Prom 9 - 18.07.13: Stenhammar, Szymanowski & R. Strauss

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

7.00pm – c. 9.05pm
Royal Albert Hall

Stenhammar
Excelsior! (13 mins)
Szymanowski
Symphony No. 3, 'The Song of the Night' (25 mins)
INTERVAL
Strauss
An Alpine Symphony (50 mins)

Michael Weinius tenor, Proms debut artist
BBC National Chorus of Wales
BBC Symphony Chorus
BBC National Orchestra of Wales
Thomas Søndergård conductor, Proms debut artist

Evocations of Nordic forests, Persian gardens and snow-capped mountains feature in Thomas Søndergård's first Prom as Principal Conductor of the BBC NOW. Stenhammar's joyful Excelsior! is an upbeat to the opulent, exotic sound-world of Szymanowski's Symphony No. 3, 'The Song of the Night'. And Strauss's epic Alpine Symphony is as much a statement of the composer's personal philosophy as a description of the natural world at its most dramatic.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

At least one forum member will be interested in this one

[Pabmusic]

...An Alpine Symphony...

What's this like, Alpie? Any good?

On a serious note, it will be nice to hear nordic forests that are not so bleak as Sibelius conjures up in Tapiola.

[BBMmk2]

EA , a very happy chappie! I( rather like the look of the whole of this programme!

[DublinJimbo]

It's good to see Stenhammar being programmed. All in all, excellent programme planning. I'd go if I were in London.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

It's good to see Stenhammar being programmed.

All in all, excellent programme planning.

I'd go if I were in London.

[LaurieWatt]

At least one forum member will be interested in this one

So, did you enjoy it? I am rather presuming not from the silence since last night! I listened on the BBC iPlayer this morning and thought it was very well done, with some fine playing including some wonderfully daring high-lying trumpet and horns, and with a technically very fine broadcast... My thoughts went back to another Prom round about the time that the BBC Music Magazine was starting, 22 years ago, with the same orchestra and under the baton of Mariss Jansons. Another superlative performance.

[EdgeleyRob]

I enjoyed the Alpine Symphony very much,the brass sounded terrific.

[cloughie]

I enjoyed the Alpine Symphony very much,the brass sounded terrific.

A good if not great performance - perhaps tame in parts where it should have roared!

[BBMmk2]

7.00pm – c. 9.05pm
Royal Albert Hall

Stenhammar
Excelsior! (13 mins)
Szymanowski
Symphony No. 3, 'The Song of the Night' (25 mins)
INTERVAL
Strauss
An Alpine Symphony (50 mins)

Michael Weinius tenor, Proms debut artist
BBC National Chorus of Wales
BBC Symphony Chorus
BBC National Orchestra of Wales
Thomas Søndergård conductor, Proms debut artist

Evocations of Nordic forests, Persian gardens and snow-capped mountains feature in Thomas Søndergård's first Prom as Principal Conductor of the BBC NOW. Stenhammar's joyful Excelsior! is an upbeat to the opulent, exotic sound-world of Szymanowski's Symphony No. 3, 'The Song of the Night'. And Strauss's epic Alpine Symphony is as much a statement of the composer's personal philosophy as a description of the natural world at its most dramatic.

I hav'nt heard this yet but with my media player, the sound be greatly improved. Or it seems to when I have it on?

[bluestateprommer]

I might be somewhat in the minority opinion here, but I absolutely loved hearing this concert on iPlayer. While I can't claim to have heard all of TS's concerts on iPlayer to date with the BBC NOW, from what I do remember of past concerts on the radio, this Prom is easily the best concert that I've heard TS do with the BBC NOW to date. I remembered the one recent concert on iPlayer, with Huw Watkins' Violin Concerto (very well done) and Mahler 5 (good, but with more than its share of bobbles). But here, terrific playing in all 3 works, with everyone obviously going to town (or up the mountain) in the Richard Strauss, where I'll admit that the Alpine Symphony is perhaps my favorite classical music "guilty pleasure". Splendid work also from the two choruses and tenor Michael Weinius in the Szymanowski. It's all the more impressive because none of these 3 works would really be considered "standard repertoire" in my book, with the Strauss coming the closest to that designation, but the orchestral demands obviously limit live performances of it.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

So, did you enjoy it? I am rather presuming not from the silence since last night!

In fact, I was unable to listen to the Prom at all, playing "woodwind 1" in Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. I caught up with it on this afternoon's repeat and was pleasantly surprised by the Alpine Symphony's freshness. It has been lucky at the Proms in recent years.

[gradus]

I heard the repeat of the Alpine Symphony on R3 and was struck by its wonderful playing and remarkable intensity sounding to my ears very similar to the Karajan recording. This conductor and orchestra are, I think, hot stuff and I look forward to hearing their future broadcasts.