Review - Shostakovich & Tchaikovsky, Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, 16 June 2018

Variations on a Rococo Theme (Tchaikovsky)
Symphony No. 7 'Leningrad' (Shostakovich)
Encore: Overture to 'Die Fledermaus' (Johann Strauss II)

Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra
Wang Jian (cello)
Jaap van Zweden (conductor)

Pairing a light piece by Tchaikovsky as amuse-bouche with Shostakovich's Leningrad Symphony is lazy programming, neither does it makes much impression. The Fledermaus overture could have started the concert to form the tuneful progression, than serving as an anti climax after the symphony. Alike Tchaikovsky's ballet scores, sweet, tender and lyric are the features of the rococo variations. In the first part, extreme range on finger positions for the solo cello as it gets to the end of fingerboard with harmonics. Wang Jiang kept the music flowing and switched positions smoothly. Though sometimes too much vibrato on the long notes for my taste, and impatient with the tempo than sustaining the elegant impression. The repetition of the main theme was beautifully played by the flute solo, though composition style wise not dramatic at all. Melancholy made the sorrow response in the mid section before galloping at the coda, which rhythmically and audio more interesting than before.

Zweden's account of the Leningrad Symphony realised the graphical abstraction, yet a lot of warmth within that gave more hope than devastation. The majestic theme that began the first movement was muscular and sunny without any sign of doubt. Even in the following pastoral section, with flute solo playing folk tunes, felt rather sweet and sedate under the relaxing tempo. Then the march to battle reminded us the long crescendo of repetition from Ravel's Bolero. First pizzicato on tutti strings forms the rhythmic structure and harmonic foundation, duet between oboe and bassoon give the melodic tune, while the brass dramatise and thundering the tune in full force of power. The principal percussionist Aziz Luce kept the rhythmic momentum tight and consistent on the snare drum throughout, also effective progression from pianissimo up to the climatic violence then faded to a quiet end. Yet the second view of the landscape was colourless as the bassoon depicted, but the first violins were not that tidy in their lyrical response.

It also took few bars to agree on the tempo between the strings and oboe solo at the start of the second movement. The theme led by the clarinet was alike clock ticking, and became surreal with the energetic dance gave a grotesque outlook. One felt the recapitulation of the opening theme enigmatic that not sure where the music was trying to head to. Dialogue between bass clarinet, harp and flutes seems to lament the calmness and tranquility of normality prior the war. A spiritual start to the third movement with the winds playing a chorale theme, which the strings gave an emotional pouring response. Beautiful flute solo accompanied by pizzicato on the strings. Texturally it recalled the music landscape of Sibelius for the clearness and a heavenward glimpse.

Yet the elegant strings' passage before the last movement was calm before storm. The tense gallop and bombastic brass brought the violence of war back to the centre stage, which was muscular but flowing. Sorrow and hope negotiated, though more certain in direction that reassured by the majestic unison strings. The built up towards the thundering climax was less triumphant and naive compare to the one we heard in the first movement. It was turned into a wild dance with sheer dramatic intensity. The aftermath was bleak over the vast landscape, which was gloomy and mysterious that visually near disfigured. Instead horns' fanfares and strings culminated towards a blazing magnificent conclusion. Victory was unlikely the answer, but a conviction that manifestation of hope and glory would triumph over doubts. The long struggle certain put the Fledermaus into an odd extra as to whether we needed more to reassure ourselves, even though the philharmonic was certainly energetic enough to deliver a fiery rendition.

Review - Oslo Philharmonic and Vasily Petrenko, 2017 Hong Kong Arts Festival

14 March 2017:
Peer Gynt Suite No 1 (Grieg)
Cello Concerto No 1 (Shostakovich)
Symphony No 2 (Rachmaninov)

15 March 2017:
Excerpts from 100 Folk Tunes from Hardanger (Tveitt)
Cello Concerto (Elgar)
Symphony No 2 (Sibelius)

Oslo Philharmonic
Truls Mørk (Cello)

Vasily Petrenko (Conductor)

A fine selection of symphonic and concerto works from the late romantic period up to the post war period were given by the leading Norwegian orchestra. Though the weakest moment happened at the start in the iconic Peer Gynt Suite by Grieg. Whether due to Petrenko being impatient with the tempo or the orchestra was sight reading the score, woodwinds' dialogues depicting the scene of rising sun in the well known morning mood were messy at entries. Their playing lacked a flowing momentum with much hesitation and uncertainty in direction. Strings' sorrow theme on lamenting the death of Aase were more secured and flowing. It achieved a spellbinding pianissimo, but one could sense that Petrenko rather preferred to move things forward than indulging broadly. Strings were also able to produce the lightness and dynamic contrast in the tipsy dance like third movement. Though the wild gallop at the hall of the mountain king was somehow underwhelming that lacked the energy by its indifferent playing.

