Concert Review: The Bare Necessities

The New York Philharmonic ends its season without a conductor....without a conductor.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Concertmaster Frank Huang (center) led the New York Philharmonic this week.
Photo by Chris Lee © 2018 The New York Philharmonic.

Things are settling down at America’s oldest orchestra. Alan Gilbert left the New York Philharmonic a year ago. Jaap van Zweden arrives in a cloud of hullabaloo next September. That said, this particular review, of Friday's matinee performance of their last program of this current season was played without a conductor. This program of string pieces by Mozart and Tchaikovsky had no tuxedo-clad maestro, and there was no post-heroic beating of air with tiny sticks.

Concert Review: A Pair of Aces

Two debuts spark Mostly Mozart.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Dynamic debut: Sol Gabetta.
Photo by Marco Borggreve.

The Mostly Mozart Festival's adherence to familiar composers and repertories makes the month-long festival invaluable: not just as a summer retreat for the music lover but as a working laboratory for New Yorkers to hear new artists and new conductors, some of whom are making their first appearances at Lincoln Center.