Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, Brahms Concerto No.2
Pamela Hickman
Israeli pianist and teacher Daniel Gortler took on board the piece’s challenges, reading deeply into its text, addressing its power, drama and contrasts, as well as its lyricism.
He allowed the piano to intertwine with the orchestra, using the work’s virtuosity to match the orchestra’s power and textures rather than as a means to showy playing; and he took part in instrumental dialogue in all its guises, sharing in Brahms’ delectable instrumental colors – marvelous use of horn, ‘cello, etc.
Feder, Gortler and the orchestra collaborated to produce a constantly changing collage, one gesture flowing into another.
Gortler flexed and shaped the cadenza of the third movement – Andante – weaving its course pensively and with spontaneity. Known for his sensitive performance of Romantic piano pieces, in particular for his profound study of the music of Schumann, Gortler chose to play one of Schumann’s “Etudes Symphoniques” as an encore, delighting the audience with filigree melodic lines and a glimpse into real Schumann sensibility.