Prom 58 - 27.08.17: Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and Louis Langrée

[Pulcinella]

Are you sure it wasn't the Voice of God he was playing? That's a speaking part,

It was, and I was similarly disappointed.
Not sure it was part of the Aldeburgh Festival though (November?): his Wiki entry says

On 24 November 2013 he took the role of God in a production of Noye's Fludde for BBC Radio 3, as part of the station's celebration of Benjamin Britten's centenary.

Btw, his surname is Soanes.

[Cockney Sparrow]

Are you sure it wasn't the Voice of God he was playing? That's a speaking part,

Of course you are correct - all done in haste. Corrected now. Thanks

[Pulcinella]

Hurrah! An orchestra that knows how to 'swing'!

[edashtav]

[QUOTE=Pulcinella;635557]Hurrah! An orchestra that knows how to 'swing'![/QUOTYes, indeed, Pulcinella, the performance of the "On The Waterfront" Suite was so wonderfully American in spirit, from the Wild West brutality of life in the Docks to those American inventions: big band music and Jazz. It's a strange suite as it fits Florentine Schmitt's title "Suite sans Esprit D'Une Suite" being a fully integrated 20 minute symphonic poem that owes much to Liszt and Tchaikovsky in shape and derives its Allegro Barbara violence from The Barton of Miraculous Mandarin. Perhaps, it was the composer's public rebuke to the manner in which his music had been mangled in the final version of the film where it had been cut and pasted, loud places made soft, etc. , all Bernstein's musical structure and logic having been destroyed in the editing suite. It deserves to be heard more often but ... does it need an American Orchestra to bring it fully to life?

I won't say much the Copland for it's a strange and unrepresentative piece that's almost impossible to "pull off". Charles Dance did not have its measure: he tripped along almost dancing when more gravitas was required.

[added later] Well, well the Tchaikovsky Symphony was played with great panache, virtuosity but in completely the wrong style. To prove that Tchaikovsky was no Russian Nationalist, here was the fully chromium plated American Hard Rock Version. A brilliant failure!

Back to Bernstein for the encore : the overture Candide. Absolutely stunning: yes it swung, didn't it Pulcinella.
( I heard a rumour that the conductor, Louis Langrée, was French , surely not?)

[Pulcinella]

Yes, indeed, Pulcinella, the performance of the "On The Waterfront" Suite was so wonderfully American in spirit, from the Wild West brutality of life in the Docks to those American inventions: big band music and Jazz. It's a strange suite as it fits Florentine Schmitt's title "Suite sans Esprit D'Une Suite" being a fully integrated 20 minute symphonic poem that owes much to Liszt and Tchaikovsky in shape and derives its Allegro Barbara violence from The Barton of Miraculous Mandarin. Perhaps, it was the composer's public rebuke to the manner in which his music had been mangled in the final version of the film where it had been cut and pasted, loud places made soft, etc. , all Bernstein's musical structure and logic having been destroyed in the editing suite. It deserves to be heard more often but ... does it need an American Orchestra to bring it fully to life?

I have been thinking of posing a similar question on the Bernstein thread (Composer subforum rather than the newer Centenary one, which perhaps could be merged?): Has Bernstein's music suffered by being recorded (played) by too many orchestras that just don't get it? Worth doing?

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I have been thinking of posing a similar question on the Bernstein thread (Composer subforum rather than the newer Centenary one, which perhaps could be merged?): Has Bernstein's music suffered by being recorded (played) by too many orchestras that just don't get it? Worth doing?

Yes.

Current (and new) Threads don't go onto the Composer Subforum until they've "played themselves out" - so comments on the Centenary will stay on that Thread (until people forget about it, when the re-emergence on the subforum re-ignites comments) as, of course, will any Threads on LB's Music being mangled by misunderstanding.

[BBMmk2]

{ quite enjoyed last night's Prom, despite what some people are saying.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Hurrah! An orchestra that knows how to 'swing'!

Zubin Mehta claimed to have got quite angry with the Vienna Phil when he wanted them to "swing it".

[Nick Armstrong]

We're going to try to resist the urge to shout 'LOCK THE LOO DOOR' when Mr. Dance appears on stage!

Wonder how many Forumites 'got' that!

You mean someone's been saving them up?

[VodkaDilc]

We're going to try to resist the urge to shout 'LOCK THE LOO DOOR' when Mr. Dance appears on stage! (Only kidding!)

I just wish we could return to the old days when there were witty comments from the arena. All we get now is an increasingly turgid and over-enunciated announcement about a charity collection. Twenty years ago there would have been shouts of welcome to a visiting orchestra and other appropriate comments - so many possibilities with the current state of US politics. (Admittedly the orchestra did not make one big appearance; some players were on stage almost 30 minutes before the concert started.)

Coming to the concert, this was the best I've been to this year. The Bernstein opening was a wonderful display of the orchestra and the Copland, though by no means one of his best works, had some glorious moments. It was the second half which proved to me what a world-class orchestra this is. There were some wonderfully distinctive sounds in the lower Strings, the horns, the lower brass and, especially, the first bassoon. This was not an ordinary colourless orchestra (which is how one of our native orchestras sounded to me, under Dutoit, a couple of weeks ago). The sound in the hall of some of those bassoon solos, the stabbing muted horns in the Tchaikovsky, the lower strings in the big tune in Candide and many other details will stay in my mind for a long time. I am guessing that most of the criticisms I see above were written by radio listeners, showing, again, that there's nothing like 'being there'.

