Prom 63 - 29.08.13: Mozart, Peter Eötvös & Bruckner

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

7.30pm – c. 9.50pm
Royal Albert Hall

Mozart
Der Schauspieldirektor - Overture (4 mins)
Peter Eötvös
DoReMi (21 mins)
BBC co-commission with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Leipzig Gewandhaus
UK Premiere
INTERVAL
Bruckner
Symphony No. 7 in E major (70 mins)

Midori violin
Philharmonia Orchestra
Esa-Pekka Salonen conductor

Tonight's Prom features the UK premiere of Peter Eötvös's 2nd violin concerto titled DoReMi, and described by soloist Midori as "so rhapsodic and so individual". The Philharmonia under Esa-Pekka Salonen then perform Bruckner's tribute to Wagner, his mighty Symphony no.7, complete with Wagner tubas.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Now then. Let's be 100% honest about this. What musical work springs to mind when you hear the title DoReMi?

[Tony Halstead]

Now then. Let's be 100% honest about this. What musical work springs to mind when you hear the title DoReMi?

errr....derrrrr....some kind of deer maybe?

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Now then. Let's be 100% honest about this. What musical work springs to mind when you hear the title DoReMi?

Palestrina's Missa Ut-Re-Mi, of course (he lied, shamelessly).

[Serial_Apologist]

Frere Jacques

[edashtav]

Traffic Lights Wreck Salonen's Bruckner

What a nice change to start things off with Mozart's cheeky little overture. I felt is set the scene well for Peter Eötvös's Second Violin Concerto DoReMi. My word did this piece keep Midori and the Philharmonia percussion section busy. If his first concerto was built around "7", the second seems to hover around "3". Few works have 3 triangle players but I believe this one did. Three movements, or partitions, too, and the so simple 3 note DoReMi pattern, plus oodles of microtonal patterns to create an ethereal layer. Mid-European folk music had a clear presence as did occasional touches of Peter Eötvös's tongue in cheek humour. If wasn't a BBC commission, having been sponsored by the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra and the Lepizig G.O., but I felt it straddled the divide between some rather over-colourful British commissions and last night's more thoughtful, cool essay by Charlotte Seither.

Peter Eötvös is a very experienced figure - it won't be long before he's 70 years old and I felt the hand of a master at the helm. What I missed was the sense that Peter had something new to say. That may be unfair and I shall be ready to revise my opinions after more hearings. For the moment: B- to the composer, an A for Midori a B- for the Philharmonia, and an A for Esa-Pekka Salonen.

On to Bruckner's 7th - my favourite amongst his symphonies. Good playing from the Philharmonia and firm control from the conductor. I loved and hated this performance. Tiny sections were wonderfully characterised but the proliferation of traffic lights destroyed my enjoyment, overall. I like my Bruckner straight and grinding. This was delightful in the moments but the sum was less than the parts. Structure matters Esa-Pekka.

I was surprised that the announcer noted that there was more Bruckner from the VPO on the penultimate night of the Proms but omitted to mention that the Oslo P.O. will be playing his 4th next Tuesday under Vasily Petrenko. I'm sure that Jayne will have her say about that!

[jayne lee wilson]

A lovely Bruckner 7. Light on its feet, swift and incisive, but weighty and full where it matters; architecturally-shaped and phrased to perfection. Wonderfully well done.
I love to hear Bruckner played like this.

Salonen included cymbals and timpani at the adagio's climax (I THINK the triangle was in there too), and made them work brilliantly; if I found his tempi variations in the finale (surely Bruckner's most dazzling - a stunningly fluid, quicksilver, virtuoso creation) a little excessive for my own preference, it was so well thought-through and played that it should silence all criticism.

The back-announcer described the search for the missing triangle-players, before the Eotvos in part one, as a "classic Radio 3 moment", which it was - and Donald Macleod handled it with his usual elegant wit. But I'll have to hear the many beautiful moments and textures of Do-re-mi again before having anything worthwhile to say about it. As a first impression, an enjoyably surrealistic collage of forms and allusions....

[Petrushka]

Sorry Jayne, I'm with edashtav on the Bruckner. Wonderfully well played it certainly was, no argument there, but the tempo fluctuations irritated me more than the inter-movement applause. Both were unnecessary and spoilt enjoyment.

