Music Reviews : Mehli Mehta Conducts Youth Symphony

It was the one big downtown concert of the year for the American Youth Symphony, with Mehli Mehta leading his 100-plus charges through a proud 26th anniversary benefit gala Sunday at the Music Center.

In an event featuring the redoubtable Lynn Harrell as soloist, most of the expected virtues could be found. The young musicians performed with the characteristic engagement required by Mehta: They sat at the edge of their chairs, heads bobbing even in so repetitive a piece as “Bolero.”

Its inclusion signaled a different type of program than Mehta customarily puts together. Instead of the big-boned staples, there were two of Ravel’s glittery showpieces: “Boleo” and “La Valse.”

The agenda did make a certain sense, given Harrell’s vehicle, Victor Herbert’s Second Cello Concerto. And with the kind of championship his piece received Sunday, one could be grateful for the choice.

Harrell brought out its poignancy by way of refinement: a slimmed-down tone and the subtlest portamento.

No false sentiment found its way here; his achingly songful and soulful account came from finding the core of each phrase as well as the long view.

On urging by Mehta, Harrell agreed to an encore: a Catalan folk song arranged by Casals.

In both the post-intermission Ravel and the opening “Leonore” Overture No. 3 by Beethoven, the maestro opted for his customary deliberation, eliciting remarkably polished performances but never failing to bring off their final thunderous crashes of excitement.