Libor Pesek conducts CUMS I

12 pm, Saturday 12th March, West Road Concert Hall

Libor Pesek conducts CUMS 1

[rating:4/5]

Cambridge’s ‘flagship’ orchestra, CUMS I, powered through last Saturday’s Czech-only programme, proving their versatility with the help of the famous Czech conductor, Libor Pesek (interviewed last week).

Pesek’s big name attracted a nearly packed audience. The night started with the Overture to Smetana’s opera The Bartered Bride. Enthusiastic Czech exuberance bought the concert to life with a rhythmic opening. The balance of the strings was occasionally inaccurate and Pesek’s motions to lower the volume were ignored. The crisp woodwind section entered after a long, string-dominated passage. Yet due to Pesek’s minimal, though passionate, conducting, the two groups weren’t always together. Just after the last chord, Pesek’s enthusiasm got the better of him and he turned around and uttered ‘bravo’. This excitement made the performance convincing, as did some excellent playing.

Similar technical issues plagued Janacek’s Taras Bulba. The string section often tripped over difficulties, and ended up sounding weak despite the principal’s expressive tone. The piece gave scope for some impressive wind and brass playing. The principal oboe’s judicious use of vibrato produced a beautiful tone. The characteristically squeaky E-flat clarinet solo was equally impressive despite a cracked top note. The trombones’ sound was mighty, especially in the snarling low range. The piece’s glorious, noisy end was carried by excellent trumpet playing. The tone produced betrayed none of the music’s difficulty that the trumpeters’ cherry-faces gave away.

Dvorak’s Sixth Symphony gave further insight into the orchestra’s strengths and weaknesses. The solos were, once again, fantastic. The B-flat clarinet solo had a clear and focused tone and whilst the unaccompanied flute solo was played with effortless precision and a beautiful vibrato. In the Scherzo, Dvorak’s mix of German and Czech influences created a contrast between Brahmsian counterpoint and jolty hemiolas. Pesek’s counterintuitive conducting style let the orchestra carry the vigour, preferring to restrain them from what could easily be a train wreck of a movement.

The strings achieved a truly lush sound, yet it was the brass section that made this performance. The chorale which finishes the piece was glorious in its precision of intonation and tone. Pesek’s thumbs up at the end encapsulated the audience’s reaction perfectly.

It was Pesek’s personality that enlivened the performance. Pesek literally lifted the principal violin out of his seat in a handshake and the orchestra’s furious stamping, which almost overpowered the clapping, showed that appreciation was mutual. Pesek’s relaxed conducting style kept the orchestra on their toes. Although there were some synchronisation problems, most of the time Pesek extracted a valiant attempt from the orchestra in a difficult program.