H+H goes all Beethoven

Genius is used too freely these days, as witness the MacArthur Fellows program, but there are a few true geniuses in history who have broken new paths. Einstein was one, and Ludwig van Beethoven another. Born while Mozart and Haydn were still actively working, his music blazed new levels of complexity and grandeur. He combined instruments and voice in new ways and composed music of sublime beauty. The H+H program this past weekend featured two of his works: the Piano Concerto #4, featuring Robert Levin on fortepiano, and the Symphony #6, the Pastoral. The program began with a delightful short choral work, the opening chorus from Handel's Saul, sung by a youth chorus made up of high school students from several eastern Massachusetts schools, led by Andrew Clark, and accompanied by the H+H orchestra. The youthful voices soared, and most of us felt the selection was all too brief. The concerto began with a quiet soft solo, after which the motif was echoed and reworked by the orchestra. While the instrument does not have the power of a modern piano, in Mr. Levin's hands it was a soaring voice, played to perfection. The obvious chemistry between soloist and conductor led to a perfect performance. After intermission, the Pastoral Symphony led us musically through a preparation for and visit to the countryside. The music was quiet and peaceful at times, with cuckoos and other birds singing, and crashing at others as we musically lived through a storm. The H+H orchestra was at its peak, and left us wishing for more.