MusicNet International

By George Grella

The orchestra's impressive musicianship was augmented by the young violinist Ryu Goto, soloist in the Bruch Violin Concerto. Orpheus' nature means they play concertos, and work with soloists, like no other orchestra. Without a conductor, all the musicians must listen to each other, and the result is a feeling of sympathy and of working together to make music, with the one player taking the lead by consensus. While the concerto form has an inherent adversarial quality, that was subsumed in this performance. It helps that Bruch's piece is as much like an instrumental song with the orchestra as accompanist as it is a showpiece for bravura playing. Goto's brilliant sound stood out from the ensemble, and he's a confident, charismatic and expressive player with a focus on projecting meaning rather than showing off his technique. His long, fine phrasing was complemented by the orchestra's precise rhythms and wonderful blend of sound. It seemed like a friendly and involved competition between who could produce a more beautiful sound, and the audience won. Bruch's piece may be a slightly lesser version of the Brahms Concerto, but that also means that a musician has to bring a lot of committed musical thinking to it to make it stand out, and this was a standout performance, Goto intensely lyrical and songful, tender without bathos in the "Adagio," soloist and orchestra making easy work of an emphasis on the pointed rhythm in the finale, pausing to underline it without ever losing the forward flow of the music.

Goto's encore, Nathan Milstein's dazzling arrangement of Paganini, Paganiniana, was even more musically impressive. It's perhaps the bravura violin encore and is a real technical showpiece, full of impressive double-stops and fast, close fingering in the left hand. His complete control of his instrument and forceful playing went far beyond the exhibitionist quality of the music and dug out poetry that had never been apparent before. I can't imagine a better demonstration of musicality.

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