Review of TSO concert, Caird Hall, Saturday 23rd June 2007
Tayside Symphony Orchestra’s
Caird Hall appearances are almost always well worth attending and Saturday’s
concert was no exception. Conducted by Ron Walker, the programme featured
Tchaikovsky’s Pathetique Symphony, and the Liszt Piano Concerto No 1, where the
soloist was the very able Joseph Long.
Shostakovich’s Festive Overture
was the opener. This gave good opportunities for the players to warm up and
found all sections in good form. Once past the opening fanfares, the work
bounded along with high spirits.
Joseph Long started the concerto very
convincingly; the introductory cadenza came over superbly, and there were lovely
sounds from the clarinet section in the orchestral response which followed. This
concerto is surprisingly short, and we were into the second movement before I
realised it, there being virtually no breaks in this work between movements.
However, the cadenza was played with authority, and Ron Walker ensured that the
orchestral accompaniment was at all times sympathetic. The final movement was
superbly done, especially by the soloist.
At the end the audience
demanded an encore, and we were treated to another work for piano and orchestra
– “The Assault on Beautiful Gorky” by Shostakovich. Written in 1951, and taken
from the orchestral suite “The Unforgettable Year 1919”, this work gives
splendid opportunities for the soloist, and was very easy on the ear.
The 6th Symphony of Tchaikovsky
is a powerful and mainly sombre composition, and the orchestra launched into
this with some style. The string sound at all times had a splendid bloom to it;
if there was any criticism to be made, it was the lack of power in the double
bass section. Another couple of players would have helped enormously. As one has
come to expect from this orchestra, the woodwind were at all times first rate.
The first two movements were given a fine reading. The third movement with its
superb march tune, is really one long crescendo. This was very well achieved,
but when we reached the climactic point, where the brass play the march at full
volume, there was something amiss, which I could not put my finger on. Perhaps
it was something to do with the tempo, but I did think the heavy brass were
lacking in drive (strangely enough!) at this critical moment. All was well again
in the anguished final movement, and here the bassoons should be singled out for
their outstanding contribution.
In the main, this was a fine
performance of a difficult work. I think most people who attended Saturday’s
concert will have gone home really satisfied with what they
heard.
John
Brush
There were approximately 300
people in the audience in Caird Hall on Saturday evening 23rd June to attend the
concert given by the Tayside Symphony Orchestra under their conductor Ron
Walker. It was an excellent evening in every way. The most enduring impression
overall was that the 63 members of the orchestra had been very well rehearsed,
and played with gusto and accuracy throughout. They clearly relished performing
(again) in such a big hall; even from the very back, the music was crystal clear
throughout.
The first item was the "Festival Overture" , written by
Shostakovich in 1954; it is a sparkling and very happy piece (although there is
no opera to which it was intended as the overture!), and the orchestra responded
superbly to it.
The second item was Liszt's
Piano Concerto No 1, and again the orchestra rose to the occasion admirably;
most attention, however, was inevitably paid to the soloist Joseph Long. What a
wonderful treat he gave! Accurate and always conscious of the conductor and the
orchestra, but nevertheless stamping his own impression on the music, and
playing throughout with passion and a huge range of tone. Immediately after the
concerto, the audience was treated to a marvellous "encore" - not mentioned in
the programme, but clearly pre-planned. They played the wonderful piece by
Shostakovich "Assault on Beautiful Gorky", and again the soloist held the
audience spellbound by the range of his playing, seemingly effortless!
There was much praise given to both the soloist and the orchestra by
many people during the interval, praise richly deserved.
The final work
was Tchaikovsky's Symphony No 6, the "Pathetique"; it is very much on its own as
a symphony, in its form and construction. What other symphony ends by sinking to
nothing at the end? None that I know of. The last movement in particular must be
one of the most poignant pieces ever written, where the composer pours out his
feelings - he was clearly in mental agony when he wrote it, and quite probably
foresaw that he was not going to live much longer. The audience were enthralled.
It is very praiseworthy that the TSO doesn't shrink from performing
unusual and less well-known works but including also the "normal" repertoire;
the programme this evening was a superb blend. Their next recital will be in the
Reid Hall in Forfar on 22nd September, and one of the works planned is the
Concerto for Tuba written by Edward Gregson in 1978; the soloist will be Ross
Knight, who played in the orchestra this evening. In addition, Sophie Sneddon, a
recent girls’ captain at Dundee High School, will perform Mendelssohn’s Violin
Concerto in E Minor. This again speaks volumes for TSO’s policy for giving young
musicians the opportunity to perform in public.
Hilary Foxworthy