BBC SO Bychkov Katia and Marielle Labèque 16 Jan 2014

Martinů: Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra

Shostakovich: Symphony No. 7

BBC Symphony Orchestra

Katia and Marielle Labèque

Barbican, London, 16 January 2014

The BBC Symphony Orchestra plays well for Semyon Bychkov. He’s a disciplined conductor and has an excellent baton technique, allowing him to unify this orchestra in a way that few others manage. He has an ear for detail, in balance and ensemble, but even more so in phrasing. Nothing is left to chance. That’s not to say his interpretations lack lyricism, or that he’s unwilling to give soloists space: he is, and the passages of relative freedom he allows the players complement the more emphatically led tuttis. In fact, Bychkov gets the very best out of every orchestra he conducts, but with the BBC SO there seems to be a special chemistry that works to everybody’s advantage. He currently holds the more-or-less honorary Günter Wand Conducting Chair with the orchestra, which sadly doesn’t guarantee as many London appearances as audiences here would like. But it’s currently his only official position (surprising, given his eminence) so perhaps we can look forward to a few more concerts with him in forthcoming seasons.

This evening’s concert opened with Martinů’s Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra, which was a family affair, as the soloists were the Labèque sisters, one of whom is married to Bychkov. The score is typical Martinů, all saturated orchestral textures and dense, scurrying piano writing. The first movement is particularly impressive, as it lands running, at a pretty hectic pace, and then maintains the momentum for its entire duration. Then there is a slow movement, dominated by woodwind solos and ensembles, and then the finale, which is a bit more rhythmically complex and involves a greater range of textures and tempos than the first. The BBC SO’s previous Chief Conductor, Jiři Bělohlávek, led the orchestra in a complete Martinů symphony cycle a few years ago and trained the players well in the composer’s unique style. Despite the density and complexity of his orchestration, Martinů always harks back to the sounds of Czech folk music. The players this evening really managed to project that sense of rustic simplicity through the dense layering of the music. The Labèque sisters gave a convincing account of the solo parts, all very emotive and mobile, with lots of writhing heads and swishing hair. I thought they could have hammered out the important rhythms and cross-rhythms a bit more though; Martinů obviously expects those to come through - though he doesn’t do much to help them in his orchestration. A bit more definition in the solo lines might have helped clarify the shape and direction of this often wayward and opaque music.

There was nothing wayward or opaque about the opening movement of the “Leningrad”, quite the opposite. Bychkov has something of a reputation as a Shostakovich interpreter, and this performance demonstrated exactly why. He’s also a Leningrader himself, which must make a difference. In this first movement everything came together. From the opening unison phrase it was clear that a great deal of time and effort had gone into getting the style and phrasing right. The notes were slightly detached and the phrasing slightly clipped, the better to delineate the shape of the line. Balances were ideal throughout this tricky movement, and the gradual climax through the invasion theme section was perfectly paced. The string sound was energetic, but had the dark quality required of the much of the music. Excellent woodwind solos, excellent snare drum too.

If the remainder of the symphony didn’t quite maintain the standard of excellence set by this first movement, it certainly came close. Some fatigue was evident in the later movements, and the players’ control of their tone colour, and of balance within sections, suffered a little. But it was still a great performance. Bychkov allowed the music of the middle movements some space to breathe, bringing some poetry to this otherwise austere context. Not too much though, and the discipline was always maintained. And in the finale, he was able to at least acknowledge the undertones of dissent and doubt, yet his tempos remained disciplined, always focussing the music towards its inevitably triumphant conclusion. And when it came, no doubts remained. Even at these loudest dynamics, the balance within the orchestra continued to be finely judged, as did the tone colours, especially from the blazing brass. A triumphant conclusion to a memorable concert.

                                                                                                                        

This concert was broadcast live on BBC Radio 3 and can be heard until 23^rd Jan at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03pdh5l

NYO at Camden Roundhouse

Large concert halls do orchestral music no justice at all, so it was an inspired decision of the National Youth Orchestra to present their January programme to London audiences at the Camden Roundhouse. Visually the setup is stunning; the audience in the round with the orchestra surrounded by a circular colonnade of iron pillars. The conical roof is not ideal – much of the sound is lost in the rafters – but this is compensated by the proximity.
Having attracted an audience that sold out the Albert Hall at last year’s Proms, it was no surprise that this smaller venue was also filled to capacity. And the confidence of a virtually audience has encouraged adventurous programming, with the first half consisting of Bow-Wave, a new work by Peter Wiegold, followed by Berio’s Sinfonia. The two works formed a satisfying contrast, with the unselfconscious musical theatricality of Wiegold’s work a refreshing aural appetiser for the more culturally sophisticated language of Berio’s masterpiece.
Bow-Wave was performed by the NYO players (under the composer’s baton) entirely from memory. This considerable feat allowed the composer to integrate some actions, Mexican waves passing along the row of horns, spinning cellos and an epilogue in which the entire ensemble faces the back of the stage. Occasional and light hearted, but carried off with panache.
Sinfonia continues to stand the test of time, as was amply demonstrated by this engaged reading from an ensemble whose oldest members were born over twenty years after its premiere. Its central message, that art and music must redefine their roles within the cultural saturation of modern society, was apt for the Camden setting. The work opens with vocal soloists (London Voices) chattering in an array of European languages, which was immediately reminiscent of the short walk up Camden High Street from the tube to the venue. Postmodernism in music often implies (and requires from performers) a familiarity bordering on indifference to the standard repertoire that appears in quotes and references. But Berio’s approach is less jaded, and the orchestra’s enthusiastic interjections of snippets from Mahler, Debussy and Ravel in the third movement were as convincing as any on record. However, this meant that the vocal soloists had a harder time being heard; even with amplification they were often swamped, and much of the crucial text was lost.
The second half was given over to Strauss’ Alpensymphonie, for which the NYO swelled to its fullest size, with some 160 players occupying every corner of the vast stage. Such a large ensemble leads to inevitable ensemble issues, even with players of this calibre. Semyon Bychkov addressed the problem with an emphatic reading of the work, strict, often brisk tempi and emphasised details that may otherwise have been swallowed up in the sound. Strauss’ climaxes - the summit and later the storm - benefited from the large orchestra without the quieter passages suffering unduly.
Of all the fine qualities the young players of the NYO displayed, the most remarkable was stamina. The long programme concluded with ten minutes or so of quiet but intensely concentrated music in the sunset, close and night movements of the symphony. The performance here was immaculate, the piano woodwinds finely balanced, the trombone chorales precisely co-ordinated. The highlight of the evening and an example that many of their professional counterparts would struggle to match.