CUYAHOGA FALLS, Ohio — Finnish guest conductor Hannu Lintu strode onstage at the Blossom Music Center on July 27, all six-feet-plus of him, as purposefully as the hero in Lemminkäinen’s Return. The opening work on The Cleveland Orchestra’s program on Saturday was the fourth tone poem in Jan Sibelius’s “Lemminkäinen Suite,” based on Finland’s national epic, the “Kalevala.” All he needed was a horse.
But then, with a turn toward the orchestra and a mighty downbeat, he unleashed equestrian fury from strings and woodwinds, allowing some brass aggression here and there. With loose-limbed, ropey arms and an occasional leg-lift, Lintu projected the relaxed potency of a warrior leading his team to victory. No less eventful on Saturday was principal cello Mark Kosower’s performance of William Walton’s Cello Concerto .
The work was commissioned by and dedicated to the famous Russian cellist Gregor Piatigorsky, who premiered the score in 1957 with the Boston Symphony Orchestra under Charles Munch. The opening is odd but beautiful. After an introduction of “ticking sounds” in pizzicato strings, the cello enters with a lyrical statement that Kosower deepened with his trademark warm tone and gentle vibrato.
He also showed a willingness to resolve Walton’s opposing impulses. After an enigmatic quotation from Wagner’s death-odorous Tristan appears, Kosower played the spiky, comedic music that followed with equal conviction. The soloist showed his expressive .