Music review: The Vienna Philharmonic in Berkeley

BERKELEY -- The Vienna Philharmonic has one of the world’s most glorious musical homes -- the gilded Musikverein in the Austrian capital. Nevertheless, this nearly mythical orchestra does like to gad about. In the fall, for instance, it was joined by Gustavo Dudamel in Danville, Ky., where (for a hefty fee) it provided entertainment for the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games.

Last weekend, the Viennese big adventure was a three-concert residence in Berkeley, the orchestra’s first appearance in the Bay Area since 1987. But instead of being greeted by a Colonel Sanders impersonator, the expectation was a picket line of angry protesters. The concerts were preceded by an attack in the San Francisco Chronicle, focusing on the orchestra’s poor record of hiring women and lack of racial diversity, long a controversy.

Berkeley, however, is hardly the hotbed of radicalism it once was. For the Vienna Philharmonic’s final and most ambitious program Sunday afternoon, the Russian conductor Semyon Bychkov led an impassioned performance of Mahler’s Sixth Symphony (which will be repeated at the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall in Costa Mesa on Thursday night). Although this was the first sunny day in a while in the Bay Area, the plaza in front of Zellerbach Hall -- the site of any number of political demonstrations over the years -- was without sign of protest.

Inside, the Viennese got not only an enthusiastic reception but an inappropriately enthusiastic one. Clearly drained by conducting this colossal 90-minute symphony, which ends with a catastrophic shock, Bychkov vainly attempted a moment of meaningful silence as the audience leaped to its collective feet bravo-ing in an elated instant.

There was, as there always is with these Viennese, a lot to cheer about. The smooth string sound and that liquid brass section never let you down even in this hall’s dry acoustic. The hard part with the Vienna Philharmonic, though, is getting past the impressive ease with which these musicians phrase as one and the regrettable ease in which they can lapse into disarming sentimentality.

The Sixth, which Mahler called the “Tragic” and which vacillates between extreme angst and pastoral reverie, demands doing both. It was completed in 1904, first performed in Essen, Germany, in 1906 and reached Vienna in 1907, at a time when Mahler and the Vienna Philharmonic were not getting along. A pickup band played the symphony's Vienna premiere and the reaction was ugly.

One critic likened Mahler to maggots and parasites eating away at the marrow of music. Even though Mahler had converted to Catholicism, much of the criticism of Sixth was full of anti-Semitic code words (“loquacious,” “shrillness,” “unbearable, dank piety”). I could also have done without Richard E. Rodda’s program notes for the Berkeley concert calling Mahler a “slightly disturbing character,” “obsessive creator,” “loving but insensitive husband” and “universal philosopher filled with self-doubt.”

For my part I certainly didn’t notice a single insensitive note or a second of disturbing self-doubt in the driving, convincing, loving performance led by the 58-year-old Bychkov, who happens to have emigrated from his native St. Petersburg in 1974 because, he has said, of its anti-Semitism.

That is not to say that the Sixth, despite its classical four-movement structure, doesn’t allow room for great swings of emotion. The first movement has driving march-like rhythm, and when the storm clouds part, cowbells and a tinkling celeste suggest a bucolic reverie that is followed by a swelling theme in the strings of sweeping infatuation.

Mahler simply made room for the world in his symphonies, for love and nature, for the fright of death. And Bychkov concentrated on the meaning of the moment, giving shape and character to each little Mahlerian marvel, while keeping everything moving.

There is some question as to the order of the middle movement, whether the Scherzo or Andante should go first. Bychkov followed Mahler’s original thoughts and let the playful grotesqueries of the Scherzo precede a deliciously sensual reading of the Andante.

The symphony turns harshest in the half-hour Finale, which begins with the winds of other worlds from swooping harps and strings. The movement is famous for its three devastating hammer blows –- the hammer here was comically large while only making a dull thud. Still Vienna plays power Mahler, and Bychkov captured the movement’s extreme intensity without doing anything extreme.

A word about the Berkeley residency, which also included student workshops (and a wine-tasting trip to Napa Valley). The three programs (the other two were conventional mixed bills) were sponsored by Cal Performances, Berkeley’s equivalent of UCLA Live. But don’t expect anything equivalent in L.A., now that UCLA arts presentations have been shamefully scaled back to the bone.

However, the Vienna Philharmonic will spread these other programs throughout Southern California this week in Santa Barbara, Palm Desert and San Diego, as well as the Mahler Sixth in Costa Mesa.

-- Mark Swed

Vienna Philharmonic peforms Mahler's Sixth. Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. 8 p.m. Thursday. $55 to $350. www.philharmonicsociety.org.

