German pianist Lars Vogt joined Andris Nelsons and the Boston Symphony Orchestra mid-January for Mozart's Piano Concerto no. 24. I was uncomfortable throughout the performance. Vogt seemed to be playing against the orchestra instead of with it. His display was athletic, always pushing the runs faster than the accompaniment. His entrances were a fraction ahead of the beat, almost scolding the other musicians for being laggards. He was unheeding even to the audience: Vogt started the slow middle movement while the audience was still shifting, settling and coughing after the first movement. I booed his solo bow.
Emmanuel Ax played Mozart's Piano Concerto no. 14 under the baton of Christoph von Dohnányi in mid-February. The modest, genteel man gave a modest, genteel reading of the work. He blurred a few runs in the cadenza, where I felt more distinct separation of the notes might have injected a bit of sly humor. Regardless, the performance put a smile on my face.
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