Haydn Trumpet Concerto, Beethoven Eroica a triumph for Jenna Smith, WASO, Riccardo Minasi at Winthrop Hall

A cock-a-hoop hometown welcome for trumpeter Jenna Smith set the bar high in Haydn’s iconic Trumpet Concerto with WA Symphony Orchestra and conductor Riccardo Minasi at Winthrop Hall this weekend. Bold opening chords drew an immediate fiery blast from the WASO principal; crisp, plangent phrases spilling across the auditorium in a controlled explosion of virtuoso style and panache. Trills rolled off the back of confident, assured melodic lines; precise across extended intervals and in call and response with the orchestra. A cadenza of polish and power from Smith then iced the opening; drawing the ensemble in her wake to close the Allegro first movement. Lilting strings broached the earworm theme of the Andante second stanza, answered in trumpet with dolorous aplomb. Dialogue was again key as Smith echoed then initiated the action, by turns pensive and purposeful; soaring sonority in the upper register balanced by grace and feeling in the lower range. Joyous expression across the stage heralded the Allegro finale; Smith’s broad sweep of timbre and technique setting the 230-year-old masterpiece squarely in the realm of modern taste and tonality. A dark velvet lining underpinned crystalline control and sparkling highlights in a full-voiced, eloquent reading of a firm favourite, by a firm favourite. To calm the farm, a vibrant, soulful encore of Amazing Grace closed off a standout solo to savour. The evening opened with Mendelssohn’s Midsummer Night’s Dream overture and excerpts; bright woodwind and horns introducing a filigree of fiddling as light as the fairies of Shakespeare’s fantasy. Deft dynamics combined fanfaric German trumpets (Orson Paine and Peter Miller) and wistful melody in strings and woodwind, as Minasi delivered light and shade with decisive direction to hone WASO’s razor-sharp edge. Horns (David Evans and Julia Brooke) led out the Nocturne under warm red light; a mellow wallow in mid-range harmony swapping with delicately lyrical flute (Andrew Nicholson) over a woodwind chorale, to close in an afterglow of sunset. The Scherzo then dawned bright and agile in woodwind under a faint blue wash. Strings joined the fray while Minasi seemed to slow in reverse proportion to the breakneck tempo; proving that sometimes less is more, down to a gossamer cadence. After the interval, twin towering chords fit to unbalance any ensemble led in the swirling strains of Beethoven’s groundbreaking “Eroica” Symphony; its portentous swagger neatly captured to the beat of Alex Timcke’s timpani. Minasi took to dance as WASO filled out the expansive palette with vim and vigour; the German trumpets again applied to great effect. Sublime horn and flute added another glittering facet to a translucent symphonic showcase, down to a crash-bang conclusion. Legend says Beethoven scrubbed a dedication to Napoleon Bonaparte from his original score, but the solemn second movement still echoes the grandeur of that era; a funeral march by turns earthy and ethereal in minor and major modes. Minasi gave it the full scope of WASO’s dynamic range, a whirlwind one moment, a whisper the next; operatic in intensity with drama enough to upstage the epoch-making opening statement. From there the Scherzo third movement revived the verve of the first; a dance-themed workout for all on stage. Horns intoned a majestic second figure, firing up furtive strings and woodwind to further gymnastics, with trumpet and drum driving frequent mood swings towards a dramatic dismount. Barely a pause then ignited the Finale, skittish in offbeat ribaldry yet firmly focused in fatalistic strains. Out-there intervention by oboe (Liz Chee) hauled back momentum briefly before cascading climaxes built to a heroic conclusion. WASO returns to Winthrop Hall in May with Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman.