Following an idea by Cornucopia and prompted by Alison, this Thread is to invite the sort of discussion about the evening concerts broadcast during the week that regularly occurs during the Proms season.
To start the ball rolling, did anyone listen to the evening concert on Friday? An unusual programme, a new Violin Concerto by Rebecca Saunders sandwiched between popular works by Dvorak and Tchaikovsky. I wasn't entirely convinced by the performance of the new work - having heard Saunders' work played so well by groups such as Elision and musikFabrik, this seemed rather tame and self-conscious playing by the BBCSO. This Music thrives on pitting very fragile, gentle sounds against violent, explosive Music with the point being that the quiet Music "wins" at the end, calmly weathering the storm thrown at it. If the Musicicians don't give the noisy Music all they've got, the result can be (as I thought it was here) a series of "ho-hum" events.
But perhaps it wasn't the orchestra's fault: the performance of the Tchaikovsky Fifth after the interval suggested that the conductor (Lionel Bringuier, whom I don't think I've heard before) preferred a lyrical rather than a dramatic approach to the work. No bad thing (even if I wouldn't want to hear it played this way too often) as it at least avoided the histrionics that can come with the alternative way of playing it. Beautifully judged string balance at the start of the Slow Movement, too: a pity so many in the audience forgot to bring handkerchiefs to mute their coughs!
Still available on "Listen Again" if you missed it: worth seeking out.
To start the ball rolling, did anyone listen to the evening concert on Friday? An unusual programme, a new Violin Concerto by Rebecca Saunders sandwiched between popular works by Dvorak and Tchaikovsky. I wasn't entirely convinced by the performance of the new work - having heard Saunders' work played so well by groups such as Elision and musikFabrik, this seemed rather tame and self-conscious playing by the BBCSO. This Music thrives on pitting very fragile, gentle sounds against violent, explosive Music with the point being that the quiet Music "wins" at the end, calmly weathering the storm thrown at it. If the Musicicians don't give the noisy Music all they've got, the result can be (as I thought it was here) a series of "ho-hum" events.
But perhaps it wasn't the orchestra's fault: the performance of the Tchaikovsky Fifth after the interval suggested that the conductor (Lionel Bringuier, whom I don't think I've heard before) preferred a lyrical rather than a dramatic approach to the work. No bad thing (even if I wouldn't want to hear it played this way too often) as it at least avoided the histrionics that can come with the alternative way of playing it. Beautifully judged string balance at the start of the Slow Movement, too: a pity so many in the audience forgot to bring handkerchiefs to mute their coughs!
Still available on "Listen Again" if you missed it: worth seeking out.
): if there were times when it seemed a trifle improvisatory I suspect that the Saunders ate into the rehearsal time. Also the orchestra has had (for the BBCSO
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