Afternoon Concert - general thread

[Edgy 2]

Wonderful concert of English music this afternoon - Lord Berners' own Portsmouth Point overture: having switched on I thought it must be some 1920s ballet score by Prokofiev that had passed me by - there were also anticipations of Malcolm Arnold, three years before Arnold's year of birth; the early Stanford VC, Mendelssohn-influenced but substantial for all that; some Vaughan Williams we hadn't heard, written for a Maeterlinck play, of all things, and not particularly Vaughan Williamsy; a well-known Delius tone poem that repeated much of what he had already said 6 years earlier in "First Cuckoo..."; and the second symphony - from the early 1930s - of a composer previously only a name to me, Robin Milford, which sounded like Parry might have had he lived to be a very very old man, and fallen under the spell of Sibelius. I may have missed something - pre-announcements for each of these works was sparing in the extreme - did Ms Gore mention it was Alfredo Casella who actually orchestrated the Berners?

This was also broadcast last July and mentioned in this thread at the time.
This orchestration is by Martin Yates

[LMcD]

Wonderful concert of English music this afternoon - Lord Berners' own Portsmouth Point overture: having switched on I thought it must be some 1920s ballet score by Prokofiev that had passed me by - there were also anticipations of Malcolm Arnold, three years before Arnold's year of birth; the early Stanford VC, Mendelssohn-influenced but substantial for all that; some Vaughan Williams we hadn't heard, written for a Maeterlinck play, of all things, and not particularly Vaughan Williamsy; a well-known Delius tone poem that repeated much of what he had already said 6 years earlier in "First Cuckoo..."; and the second symphony - from the early 1930s - of a composer previously only a name to me, Robin Milford, which sounded like Parry might have had he lived to be a very very old man, and fallen under the spell of Sibelius. I may have missed something - pre-announcements for each of these works was sparing in the extreme - did Ms Gore mention it was Alfredo Casella who actually orchestrated the Berners?

I shall have to listen to the Robin Milford. I have a very nice Helios CD (CDH55084) called 'Songs by Finzi and his Friends', which includes 3 of Milford's songs.

[Edgy 2]

I shall have to listen to the Robin Milford. I have a very nice Helios CD (CDH55084) called 'Songs by Finzi and his Friends', which includes 3 of Milford's songs.

There’s a nice chamber music record on Toccata Classics.
This is wonderful

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fire-that-Breaks-Thee/dp/B00JDCZZBK/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Robin+Milford&qid=1591651119&sr=8-1

[Serial_Apologist]

This was also broadcast last July and mentioned in this thread at the time.
This orchestration is by Martin Yates

Thanks Edgy - hadn't realised it was a repeat.

[Cockney Sparrow]

I was working in the garden on Monday afternoon - a lot of sorting out in the shed (new) /Compost bin area. I listened to Afternoon Concert using a bluetooth speaker and enjoyed the programme very much.

I'm an admirer of Paavo Jarvi but don't seek out Schumann's symphonies; however, it was (as I said) enjoyable. The surprise was the rest of the programme. My general rule Is to avoid re-arrangements of works often performed in the original forces ("Nimrod", "Lark Ascending" - oh dear…). However the Erwin Stein arrangement of Mahler's 4th really worked, in its own terms, for me and Christine Karg was delightful. Finally there's little chance I would have previously heard the Berio, but I'm glad I did, and will listen again on better speakers or headphones.

Sibelius: Tapiola, op. 112
Schumann: Symphony No. 3 in E flat, op. 97 ('Rhenish')Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Paavo Järvi

Sir Simon Rattle and the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra play Berio: Sinfonia .

Part of A European Concert for Europe, given in the empty Berlin Philharmonie, on 01/05/2020, after the lockdown. The reduced forces of the Berlin Philharmonic are conducted by Kirill Petrenko.
Mahler: Symphony No. 4 in G
(arrangement for chamber ensemble by Erwin Stein)
Christiane Karg, soprano
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Kirill Petrenko, conductor

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000mknv

[bluestateprommer]

Not sure if anyone else heard the Ulster Orchestra's 1-hour live concert from Belfast on Afternoon Concert 4 weeks back, with:

Martinů: Concerto for Double String Orchestra, Piano and Timpani
Bartók: Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000m6rz

Of the two, the Martinů had a bit more drive and pizazz, IMHO. The Bartók sounded more than a bit careful and safe in pacing, but given that MfSPaC it's a difficult enough score to rehearse and perform under normal, non-pandemic circumstances, the Ulster Orchestra strings and non-string friends did well, with Jac van Steen at the helm, and any quibbles on interpretation are not a big deal at all. Really good to hear them perform live, even if to an empty hall (besides announcer John Toal) and only a radio audience.

