Prom 23: Monday 1st August and 7.30 p.m. (Beethoven, Saint-Saëns, Liszt)

[DracoM]

Yes, me too, Chris, ref Faust Symp. Sound and Fury etc?

Cracking Saint-Saens though! How / why has that remained unperformed at the Proms for 90+ years. Seems like a marriage made in heaven for Proms audiences who love a bit of strut and swagger and fantastic virtuosic playing as Mr Hough showed us.

[jayne lee wilson]

Sorry guys, but I found the balance excellent and stable throughout the Beethoven, indeed the whole concert ( Macbook on HDs 320AAC - Cambridge DacMagic, ATC amps/Harbeth 7s), and the orchestra on great form, the 4th wonderfully rich and fuller-toned than the NOW in 1 & 7 (also excellent in a leaner style), Noseda's reading fairly "straight" and swift in what I guess we must see as the contemporary manner. (Rattle attempted something different in his VPO set but was widely criticised for it).
Not a great Saint-Saens fan but this was brilliant stuff, pianistic champagne corks popping in the finale! Ovation deserved!

For me, the Dante Symphony was quite gorgeous, played with both precision and beauty, the ending transfixing me as if in the great spaces of the albert hall itself...
Earlier this year, not knowing the piece, I bought the Noseda recording as a 24-bit download - sonically marvellous, but I enjoyed the Prom more, with the spacious acoustic and the intensity of a live reading. It's actually quite a concise piece, skilfully built out of linked episodes, which might make it seem to drag if you bring too fixed a view of sonata structures to it.
Wagner was right about the ending, far less effective if it blazed; and 40-odd minutes for a Dante Symphony seems pretty restrained to me!

I think it's only a good thing if conductors have to choose among variants. Gets them involved beyond time-beating! But it's also good to be reminded that we tend to view classical masterpieces from a museological, rather than more practically musical, point of view. Listen to both variants, choose, try again...

"A poem is never finished, only abandoned" (Paul Valery)

[mercia]

just looking at the proms archive, the Saint-Saens second concerto has been very popular with 40 performances (3 in the 1915 season alone), but numbers 1 and 3 have never had a look in

[Ventilhorn]

Sorry, gave this Prom a wide berth. I'm allergic to Saint-Saens and Liszt and the LvB 4 wasn't enough to justify a listen.

The Proms seems to have hit one if its periodic flat spots over the past week and only caught Saturdays. The rest of this week and into next week looks like a return to quality.

Hi Petrushka,

Well the Beethoven certainly was worth a listen. Superbly played - especially those violins in the finale.

I tried the S-Saens for five minutes and then gave it up. Not even anyone as accomplished as Stephen Hough could turn that work into anything but a showpiece which (IMHO) has justifyably been kept on the shelves all these years.

Liszt is certainly not on my list (that's a feeble pun) with the exception of piano concertos 1 & 2 and "Tasso", so I indulged myself on TV with "New Tricks", but I would certainly recommend anyone who did not hear it to listen to Beethoven 4 on "Listen Again".

VH

[pilamenon]

Hi Petrushka,

Well the Beethoven certainly was worth a listen. Superbly played - especially those violins in the finale.

I tried the S-Saens for five minutes and then gave it up. Not even anyone as accomplished as Stephen Hough could turn that work into anything but a showpiece which (IMHO) has justifyably been kept on the shelves all these years.

VH

You should have stayed with it, Ventilhorn, and let your hair down. This performance might go down as one of the highlights of the season on the sheer enjoyment scale, and judging by its reception, I suspect the work will be back again soon. Fancy giving that up, and the beautiful Liszt work, for 'New Tricks'!

[NickWraight]

From the front Arena the Beethoven came across very well indeed, quite up to the BBCNOW's last week with a touch less sparkle. The quotes re woodwind are interesting, many conductors place them on the stage floor and first riser whereas to project in the Hall they do need to be higher. Conversely, when the Double Basses are on the stage much more bass sound results, presumably using the void below the stage as a Bass Woofer!

The Egyptian was excellent, in places faster and more exciting than the CBSO/Hough/Oramo recording on Hyperion. The first movement especially demonstrates to my mind what a decent composer he was, very little repetition of the soloists material with the evocative and imaginative second a joy - complete with the exotic "Cornet Separé" effect on a couple of occasions from the piano, an organist would know what I mean!!

The Dante came over as a far taughter piece than the Faust and when given the required excitement by a knowing conductor rather a surprise. I am still amazed the place was completely sold out though...

[Chris Newman]

[/QUOTE]I am still amazed the place was completely sold out though... [QUOTE]

I should think it was the combination of Stephen Hough and Noseda's official farewell to the Phil that swung it rather than the works played. As it was the Saint-Saens and Liszt turned out to be unjustifiably neglected "ugly ducklings" that rematerialised as beautiful swans.

[somename]

This was my first Promming Prom although I went for the less hip option of the gallery. I thought the acoustics were quite good up there (better than some places in the RFH) and really enjoyed the programme, which is why I went. I didn't know the Egyptian was little-played, because I have a recording of it so know it rather well, same for the Dante really. Interesting that having a name doesn't always give a piece over its "No. X in key" peers! Especially when one is about a journey into the afterlife. But then Purgatory can be a bit of a job to listen to, but the Magnificat is a tremendous release and the ethereal choir up the gallery did give a good sense of the sublime!

[Chris Newman]

Welcome somename,
Glad you enjoyed your first Prom. Happy listening. My favourite spot is the arena about 15 feet behind the conductor. Any closer and the woodwind disappear in the wall of strings. I find the walkers in squeaky shoes put me off the gallery.

bws
Chris.