Scheherazade: Susanna Mälkki in Chicago

[richardfinegold]

Last night program featurued Finnish conductor Suzanna Malikii in Rimsky's Masterpiece, Debussy Gigues and Bartok VC2 with Gil Shaham.
The big story is the tall, statuespue Conductress, former Principal Cello of the Gothenburg SO. She is a very animated podium presenes and given her athletic physique at several points resembled a ballet dancer on the podium. The debussy was a real standout, with it's textures clarified, less Impressionistic haze and more neoclassical than is the norm. The Bartok is not a work that I enjoy and Shaham grinning like an Ape didn't do much for me either but it seemed like a spiritied performance. There were some imprecise attack s in the Rimsky but the last two movements hada real purpose and drive and the work plays itself, really. A pleasing concert and Malikii is one to watch.

[BBMmk2]

I'm one not for conductors who over-express themselves on the podium. IMO, it makes them looks as though it's hey me aren't I good! :(

[bluestateprommer]

Forumites might remember that Susanna Mälkki conducted the Prom last summer with The Planets (complete with wailing child towards the end), paired with Boulez and Luca Francesconi in the 1st half, which got a lot of friendly response here, if memory serves. While I consider her vocabulary of gestures somewhat limited, she's generally good, and does well with contemporary music in particular. People might like to read the Grauniad's "Facing the music" profile of her:

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/jul/27/facing-the-music-conductor-susanna-malkki

[richardfinegold]

Forumites might remember that Susanna Mälkki conducted the Prom last summer with The Planets (complete with wailing child towards the end), paired with Boulez and Luca Francesconi in the 1st half, which got a lot of friendly response here, if memory serves. While I consider her vocabulary of gestures somewhat limited, she's generally good, and does well with contemporary music in particular. People might like to read the Grauniad's "Facing the music" profile of her:

http://www.theguardian.com/music/201...susanna-malkki

Thanks for posting that, bsp.

[richardfinegold]

I'm one not for conductors who over-express themselves on the podium. IMO, it makes them looks as though it's hey me aren't I good! :(

It got really bad when Gil Shaham played the Concerto. He tends to crowd the podium and there were several times he and the leaping, pirouetting Conductor almost made contact

[bluestateprommer]

...Malkki is one to watch.

Evidently the Los Angeles Philharmonic agrees with you, as the LA Phil just named her itd next principal guest conductor, starting in 2017-2018. Press release here; perhaps no surprise that there's some emphasis on her pending work with contemporary music, under the orchestra's "Green Umbrella" series.

[richardfinegold]

Evidently the Los Angeles Philharmonic agrees with you, as the LA Phil just named her itd next principal guest conductor, starting in 2017-2018. Press release here; perhaps no surprise that there's some emphasis on her pending work with contemporary music, under the orchestra's "Green Umbrella" series.

That is an impressive pedigree... Rattle and MTT