{"id":16128,"date":"2015-01-20T10:07:54","date_gmt":"2015-01-20T18:07:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forallevents.com\/reviews\/?p=16128"},"modified":"2015-01-20T10:07:54","modified_gmt":"2015-01-20T18:07:54","slug":"virtuoso-itzhak-perlman-charms-san-francisco-crowd-with-violin-humor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forallevents.com\/reviews\/virtuoso-itzhak-perlman-charms-san-francisco-crowd-with-violin-humor\/","title":{"rendered":"Virtuoso Itzhak Perlman charms San Francisco crowd with violin, humor"},"content":{"rendered":"

[Woody’s [rating: 5]<\/span><\/p>\n

\n
\"\"<\/a>

Itzhak Perlman<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cPerfect. Perfect. Absolutely perfect.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s how an elderly guy in my row at Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco described the Itzhak Perlman violin recital we\u2019d just experienced.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was transcendent,\u201d said a nearby woman. \u201cA real privilege to hear one of the true musical geniuses of our time.\u201d<\/p>\n

I felt compelled to merely nod assent.<\/p>\n

Frankly, I\u2019ve lost count of how many times I\u2019ve been charmed by the master musician.<\/p>\n

I do know, however, that it\u2019s been every time I\u2019ve seen him \u2014 dating back to when the 69-year-old\u2019s hair was dark instead of silver.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m such a fan I even watched him act as a KQED-TV pledge-drive pitchman the night before, peddling SmorgasBorge, a multi-DVD set that showcased the best of the late classical pianist-clown Victor Borge.<\/p>\n

At Davies, most music lovers were as rapt as I, many of them pushing forward as far as possible in their seats, hoping to hear even a smidgeon better.<\/p>\n

It was truly breathtaking to be in a totally silent hall while Perlman played, accompanied by his frequent collaborator, pianist Rohan de Silva.<\/p>\n

Every tone could be experienced delicately.<\/p>\n

That particular evening, not a single throat-clearing or cough occurred during any of the Beethoven, Grieg and Ravel sonatas he stroked. Scores of attendees showed their respect by controlling their bodily needs.<\/p>\n

Until the various movements ended.<\/p>\n

Then, cacophony.<\/p>\n

Spellbinding, too, was Perlman relaxing his hands in his lap during solo piano passages. His Soil Stradivarius jutted straight out from his chin, appearing to be as natural an extension of his body as one of his arms.<\/p>\n

The musician\u2019s work is so consistently exquisite I often can\u2019t pick a favorite piece or segment. But that night I did revel in the third movement of the Ravel, with Perlman stretching beautifully from pizzicato purity to bowing as fast as a bullet train racing into Tokyo station.<\/p>\n

I also loved the diversity of his encore, nine short pieces with an emphasis on original compositions, adaptations and translations by Fritz Kreisler.<\/p>\n

With a couple of Jascha Heifetz quickies tossed in for good measure.<\/p>\n

The half-hour encore ranged from Prokofiev\u2019s \u201cThe Love for Three Oranges,\u201d to John Williams\u2019 \u201cSchindler\u2019s List\u201d theme that Perlman had played for the film, to lesser known music by lesser known dead composers (including one the violinist claimed everyone should know because \u2018he got a lot of likes on Facebook\u201d).<\/p>\n

During the recital\u2019s final segment, Perlman, who\u2019d been wordless during the pre-programmed material, displayed great warmth and likeability \u2014 and an even greater sense of humor.<\/p>\n

He drew laughs with self-deprecating one-liners and you-had-to-be-there references to \u201cunknown\u201d composers and compositions, and by twice shaking off de Silva like a pitcher rejecting a sign his catcher had flashed him.<\/p>\n

After his bows, I overheard a conversation at Davies that went like this:<\/p>\n

\u201cHave you seen him before?\u201d\u00a0\u201cYes.” “Is he always this jaw-dropping?” “Yes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Perlman, who contracted polio at age 4, learned to walk on crutches. He still uses them, but most often rides an electric scooter onto a stage.<\/p>\n

He did that at Davies.<\/p>\n

The violin virtuoso\u2019s been quoted as saying, \u201cThere are people who are\u2026finished products at a young age. I wasn\u2019t, thank God.\u201d<\/p>\n

Upcoming soloists at Davies, Grove Street (between Van Ness and Franklin), San Francisco, will include \u201cOrgan Recital with Paul Jacobs\u201d on Jan. 25, \u201c<\/em>Andr\u00e1s Schiff in Recital\u201d on Feb. 15, \u201c<\/em>Andr\u00e1s Schiff Plays Beethoven\u201d on Feb. 22, and \u201cPatti LuPone: Far Away Places\u201d on Feb. 23. Information: (415) 864-6400 or www.sfsymphony.org<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em>Contact Woody Weingarten at voodee@sbcglobal.net<\/a> or check out his blog at www.vitalitypress.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[Woody’s [rating: 5] \u201cPerfect. Perfect. Absolutely perfect.\u201d That\u2019s how an elderly guy in my row at Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco described the Itzhak Perlman violin recital we\u2019d just…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":32,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"yasr_overall_rating":0,"yasr_post_is_review":"","yasr_auto_insert_disabled":"","yasr_review_type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-16128","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-woody-weingarten"},"yasr_visitor_votes":{"stars_attributes":{"read_only":true,"span_bottom":"