Lesbian
Trans
People of Color
Drag Queen/King
The New Jersey Symphony presented their program entitled “Tchaikovsky’s Fifth Symphony” on Friday, March 15, 2024, at Princeton University’s Richardson Auditorium. The previous evening the same program was performed at Newark’s Performing Arts Center.
Xian Zhang conductor
Tom Borrow piano
New Jersey Symphony
- The Program
- David Ludwig NightVision (2001)
- Mozart Piano Concerto No. 24 (1786)
- Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 5 (1888)
David Ludwig is Dean of The Juilliard School, and a distinguished American composer. This work performed tonight was premiered by the New Jersey Symphony in 2001. Listening to it, one can hear how the composer was influenced by such composers as Hanson, Bartok, Barber, yet creating an engaging lyrical piece very much his own using a large orchestra.
Mozart’s Concerto in C Minor was written in 1786, only a few years before his death in 1791 at age 35. It was performed by the young pianist Tom Borrow. Born in Tel Aviv, Israel, in 2000, he has already become an established artist here as well as in Europe. A surfeit of beauty streamed from the piano under his masterful control. Mr. Borrow is tall, thin, and seems to be younger than his young age, with his own personal beauty and artistry streaming towards the audience. Conductor Xian Zhang inspired a remarkable performance from her orchestra which was totally consonant with Mr. Borrow’s sensitive and powerful performance. Audience acclaim was loud and lengthy, as he was recalled to the stage several times, even gifting the audience with an encore.
Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) wrote this symphony in 1888, only a few years before his untimely death at age 53 of cholera. Anticipation ran high this evening for the Fifth Symphony by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Conductor and orchestra exceeded all expectations. This work tonight was robust, yet nuanced, thrilling, yet also poignant. It may puzzle us today to consider that this symphony was poorly received in New York in 1889, and in Boston in 1892. Reviewers of the time called it strident, barbaric, and bloody. At the conclusion of this massive work, the audience sprang to its feet, bathing the orchestra and conductor in waves of admiration and love. In her program notes, Laurie Schulman cites the work’s passion, momentum, and triumph.
The New Jersey Symphony will next appear at Princeton on May 17. For further information, visit www.njsymphony.org .
