Orchestra And Tibor Varga Cheered After Concerto

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30172, 2 July 1963, Page 15

Orchestra And Tibor Varga Cheered After Concerto

The National Orchestra gave the first of two concerts for this week to an audience which crowded the Civic Theatre last evening.

Mr John Hopkins conducted the orchestra, which seemed to be in excellent form, and certainly rose to very great heights in the performance of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in D major with Mr Tibor Varga as soloist. The concerto was the great work of the evening and the performance ranked highly among the many splendid renderings of concertos which we have had here. The opening from the orchestra was direct and powerful, with

deep sonorities from the strings and firm and shapely wood-wind and horn playing. From his opening phrase, Mr Tibor Varga showed arresting tonal quality pulsating with life and sunshine. Without having to “over-top,” all his sounds stood out above the orchestral ensemble l?e--cause of his definitive tonal colouring. Even his softest sounds had marvellous clarity and vibrant life under highly masterly control. Although nothing was lacking in his interpretation in depth of expressive feeling, his rendering of the first movement will be remembered for its classic beauty of line and for poised sense of proportion whether he was playing important thematic passages or filigree figuration against more important work from the orchestra. In playing such as this, tenderness always proceeds from strength, and head and heart are in true harmony. The cadenza was flung ouit with scintillating brilliance and led back into the main stream with beatific serenity.

A barrage of coughing when the first movement ended showed how Mr Varga’s playing had held the audience during its course, and how the members had exercised a willing control. The second movement began with well-shaped phrasing and appealing tone from the orchestra, and Mr Varga’s opening melody came cool and poised against rich clarinet tone. This music breathed consolation and confidence in warm and mellow sounds. The soloist’s phrasing was immaculate and enriched at every moment with a rare delicacy of nuance.

The rondo stated its meiry atmosphere of the hunt with rosy happiness and there was a lovely glow over all. Mr Varga gave us radiant playing and both he, Mr Hopkins, and the whole orchestra deserved the cheers with which the performance was received by the audience. Dvorak’s Symphony No. 5, in F followed and it began with a well-controlled building up to bright and steely sounds giving way to romantic reflection. It progressed steadily and unadventurously with these ideas tossed about amiably. There was an incisive snap to the playing, keeping up good cheer, and also pleasant creamy passages played with langorous legato. The second movement opened with rich sounds from the 'cellos and beautiful ensemble tone from all the strings. Deftly-played wood-wind added their colour and were particularly effective in a falling melody against pizzicato strings. The! scherzo was neatly played with excellent clarity and good preserving of balance in expressive rising and falling. There were lively tutti effects in the last movement with suggestion of brightly coloured pageantry. Of this music it could be said that if it did you no good it would do you no harm. It was certainly very well played, but it could riot be expected to grip very forcefully after the glories of the Beethoven concerto. It did not have enough content for that. Something in the nature of one of the Sibelius symphonies might have continued the punch of the earlier part of the programme, which had begun with a well sustained and concisely expressed rendering of Beethoven’s Coriolan Overture. This was forceful playing dramatically directed. —C.F.B.