Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow on Groundhog Day last month, but the San Francisco Symphony is eagerly transitioning to spring despite his chilly prediction. In recent weeks, concerts at Davies Symphony Hall have been filled by an impressive birthday celebration for composer John Adams (the big 7-oh!) and the return of guest artist French cellist Gautier Capuçon in tour de force performances of the Shostakovich Concerto No. 1.
This week, conductor Marek Janowski will take the podium for some Beethoven and the cathartic Brahms Symphony No. 4. Violinist Arabella Steinbacher gives the first SFS performances of Paul Hindemith's brilliant Violin Concerto (1939), an accessible and unfairly neglected work with a surprisingly Romantic heart.
Fellow violin virtuoso and favorite guest artist Gil Shaham follows her to center stage mid-March for the meltingly beautiful Samuel Barber Violin Concerto. Slovakian conductor Juraj Valčuha leads the orchestra in a program including Beethoven's lively Symphony No. 7. Wagner enthusiastically called it "the apotheosis of the dance," and it always cheers the spirit.
The Vernal Equinox is March 20, and SFS music director Michael Tilson Thomas is welcoming spring with two slightly different bills, starting on March 23. Both include Bart�"k's thrilling Concerto for Orchestra and an aptly timed presentation of maverick composer John Cage's ballet The Seasons, with visualization conceived by MTT, and projections designed by video artist Clyde Scott and lighting design by Luke Kritzeck. The SFS is mixing technology with traditional concert performances on a regular basis these days, and it seems to be working, especially with new listeners. Cage was an adventurer himself, and I think he would be pleased by the innovative approach.
The first two concerts in the series introduce English composer Robin Holloway's concertante for tuba and orchestra Europa and the Bull, March 23 and 24. An SFS co-commission with Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, the U.S. premiere features SFS Principal Tuba Jeffrey Anderson. MTT has long championed Holloway's music, and it is reported that the composer is coming to town for a reunion and place of honor at the event.
Max Bruch's popular Violin Concerto No. 1 replaces Europa on the weekend menu. Talented Nicola Benedetti will likely ace the solo role, but this is a tough choice. So ponder future options and recall some highlights of the past few weeks. SFS regulars enjoy a yearly roster of excellent guest artists, and late winter has been truly outstanding.
On the last program in John Adams' birthday bash, young and scary good violinist Leila Josefowicz set DSH ablaze with the composer's Scheherazade.2 . Adams wrote the self-described dramatic symphony for the young virtuoso, tailoring it to her fascinating blend of personal allure and fierce technique. Like the legendary storyteller herself, Josefowicz fascinated listeners over a long span. This Scheherazade is also defiant, and the richly textured scoring surrounded her tale with boldly colorful and seductive orchestral sounds.
Most recently, cellist Gautier Capuçon riveted attention with his own combination of good looks and talent. Previous visits to DSH have consistently shown an impressive range. From Schumann to Dvorak and Dutilleux, he brings fresh and unsentimental artistry, dusting off the familiar and convincingly interpreting the rare.
He seems a natural for Shostakovich, and he immediately made an indelible mark with his strong attack on the catchy opening theme of the Cello Concerto No. 1. He relaxed, though not a lot, for the yearning slow movement. The long cadenza of the third movement probed deeply with a tough determination, but he managed to change gears without a hitch for the fiendish finale.
MTT got his own licks in on the same program, first presenting, with a smile and a shrug, the SFS debut of Mikhail Fabianovich Gnesin's endearing dance suite The Jewish Orchestra at the Ball of Nothingtown (1926), and ending the night with a cumulatively powerful Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 6, Pathetique .
No one is looking over their shoulders at Davies Hall these days.