What was your last concert?

[teamsaint]

Laibach. Electric Ballroom, Camden Town. Having a post concert pint.

Awesome gig. This band are on a totally different level to everyone else.

The first half of the show featured material from their latest album and the second half featured the older standards. Stonking encore too.

The first half of the show was actually better, IMV and as soon as the shops are open tomorrow, I'm straight down to Woolworths to buy their latest album.

Glad you enjoyed it so much, Beefy. Bit of an early finish !!

Anyway, hope Woolies haven't sold out in the morning.

[Beef Oven!]

Glad you enjoyed it so much, Beefy. Bit of an early finish !!

Anyway, hope Woolies haven't sold out in the morning.

They kicked off at 8.30, played for just over an hour, then had a 10 minute intermission, à la petrushka. Second half was just over an hour, too. Loads of pubs within 90 seconds walk of the Electrid Ballroom.

Back home, sipping on some ice cold Zywiec. :big grin:


Tonight's concert opened with the Edvard Grieg opera, Olav Tryggvason.................

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

it's tonight

[teamsaint]

Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra.
Aleksandar Marković CONDUCTOR
Nikita Boriso-GlebskyViolin
Khachaturian
Adagio from Spartacus
Khachaturian
Violin Concerto
Dvořák
Symphony No.7

An attractive looking programme at The Guildhall tempted me down to Portsmouth on Friday night. I don’t know much of Markovic’s work, and the violinist seems to be something of an unknown quantity, so there were discoveries to be made too. A lovely spring evening down in South East Hampshire, although the Guildhall seems to be undergoing some restoration, so it wasn’t looking at its imposing best.
I haven’t heard orchestral music at the Guildhall previously, although I had seen a number of top rock and folk acts, and always liked it as a venue for those kinds of music. The Spartacus Adagio gave a decent opportunity to see how the acoustic might be. I don’t really have the language for this, but it tends towards a rather “boomy” sound. Plenty of resonance, and the sound certainly fills the place ok, although it seems to have a feel of going straight up from the orchestra rather than being projected out. It seemed perfectly serviceable though.
The Adagio was fine, the big moments were very big, a foretaste of things to come.
I wanted to review this the wrong way round really, because the Violin Concerto really was a complete joy. The piece isn’t everybody’s favourite, but I love it, and its folksy drama.
Nikita B-G is a trim, lithe- looking fellow, with a pleasing but slightly understated stage presence. His playing seems to reflect his look. His playing from the start was agile, refined, clean and riveting. At times in the first movement the sound was rather dominated by the quite large orchestral forces, but not for too long, and not to a fault. The first movement cadenzas were simply spellbinding, and the duet with the clarinet was really special, the two parts woven together with great skill and feeling.
And so it went on. The Andante’s variety of folk inspired images were evocative and in turn beautiful and dramatic, with again, fabulous support from the woodwinds. The finale was set into motion with a magnificent fanfare, and what followed matched it for impact and excitement. The sort of musical experience that you want to carry on much longer than it did.
A good ovation for N G-B, and he treated us to a short, high octane encore, of mesmerising skill and articulation, a piece that I think must have been a Paganini study or similar.

The interval chance to recover, (NO ice cream on sale!!), and then Markovic led the orchestra into the piece that most had come to hear. Markovic has an unusual conducting style, he seems to use his arms to coax from the hip upwards, and puts in a good deal of nifty footwork.
After the fizz and excitement of the Concerto, the Symphony set off in rather lacklustre fashion. The Allegro seemed rather directionless and disjointed. Lines never seemed to quite relate to each other, and on reflection I feel that this needed a much firmer hand from the conductor, who was rather too laid back in this. He seemed to rely on the big moments to carry the movement. The Adagio was in much the same vein, and there were distinct balance issues all the way through. Overly prominent woodwinds; underpowered horns at times are just two examples, the scherzo, though enjoyable, lacked the last bit of urgency that might have lifted it from the ordinary. It’s a movement that deserves the full works from all concerned. The finale was the highlight, by a good bit. It’s a movement in which any conductor would be hard pushed, (I think) not to get a decent band to perform with cohesion and purpose, and they gave this everything, and did justice to a great movement from a great symphony.

