Nathalie Stutzmann is dissed by choral critic
OrchestrasThe Atlanta gadfly music critic Mark Gresham reviewed the Mozart C minor Mass:
… Stutzmann’s conducting visibly lacked precision, which was evident right from the opening bars, where the violas were not quite in sync. However, they were on the money at the exposition’s repeat, suggesting that the performance quality improved when the musicians could rely more on their own collective cohesiveness as an ensemble. Despite all these issues, the musicians of the ASO are thoroughly professional; they play what the conductor’s gestural techniques ask, even if the musical choices are suspect….
This concert was not the first time Stutmann’s placement of the soloists behind the orchestra was a detrimental choice, perhaps aimed at visual synchronization with the conductor. (It did, strangely, look like Stutzmann was trying to conduct their solo singing.) This placement, however, led to balance issues, with the rest of the performing forces overwhelming the soloists, particularly noticeable with soprano Erika Baikoff, who initially struggled to be heard. Julia Lezhneva, on the other hand, managed to project more effectively.
In addition to the need for a better balance between the choir and orchestra, there were some issues with the choral sound (and I say this as a long-ago member of this esteemed chorus) — most conspicuously, a lack of focused pitch and sectional unison on high notes in the soprano section, plus a rather bright, “metallic” sound in those moments.
After the number of choral-orchestral works heard so far under Stutzmann’s leadership, it is still unclear to this nearly life-long chorister where she wants to go with their sound. She may not know. Or it may be that she just wants to escape the long shadow of Robert Shaw’s legacy, regardless of where that leads. However, music directors, and others who may be self-avowed “disruptors,” should take care when handling such legacies, both choral and orchestral. Atlantans have a long history of not appreciating “scorched earth” policies directed at our cultural history. (An acronym used on social media applies here, but better not to express or explain in polite company at this time.)
Full review here.
photo: ASO/Rand Lines
Mozart c minor mass. Such a sublime work.
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It’s a tough business. Men have faced such critics and criticism for hundreds of years. Yet it’s headline news for a critic to take on the conducting skills of a French woman in the American south—how far we’ve come.
To quote Marion Znyder of
my youth, “As with war zones, if you can’t handle the heat, conduct a youth orchestra.”
Atlanta has always been plagued by poor critics. Fortunately, we have always had terrific music directors.
One can’t just ‘be’ a good conductor. There is a physical technique involved. And she doesn’t have good technique. If she were male, she wouldn’t have a job. That’s the truth. Deal with it.
There have been, and still are, plenty of male conductors with crappy techniques who still got jobs. Not every conductor has the baton skill of a Reiner, Maazel or Boult. Tennstedt, Solti, and the newbie Karina Cannelakis for example.
And going back in time, there’s Furtwangler of the quivering baton (but sublime interpretations).
For hundreds of years men have faced critics and criticism (and war). My heart goes out to any conductor criticized publicly. I can’t help but wonder, however, just why this particular scathing review is headlined here.
In the words of Marion Znyder, “If you can’t handle the war, conduct a youth orchestra.”
“gadfly music critic Mark Gresham”
Not sure that helps or hurts his “review”.
In any case, his tone comes across as a cantankerous former chorister with a bone to pick, and his last sentence, hinting at some unprintable vulgarity apparently directed at Stutzmann, is snarky and sophomorish, an insider joke I don’t care to be on the inside of.
The critic way of putting forth his views wasn’t (for me) a pleasure to read.
I first discovered Nathalie Stutzman as a wonderful contralto, and great music-maker. Now that she is a conductor, like so many of today’s generation she does too much. She is in a million places. i.e. Last season she did Don Giovanni and Magic FLute at the METin the same week. While she is a marvellous musician. making great music as an orchestral conductor is not the same as singing beautiful lieders. SHe would be well served to study more and run around less. Just my 2 cents.
There are many conductors who would be well advised to “run (or fly) around less”, but stay home and really learn the works they are paid handsomely to direct. Often, I could do as good a job myself with a little practice. That’s not good enough, one goes to a concert to be moved by an experience you couldn’t achieve yourself. Would you go to a restaurant to eat a meal inferior to those you cook at home? No.