[Serial_Apologist]

Not sure if anyone else heard the Ulster Orchestra's 1-hour live concert from Belfast on Afternoon Concert 4 weeks back, with:

Martinů: Concerto for Double String Orchestra, Piano and Timpani
Bartók: Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000m6rz

Of the two, the Martinů had a bit more drive and pizazz, IMHO. The Bartók sounded more than a bit careful and safe in pacing, but given that MfSPaC it's a difficult enough score to rehearse and perform under normal, non-pandemic circumstances, the Ulster Orchestra strings and non-string friends did well, with Jac van Steen at the helm, and any quibbles on interpretation are not a big deal at all. Really good to hear them perform live, even if to an empty hall (besides announcer John Toal) and only a radio audience.

Two works very with a very heavy emotional load. Perhaps the orchestra was just drained.

[Bryn]

Two works very with a very heavy emotional load. Perhaps the orchestra was just drained.

It was pretty much just an intro to the RCO contribution to the afternoon's music-making.

[Ein Heldenleben]

This Boulez / BBC SO Daphnis and Chloé from 2005 is stunningly good. The subtlety of the orchestral sound - really wonderful.

[Bryn]

This Boulez / BBC SO Daphnis and Chloé from 2005 is stunningly good. The subtlety of the orchestral sound - really wonderful.

The whole programme brings back fond memories.

[Ein Heldenleben]

The whole programme brings back fond memories.

This has the bonus of really interesting insights from the BBC SO’s chief percussionist - 2 hour rehearsal sessions with just him, Boulez and an Oboist - and currently memories from Sidonie Goosens

[Bryn]

I note that whoever wrote the blurg for https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000nvjt can't count. Prokofiev's Ode to the End of the War is scored, among its other instremarium, for 8, not a mere 4, harps. At least they got the number of pianos right. Here's one of at least three perfromances to be found on Youtube. Not quite up to the Rozhdestvensky one rebroadcast this afternoon but:

[Pulcinella]

I note that whoever wrote the blurg for https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000nvjt can't count. Prokofiev's Ode to the End of the War is scored, among its other instremarium, for 8, not a mere 4, harps. At least they got the number of pianos right. Here's one of at least three perfromances to be found on Youtube. Not quite up to the Rozhdestvensky one rebroadcast this afternoon but:
...

I wonder if that's an example of something that cropped up a while back (Richard commented on it, as his wife is a harpist, but I can't remember which piece we were discussing; something by Shostakovich I think): Russian harps were pretty feeble, so maybe 4 modern (Western?) harps is equivalent to 8 Russian ones. Presumably there aren't 8 independent parts?

PS: Love the typo (or deliberate neologism?) blurg; maybe we should adopt it for the drivel they write about the BaL work too!

[Bryn]

I wonder if that's an example of something that cropped up a while back (Richard commented on it, as his wife is a harpist, but I can't remember which piece we were discussing; something by Shostakovich I think): Russian harps were pretty feeble, so maybe 4 modern (Western?) harps is equivalent to 8 Russian ones. Presumably there aren't 8 independent parts?

PS: Love the typo (or deliberate neologism?) blurg; maybe we should adopt it for the drivel they write about the BaL work too!

No, the Rhozdestvenky performance definitely used 8 harps. I remember it well. As you would expect, Penny Gore gave the correct information when presenting the work during yesterday's programme. Those who are familiar with the composer's Cantata for the 20th Anniversary of the October Revolution will have noted how the inveterate recycler used much material from it in the Ode to the End of the War. The "blurg" was, sorry to say, just a simple fnger slip on the keyboard.

[Cockney Sparrow]

No, the Rhozdestvenky performance definitely used 8 harps. I remember it well. As you would expect, Penny Gore gave the correct information when presenting the work during yesterday's programme. Those who are familiar with the composer's Cantata for the 20th Anniversary of the October Revolution will have noted how the inveterate recycler used much material from it in the Ode to the End of the War. The "blurg" was, sorry to say, just a simple fnger slip on the keyboard.

I sang Bass in the chorus in the "20th Anniversary" work (+ Seven we are Seven) not so long ago so I'll have a listen to that. I can now say I've sung texts from the usual Christian liturgies to the speeches of Lenin and Stalin and various shades between.......