An exhilarating concert with everyone on absolutely top form
This 75th Anniversary concert, recorded in 2011 at Tel Aviv in Hanger 11, is a spectacular success on every level.Clearly this anniversary meant a great deal to the players and audience and the whole event rises to the occasion in a way that is really quite special.
The concert starts with an assured and exciting performance of Saint Saens' Introduction and Rondo played by Julian Rachlin who adds a thoughtfully satisfying Sarabande from Bach's second Partita as an encore. Expectations were high therefore as Kissin settled down to deliver as fine a performance of Chopin's fist piano concerto as I have heard. This was full of detail and nuance without, for a single moment, losing the wonderful effect of spontaneous music making. The number of meltingly beautiful moments throughout this concerto were almost beyond number. Interestingly it was not a brilliant performance in terms of virtuoso speed. Those characteristics, which he demonstrated at Warsaw on a previous anniversary...
More than just a concert
This is a fascinating Blu-ray in many ways. First and foremost, it marks the 75th anniversary of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. Curiously, as good as the concert is, I didn't really detect extra emotion from the players or audience related to this major occasion. But the accompanying documentary (nearly an hour long) fills this gap nicely.
The documentary effectively charts the history of the orchestra, hitting all the highlights. Benefiting from a large number of interviews with orchestra members past and present, it shows how the orchestra has attracted stellar musicians from around the world, originally largely from Germany and Austria, and more recently from Russia. It also touches on Arturo Toscanini's early championing, Leonard Bernstein's injections of excitement, and the five-decade relationship with Zubin Mehta, who has helped the orchestra maintain its Central European sound through all these years. I found it very interesting, and as you might expect, moving...
Great performance by Kissin
The Israel Philharmonic does its usual superb job, especially when under the direction of Mehta. Kissin gives a spectacular performance of Chopin. And the DVD has an fantastic added bonus about the Israel Philharmonic with commentaries by Mehta, Barenboim, Zuckerman and many others connected with the Orchestra
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