courtesy of Michael Burke
Principal cellist Andrew Shulman will be featured as conductor of the “Mozart (Mostly) Concert.”
Correction: The original version of this article contained an error. Jeffrey Kahane did not play the piano with the orchestra on Sunday.
The overwhelming harmonics and echoing sound of brass and string instruments fill the vast space of the extravagant Crystal Cathedral in England and create a divine explosion of sound.
This, according to Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra member Andrew Shulman, is his favorite conducting experience.
Sunday night, the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra will perform its “Mozart (Mostly) Concert” at Royce Hall, featuring principal cellist Shulman as conductor and violinst Nigel Armstrong, a finalist in the 2011 International Tchaikovsky Competition.
An hour before opening, there will be an opportunity for ticket holders to meet the orchestra to talk about the music and the artists.
The concert will feature Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s “Symphony No. 29 in A major,” “Violin Concerto No. 3 in G major” and William Walton’s “Sonata for Strings.”
“Walton’s “˜Sonata for Strings’ is exciting and terrific for strings. “¦ It is dramatic, virtuosic, melancholic. “¦ It goes through every emotion,” Shulman said.
Born in London, Shulman learned to play the cello at the age of 10 with the assistance of his musically inclined parents.
From an early age, he said he respected orchestral music and quickly found that the cello was his calling.
“By 12 or 13 (years old), there was nothing to get in my way. “¦ It was a passion or obsession,” Shulman said.
At the age of 22 he became the principal cellist of London’s Philharmonia Orchestra.
He recorded over 25 CDs with the Britten Quartet and has conducted and performed with orchestras and philharmonics around the United Kingdom, Europe and North America.
Normally, the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra is conducted by Jeffrey Kahane.
However, Shulman will be stepping in for Kahane. Performing with Shulman and the orchestra will be the young violin soloist, Armstrong.
Armstrong said he was inspired to pick up the violin when he was only 5 years old, partly because his mother and a neighbor across the street were violinists.
He won prizes for his playing at several European competitions, including his most recent award at the 14th International Tchaikovsky Competition, where he won fourth prize at the age of 21.
“This competition was certainly the most challenging, both because of the amount of music I had to prepare and because of the outstanding level of the other violinists,” Armstrong said.
“I learned a great deal both about my own playing and about the music world as a whole.”
Since 1997, LACO has been conducted by Kahane, who is well-known for his comprehensive direction of historical and contemporary masterpieces.
Kahane is also known to both direct and play on piano during the orchestra’s performances, said concertmaster Margaret Batjer of LACO.
But now the tables have turned for this Sunday night, when Shulman takes to the conducting stand.
“(Kahane) is a remarkable musician “¦ and his style is extremely collegial, which makes the orchestra feel as if their voice is heard and important,” Batjer said.
“We are all looking forward to Shulman’s program. “¦ We know it will be wonderful.”