Review: ELDBJØRG HEMSING PERFORMS 'ARCTIC' AT DEATH OF CLASSICAL at Green-Wood Cemetery

The maiden voyage between Norwegian violinist Eldbjørg Hemsing and Sony Classical, “Arctic” is the finest new classical recording of the last five years.

Leave it to Andrew Ousley to grab the hottest young violinist on the planet for his revolutionary Death of Classical series.  On the album, Ms. Hemsing covers material from some heavyweight composers from the visual medium - Jacob Shea (Blue Planet) and Frode Fjellheim (Frozen), and weaves together a mosaic of frozen landscapes, mid-night suns, and the ever so soft crackling of ice as the arctic waters continue to warm at an alarming pace.  It is a political statement in the brilliant wrapping of a magnificent artistic journey. 

The performance in the catacombs of Brooklyn’s Green-Wood Cemetery was a small miracle. Despite the oppressive 90 degree temperatures that tried so hard to sap the energy out of the audience, Ms. Hemsing’s delightful, placidly engaging manner energized the sell-out audience. If the excessive dampness in the space bother her in any way, it did not show. 

She and her impressive accompanist Albert Cano Smit began the concert with the first two movements of the Grieg 2nd Violin sonata – the third and final movement closed the show, as a fitting bookend.

Grieg had recently gotten married when he wrote the sonata and judging by its sunny disposition, it was a happy marriage.   Although, that sunshine is not readily apparent from the stark opening stab on the violin, but Hemsing quickly and deftly moved from the somber opening into the more brightly colored, folky main section of the first movement.  Accompanist Albert Cano Smit spent a good portion of the sonata looking in the direction of his soloist, suggesting perhaps the piece was a relatively new collaboration for them, but the proof was in the performance, and the performance was stunning. 

The pair were particularly hand in glove during the second movement.  Although Grieg marked the movement Allegretto tranquillo (and yes it does begin and end in the minor) the overarching sense is one of joy, a serene pastural that seems to want to break into a folk dance at any moment.

The primary focus of the evening was the new record.  I will not go into commentary of the various selections here – suffice to say, here is my admonishment to you, gentle reader:  GO BUY THE ALBUM, you will not regret it.

The marketing for the show referred to Ms. Hemsing as a “superstar Norwegian violinist-slash-Nordic-goddess” – as playfully hyperbolic as that may sound, it was no exaggeration.    Her deep connection with the material was simply a joy to behold.  She seemed to leave the planet and float in another sphere of existence as she played, and her gracefully swaying movements silently invited the thoroughly wrapt audience to join her. 

Time seems to stand still when Ms. Hemsing plays.    The venue – the cool damp catacombs - created an other-worldly ambience and the semi-circular stone arch ceiling cause the sound to gently reverberate in a mystical fashion.

Ms. Hemsing programmed the set in pairs of pieces, with short banter between the sections. Her rapport with the audience was thoroughly engaging as she joked about the venue, the dampness and how cold it actually was inside compared to the sweltering heat outside.  She was like the queen of her own little kingdom, and the audience her adoring subjects.   On more than one occasions, the audience could not contain itself and burst into spontaneous ovations in the middle of the sections.   Full disclosure:  after the simply ravishing “Sea Ice Melting”, I myself broke out into uncontrollable applause and the audience joined in with shouts of Brava! 

After the performance, on the little trolley that took us back to the parking area, two college students asked me if I attended a lot of classical concerts.  I told them that I did.  They asked: “Are any as fun as this?”   And regrettably the answer was a firm: no.  I suggested that they try a few different concerts of different varieties and decide for themselves what they enjoy most.   Many will be quite good, several exceptional – but none quite like this series.

Andrew Ousley has gotten raves from every imaginable media outlet, digital, print, et al, in town since he began Death of Classical several years ago.  And he continues to program magnificent artists, playing magnificent music, in magnificent locations.   To borrow from Jon Landau (in his prophecy about an unknown Bruce Springsteen) “I’ve seen the future of classical music.”  

Creating truly special evenings like the “Arctic” performance should not be rare occasions.  In the future, one hopes Andrew and his team will expand the series to other cities and other spaces.  (he has hinted at Los Angeles and Washington DC already)  And perhaps add a school/student series to draw younger audiences. 

Music this beautiful deserves performances this special.

There is no legitimate reason for classical music to continue to struggle in this country, and Mr. Ousley has shown the way.   Performances like Eldbjørg Hemsing’s Arctic are the kind that will inspire new generations of fans.

Peter Danish

Photos by Kevin Condon

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