New European Strings Group Struggles to Maintain Depth

Another touring string orchestra? But why? Advance publicity for Dmitry Sitkovetsky’s 7-year-old New European Strings ensemble--made up of 19 youngish players, only four of whom are women--proclaims the violinist-conductor’s intention “to expand the existing repertoire for chamber orchestra by transcribing chamber music works.” What, the world needs more varieties of apples?

Some have said that Sitkovetsky’s real, admirable intention is to bring Bach’s “Goldberg” Variations, in his string-orchestra arrangement, to more listeners--which the Russian-born, U.S.-trained musician has done effectively by recording the work and making it available to the public.

Still, as heard in its Southern California debut Friday night in the Marsee Auditorium at the South Bay Center for the Arts at El Camino College (a performance Saturday in Irvine also was scheduled), the small orchestra did not justify its formation. Its clean performance of the “Goldbergs” presented the masterwork in clear and followable lines without consistently probing its depths. And the first half of its concert grew dull.

Sitkovetsky, who conducted the first half from the podium, led the Bach work from the first stand of violins where he had given himself--and co-concertmaster Sreten Krstic, according to the skimpy program--most of the exposed lines, also shared by violist Ron Ephrat and cellist Alexander Dmitriev. All, including the non-soloists, played splendidly.

The masterpiece was not trampled and sounded pleasant at worst, intense at best.

In the first half, the violinist’s clever transcription of Dohnanyi’s popular trio, the Serenade in C, and Stravinsky’s Concerto in D for strings proved Sitkovetsky, the conductor, an unnecessary visual aid to the musical proceedings--one who poses but does not lead.