Photo: Semyon Bychkov with the Vienna Philharmonic at Zellerbach Hall Friday in preparation for its first performance in the Bay Area since 1987. Credit: Peg Skorpinski/Cal Performances.

Comments

[skaus]

Were you there? The audience was completely silent as Bychkov held his baton high for a full twenty seconds after the last note. None of the usual grandstanding Bravi-ing! It was overpowering. What are you talking about?

Also, don't you think the charge that the orchestra is virtually entirely white men merits more than a slap at Berkeley? I saw one woman in the orchestra, which was huge. I am told there are a couple more. and no Asians, some of whom one would think are qualified in Austria. I think this is worth a serious word or two or should be omitted.

For your information, we still protest our share. Let me know next time you are up here and I will picket you. Martin Bernheimer you are not.

[skaus]

For example, this from the Sacramento Bee:

"The final statement of this bold work ends with one cleverly placed and plucked note. And the silence that descended after it was a note unto itself, too. Bychkov and orchestra honored that silence with seconds of absolute stillness. It was a note without a key. The moment was an example of how every inch of this great symphony had been given the greatest thought."

http://blogs.sacbee.com/ticket/archives/2011/02/-by-edward-orti-1.html

[Mark Van Oss]

Mr. Swed is wrong about the inappropriate applause at the end of this concert, which was met with utter silence until Maestro Bychkov lowered his arms. This silence was a breathtaking moment of shared communion that I will never forget.

[CRL]

This concert was met with moving and COMPLETE silence. Did you not stay until the end?

[Wolfy]

Maybe Mark Swed didn't think 20 secs was enough silence...

In any case, Mahler emphatically REJECTED his original thoughts and wanted Andante BEFORE the Scherzo. All this garbage about following the composer's original intentions as if they were sacred gospel has got to stop.

[Ward Hill]

I was also awed by the silence of the audience at the end of the Mahler 6th. It seemed the audience (2,700 or so) stopped breathing, total stunned silence. An unforgettable moment at the end of one of the greatest musical experiences of my life !

[J]

hammer...only making a dull thud

Precisely what Mahler wanted - part of the 3000 page Mahler book by de la Grange

[Joe Mammy]

As others have noted, this article contains a blatant inaccuracy. It is simply not true that at the end of the concert "Bychkov vainly attempted a moment of meaningful silence as the audience leaped to its collective feet bravo-ing in an elated instant." As everyone who was there can attest, Bychkov held his right arm aloft after the last note, allowing about 15 seconds of silence to prevail before anyone moved or made a sound. Other published reviews have noted this accurately. After this, the audience began applauding and gradually stood and continued applauding for several minutes. Why misrepresent this? Why leave the readers with the impression that the audience "inappropriately enthusiastic," when the reaction was probably no different than on any other performance. Does the writer have a grudge against Berkeley? Perhaps that would explain his disappointment at the lack of protests and the sniping about liners notes as well.

[skaus]

I think we deserve an response or correction from the author.

Also, I am glad that I am not going nuts, or at least if I am, misperceptions from Sunday are not evidence of it.

[skaus]

From the Berkeley Blog by Matías Tarnopolsky:

"The utter silence at the end of the Vienna Philharmonic’s performance of Mahler’s Symphony No. 6 yesterday afternoon said it all. It seemed like an eternity before the audience finally, suddenly, erupted in rapturous, enduring applause. We had just experienced some incredible music-making by these musicians, magnificently conducted by Semyon Bchkov, the kind of music-making that comes along very rarely. I can remember few performances that have affected me so profoundly as yesterday’s did."

http://blogs.berkeley.edu/2011/02/28/vienna-philharmonic-at-at/

[julie]

Perhaps Mr Swed is confusing Saturday's performance with Sunday's - there was a quick "Bravo" directly following the Brahms on Saturday night (completely thrilling and totally appropriate), as I recall, but complete silence reigned for 20-25 seconds after the Mahler on Sunday.

[Chris from Lafayette]

Wow! I'd think that the LA Times would consider getting a new music critic if their current one can't even tell when there's silence and when there isn't!

[john clemons]

Mark Swed's concert reviews, while usually reliable and accurate in the opinion of this classical music devotee, sometimes have a hidden or not so hidden agenda that is not related to the quality of the performance he is critiquing. For example, I heard a Dudamel conducted performance of the Mahler's first (Have heard it live perhaps 50 times in over 35 years of attending classical music concerts) and it was serviceable but no more, no less. Swed's review was over the top, which has become a bad habit when writing anything about Dudamel. He uses his reviews and articles on Dudamel to advocate in a mushy, groupie political fashion for this young, promising conductor. To wit, he can't be trusted when reviewing a performance conducted by Dudamel.

