Would Thomas Dausgaard be a good fit for the Houston Symphony?

In a recent release announcing the 2011-12 season, the Houston Symphony reminded us that indeed, Maestro Hans Graf's tenure is coming to an end rather soon, with the culmination of the 2012-2013 artistic calendar. And all guests conductors are fair game.

Looking at the season ahead, do you have any guesses? Any favorites?

As we continue through this season and into the next, CultureMap editors will add commentary, some serious, and some mischievous, in hopes of shinning some light into the opportunity that lies ahead. Houston deserves a world class conductor — don't you think?

So, we have decided to play a speculation game. Would the emotive Dane, Thomas Dausgaard, who is conducting this weekend's Verdi's Requiem, be considered?

With his two posts as chief conductor of the Swedish Chamber Orchestra and the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, it would appear rather unlikely that he would contemplate adding yet another post. But we won't ruin our fun by not talking about him.

His credentials are quite ridiculous. An extensive and diverse discography includes the complete Beethoven and Schumann Symphonies, all four Mozart Horn Concertos, Grieg's complete works for string orchestra, the Sibelius Violin Concerto with soloist Christian Tetzlaff, compositions by Ligeti, an extensive collection of Danish composer Rued Langgaard works and his contemporary Per Nørgård.

In North America, his credits include working with the Philadelphia Orchestra, L.A. Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony, Toronto Symphony and the National Arts Center Orchestra. 

We get it. The man gets around, which in the international music scene, brings more recognition and awareness to his accomplishments.

"Dausgaard really enhanced the self-confidence of the musicians. It has been a while since the orchestra, chorus and soloists sounded so good," one symphony insider said about Thursday night's performance.

The pros:

• Dausgaard sense of timing is exceptional. He is as comfortable filling the hall with music as he is waiting for the specific moment to start, continue, or let go of the tension created by the music itself or our response to it. He has a focus and intensity that is rare, pulling a dynamic range from the orchestra that thrilled audiences.
• His hand movements were incredibly expressive, even down to a single finger. A wide range of gestures was available to him, adding to the drama of the performance without taking attention from the music, musicians, soloists and most importantly, from the audience's enjoyment. We did catch a few Karate Kid moves, a couple of dramatic over reaching back bends, some smiles and menacing looks that would shame any villain in any horror film.
• The man is tall and looks appropriate in front of such a battery of musicians. Additionally the impressive wingspan — he has long arms, hands and fingers — is unmistakeable. And the hair — it stays perfect even after an impassioned performance, making me wonder what sort of products he uses. Inquiring minds would like to know.
• As an international recognized conductor, Dausgaard would continue the legacy of worldwide acclaim for our world-class orchestra. Maybe he could open other doors for additional tours? Plus his accent is classy and sexy.

The cons:

• In the spirit of supporting local, it would be preferably if Dausgaard had stronger ties to the city, although he has been a guest conductor in three other occasions starting in 2004.  Yes, his charisma was evident in the Verdi, but I wonder if the development and marketing departments would benefit from having someone with stronger local roots.
• Unfortunately, the benefit of having somewhat fixed hair that doesn't mess has its costs, inhibiting dramatic head tosses enhanced by hairography. 

Whether it was the repertoire or the man himself, the concert pulled a nice crowd for Thursday night's performance, attentive, ending in a rousing standing ovation for the orchestra, chorus, soloists and of course, Dausgaard himself.