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14.04.2026
MSO Presents Webern and Shostakovich: The Early Years
Photo by Jonathan Kirn
The Webern and Shostakovich pieces were youthful but had a chromatic melancholy strain in common. And a Schumann concerto served as a sweet, juicy contrast.
Early works by great composers are fascinating to hear and to study, showing the DNA of a style before its full flourishing or perhaps a different stylistic preoccupation. The MSO’s latest outing, with guest conductor Katharina Wincor, featured some of the first published music of Webern and Shostakovich alongside Schumann’s Piano Concerto.
Wincor gave some introductory comments about Webern’s Passacaglia, establishing the context of Viennese concertgoing culture at the dawn of the 20th century and a trend of private performances of some contemporary music. She encouraged the audience to hear the romanticism and beauty in this pre-serial Webern, and that is certainly what I heard in this performance. The searching melodic lines came through clearly, and the best moments were the comedowns from angsty climaxes. Here, Wincor coaxed a lush sound out of the strings that evoked more of Vienna’s Romantic tradition. She was an animated presence on the podium, able to snap to new cues with great speed. Some gestures (particularly in the beginning) read to me as oversized for the moment’s dynamic.
I was delighted to be introduced to pianist Polina Osetinskaya, our soloist for the Schumann. Throughout this music she presented faultless technique and a tone that was big but also sensitive. In the first movement, every iteration of the famous C-H-I-A-R-A melody (Schumann’s musical version of his love Clara’s name) was perfect, every note hitting just right. The orchestra, meanwhile, was too restrained in the opening minutes, especially when the piano was just playing filigree. Osetinskaya’s strong, projecting tone could have handled a louder dynamic from the ensemble. I enjoyed the little reverie with Todd Levy’s clarinet solo, where Wincor let the mood get hazy enough that the ensuing loud music felt like a call to wake up. In the coda’s march, the piano’s low-range rumbling had real presence, a dark outline to the scene.
Early works by great composers are fascinating to hear and to study, showing the DNA of a style before its full flourishing or perhaps a different stylistic preoccupation. The MSO’s latest outing, with guest conductor Katharina Wincor, featured some of the first published music of Webern and Shostakovich alongside Schumann’s Piano Concerto.
Wincor gave some introductory comments about Webern’s Passacaglia, establishing the context of Viennese concertgoing culture at the dawn of the 20th century and a trend of private performances of some contemporary music. She encouraged the audience to hear the romanticism and beauty in this pre-serial Webern, and that is certainly what I heard in this performance. The searching melodic lines came through clearly, and the best moments were the comedowns from angsty climaxes. Here, Wincor coaxed a lush sound out of the strings that evoked more of Vienna’s Romantic tradition. She was an animated presence on the podium, able to snap to new cues with great speed. Some gestures (particularly in the beginning) read to me as oversized for the moment’s dynamic.
I was delighted to be introduced to pianist Polina Osetinskaya, our soloist for the Schumann. Throughout this music she presented faultless technique and a tone that was big but also sensitive. In the first movement, every iteration of the famous C-H-I-A-R-A melody (Schumann’s musical version of his love Clara’s name) was perfect, every note hitting just right. The orchestra, meanwhile, was too restrained in the opening minutes, especially when the piano was just playing filigree. Osetinskaya’s strong, projecting tone could have handled a louder dynamic from the ensemble. I enjoyed the little reverie with Todd Levy’s clarinet solo, where Wincor let the mood get hazy enough that the ensuing loud music felt like a call to wake up. In the coda’s march, the piano’s low-range rumbling had real presence, a dark outline to the scene.
Photo by Jonathan Kirn
Ravishing High Notes
The cellos were the highlight of the slow Intermezzo movement, with some ravishing high notes. In the closing Allegro, Osetinskaya evoked a variety of shades and characters within the same mood. Her full, grand tone made this festive music sparkle. I kept thinking how much her sound was suited for Beethoven. Or Rachmaninoff. For the encore she played more Schumann: the famous Traumerei. Her performance made a signature out of delaying certain harmonic shifts, to lovely effect.
It’s still hard to believe Shostakovich wrote his First Symphony at age 19, while still a conservatory student. This piece is full of personality, with both the humor and melancholy that appears in so much of his later work. It’s also a symphony built on solos, with nearly every instrument getting a solo moment in the spotlight. In the first movement in this performance, Todd Levy was once again a star player, from the opening melody to the sweet duet with Sonora Slocum on flute. I heard the sarcasm in the big brass moments, and the music proceeded with clean lines and a good sense of Shostakovich’s style. The Scherzo offered more frisky woodwind action and a well-played piano part, but I could have used slightly more of a sense of fun. The Lento offered up more fantastic solos, this time from Katie Young Steele on oboe and Susan Babini on cello. Katharina Wincor got some real sweep in the big string-led climax, and then, at the end of the movement, probably the best snare roll I’ve heard at the MSO! The finale, in its complicated emotions, featured fine playing from the orchestra as a whole and in the chamber moments with concertmaster Jinwoo Lee, associate concertmaster Ilana Setapen, and especially Susan Babini again.
I liked this programming. The Webern and Shostakovich pieces were youthful but had a chromatic melancholy strain in common. And the Schumann concerto served as a sweet, juicy contrast. Wincor led the orchestra well and was an intelligent speaker and advocate, though her elaborate conducting sometimes presented too much visual information. If that is a side effect of her own youth and enthusiasm, it doesn’t seem to affect the music-making. The MSO sounded precise and full under her baton.
Brendan Fox for Shepherdexpress.com
All materials of the “Press” section →
The cellos were the highlight of the slow Intermezzo movement, with some ravishing high notes. In the closing Allegro, Osetinskaya evoked a variety of shades and characters within the same mood. Her full, grand tone made this festive music sparkle. I kept thinking how much her sound was suited for Beethoven. Or Rachmaninoff. For the encore she played more Schumann: the famous Traumerei. Her performance made a signature out of delaying certain harmonic shifts, to lovely effect.
It’s still hard to believe Shostakovich wrote his First Symphony at age 19, while still a conservatory student. This piece is full of personality, with both the humor and melancholy that appears in so much of his later work. It’s also a symphony built on solos, with nearly every instrument getting a solo moment in the spotlight. In the first movement in this performance, Todd Levy was once again a star player, from the opening melody to the sweet duet with Sonora Slocum on flute. I heard the sarcasm in the big brass moments, and the music proceeded with clean lines and a good sense of Shostakovich’s style. The Scherzo offered more frisky woodwind action and a well-played piano part, but I could have used slightly more of a sense of fun. The Lento offered up more fantastic solos, this time from Katie Young Steele on oboe and Susan Babini on cello. Katharina Wincor got some real sweep in the big string-led climax, and then, at the end of the movement, probably the best snare roll I’ve heard at the MSO! The finale, in its complicated emotions, featured fine playing from the orchestra as a whole and in the chamber moments with concertmaster Jinwoo Lee, associate concertmaster Ilana Setapen, and especially Susan Babini again.
I liked this programming. The Webern and Shostakovich pieces were youthful but had a chromatic melancholy strain in common. And the Schumann concerto served as a sweet, juicy contrast. Wincor led the orchestra well and was an intelligent speaker and advocate, though her elaborate conducting sometimes presented too much visual information. If that is a side effect of her own youth and enthusiasm, it doesn’t seem to affect the music-making. The MSO sounded precise and full under her baton.
Brendan Fox for Shepherdexpress.com
All materials of the “Press” section →