Prom 4: MacMillan/Mahler, Hallé/Hallé Choir & Youth Choir & Children’s Choir, Elder

[Ein Heldenleben]

Turned it off....didn't see end speech either (watched both -mute, really will go to all lengths pos' to avoid KD))....back on for Andrew Davis for sentimental fun/nostalgia...

Watched the first 5 Mins of that . Suffice to say that Richard Baker’s presentation is from a different world - and how well written.

[LMcD]

What’s the Elgar encore 8th ?

Chanson de Nuit

[Ein Heldenleben]

Chanson de Nuit

Thing is I’m more of a Matin person

[edashtav]

I'll write about the Mahler later. I had fall in the Scherzo whilst helping my wife and she had to call on professional help

I'm O.K. but my concentration was Wrecked

Great music-making!

[LMcD]

Absolutely execrable TV presentation!
No explanation of the MacMillan work; no text as subtitles!
Sadly, all par for the course.

Really? I just pressed 'Subtitles' on my remote and up they popped.

As for KD - I think she was desperately hoping that Sir Mark would burst into tears.

[Ein Heldenleben]

I'll write about the Mahler later. I had fall in the Scherzo whilst helping my wife and she had to call on professional help

I'm O.K. but my concentration was Wrecked

Great music-making!

Sorry to hear that Edashtav ..hope all is ok.

[bluestateprommer]

What’s the Elgar encore 8th ?

It was Chanson de nuit, the same encore as at the Bridgewater Hall farewell concerts at the end of May / beginning of June.

Definitely quite the send-off for SME in commemoration of his work with The Hallé. The MacMillan is certainly an appealing work, although the sheer scale of choral forces involved will most probably limit future performances even more than is usual with new compositions. The Cincinnati May Festival world premiere back in May 2023 is the only performance of the 4 so far that Timotheus, Bacchus and Cecilia has received beyond the recent wave of 3 UK performances with The Hallé and associated choirs, including tonight's Prom, of course.

The Mahler was fine indeed, somewhat on the spacious side, with what sounded like creative horn triplet bobbles from Laurence Rogers in the Scherzo in particular. But it all worked, of course. For those who can get to Edinburgh for the EIF, two concerts feature The Hallé, SME and Mahler 5, mentioned by Martin Handley, in two very different formats:

(1) A "Bean Bag Concert", what looks like a more educational / "relaxed" format, with selections from Mahler 5, with commentary from SME:

https://www.eif.co.uk/events/mahler-5-inside-out

(2) Full-scale Mahler 5, with Lili Boulanger's Psalm 150 as the choral opener:

https://www.eif.co.uk/events/mahlers-fifth-symphony

PS: Forgot to mention a nice quirk of both this Prom and the First Night. Namely, no applause between movements :) .

[Nick Armstrong]

Thing is I’m more of a Matin person

[eighthobstruction]

Thing is I’m more of a Matin person

....boom boom....
Sorry to hear problem Edashtav....

[Darkbloom]

I managed to stand through the Mahler without the slightest twinge of backache, which is a good sign. It's wonderful to hear a performance that feels like it's actually going somewhere, and when it gets to the end you really feel a sense of completion. If I'm being picky perhaps I'd have liked a bit more excitement at times, but Elder was going for the long view and brought it off.

If you were going to bet on whether he'd make a speech at the end I doubt you'd find a bookie willing to take your money. He is the most talkative of conductors.

[edashtav]

Sorry to hear that Edashtav ..hope all is ok.

Yes I'm back on my horse bruised but nothing broken thanks.
basis gives me a chance to write a few words about Sir Mark's interpretation of the first movement of Mahler's 5th symphony. The pace was broad and the playing was wonderful
A funereal mood was entailed giving plenty of room for individual solos the time to create mood and character.
The conductor's sure foundations paid dividends when later episodes became lively and replete with biting satire.

I loved the Elgarian / nobilmente chorale that triumphantly brought the movement to a blazing conclusion

[edashtav]

Thanks, bsp, for correcting my Eurocentric viewpoint when you wrote:
"The Cincinnati May Festival world premiere back in May 2023 is the only performance of the 4 so far that Timotheus, Bacchus and Cecilia has received beyond the recent wave of 3 UK performances with The Hallé and associated choirs, including tonight's Prom, of course."

You made a strong point when you pointed out that the wealth of resources this 20 minute work needs may militate against frequent performances.

[vibratoforever]

Turned it off....didn't see end speech either (watched both -mute, really will go to all lengths pos' to avoid KD))....back on for Andrew Davis for sentimental fun/nostalgia...

Fabulous performance of Shostakovich PC 2 with Tatiana Nikolayeva closed that broadcast

[Petrushka]

Fabulous performance of Shostakovich PC 2 with Tatiana Nikolayeva closed that broadcast

I was present in the hall for that 1992 Last Night. Can't believe it was 32 years ago!

[oliver sudden]

Timotheus, Bacchus and Cecilia. 4:2:4 syllables and their music seems to derive from the verbal rhythms of their names

(Dryden seems to have gone for 3:2:3 though… does Macmillan set them otherwise? Quite agree that subtitles would likely be all but essential for that text.)