Music and Dance Reviews : Robertson Conducts

For the Long Beach Symphony Saturday evening, Jon Robertson was the maestro of the moment. Fourth in the group of guest-conducting aspirants to the music directorship, he offered a brace of orchestral standards, surrounding Bartok’s First Violin Concerto, as his calling card.

Robertson’s way with Richard Strauss’ “Don Juan” was fiercely dramatic and almost angular at times. When the passions turned introspective, however, the performance deflated.

In Dvorak’s Symphony No. 7 in D minor, Robertson kept control of the lyrical and dancing music as well as the brooding pathos, and built imposing climaxes for the second movement and finale. His was a consistently somber view of the work, with bittersweet, even stern, undercurrents to the most radiant surfaces.

The orchestra honored Robertson’s intentions with strong, focused playing, including herculean brass work. The parade of guest conductors seems to be taking a toll in ensemble finesse, however, and unfamiliarity with Robertson’s unusual seating plan--the violin sections positioned antiphonally to his left and right, with the cellos and basses where the second violins commonly sit--may have contributed to the unsettled balances and entrances in the opening work.

Considering the rapt, lyrical effusions of the Bartok Concerto, Jaime Laredo’s account proved surprisingly aloof. Playing from the score, he provided endlessly sweet, sure sounds and worked up some fiddling fury in the second movement, but the results sounded musically and emotionally light. Robertson & Co. backed Laredo with neat, supportive accompaniment.