Three Kinds of Perfect

In a recent week's worth of trips to New York's Carnegie Hall, we discovered that perfect can come in more than one form.

First of all, there was the perfect of Carnegie itself—rounded walls, no corners, a clean full flawless sound.  

Then there was the perfect playing of the two orchestras we heard there. The Berlin Philharmonic’s performance, guided by conductor Kirill Petrenko (shown here), was the first of two concerts we heard. The Berlin presented Bruckner’s Fifth Symphony, played flawlessly in a traditional way—that is, with great strength and beauty and virtually no mistakes.

A few nights later we witnessed the Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam. At first I was disappointed, hearing mistakes and rough edges. Then, listening more carefully, I was drawn in by the conductor, the young Norwegian Klaus Makela, who will take over both the Concertgebouw and the Chicago Symphony in 2027.

Makela’s version of Mahler’s First Symphony was stunning, not because there were no mistakes but because of the propulsive energy and enthusiasm of the conductor. The orchestra played beautifully behind him. You might even say that, in its own way, the performance was perfect.

All in all, a glorious week. One concert hall. Two great orchestras. Three kinds of perfect.