Non-Cinematic Walton and Prokofiev at the SF Symphony

Last weekend's San Francisco Symphony concerts were marketed as "cinematic inspirations" which turned out not to be the case at all. Although Shostakovich, Walton, and Prokofiev all composed memorable film scores during their careers, the only one that was cinematic was a 1938 Shostakovich Funeral March for the 1938 Soviet movie The Great Citizen, heavily edited by Stalin himself. It would have been interesting to have the actual film clip showing with the 8-minute piece but that didn't happen. Shostakovich's musical skill was evident in the performance but it did seem odd to start a concert off with a funeral march.

This was followed by the British composer William Walton's 1928 Viola Concerto which was a delightful surprise. Walton (1902-1983) is best known now for his film scores to Olivier's cinematic Shakespeare adaptations (Henry V, Richard III, and Hamlet) but during the 1920's he was considered a promising modernist with Facade, his success de scandale with Edith Sitwell on a megaphone, the over-the-top oratorio Belshazzar's Feast, and this viola concerto which was premiered by the violist and composer Paul Hindemith. Walton's subsequent career was less successful, with critical consensus proclaiming him dull and old-fashioned for the next 40 years. (All production photos are by Stefan Cohen.)

In any case, this early viola concerto is lively and piquant from beginning to end, and SF Symphony principal violist Jonathan Vinocour gave an exquisite performance. Vinocour still looks like the handsome, slightly nerdy chemistry major that he once was, and he's been one of my favorite musicians in the orchestra since his arrival in 2009. His solo moments during full orchestral concerts are always a highlight for their tonal beauty and exceptional musicianship, and it was a real treat to hear him as a concerto soloist.

Sergei Prokofiev also composed memorable scores for films like Alexander Nevsky, Ivan the Terrible, and Lieutenant Kijé, but his 1928 Symphony No. 3 has nothing to do with film but is a reworking of the final act of his unproduced opera The Fiery Angel. Spanish guest conductor Gustavo Gimeno did a fine job with the entire concert, but the Prokofiev symphony did not fare so well.

The opera itself wasn't produced until 1955 in Italy, and didn't appear until the 1990s in Russia, where a famous production directed by David Freeman toured the world, eventually appearing at the San Francisco Opera. (You can actually see a filmed version of the St. Petersburg production on YouTube, click here.) The story itself is based on a satirical Russian symbolist novel and in this operatic adaptation it's totally bonkers. It is in five short acts, culminating in an insane final act set in a medieval convent filled with nuns possessed by demons confronting the Grand Inquisitor. It's like the Ken Russell film The Devils, except with great music.

The problem with the symphony is it starts at full voltage and from there really has nowhere to go, unlike the opera which is essentially a chamber piece until the 50+ nuns appear for the insane finale. In other words, the four-movement symphony just sounded very loud and incoherent, and made me want to hear the opera instead, either in concert or on the stage.