The penultimate concert for the first season featured an all Beethoven line-up, with Bulgarian conductor Martin Panteleev on the podium. It started with one of the most well known (short) orchestral pieces - Egmont Overture; which combines all the best parts of Beethoven's symphonic creations in a single, short piece. It was well performed by the orchestra, and enthusiastically received by a rather sparse audience.
There was a slight change from the published programme, with Zanta Hofmeyr's concerto recital of the Violin Concerto taking place before the break (instead of after). I am not as familiar with the concerto - except for the very familiar 3rd movement; but the length did warrant its performance after the break in my opinion. Concerto performances make it interesting to observe the soloist's reactions; especially in long pauses where it is only the orchestra performing - as in the first movement, where the soloist slowly, and quite tentatively joins in after what it seems like a couple of minutes. And the piece is quite interesting on how the soloist goes from a tentative participant to a commanding presence in the final parts of the concerto; slowly bringing out the virtuoso performance. It was an amazing performance, that fully deserved the standing ovation.
The concert finished off the evening with the Second Symphony; which after the first half was a bit of a let down after the majestic performances of the first half; and another motivation for the concerto to have been the final piece!
