. . . And Gatti Takes the Fifth Masterfully

Daniele Gatti, the new music director of the Royal Philharmonic, received polite applause when he took the podium Thursday at the Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts. Never again will he be greeted with such muted enthusiasm, at least not by the people who were at that extraordinary concert.

Gatti is the real thing. Not only is he the legitimate bright hope of this British band, he is already, at 35, a major Mahler interpreter. I can recall no performance of Mahler’s Fifth Symphony, live or recorded, so purposeful, compelling, intelligent and coherent.

Tempo, phrasing, dynamics, balance--it was all evident, and all without impeding the aim and flow of the music. And he did it in a hall notorious for its in-your-face acoustic. In the famous adagietto, he brought his listeners to the living heart of the music, never falling short nor crossing over into exaggeration or schmaltz.

Gatti is not an immediately charismatic or striking conductor. Handsome enough, he does not have the brooding looks of his compatriot Riccardo Muti. He does not draw attention by dancing or flailing about on the podium. He does not conduct the audience. Indeed, in Schubert’s “Unfinished” Symphony, which opened the two-part program, he seemed almost a minimalist.

His hands rarely rose above his shoulders or dropped below his waist. He often used just one hand, efficiently, tellingly. Occasionally, he used the baton as if it were a bow to sculpt a phrase. He was all calm containment.

Schubert emerged, correspondingly, somewhat classical and restrained. There were pain, struggle and intensity in the first movement, but not anguish. The famous G-major theme was gentle but not aching. Still, details began to accumulate. Perhaps he was taking the measure of the hall. With the pianissimo tremolos in the second movement, one’s breath stopped--a magical moment.

With Mahler, Gatti became more animated. His gestures grew larger, more sweeping, more detailed. But he also trusted the orchestra, which doesn’t always sound world-class, enough to let it play; he didn’t micro-manage. The chemistry between him and the musicians was palpable. He stood among them to take bows at the end of the “Unfinished.”

At the end of the program, the audience went crazy, as it had every right to do.