Concert Review: He's Happiest On the Bench

Mikhail Pletnev returns with the Russian National Orchestra.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

Mikhail Pletnev (at piano) with members of the Russian National Orchestra in 2017.
Photo courtesy the Russian National Orchestra © 2017.

When you're a world-class composer, conductor, arranger and concert pianist who is also the founder and artistic director of an important international orchestra, you can pretty much sit wherever you want. That's the home truth from Wednesday night's appearance at Lincoln Center by the Russian National Orchestra. For this concert, Mikhail Pletnev, who founded the orchestra in Moscow in 1990, chose the role of soloist, letting conductor Kirill Karabits make his New York podium debut.

Concert Review: Memories of Perestroika

Mikhail Pletnev brings the Russian National Orchestra back to Carnegie Hall.
by Paul J. Pelkonen

The conductor Mikhail Pletnev at the helm of the Russian National Orchestra.
Photo provided by russiannationalorchestra.org. 

The Russian National Orchestra is a youngster among the major orchestras of the world. Formed in 1989 in the wake of Perestroika and the optimistic presidency of Mikhail Gorbachev, the RNO has been led for its entire existence by Mikhail Pletnev, a virtuoso pianist turned conductor. With all their musicians hand-picked by Mr. Pletnev, they sound quite unlike any other ensemble. Performances turn on Mr. Pletnev's maverick, occasionally puzzling interpretation choices in standard repertory, with an emphasis on Russian classics and very little in the way of modern music.