Saw the Liverpool Phil tonight at the Victoria Hall in Stoke. Blimey is all I can say. Now I like Sibelius, but Petrenko's realisation of the 5th symphony was breathtaking! I knew he was good & that the orchestra was now very good, but I wasn't prepared for what I heard. The brass was stunning & the strings in the final movement were just perfect, especially in the really quiet passages. I think I'm a very lucky & privelleged to have been there.
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Tremendous!Originally posted by davehsug View Post
I am very envious!"...the isle is full of noises,
Sounds and sweet airs, that give delight and hurt not.
Sometimes a thousand twangling instruments
Will hum about mine ears, and sometime voices..."
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Well, rub it in folks, won't ya?
I went to see the Malta Phil perform Beethoven PC No 3 and Brahms 4 only last night. After hearing the Hallé last month, my dejection and shame were complete. It is pointless to give details - it hurts.
Like Caliban, I'm pleased for you davehsug.
Happy listening to all of you,
MarioComment
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I draw the conclusion from what people have posted and from my own experience that we are living in a 'golden age' for British orchestras. We must make sure that penny pinching politicians don't ruin it. I look forward to the R3 Halle/Elder broadcasts with great pleasure:rarely a disappointment.Petrenko is undoubtedly a major force his Shostakovich is quite outstanding.Comment
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Great news, davehsug! Thanks for posting - was there dancing in the streets of Hanley post-concert?Originally posted by davehsug View Post
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Indeed - though HMV online have now failed on 2 occasions to deliver his 6th and 12th to my doorstep... Still waiting a month later...Originally posted by Atticus View Post
More importantly, davehsug, do you know if any of the Liverpool Sibelius is being recorded by the BBC, so those of use who weren't there to hear it live can sample this? Perhaps they are doing the same programme back at base, assuming there were no mikes in the hall where you were?"...the isle is full of noises,
Sounds and sweet airs, that give delight and hurt not.
Sometimes a thousand twangling instruments
Will hum about mine ears, and sometime voices..."
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Hi Caliban. Sadly no mikes around so it wasn't recorded. The BBc Phil concerts are often recorded, but I don't think any other orchestra is that I've seen there.
In answer to amateur, there wasn't quite dancing, in fact a bit the opposite. People were fairly quiet on the way out, I think still taking stock. What gave it away for me, was the demeanour of the musicians at the end. They seemed very excited during the ovations (not standing of course, although in this case it may have been appropriate!), & they were positively beaming with smiles & chat amongst each other, in the way you do when you feel you've achieved something special. So I guess they felt they'd got it just about right. Petrenko looked pretty satisfied too.Comment
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Perhaps Auferstehen2 would care to elaborate on his startling re-action to the mention of Liverpool.
Don de LiverpoolComment
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Hello Angle!
My message 29 was a football joke, granted a rather weak one on my behalf. Football supporters recognise that one of the very greatest rivalries between two football clubs is that which exists between Liverpool FC and Manchester United FC, arguable two of the very greatest football sides, not just in England, but maybe the world. Rivalries that would compete on the same level would be Celtic v Rangers in Scotland, Barcelona v Real Madrid in Spain, perhaps even Lazio v Roma or Genoa v Sampdoria in Italy.
It has nothing to do with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orch., which I heard frequently in the Royal Festival in London where I lived for some 35 years. If memory serves, they then used to be conducted by Sir Charles Groves. A very fine band too, but whether they’re on a par with the Hallé, I am simply unqualified to give an intelligent answer.
Angle, it was a joke – sorry for any offence. A glass of fine wine (or equally fine beer) awaits you if you come this way!
Best wishes,
MarioComment
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No offence taken, Auferstehen2. Your clarification was helpful. Hackles are often raised when someone exclaims "Liverpool" in a sort of despairing tone but then such utterers are usually from the south. I am not a Liverpudlian by birth but have lived here long enough to recognise it as a fine city with a great deal to offer culturally. Vibrant might be the word.
RLPO is once again held in very high esteem, especially under the baton of Petrenko. Concerts are always sell-outs, which is often more than can be said of the Halle (arguments ahead, I think).
If you would like to hear the Phil in all its glory, try its Shostakovich recordings. Superb.
DonComment
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Angle, I can certainly prove you right on concert attendance. For the concert that made me start this thread, it was VERY poorly attended. As I'm obviously no longer in touch with the pulse, so to speak, I thought it might have something to do with the economy. Clearly, as you have just proven, it isn't.
Are the Mancunians not as supportive of their local arts as the Liverpudlians seem to be, I wonder?
MarioComment
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Have you developed the scouse "chip" yet ?Originally posted by Angle View Post
you know
"all the world's against us but we know how to tell a joke" ?
when they completely messed up the City of Culture the other year that was, more or less the stance
(I am from Merseyside by the way and was taught by RLPO players as a teenager, its good to see them come out of the doldrums though)
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Hello MrGG!
I don’t want to get involved in this intra-City clash – heck, I’m not even British!
However, you will find through my posts here and on the old BBCMBs, that I’m fascinated, absolutely captivated, by the workings of an orchestra, “behind the scenes”.
For example, the very first rehearsal with a new orchestra, who decides how many first and second violins to have, does the conductor tell the timpanist to “bash those blighters” or to calm down as he cannot hear inner detail?
Honestly, I could ask a million questions. But let’s just start with one.
Who taught you at the RLPO? I don’t mean names, but which instrument and how do you cultivate an inner ear for listening to orchestral balance?
Or am I asking too much here? Sorry, that's three questions...
MarioComment
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Mike Ogonovsky (now retired !)
was part of the RLPO horn section for many years
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Hm, there is a suspicious little theme running through these posts...
Why is it that whenever I ask a professional orchestral musician a question regarding the Inner Sanctum of an orchestra, they clam up? Or, to the very last man or woman, agree as to the talent, or otherwise, of the man up front?
Off to my piano lesson now - back later.
MarioComment
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