Prom 43: Tuesday 16th August at 7.00 p.m. (Copland, Bax, Bartok, Barber, Prokofiev)

[Simon B]

Joint Prom of the season for me (ok, of the 10 I've attended so far and a few more on R3 and the tellybox) along with the Gothic and Verdi Requiem. Particularly so for the Prokofiev 4. Ok, so there were a few untidy moments here and there but that's the RAH acoustic for you in rep like this. But, on this evidence give me the relatively unsung RPO (or Philharmonia/LSO/LPO/BBCPO and in a new development recently the BBCSO) over the hyped Simon Bolivar or Mariinsky orchestras (or often the Berlin PO too). Maybe it's just me but I seem to come to a similar conclusion every season as I pay a fortune for visiting orchestras that usually disappoint...

[jillfc]

The Prokofiev was the highlight of the concert for me too; and a pretty good concert it was. I had some doubts about the last movement of the Bartok, which seemed somehow blurred and lacking the rhythmic clarity I was looking for. But overall the RPO produced some really accurate and well-judged playing, as well as a very fine sound.

[cavatina]

I had some doubts about the last movement of the Bartok, which seemed somehow blurred and lacking the rhythmic clarity I was looking for.

I thought much the same thing, but think it's worth hearing again on the I-player to make sure I'm not unfairly judging it against my favorite recordings. It's all-too-easy to get trapped into using classic performances as a yardstick whereby we know "how it's supposed to go" without ever actually having troubled ourselves to study the score. (In my opinion, any classical music reviewer who hasn't studied the score is shortchanging his readership, but that's another rant for another day.)

But anyway, I found Wang's performance compelling enough on its own terms to want to try to hear it without my musical baggage-- her fire, spirit, and delicacy made for an enjoyable and rewarding musical experience.

maybe a bit on the long side, too. I mean - two substantial symphonies in one concert, for a start!

Bring it on! I didn't find it long or tedious in the slightest, and gladly would have kept going past midnight. But then, I wouldn't mind if every concert had two intermissions--and would delightedly sponge up Cadogan concerts every afternoon to boot!-- so what do I know.

[Bax-of-Delights]

A response from me would not be unexpected, I presume.

Sitting in the stalls, immediately to the left of the stage (as you face it) I was unsure if we were getting the full aural force of the Bax tutti - the organ seemed to be almost inaudible at this point (a feature I have noted before) being somewhat overpowered by the timpani. It is difficult to be objective about a piece of music that one has never heard live before but to which one has so much emotional attachment (being the first piece of music that brought me to Bax back in the 70's, the Lyrita LP days) that I must leave it to others to comment on the quality of the playing. I was just delighted to be there.
And in a house packed to the rafters!

I will confess that I made my exit after the Bartok, deciding instead to take a little night walk - a Bartokian night walk - through the side streets of Brompton and Knightsbridge back to Victoria. And very pleasant (and eerily quiet) it was too.

Perhaps the shine of the evening was diminished a little by the Sussex train making an unscheduled stop at Selhurst to pick up Crystal Palace football fans - all piling into a 4 carriage train. You win some, you lose some, eh?

[ucanseetheend]

Great Concert by Litton & Royal Phil( Not short changed like so many others)

And whats so different was the concert time length, so much music , I for one got tired of paying to see a concert often barely 75 minutes after paying my 25 or 30 pounds so I stopped going, More concerts of 2 hours of music and the orchestral members can really work hard, presumably they enjoy their job?

[Ferretfancy]

jillfc

It was nice to hear Edward Downes in you posting, he did a marvellous Prokofiev cycle with the BBCO at the RFH which included both versions of 4. This one of the best series I've ever attended.
Last night's programme was fascinating, although I must admit to some fatigue, as I had already been standing all day. I had not heard the Bax at a concert, only on CD and LP. I have never thought that recordings do justice to the sound of Bax's rhetorical orchestration, and for me the symphony was quite a revelation heard in the hall. It's a long time since I heard the RPO play so well, they really shouldn't be regarded as the poor relation that some think they are.
I suppose the Bartok was the highlight, the one complete masterpiece in the evening. Excellent playing from Yuja Wang. From my standing place some of the brass were a bit buried in the first movement - a Steinway does act as a bit of a barrier!

