From a NYPhilharmonic perspective, by Orin O’Brien.
I cannot tell you what an impression that Gustavo D. has made on us: I had a bit of a special interest, since one of my students from yrs. ago (Jacqui Danilow, who plays in the Met. Opera Orch.) has been trying to start “El Sistema” here in the USA… she has a committee of several interested musicians trying to meet with various people in the schools, etc. to see if this could be done.. It would surely revitalize classical music, which has almost NO music appreciation in the schools any more, let alone orchestras!!!
So — Dudamel took the NYP by storm last week: he began with the Prokofiev 5th, and went right thru it, no problem, and very good instincts. Then the Chavez “Sinfonia India”, with lots of changing rhythms, etc. - he did not have to stop and say, “I will do bar 8 in 3 and bar 9 in 4, and the 5/8 bars are 3 beats plus 2, etc.” — he just bounded onto the stage, with a big grin (Like he was saying, “let’s have some fun!”), and proceeded to conduct perfectly, every beat in place, with incredible inner pulse always, with a sense of color.. very much the same energy and spirit as Lenny Bernstein used to have: a shared JOY in music making!!!! Infectious!! And NOT phony!
I was bowled over, and he is only 26…. Stephen Freeman, our bass clarinetist, was quoted in the NY Times article (by DAn Wakin, who is himself a clarinetist) as saying, “he reminds me of the young Bernstein.” I concur wholeheartedly…. The audiences have been going crazy: 10 curtain calls at the end of each concert, with Gil Shaham getting 4 bows for the Dvorak concerto, which Dudamel conducted like it was a symphony with violin obbligato!!! A full rich tone, with plenty of rhythmic incisiveness, just like Muti does, and Bernstein used to do!!!!
This kid… he played violin at first (his dad played trombone), and then at age 17 he began to conduct the Simon Bolivar Youth orch. (the one that has been touring this past year, and you can see them, with Dudamel, on YOUTUBE!).
His mentor and conducting teacher was the man who founded the El Sistema program [Jose Antonio Abreu], and he keeps watch over him, letting him know if he can improve this and that, etc. So he has had a lot of experience, which most young conductors don’t have… and also Simon Rattle has praised him, and had him conduct Berlin.
Anyway.. it is all true. Of course he doesn’t have the “old master” approach yet, but he has the skill (perfect baton technique, so effortless that you don’t notice it: but the orchestra plays together!!!), the HEART, and the ears!!! ANd he solfeges like Morel used to (when I was a student at Juilliard, he was the French-conservatory-trained conductor who trained the JSM orch., and he used to solfege harp glissandos!!!) So he has everything but age, and that will come!!! Meanwhile, he has the instinct of knowing how to handle an orch.
So this was a brief interlude of great joy… and the orch. will remember it for a long time. He is coming back next year for a week of Mahler 5….
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