[amac4165]

Sorry Jayne, I'm with edashtav on the Bruckner. Wonderfully well played it certainly was, no argument there, but the tempo fluctuations irritated me more than the inter-movement applause. Both were unnecessary and spoilt enjoyment.

I found it unconvincing in the hall - quite a lot of people left the arena (and stalls) during the performance. Nothing particular bad about the performance - but overall it seemed an incoherent account.

I can confirm that the triangle was indeed in use during 2nd movement !

No idea why Bruckner attracted such a happy clappy crowd

[jayne lee wilson]

I think that Salonen's reading is in a tradition going back from Venzago's recent revitalisations to Haitink's 1960s Amsterdam recordings and beyond to Knappertsbusch. Do you know Kna's 62-minute 7th from 30/08/49, or his 60-minute 4th from 08/09/44? Or better still and in stereo, Haitink's live RCO one from 14/10/72. Swift and light with impact and flexible in tempi...

I grew up with the richer sonorities, and the "one-basic-pulse" school of Karajan and Wand, I've never really warmed to Jochum's more stop-go readings (great RCO 5ths though), but recent accounts like those of Venzago have opened me up to a wider variety of interpretive approach... but then these days I can't really take big-band Brahms (recently thrilled again by the Mackerras SCO cycle, and Manze's 60-player Helsingborgers), let alone anything earlier! Ivor Bolton's Salzburg Bruckner recordings are more than worth a listen too... I guess I just want to make it new now, freshen my stale responses - I rarely go back to any earlier classics or favourites....and I want to see the interpretative possibilities widen - but of course it's different for everyone in this age - this culture - of recordings.

...just to add that the relay was again excellent on HDs, in tonal balance, clarity and dynamic range, revealing the quality of this great partnership. Checking FM (for some longer passages than usual) also revealed a very good sound, albeit with reduced dynamics and slightly louder pps.

[Flay]

Sorry Jayne, I'm with edashtav on the Bruckner. Wonderfully well played it certainly was, no argument there, but the tempo fluctuations irritated me more than the inter-movement applause. Both were unnecessary and spoilt enjoyment.

Was I listening (on the radio) to the same performance? I thought that this was the most exciting, exhilerating live performance of the 7th that I have heard.

The climax in the 2nd movement gave me the longest tingle I have ever experienced!

I'm with Jayne here. It was powerful, delicate and lively. And there were pauses when it mattered, long enough to silence every echo in the hall.

Had I been there I think that I too would have clapped between movements, even though I abhor the practice. Maybe it just sounded better on the radio??

Beautiful.

[jayne lee wilson]

I've just listened again to the 1st movement of the Bruckner 7... and I'm even more impressed with Salonen's natural and expressive rubato. His tempo changes served mainly to highlight key structural elements, from the molto animato C minor outburst to the slower, sweeping arch of melody over timpani just before the final climax. I admired the way the urgency of the main allegro evolved out of the moderato opening too - Salonen showing so clearly how different Bruckner's procedure is from sonata. And such subtle light-and-shade in dynamic expression... For me, just a great performance really.

[mercia]

E-P's spoken thoughts on the symphony, not as a great architectural structure, but rather like a toddler with a bag of toys, one toy [musical idea] played with for a while then rejected for the next, till the whole floor is scattered with them - was interesting (?) - at least it demonstrated his approach

it sounded glorious to my untutored ear (particularly the brass)

[LaurieWatt]

E-P's thoughts on the symphony, not as a great architectural structure, but rather like a toddler with a bag of toys, one toy [musical idea] played with for a while then rejected for the next, till the whole floor is scattered with them - was interesting (?) - at least it demonstrated his approach

it sounded glorious to my untutored ear (particularly the brass)

The trouble is he played it like that! I am with Edashtav and Petrushka on this one. And, yes, a glorious sound, undoubtedly, but I would quite like quite a lot more! As Jayne said it was a fine broadcast but I turned the tape off (not the radio) when my irritation with Salonen's way with the work overcame my enjoyment of the sound that the Philharmonia were making.

[Nick Armstrong]

quite a lot of people left the arena (and stalls) during the performance

blimey....