Prom 41: 16.08.16 - The Hallé – Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

19:00 Tuesday 16 Aug 2016 ON TV
Royal Albert Hall

Hector Berlioz: Overture 'King Lear'
Colin Matthews: Berceuse for Dresden (London premiere)
Gustav Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde

Leonard Elschenbroich cello
Alice Coote mezzo-soprano
Gregory Kunde tenor
Hallé Orchestra
Sir Mark Elder conductor

Berlioz's King Lear overture was admired by the King of Hanover: 'How you have portrayed [Cordelia] - her humility and tenderness! It is heart-rending, and so beautiful!'
Continuing our focus on the cello this summer, Colin Matthews's Berceuse for Dresden takes inspiration from the eight bells of the Dresden church at which it was premiered.
In Mahler's exploration of darkness and radiance in his culminating synthesis of song and symphony, Das Lied von der Erde, he altered the parameters of vocal and orchestral expression for ever.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07nmszt

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

http://www.fabermusic.com/repertoire/berceuse-for-dresden-578

[bluestateprommer]

Fine first half to this Prom, with the Halle and Sir Mark on strong form. I must confess that Berlioz's Le roi Lear overture isn't one of my faves, and a bit of a hard nut to crack, at least for me. Elschenbroich was also very good in the Colin Matthews work, although CM seemed to overdo the bells (sampled from the Frauenkirche?). But a nice salute to Colin Matthews in his 70th birthday year.

[BBMmk2]

The Berlioz is great stuff! looking forward to this and the Mahler. Colin Matthews, hmmm....

[edashtav]

Halle Orchestra - Sir Mark Elder

I have reservations about Hector Berlioz’s oeuvre but have long held a torch for his King Lear overture.(Admission: Was I biased through being given a Eulenberg Ms. of the piece at the age of 12? Reading the notes has always guided my musical tastes.) Forget form, forget musical structure, King Lear is more dramatic than many staged operas. It opens with a recitative for lower strings evincing nobility but shot through with a terrible knowledge. I sometimes wonder whether Berlioz had at the back of his mind the recitative that prefaces the finale of Beethoven’s Choral Symphony? I found Cordelia’s oboe solo a little cool, but why the heck should it not be so- she was a chaste maiden. Back returns the noble recitative, this time shot through its heart by a tragic rhythm on timpani. Strings go mad, so well captured by the Halle and Elder. The rage against the dying of reason and logic was well drawn by tonight’s forces and those noble shards of former lucidity were projected with great sadness.I have not admired a performance of this work more since the halcyon days of Sir Colin Davies. Overture? My foot; this piece establishes the genre of Symphonic Poem.

Colin Matthews Berceuse for Dresden

It’s good to see a work premiered over ten years ago being revived, as so many compositions are, if not stillborn, subject to instant infant mortality. Perhaps, it was the presence of a cello soloist that led to this work being programmed during these Proms. In fact, the cello’s voice has similar role to the vocal soli in Nielsen’s Third Symphony:significant but an extra colour and a humanising element. Is the cello the voice of suffering humanity.The orchestra with its bell motifs creates a representation of the physical chaos inflicted on the city of Dresden.The cellist, Leonard Elschenbrioch, played his part in a sympathetic fashion picking up the resonance of the Frauenkirche’s bells sounding within and without the orchestra. The work has, as might be expected of a Lullaby, a lyrical and plangent core. Colin has written extensively for solo cello and that experience informs the present work. The shadows of Mahler (10th Symphony) and his teacher Nicholas Maw , strengthen rather than undermine this work that made a very good impression on me thanks to tonight's impassioned performance. Incidentally, with its bells rolling through and across the orchestra, what a sublime choice this work was for the RAH and the Proms.
Warmest regards on your 70th birthday, Colin.

[Petrushka]

Colin Matthews Berceuse for Dresden

It’s good to see a work premiered over ten years ago being revived, as so many compositions are, if not stillborn, subject to instant infant mortality. Perhaps, it was the presence of a cello soloist that led to this work being programmed during these Proms. In fact, the cello’s voice has similar role to the vocal soli in Nielsen’s Third Symphony:significant but an extra colour and a humanising element. Is the cello the voice of suffering humanity.The orchestra with its bell motifs creates a representation of the physical chaos inflicted on the city of Dresden.The cellist, Leonard Elschenbrioch, played his part in a sympathetic fashion picking up the resonance of the Frauenkirche’s bells sounding within and without the orchestra. The work has, as might be expected of a Lullaby, a lyrical and plangent core. Colin has written extensively for solo cello and that experience informs the present work. The shadows of Mahler (10th Symphony) and his teacher Nicholas Maw , strengthen rather than undermine this work that made a very good impression on me thanks to tonight's impassioned performance. Incidentally, with its bells rolling through and across the orchestra, what a sublime choice this work was for the RAH and the Proms.
Warmest regards on your 70th birthday, Colin.

A wonderful, haunting work that I want to immediately hear again. It's only a pity that it's taken ten years for me to hear it. If there isn't a recording I'll take this performance.

