The Opera Tattler

* Notes *
James Conlon conducted San Francisco Symphony in a performance of Berlioz, Liszt, and Shostakovich yesterday evening. The horn timing seemed somewhat off in Berlioz's Le Corsaire Overture, though I do not know the piece, so certainly I cannot say this definitively. The flutes played very deftly, and the brass did sound quite clear near the end of the piece. Jean-Yves Thibaudet was the soloist for Liszt's second piano concerto. The work is lush and pretty, and Thibaudet had a contrasting blunt vehemence at times, though he certainly played well. The part with only cello and piano was particularly lovely, and Thibaudet's arpeggios sounded remarkably harp-like.

Conlon spoke on the themes of Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District, and the orchestra gave the various musical examples. Conlon's arrangement of Shostakovich's opera into a suite is engaging and the orchestra played with a great intensity. There were moments that were almost unbearably loud. With the exception of occasional raggedness from the horns, the musicians were in fine form.

* Tattling *
The audience was well-behaved, only a bit of coughing and one watch alarm were heard during the music.