Talk about a letdown! Gustavo Dudamel is supposed to be the hottest new thing on the classical music entertainment circuit–a sizzling, hot-blooded, youthful, Latino superstar leading the orchestra named after El Liberador himself. Just the thought should set the pulse racing. Instead, we get “ropa vieja”: shredded meat–limp, soggy, greasy, and guaranteed to cause gastric discomfort (actually, it’s rather tasty when done well, but you get the picture). Dudamel’s tempos are droopy, rhythms flaccid, ensemble discipline certainly less than world class. Even the sonics are soft-edged and mushy.
Romeo and Juliet comes off the worst, with the battle sequences about as dull as any yet recorded, and the love music remarkably under-characterized. The Tempest also is anything but stormy, and as for Hamlet, well, his death can’t come soon enough. Balances favor the strings, the brass lack impact, and the woodwinds are just there for decoration. So far, despite the PR and the occasional success in the usual Latin repertoire that’s basically foolproof, Dudamel is failing to live up to the hype. [3/2/2011]