The sort of evening where you wish the works had been programmed differently, because at the interval , my thoughts were that a really good Dvorak would make this a highlight of the year.
However, a good evening in any event, and Nikita B-G made plenty of friends. Well worth a trip out to see him if he is in your neck of the woods.
I’m off to find out what it is that Markovic really excels at.

[Beef Oven!]

Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra.
Aleksandar Marković CONDUCTOR
Nikita Boriso-GlebskyViolin
Khachaturian
Adagio from Spartacus
Khachaturian
Violin Concerto
Dvořák
Symphony No.7

An attractive looking programme at The Guildhall tempted me down to Portsmouth on Friday night. I don’t know much of Markovic’s work, and the violinist seems to be something of an unknown quantity, so there were discoveries to be made too. A lovely spring evening down in South East Hampshire, although the Guildhall seems to be undergoing some restoration, so it wasn’t looking at its imposing best.
I haven’t heard orchestral music at the Guildhall previously, although I had seen a number of top rock and folk acts, and always liked it as a venue for those kinds of music. The Spartacus Adagio gave a decent opportunity to see how the acoustic might be. I don’t really have the language for this, but it tends towards a rather “boomy” sound. Plenty of resonance, and the sound certainly fills the place ok, although it seems to have a feel of going straight up from the orchestra rather than being projected out. It seemed perfectly serviceable though.
The Adagio was fine, the big moments were very big, a foretaste of things to come.
I wanted to review this the wrong way round really, because the Violin Concerto really was a complete joy. The piece isn’t everybody’s favourite, but I love it, and its folksy drama.
Nikita B-G is a trim, lithe- looking fellow, with a pleasing but slightly understated stage presence. His playing seems to reflect his look. His playing from the start was agile, refined, clean and riveting. At times in the first movement the sound was rather dominated by the quite large orchestral forces, but not for too long, and not to a fault. The first movement cadenzas were simply spellbinding, and the duet with the clarinet was really special, the two parts woven together with great skill and feeling.
And so it went on. The Andante’s variety of folk inspired images were evocative and in turn beautiful and dramatic, with again, fabulous support from the woodwinds. The finale was set into motion with a magnificent fanfare, and what followed matched it for impact and excitement. The sort of musical experience that you want to carry on much longer than it did.
A good ovation for N G-B, and he treated us to a short, high octane encore, of mesmerising skill and articulation, a piece that I think must have been a Paganini study or similar.

The interval chance to recover, (NO ice cream on sale!!), and then Markovic led the orchestra into the piece that most had come to hear. Markovic has an unusual conducting style, he seems to use his arms to coax from the hip upwards, and puts in a good deal of nifty footwork.
After the fizz and excitement of the Concerto, the Symphony set off in rather lacklustre fashion. The Allegro seemed rather directionless and disjointed. Lines never seemed to quite relate to each other, and on reflection I feel that this needed a much firmer hand from the conductor, who was rather too laid back in this. He seemed to rely on the big moments to carry the movement. The Adagio was in much the same vein, and there were distinct balance issues all the way through. Overly prominent woodwinds; underpowered horns at times are just two examples, the scherzo, though enjoyable, lacked the last bit of urgency that might have lifted it from the ordinary. It’s a movement that deserves the full works from all concerned. The finale was the highlight, by a good bit. It’s a movement in which any conductor would be hard pushed, (I think) not to get a decent band to perform with cohesion and purpose, and they gave this everything, and did justice to a great movement from a great symphony.

The sort of evening where you wish the works had been programmed differently, because at the interval , my thoughts were that a really good Dvorak would make this a highlight of the year.
However, a good evening in any event, and Nikita B-G made plenty of friends. Well worth a trip out to see him if he is in your neck of the woods.
I’m off to find out what it is that Markovic really excels at.

Very interesting read teamsaint. Thanks for posting.

Shame about the lack of ice cream in the interval, soooo in-British of them! Or is it more specifically un-Victorian?

P.S. I like D7 very much. One of the first symphonies outside all the usual suspects, that I got into.

