Prom 17: Orff’s Carmina burana - 27 July 2023

[Ein Heldenleben]

Hmm. Just back from the concert. The soloists were not particularly awful. As a late replacement the counter-tenor did a decent job with style and wit. The choruses were a bit underwhelming and got out of kilter at times. That’s part of the problem (attraction?) of the Albert hall as you can often hardly hear what’s going on on the other side of the organ

I wondered whether the adult chorus (esp tenors) had enough members? The orchestra seemed to drown them out on occasion and there were definite ensemble problems.

[growboth]

That’s a fair comment. The adult choir were not as strong as they might have been and, as is so often the case, the tenor section was weakest in numbers and output (writing as someone who hides at the back of our second tenors). Some of the tenor chorus writing by Orff is at quite a high pitch for amateurs.

[Ein Heldenleben]

That’s a fair comment. The adult choir were not as strong as they might have been and, as is so often the case, the tenor section was weakest in numbers and output (writing as someone who hides at the back of our second tenors). Some of the tenor chorus writing by Orff is at quite a high pitch for amateurs.

For such a high profile concert I wonder whether bringing in a few ringers - e.g. local opera students isn’t a bad idea. I believe it’s not unknown for something like that to happen on a certain Wednesday afternoon showcase for choral singing. The tenor part in the opening chorus sounds high , tricky to sing and exposed - a couple of extra trained singers might have made a big difference.

On the synchronising front - the conductor in the Carmina has enough on his plate with the band. I’ve seen a film on a (German ?) opera house where the prompter (essentially a second conductor really ) appears to conduct half a beat ahead of the pit maestro , mouths the words and cues the soloists. I’m not sure whether that’s feasible at the Albert Hall but it seemed very effective in this opera house .

[Pulcinella]

...the conductor in the Carmina has enough on his plate with the band.

In the (only) performance I ever sang in, the conductor forgot to bring the chorus to its collective feet at the very start, and there was a mad and very ragged scramble at his first downbeat!

[PhilipT]

I went to this just for the Carmina Burana. Yes, the chorus needed more power, and the soprano (Maki Mori, not Mari Eriksmoen, who withdrew back in April) was notable mostly for her frock rather than anything she did vocally. But the antics of the conductor were a delight, the invitation from the baritone to join in at one point was a nice bonus, and overall it was a fun performance, as it should be.

[smittims]

'Notable mostly for her frock...'

This seems to be turning into a trend (pianists too) . But mention of soloists in this work inevitably recalls Patrick MacCarthy who famously stepped up from the audience to replace a suddenly-indisposed Tom Allen at a Previn Prom performance many years ago. Fortunately it was on live TV, which made it the more memorable..

[Petrushka]

'Notable mostly for her frock...'

This seems to be turning into a trend (pianists too) . But mention of soloists in this work inevitably recalls Patrick MacCarthy who famously stepped up from the audience to replace a suddenly-indisposed Tom Allen at a Previn Prom performance many years ago. Fortunately it was on live TV, which made it the more memorable..

August 7 1974 so an unbelievable 50 years ago next season. To be strictly accurate, the TV broadcast was shown on the following Sunday's 'Omnibus at the Proms'. I remember it all vividly.