Back Home Again: The NY Philharmonic with Elim Chan and Sol Gabetta
After spending the past six weeks surveying orchestras from Boston, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Vienna, I felt it was high time I took in a concert by our own NY Philharmonic, which I did last Friday at Geffen Hall. There wasn't much star-wattage on the bill - no-name guest conductor, unfamiliar soloist - but the program seemed interesting: a new work (technically, a new arrangement) by a Native American composer, an obscure 20th century cello concerto, and Scheherazade. If nothing else, it would be a pleasant evening in the new, improved Geffen Hall, with its airport lounge decor and dancing chandeliers.
I wasn't sure what sort of crowd to expect, but when I arrived I was surprised to see the hall at or near capacity. Some of that might have had to do with the presence of several school groups who seemed to be on their annual NYC field trip, but the bulk of the audience seemed local and enthusiastic. And young. Not exactly sure what the Phil's powers-that-be contrived to attract such an enviable crowd, but hats off.
Native American culture is having a moment in 2024, and the Phil echoed that with Pisachi by Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate, a composer from the Chickasaw nation in Oklahoma. Tate originally wrote Pisachi ("Reveal") for the string quartet Ethel in 2013, and the NY Phil commissioned him to write this arrangement for string orchestra. Inspired by vintage photographs of the Southwest lands of the Hopi and Pueblo tribes, the music began quietly, bringing to mind the sun rising over a desert landscape. Soon, the music gained momentum like a sudden rainstorm, with the end recalling the feverish concluding bars of Ravel's string quartet. Tate, who was present, took the stage for a well-deserved ovation.
Argentine cellist Sol Gabetta, who has enjoyed a two decade career performing with orchestras such as the Vienna and Berlin Philharmonics, made her belated NY Phil debut with Bohuslav Martinu's Cello Concerto No. 1 (1930, rev. 1955). Martinu, who was Czech, writes in an upbeat, almost American idiom, more Hoe Down than Polka. Gabetta played with a controlled energy that thrilled without being overly demonstrative. She was also completely charming, smiling broadly and dancing in her chair, yet leaving plenty in the tank for the intensely energetic finale. Her encore, the soulful “Flamenco” from Rogelio Huguet y Tagel's Suite espagnole No. 1, was both refreshingly modern and approachable.
After intermission, it was time for Rimsky-Korsakov's symphonic suite Scheherazade (1888), a staple of the orchestral repertoire. It was also time for our guest conductor, Elim Chan (another NY Phil debut) to show what she could do with this ensemble, which has been known to be dismissive of conductors it doesn't know. Chief Conductor of the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra since 2019, Chan has already announced she's stepping down from that post at the end of the season to follow a peripatetic (and potentially profitable) freelance career; there is some speculation she may eventually replace Gustavo Dudamel in LA after he takes over the NY Phil in 2026. Which may or may not have anything to do with her conducting (though she apparently has the ability to bring concertgoers to climax.)
Chan, who is 37 but looks much younger, has had to fight for recognition, having never gone to music school and only picking up a baton for the first time as an undergrad at Smith College. The Hong Kong native got a boost a decade ago when she became the first - and so far only - woman to win the UK's Donatella Flick Conducting Competition. Aware of the perception that her victory may have been graded on a gender-based curve, she pushed back. "I do not want to be given any special treatment because I am a woman,” she wrote in The Guardian. “I do not want my gender to become a crutch of my own.”
The truth is, we'll never know from this performance, which the Phil can probably play on autopilot. From my eyes, they didn't seem to be following Chan's fastidious conducting so much as concertmaster Frank Huang, who dispatched his multiple ornamental solos with fluidity and flair. Rimsky-Korsakov's repetitive, vintage Hollywood sounds throughout are anything but subtle, somewhere between flying carpets and Babes in Toyland, and the Phil never quite managed to inject this music with the bristling vitality it needs.
None of that seemed to make a difference to the audience, which was all too ready after the final fadeout to shout ecstatic bravos at Chan. Were they cheering her on because she's a woman? Asian? Or did she actually make a difference, which seems to be the consensus among most reviewers? Without access to rehearsals, we'll probably never know the degree of Chan’s contribution, but if the audience (and DEI-aware admins) goes home happy, does it really matter?
Speaking of women guest conductors, there are several more on deck at the Phil this season, including the somewhat more experienced Karina Canellakis (April 4-6) and Dame Jane Glover (May 8-10). Go check them out - not because of their gender, but because of their talent.