What was your last concert?

[Old Grumpy]

Was that at the Sage, Gateshead O.G.? I was there too. A fantastic concert. Well worth the trip and overnight stay from Edinburgh. Some of the most amazing violin playing I've EVER heard!

Yep, you got it!

[richardfinegold]

We heard the Detroit SO conducted by the Hungarian Violinist, Gabor Tackascs-Nagy, in Haydn's London Symphony, the Tchaikovsky Rococo Variations, and Beethoven Fourth Symphony. The Soloist was terrific, Joshua Norman, with a beuatiful baritone/tenor type of sound and laser like intonation. Tackacs made little speeches before the Haydn and the Beethoven. For the latter he related when the Tackacs String Quartet was in the studio recording the Beethoven Quartets that the members realized that "Beethoven wants to drink our blood". With his heavy Hungarian accent this conjured up images of Dracula, but on the podium he was all smiles, very animated and micromanaging and with very fast tempos--kudos to the Orchestra for staying with him.
In all, a very enjoyable concert

[Alison]

On way back from Royal Festival Hall

Debussy: Prelude a l’apres-midi d’un faune
Ravel: Piano Concerto in G
Ma mere l’oye
Debussy: La mer

Philharmonia Orchestra
Pablo Heras-Casado
Pierre-Laurent Aimard

Fabulous orchestral playing and warmed very much to the genial conductor.

In a way I was ready for a symphonic blockbuster after the interval, perhaps a DSCH 8 or an Elgar 2, but as it turned out La Mer was that Work!

To be broadcast Monday 5 February and warmly recommended.

[Simon B]

A very satisfying concert at the RFH on Friday, with the LPO on good form (though unless my eyes deceived me half the strings besides the basses were deps - or there's been quite a turnover in recent months). Just the kind of understated fare that sends me away feeling a little better about things:

Bach: Toccata and Fugue in D minor
Saint-Saëns: Symphony No. 3 (Organ)
Fauré: Pavane
Jongen: Symphonie Concertante

LPO/James O'Donnell/Dirk Brossé

The Saint-Saëns has its detractors here, as do most hugely popular works for some reason. Though I've been to more live performances than I can count (and played in a good few - the end is great fun for the timpanist providing the conductor has no pretensions to subtlety - he or she is powerless when it comes to it anyway!) it still raises a smile. That said, I do wish S-S had given the organ something more interesting to do in the last movement. The part might as well say "C Major chord, ff, vamp until you've had enough".

The real star turn though was the Jongen - wherein the organist gets to play as many different notes in the first 3 minutes as in the whole of the S-S. I often find the RFH organ a bit disappointing in its lack of capacity to shake the foundations but here the oomph was at least adequately impressive and moreover the definition and delineation of different voices was striking. This may well have been down to James O'Donnell as much as the instrument. My previous familiarity with the work is mainly recording of a Virgil Fox performance - with just the right level of vulgarity and OTTness! To my surprise I found myself completely drawn in for the duration rather than just the histrionics of the last movement - the slow movement completely outdoing the S-S for sumptuous ecstasy-of-expression.

A certain amount of irritating coughing aside there was a quiet and attentive (for a Friday night LPO concert) capacity audience - either that or they couldn't be heard over the music for once. An excellent night out that cheered me up significantly in what is still a dark and difficult time following the recent death of my father. The power of music has never been more apparent to me than the last few months - so thanks to all the performers on this and other occasions.

[hmvman]

An excellent performance by our local amateur orchestra The Academy of St Olave's last night in St Olave's church.

Rossini: Overture 'The Silken Ladder'
Nielsen: Wind Quintet Op.43
Suk: Meditation on the St Wenceslas Chorale, Op35a
Mozart: Symphony No. 31 in D, K297 'Paris'

Music Director Alan George drew some lovely string playing in the orchestral pieces as well as brisk tempi in the Rossini and Mozart works. The star piece for me, though, was the marvellous Nielsen wind quintet, a piece I didn't know but will be seeking out on disc!

