Prom 60: Marin Alsop & Baltimore Symphony Orchestra – 27.08.18

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

20:00
ON TV
Royal Albert Hall

Leonard Bernstein: Slava! (A Political Overture)
Leonard Bernstein: Symphony No 2 'The Age of Anxiety'
Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No 5 in D minor

Jean‐Yves Thibaudet piano
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Marin Alsop conductor


Marin Alsop, a protégée of Leonard Bernstein, returns to the Proms with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra for a politically charged climax to our bank-holiday Bernstein weekend. The concert culminates in Shostakovich’s ambiguous Fifth Symphony, whose triumphant finale can be heard either as political protest or capitulation to Stalin’s Soviet regime. Pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet joins the orchestra for Bernstein’s ‘The Age of Anxiety’ – a musical quest for faith in a broken, post-war world – and the evening opens with the boisterous Slava!, a ‘political overture’ dedicated to cellist Mstislav Rostropovich.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

[Goon525]

Just seen this orchestra and conductor at the Usher Hall, and can confirm that they are in good form. The Prom should be well worth listening/watching.

[BBMmk2]

Looking forward to this. Great hearing Bernstein’s music. Apart from the usual fare!

[Ein Heldenleben]

You can put this on whichever of the myriad overlapping Bernstein threads you care to but Radio Three can run J-Y T's magnificent performance as a trail whenever they like . That was stunning - the inwardness , the power and the lyricism from Jean-Yves . Bernstein's musical range never ceases to amaze . Did his podium theatrics and instinct for self- publicity get in the way of appreciation of his great compositional talent ? Boy did Lennie have a talent for ending a piece though - no mucking about.

[Alison]

You can put this on whichever of the myriad overlapping Bernstein threads you care to but Radio Three can run J-Y T's magnificent performance as a trail whenever they like . That was stunning - the inwardness , the power and the lyricism from Jean-Yves . Bernstein's musical range never ceases to amaze . Did his podium theatrics and instinct for self- publicity get in the way of appreciation of his great compositional talent ? Boy did Lennie have a talent for ending a piece though - no mucking about.

[jayne lee wilson]

Lucky the ones who could....

After an exhausting trouble-shooting few days, I thought I'd got the solution & everything else is running fine, tuned in R3 webcast today and.... still awful unlistenable breakup. Looked everywhere, tried everything, internet fine otherwise....
Substitutes? The work mac won't recognise the dac on usb (even found myself attempting to disable signature interrogation, for heaven's sake, but...it defeated me),
... the ancient white mac won't produce a sound even on optical ...I mean, I can see the funny side....... it's like a black comedy at a music-lover's expense.....

Tried FM but dynamic compression sounds as bad as ever...."boxed-ears" syndrome ... too trial-and-error stressed out by then to get into it anyway...

Heartbroken. Still I have their recording, as well as the new ones, but...
Hope the DSCH 5 goes well for everyone...

[gedsmk]

First time ever heard this piece. I thought it would be difficult to improve upon. Wonderful spirit between orchestra and promenaders and loads of love going Marin Alsop's way too. Yet another great night and we are only at the interval!!

[Petrushka]

Lucky the ones who could....

After an exhausting trouble-shooting few days, I thought I'd got the solution & everything else is running fine, tuned in R3 webcast today and.... still awful unlistenable breakup. Looked everywhere, tried everything, internet fine otherwise....
The work mac won't recognise the dac on usb (even found myself attempting to disable signature interrogation, for heaven's sake, but...it defeated me),
... the ancient white mac won't produce a sound even on optical ...I mean, I can see the funny side... it's like a black comedy at a music-lover's expense.....

Tried FM but dynamic compression sounds as bad as ever...."boxed-ears" syndrome ... too trial-and-error stressed out by then to get into it anyway...

Heartbroken. Still I have their recording, as well as the new ones, but...
Hope the DSCH 5 goes well for everyone...

