LA JOLLA, California — Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson (1932-2004), a Black composer unfamiliar to most concert goers, wrote a delightful Sinfonietta for Strings, the opening selection in the San Diego Symphony Orchestra’s Thursday evening concert at the Conrad in La Jolla. The three-movement work, Sonata Allegro, Song Form, Rondo, consisted of standard classical forms containing syncopated fugal themes and engaging melodies. The music sounded fresh and optimistic as the Israeli-born conductor, Yaniv Dinur, agilely led the strings of the SDSO.
Prokofief’s Classical Symphony followed, a four-movement work using the classical symphony framework: an opening fast movement followed by a slow movement, then a Minuet in triple time and concluding with a fast finale. Prokofief filled these familiar vessels with perky rhythms and witty themes that are uplifting and fun. Dinur, with his incisive signals, drew a definitive performance from the reduced San Diego Symphony forces.
After intermission, pianist Awadagin Pratt soloed in Jessie Montgomery’s Rounds for Piano and String Orchestra. Pratt commissioned this work from Montgomery, who is composer-in-residence with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. It included bombastic chords, which Pratt played with great power, and soft, caressing treble passages, as well as virtuosic runs that Pratt executed with technical mastery. It served as an impressive showcase for his formidable talent.
The concert concluded with Haydn’s delightful London Symphony No. 104 in D Major. This is a familiar symphony whose happy themes and robust tempi brought the concert to a joyous close.
Dinur, conducting the San Diego Symphony for the second time, demonstrated why he was named the 2019 Sir Georg Solti Conducting Fellow. His conducting technique was reminiscent of early 20th century greats such as Bruno Walter and William Steinberg, no exaggerated gestures, every move meaningful and in full control. He is currently conductor-in-residence of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra and Music Director of the New Bedford Symphony Orchestra. He has conducted the Israel Philharmonic, the Israel Camerata in Jerusalem and orchestras throughout the world. He studied with conductor Mendi Rodan (1929-2009) in Israel, and received his Doctorate in Orchestral Conducting from the University of Michigan School of Music, where he was a student of Kenneth Kiesler. Dinur’s debut, at the age of 19, was with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland.
Awadagin Pratt studied at the Peabody Conservatory of Music, receiving diplomas in piano, violin and conducting. He won the Naumburg International Piano Competition and was awarded an Avery Fisher Career Grant. He is currently a Professor of Piano at the College-Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati and in July, will join the faculty of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. He continues to appear in recitals and as a concerto soloist throughout the country.