Prom 22 - 31.07.17: Monteverdi's Vespers

[LeMartinPecheur]

Was, or were?

One for Pedants' Paradise?

Monteverdi's Vespers is a masterwork.

Monteverdi's Vespers are a masterwork.

Monteverdi's Vespers are a cracking collection of masterworks.

Answer's obvious innit??

PS OK, Monteverdi's Vespers are (all?) masterworks. Possible, but hardly idiomatic surely?

[Bryn]

Tonight's Prom was shown as being one of those to be made available 'live' in binaural sound. Sadly it is a bit of a mess. It comes and goes, the web page switching between the current Prom, Sundays, and the stored Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique. Hopefully they wil sort it for later for later access. It's back at the moment, and very good, but I await it collapsing again without warning.

The binaural stream is still working at the moment. A shame though to have lost much of the early part. Just got off the phone to the Beeb's support line. Pleasant enough young chap clearly knew nothing about the very existence of the Taster project, let alone binaural sound (I had to spell the word out to him twice). He did then find the relevant web page and said he would pass on my comments re. the fragility of the stream and lack of updating of of the catch up link. Let's hope it gets sorted.

[Bryn]

Monteverdi's Vespers is a masterwork.

Monteverdi's Vespers are a masterwork.

Monteverdi's Vespers are a cracking collection of masterworks.

Answer's obvious innit??

PS OK, Monteverdi's Vespers are (all?) masterworks. Possible, but hardly idiomatic surely?

What have you got against the collective singular? It's well accepted round these parts, regardless of what the Wikipedia article says about it only being common in America.

[bluestateprommer]

Yes. They are fabulous!

I hadn't heard of Ensemble Pygmalion before, but based on this Prom, their invitation is well justified, and the audience seem to think so also. Excellent performance of the Monteverdi Vespers, with a start to the performance that, in my extremely limited experience hearing the work, I've not heard done in that manner before, with a long vocal intro before the more familiar instrumental launch.

[Bryn]

I hadn't heard of Ensemble Pygmalion before, but based on this Prom, their invitation is well justified, and the audience seem to think so also. Excellent performance of the Monteverdi Vespers, with a start to the performance that, in my extremely limited experience hearing the work, I've not heard done in that manner before, with a long vocal intro before the more familiar instrumental launch.

I would strongly recommend this:

[edashtav]

There was much to admire in tonight's performance which had edge and electricity arising from taking risks. Risks occasions failures and on at least one moment, a remote soloist was so far from the accompaniment that he missed his pitch. Overall, the whole was fresh and exciting and brought back memories of first hearing the work almost fifty years ago.

[doversoul1]

This certainly was a LIVE performance. If I’d turned in halfway through, I might have thought I’d got the date wrong and this was Handel’s oratorio. Very exciting and theatrical. It wouldn’t be my library choice but I thought this was excellently structured (?) performance for this particular occasion. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

It made me think; Early Music movement has come a very long way. Tonight’s conductor wasn’t even born when it all started.

bluestateprommer
I have heard a few performances with various ‘additions’; one on Through the Night, a performance from Poland invited the audience to join the plainchant throughout the work.

[LeMartinPecheur]

What have you got against the collective singular? It's well accepted round these parts, regardless of what the Wikipedia article says about it only being common in America.

Erm, I thought I was speaking up for it!

[oddoneout]

"fresh and exciting" sums it up pretty well for me too, and very much one of those occasions when "the pictures are better on the radio". Seeing the RAH would have been very much at odds with what I was hearing. I too was taken back many decades, in my case to singing it in Tewkesbury Cathedral.

[Bryn]

Erm, I thought I was speaking up for it!

But you denied it an emoticon. The 'alternatives' got one a piece, albeit ones with negative connotations.

[LeMartinPecheur]

But you denied it an emoticon. The 'alternatives' got one a piece, albeit ones with negative connotations.

Yep, two with negative emoticons, one without an emoticon, + "Answer's obvious innit??" I thought made it clear enough. But apparently not!

"I must learn to be more direct, I must learn to be more direct" Always have had a problem with people failing to understand what I thought was perfectly plain, even if expressed a tad obliquely

Hosts: can I please have a special "LMP's irony light is ON" emoticon???

[DracoM]

Yes, it had a presence and some idiosyncratic moments / ensembles. I fear that some of the 'untidiness' got in the way for me in places, intonation was not the least o the issues. I suppose you 'had to be there' to appreciate it fully.

[teamsaint]

"fresh and exciting" sums it up pretty well for me too, and very much one of those occasions when "the pictures are better on the radio". Seeing the RAH would have been very much at odds with what I was hearing. I too was taken back many decades, in my case to singing it in Tewkesbury Cathedral.

Well I think it is a great shame if there weren't any cameras there, because this was quite beautifully, and rather dramatically staged,and the RAH,for all that it may not have been a perfect backdrop, certainly provided a magnificent and fitting one for an excellent performance.

Vast swathes of things to enjoy in this epic performance, way to many to mention from ipad on train, and they likely came over differently on air, but there were superb performances from choir, solists, and instrumentalists alike. A few things I would have liked to have heard might have been some slightly livlier tempos, some earthier instrumental sounds, and a bit less weight in the choir and less in the band.I also thought the vocal approach in the choir was a bit more rounded and ,oh I don't know, luxurious,than would be perfect for me, but that is for me, and is a bit close to carping.
The staging was beautiful. The choir ( 32ish in total) moved around the four or five tiers of the stage. Soloists moved gracefully to the front and then back, and at one point a violinist went off to a remote position. All nicely lit and very dramatic,perhaps particularly effective from the birdseye view of the Circle, and likely less so from the arena.

Certainly a great PR night for Pygmalion, who deserved their polonged ovation.

[Pulcinella]

Well I think it is a great shame if there weren't any cameras there, because this was quite beautifully, and rather dramatically staged,and the RAH,for all that it may not have been a perfect backdrop, certainly provided a magnificent and fitting one for an excellent performance.

I guess the choice of which Proms to televise is based on a desire to show that the Proms are not elitist (though I'm not sure that there's any evidence that showing such Proms helps draw any new audience in overall), but it is indeed a shame that we didn't get to see the drama unfold.

Vast swathes of things to enjoy in this epic performance, way to many to mention from ipad on train, and they likely came over differently on air, but there were superb performances from choir, solists, and instrumentalists alike. A few things I would have liked to have heard might have been some slightly livlier tempos, some earthier instrumental sounds, and a bit less weight in the choir and less in the band.I also thought the vocal approach in the choir was a bit more rounded and ,oh I don't know, luxurious,than would be perfect for me, but that is for me, and is a bit close to carping.
The staging was beautiful. The choir ( 32ish in total) moved around the four or five tiers of the stage. Soloists moved gracefully to the front and then back, and at one point a violinist went off to a remote position. All nicely lit and very dramatic,perhaps particularly effective from the birdseye view of the Circle, and likely less so from the arena.

Certainly a great PR night for Pygmalion, who deserved their polonged ovation.

I thought that it came over (in some places, not all) as rather hard driven and relentless, and some of the singing at the top seemed a bit shrill. If it had been the first time I'd heard the work I'm not sure that I would have felt the urge to hear it again, but that might be a stance taken with the benefit of having 'known' the work since the early JEG Decca recording came out.

Glad to know that you thought it justified the trip, ts, and the audience certainly seemed to appreciate it, judging from the applause.

[Old Grumpy]

I often wonder whether being a musician and/or highy musically educated can hinder appreciation of a given perfomance...

... being neither, I just thought it was a great performance of a great piece (or pieces).

OG