Turning to his review of the Vienna Phil's performance of Mahler's Sixth, Swed is mostly positive, but his negative comment on the orchestra's "regrettable ease" when lapsing into "disarming sentimentality" needed to be fleshed out because of its brief but significant criticism of the Vienna's playing. This comment debases not only the orchestra , but also the audience which he implies is easy to manipulate. Moreover, much of his review does not deal with the performance but with other matters discussed in other comments on this review.

I would only note that Swed is undoubtedly upset about the lack of politically incorrect diversity in the make-up of the orchestra. If he wants to analyze this analyze and explore the ramifications of this fact, he needs to write a separate article, not use a review to denigrate the Vienna's performing because they don't have the requisite number of women and minorities in the composition of the orchestra. It should be kept in mind that the inclusion of many underqualified women in many American orchestras have had a negative effect on the quality of the performances of these orchestras.

[w1n5t0n]

"It should be kept in mind that the inclusion of many underqualified women in many American orchestras have had a negative effect on the quality of the performances of these orchestras. "

That has to be the most ridiculous statement ever published in the L.A. Times. From anyone.

[skaus]

Evidence, Mr. Clemons? I believe they use blind auditions.

[Michael]

About 12% of the population of the US are African American or "black" people. In a large symphony orchestra of 90-100 musicians, that should be reflected by about 10-12 black players. Most American orchestras have none. Some have one. Maybe even two. But that is extremely rare.
I have seen many American orchestras touring in Europe and never, ever was there a review or newspaper article which accused them of "racism" because of that. It is sad and shameful to see that so many American commentators, on the other hand, are sanctimonious enough to attack white central Europeans for being white central Europeans. Maybe the musicians from Vienna should not tour the US anymore if that is how they are welcomed. Maybe, if we are talking from the moral high ground here, they should not visit a country which is currently engaged in two massively destructive foreign wars. Maybe they should not tour a country with the highest incarceration rate in the world - and many of the inmates are black. So much for real racism. And hypocrisy.

[skaus]

Wait. Who is "attacking" the Orchestra?

When you sit in the audience after attending San Francisco Symphony or Los Angeles Philharmonic concerts, you are immediately struck by the fact that is 100 white men of a certain age are marching onto the stage, while the orchestra you are used to seeing is much younger, varied in race and somewhere between 1/3 and 1/2 female. I doubt that anyone in the house does not immediately recognize that old habits die hard in Vienna. Maybe that is just being "white central Europeans," but if so, it is part of the story and should not be ignored.

Yes, we have about four times too many people in jail. Can that be ignored because we are "being Americans?" Or more importantly, what in the world does that have to do with the make-up of the Vienna Philharmonic, which, by the way, we all agree makes beautiful music.

[Mark Swed]

I am pleased to learn that there were sections of Zellerbach Auditorium on Sunday where a patient audience allowed Semyon Bychkov his moment of silence at the end of Mahler's Sixth. In my neighborhood, in the orchestra section near the stage, someone immediately stood and yelled bravo. Others followed suit with a standing ovation. When Bychkov didn't immediately turn around to acknowledge the applause, the clapping lessened as people remained standing awkwardly, but it didn't die away completely.

Those upstairs or in other parts of the hall obviously had a different experience. Given the size of Zellerbach and the distant remove of the balconies from the stage, and given the hall's notorious dead spots, those who remained in a state of quiet awe might not have been distracted by what was going on elsewhere, just as I couldn't tell that what I was encountering was only a localized event. But that is good news.

[Zeke Sweeney]

Swed, you are thinking of Saturday. I was at all 3 performances.
Saturday immediately at the end of the Brahms piece, someone yelled 'bravo'.

Sunday after Mahler there definitely was a good 20 seconds silence, as I was also in the orchestra section near the stage.

Not only that, but I happened upon recordings of all 3 performances which confirm this, not that I needed to, my memory is quite clear of all 3 performances.

If I could, I'd post mp3s of the endings of both Sat & Sun which would settle any argument and prove you incorrect. But then, the comments of a dozen or so readers who can swear to this doesn't seem to convince you, so I suppose you would still argue with an actual recording.

[Zeke Sweeney]

OK. I just listened to the recording. You were right. There wasn't 20 seconds of complete silence after Mahler's 6th. There was only 19 seconds of absolute silence after the last 'plunk' of the 'Finale'!!!