Review: 'Beauty and Destiny' is a jolt of energy

For much of the evening at the Philharmonic Thursday night, the audience needed seat belts. So did the performers.

The music was either emphatically targeted or at a flat-out gallop for performances of the Saint-Saens Cello Concerto and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7. Which would the conductor lavish more rehearsal time on here — the concerto often crowned as the best ever written for the cello? Or Beethoven’s rapturous, near-frenetic favorite?

The answer — both — came from guest conductor Carlos Miguel Prieto’s fervor on the podium. He dug into the two works with the zeal of a kid on Christmas morning, jabbing and scooping, lunging toward the orchestra in an imposing physical style.

Prieto is a former student of Naples Philharmonic Music Director Jorge Mester and even serves in one of Mester’s former posts as music director for the Orquestra Nacional de Mexico. But he has his own special intimacy with strings as a violinist and a father who is cello star.

That was obvious in the younger Prieto’s handling of the Saint-Saens concerto, with the amazingly skilled David Requiro as guest artist. The concerto is a swift, thorny piece, with orchestra forays, like sprays of seasoning, thrown into tight spots between melody lines. There’s an orchestral interlude that must be reprise behind the cello without overpowering it.

The delicate balance was never violated with the baton in Prieto’s hand. Requiro was a vigilant performer, keeping an eye on both Prieto and the string section while his fingers raced through its tough passages. His caramel tone and command of vibrato brought the audience to its feet mid-concert.

So the obliging Requiro offered a surprise encore, “Calambre” (“Seizure”) by Astor Piazzolla, arranged for celli. Adam Satinsky and his entire section, along with Requiro, concocted a nearly irresistible incitement to jump up and dance.

The opening Brahms choral work, “Schicksalslied,” was the antithesis of the rest of the program. Even Prieto seemed like a different conductor, turning balletic for its rounded tones.

The Naples Philharmonic Chorale wasn’t strong enough to even conquer the accompanying woodwind theme. However, the group grew into the substantial power it needed for the emotional finale.

The Beethoven Symphony No. 7 in A Major has nearly everything you’d want in that genre: familiar melodies, high-octane finish, a treasure trove of clues that point to the motifs in his famous later symphony, the Ninth.

Brass tattoos heighten the opening tension, while winds pull in the orchestra. In its famous second movement, a strong bass pumps its theme to cellos, then violins and, finally, the horns. It’s an infectious setup for the incendiary last half.

While the finale was at racing speed — probably a half-minute faster than this ear is used to — it was controlled and confident.

John Evans, principal timpanist, deserved his own drum roll for his dramatic double-beat series third movement punctuation.

This program is repeated at the Phil tonight, with the promise that you can skip the after-dinner coffee before you go. It’s a deliciously high-caffeine concert.

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