Bruce Hodges hears the performance of Schumann, Bach, Missy Mazzoli and Shostakovich at Philadelphia’s Marian Anderson Hall on 29 March 2025

Edgar Moreau. Photo: courtesy Warner Classics

Edgar Moreau. Photo: courtesy Warner Classics

Sometimes a musician’s instrument makes an immediate impression, and that was true in the case of Edgar Moreau, whose cello was made in 1711 by David Tecchler, with a lambent tone aided by a bow from Dominique Peccatte. That said, in Schumann’s Cello Concerto the sound seemed to have ever so slight difficulty rising above the Philadelphia Orchestra, despite diligent work shepherding the volume by conductor Nathalie Stutzmann.

If the results ultimately seemed slightly muted, Moreau and his instrument nevertheless provided plenty of star power. His encore, the Sarabande from Bach’s Third Cello Suite, showed off the instrument more lucidly, with noticeably fuller bloom greeting an appreciative crowd, who remained totally silent until their cheers erupted at the end.

To open the evening came Missy Mazzoli’s Orpheus Undone (2019), showing her typical mastery of unusual colour: wood block and hard-charging string chords herald the beginning when Eurydice dies. Later sequences, with harp and glockenspiel, include elaborate violin filigree, done with great delicacy by the concertmaster Juliette Kang.

And to close came Shostakovich’s mighty Symphony no.5, with Kang again displaying finesse in the solo turns. In this case, the orchestra’s cello and double bass sections seized the spotlight, underpinning the ensemble with impressive weight and swagger.

BRUCE HODGES