Last night, Wednesday, the Philharmonic led a well balanced program of Dvořák, Sibelius, and Loggins-Hull, conducted by Domingo Hindoyan. The evening began with Can You See?, a work from 2023 by Allison Loggins-Hull. Incorporating sounds from nature, it is a commentary on The Star-Spangled Banner, America’s national anthem. This was a typical new atmospheric work, which has its own sound world, and select strengths in color and rhythm. But overall it was a bit static and underdeveloped. It is difficult for present day composers to write for orchestra, since the compositional medium itself seems to have peaked some years ago.
Following the Loggins-Hull came the Sibelius Violin Concerto, played by Karen Gomyo. A staple of the repertoire, one could feel the audience’s delight as the first theme emerged from Gomyo’s rich tone. The first movement was a great overview of her color palette on the instrument—indeed, the vast majority of her playing was so rich (a strong fundamental cast with lush overtones) and projected so well that the orchestra was able to play louder than usual when accompanying a soloist. In some of the quicker sections there were anomalies, but these were few.
The Sibelius is one of those works that feels like it never quite arrives; there are plenty of climaxes and it is highly dynamic, but one is often left with a sense of something having been left out. It is a work of pleading, yearning, and this performance captured that essence. While the newly renovated David Geffen Hall leaves something to be desired aesthetically, the sound is much clearer compared with the former Avery Fisher Hall, and subtleties came through nicely in the Sibelius. In Fisher, oftentimes voices would get lost, particularly in the middle and lower parts of the strings. Gomyo followed the Sibelius with a brief encore by Samuel Adams.
Following intermission, Hindoyan led a reading of Dvořák’s Seventh Symphony, a nice pairing with the Sibelius. The beginning was a bit disorganized, which is unfortunate given the need for a tight, impactful thesis from the outset in this work. Much of the performance was scattered on this evening, many questions asked and few answered. From what I watched of his technical work, in most spots Hindoyan seemed to be following the orchestra rather than anticipating. There was a danceful charm in his style though. As with most elite orchestras, the quality of the performance and interplay between ensemble and conductor is likely to improve on subsequent evenings. As for interpretation, none was to be found here, but it was exciting at times. I remember Maazel doing the Seventh in 2007, complete with his angular phrasing, alternative balance of the orchestra, and hyper accuracy; odd to some, but certainly more interesting than Hindoyan. This being said, last night the orchestra was superb, the classic New York sound commanding in the relevant fortissimos. The final bars, Dvořák’s ultimate elevation of all that came before, induced a great deal of awe. Here Hindoyan took the appropriate pace and the orchestra sang supreme through these magnificent harmonies.