[DublinJimbo]

Joyce di Donato, New York Philharmonic / Alan Gilbert

Salonen: Nyx
Ravel: Shéhérazade

INTERVAL

Ravel: Valses noble et sentimentale
R. Strauss: Suite from Der Rosenkavalier

Alan Gilbert has got a lot of bad press since taking over in New York. Judging from this concert on 16th April in the National Concert Hall in Dublin, the bad press has been misdirected. Salonen's Nyx was a perfect choice to show off a virtuoso orchestra, and was received well by the audience despite its unfamiliarity. A melting solo from the chief clarinet was especially memorable, while the grounding of the orchestra by the lower brass and strings was hugely impressive. A fine piece, sounding better live than it does on the recording I have.
Joyce di Donato delighted the audience after the Ravel (deliciously performed by her and the orchestra) by emphasising her Irish roots ("I should have used my maiden name on the programme: I'm actually a Flaherty, you know."). Alan Gilbert then told us that the orchestra loved working with Joyce and had managed to persuade her to give us Mahler's Morgen as a glorious encore.
The Ravel waltz medley was a a bit disappointing. I'm sure it's difficult to make it hang together and to move seamlessly from snippet to snippet, but I would have expected a better job from the NYPO.
Following a fantastic performance of the Rosenkavalier suite (such élan, such verve, such delicious schmalz!), we were treated to "yet another waltz", as Alan Gilbert warned us, but not just any old waltz. Tchaikovsky's Waltz from Swan Lake was given to us utterly magnificently, showing off the orchestra at their wonderful best. And then we got another bonus, courtesy of a quintet of orchestral brass players.
Lots of smiling faces afterwards.

[Ferretfancy]

The NYPO visit to the Barbican came to a fascinating close last night. During the afternoon at a children's concert they had presented Petrushka with a puppet theatre group called Giants Are Small, and this ended the evening programme after excellent performances of Jeux and The Miraculous Mandarin Suite

There was a large oval decorated screen above the platform, like a magic mirror on the wall. At the front of the platform was a fascinating collection of small models, including a carousel, a ferris wheel, russian dolls and lots of other objects. Five puppeteers, one with a video camera appeared, dressed like mediaeval monks in long black robes.
Meanwhile the orchestra waited, the men wearing various stylish russian hats, while the women had colourful shawls.

Alan Gilbert arrived as the showman, carrying a small suitcase which contained marionettes of the Moor, Petrushka and the Ballerina. The dexterity with which these were manipulated by the puppeteers was amazing, while the whole performance appeared as live video on the hanging screen. Durinfg the Shrovetide Fair sections the orchestra rose to their feet ( still playing) and appeared to dance while the brass section had a mock booze up.

All this may seem ghastly to some, but in fact the performance on its own terms was quite magical, with the story clearly told right up to those wonderful string chords at the end. Alan Gilbert departed with his suitcase leaving the Orchestra to play while Petrushka's ghost faded from the screen.

A memorable evening.

Incidentally, the last time I heard The Miraculous Mandarin was at the Proms with Lorin Maazel conducting the NYPO. On that occasion they played with terrific accuracy, but Maazel actually managed to make the performance sound dull! Not so last night.

[Petrushka]

Just got back from London where I attended two superb concerts by the Berlin Staatskapelle conducted by Daniel Barenboim.

Monday night's concert in the Royal Festival Hall began with Beethoven's Piano Concerto No 1 with Martha Argerich as soloist. There was wonderful interplay here between soloist and orchestra. Although I'd come to hear an orchestral concert the real highlight of the evening, it has to be said, was the encore: Schubert's Rondo in A major played as piano duet by both Argerich and Barenboim with really quite magical playing here. Strauss' Ein Heldenleben after the interval, had another stunning solo performance with the orchestra's leader, Wolfram Brandl, portraying Pauline Strauss. This really was magnificent stuff, a concert of real class by the 'other' Berlin orchestra that was preferable in some ways to what the Philharmonic might have made of it. The orchestra's sound is markedly different, more distinctive, than their BPO colleagues and it came across with great clarity to my seat in the topmost box high above the orchestra. stage right as you look at it.

