Out West Arts: Performance at the end of the world

The L.A. Philharmonic with Christoph Eschenbach
Photo: mine 2009

Remember how I was going on about Christoph Eschenbach the other day? Well, Friday we in Los Angeles had a visit from the other Eschenbach, the thoughtful, enthralling maestro who delivered a stellar performance of Bruckner’s Seventh Symphony. It was the final Los Angeles Philharmonic concert of the 08/09 season, and, even though it’s been a lame duck operation since Salonen left in April, the Philharmonic delivered, and we did go out with a bang. Though Eschenbach took his sweet time about it. The Symphony was stretched to an amazing 75 minutes, well beyond the average running time of around 65, in a strategy similar to that taken by the conductor when he appeared as piano soloist on Tuesday in a chamber music program at Walt Disney Concert Hall playing Schubert’s Piano Sonata in B-flat major Op. 960. This veritable slow motion allowed Eschenbach's conducting to build in a marvelous swirl and intensity that makes these works great. While this slow pacing can run the risk of seeming ponderous, in his hands it was never dull. The orchestra demonstrated an amazing ability to sustain tension over the course of beautiful lengthy lines pulled taut over the influx of extra seconds and minutes.

Labels: LA Philharmonic 08/09