Martinu: Violin Concerto No. 1

MUSIC
THURSDAY - SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 15 - 17, 2018
7:30 PM THURSDAY
8:00 PM FRIDAY & SATURDAY

New York Philharmonic
David Geffen Hall
10 Lincoln Center Plaza, Upper West Side, Manhattan

$33-$120
INFO + TICKETS

In a way, the rollicking Czech neoclassicist Bohuslav Martinu is partially responsible for his own otherwise unconscionable neglect:  he was too prolific, and it just seems like so large a corpus can't maintain consistent quality.  But at its frequent best, his music is as directly appealing in its tunes and rhythms as anything out there, the kind of stuff any audience would love if it only had a chance to hear it.  You certainly don't often get to hear his long-lost first violin concerto -- and here it's played by no less than Frank Peter Zimmermann!  The rest of the program has direct appeal in spades -- but we'll all have to forget now avant-garde we are to enjoy it as we should.  The Carnival Overture by Martinu's great countryman Dvorák sparkles with tuneful vivacity.  And as for the potpourri of Strauss Family waltzes that closes the program . . . well, the marvelous conductor Manfred Honeck has this wonderful music in his Viennese bones, so just sit back and enjoy it despite yourself.

MAKE A NIGHT OF  IT:  Friends in the neighborhood recommend Sushi Yasaka.  Let's give it a try.