MUSIC REVIEW : Pacific Symphony Ends Its Summer Concerts With--Literally--a Bang

The Pacific Symphony closed its summer series on Saturday with a Tchaikovsky evening marked by grace, good humor and a few theatrics. And, oh yes, there was some stylish music as well.

Some of the lighter moments of the event, at the Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre, were intentional: John Santana, late of KFAC (or should that be of the late KFAC?), announced that there would be a much-beloved mystery guest conductor for the introductory “Star-Spangled Banner.” It was he--and he was a lusty leader at that.

Some of those lighter moments were not intentional: overzealous applause between the second and third movements of the “Sleeping Beauty” suite prompted the entire Huntington Beach Concert Band to emerge prematurely for the “1812” Overture that was to follow.

Conductor Toshiyuki Shimada good-naturedly turned them back, then signaled the audience to expect two more movements from the ballet piece.

The ensemble was frequently infected by Shimada’s energy, and in the ballet suite and the “1812” Overture in particular, it paid heed to his commands for expression.

Occasionally, however, the ensemble did not heed their conductor’s indications, allowing, for instance, a tubby string accompaniment to overshadow Leanne Becknell’s elegant oboe solo in “Capriccio italien.”

Oddly, Shimada was not consistent in his demands for expression. In the opening Allegro of the Piano Concerto in B-flat minor, he failed to persuade the orchestra to match the expressive level of soloist Leonid Kuzmin.

Kuzmin executed the crowd-pleasing chordal passages with bravura and elan, and he seemed to take much more enjoyment in the music than did his more sober colleagues.

The microphone arrangement also conspired against advantageous balance in the concerto. As on previous occasions this summer, a microphone was aimed directly into the piano, permitting it to dominate at all times. In the second movement, every twitter in the piano overshadowed solos within the orchestra.

The “1812” Overture, plumped up with the band, cannons and fireworks, left the 9,138 attendees literally shaking in their seats.