Prom 42 (7.09.21) - Benjamin Grosvenor Performs Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4

[edashtav]

Not often that the perf of a smack-on central much repeated repertoire piece can glue me to the radio.
Tonight's Beethoven Piano 4 did.
Thx, Mr Grosvenor, for reminding me how important the piece has always been for me.

What a shame I attended a meeting this evening.
I must catch up on Sounds.

[jonfan]

Jayne mentions above the quality of the work of the sound balancer; their work has been exemplary throughout the season. It’s become almost the norm to mention studio managers and producers at the end of such programmes as In Tune. It would value the importance of balancers in the successful transmission of live concerts if they could be acknowledged with a mention.

[Ein Heldenleben]

Jayne mentions above the quality of the work of the sound balancer; their work has been exemplary throughout the season. It’s become almost the norm to mention studio managers and producers at the end of such programmes as In Tune. It would value the importance of balancers in the successful transmission of live concerts if they could be acknowledged with a mention.

Hear hear ! I think they started mentioning Studio managers when it became apparent that they were the ones travelling in during lockdown while the credited producer and presenter remained at home. The sound balancer on a live relay is , in some ways , a more significant figure than the producer . Having watched done both jobs being done as a tape op I think I can be forgiven for thinking that!

[cloughie]

What a shame I attended a meeting this evening.
I must catch up on Sounds.

I recommend asap - two warhorses fully up for the gallop. Halle, Elder and both soloists first class!

[edashtav]

I recommend asap - two warhorses fully up for the gallop. Halle, Elder and both soloists first class!

Thanks for the the news of the the lathering equines, cloughie.

I have not forgotten but… a call for a Briefing Paper [urgent] and another research meeting in MK keeps me busy until this evening. The Beethoven G major is my favourite from the famous five.

[cloughie]

Thanks for the the news of the the lathering equines, cloughie.

I have not forgotten but… a call for a Briefing Paper [urgent] and another research meeting in MK keeps me busy until this evening. The Beethoven G major is my favourite from the famous five.

Steady now, with Warhorses and the Famous Five we’ll be on to Ripping Yarns next!

[Rolmill]

My only prom of the season, and it turned out to be a great choice.

Grosvenor is a pianist I would always go far to see/hear and he didn't disappoint in the Beethoven (my favourite PC by any composer), displaying his usual wonderful marriage of virtuosity and poetry. I felt it took a little time for the tempo to settle in the first movement (as often happens, the soloist needed to pick up the speed slightly after the long orchestral introduction), but this was certainly one of the finest performances I have heard.

I love the S-S and found it almost overwhelming at the end - the balancing of the organ against the orchestra was excellent, and I thought Anna Lapwood did a fine job of keeping precisely in time with the orchestra (not so easy given the distances involved) as well as finding just the right registration for each passage.

Interesting that there has been no comment so far on the UK premiere of Unsuk Chin's piece - I'm afraid it seemed aimless to me, and I didn't find it memorable at all.

Still, what a very satisfying concert this was, with the orchestra playing superbly throughout. I look forwards to discovering what the sound balancer made of it when it is repeated on R3!

[jayne lee wilson]

As I said above, via the live web stream the sound-balancer deserved a major award! So often a work like the Organ Symphony can sound congested, especially live...I was truly impressed.

The Unsuk Chin was OK as an opener, its Beethoven-250th-Allusions were fine in context, but like a few premieres this season it seemed almost too slight to excite much comment. It did its job.

[Ein Heldenleben]

As I said above, via the live web stream the sound-balancer deserved a major award! So often a work like the Organ Symphony can sound congested, especially live...I was truly impressed.

The Unsuk Chin was OK as an opener, its Beethoven-250th-Allusions were fine in context, but like a few premieres this season it seemed almost too slight to excite much comment. It did its job.

I wondered why the opening sounded like the Coriolan Overture!

[gedsmk]

Hear hear ! I think they started mentioning Studio managers when it became apparent that they were the ones travelling in during lockdown while the credited producer and presenter remained at home. The sound balancer on a live relay is , in some ways , a more significant figure than the producer . Having watched done both jobs being done as a tape op I think I can be forgiven for thinking that!

It was a fantastic performance of the SS, with interesting choices of tempi from the conductor which added I think to the originality of the interpretation. From the listed specification, the RAH has plenty of mixtures, but somehow I miss the bright élan of the great opening chord of the finale, etc. that I hear from French recordings (such as Chartres and N-D). Personal taste, I’m sure. Still, a truly amazing job by the engineers on this one.

[jonfan]

Apparently a spider crawled across Anna Lapwood's face just before an important entry; a distraction she hadn't expected!!
It always looks very uncomfortably high to look in the mirror at the conductor at the RAM organ with a lot of craning of neck, away from looking at the music, never mind hands and stops! Reminds me of the Hoffnung cartoon with the organist spotting a police car with flashing lights in the mirror!

[Keraulophone]

A great deal of detail clearly heard, especially the pianos which often get lost.

Their part is trickier than the organist’s, yet she (understandably) gets the spotlight.

[Ein Heldenleben]

Their part is trickier than the organist’s, yet she (understandably) gets the spotlight.

Yes it’s not fair . Am I right in thinking the organ part is really pretty easy….?

[Alison]

At least the pianists were named on the wireless

[Roger Judd]

Yes it’s not fair . Am I right in thinking the organ part is really pretty easy….?

The straight answer is yes, it is! For some strange reason it almost always seems necessary to engage a 'named' organist (shorthand for 'celebrity!), presumably to raise publicity. In a venue like the RAH the biggest problems for the organist are the balance of the organ with the orchestra, and keeping with the conductor, who is a quarter a mile away! The latter does take a lot of skill. The Hallé, Mark Elder and Anna Lapwood gave us lesson in how it should be done, IMO.
RJ