What do you get when you mix one of the most original living conductors (our own Farkhad Khudyev, Associate of Music in Orchestral Studies & Music Director of the UT Symphony Orchestra) with a world-renowned opera singer, Rebecca Davis?
Answer: you get what only Khudyev brings to this town: dynamic and unforgettable musical experiences to last a lifetime.
Thank you Maestro.
This program was the first of the season for UT Symphony Orchestra. Starting the evening off with bombastic dissonance, Khudyev brought his expansiveness on the podium to Richard Strauss, Don Juan, Trv 156, op/ 20. He’s a big conductor, in that he uses his full body. With every muscle and tendon, he moves the orchestra with exaggerated sways, cajoling them, directing, demanding, and then gently guiding them to the next crescendo of harmonics.
He reminds us, almost emotionally pedantic, that even within the current political climate, music can roar above the chaos, while creating its own through the color of soundscapes – from waltzes to bold statements.
Rebecca Davis, an American soprano based in Hanover, Germany, wore an Athenian ruched white gown and styled her golden mane in a stallion-like braid. Her voice still rang out as she sang, even without a microphone, “Ave Maria” from Verdi’s Otello. She played the role with aplomb, and at one point I thought she was close to tears.
Wagner’s much-played Liebestod from Tristan and Isolde, WWV 90, then showered us. What Khudyev did, by playing it without a break from the Verdi piece, was eliminate Desmona’s death, metaphorically ushering in a spectacular feminine approach. Davis was superb in both compositions.
After the intermission, and the last piece of the evening, the orchestra played Pines of Rome, P.141 by Ottorino Respighi in 4 parts. Performed as if unveiling the very crown of the evening-sweeping cadences that burst forth like dawn itself, radiant with life. From the childlike games in the Villa Borghese (one of the most luscious gardens of Rome) to the solemn shadows of the catacombs, Respighi sets the stage as both painter and architect of sound. A strategic deployment of horn instruments above the stage, both in front and back of the audience, made this a surround-sound experience. This work, as presented by Khudyev, is at once a pageant, prayer and a dream. He doesn’t merely resurrect Rome’s sound but ensconces it in eternal splendor.
About the Conductor
Born in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Khudyev studied violin as a child at the State Music School for gifted children. At 10 he was the youngest performer in the National Violin Ensemble of Turkmenistan and toured Central Asia and Eastern Europe. At 12, he was named the most promising of young musicians at the International New Names Festival at the Moscow Conservatory.
He moved to the U.S. and received his Bachelor of Music from Oberlin. His family is as remarkable as he is. His older brother Eldar, is an accomplished composer and violinist, and his eldest brother Emil, plays clarinet in the Seattle Symphony Orchestra.
Khudyev has played with esteemed orchestras from the London Philharmonic, Taipei Chinese Orchestra to the Frankfurt Radio Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic and many more.
Of his many accolades and accomplishments, here are a few: Gold Medal “Beethoven 250” Special Prize at the 1st International Arthur Nikisch Conducting Competition.
- Solti Foundation US Career Assistance Award (2018, and noted also in 2022)
- Best Interpretation Prize at the 1st International Taipei Conducting Competition.
- 3rd Prize at the 8th International Sir Georg Solti Conducting Competition in Germany.
- First Prize at the Yale Chamber Music Society Competition, plus the Gold Medal & Grand Prize at the 2007 Fischoff Chamber Music Competition.
To hear more Khydyev visit his YT channel www.youtube.com/UT Symphony
And www.youtube.com/@butlerschoolofmusic8893
For concert information visit the Butler School of Music https://music.utexas.edu/events
Photos by Dr. Cliff Cunningham
lead photo: Khydyev with Davis share a special moment of celebration at the conclusion of her astounding performance.
second photo: the great organ at the Bates Recital Hall, University of Texas Austin, contributed to the Pines of Rome.