From the seven-day week to the seven wonders of the world, the number seven is central to things mundane and mystical. In the Vail Valley, the confluence of sevens in Saturday’s date marked the Philadelphia Orchestra’s first-ever appearance at the Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater under the auspices of the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival.
While the revered orchestra is in transition due to the exit of music director Christoph Eschenbach, Saturday’s performance proved the dulcet, densely concentrated “Philadelphia Sound” is alive and well.
The reported discord between Eschenbach and the orchestra musicians was imperceptible as their collective body delved into the rich, sweet strains of the overture to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s opera “The Magic Flute.”
Garbed in a stunning, sky-blue gown, Marisol Montalvo then joined the ensemble for a trio of Mozart arias. In “No, Che Non Sei Capace,” Montalvo handled the perilously ornate passages of the showpiece with gloss and grace, followed by a wonderfully discreet and sensitive rendering of “Vorrei Spiegarvi, oh Dio.”
In the latter concert aria, the inspired juxtaposition of various instruments with Motalvo’s subtle, flexible voice was spellbinding, as was her alluring portrayal of a woman’s prayerful petition to her beloved.
However, she fell flat of hitting some of the highest notes of her range and, despite amplification, her delicate voice failed to effectively project through the ambient sounds of a full house, nearby traffic and the natural environs.
The soprano continued with a proficient reading of “Martern aller Arten” from “The Abduction from the Seraglio.”
Here, Montalvo’s voice danced nimbly amid the orchestra’s delightfully punctuated accompaniment, including solo passages seamlessly passed around among concertmaster David Kim and several other principal players.
The second half of the program was an unabashedly zealous rendition of Hector Berlioz’s ingenious Symphonie fantastique.
Conducting the hefty, five-movement work sans score, Eschenbach proved his finely honed, artistic command in an electrifying approach to the symphony’s loud and lurid themes of lovesick despair, hallucinations, satanic rites and death.
Blending with the natural splendor of the plein-air venue, the orchestra responded crisply and cohesively to deliver the finest playing in recent memory.
The Philadelphia Orchestra’s inaugural, six-concert residency with Bravo! ends Saturday.
