Now in his 30th year of delivering Tanglewood pre-concert lectures at Lenox Library, Yudkin treated the crowd to a boatload of fascinating but little-known details about three famous pieces of music and the men who created them.
Although one must be wary of the word “definitive” when describing any musical performance, overenthusiastic critics (there are a few) must be forgiven if they use such language to describe the orchestra’s widely praised Shostakovitch performances.
When an all-Russian ensemble like Chamber Orchestra Kremlin performs Shostakovich, the listening experience is strangely gripping and uniquely satisfying. Why? Because the music is about them.
Since joining the Eagles Band as Principal Conductor in 2014, Carl Jenkins has led the group into ever more advanced musical territory and expanded their repertoire in unexpected ways.
If the BSO really wants to appear more open and accessible to its audience, it should try a heavily reduced-price Shed ticket program for young people and students.
No one present will soon forget this triumphal evening of Shostakovich at his most eloquent, and the Emerson String Quartet’s arriving at a new pinnacle of glorious accomplishment.