Regarding Charles Dance's recent stardom, I am sure that many more people would have watched his last scene than might admit it. All the programme writer could bring himself to say was "More recently, he starred as Tywin Lannister in Game of Thrones".

[gedsmk]

I love those nights in the barn when the audience realises that they are hearing extraordinary musicianship by a top band, none of whose members are taking anything for granted but really want to make an impression. To start with: What a great programme! Enabling the orchestra to show off its abilities with Bernstein and Copland but also their background in European/Russian glories. It was an evening of pure joy in music making and I was delighted to be there to see and hear every inflexion, every lovely moment, every phrase newly minted, right to the last note of the encore. I think many prommers would have been happy to hear a few more. "Prom debut artists" indeed! My favourite evening at the proms this year by a mile. We are so lucky to have these concerts.

[Nick Armstrong]

Regarding Charles Dance's recent stardom, I am sure that many more people would have watched his last scene than might admit it. All the programme writer could bring himself to say was "More recently, he starred as Tywin Lannister in Game of Thrones".

Anything more might have been ... inconvenient...

[Ferretfancy]

I just wish we could return to the old days when there were witty comments from the arena. All we get now is an increasingly turgid and over-enunciated announcement about a charity collection. Twenty years ago there would have been shouts of welcome to a visiting orchestra and other appropriate comments - so many possibilities with the current state of US politics. (Admittedly the orchestra did not make one big appearance; some players were on stage almost 30 minutes before the concert started.)

Coming to the concert, this was the best I've been to this year. The Bernstein opening was a wonderful display of the orchestra and the Copland, though by no means one of his best works, had some glorious moments. It was the second half which proved to me what a world-class orchestra this is. There were some wonderfully distinctive sounds in the lower Strings, the horns, the lower brass and, especially, the first bassoon. This was not an ordinary colourless orchestra (which is how one of our native orchestras sounded to me, under Dutoit, a couple of weeks ago). The sound in the hall of some of those bassoon solos, the stabbing muted horns in the Tchaikovsky, the lower strings in the big tune in Candide and many other details will stay in my mind for a long time. I am guessing that most of the criticisms I see above were written by radio listeners, showing, again, that there's nothing like 'being there'.

Regarding Charles Dance's recent stardom, I am sure that many more people would have watched his last scene than might admit it. All the programme writer could bring himself to say was "More recently, he starred as Tywin Lannister in Game of Thrones".

I'm not that keen to visit the 'good old days' and I rather suspect that neither would you be. The turgid and over enunciated announcement has to compete with the noisy return of the audience after the interval and in that form reaches the distant parts of the hall, raising donations of roughly £ 1000 a night. It could be more considering that the RAH can hold 6000 listeners, but by the end of the season it raises an impressive sum. So please don't knock the generous and hard working souls on the front rail.

[VodkaDilc]

I'm not that keen to visit the 'good old days' and I rather suspect that neither would you be. The turgid and over enunciated announcement has to compete with the noisy return of the audience after the interval and in that form reaches the distant parts of the hall, raising donations of roughly £ 1000 a night. It could be more considering that the RAH can hold 6000 listeners, but by the end of the season it raises an impressive sum. So please don't knock the generous and hard working souls on the front rail.

I was certainly not intending to do that. I'd just like to hear more of the old-style comments, whether from arena or gallery - even if they were not so professionally delivered.

[oddoneout]

Coming to the concert, this was the best I've been to this year. The Bernstein opening was a wonderful display of the orchestra and the Copland, though by no means one of his best works, had some glorious moments. It was the second half which proved to me what a world-class orchestra this is. There were some wonderfully distinctive sounds in the lower Strings, the horns, the lower brass and, especially, the first bassoon. This was not an ordinary colourless orchestra (which is how one of our native orchestras sounded to me, under Dutoit, a couple of weeks ago). The sound in the hall of some of those bassoon solos, the stabbing muted horns in the Tchaikovsky, the lower strings in the big tune in Candide and many other details will stay in my mind for a long time. I am guessing that most of the criticisms I see above were written by radio listeners, showing, again, that there's nothing like 'being there'..

I only managed to hear the latter part of the Tchaikovsky, and the Candide, and was beginning to think from previous comments that either I was more of a musical ignoramus than I had supposed, or that something had happened between the RAH and my radio such that I was listening to a completely different event, so good to read your comment. I thoroughly enjoyed what I heard of the No 5 - a certain sprightliness(tempi and dynamic)in approach, and clarity of the orchestral sections, made for several 'oh I haven't noticed that before', or 'I'd forgotten that' moments.
As you were in the audience perhaps you could clarify something from the Candide? There are a couple of sections which have what I can only describes as 'chirruping' violins. Sitting at home it sounded as if the successive repetitions were passed through the desks(ie fewer players each time), so that not only did they get quieter but also sounded further away - a kind of aural mexican wave.
As with the No5, it was good to hear the Candide in something other than the(to me) rather ho-hum renditions that I have heard, and again I found myself listening properly to it.