Prom 39 - 15.08.14: BBC SSO, Biss / Stenz

[jayne lee wilson]

PROM 39, FM Ratings Part One:

RAMEAU: Sound 10/10, Performance 10/10.
RANDS: Sound 10/10, Performance 10/10.

Elegant & idiomatic Rameau, beautifully balanced; excellent results from modern instruments. Worthy of the great, late Frans Bruggen himself - and worth the sighing "yeah!" of satisfaction from Stenz!
On first hearing, the Rands sounded very precisely, expressively and limpidly performed. Fascinating piece. Fine piano/orchestra balance.
http://www.schottmusic.com/shop/products/show,319601,,f.html

Inevitably restricted dynamics and typically "close" feel on FM, but tonally alluring & level-boosting kept subtle. Rather better than expected!.



PROM 39 HDs Ratings Part Two:

MOZART: Sound 10/10, Performance 10/10.
STRAUSS: Sound 10/10, Performance 10/10.

Outstanding Heldenleben - rich sonority and dynamic orchestral response. A touch of coarseness in some later climaxes, but in the face of such a passionate shaping spirit from the performers, and brave dynamic range on the webcast, I forgave it.
Mozart 1 superbly light and elegant.

Overall: what a difference a conductor makes. One of the best Proms this season, technically & musically.

[Petrushka]

PROM 39, FM Ratings Part One:

RAMEAU: Sound 10/10, Performance 10/10.
RANDS: Sound 10/10, Performance 10/10.

Elegant & idiomatic Rameau, beautifully balanced; excellent results from modern instruments. Worthy of the great, late Frans Bruggen himself - and worth the sighing "yeah!" of satisfaction from Stenz!
On first hearing, the Rands sounded very precisely, expressively and limpidly performed. Fascinating piece. Fine piano/orchestra balance.

Inevitably restricted dynamics and typically "close" feel on FM, but level-boosting kept subtle. Rather better than expected!.



PROM 39 HDs Ratings Part Two:

MOZART: Sound 10/10, Performance 10/10.
STRAUSS: Sound 10/10, Performance 10/10.

Outstanding Heldenleben - rich sonority and dynamic orchestral response. A touch of coarseness in some later climaxes, but in the face of such a passionate shaping spirit from the performers, and brave dynamic range on the webcast, I forgave it.
Mozart 1 superbly light and elegant.

Overall: what a difference a conductor makes. One of the best Proms this season, technically & musically.

This was my thought too as the evening progressed. I hadn't had any great expectations but this turned out to be a very fine Heldenleben from the very start and sounding really excellent via Freeview. Could have done with more of a percussion onslaught but a wholly satisfying performance, nonetheless.

[Barbirollians]

How interesting . I found the Heldenleben sluggish and that it did not hold together at all whilst being loud and hectoring in parts . I was struck by how inferior it was to the last Ein Heldenleben from the Proms i have listened to namely the ICA Classics DVD of the Kempe from the mid 1970s .

[Petrushka]

How interesting . I found the Heldenleben sluggish and that it did not hold together at all whilst being loud and hectoring in parts . I was struck by how inferior it was to the last Ein Heldenleben from the Proms i have listened to namely the ICA Classics DVD of the Kempe from the mid 1970s .

I remember watching that Kempe performance on TV when it was first broadcast. Really must get the DVD! I was very lucky to see Kempe perform Strauss (Don Juan) in 1972 at my very first classical concert.

Anyone remember the Jansons/BRSO Prom performance in 2004 when half the stage lights went out during the battle scene and the orchestra played on regardless?

[mercia]

It is a great shame that Mozart's mature symphonies now seem very seldom played at the Proms . Oh for a Jupiter or K 550 .

K550 tonight (as it happens)

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

K550 tonight (as it happens)

Indeed - and with the premiere of a piece by Dobrinka Tabakova, of whose work Barbi himself has been very enthusiastic.

