People say Vadim Gluzman’s playing is “big” and reminiscent of David Oistrakh—for sure, he has more power coursing through his pinky than many others have in all their fingers combined. There is an unmistakable intensity to his sound, too. But his playing offers so much more: the tone he draws out of his 1690 ex-Leopold Auer Stradivari is to die for—the high notes of the second movement glittered. I could not hear any weak link in his playing. It’s as if he took all the best elements of his training with Zakhar Bron, Yair Kless, and Dorothy DeLay and then crystallized them. Now 37, he is a true artist.
Performing with the conductorless Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Gluzman did double duty as soloist and conductor—and admirably so. Still, I couldn’t help wishing for a separate conductor to help create the dynamic friction between orchestra and soloist that is needed to lift both up. The excitement of some of the tempo changes and dramatic shifts in mood, especially in the first movement, got lost in the interest of safety of ensemble.
For an encore, Gluzman played Ysaÿe’s Obsession -- super fast, clean, not fussy, and always stylish.
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