Books have been devoted to explaining the elusive essence of French music, but Friday evening’s Colorado Symphony program brought three adjectives quickly to mind — poetic, evanescent and, of course, elegant.
The orchestra offered a well-chosen, well-integrated cross-section of this rich musical realm with enticing works by four of the country’s composing greats — Hector Berlioz, Camille Saint-Saëns, Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel.
A suitably exuberant version of Berlioz’s “Le Corsaire,” Op. 21, prefaced the main event of the first half: Saint-Saëns’ Cello Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 33, which the symphony last performed in 1995.
The 1872 work has its bold gestures and finger-flying runs. But unlike some of its more frequently heard counterparts, it is less flashy and demonstrative, with the composer putting more of an emphasis on simple, romantic beauty.
German cellist Daniel Mueller-Schott seemed completely at home in this music, artfully embracing its amiable spirit and savoring its stunning, nuanced phrases. He drew the maximum emotional power from this work without ever overpowering it.
Opening the second half was Debussy’s “Nocturnes,” three short pieces with the other- worldly, evocative power for which the composer is revered.
Associate conductor Scott O’Neil, who has proved to be a fine addition to the symphony’s artistic staff, delivered the kind of competent, well-detailed direction that listeners have come to expect of him.
But precisely because of the talent and potential he clearly possesses, it was easy to wish for even more from him — a freer line, more of a sense of immediacy and a willingness to plunge even deeper into these extraordinary aural worlds that Debussy has created.
Deserving special note were the women of the Colorado Symphony Chorus, who offered a suitably bewitching performance of the wordless vocalizations that evoke the deadly call of the mythological sea nymphs in “Sirènes (Sirens).”
Rounding out the evening was Ravel’s “La Valse,” a grand if dark-hued tribute to Vienna and its signature musical form.
The concert, which was scantily attended because of the snowy weather, will be repeated tonight at 7:30.
Kyle MacMillan: 303-954-1675 or kmacmillan@denverpost.com
