With continuing support from the Tourism Authority of Thailand and B.Grimm, the Royal Bangkok Symphony Orchestra celebrated International Women's Day in style recently at the Thailand Cultural Centre with a feast of varied music directed by up-and-coming French conductor Chloé Dufresne, alongside spectacular Spanish violin sensation Leticia Moreno.
Gabriel Fauré's famous Pavane In F-sharp Minor opened the concert in a most soothing manner, giving conductor Dufresne the perfect platform on which to introduce herself and her charming Gallic personality to Bangkok music aficionados. The flute solo was handled quite expertly and with admirable nerve by principal flautist Teerat Ketmee. This is a piece which can set the tone and atmosphere for an entire concert in a positive way, and the sympathetic pizzicato accompaniment from the string section throughout certainly contributed to a fine reading of this well-known orchestral warhorse.
Natural successor to Fauré in French music history is, of course, Maurice Ravel, and his brilliant Tzigane For Violin And Orchestra introduced a new violin soloist to the Bangkok music scene -- one who will most certainly not be forgotten quickly. The opening gypsy-infused four-minute pyrotechnic violin display of this performance alone was a mighty tour-de-force as Moreno coaxed every possible tonal nuance out of her priceless 1762 Nicola Gagliano instrument.
This is music of the utmost refinement, emanating from the very highest level of compositional genius, and the TCC audience in attendance on this occasion were truly privileged to hear a level of ensemble clarity between orchestra and soloist -- mediated attentively by the conductor -- which truly brought this elusive work to life.
Notoriously difficult artificial harmonic sequences were dispatched with seemingly effortless ease by Moreno, alongside left-hand pizzicato wizardry and phenomenal left-hand dexterity, which remain the preserve of only the very finest players. The gypsy-spirit was perhaps best captured in the chromatically driven episode between the viola section and violin soloist, where Ravel's own compositional virtuosity and scoring prowess towers so conspicuously above most others.
Pablo de Sarasate's Carmen Fantasy then welcomed the brilliant Leticia Moreno back to the stage for yet another display of exceptional virtuosity. Trained by the very greatest pedagogues -- Zakhar Bron, Maxim Vengerov and Mstislav Rostropovich -- she has won numerous international violin competitions and firmly established herself as one of today's most impressive soloists.
Violin soloist Leticia Moreno and conductor Chloé Dufresne. RBSO
Moreno has worked with A-list conductors such as Zubin Mehta, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Paavo Järvi and Vladimir Ashkenazy, and clearly has absolutely no inhibitions on any stage. Naturally, her passionate Spanish nationality came across directly in her simply scintillating interpretation of the Carmen Fantasy, which was not only of the highest technical standard but also transmitted an authentic mood and atmosphere of the most genuine, moving kind.
As an encore Moreno chose not to concentrate on the virtuosic -- after all, she had just shown the audience exactly what she is capable of from that point of view. Instead she cast the most sublime spell of atmosphere, with a short gem by her compatriot composer Manuel de Falla titled Nana. This was simply entrancing, aided by incredibly sensitive accompaniment by RBSO harpist Ema Mitarai.
Antonín Dvorák's Symphony No.7 In D Minor, whilst often eclipsed in estimation and popularity by its gorgeous predecessor and legendary successor, respectively, is a supremely brilliant composition in its own right -- and the RBSO's accomplished rendition of this masterpiece at this concert, under the sure baton of Chloé Dufresne, reaffirmed this most resoundingly. It is, in fact, the most technically challenging of all Dvorák symphonies, not least for the 1st violin section, and the entire ensemble is to be praised for rising to the score's considerable challenges.
