What was your last concert?

[Conchis]

No, I'm always happy to give HvK credit for some recordings I like very much, his Ring des Nibelungen especially but various other items too, so I'll see if I can get to hear his Honegger recording.

The DG twofer of Honegger 2 and 3 was my introduction to the composer: I think a lot of people come to Honegger via this particular disc. It's long been a Penguin Guid rosette recording and lives up to its reputation. The only other Honegger I know are Pacific 231 and Jeanne D'Arc.

[Conchis]

Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra at Leeds Town Hall on Saturday - Borodin's Polovstian Dances, Sibelius Violin Concerto (Jennifer Pike) and Tchaikovsky 5. All very enjoyable.

According to his wikipedia page, conductor Vladimir Fedoseyev is a prominent Russian anti-semite but he looked terribly benign on the podium.

[Zucchini]

Conchis. How was Jennifer P? She seems to be drawing much admiration these days and I was wondering whether to hear her Sibelius next Wed

[Conchis]

Conchis. How was Jennifer P? She seems to be drawing much admiration these days and I was wondering to hear her Sibelius next Wed

I thought she was OK, but not outstanding. But country miles better than Jack Tieback in the same concerto in Birmingham a couple of weeks back.

[Stanfordian]

I thought she was OK, but not outstanding. But country miles better than Jack Tieback in the same concerto in Birmingham a couple of weeks back.

Hiya Concis,

I was at the Bridgewater Hall, Manchester on Sunday for the BBC Phil concert conducted by Juanjo Mena. Jennifer Pike in the Sibelius concerto was underwhelming, curiously detached. The performances of the Elgar In the South (Alassio) and the Walton Symphony No.1 were quite outstanding.

[zola]

At the RFH last night for the London debut of Lucas Debargue playing Mozart piano concerto no 24. Individual without being eccentric, undeniably a rewarding musician whose background and approach may lead to somewhat variable results over a career perhaps but should always be worth following. The LPO had a period oriented approach in their accompaniment to the Mozart which was a follow on from their opener with Haydn's Apothecary overture. After the interval, Jurowski gave a darker than usual interpretation of Mahler's 4th.

[Richard Barrett]

My last concert was last Friday. The Belgrade Philharmonic under Mikhail Jurowski (father of Vladimir) played a new rather uninteresting work by local composer Zoran Erić, Prokofiev's 3rd symphony, which is a favourite of mine among his works, and, most memorably, Shostakovich's 2nd Cello Concerto (with the young Russian cellist Alexander Ramm). Can it really be that I hadn't heard this piece before? This seems unlikely, but the music was completely unfamiliar to me. I was completely transfixed by it, and am looking forward to getting to know it better. What do people here make of it?

[Pulcinella]

My last concert was last Friday. The Belgrade Philharmonic under Mikhail Jurowski (father of Vladimir) played a new rather uninteresting work by local composer Zoran Erić, Prokofiev's 3rd symphony, which is a favourite of mine among his works, and, most memorably, Shostakovich's 2nd Cello Concerto (with the young Russian cellist Alexander Ramm). Can it really be that I hadn't heard this piece before? This seems unlikely, but the music was completely unfamiliar to me. I was completely transfixed by it, and am looking forward to getting to know it better. What do people here make of it?

Unfairly neglected, I thought, until I realised how many recordings there are, when listening recently to the new Alisa Weilerstein recording (mentioned on What are you.....). There are a fair few to choose from:

http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/w/81073/1

I have the DG Rostropovich/BSO/Ozawa version, and the new recording did not displace my affection for it.

[Richard Barrett]

I have the DG Rostropovich/BSO/Ozawa version, and the new recording did not displace my affection for it.

I imagine that Rostropovich would be a good choice. Something I found thought-provoking about this work was the way that, while its musical materials are of a fairly "classical" cast (sometimes even coming over as stylistic quotations in the way Schnittke later made into a habit), the way they're woven into a structure is anything but: a cello cadenza "accompanied" by a jingling tambourine, the (quasi?-)romantic cadence that turns up several times in the last movement, seemingly arbitrarily, to close off some development or other, the clockwork machinery that also turns up in the 4th and 15th symphonies but which here seems to have a differently inscrutable function; and so on. All of these features and others appear to subvert what a "well-made piece of music" is supposed to do. (I remember the First Concerto as being much more conventional in these regards.) This kind of form, which asks rather than answers the question of whether and how its content and form are united, is something I can get very excited about, but surely many listeners would find it incomprehensible and disjointed... or am I wrong?

[Ferretfancy]

Vladimir Jurowski and the LPO last night at the RFH gave us a fascinating concert, starting with Stravinky's Symphonies of Wind Instruments and Aldous Huxley Variations. This was followed by Bernt Alois Zimmermann's Violin concerto with Thomas Zehetmair as soloist, and after the interval came Henze's 7th Symphony.

A fairly daunting programme, it's true, but I was saddened to find the hall only half full. Jurowski introduced each work in his usual elegant fashion. He was particularly good when describing the Stravinsky works which were only ones I knew quite well. The LPO winds were superb, in fact the performance seemed much more persuasive than the recordings I have.

The Zimmermann was very well played by Zehetmair, sometimes drowned by the very loud and percussive orchestration, but he obviously knows the work well. I'm tempted to buy his CD performance

Finally came the extraordinary Henze. I would need many more hearings of this work which teems with invention, perhaps almost exhaustingly so.

All in all the evening was a real workout for the ears and the imagination.

Unfortunately there were an awful lot of sealions in the audience. If they can't concentrate why do they pay good money to attend?

