Utah Symphony lifeless in its Russian representation

UTAH SYMPHONY, CONDUCTOR KEITH LOCKHART, PIANIST YEOL EUM SON, Abravanel Hall, Feb. 26, additional performance Feb. 27 (801-355-2787)

Two 20th century Russian composers are featured on this weekend's Utah Symphony concerts conducted by former music director Keith Lockhart.

Igor Stravinsky and Sergei Rachmaninoff were born within a decade of one another, but the two couldn't have been more different temperamentally or stylistically. Both grew up in the rich romantic tradition, but while Rachmaninoff stayed firmly entrenched in its spirit throughout his life, Stravinsky took a very different approach.

Stravinsky's earliest pieces are romantic — he was a student of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakoff — but already at a young age, he rebelled against the excesses of romanticism. After the notoriety of his early ballets, he turned in another direction, embracing an austere style that was abstract but vividly colorful.

One of the best pieces from this period is the Symphonies of Wind Instruments, with which the concert opened. The short work for woodwinds and brass focuses on the different sections of the ensemble, shifting easily but abruptly from one to the other. It creates a jarring effect that is underscored by the angularity of the sound.

The members of the Utah Symphony's woodwind and brass sections played well, but it was a rather straightforward reading that didn't allow for much shape to the sound. In fact, it came across rather flat. Lockhart couldn't bring any vibrancy to his reading, and unfortunately it dragged.

The other Stravinsky piece in the first half is the Symphony in C, from his later neo-classical period. Unlike the Symphonies of Wind Instruments, the harmonic language of the C major symphony is tempered with traditional tonality. The orchestra played well, with many wonderful solos throughout, but it was a lifeless account that didn't do the work justice.

After intermission, Yeol Eum Son came onstage and joined the orchestra and Lockhart in Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor.

Son is the silver medal winner at last year's Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, where her playing created quite a sensation. And there is reason for that. At Friday's concert, she showed that she is a technically solid player who made the virtuosity of her part look easy. But it also hid the fact that there is no musicality in her playing. Her reading was unemotional and lacked personality, and there was no real connection between her and the music or with the orchestra.

e-mail: ereichel@desnews.com