There was a good-size audience too which considering the bitter cold outside and the not-much-warmer inside (despite the heating being on!) must've been greatly encouraging for the musicians who clearly had worked really hard in preparing this concert. This was my first concert of the year and a great way to start.

[Bryn]

Last night at Cafe OTO, the third of a trio of Friday nights with A Man in a Room, Gambling. Also on the bill last night was a chamber version of Jesus' Blood, very much a family event with three of Gavin's children participating. The place was packed. Fortunately I was the guest of a friend who had been given two comps by one of Gavin's daughters, reserved seats too.

[ostuni]

Friday night, the Royal College of Music Symphony Orchestra, playing Strauss's Alpine Symphony, magisterially directed by Haitink. We've only recently moved back to London, and this was my first concert in the RCM's Amaryllis Fleming Hall: attractive, with comfortable seats, but probably on the small side for this piece! But I was intrigued by the possibility of hearing Haitink conduct this piece while only paying £15 for a ticket (5th row of stalls: on reflection, a slightly more distant seat might have been better).

It's a piece that I love, and know pretty well, but have never before heard live, and it was a suitably overwhelming experience. An online review I read yesterday talked about a leisurely overall pacing; my impression at the time was that Haitink was keeping sections like The Ascent moving forwards with superb energy. For what it's worth, organ and orchestra were rather more in tune with each other than in other live recordings that I've heard. Very assured playing in all sections of the orchestra.

[Thropplenoggin]

Opera North's first performance of Verdi's Un ballo in maschera at Leeds Grand Theatre last night. Some standout performances (Tereza Gevorgyan as Oscar; Adrienn Miksch as Amelia) and the sets, lighting, choreography and orchestra and choir were all dramatically effective and well-realised. I only found the male leads underwhelming, especially Rafael Rojas as Gustavo. The opera itself has its longeurs, which the dramaturgy helped allay but, even so, I'm not sure I'd rush back to see it performed again regardless of singers/musicians involved.

[Beef Oven!]

Last night at Cafe OTO, the third of a trio of Friday nights with A Man in a Room, Gambling. Also on the bill last night was a chamber version of Jesus' Blood, very much a family event with three of Gavin's children participating. The place was packed. Fortunately I was the guest of a friend who had been given two comps by one of Gavin's daughters, reserved seats too.

How was the journey home?

[Russ_H]

Last week at the Sage, Gateshead, by the Zimro Trio.

Milhaud Suite for Clarinet, Violin and Piano
Mozart Violin Sonata in E minor
Stravinsky Suite: The Soldier’s Tale
Mozart Trio in E flat ‘Kegelstatt’
Gershwin Preludes for Clarinet and Piano
Copland (arr. Hannan) Suite: Appalachian Spring

I especially enjoyed the Gershwin, even though I'm not usually too keen on "show" music.

[Nick Armstrong]

In the context of the annual music festival in Nantes ("Les Folles Journées de Nantes"):

Albéniz's Iberia, played in 2 recitals (6 of the pieces in each one) by Luis Fernando Pérez

One of the most absorbing and exhilarating live musical experiences I can remember. I've long loved the pieces from recordings, notably of course Larocha's. Whole new perspectives and colours, of course, came from hearing the pieces live and in sequence - especially as we were lucky enough to be in the middle of the front row, so the sounds flooded out of the very good-sounding Steinway about 3 metres in front of us with no distraction. Great performance by Pérez who coped with its demands with all the sensitivity, power, dexterity etc etc required - inevitably the odd little slip but they just added to the drama, like a matador briefly losing his footing but managing to avoid being gored... Just amazing!

Dvořák's Piano Quintet in A and American Quartet, played by the Modigliani Quartet

In fact only the slow movement of the Quartet was played. It was all very good indeed, pleasant but not quite the mesmerising ride of the Albeniz - but then it's very different music.

