A towering performance from guest soloist Itamar Zorman… Next, Zorman took the stage – and the central focus – for an epic take on Dmitri Shostakovich's Violin Concerto No. 1, written for violinist David Ostraikh and premiered in 1955. Hotoda pointed out that this was over a decade after the piece had been written, the lag due to an ongoing ban on Shostakovich's music by Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, who died in 1953. "It is one of the most difficult pieces, not only for the soloist but for the orchestra," Hotoda said, pointing out that once the violinist starts playing, he rarely stops for the entire four movements. The internationally renowned Zorman proved more than up to the task, alternating passages of aching beauty and almost vicious aggression without seeming to break a sweat, eventually bringing an overjoyed opening night audience to its feet for a total of three curtain calls.
Scott Faingold, Illinois Times
October 20, 2022
Source: https://www.illinoistimes.com/springfield/a-well-rounded-musical-feast/Content?oid=15910829