(You'll have to miss the Inspector Montalbano repeat, though: it's the Late-nighter.)

[Barbirollians]

Indeed - and with the premiere of a piece by Dobrinka Tabakova, of whose work Barbi himself has been very enthusiastic.

(You'll have to miss the Inspector Montalbano repeat, though: it's the Late-nighter.)

Indeed I had forgotten the Aurora Orchestra concert . I suppose my more general gripe is the complete retreat of the symphony orchestra from Mozart's symphonies . It does not make sense , they can be properly scaled back to a chamber size to play the music as they are regularly to accompany in particular pianists in the concertos and it means that these works as those of Haydn are being marginalised in the central concert repertoire .

I shall listen to the Tabakova with interest .

[Ferretfancy]

Much looking forward to the Rands p concerto - another composer like Iain Hamilton who started out in the 60s writing serial music yet ended up in the States writing stuff that is ironically much more harmonically and temperamentally in the tradition of Vaughan Williams and Butterworth G.

If he is in the tradition of RVW and Butterworth, I failed to notice it. Jonathan Biss probably made as good a job of it as he could, and the composer seemed a nice old boy when he made his appearance -ho hum !

I enjoyed the Rameau, whether HIPP or not, and the Mozart demonstrated that an eight year old could make a good start. It was a very good Heldenleben, not at all sluggish from where I was standing, with an excellent contribution from the leader, Laura Samuel in that mini concerto portraying Pauline Strauss. I've loved this work ever since hearing it for the first time on Karajan's 1959 recording with the BPO, all the key points made their impact last night. A lady sitting somewhere to my right in the stalls carefully placed a sharp cough at every quiet transition in the music, presumably seeking to improve the orchestration. I hope it was less objectionable on air.

[Ein Heldenleben]

I was in the arena last night for the first of three on a weekend pass. Very much enjoyed Ein Heldenleben , which as my user name suggests , is a favourite work. Unusually the string set up was v1 , v2 , celli, violas - left to right. The percussion sounded plenty loud enough from twenty feet back in the arena , but not as loud as the brass which , I guess in a feature of the acoustic (?) drowned out quite a lot of string and woodwind detail. Despite the acoustic shields I would not have relished being in the woodwinds last night .
Surprised at how sparsely attended the arena was last night for what was a very interesting and well -performed programme. Also , at the rick of cross-threading, amazed at the amount of flash photography - how many pics of a concert are they really going to keep ?
Looking forward to Mahler / Haitink tonight - I think I've picked a good weekend .

[Nick Armstrong]

I think I've picked a good weekend

Indeed! And glad you chose this weekend to pitch in here

Welcome.

I'm looking forward to a Heldenleben - Alpensinfonie discussion! Should be.... noisy.... !

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

I'm looking forward to a Heldenleben - Alpensinfonie discussion! Should be.... noisy.... !

We Strauss tone poem enthusiasts are always refined.

Welcome too from me Heldenleben.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

And from me, too. (I'm frequently quixotic!)

[Serial_Apologist]

If he is in the tradition of RVW and Butterworth, I failed to notice it. Jonathan Biss probably made as good a job of it as he could, and the composer seemed a nice old boy when he made his appearance -ho hum !

Fair comment as regards my comment, Ferret! Indeed I was delighted that Rands has not further pursued the "neo-ruralist" tendencies of music of his I've heard since the early '80s; the piano concerto definitely revealed his serial roots, and was beautifully executed.

[gradus]

I heard this Heldenleben in this afternoon's repeat of the concert and wished that the condcutor had smiled more at the horns whose splendid contribution to this wonderful score was a little less resounding than I like to hear. With such fine players - memorably beautiful solo work in the closing pages - for Gawd's sake encourage them to make as much of the fantatstic writing as possible - music's noblest sound. Perhaps the effect was greater when heard live?

[mercia]

please tell me this is a picture of the wrong Strauss

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p024x93g