[Nick Armstrong]

Shostakovich's 2nd Cello Concerto.... Can it really be that I hadn't heard this piece before? This seems unlikely, but the music was completely unfamiliar to me. I was completely transfixed by it, and am looking forward to getting to know it better. What do people here make of it?

One of my favourite of all string concertos. I remember where and when I bought the cassette of the Rostropovich, very early in my musical searches and not long after DSCH#15 had opened the door marked 'Music' for me. You can imagine I found the concerto immediately appealing. Only ever heard live once, earlier this year with Jurowski fils, but alas Natalia Gutman the soloist was not up to it, I found.

I've got a very good off-air recording of Alisa Weilerstein and the BBC Scottish and Rafael Payare about a year ago in Glasgow (this is a review of another concert in the run https://bachtrack.com/review-shostak...o-october-2015). Haven't heard the new Decca recording she has made - I've made a note to do so.

But indeed, the Rostro/Ozawa is pretty exemplary

[Daniel]

I've got a very good off-air recording of Alisa Weilerstein and the BBC Scottish and Rafael Payare about a year ago in Glasgow... Haven't heard the new Decca recording she has made - I've made a note to do so.

But indeed, the Rostro/Ozawa is pretty exemplary

I listened to that Alisa Weilerstein disc last week, she seems to adopt a more percussive approach than Rostropovich, which may not appeal to some, but plenty of poetry and electricity flying around.

... the clockwork machinery that also turns up in the 4th and 15th symphonies but which here seems to have a differently inscrutable function; and so on...

In the ticking coda of the 2nd concerto (if that's the same moment you're thinking of) I also thought immediately of the 4th and 15th symphonies. Whatever other expressive purpose it has, the impression I get in all three examples is of time talking to one directly, almost nakedly as it were, a vivid intimation of mortality.

Also very striking in the Alisa Weilerstein recording I thought, was a cello and bass drum passage in 1st movement sounding eerily like an execution.

[Beef Oven!]

This afternoon.

Richard Barrett: A Portrait

St John’s Smith Square, London.

performed by ‘Ensemble Imaginaire’

the light gleams an instant 1989-96 - solo piano. Mixime Springer, piano

Zungenentwurzein 1996-97 - electronic music

fold - 2012-16 - soprano saxophone solo. Philippe Koerper, saxophone

Katasterismoi 1998-99 - electronic music

dying words II 2013 - voice/flute. Keiko Murakami

epiphyte 2016 - electronic music

interference 2000 - voice/bass drum/contrabass clarinet solo

A blistering opening piece with the soloist furiously pouring out what felt like thousands of higher notes with the right hand, while the left hand creates what RB describes as a ‘fast forward’ movement that almost completely avoids the upper part of the keyboard. I found it extremely engaging and I have to say, unique. I can only guess at how hard it must be for Maxime Springer to master it.

How do you follow such an explosive opener? I guess you don’t really. This is where alternating between acoustic and fixed-media electronic pieces really works (I love this format - right up my street!). I can’t really put this piece into my own words, so I’ll use RB’s! “ ....an extended contemplation of the work of Paul Celan. Its sounds are suggestive of visceral processes, of microscopic internal workings of the body magnified to disturbing proportions.” I found it most absorbing and a real step-change from the electronic music that I’m accustomed to (read Stockhausen!).

In the next piece, Philippe Koerper’s virtuosity was astonishing. IMV, a very athletic piece, matched by very athletic body language from PK - bobbing, weaving, swaying, jerking with the music. He seemed to become emotionally and physically inextricable with the music he was playing. And you don’t have to be a musician to know that the mouth, breathing, blowing and incredible finger work was of the highest order.

More electronic music followed in the form of ‘Katasterismoi’ which continued to confirm in my mind that RB’s electronic music is original and up there with the acoustic material. Next up was dying words II. It was mesmerising watching and hearing Keiko Murakami melding vocals and flute. Very interesting and challenging piece for solo flute and voice, which the soloist clearly loves. She took the applause at the conclusion of the piece with elation in her eye and returned for a bit more applause with a huge smile! We’re all human! This, the second piece in a series of three for a vocalist/flautist, we are informed will eventually form part of a larger ensemble work.

epiphyte was the electronic music that preceded the final piece, interference. Adam Starkie did a great job, but I couldn’t help comparing him in my mind’s eye and ear to the astonishing Carl Rosman, which detracted from my enjoyment of the piece, somewhat. Nevertheless, an excellent conclusion to a wonderful programme.

Bryn of this parish, in conversation with Ms Murakami after the performance, asked how she had got into RB’s music and the answer was uplifting. She said that in her teaching duties, her students had picked out his music and brought it to her attention. Maybe the future’s bright after all!

All in all a very enjoyable afternoon of music. I wish there were more events like this.

Excellent programme notes by RB, giving the music's intellectual context, a good 28% of which I understood.

I can’t help feeling though that someone (I don’t know who it might be) needs to get their finger out and publicise these things a bit more. I only found out late on, and although intimate audiences are enjoyable, we should be aiming for the stars.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

BeefO's #1393 -

AND - Ms Murakami played the whole piece from memory!!!!!

[teamsaint]

lovely review, Beefy. Wish I could have been at one of these concerts.

the future IS bright. Fact.

As for marketing and sales in the arts ( not sure RB would like this approach, IIRC " marketing " isn't one his favourite words)....ah well, lets be generous, and put it down to the inevitable issues around " resources".

Although I wouldn't say that is always the case....