NYO2: Prokofiev and Shostakovich

EIF 25

Usher Hall 3/8/25

Rafael Payare (conductor) Alisa Weilerstein (cello)

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this youth orchestra from New York, but was bowled over from the start. Founded in 2016, this initiative by the Carnegie Hall in New York is one of three youth ensembles, free to all participants, dedicated to the notion that excellence knows no boundaries. Judging by the standard of playing tonight, the selection process must be rigorous, because these young players (age range 14-17) are exceptional. There was absolutely no difference in quality from the professional orchestras we hear each year at the EIF, and the sheer joy in their playing came over directly to the packed auditorium.

Directed by Rafael Payare, the young Venezuelan conductor who has come through the Sistema system in his native land and is now in demand throughout the world, the musicians played the most fearsomely difficult programme as if it was a Haydn symphony, such was the brilliance of their playing!

They started with ‘Perú Negro,’ a dramatic piece for orchestra by the Peruvian composer Jimmy López, highlighting the mixed heritage of Afro-Peruvian music. Premiered in 2013 by the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, this extraordinary piece is a tour de force for full orchestra, thrilling and exciting for the players and the audience. Some of the playing was quite breathtaking, but the young instrumentalists seemed to be loving playing it. A huge ovation greeted the final chords!

Mr Payare was joined on the stage by his wife, the American cellist, Alisa Weilerstein, in a superb rendition of Shostakovich’s First Cello Concerto. Written for Mstislav Rostropovich in 1959, this concerto has become one of the staple cello concertos in the repertoire, and from the initial solo bars, Ms Weilerstein demonstrated a complete understanding of this complex score. My seat was nearer the front than I normally sit, but it was perfect for watching the magnificence of her playing. From the breakneck faster sections to the reflective quieter passages, Ms Weilerstein led us through the intricacies of this extraordinary piece. I saw Rostropovich play this concerto, and Ms Weilerstein proved a worthy successor. Her Bach encore was tender and emotional by contrast.

 After the interval, the orchestra played Prokofiev’s 5th Symphony, a work dating from the last terrible year of World War II. Written during the summer of 1944, around the time of the D-Day landings and a year after the crucial Battle of Stalingrad, it was premiered in January 1945, a performance briefly interrupted by artillery fire celebrating the Soviet army crossing the Vistula into Germany. The tide was turning, and Prokofiev’s symphony was suitably upbeat.

The NYO2 played it fantastically, urged on by Rafael Payare, definitely a follower of the Bernstein school of conducting (and none the worse for it!), and the audience was once again treated to some sumptuous orchestral playing.

The ovation at the end was stunning, and we were given a steamy and rhythmic encore to send us out into the Festive night!