Music review: Vivaldi’s ‘Four Seasons’ at Disney Concert Hall

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Vivaldi’s chamber-sized “Four Seasons” isn’t usually part of a symphony orchestra’s repertoire, but on Friday morning conductor Harry Bicket and the Los Angeles Philharmonic performed it in Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Bicket, a British opera conductor and the artistic director of the renowned period orchestra the English Concert, led German violinist Veronika Eberle in her Philharmonic debut. The conductor, soloist and 25 members of the Philharmonic delivered an exhilarating and affecting account of the Vivaldi masterpiece -- the kind of perfectly paced, imaginatively pictorial reading that might give pause to listeners who find Baroque music unemotional, impersonal or over-stylized.

Resplendent in a sparkling white gown, Eberle, 21, was a commanding stage presence even in quiet passages -- the true test of a star performer. Her full, golden tone became gritty when called for, and her vibrato expanded and contracted appropriately to the season. In “Spring,” the interplay between Eberle and concertmaster Martin Chalifour became a Messiaen-like celebration of birdsong. The ensemble, especially vivid in “Summer,” conveyed inner and outer weather, with the delicacy of Eberle’s performance contrasting memorably with her virtuosic intensity.

Bicket conducted from the harpsichord. Refreshingly, he followed only the most important 18th century period performance rules. He kept the “Seasons” moving along in good taste. This reading recalled Louis Kaufman’s dynamic first American recording made in 1948; Bicket discovered anew what Kaufman’s widow Annette once called the “fresh and unexpected” aspects of the score.

The concert began with two Philharmonic first performances: a warm and sprightly rendition of Vivaldi’s Concerto in G major for Two Violins and Two Cellos, RV 575 – with Kristine Whitson and Johnny Lee, violins; Jason Lippmann and Barry Gold, cellos -- and a judiciously chosen suite from Rameau’s last opera, “Les Boréades.” Bicket created a transporting delight in Rameau’s dramatic, lyrical and charming opera music. As with “The Four Seasons,” he conducted these scores unobtrusively yet expressively from the keyboard, keeping the spotlight where it belonged: on the glorious music.

The program repeats tonight and on Sunday afternoon.

-- Rick Schultz

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Friday morning at Disney Hall: Vivaldi’s ‘Four’ at 11