Does it take a Russian orchestra to interpret Russian music? Not really, especially since the symphonies of Tchaikovsky and piano concertos of Rachmaninoff are played regularly—cynics complain far too regularly—in every continent that can boast an orchestra. But there is a special frisson when an orchestra with the historical cachet of the Mariinsky Orchestra from St. Petersburg and the globe-trotting virtuoso Russian conductor Valery Gergiev team up to give their take on this familiar music.

Conductor Valery Gergiev.

^{Courtesy photo}

The pleasures of Friday’s (March 19) Copley Hall concert were evenly divided between Gergiev’s majestic interpretation of Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony and Russian pianist Denis Matsuev’s commanding grasp of Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto. As an appetizer, Gergiev offered Anatol Liadov’s 12-minute tone poem The Enchanted Lake, an odd waystation between Debussy’s mild, Impressionist harmonies and Sibelius’ cool, northern landscapes.

Winner of the 1998 International Tchaikovsky Competition, the 34-year-old Matsuev combines assured technical wizardry with a depth and maturity that so infrequently accompanies such digital prowess in a younger performer. His aristocratic touch and elegant phrasing announced itself from the piano’s opening theme, and no matter how dense the piano textures became—this concerto is legendary for its unrelenting, fistful chords—Matsuev’s composure and complete control were never threatened. In the first movement’s expansive second cadenza, he transitioned from its brilliant fireworks to the most subdued, velvet lyricism with breath-taking ease.

The great piano virtuoso Rachmaninoff wrote this concerto as a vehicle for himself on his American tour a century ago, and it is arguably the most difficult piano concerto in the repertory. When it is approached as a star turn for the pianist, however, it comes off somewhat heavy-handed and sonically inflated. Matsuev allowed us to enjoy the concerto’s rich thematic transformations and lush harmonies without calling undo attention to its pyrotechnics, thrilling as he made them. I cannot recall a more satisfying account of this piece in many decades of concert listening.

The Mariinsky Orchestra gave Matsuev a robust accompaniment, although in the first movement Gergiev’s enthusiasm came close to overpowering the soloist. In the second movement, with its gentle cantilenas alternated by the solo oboe and piano, Gergiev restored a proper balance with Matsuev. Gergiev unleashed the flamboyant drama of the finale, allowing the dark colors of the low strings and the bright, piquant winds to complement the soloist rather than compete with him.

Finding something new in a warhorse such as Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony in F Minor is no mean feat, yet Gergiev’s fresh, admiring reading kindled a new respect for the piece. Instead of bombast, he drew out noibility and a triumph of spirit in all of those brass chorales and fanfares that populate the long opening movement. Unlike the muscled brass sonorities of the best American orchestras, which aspire to a glossy, finished surface, the Mariinsky brass make no attempt to mask the guttural rasp that propels their hearty roar.

Likewise, principal oboe Alexander Trushkov intimated a wailing, primal lament in his big solo in the Andantino, his slender, piercing sound quite unlike the smooth, plummy character American oboists earnestly seek.

Striking unanimity of touch in the strings and eloquent shaping marked the celebrated pizzicato Scherzo, leaving no doubt concerning the discipline of the orchestra, which Gergiev has led from some 22 years. He uses neither baton nor podium when he conducts, and he tends to list towards the concertmaster’s stand. When excited, he does a little dance, and long essays have been penned about the meaning of the odd, fluttering movements of his left hand. But his players know exactly what he wants, and for all of his quirks, he is a much-desired guest conductor.

Typical of Gergiev’s whirlwind schedule, in the middle of the Mariinsky’s North American tour, which begain in Philadelphia on February 22, he wove into his conducting schedule a new production of Dmitri Shostakovich’s opera The Nose at the Met. Between performances of The Nose, New Yorkers could catch him leading concert performances of Hector Berlioz’ sprawling opera Les Troyens at Carnegie Hall with the Mariinsky Orchestra and Chorus.

When the Mariinsky players left Copley Hall, they were on their way to San Francisco for two concerts at Davies Symphony Hall March 21 and 22. Their tour concludes March 24 at Segerstrom Hall in Costa Mesa, where Gergiev will conduct Mahler’s Fifth Symphony and Rodion Shchedrin’s Concerto for Orchestra No. 1, Naughty Limericks.

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