Review – QSOs Don Quixote: an undeniable feast for the senses

By Nahima Abraham

Don Quixote

Presented by the Queensland Symphony Orchestra

Conducted by Umberto Clerici QPAC Concert Hall

South Bank

Run time: 120 mins with interval.

The Queensland Symphony Orchestra is simply barreling through their main-stage season. Everything they seem to touch turns to pure joy.

Don Quixote was no exception. Featuring a masterfully curated duo of performances over two days, from Mozart to R. Strauss, with full orchestra, or to a more stripped-down piano concerto, the first piece was accompanied by the celebrated Piers Lane. The evening and matinée performances were met with an effusive energy that certainly has no end in sight.

The matinée performance began with Mozart’s Concerto No. 24 in C minor. Lane took to the stage, and what began was a heavy and somber affair, deviating somewhat from Mozart’s usually light and cheery offerings. The orchestra burst into a swirling, intense movement. Then Lane began. What a spectacular performance. He was elegant, refined, and poised in his recital, his movements smooth and graceful. The audience was rapt with attention. When the final note sounded, the applause went on perhaps a smidge longer, but rightly so. Then Lane performed a brief encore composed by Australian composer Robert Chamberlain, which cut through the fanciful Romanticisms and brought forward a whimsical beauty that pulled on listener’s heartstrings. Everyone was loving the performance and it showed.

Following the interval came the eponymous performance. Don Quixote. This stirring and vivid performance featured two soloists, Hyung Suk Bae, cello, and Imants Larsens, viola. Before the orchestra even touched the first notes, however, esteemed actor Eugene Gilfedder appeared. Dressed in garb befitting a royal Spanish court from times long past, his powerful introduction paved the way for an interactive and immersive experience that brought visual and auditory elements, and wove them together.

The star of this performance was undeniably Hyung Suk Bae. His cello performance was sensitive, yearning, and charismatic, bringing forward the voice of the principal Cervantes character, Alonso Quixano. Following the antics of the newly dubbed Don Quixote, Sancho his “squire” and their steeds, an old nag and donkey, the pair make their way across the lands and take part in battle with perceived threats. This was masterfully handled by the QSO, their storytelling was profusely complex yet brought the audience the story from beginning to end with a joy and sensitivity that just kept getting better. Don Quixote was an undeniable feast for the senses and full of wonderful talent that will hopefully endure with the QSO for many more years to come.