Director's Journal

Rehearsals and first performance

I arrived late Sunday evening after attending a conference in Boston. The first rehearsal was Monday morning at 10:00AM. The Liszt Hungarian Rhapsody No. 3 is a work that I hadn't played before. It is full of 64th-note runs, gypsy flourishes, and flashing cadenza-like passages.

There were two full rehearsals (Monday and Tuesday) with a run-through Wednesday morning--the day of the first concert.

Everything I had heard about Osmo Vänskä is true. He is a consummate musician who has an ultra-high sense of small details--yet he evokes broad and expansive playing from the orchestra. What makes him unique is that he demands the fullest, yet does so in a collaborative way. This orchestra plays so expressively with him--it's quite amazing. All of his mannerisms and gestures reflect a trust in and respect for the musicians.

Today is Thanksgiving Day and after I send this posting, I go to the hall and practice the work I will be doing next week with the New York Philharmonic.

posted by lkaptain @ 9:06 AM