Dohnanyi, Ax and the CSO produce Brahmsian splendor at Ravinia concerts

The distinguished German conductor had the orchestra playing at very near the top of its form, and he had the estimable Emanuel Ax as soloist for both Brahms piano concertos, sealing the success of the concerts Thursday and Friday nights. Seldom has standard Teutonic repertory felt less standard, in terms of both execution and interpretation.

Dohnanyi, who will turn 82 in September, has been a welcome visitor to the orchestra's downtown subscription series since his return to the roster in 2002 following a lengthy absence owing to his responsibilities at the Cleveland Orchestra, from which he stepped down as music director that same year.

All the same, these Ravinia concerts marked only his second season at the festival, after his debut there in 2004. One must hope, on the evidence of the two Brahms programs, that the summer management invites Dohnanyi back at the earliest opportunity.

You could, if you wished, play a game of free association to trace the maestro's Brahms connection back to the source. His grandfather, the Hungarian composer and pianist Erno Dohnanyi (who once taught the young Georg Solti at the Budapest conservatory) knew Brahms personally and championed his music.

But Dohnanyi's authority as a Brahmsian is entirely his own. At its foundation are his familiar musical virtues of intelligence, integrity, rigor and firm formal control. In both the Second and Third symphonies he enforced a sense of Old World grandeur without lapsing into staid Old World stodginess. He reminded us that depth and weight of sound are not incompatible with beauty and lucidity in this repertory.

His seating plan for the strings (the same plan Daniel Barenboim used during his CSO tenure) reverted to classic European models Brahms knew and wrote for – violins divided across the podium, cellos to the inside left, double basses at the far left.

This layout gave added prominence to the string basses, which suited the Brahmsian sonority Dohnanyi was after. It was built upwards, from a rock-solid foundation of lower strings, through a carefully blended middle-register sound, up to singing strings and lyrical winds on top.

His Brahms Symphony No. 2 moved with a clear-eyed sense of destination that was refreshingly free of fussy deliberation (no Christoph Eschenbach, he), with lovely playing from oboist Eugene Izotov and the rest of the woodwind choir. Dohnanyi observed the exposition repeat in the first movement but came into his own with a third movement that was light, fleet and flowing, and a finale that exploded in a headlong rush of confidently shaped energy.

The Third Symphony was hardly less enjoyable, marrying vertical strength and horizontal sweep with pliant lyricism and refinement of instrumental detail, especially with respect to the woodwind choir. Once again, all repeats were taken.

Ax was in good form for the D minor Piano Concerto on Thursday and even better form for the B flat major Concerto on Friday. The occasional awkwardness of Brahms' piano writing held no terrors for him. But no less remarkable than his ability to maintain power, concentration and stamina throughout this two-night marathon were the rich poetic instincts he applied to his collaboration with Dohnanyi and the orchestra.

This was a summit meeting of kindred artistic spirits on a massive playing field, where piano and orchestra are cast, more or less, as musical equals. John Sharp's cello solo, thoughtful and beautifully turned, as always, added a further cachet of distinction to the slow movement of the Second Concerto. Ever the gentleman, Ax grabbed the cellist's hand and pulled him to the front of the stage so he could share in the cheers of the crowd. The audience had much to cheer, at both concerts.

jvonrhein@tribune.com

Twitter @johnvonrhein