Live from Perth BBC Scottish SO/Runnicles

[Hornspieler]

From 0730 tonight 20th September.

Britten: Overture, The Building of the House
Mahler: Songs

8.10 Interval

Mahler: Symphony No. 5

Thomas Hampson (baritone)
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
Donald Runnicles (conductor)

The BBC Scottish Symphony and Chief Conductor Donald Runnicles launch their 2013/2014 season with a concert celebrating the music of Gustav Mahler.
The concert opens with music by a composer who took great inspiration from that Austrian master: Benjamin Britten. In his centenary year, the orchestra perform his sparkling 'Overture: The Building of the House.'
The internationally renowned baritone Thomas Hampson joins the orchestra to perform a selection of Mahler's songs from 'Des Knaben Wunderhorn' and 'Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen'. Mahler's epic Fifth Symphony -from the turn of the 20th Century- concludes the concert. Described by Benjamin Britten as music to 'revel' in, this mighty work journeys over 75 minutes from an ominous funeral march to a breath-taking finale, by way of the 'Adagietto'. Written as an expression of love to Alma Schindler, whom he was shortly to marry, it is possibly Mahler's most famous musical work.
Live from Perth Concert Hall

That haunting adagio to please the film buffs (Death in Venice) and that other haunt which is for horn players - the seemingly endless obligato movement which hardly leaves anywhere to take a breather

HS

NB There is already a thread posted by Mercia drawing attention to tonight's broadcast. Please add your comments to that thread and treat this one only as a reminder:

[mercia]

perhaps my thread

http://www.for3.org/forums/showthread.php?9361-BBC-SSO-Runnicles-20-9-13-7-30pm

could be deleted - thank you (along with my other threads )

[Hornspieler]

perhaps my thread

http://www.for3.org/forums/showthread.php?9361-BBC-SSO-Runnicles-20-9-13-7-30pm

could be deleted - thank you (along with my other threads )

Sorry, Mercia. I missed that 'heads up'.

Best to stick to yours and I will amend mine to point message boarders to it.

HS

[HighlandDougie]

I'm going to this concert, if I don't expire from the cold first. The last time I was present to hear a Mahler symphony performed in this venue (the 3rd; RSNO and Stéphane Dénève) I did think that it wasn't really big enough for this size of orchestra so I'll be interested to hear what any listeners might make of the broadcast. It is a great venue for instrumental and chamber music, though.

[Hornspieler]

If you missed last night's performance, you missed the finest playing of that fiendishly difficult (and exhausting) playing of the horn obligato in Mahler's fifth symphony (David Flack) that you are ever likely to hear.

Plus some wonderful singing from Thomas Hampson both in the Mahler songs and during the concert interval!

(There was also an overture by Benjamin Britten)

Donald Runnicles is a great conductor. He drew a lot more from the BBC SSO than any of the other conductors (with the exception of Andrew Mansie) that I have heard over the past few years.

Don't take my word for it. Listen on the iPlayer (and please report back here)

HS

[Petrushka]

If you missed last night's performance, you missed the finest playing of that fiendishly difficult (and exhausting) playing of the horn obligato in Mahler's fifth symphony (David Flack) that you are ever likely to hear.

Plus some wonderful singing from Thomas Hampson both in the Mahler songs and during the concert interval!

(There was also an overture by Benjamin Britten)

Donald Runnicles is a great conductor. He drew a lot more from the BBC SSO than any of the other conductors (with the exception of Andrew Mansie) that I have heard over the past few years.

Don't take my word for it. Listen on the iPlayer (and please report back here)

HS

I caught this live and was more impressed with this Mahler 5 than I expected. Runnicles does seem to be getting fine results from the BBCSSO with some really songful string playing in the Adagietto. Indeed I sensed that DR has been working hard to improve the string quality of the orchestra as it was good throughout. When I heard the same team at the Proms in Mahler 3 a couple of seasons back it seemed to be beyond their reach. This was not the case in Mahler 5 where even Karajan said that the BPO found the scherzo tiring.

I didn't care much for the Britten overture and wish that Hampson had stuck to either Wunderhorn or the Gesellen songs and not a mix.

Also felt the sound quality suffered at the hands of the dreaded limiter but was otherwise fine.

Looking forward to Highland Dougie's thoughts from the hall.

[HighlandDougie]

It was indeed a much better concert than I had expected, not least because DR seemed to have "sized" the orchestra to the hall. Like Petrushka, I wish that Thomas Hampson had stuck to one or the other of the Gesellen or the Wunderhorn songs. I thought that "Wo die schönen trompeten blasen" suited his voice rather better than the rest - and, if I was being nitpicky (and hadn't been listening to Christian Gerhaher earlier in the week), I would say that he tended not to bring any special meaning to the words. But, great to hear him - and the orchestral accompaniment to all of the songs was very well done (as might be expected from such an experienced opera conductor).

TOT (the other half) had never heard the Britten before and said that it sounded 'American' - I'm not sure that that was meant as a compliment but it was good that it at least had had an airing.