Plus we got free stalls seats to the late concert on Saturday (which was a 'rehearsal' for the season closer on Sunday, broadcast live by Arte/France Musique) - the Urals/Ekaterinburg Philharmonic Orchestra in various things, notably Rachmaninov's Paganini Rhapsody, Bloch's Kol Nidrei, last movement of Dvorak's New World... We got a young French pianist in place of the expensive Denis Matsuev who appeared in the broadcast concert. It was good solid playing, though I could have done without Va Pensiero as the final piece.... and repeated as an encore....

.

... not forgetting the patrimoine architectural of the biscuits LU [Lefèvre-Utile] -

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/LU_(biscuiterie)

We passed by it on the way to each concert....

[HighlandDougie]

In the context of the annual music festival in Nantes ("Les Folles Journées de Nantes"):

Albéniz's Iberia, played in 2 recitals (6 of the pieces in each one) by Luis Fernando Pérez

One of the most absorbing and exhilarating live musical experiences I can remember. I've long loved the pieces from recordings, notably of course Larocha's. Whole new perspectives and colours, of course, came from hearing the pieces live and in sequence - especially as we were lucky enough to be in the middle of the front row, so the sounds flooded out of the very good-sounding Steinway about 3 metres in front of us with no distraction. Great performance by Pérez who coped with its demands with all the sensitivity, power, dexterity etc etc required - inevitably the odd little slip but they just added to the drama, like a matador briefly losing his footing but managing to avoid being gored... Just amazing!

Dvořák's Piano Quintet in A and American Quartet, played by the Modigliani Quartet

In fact only the slow movement of the Quartet was played. It was all very good indeed, pleasant but not quite the mesmerising ride of the Albeniz - but then it's very different music.

Plus we got free stalls seats to the late concert on Saturday (which was a 'rehearsal' for the season closer on Sunday, broadcast live by Arte/France Musique) - the Urals/Ekaterinburg Philharmonic Orchestra in various things, notably Rachmaninov's Paganini Rhapsody, Bloch's Kol Nidrei, last movement of Dvorak's New World... We got a young French pianist in place of the expensive Denis Matsuev who appeared in the broadcast concert. It was good solid playing, though I could have done without Va Pensiero as the final piece.... and repeated as an encore....







We passed by it on the way to each concert....

Very pleased that you had an enjoyable musical weekend. I hope that you ate well, too - “fines claires” and good Muscadet would be a suitably enjoyable adjoint to Albéniz

[Simon B]

LSO/Elder @ Barbican, 11/2/18:

Dvořák: Othello Overture
Bruch: VC #1 (Nikolaj Znaider)
--------
Elgar: Sym #2

This was the second of two LSO concerts in a few days including both of the Elgar symphonies... by Elgar .

The first half was entirely lost to me for non-musical reasons, but the departure of some patrons who apparently only showed for the ultra-ubiquitous Bruch rectified matters...

This was such a different Elgar 2 from the one Elder conducted at the Proms in 2015. So soporific and languid was that that I initially decided to only attend the Elgar 1 on Thu 9/2 and skip this. Thankfully, the temptations of the currently glorious LSO sound won and the reward was a highly committed and exuberant performance.

That said, it sounds like Barry Millington was at the concert I was afraid of in some respects - https://www.standard.co.uk/go/london...-a3764171.html - the dubious Barbican acoustic outside its sweet spots in play perhaps?

David Truslove captures my experience though - http://www.classicalsource.com/db_co...w.php?id=15201 - "Elder masterfully navigating through Elgar’s dense writing to produce wonderful buoyancy and uninhibited exuberance" etc.

[Alison]

A good read Simon.

So you think LSO clearly superior to LPO and Philharmonia or not necessarily?

Must say all three have impressed me of late

[Beef Oven!]

A good read Simon.

So you think LSO clearly superior to LPO and Philharmonia or not necessarily?

Must say all three have impressed me of late

My anecdotal views, based on last 5 years of concert-going -

Philharmonia - down 10 points
LSO - up 5 points
LPO - up 25 points