REVIEW

Marc-André Hamelin and the OSQ play Beethoven’s Emperor 

Shirley Nadeau

shirley@qctonline.com

The Orchestre symphonique de Québec, under the baton of British conductor Duncan Ward, presented a magnificent program of music at the Grand Théâtre on April 17, as part of the OSQ’s three-week-long Beethoven festival. 

This last festival concert featured Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5, in E-flat major, Op. 73, also known as the Emperor Concerto. The heroic style of the work is characterized by its symbolism and military aspects. The true “hero” of the evening, however, was the man sitting at the grand piano at centre stage – the renowned Quebec virtuoso pianist and composer Marc-André Hamelin, who has recorded 91 albums (so far) and won seven Juno Awards, most recently in 2012 for Classical Album of the Year for his recording of Liszt’s Piano Sonata in B Minor. 

Hamelin, accompanied by the orchestra, played practically non-stop for almost 40 minutes, with every one of the thousands of notes memorized. It was mesmerizing to watch his hands and fingers fly over the keyboard, with flourishes of arpeggios, trills and scales. After receiving a standing ovation and many curtain calls, he treated the audience to an encore with a “little bit of Rachmaninoff.” 

Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto was “sandwiched” between two other works. The first was a symphonic tone poem entitled Don Juan by German composer Richard Strauss (1864-1949, no relation to the Viennese “waltz kings”) based on the romantic legend of the Spanish libertine.  

The other slice of the Beethoven “sandwich” was the stately Emperor’s Waltz by Johann Strauss II (1825-1899), with which many music lovers may be familiar as it is frequently played during the iconic New Year’s Day concerts broadcast from Vienna on PBS television every year. One could imagine dancers waltzing across the stage. Director Ward invited members of the audience who were so inclined to come up on the sides of the stage to dance, but no one dared. The music itself was captivating enough.  

Thus, the first Beethoven Festival, organized by OSQ musical director Clemens Schuldt, came to a very soothing and satisfying end. May there be many more such festivals based on the works of classical composers.