Sympathies, Jayne. Are you able to listen via Freeview? TV connected up to your amplifier...? I always listen to R3 this way and it sounds fine.

[Pulcinella]

Sounded to me as though it got out of step at one point......will be interested to watch it on TV.
I hope the Royal Ballet release their version of it that was screened in cinemas earlier this year (though I thought that the original production I saw live had a better cast than that revival).

[jayne lee wilson]

Sympathies, Jayne. Are you able to listen via Freeview? TV connected up to your amplifier...? I always listen to R3 this way and it sounds fine.

The only source would be the skybox (in another room) which would entail an impractical degree of daily connection/disconnection, but my fussy ears don't usually enjoy the dab or freeview sound, partly because of the analytically-revealing system I run... (sorry, no disrespect to dab/freeview listeners, audiophile ears can be both blessing and curse... )

[Bryn]

Lucky the ones who could....

After an exhausting trouble-shooting few days, I thought I'd got the solution & everything else is running fine, tuned in R3 webcast today and.... still awful unlistenable breakup. Looked everywhere, tried everything, internet fine otherwise....
Substitutes? The work mac won't recognise the dac on usb (even found myself attempting to disable signature interrogation, for heaven's sake, but...it defeated me),
... the ancient white mac won't produce a sound even on optical ...I mean, I can see the funny side....... it's like a black comedy at a music-lover's expense.....

Tried FM but dynamic compression sounds as bad as ever...."boxed-ears" syndrome ... too trial-and-error stressed out by then to get into it anyway...

Heartbroken. Still I have their recording, as well as the new ones, but...
Hope the DSCH 5 goes well for everyone...

Is the problem specific to listening 'live' or does it also manifest itself when listeing 'on demand'? It is quite a long time since I listened via the iPlayer 'live'. I got fed uo with the drop-outs. Listening 'on demand' (so-called listen again) I get very few problems indeed. That said, I do tend to 'get_' from the iPlayer for the fewest playback problems.

[Petrushka]

Is the problem specific to listening 'live' or does it also manifest itself when listeing 'on demand'? It is quite a long time since I listened via the iPlayer 'live'. I got fed uo with the drop-outs. Listening 'on demand' (so-called listen again) if get very few problems indeed. That said, I do tend to 'get_' from the iPlayer for the fewest playback problems.

This is exactly the problem I have with the Berlin PO DCH due to poor broadband level I think. Wonder if there has been a sudden drop in broadband locally for JLW?

[bluestateprommer]

My overall impression of this Prom was that it was....OK. Nothing great or earth-shattering here, which may not speak well to me speaking of my compatriots, as one of the token Americans here. With Slava!, for example, I had hazy memories of LB's own DG recording, which had a lot more swagger than Alsop and the Baltimore SO. One other difference was the switch of the electric guitar part over to what I guess was an oboe (correction welcome if I misidentified the instrument), and one missing group vocal interjection early on. I caught one minor brass blip early on, which is par for the course.

The best musical offering of this concert, IMHO, was Bernstein 2, The Age of Anxiety. It helps tremendously to have J-YT doing the piano honors, as he clearly knows the work thoroughly. Since this work isn't often done (the case with LB's symphonies in general, it seems), this was clearly a labor of love for Alsop as well, and the orchestra was on very fine form. Nice off-the-wall choice by J-YT of solo encore, which seems to have caught Petroc slightly off-guard, but in a droll way.

DSCH 5 was, again, OK; nothing greatly revelatory for me, although the orchestra played well in general. I've not heard the Baltimore SO live yet, so I can't speak directly as to their quality from direct experience. Very generous of Alsop and the orchestra to offer two encores.

[oddoneout]

Think I must have been too tired to appreciate the DSCH 5, as the audience evidently thought it very good. There were times when I didn't recognise what I was hearing - which might have been partly due to a questionable radio signal further mangled by my unsatisfactory equipment, but I would usually be able to get past that - as I say I was tired. The encores I greatly enjoyed, especially the first.