4th March at 7.30pm The BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra

[salymap]

From City Halls, Glasgow, introduced by Jamie MacDougall,

Paul Watkins [cello], conductor John Wilson

Walton Overture Portsmouth Point

Finzi Cello Concerto

Interval. Stephen Johnson explores Holst's 'The Perfect Fool'

8.40p, Holst The Perfect Fool

Arnold Bax The Garden of Fand.

[JFLL]

Nice to see an all-English programme with slightly less well-known works, and not a lark in sight.

[salymap]

Nice to see an all-English programme with slightly less well-known works, and not a lark in sight.

Just what I thought JFLL, and I'm very fond of the Holst, which used to be programmed a lot more than it is now.

[teamsaint]

nice programme, I'll maybe turn on 15 minutes or so in......

[JFLL]

Just what I thought JFLL, and I'm very fond of the Holst, which used to be programmed a lot more than it is now.

I think you're right, saly. The Perfect Fool was the first Holst piece I heard apart from the Planets. Another rarity these days is the splendid Egdon Heath, which I first heard a long time ago -- before I read Hardy's The Return of the Native. Another Holst favourite is the short opera Savitri, a very powerful and haunting work which deserves more of an airing.

[salymap]

I think you're right, saly. The Perfect Fool was the first Holst piece I heard apart from the Planets. Another rarity these days is the splendid Egdon Heath, which I first heard a long time ago -- before I read Hardy's The Return of the Native. Another Holst favourite is the short opera Savitri, a very powerful and haunting work which deserves more of an airing.

Apart from the ubiquitous Planets Holst isn't really appreciated enough. And why do I think of words to The Perfect Fool. 'Spirits of the earth, come to my call' to that well known trumpet[?] bit ? Maybe the interval talk will tell me.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

... the splendid Egdon Heath ...

Another Holst favourite is the short opera Savitri, a very powerful and haunting work which deserves more of an airing.

[EdgeleyRob]

I'll leave it to the cello experts on here to decide whether or not that was a good performance of the Finzi,seemed ok to me but maybe didn't really catch fire.
It's such an underrated concerto,makes a nice change from the Elgar.

[RobertLeDiable]

I agree about Savitri. It's one of the few pieces by Holst that I find moving. For me there's often a coldness in his music.

[Alison]

I'll leave it to the cello experts on here to decide whether or not that was a good performance of the Finzi,seemed ok to me but maybe didn't really catch fire.
It's such an underrated concerto,makes a nice change from the Elgar.

Not for the first time it seemed to me that Paul Watkins was playing to himself and not really drawing in the audience.

[Alison]

An enjoyable enough concert which I didn't want to end. Pretty impressive playing under the indefatigable John Wilson.

How do folk feel about the presentation of these concerts ? Broad accented Chuminess etc - very similar in Wales.

[Flosshilde]

An enjoyable enough concert which I didn't want to end. Pretty impressive playing under the indefatigable John Wilson.

How do folk feel about the presentation of these concerts ? Broad accented Chuminess etc - very similar in Wales.

'Broad accented'?! It was Jamie MacDougal, the usual announcer for BBCSSO concerts. I can assure you that from where I'm sitting his accent is perfectly normal. Now, if it was someone from London that would be a 'broad accent.

Surely you would expect a Scottish accent from the presenter of a concert broadcast from Scotland?

[salymap]

I listened later on iPlayer and John Wilson is certainly not just a show and light music conductor, A programme I enjoyed, although I still have problems with the Finzi, not knowing it very well and also now having tinnitus.

No profs available for comment apparently.

[Colonel Danby]

I only caught the second part of the BBCSSO concert, I shall have to listen again to judge Paul Watkins in the Finzi but it is a glorious work that I have long admired (I have Wallfisch with Tod on Chandos). But the Holst 'Perfect Fool' and the Bax were very fine and well played, and it was good to hear lesser known works by the two composers: I'm afraid I'm a bit of a Bax fanatic, and 'Garden of Fand' was spendidly done.

[BBMmk2]

From City Halls, Glasgow, introduced by Jamie MacDougall,

Paul Watkins [cello], conductor John Wilson

Walton Overture Portsmouth Point

Finzi Cello Concerto

Interval. Stephen Johnson explores Holst's 'The Perfect Fool'

8.40p, Holst The Perfect Fool

Arnold Bax The Garden of Fand.

What a brilliant piece of programming!! I must be having abusy week(without realising it!), so i wil definetloy be catching up on this one!! Why can't this be done more often!?!?!?