Luisotti conducts SFS

* Notes *
This week the incoming music director of San Francisco Opera, Nicola Luisotti, is conducting San Francisco Symphony in a program of Kodály, Bloch, and Brahms. The Galántai Tánkoc (Dances of Galánta) from Kodály were great fun. The woodwinds sounded clear, the clarinet and oboe were particularly lovely. In the second piece, cellist Michael Grebanier highlighted the plaintive qualities of Bloch's Schelomo. The symphony and conductor certainly contributed, the wall of sound they created was lush with textures. Luisotti's conducting is theatrical, one was worried he was having convulsions. He was irrepressibly animated during Brahms' Symphony No. 4. The brass had more than a few fuzzy moments, but the rest of the orchestra played well.

* Tattling *
For the first half of the performance I was at the very back of the house, the Second Tier, Section CC, Row H. The woman in Seat 9 took off her clogs during the performance and noisily fanned herself, but at least did not speak very much except at the very beginning. For the second half of the performance I was convinced to move to the Side Terrace. It was amusing to watch Luisotti from up close, but I had some difficulty containing my mirth.