By Eileen Wingard
SAN DIEGO — Pianist Jessie Chang, the talented wife of the San Diego Symphony Orchestra’s Conductor Emeritus, Jahja Ling, was the soloist in Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3 at TICO’s January 27 concert at Tifereth Israel Synagogue.
The lovely artist played with musicality and grace. The second movement was particularly lyrical and well synchronized with TICO’s accompaniment.
The orchestra strings did well in the fugal section of the rondo, the last movement, which the brilliant soloist led to a rousing conclusion.
Chang’s three most devoted fans and critics were seated behind me: her husband and their two teenaged daughters, both of whom are already accomplished pianists. I asked the girls how their mother’s performance compared with the one the previous Sunday, when TICO presented the same program in the sanctuary of the First United Methodist Church in Chula Vista. They observed that the acoustics of the high ceilinged church were more resonant than in the carpeted social hall at Tifereth Israel, but agreed that their mother played well at both venues.
After intermission, the twenty-voice San Diego Jewish Men’s Choir, in dark suits and silver vests and ties, lined up behind the orchestra to sing a wonderful selection of songs. Although, I have heard them sing many of these same numbers before, the orchestral accompaniment enhanced their presentation and brought it to a new level. From their lively opening, Shalom Chaverim and Havenu Shalom Alechem to their humorous Fiddler On The Roof selections and their closing Yiddish favorite, Bei Mir Bistu Shein, they sang with precision, inspiration and spirit. The audience loved them. The conducting alternated between David Amos, conductor of TICO and Ruth Weber, conductor of the San Diego Jewish Men’s Choir. Shaun Edelstein introduced each of the nine pieces.
Hopefully, there will be further collaborations between the San Diego Jewish Men’s Choir and TICO.
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Wingard, a retired violinist with the San Diego Symphony, is a freelance writer specializing in coverage of the arts. She may be contacted via eileen.wingard@sdjewishworld.com