Proms 2017 - Retrospective Reviews - Part 3/4



Prom 40 - SCO Robin Ticciati and the SCO have and established reputation of excellence in concert and on disc. This concert challenged the orchestra with four tense and turbulent works - of, in different ways visceral personal impact. Ticciati and his players didn't let the the side down. A taut and unsettling Brahms Tragic Overture was just short of revealing the piquancy the emotional depths Brahms often obscures. It was followed by a sensitive account of the Berg concerto with Christian Tetzlaff as soloist - here the emotional response was spot-on from soloist and orchestra alike. The orchestra is powerful when required but in both works it is aided by extraordinary transparency and in each section a collective view of the required weight of attack helped a lot. After the break Larcher's "Nocturne - Insomnia" blew open the Albert Hall and left me reeling. Finally a Schumann "Rhenish" Symphony to savour for it's clarity - though a tad cosy compared to the other three pieces.


Proms 47, 48 and 49: I enjoyed the three Bach inspired concerts on August 20th starting with a duo of organists, William Whitehead and Robert Quinney, tackling gems from Bach's Little Organ Book and contemporary responses to an invitation to complete Bach's project. As much to admire in the modern works as the Bach originals. The same was true of Sofi Jeannin's leadership of the BBC Singers, three sterling soloists and City of London Sinfonietta. They took us through a magnificent, thought-provoking tour of the Passions of the ages excerpts from works starting with Johann Walter (b. 1496) to Sir James MacMillan. A challenge was extraordinary when we think about teh styles involved (and this programme allowed us to do just that) - each change seemed to be easily accommodated by the BBC Singers and to Ms Jeannin's vital and alert ear. Bach, in this selection, was represented by the Matthew Passion. Finally and later still was Bach's other extant Passion, the St John. Alas much as I admire John Butt's work (and writing), I don't find myself moved by his readings - I must try harder.


Prom 50 CBSO/MGT Mirga's second year at the Proms after she has been wandering all over Europe and beyond doing great things in this off season. A deft and nuanced Leonore Overture No 3 set us up for a grand night of music: there's much in this conductors approach to the last moments of a phrase - it transforms the attack onto the next phrase and it sets a different trajectory overall as these nuances stack up. We also had a tremendous account of Stravinsky's underplayed Violin Concerto which is such a characterful piece and, as Leila Josefwicz demonstrated, has huge wells of dynamism for the attentive and bold soloist to draw. Even better when matched to a similarly muscular orchestra and conductor. Don't think it has every appeared in to be an iconic piece of Twentieth Century writing for me until this performance. I doubt I will hear it played with such care acuity and power again soon - everything fell into place thanks to the vigour and fluency.


Sadly Gerald Barry's Canada will have to wait for another day, despite it's echoes of Fidelio I found it hard to engage.


Mirga Grazinyte-Tyla arrived at orchestral conducting following directing choirs and that's for me a key aspect of her approach to Beethoven. Her reading of Beethoven Five was one of the most exciting I've heard in many years. Her appreciation of the attack and sustained power of historically informed performance was evident (the inner lines shone through). And as with the Overture the shaping of the phrases was unique and telling. Her speeds made for untold dramatic turns but also novel changes to the works boarder progress. The motoring Andante con moto took on less portent and became less of a contrast and more of a textural device more so for the re-invention of Beethoven's phrasing and teh lightness of touch. It all worked beautifully as did the not very Allegro of the Minuet'ish bit of the Scherzo compared to the faster Trio. The crucible of these movements meant for a joyous, uncluttered final movement and a new type of history revealed in Beethoven's half lights. Karajan advised Rattle to throw away his first 100 Fifths - there's no way Mirga should do that. Few active conductors have the balls to take such an inventive path. The independent adventure of MGT and moreover the co-operation of the musicians in her mission was a joy. On the evidence of this concert the CBSO are playing with panache and joy now. A true delight - if this symphony with these forces is played anywhere near you - go hear it. It is pure re-invention in a way few have achieved since HIP came in - for me she stands with Roth and Minkowski in the new post HIP movement. Add to these names Grazinyte-Tyla - what a time it is to rediscover Beethoven...


Post script - listening a second and third time it is a magnificent subtle reading which cleverly has no loss of the great power, urgency and drama of the classic readings of the 20th Century on record. The phrasing is like an opera (though not one by Beethoven) and the impact is crucially everything a Beethoven symphony should have.


Prom 52 Dvorak 9 Much as I like to know more about works, I'd really rather this process of getting to grips with all aspects of their creation wasn't confined to works which we know, which are over-played and which in the final analysis are not the best of their creator's canon. We have the same problem with Shostakovich 5 and Mahler 6 - both cases of the backstory being better than the symphony. I would have much rather we had something on Dvorak 7th Symphony getting new works into the public's ears. But we are where we are and for some reason this symphony still fills the concert hall.


By fits and starts, Elder's Dvorak 9 took time to decide what it was doing. The exposition in the first movement didn't quite match the bold vision we've come to expect. The Halle have a lightness of touch and liquidity of phrasing which allowed Elder to bring new ideas to the fore. That said there was for me a little lacking in terms of central stability. Pulse, balance and weight seemed to endlessly shift. Some I'm sure will love that but it's not for me, especially not in this music.


Prom 54 La Scala Philharmonic Gave us a programme of two composers and three works. After the interval we had two Roman tone poems by Respighi played with real panache. The orchestra has a golden glow and transparency which would expect from a group used to supporting voices. Chailly was very good too - avoiding the twee superficiality of some approaches to Respighi and revelling in Fountains and Pines tone poems and their kaleidoscopic orchestration. I enjoyed it very much (and I rarely say that about Chailly's readings).


Proms at ... Bold Tendencies Multi-Storey Car Park, Peckham: The prom opened with a Bach Chorale orchestrated by Bantock - a gentle start. Kate Whitley is associated with this orchestra and it's enterprising concerts in a multi-storey car park, more notably though is the work this group do in school. Her work "I am I say" has some of the straightforward natural affinities we might associate broadly with say Vaughan Williams' music, and I mean that as a compliment as it was done with the same simplicity and love. Ruby Hughes and Michael Sumual were soloists and with children's choirs brought urgency to this fine colourful piece. This prom ended with John Adam's Harmonielehre described by Tom Service as a symphony. I'm not totally convinced of it's symphonic credentials though separately these are three very powerful movements and in this rendition I really heard the last movement's roots ringing true in this reading conducted by the projects co-founder Christopher Stark. BUT the orchestra might as well have been in a studio in Broadcasting House from the studio quality sound. BBC should have allowed themselves and us more realistic and lively soundscape which included the noises of Peckham.

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