Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider playing Bruch’s first violin concerto while leading DSO (screenshot from the livestream being discussed)
Early yesterday evening my wife and I had our latest encounter with a livestream of a performance by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO). The guest conductor was Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider, who also served as violin soloist in a performance of Max Bruch’s Opus 26 (first) violin concerto in G minor. The intermission was followed by a performance of Johannes Brahms’ Opus 73, his second symphony in D major. Szeps-Znaider’s encore selection following the Bruch concerto was Jascha Heifetz’ arrangement of Manuel Ponce’s “Estrellita.”
Taken as a whole, it would be fair to say that the entire performance was an engaging “snapshot” of the second half of the nineteenth century. What I appreciated was the contrast of these two compositions from the same period in music history. I have to confess that Opus 73 is my favorite of the four Brahms symphonies with just the right balance of a meticulous structure with an engagingly expressive rhetoric. A sense of kvell always seems to arise during the final measures of that composition. Even on the “small screen,” that disposition, as invoked by Szeps-Znaider’s conducting, could not be suppressed. Sitting in front of the television, I felt the same enthusiasm as those in the audience!
The Bruch concerto, on the other hand, was primarily “about” virtuosity. However, what draws me to this music is that, unlike the dazzling spectacle that one encounters in the concertos of Niccolò Paganini, Bruch gave more attention to the interplay between soloist and ensemble. The virtuosity is still there, but Bruch knew how to allow the orchestral performers have their say. (As usual, this could be appreciated in the camera work.) As a result, the entire program was a model of perfect balance, presenting a thoroughly engaging violinist whose command of the entire ensemble could not have been more convincing.
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