[Tony Halstead]

.I have not admired a performance of this work more since the halcyon days of Sir Colin Davies. Overture? My foot; this piece establishes the genre of Symphonic Poem.

Please try to find and listen to the sublime recording of 'King Lear' by ALEXANDER GIBSON and the same orchestra ( LSO) as that conducted by Colin Davis. Gibson IMV finds shadings and subleties that Davis doesn't.

[teamsaint]

A wonderful, haunting work that I want to immediately hear again. It's only a pity that it's taken ten years for me to hear it. If there isn't a recording I'll take this performance.

There isnt a commercial recording,AFAIK Pet, as I have been keeping my eyes peeled for one.
Which is a great shame, but which must surely be rectified soon.

[edashtav]

Mahler Das Lied Von Der Erde

Did other Boarders find the tenor soloist, Gregory Kunde, over-impassioned and inclined to hector? Mahler’s scoring is very accommodating to the voice and doesn’t yell for a Wagnerian Heldentenor. I was soon cheered by Alison Coote’s warm understanding of the score. Elder’s support for her was detailed and affecting.

The tenor’s second, brief song was more convincing, perhaps, he’d relaxed a little. Talking of relaxed, I thought Elder’s tempo for this movement was a bit slow.

I felt much the same about the contralto’s second contribution. The birds and bees suffered from a toxic spray of lethargy. The peasants gallumphed effectively in their “leiderhosen” interlude, however.The reprise of the opening music revealed the beauty of Alice’s chest register. The orchestral coda was self-indulgent.

Back to the tenor- did I detect that Elder had to give him the bum’s rush? For sure, Gregory loved to linger longer and longer but not always mellifluously. Song of an Earth running out of energy.

On to serious matters, was the oboe too full-throated at the outset? I admired Alice Coote’s vocal technique but I didn’t find that she drew me fully into the music’s emotions and passions. Oh dear, I’ve luxuriated in Kathleen Ferrier too much! I found the orchestra's playing expressive but within a Cool Britannia orbit rather than full of Viennese inner warmth that gives hope even in the score’s bleakest moments. Too much metrical precision, possibly?
To sum up, a solid, nutritious effort: a Lancashire Meat and Potato pie.

[edashtav]

Please try to find and listen to the sublime recording of 'King Lear' by ALEXANDER GIBSON and the same orchestra ( LSO) as that conducted by Colin Davis. Gibson IMV finds shadings and subleties that Davis doesn't.

Yes, Davis! Curiously,I've heard the King Lear only live. I suppose that's because I've never rated Berlioz high enough to invest money in him! I shall try to find Gibson's interpretation. Cheers.

[Petrushka]

I heard Sir Colin and the LSO in Berlioz's King Lear in Moscow in 1979 - Tony were you in the orchestra on that tour? - but have never heard it live since.

I have to agree with edashtav's reservations about the tenor but the close miking of both soloists didn't help either. The harp was also ludicrously close miked. A pity as the engineering in this Proms season has been generally fine.

[LeMartinPecheur]

Do we have any opinions on the re-scoring by one of the Matthews Bros of the 1st mov't of the Mahler? For those who missed the mention of it, one gathered that Elder was of the opinion that Mahler, as was his way once he's heard a work's premiere, would have made a lot of tweaks. The scoring of the first song is a well-known tenor-killer (particularly if you want a lighter, more lyrical voice for the other two songs) so Elder assumed that M would have lightened the scoring quite a bit. So Matthews' task was apparently "Re-score it so that nobody will notice." (Not a very common instruction I guess...)

I've been listening to performances for 40 years and can't say I noticed anything specific missing. It did sound a touch easier for tonight's tenor, he was clearly audible but then I did think that the engineers were close-miking him. A report form the hall would be appreciated. (I assumed that we'd been told all about it because we would be hearing it, but RT makes no mention so perhaps I was wrong)

[On the Pedants' Corner front I did think our presenter should have done a lot better on the title of the work! Time after time, Lied as in (dog)lead, von with a full English v-sound not an f. Doesn't she ever listen to other presenters?? I'd have thought that many listeners without any German at all would have done better]

[LeMartinPecheur]

The peasants gallumphed effectively in their “leiderhosen” interlude, however.

Oh dear, a case of W&G's "The Wrong Trousers" perhaps?

[edashtav]

I heard Sir Colin and the LSO in Berlioz's King Lear in Moscow in 1979 - Tony were you in the orchestra on that tour? - but have never heard it live since.

I have to agree with edashtav's reservations about the tenor but the close miking of both soloists didn't help either. The harp was also ludicrously close miked. A pity as the engineering in this Proms season has been generally fine.

Interesting stuff. I hadn't considered making issues but you've fingered a probable cause for some of my reservations, Petrushka. I agree that the harp was positively "in yer face". Your thought that the engineering has been unusually good this year is very true. So good has it been, that my engineering brain has logged off- I assume all will be well on the night, and today that proved to be untrue.

[Carlos V]

Mr. Kunde was inaudible in the first song from up in the circle. Ms. Coote fared better. I enjoyed the performance, even though I had a hard time trying to ignore the background noise. A particularly ill-timed cough ruined the final chord. Well, that's live.