The symphony just got better and better. I was sitting there wondering if HS was listening to what to my untutored ears sounded like exceptionally fine horn playing (at least as good as the Concertgebouw which was the last orchestra I'd heard play this symphony in the flesh). Excellent string playing (I'm sure that Petrushka is right in his assumption about DR having worked on their string tone), very good scherzo (the pivotal movement in this symphony - and possibly in Mahler's symphonic output), beautifully played adagietto and an exhilirating finale. The orchestra appeared to be enjoying themselves (always a good sign - no long faces) and the audience behaved impeccably - no coughing at inappropriate moments.

I can't comment on the limiter but, as it's not a big hall and as there are some very loud passages, it's quite likely that the engineers might have taken fright at some points. A fine concert, though, which quite made me forget about my sinusitis. Well worth a listen on i-player.

[Stanley Stewart]

Performance-Classical Forum

I have yet to listen to my minidisc recording from last night's live recording from Perth but was most gratified to hear such a fresh performance of Mahler 5 from the BBCSO/Runnicles who seems to have been a rejuvenating influence on the orchestra. I remembered, too, attending a few Thos Hampson recitals at the Wigmore Hall in the 80s and felt a bit sad to hear the wear and tear on his vocal chords since then but can believe that he is still a fine communicator with a strong and relaxed platform presence. And the rapt attention of the audience could also be felt!

A real pleasure to have two consecutive'live' evening concerts on R3 this week, alongside several lunchtime chamber music recitals from West Cork throughout the week. An antidote to the churlish 'girning' (my N-E Scotland upbringing) about the prevalence of film music on R3. Tut-tut! On Thursday (19 Sept), the CBSO/Nelsons gave us a hair-raising and riveting Rite of Spring which will linger long in my memory. Thank you, R3.

[pastoralguy]

[QUOTE=Hornspieler;
He drew a lot more from the BBC SSO than any of the other conductors (with the exception of Andrew Mansie) that I have heard over the past few years.
[/QUOTE]

The last time I heard the BBCSSO live was with Manze. They played the Dvorak 'clarinet concerto which would have been fine had some 'cellist not been sitting at the front of the stage. Don't know what he was doing there since I couldn't hear a damn thing he was playing although he LOOKED as if he was working hard.

Most odd...

[teamsaint]

The last time I heard the BBCSSO live was with Manze. They played the Dvorak 'clarinet concerto which would have been fine had some 'cellist not been sitting at the front of the stage. Don't know what he was doing there since I couldn't hear a damn thing he was playing although he LOOKED as if he was working hard.

Most odd...

but also

[Don Petter]

Like Petrushka, I wish that Thomas Hampson had stuck to one or the other of the Gesellen or the Wunderhorn songs. I thought that "Wo die schönen trompeten blasen" suited his voice rather better than the rest - and, if I was being nitpicky (and hadn't been listening to Christian Gerhaher earlier in the week), I would say that he tended not to bring any special meaning to the words.

I happened to tune in 'blind' in the car to the Mahler songs, and thought 'I wonder who the singer is - It's all a bit lack-lustre'. But I am sure the whole experience must have been more than the sum of the parts.

[edashtav]

I happened to tune in 'blind' in the car to the Mahler songs, and thought 'I wonder who the singer is - It's all a bit lack-lustre'. But I am sure the whole experience must have been more than the sum of the parts.

I've heard only the symphony, thus far, on the iPlayer but that was very good with plenty of alert, clean playing and a sensitive interpretative approach from Runnicles who allowed the music to breathe in a natural manner but never let it wallow in saccharine syrup. It was bracing, full of light and air. Once again I was left fretting for the BBC SO which seems to have slipped in terms of playing standards below its northern partners. Good for them, but I miss the flagship with Admiral of the fleet on board. Several boarders have mentioned the horn, and I shall join their claque - some phrases were crafted so gently that I wondered how their notes were sustained. It was like a souffle - light beyond belief - perilously close to extinction, but never to be snuffed out. Once again, an example of the magic that is live music-making.

[RobertLeDiable]

I caught this live and was more impressed with this Mahler 5 than I expected. Runnicles does seem to be getting fine results from the BBCSSO with some really songful string playing in the Adagietto. Indeed I sensed that DR has been working hard to improve the string quality of the orchestra as it was good throughout. When I heard the same team at the Proms in Mahler 3 a couple of seasons back it seemed to be beyond their reach. This was not the case in Mahler 5 where even Karajan said that the BPO found the scherzo tiring.

I didn't care much for the Britten overture and wish that Hampson had stuck to either Wunderhorn or the Gesellen songs and not a mix.

Also felt the sound quality suffered at the hands of the dreaded limiter but was otherwise fine.

Looking forward to Highland Dougie's thoughts from the hall.

I heard their Mahler 3 when it was done at the Edinburgh Festival a year or two before the Proms performance, and it was magnificent, strings included. I suspect the good string sound in this Mahler 5 was mostly to do with the fact that they have got a new leader (Laura Samuel, I think) after a couple of years without one.

[gedsmk]

sorry, too many slips for me. turned it off. Usually they play very well with Runnicles but this one didn't quite grab the imagination.