Great …? Uninspiring Visitors from London

Last night in Davies Symphony Hall the San Francisco Symphony Great Performers Series presented a return visit by the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, led by violinist Joshua Bell. The program took the usual overture-concerto-symphony plan, with Bell also serving as concerto soloist in a performance of Felix Mendelssohn’s Opus 64 violin concerto in E minor. Those that have followed this site for some time probably know that I am not one of Bell’s fans. Nevertheless, last night provided me with an account that served up more expressiveness than usual, including a first-movement cadenza that may well have been the soloist’s invention. (Since the author of the program note, Michael Steinberg, is now deceased, the text provided no insights for this particular performance.)

Sadly, Bell’s engaging account of the concerto was the only high point of the evening. In the performance of Robert Schumann’s Opus 61 (second) symphony in C major, it was hard to fathom just what he was doing in his efforts to conduct from the Concertmaster’s Chair. Presumably, he felt that rehearsals were sufficient to let the ensemble “fly on autopilot;” and there was very little expressiveness in the overall delivery to engage the attentive listener (particularly one with a background in the Schumann symphonies). The only “sign of life” came with the timpani solo in the final measures, and Louise Goodwin played her heart out to endow those measures with significance.

The overture for the program was Vince Mendoza’s “Flight of Moving Days,” composed to mark the centenary of the ensemble’s founder, Sir Neville Marriner. Mendoza is basically a composer and arranger for the pop genre. He composed this piece for Marriner’s grandson Douglas Marriner, who is both a jazz drummer and a percussionist. He served as soloist last night with his drum kit at the front of the stage, but the music provided no opportunities to showcase his talents. What seemed to matter more to Bell were the few solo passages he got to play.

Taken as a whole, there was very little offered by last night’s performers (Goodwin being the most notable exception) that rose to the level of “great.”