A review of my recent return to the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia in a program of Schumann, Britten, and Haydn.
“Departed music directors aren’t always missed, but Ignat Solzhenitsyn’s return to the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia was greeted with unusual dedication by the musicians, almost as if they were reclaiming an identity Monday at the Kimmel Center.
Solzhenitsyn’s penchant for lesser-known works by major composers yielded a wonderful discovery in Schumann’s Introduction and Allegro Appassionato (Op. 92; the conductor doubled as pianist), which tries to be urbane but has the composer’s customary depths nonetheless. Every phrase had so much life that listeners had little room to stand back and ask how well the piece stands up to better-known Schumann.”