United States Impressionists – Pintscher + Debussy + Ravel: Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra / Matthias Pintscher (conductor). The Wallis, Beverly Hills, 16.2.2025. (LV)
Debussy – Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune
Fauré – Masques et bergamasques
Ravel – Le tombeau de Couperin; Ma mère l’Oye
The vibrant sell-out crowd of young enthusiasts, cultural connoisseurs and celebrities who turned out for the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra’s concert at the Wallis Annenberg Center indicates a substantial demand for chamber orchestra performances in the former Beverly Hills post office, built in 1934 and constructed in the Italian Renaissance style.
When mezzo-soprano Michelle DeYoung, who had performed the same program the preceding evening at Glendale’s Alex Theatre, informed the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra (LACO) at 10am that she was unwell and unable to perform Berlioz’s Les nuits d’été, the orchestra encountered a substantial challenge.
Fortunately, guest conductor Matthias Pintscher was already scheduled to conduct Ravel’s Mother Goose Suite with the San Diego Symphony the first weekend in March, which enabled LACO to maintain the all-French program with only an hour of rehearsal prior to the concert. Their ability to mount a substantial concert under challenging circumstances exemplifies both their professional dedication and their significance to the city’s cultural life, already under the strains of the fires that affected so many musicians.
The afternoon commenced with Debussy’s Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun, more sad than sexy, exhibiting a trend toward clarity rather than sensuality. It traded the work’s harmonic ambiguities for a more defined architectural approach, though not without magical moments like those following concertmaster Margaret Batjer’s radiant solo, when time froze in silence before the flute and oboe took up the narrative. Pintscher and the orchestra then applied a lovely color palette and a more sensual than sad charm to the suite from Fauré’s Masques et bergamasques.
After the intermission came Ravel. Both works radiated color and vitality, highlighted by elegant wind solos, the oboe now beautifully generous with her tone. Despite the enormous work that the additional rehearsal entailed, the orchestra’s remarkable ability to capture the essence of each piece within the constraints of time and their native playing style was evident. It was a pleasure to watch Pintscher at work, economical in his gestures but there when needed to navigate through tricky moments and keep the pace.
The Wallis demonstrated promise as a venue for classical music performances. Its intimate scale allows audiences to appreciate both individual contributions and ensemble work. However, the acoustic may require some refinement to enhance the fullness of the lower string sound.
Laurence Vittes
Featured Image: Matthias Pintscher and the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra at The Wallis © Brian Feinsimer