“Often, I could do as good a job myself with a little practice.” Where can we see your conducting, Maestro?
The food analogy is not a sound one.
It may well be that the performance in question was not good; I wasn’t there, I can’t tell. But there are always lots of possible reasons for such an evening, be it on the side of the conductor, of the players, of the circumstances.
Marc Gresham putting it squarely on Stutzmann’s conducting only shows his own ineptitude and/or bias.
Concerning her ability to make an orchestra play precise: here is a Mendelssohn “Italian” symphony under Stutzmann. It’s one of the most challenging classical works in regards to precision, especially the last movement; there are recordings available where the orchestra is very audibly close to breaking apart. (and they still found it worthy of publishing). This Stutzmann version is as close to perfection as can be.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJKxxaaEJb8
As NL alludes to in the headline, this seems to be more about dissing Stutzmann than about honest reporting.
Just watched it. Fine performance except for the rit. that came out of left field at the end.
Don’t be fooled by this review. I was at the concert last week and it was a great success. Stutzmann is a rock star. Jon Ross from the AJC wrote a beautiful review, you should read it.
While a miracle with a chorus, Robert Shaw had a famously terrible orchestral conducting technique in Atlanta- his concertmasters led the orchestra.
It’s often the case. Orchestras and choirs can be very different beasts to conduct, and the conductor who can do both is rare.
That’s not my experience. He conducted a performance with the Mostly Mozart festival when I was a member.
Not only was his technique good, but he was also the most organized and effective rehearser of any conductor I played under in a long career as an orchestral musician in NYC.
Women conductors are faced with much sexism in the classical music world. Natalie is a very fine musician and conductor, and Atlanta is lucky that anyone with sophistication would even deign to come to a Red state like Georgia.
Nothing wrong with being a Red State. That particular set of ideas is quite popular in the US these days, I’ve heard…
I agree that Stutzman is a good conductor. But that does not mean that everytime she is criticised, it is evidence of sexism. Sometimes, people just have different opinions on what they like.
Atlanta is 47 percent Black and is a blue city in a red state.
Pretty difficult to critique a review unless you were at the very same concert. But I do generally agree with his negative opinion about placing vocal soloists behind the orchestra. It seems to be something of a trend. It makes visual sense, perhaps, for Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy.
Paul Agnew, anybody?
Since I wasn’t at the concert I don’t know if Stutzmann was a bad conductor that evening. I can tell from this review, however, that the critic is not a very good writer.
Barbara Bonney sings the most sublime “Et incarnatus est”.
https://youtu.be/E2LGb9HWSUU?si=s_1ayy243oE9dRrN
Stupid place to put soloists with the sound running in front of you that you can’t really hear it. You can feel like being unaccompanied from there when singing, particularly sopranos singing at the same pitch as the violins. You’d think being a singer herself that she’d know!
What about opera singers? Do they have the orchestra behind them?
Gresham is a mean-spirited, insignificant, jealous man. I attended all 3 concerts. They were fantastic. The soprano was hard to hear in the beginning, true, but overall it was a brilliant performance. Gresham likes to be self-important, and enjoys belittling audience members. Comments like calling us “acolytes”. Yeah, we like being Stutzmann “acolytes”, Mark. What world class major conducting gigs have you managed lately?
Stutzmann and every conductor conducting fine works like this will ALWAYS have the last laugh over critics. The critics don’t get to live day and night in this sublime art form like players and conductors do. Who gives a f*k what critics say. LOL!
As Sibelius said – no one has ever erected a statue of a critic!
conductors get bad reviews all the time, it’s curious that Lebrecht seems to really pick and choose which to highlight
That’s not my experience. He conducted a performance with the Mostly Mozart festival when I was a member.
Not only was his technique good, but he was also the most organized and effective rehearser of any conductor I played under in a long career as an orchestral musician in NYC.
I heard that Paris orchestra had a serious complaint against her when she conducted Beethoven sym 6. The whole horn team almost quit.
I’ve heard that Atlanta’s hall has poor acoustics. Could they play a part?
Talk of a poisoned pen.
Just an awful review. Not because of his opinions, but the writing and the arguments supporting them. Seems like amateur criticism to me.
And what well-reasoned, well-argued reviews have you written in your professional career?