She’s the One: Elim Chan Wins ’Em Over at Davies Symphony Hall
Elim Chan could have left the building Friday night after conducting just one piece, the gorgeous concert opener “Prelude and Liebestod” from Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde, and earned a spot in the San Francisco Symphony Hall of Fame.
Instead, in her first public program at Davies Symphony Hall since being appointed as the Symphony’s next Music Director, Chan rose to the night’s three-point challenge. One, to win the hearts of her new city’s audience. Two, to establish a continuum with the symphony’s past. And three, to plant herself artistically and make a statement of her own.
By the end of the program, the 39-year-old conductor not only achieved all of the above, but steered attention away from herself to the guest soloist, the orchestra and the audience. “As we start this new chapter, I don’t want any barriers between us,” she said. “We need the audience to give this music its meaning.”
A woman of her word, Chan finished the concert and then wandered out onto the street in front of Davies, among the people, and just started hanging out with everyone.
But back to the music. After a sustained standing ovation that rendered Chan visibly emotional, she began with the Wagner, and its beautiful chords and phrasings that danced and swelled. The Prelude is fragile; in the wrong hands it can get mushy. Chan kept the orchestra restrained and united, controlling the dynamics with delicate skill until the piece’s huge, final rapturous climax.
It was as if Chan had absorbed all the love from the past two weeks since her appointment, and sent it right back into the audience. It also constituted one of the most exhilarating experiences I’ve ever had inside a concert hall. Win the audience’s hearts: check.
For the Berlioz song cycle Les Nuits d’été, Chan let the mezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke take the lead. Chan has generally downplayed the focus on her historic appointment as the first woman to lead a “Big 7” orchestra. But as she conducted the songs in her outgoing, flamboyant style, and as Cooke drew out the meaning of the words with perfect tone and emotive body language, the power of two overtly expressive women taking center stage at Davies was unmistakable.
Then, for an encore, Cooke introduced Michael Tilson Thomas’ “Ich Lebe mein Leben,” from his Meditations on Rilke. Thomas’ spirit has lingered at Davies since his death just six weeks ago (a tribute exhibit is currently being displayed in the lobby). As Chan and Cooke worked their magic, it was fully present.
As if to pass the torch, Cooke explained that Thomas had once kissed the hem of her skirt after a performance — and then promptly kissed Chan’s. Establish a continuum: check.
That left the final goal of making a personal statement. Chan made two. One was artistic, evidenced by a sweeping performance of Debussy’s La Mer. Chan has spoken of her affection for the “Sorcerer’s Apprentice” sequence in Disney’s Fantasia; her magic trick is not to conjure waves and lightning, but to turn the orchestra into a single living, breathing organism. Despite its many moving parts, La Mer in Chan’s hands felt as one whole, a swirling, subtidal journey.
The other statement she made may be more important: that the conductor is not the be-all, end-all star of the show, nor the single person upon which the success of an orchestra rests.
We’ve gotten to see plenty of Chan’s fun personality. The polar opposite of her stoic mentor Bernard Haitnik, she conducts with a physical exuberance, as if prodding and dancing around the notes. She speaks like a normal human, calling the orchestra “so cool,” and says she likes the classics along with the “friggin’ new,” “wacky” contemporary pieces. She loves La Taqueria burritos and Karl the Fog. She even forgot to bring her baton onstage last night for the second half. (Conductors! They’re just like us!)
Or, take the scene witnessed at concert’s end, when Chan hoisted her hands to form the millennial-coded hand heart. Amid the long standing ovation, in the 14th row stood an 80-something man, slowly but earnestly raising his own hands to return the same gesture. Or how about Chan, upon being presented with a large bouquet, removing its contents one by one to excitedly give the musicians their flowers?
This relatability will go a long way in San Francisco, where we’re a little suspicious of people who take themselves too seriously. Combine it with the breathtaking artistry she displayed at Davies Friday night, and you’ve got the beginnings of a conductor, a city, and a beautiful friendship.
