkins expressed complete control of the work, and she came across as a commanding presence in front of the orchestra.  There were moments of breathtaking beauty, particularly the masterly handling of the high notes in the fourth variation and cadenza.  Markiz was supportive and unobtrusive, letting the soloist shine.  The partnership worked very well, generating an ebullient end.  Despite the obvious display of skill, the performance lacked overall excitement, though there was an abundance of elegance and class. 

These traits unfortunately work against the thematic drive of Tchaikovsky’s “Pathétique” Symphony.  From the doom-laden notes of the opening movement, the approach seemed to be cool and detached.  The first climax came across sounding anxious, and there was no hint of hysteria in the first movement.  The first appearance of the melancholic theme was confident and bold instead of sorrowful or reticent.  The playing is of a very high standard, the brass in particular, rasping in Technicolor.  The end of the movement was all hustle-bustle, the coda hardly revelatory.  

The second movement, a waltz in 5/4 time, was very classy, but did not succeed in functioning as an ironic contrast to the previous movement.  This discipline continued in the third movement, played razor-sharp, but still sounding four-square rhythmically.  The flutes were heavenly here.  However, this powerful music conveyed burlesque rather than militancy here.  The cool and underpowered delivery left me unmoved. 

The last movement (after the ignorant applause) was strangely a smiling farewell, sunshine after a shower, instead of the gathering dark clouds of despondency and resignation.  The fading-off garnered warm-hearted applause, but it was hardly rapturous or passionate.  There was simply too much emphasis on elegance and not enough on intense emotion.  Markiz is a very good conductor and the SSO played well tonight, but this Pathétique Symphony, gleamingly executed, failed to engulf my whole being and sear my emotions, which should and must be the case for this highly personal and Romantic work. 

Koh Boon Heng is presently listening to “Please” by the Pet Shop Boys and watching the third season of the X-Files.

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