New Century Chamber Orchestra, the Bay Area treasure with national respect, is poised on the brink of celebrating the second half of its 2016-17 silver anniversary season. The popular group is also bidding a bittersweet farewell to Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, who will step down from her position as Music Director following the ensemble's three-concert 25th anniversary festival in mid-May 2017.
Recently, NCCO warmed the auditorium of the beautifully renovated Herbst Theatre in San Francisco with an exciting bill showcasing the impressive Taiwanese-Australian violinist Ray Chen, in a guest appearance as part of the Guest Concertmaster Program. Playing the 1715 "Joachim" Stradivarius on loan from the Nippon Music Foundation, young Chen delighted a full house with a nicely balanced program, surrounding Mozart works with British pieces from early decades of the 20th century.
Acknowledging how his Australian accent sneaks back up on him during spoken introductions, Chen charmingly explained the program selections with a quote from his dad. "Mozart is to music like oil is to a wok."
He had most of the audience with him as soon as he entered to play and lead the Mozart Divertimento in F Major. Many of the enthusiastic young faces in the crowd probably knew him already from his social media presence, recordings for Sony, and numerous online videos, but he also won new fans with his combination of outstanding technique and mature interpretations. It doesn't hurt that he is also youthfully handsome and fashion-forward. He has been featured in Vogue, and enjoys support from Giorgio Armani. His obvious pleasure during his NCCO debut was shared by the 19 members of the supportive crew in an evening that showed everyone to best effect.
The rendition of Benjamin Britten's infrequently performed Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge, Op. 10, moved engrossingly through quicksilver moods. I am always pleasantly surprised at the really big sound of the ensemble, and Chen's muscular tone blended beautifully.
He achieved his finest moments with a delightful rendition of the Mozart Violin Concerto No. 3 in G Major. Making a satisfying meal of the cadenzas, his lightning virtuosity slowed to a deep lyricism in the heavenly Adagio. The absence of a full orchestra never mattered. The performance still reflected all of the 19-year-old composer's witty self-assurance and emotional depth.
The concert ended with a strong reading of Edward Elgar's Introduction and Allegro, Op. 47 (1905). Immersing a string quartet within a string orchestra, the emphatic flow of the memorably melodic score seemed tailor-made for Chen and the shimmering sound of the ensemble.
The encore was an arrangement, almost a re-composition by cellist Stephan Konsz, of Erik Satie's Gymnopedie No. 1. It veered close to New Age, but put a fresh and pretty gloss on the old favorite, and proved an interesting choice to end the evening.
This coming March 16-19, NCCO returns to the Herbst and other Bay Area venues with Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, Music Director & Concertmaster, re-uniting with male classical vocal ensemble Chanticleer for a musical visit to Paris during the early 20th century. Satie is on the bill again, but there will be selections by other composers from Faure to Gershwin, and "The Little Sparrow" Edith Piaf, too. Like Chanticleer, New Century is another San Francisco-based institution that enforces and enlivens the uniquely rich musical life of Northern California.
Nadja-Salerno Sonnenberg has added her excellence to the mix for nine years, and it will be hard to see her go, but characteristically, she is far from retiring. With guest performances still in her future, she will be teaching a new generation of musicians as she begins her appointment as leader of the newly formed Resident Artist Program at Loyola University's School of Music in New Orleans. For the NCCO farewell concert in May, she plays two of the best pieces in her extensive repertoire: Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto in E minor, and Piazzolla's Four Seasons of Buenos Aires .