It’s with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra that Leonard Bernstein undertook the project to describe the Scottish mist from Felix Mendelssohn’s Overture The Hebrides and Symphony No. 3. The bond between this orchestra and Bernstein was particularly strong, from his very first concert in Palestine in 1947 until his death. In 1948 he performed a concert for the armed forces in the recently formed state that had a tremendous impact, with Bernstein becoming a cult figure among Israelis. He directed the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra every year and made several recordings with them.
In this one, the orchestra’s winged virtuosity and limpid colours are absolutely remarkable, and once again, the extraordinary energy of the American conductor stands out, with his way of bringing musical phrases to life by making Mendelssohn’s radiant romanticism shine. The overture The Hebrides is no less than a musical miracle, full of melodic beauty and well constructed, making it a sort of marine musical painting, a precursor of impressionism, in the same way Turner’s paintings often suggest more than they show. Written during several trips, the “Scottish” Symphony, which received the favour of young Queen Victoria – to whom the piece was dedicated −, remains one of Mendelssohn’s most popular works due to the richness of its melodies and its atmosphere so conducive to dreams and imagination. © François Hudry/Qobuz