[prokkyshosty]

Bless you, Prommers and RAH-goers -- you have the best classical music festival in the world and you are the best classical music fans in the world. That was a VERY challenging program last night, with not much more than 10 minutes of familiar music to hang your hats on, yet most of you stayed for the whole thing. Sure, there were some defections after the second interval (which was shortened, interestingly), but not nearly as many as I had feared. I assure you that if this very same programme were it to be presented in Boston (the city for which most of the works were written), there would've been about 20 people left in the audience by the end. Believe me, I know.

Now, having gushed about you, RAH-goers, lets work on the intermittent clapping thing, the mobile phones, and my latest bete noir, watches that chime on the hour. Who still has a watch that chimes on the hour!?!

[Serial_Apologist]

(In my opinion, any classical music reviewer who hasn't studied the score is shortchanging his readership, but that's another rant for another day.)

A very elitist position to accord critics. I think you should argue that view through, ranting or otherwise.

[cavatina]

A very elitist position to accord critics. I think you should argue that view through, ranting or otherwise.

Who writes a more meaningful review: someone who knows the pieces they're reviewing from the inside out and is able to place them in a historical context, or somebody who tosses off personal impressions and catty one-liners in order to meet a deadline?

If there's no contextual "anchor" in a review, who really cares whether an individual critic liked a performance or not? In other words, show me you're evaluating this piece on something beyond your personal taste and why I should respect your judgment.

I know which kind of critic I find worth reading; to each his own.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Well, judging from the reviews of the Swan Lake concert, it's quite clear that many critics hadn't a clue about the the score.
I don't think the possession of knowledge it elitist. Restricting access to that knowledge is.

[Serial_Apologist]

Who writes a more meaningful review: someone who knows the pieces they're reviewing from the inside out and is able to place them in a historical context, or somebody who tosses off personal impressions and catty one-liners in order to meet a deadline?

If there's no contextual "anchor" in a review, who really cares whether an individual critic liked a performance or not? In other words, show me you're evaluating this piece on something beyond your personal taste and why I should respect your judgment.

I know which kind of critic I find worth reading; to each his own.

You were talking about critics who haven't read the score

[Serial_Apologist]

Well, judging from the reviews of the Swan Lake concert, it's quite clear that many critics hadn't a clue about the the score.
I don't think the possession of knowledge it elitist. Restricting access to that knowledge is.

A lot of the music I wrote about doesn't have a score. That fact doesn't make it necessary for me to express views about a piece of classical music without having had access to a score. Hackneyvi writes articulately on these threads about music without having any knowledge of musical techniques - I'd rather read his stuff (and have told him he should take up reviewing) than someone "blessed" with ability to score-read, which seems a prerequisite for communicating music to the masses according to some on here.

[cavatina]

You were talking about critics who haven't read the score

Yes; I always thought reading the score was part of doing a thorough job. I saw it as something of a safeguard against inaccurate personal biases that creep in whether we like it or not-- and while there's no such thing as an "objective" review, I always did my best to take it seriously. After all, when a critic evaluates a performance, he's impacting people's careers in the most direct way possible...to my mind, it's no place for being careless, glib, and sloppy.

[cavatina]

A lot of the music I wrote about doesn't have a score. That fact doesn't make it necessary for me to express views about a piece of classical music without having had access to a score. Hackneyvi writes articulately on these threads about music without having any knowledge of musical techniques - I'd rather read his stuff (and have told him he should take up reviewing) than someone "blessed" with ability to score-read, which seems a prerequisite for communicating music to the masses according to some on here.

Of course, but I'm just saying it's important to make sure your praise or blame is really worth something. For example, if I'm going to pan a performance in a way that might hurt someone's career, I better make sure I've done everything I can to back myself up. (And don't even get me started on the sleazy "quid pro quo" artificial hype racket.) Falling back on my knee-jerk likes and dislikes is unfair to everyone, artists and audiences alike.

[Panjandrum]

For example, if I'm going to pan a performance in a way that might hurt someone's career, I better make sure I've done everything I can to back myself up.

I wouldn't worry about it too much if I were you. Unless you are a well known critic, I hardly think any comments posted here are going to wreck a previously storied career.