Maxim Shostakovich Inspires Pacific Symphony

Guest conductors come and go, but some leave a deep impression. Maxim Shostakovich, the composer’s 60-year-old son, made his debut appearance with the Pacific Symphony Orchestra on Wednesday night and left strong memories.

That he led his father’s 10th Symphony with authority and exquisite detailing is only part of the reason. Shostakovich fils also created an atmosphere in which the orchestra was compelled to play its best, defining and integrating its separate choirs, to achieve a rare transparency.

The entire performance in Segerstrom Hall at the Orange County Performing Arts Center emerged of a piece: Its first half--Weber’s “Euryanthe” Overture and Beethoven’s Fourth Piano Concerto--balanced the massiveness of the Shostakovich work, and each work showed the ensemble in top form. The showpiece, however, was the 10th Symphony.

Regardless of whether the listener chooses to consider the 10th Symphony as a tightly packed musical essay effective on its own abstract terms, or as a personal-political document reflecting the composer’s extra-musical thoughts, the work could be appreciated in this performance for its clarity, urgency and continuity. The remarkably taut ensemble shone; in particular, several of its soloists--clarinetist James Kanter, concertmaster Paul Manaster and bassoonist David Riddles--made glorious contributions.

A certain nervousness characterized the opening “Euryanthe” excerpt, but that tension only served to increase the brilliance. Helene Grimaud was the authoritative, stylish, resourceful soloist in the G-major Piano Concerto. Someday she will add her own personal stamp to this performance. In the meantime, her kind of literalism serves the work well.