I was in the same position but lower down, for Tuesday's concert. I've not heard Lisa Batiashvili before but I hope I do again, and soon, because she gave a thrilling performance of the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto. No encore this time but it did look as if she'd hardly broken sweat and could have performed it again. Stunning virtuosity!
After the interval came Elgar's 2nd Symphony, an interpretation well known from Barenboim's recent recording (and BaL winner) with this orchestra. The recorded sound of that disc has come in for some criticism on here but the clarity and vividness of the live article came across with thrilling immediacy in the hall. I was actually seated as far to the right as one can go with my ear almost touching the wooden panelling and this might have helped lend the sound that much more in clarity. This was as moving and magical an Elgar 2 as any I've heard with much detail I've not heard before. When you have the live experience CD, no matter how good, is second best. At the end of the concert Barenboim was presented with the Elgar Society medal, something that really should have been done before the performance as many of the audience has dashed off by then.

A great pair of concerts that I won't be forgetting in a hurry. Just a pity that Radio 3 microphones weren't there.

[teamsaint]

Great review of your two concerts, Pet. Sounds like you had a wonderful time at both. Makes me wish I had been there.
Thanks for the write up, also FF and DJ for their reviews.excellent stuff.

[EdgeleyRob]

Love reading these reviews,thanks to all.

[Petrushka]

Any other forumites at the two superlative Barenboim concerts?

As an aside, I'm surprised that so few of those of you who live in London seem to attend the RFH and Barbican. If I lived there I'd be practically setting up camp in the concert halls! No travel fares (or minimum), no hotel bills, no need to take a day or two off work, just the concert ticket to pay for - you wouldn't be able to keep me away.

As Tommy Trinder said: "You lucky people!"

[Beef Oven!]

Any other forumites at the two superlative Barenboim concerts?

As an aside, I'm surprised that so few of those of you who live in London seem to attend the RFH and Barbican. If I lived there I'd be practically setting up camp in the concert halls! No travel fares (or minimum), no hotel bills, no need to take a day or two off work, just the concert ticket to pay for - you wouldn't be able to keep me away.

As Tommy Trinder said: "You lucky people!"

We go more than we let on

[HighlandDougie]

Mahler (and Mahler art. Detlev Glanert): Wunderhorn

Dietrich Henschel (Baritone)/Residentie Orkest/Christian Macelaru

Not sure if anyone caught this monstrous vanity project on the part of Herr Henschel when the BBC Symphony Orchestra did it recently at the Barbican but words almost fail me. There is a specially made film (starring Henschel and a busty young blonde and a sort of Young Werther type and various soldiers) running as a backdrop, with him singing the entire cycle, either as orchestrated by Mahler or by Detlev Glanert. I think that there is some attempt to create a story about the loss of innocence but it mostly seemed to be about Henschel having it away with the blonde maiden. Somewhat disconcerting to see the very naked Henschel on the screen and him in a black suit in front of the orchestra. What on earth can he have been thinking, other than wanting to show the world how well-endowed he is in the name of art? The resonant acoustic of De Doelen in Rotterdam made it hard to hear him at times - and the lack of light because of the film meant that you couldn't read the texts anyway. Liked the Glanert orchestrations very much and the orchestra and conductor gave of their best but it was otherwise pretty woeful (and must have cost a small fortune. I doubt if it will ever resurface but to be avoided at all costs, unless the prospect of some bums and tits appeals.

[Pianorak]

Narek Hakhnazaryan, Cello with Oxana Shevchenko, Piano

Schumann: Fantasiestuecke Op 75
Stravinsky: Suite I|talienne
Franck: Sonata in A

Encore: Rachmaninov: Vocalise

Excellent concert at Reading Concert Hall this evening - recorded by the BBC and worth looking out for. Not surprised that Hakhnazaryan won Cello First Prize and Gold Medal at the XIV International Tchaikovsky Competition.

[Russ_H]

Newcastle International Chamber Music Series
Borodin Quartet

Borodin String Quartet no 2 in D
Shostakovich String Quartet no 8 in C minor
Beethoven String Quartet in C sharp minor, Op 131

Encore - Shostakovich - Elegy for String Quartet