By Nancy Plum
Long before the days of conductors with batons and over-committed schedules, the soloist of the concert often led the orchestra. Both Mozart and Beethoven starred in performances of their own compositions, piloting ensembles from the keyboard. Violinists were also frequent soloist/conductors, especially in music of the 17th and 18th centuries. More unusual was a violinist both playing and leading a lush romantic concerto, but this is what New Jersey Symphony presented this past weekend with Joshua Bell in a program of Ludwig van Beethoven, Camille Saint-Saëns and Felix Mendelssohn. The award-winning violinist appeared with the Symphony in Richardson Auditorium last Friday night, mesmerizing the audience with his musicianship and flair.
Currently music director of London’s renowned Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, Bell has been well-steeped in the tradition of conductors also serving as soloists. He performed triple duty Friday night — as concertmaster in Beethoven’s Egmont Overture, conductor/soloist in Saint-Saëns’ Violin Concerto No. 3 in B Minor and conductor in Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 4 in A Major. In all these roles, Bell focused on the drama of the music, eliciting a great deal of varied dynamics and Romantic fire from the New Jersey Symphony players. Whether directing with the violin bow from the concertmaster seat, with his back to the ensemble as soloist or without a baton facing the musicians, Bell consistently commanded authority reaching to the last rows of instrumentalists.
Beethoven’s incidental music to the play Egmont was a commission from a Vienna theater for an early 19th-century production. The Egmont Overture has survived as a stand-alone piece, capturing the play’s heroic overtones and message of hope. Conducting from the violin section, Bell was in constant communication, checking in with each section for entrances and at times pausing playing in order to direct. Throughout, the strings maintained a very lean sound with an overall theatrical effect to match the work’s original intent. A very physical player, Bell kept rhythms crisp while bringing the Overture to an energetic conclusion.
Bell took center stage as soloist and conductor for Saint-Saëns’ Violin Concerto, a piece influenced by both opera and the elegant Parisian salon music tradition. Saint-Saëns composed this Concerto for a Spanish virtuoso violinist, and New Jersey Symphony began with shimmering strings against Bell’s toreador-inspired solo line. Even with Bell playing with his back to the orchestra, the players were rhythmically exact throughout.
Bell maintained a graceful flow to the subsequent “Andantino,” composed in the barcarolle form popular in French opera at the time. The movement also included an elegant conversation between Bell and the winds, especially oboist Robert Ingliss. The final “Allegro” took off with after a recitative-like solo opening, with another very Spanish melody punctuated by a clean pair of horns. Bell built orchestral crescendos effectively and led the ensemble through sweet string melodies echoed by the winds. A trio of trombones added an element of reverence to the closing music.
Mendelssohn’s “Italian” Symphony No. 4 is pure joy — the composer himself called the work “the liveliest thing I have yet done.” Putting aside the violin and performing as conductor, Bell led with decisive gestures in music continually in motion. Internal melodies were clearly heard, including from instruments often buried in the texture. The “walking” lower string lines of the second movement “Andante,” often compared to a pilgrims’ march, were complemented by a rich sectional viola theme. Throughout the Symphony, Bell conducted the flow of the music, rather than just beats, and clean winds brought out sprightliness also heard in Mendelssohn’s ballet music. The concluding “Saltarello” closed the concert in a buoyant mood, with audience members well appreciating the musical legend with whom they had just spent the evening.
New Jersey Symphony will present its next Princeton series concert on Friday, June 5 at 7:30 p.m. in Richardson Auditorium. Conducted by New Jersey Symphony Music Director Xian Zhang, this program will feature pianist Emanual Ax and the music of Allison Loggins-Hull, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Hector Berlioz. For ticket information and details on the Symphony’s 2026-27 season, visit njsymphony.org.