DATE: Monday, September 15, 1997            TAG: 9709150072

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B7   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Music Review 

SOURCE: BY PAUL SAYEGH, CORRESPONDENT 

                                            LENGTH:   45 lines

PARKENING A TREAT AT VA. SYMPHONY OPENING

The Virginia Symphony opened its 1997-98 season Saturday evening at Chrysler Hall with Music Director JoAnn Falletta on the podium, guitarist Christopher Parkening as guest soloist, and a large enthusiastic audience in attendance. The program was neatly divided between two Hispanic composers in the first half, and Beethoven's mighty ``Eroica Symphony'' in the second.

Falletta began with the colorful ``Estancia'' ballet music by the Argentine composer Alberto Ginastera. This is highly rhythmic, colorful music that demands a lot of verve and energy to come alive. Falletta and the orchestra fully met these requirements, especially in the frenzied final movement. Here, the conductor's stomping of the rhythm spurred the orchestra to an exciting conclusion that had the audience cheering. Why this piece isn't performed more frequently is a mystery.

Joaquin Rodrigo's familiar ``Concierto de Aranjuez'' featured Parkening as soloist. He gave a sensitive and technically assured performance that was especially notable for its absence of flash and empty gesture. Parkening's ability to subtly bend the tempo while maintaining a steady pulse was impressive, especially in the haunting, slow movement. Falletta maintained a good balance with the orchestra, preventing the delicate sounds of Parkening's instrument from being overwhelmed.

After intermission, the orchestra turned its attention to one of the most central works of the symphonic repertoire, Beethoven's ``Symphony No. 3,'' the so-called ``Eroica.'' The challenge here is to recapture the revolutionary impact this now too-familiar score had on its first listeners.

Falletta chose brisk tempos, especially in a driven and highly dramatic first movement. More importantly, she encouraged the orchestra to play with a clear, transparent sound rather than the thick, bloated one often applied to this work. The strings, in particular, often had a light, flexible tone that was most attractive. This helped to balance the various sections, so that woodwind lines were always clearly heard.

The polish and expertise of the playing was the performance's great strength. Emotionally, apart from a powerful funeral march, it was a slightly cool, detached interpretation that Falletta offered, one that will most likely deepen and become more personal with time and further performances. Even so, it certainly did convey a good deal of that inexplicable Beethoven magic.

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