From the Berlin Philharmonic to the Omaha Symphony, from presidents to queens, and from “Sesame Street” to “The Late Show with David Letterman,” Itzhak Perlman has performed for them all. Perlman, reigning virtuoso violinist of the world, performed at the packed Holland Center Saturday.
The best way to discover everything an instrument has to offer is to listen to the most talented instrumentalist in the world play it. As the best violinist alive today, Perlman showed Omaha what the violin could do. He managed to bring the crowd to its feet not once but three times at the Nov. 7 performance, the first for walking on-stage. The prolific performer has had polio for most of his life and performs sitting down but has no trouble getting the audience to stand.
Perlman performed “Mozart’s Concerto No. 3 in G Major for Violin and Orchestra, K. 216,” and Franz Kreisler’s romantic “Liebesleid” and “Tambourin chinois, Op. 3.” He also played John Williams’ theme from “Schindler’s List,” which Perlman originally played on the Academy Award-winning film’s soundtrack. He did not play the whole concert, but just concluded each half of the show.
The all-Mozart first half was astounding. The Omaha Symphony stepped up to the plate when it opened with Mozart’s “Symphony No. 29 in A Major, K. 201.” Maestro Thomas Wilkins did a fantastic job conducting the symphony. The phrasing, tone and dynamics of the orchestra brought Mozart’s beautiful masterwork alive.
The transparency of the strings section makes tuning very hard, but the players overcame all the challenges to produce one of the best performances of the symphony I have ever heard. The audience was so impressed they broke one of the cardinal rules during classical symphonies: Never clap in between movements.
When Perlman came out next, he handled the situation with poise and humor.
“I just got an urgent call on my cell phone from Mozart,” Perlman said. “He didn’t like all the applause between movements during the symphony. Now, I said it was OK by me if they applaud, but he said it wasn’t OK by him.”
The audience laughed heartily and everyone followed concert etiquette during the violin concerto. As a result, the multi-movement piece flowed with the ease and gracefulness that it was meant to. Mozart’s composition came alive with Perlman’s flawless execution of everything from the resonating high notes to the runs that seem like they should be impossible, and it resulted in a very enthusiastic standing ovation at the close.
Nothing less should be expected from Perlman. He has performed with every major symphony in the world and received almost every possible form of honor, from the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award to presidential honors.
The Omaha Symphony’s strong performance Saturday night held up quite nicely, even matched with Perlman’s stunning stage presence. The symphony opened the second half with Leonard Bernstein’s Overture from “Candide,” followed by George Gershwin’s “American in Paris.” The contrasting selections showed the Omaha Symphony and Wilkin’s outstanding capacity for distinguishing stylistic differences.
“Paris” had parts that show off every section of the orchestra, from the brass to the percussion to the strings. The talent of the orchestra shined brightly throughout all of the pieces. It is also important to remember that the symphony accompanied Perlman on all of his pieces. Wilkin’s talent for leading the orchestra and the skills of the players in the symphony combined to form a group capable of excelling as both accompanists and the main act.
Perlman came out again following “American in Paris.” He began with “Shindler’s List.” The chilling melody underscored the film’s sadness and dark storyline. Perlman followed William’s composition with the beautiful sound patterns of Kreisler. Perlman’s ease with the violin made the melodies sing out and fill the hall. His brought the audience to its feet once again, the perfect end to an outstanding evening.