BSO premieres León, performs Sierra with soloist James Carter, and presents Brahms’s second symphony
León and Sierra given most attention compared to Brahms
Photo provided by Michael J. Lutch
Photo provided by Michael J. Lutch
Photo provided by Michael J. Lutch
★★★⯪☆
León’s Time to Time, Sierra’s Concerto for Saxophones and Orchestra, Brahms’s Symphony No. 2
Boston Symphony Orchestra
Conducted by Dima Slobodeniouk
Featuring James Carter on saxophone
Boston Symphony Hall
Nov. 14 – Nov. 16, 2025
This week, the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) teamed up with Dima Slobodeniouk to showcase a world premiere of Tania León’s Time to Time, Robert Sierra’s Concerto for Saxophones and Orchestra, and the classic Brahms’s Second Symphony. Slobodeniouk, a frequent guest conductor, will return in April–May for Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9.
As an introduction for Time to Time, Tania León herself briefly explained her inspiration from haikus by renowned Edo period poet Matsuo Bashō. The influence was clear even from the first note, diving immediately into the night skies of Japan and passing by the full moon through the clouds. The percussionists were the star of this poem; the three of them (plus the timpani) were in top form. It was also a good choice to finish the piece as it began, achieving León’s vision of a short-period episode in which clouds cover the moon before the moon returns again.
While the piece featured many interesting ideas, it felt unnecessarily prolonged at times, and its emphasis on texture over melody left some listeners without a clear thematic anchor. The result came across as almost an atmospheric tableau — highly evocative, if perhaps more scene-setting than structurally self-contained.
Sierra’s concerto was intended for the soloist to showcase his virtuosity (and seems to do so, based on my impressions), so it is interesting that Sierra dubbed it a piece for saxophones and orchestra. Aside from this, the concerto was a brilliant showpiece of Carter’s immense talent, which stole the show. Interestingly, this concerto keeps to the standard large-form model of the 19th–20th centuries, with an intense and serious first movement, a slow second movement, a scherzo, and a vibrant finale.
The first movement, “Rhythmic,” is perhaps the most forward-looking movement, pushing through the Latin mood with a more modern harmonic language. The second movement, “Tender,” contrasted well with the first, featuring common-practice harmony and exploring the soprano saxophone’s melodic capabilities. The melody itself was also quite captivating.
The scherzo was more of a piece of small musical theatre, a scene where a talented sax player is attempting an improvisation. I appreciated the humor in this movement, with Carter acting as if he were merely practicing or struggling to play the high notes. The last movement had a 1950s rock ‘n’ roll style to it, paying strong tribute to the virtuosos of that time. One cannot help but tap their feet to the music, with the sax sounding almost like an electric guitar. I also enjoyed the smaller but still noticeable musical jokes in this movement. It was unclear whether these were improvisations or written in the score.
Overall, the concerto was a success, with the latter three movements creating genuine interest while the first movement felt less immediately engaging than their vividly characterized later counterparts.
Following Sierra’s Concerto was Brahms’s Second Symphony, also widely referred to as the “Pastoral” Symphony. Incidentally, Brahms himself was probably not fond of this designation, based on his letters to Clara Schumann and his desire to escape from Beethoven’s shadows. Indeed, Brahms’s usage of musical language here is very different from his first symphony, in which Brahms himself recognized the strong Beethoven influence.
Overall, the Second Symphony felt somewhat like an afterthought, with the evening’s spotlight resting more on the contemporary works. The first movement (“Allegro non troppo”) started calmly with a standard tempo. While warmly shaped, the BSO experienced some challenges in coordination — Slobodeniouk’s flexible phrasing didn’t always draw unified responses from the strings and winds. While the Brahmsian lyricism was clearly present, a few noticeable slips briefly disrupted the flow, and the final D major chord showed unevenness. The orchestra, however, recovered by the recapitulation, and their full potential shined through the remainder of the movement.
The second movement (“Adagio non troppo”) fared much better in terms of execution. Starting from the sighing cello melody, the first violins and cellos played their melodies very well. I particularly appreciated the strong second violins and violas, which are often sidelined. The melodic transfers from the lower strings to the upper strings were natural and smooth. The brass were appropriately keeping to their supporting role in this movement. The only moment of instability was the final B Major chord, which was uneven in placement.
Given its rhythmic intricacies, the scherzo is a difficult movement to execute. Carrying on from the second movement, the BSO maintained a balance in this movement, as both the woodwind and string melodies were appropriately emphasised. The trio section was also done well, with an especially precise rendition by the woodwinds. This success was reprised at the modified scherzo until the end, this time with a beautiful G major chord as the final note. [1]
The finale began with a brass entry more forceful than ideal, momentarily unsettling the balance of the orchestra. The quick quaver runs occasionally blurred in the strings. The woodwinds and brass were precise, but sometimes a bit too loud. Fortunately, the orchestra recovered at the recapitulation, with all instruments entering with well-judged dynamics. The remainder of the movement was executed neatly to its jubilant end, and the BSO was fully focused as a single unit once again. The final coda was as exuberant as one can hope for and ended the night on a high note.
[1] Ending a slow movement in a single I chord occurs quite often in Brahms’s orchestral works. One other notable example is the second movement of the violin concerto. The second symphony is unique in that the first three movements all have this ending.