United States Batiashvili Plays Beethoven: Lisa Batiashvili (violin), Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra / Robin Ticciati (conductor). Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, 5.1.2025. (LV)
Dvořák – Prague Waltzes, B.99; Symphony No.8 in G major, Op.88, B.163
Beethoven – Violin Concerto in D major, Op.61
[Jim Pritchard for S&H: this is a review of a concert obviously shortly before fires began to threaten the LA area, our thoughts are with those who have suffered loss in this tragedy for the city and their families and friends.]
Lisa Batiashvili’s return to Los Angeles in Beethoven’s Violin Concerto drew a large contingent of critics to Walt Disney Concert Hall on Sunday afternoon. Her performance, paired with Robin Ticciati’s conducting of Dvořák’s Eighth Symphony, demonstrated why.
From the crisp opening of the double basses and cellos crunching their first four notes alongside the eloquent timpanist, Ticciati used the reduced string ensemble (10-8-6-5-3) to remarkable effect. His meticulously timed direction and powerful rhetorical pause in the introduction set the stage for Batiashvili’s entrance. Her interpretation proved remarkably consistent with her memorable 2002 Hollywood Bowl performance, while revealing new depths of artistic searching.
Batiashvili’s approach was lean, athletic, and warm. She wielded weight and bow speed with masterful control, beautifully synchronizing with orchestral climaxes. As Ticciati balanced the five-note motif’s prominence without overpowering, the bassoons were lovely, nearly crooning, and Batiashvili spun triplets like silken webs of sound. Though maintaining perfect composure, she seemed to harbor a desire for even greater momentum.
The slow movement avoided its common fate of frozen stillness, instead glowing with the purity of Batiashvili’s tone and imaginative sweep. While the woodwinds and brass emerged too prominently in the central section, and here the bassoon could have used more vibrato, the pizzicato strings created moments of special intimacy.
Despite a brief horn mishap after the cadenza and an unwelcome cell phone interruption, Batiashvili launched into an electrifying finale that left the orchestra breathless. Though the bagpipe drone section verged on losing control, she concluded with the same triumphant spirit that marked her performance two decades ago.
After the intermission, Ticciati revealed his profound understanding of Dvořák’s idiom in the composer’s Prague Waltzes. Under his direction, the woodwinds found just the right rustic tones, while the brass conjured images of a Czech village square. The strings maintained a silky, luxuriant quality throughout.
Ticciati crafted a reading of the Eighth Symphony that was both meticulously sculpted and explosively dynamic. First Associate Concertmaster Nathan Cole’s solo in the slow movement achieved sweet perfection, even in the double-stops. The orchestra managed the rare feat of achieving the score’s marked pianissimo before the French horn call – a detail often overlooked in performance.
The Allegretto grazioso moved at an ideal flowing pace, though its Trio section missed some essential magic with overly reserved woodwinds. In the finale (Allegro ma non troppo), bold trumpet calls heralded a somewhat uneven main theme, but the cellos brought moving eloquence to the final variation before an unconventional yet glorious conclusion.
While Ticciati’s Dvořák proved deeply satisfying, one might wish the LA Philharmonic would explore the composer’s less-frequently performed symphonies – particularly the Third through Sixth – in future seasons. Still, this combination of Batiashvili’s masterful Beethoven and Ticciati’s vibrant Dvořák demonstrated orchestral music-making at its finest.
Laurence Vittes