Iconic Beethoven: Nicholas Carter seizes fate by the throat

Rarely has the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra been led by a conductor of such strong personality as Nicholas Carter.

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Rarely has the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra been led by a conductor of such strong personality as Nicholas Carter. The 30-year-old from Melbourne is only just settling into the saddle as its newly appointed conductor, but already he has placed his stamp on the orchestra like a smoking hot branding iron.

Already he has proven he has chops to conduct opera in an odd but compelling concert performance of Act 1 of Die Walkure in February — odd because potted Wagner makes no sense, and compelling because it said loud and clear that if Adelaide is ever to mount another Ring, Carter is the obvious candidate to do it.

The skills of this young man, along with his aptitude for German repertoire, came across even more forcefully in this, his first Master Series concert as principal conductor of the ASO.

Strauss’s tone poem Don Juan burst forth with blazing energy and a heroic sweep that seemed to even take the players by surprise. Full of scurry, bluster and contrived gravitas, this was pure, intoxicating Strauss. Carter’s performance felt seized by the moment and unstoppable, with no time for niceties. A big-picture man, there is no pedantry about his conducting.

What was good for Strauss worked perhaps less well for Ravel, although here again the results were hardly less than riveting. The Piano Concerto in G with Croatian-born pianist Dejan Lazic was pungent and direct. Carter imparted similar kick-along energy and concise power, while Lazic played with an unfussy sense of purpose and an ear keenly attuned to this work’s delicious harmonic scrunches.

Beethoven’s Symphony No 5 played right back into his strengths. Bolting from the blocks with impatient speed and sharp rhythmic definition, this was a Fifth of rude power — corresponding to the defiant Beethoven who famously declared, “I shall seize fate by the throat”.

Some passages and endings were a little untidy, but this performance was rough-hewn — and magnificent for it. A dynamic, confident figure on the podium, Carter is able to bring new energy levels to orchestral performance. The ASO is poised for exciting times in his hands.

Iconic Beethoven. Adelaide Symphony Orchestra. Conductor: Nicholas Carter. Piano: Dejan Lazic. Adelaide Town Hall, March 18.