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Ray Chen performs as soloist the weekend of 10/12/2017
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Violinist Ray Chen plays for millions online but disappoints live with Pittsburgh Symphony Friday

Sophie Zhai

Violinist Ray Chen plays for millions online but disappoints live with Pittsburgh Symphony Friday

Chen's new album, "Player1," features a mix of video game music, film scores and classical

Violinists were once the rock stars of the music world, with the likes of Paganini — rumored to have sold his soul to the devil for his talent — creating the classical equivalent of “Bruce Tramps.”

(That’s a real term for hardcore Springsteen fans. Awesome.)

It’s rare for violinists to cause such fervor today, but one of the more famous players has built a significant social media following for his playing and his online antics. Ray Chen, a Taiwanese-Australian talent, performed Friday with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, vigorously chopping his way through Brahms Concerto in D major for Violin and Orchestra, one of the most famous of the capital “R” Romantic era violin concertos.

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Chen’s an excellent violinist by every metric, but on Friday his interpretation of Brahms’ soulful melodies sounded off. His attacks were harsh, his sound a bit blaring and one-dimensional throughout the different movements and emotions of the piece. Each moment and phrase had care and emphasis, but overall the piece didn’t have a dramatic arc — movement endings came as a surprise and were a bit anticlimactic.

Audience members look on as Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra conductor Manfred Honeck directs the orchestra during a concert on their European tour at the Elbphilharmonie concert hall in Hamburg, Germany in August 2022.
Jeremy Reynolds
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It wasn’t a bad performance, per se. I’ve just heard other players bring more elegance and vitality to the concerto, and I’ve heard stronger playing from Chen in years past.

Partners in crime

For its part, the Pittsburgh Symphony proved an able partner, with guest conductor Christoph Eschenbach leading with an ear for color and character that added some verve and nuance to the piece. This was even more evident in the second half of the concert, Schumann’s rarely performed Symphony No. 2, written while the composer was poisoning himself slowly with mercury to rid himself of physical ailments.

Here, the orchestra’s playing was lively and compelling, rambunctious in the first movement, feather-light in the second, poignant in the third and cheery in the finale. Actually, I prefer the finale with a bit more verve. This could be accomplished with more emphasis on the quick string passages, which were covered at times by long chords in the brass on Friday. But overall, it was a handsome performance.

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Champion

Back to Chen for a moment — while his Brahms wasn’t my cup of tea, I want to acknowledge his immense service to classical music as an internet personality. He’s charismatic and approachable and brings his talent to pop culture, most recently with a new album — “Player1” — pairing music from “The Legend of Zelda” and “Pokemon” video game franchises with a more classical concerto by Erich Korngold, also one of the top film music composers of the 20th century.

(The arrangement of “Romantic Flight” from the Dreamworks movie “How to Train Your Dragon” — chef’s kiss.)

This sort of “crossover” work’s value can’t be underestimated. He’s helping to keep orchestras in the public consciousness and bringing an intense dedication to his non-classical projects. 

And for that, he’s welcome here any time.

This program repeats Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m. at Heinz Hall. Tickets begin at $25 at pittsburghsymphony.org.

Jeremy Reynolds: jreynolds@post-gazette.com. His work at the Post-Gazette is supported in part by a grant from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Getty Foundation and Rubin Institute.

First Published: November 2, 2024, 3:15 a.m.
Updated: November 2, 2024, 9:24 p.m.

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Ray Chen performs as soloist the weekend of 10/12/2017  (Sophie Zhai)
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