Amaral Brightens Shenson Spotlight Series

Violinist Nathan Amaral (from the San Francisco Symphony Web page for last night’s recital)

Some readers may have noticed that my headlines for the first two Shenson Spotlight Series recitals, presented by the San Francisco Symphony, in January and February both included the adjective “dim.” I am happy to report that things brightened up last night in Davies Symphony Hall with the debut recital by violinist Nathan Amaral, accompanied at the piano by Sophiko Simsive. The program was framed by two major (in both key and reputation) violin sonatas, beginning with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and concluding with César Franck. Amaral was born in Brazil and selected the second “Valsa de esquina” by Brazilian composer Francisco Mignone to separate these two European sonatas.

I first became aware of Mignone through Nelson Freire’s Brasileiro album, which I had written about during my tenure with Examiner.com. Last night he was just the right composer to reflect on the soloist’s Brazilian heritage. Personally, I found it to be a perfectly well-conceived “centerpiece,” which could competently “rub shoulders” with both Mozart and Franck. Furthermore, because the Mozart and Franck sonatas both show up frequently in violin recitals, there was something refreshing in Mignone’s rhetoric in departing from the more familiar “classics.”

That said, Amaral did far more than just doing justice to both Mozart and Franck. There is a diversity of intensity in Franck’s rhetoric, which Amaral captured perfectly without ever overplaying it. The Mozart sonata, on the other hand, was conceived as a modest delight, making it the perfect selection for engaging the attentive listener. For all of these selections, Simsive knew how to establish just the right framework for the rhetorical phrasing in the violin solo passages. The result was a selection of three duo performances in which the attentive listener had much to benefit from both of the performers.

As might be expected, Amaral prepared an encore. This was Florence Price’’s “Adoration.” This piece has been championed by violinist Randall Goosby, who has performed it in San Francisco during his past visits. I have come to enjoy that short piece and was glad to listen to an interpretation by another violinist!