Adelaide Symphony Orchestra. Adelaide Town Hall. 11 Sep 2015
Schubert’s Ninth Symphony, the so-called ‘Great’, is a total crowd pleaser, and the combined forces of guest conductor Gérard Korsten and the mighty Adelaide Symphony Orchestra lived up to the expectations of an enthusiastic audience.
Korsten is energetic on the podium and he made his intentions for the music very clear to the orchestra, whether it be the need for a sense of playfulness in the Andante of Mozart’s Symphony No. 35, or allowing the piano accompaniment to have prominence in Martinu’s Concerto for Oboe, or to accentuate the punchy staccato in the Schubert. The ASO did as Korsten beckoned and the result was very satisfying.
Even though the Schubert was the ‘main event’, it was clear that a large section of the audience were there to support Australian oboe virtuoso Diana Doherty in the Martinu, and the performance eclipsed the Schubert. The concerto has an interesting connection of sorts with Adelaide and with this evening’s performance. Martinu composed the concerto for fellow Czech Jiri Tancibudek who taught oboe at the Elder Conservatorium in the 1960s–1980s, and Doherty is on the Tancibudek “list” – he taught the teacher of the teacher .… of Doherty. Her skill and musicality is exceptional and she imbued the piece with wistfulness and agitation. Long extended ostinatos effortlessly rose above the orchestral accompaniment, seemingly emerging from nothing. At the conclusion Doherty acknowledged Jamie Cock at the piano – richly deserved praise.
Kym Clayton
When: 11 Sep
Where: Adelaide Town Hall
Bookings: Closed