Shostakovich's first cello concerto in turn marked a contrast from the optimistic sunny outlook by an enigmatic impression. It began with the solo cello playing at the end of fingerboard, and felt like ironic and restless. Solo horn's entry though was late and not secure with tuning. Screaming winds and heavily scored solo cello part continued until it came to an abrupt end. A sorrow start to the second movement by the solo cello again and this time inward looking yet tragic. Violas and clarinet played a gloomy and lifeless Russian folk tune, later increasingly eerie and grotesque as the music became more dissonant from the celesta and strings. Emotional anguish was realised by the solo cello with double stopping in wide interval jumps and irregular rhythmic patterns. It made a dramatic contrast to the lament expressed at the meditative start of the third movement. The orchestral response was sarcastic but the tone quality of the horns did not match the rest. A stormy coda with wild cries and hurried gallops from the winds and strings. For encore, Truls Mørk played a movement from Bach's cello suite that carried a sense of solitude.

Emotional outpour and the unending search for positivism in Rachmaninov's second symphony finally gave assurance and hope, which departed from the sadness that dominated the first half. Despite a bleak and dark beginning, emotions gradually culminated and eventually some glimpse of positivism. Beautiful strings playing at the dance like section, subtle and seamless in the romantic driven dialogue between parts. Ebbs and flows of movement produced waves of emotional charge, though constantly negotiated between tragic and optimism. Brass made devastating cries that heightened the tension and conjured a rather tempestuous scene. In turn, strings responded with a sweet tune at the unison lyric passage before plunging back into the intense conflict. Momentum sustained as the playing descended into the lower range with an explosive ending to the first movement. Romantically rich tune began the second movement with a fiery gallop, which the strings' attacks were dramatic and swift. The heroic ride developed from a fast and passionate drive into a full scale of wildness. Horns' tone quality improved at forte with a sheer dramatic impression.

Calmness returned at the third movement with a sublime and tender clarinet solo. Strings responded to Petrenko's indications on dynamic difference, and again created waves of emotions to build climatic points one after another without any lingering. The dialogue between solo clarinet and violas had a wonderful sense in phrasing the lines. Ethereal sweetness rounded off the third movement in a sublime heavenward climax. Sheer brilliancy during the triumphant and carnival like start to the last movement, which the orchestral playing flowed with strong direction. It was answered by a sweet and expressive passage before a stormy transition returned. The contrast was marked by the dynamic change from the softest dynamic into another muscular climatic point. A resounding finale as the match towards the coda coupled with fanfare to give an ultra romantic send off. It was definitely a very memorable and brilliant deliverance from Petrenko and the Oslo Philharmonic.

In terms of produced tone quality and technical security, the second evening had the edge as the orchestra felt more at home with the hall acoustics. Tveitt's adaptations of folk tunes showed a variety of orchestral effects and moods even short in durations. The gallop built on a witty folk tune until it reached an explosive end in Friar-foter. A sorrow theme was played on the strings which began the next movement titled 'Du' with a haunting impression, but softened up by the winds playing a sweet tune. Percussive effects was focused in the following Langeleik tune with pizzicato and col legno on strings. Instead the brass played a deformed tune at a muscular tutti section near the end for a sarcastic portrayal of a drunken wedding party. The last movement, titled 'Hardanger ale', was majesty in style and had some influence of the blue music. A tipsy theme on the brass developed into a glorious fanfare, joined by the whole battery of percussions, for a colourful and festive finale.

For me, Elgar's cello concerto is a difficult piece to understand compare to his other works. Whether because it dwells on raw emotions in full tragical sense, or the absence of a noble and sentimental theme, one never know how to embrace the enigmatic outlook. Truls Mørk employed a lot of vibrato in his playing at the sorrow start, which accommodated by the lower strings and winds at a considering pianissimo. Though the climb to the end of fingerboard was not entirely smooth, Mørk probably preferred a more relaxing tempo whereas Petrenko tried to push the orchestra's playing forward. Interestingly tuning was not too good at first position even with a lesser reach for the fingers. Strings were more able to shape and dramatise the music from the moody part into a charging tremolo. A romantic and emotional start to the middle movement, which was tender and meditative throughout. Orchestra remained sensitive to dynamic balance and never overwhelm the soloist. The solo cello took the lead again in the third movement with an emotional outpour yet tragic by style. Notes heavy on the solo part compare to the flickering texture in the orchestral parts, which rhythmically more energetic in driving the momentum forward. Towards coda, it again went into a negotiation between mixed feelings with melancholy strings one hand and sorrowful solo cello the other. The unending gallop at soft dynamic rather bewildering by its infinite direction and left an open end impression where it was heading to.

The ice cold vast landscape in Sibelius's second symphony was the answer, but Petrenko also injected much thoughts and insight in his conducting to aim for a dramatic rendition with sonic impact. Strings and winds began the dance like opening in a rich bodied tone and passionate playing to draw out the emotions in full. Tempo was on the swift side made a strong sense of direction to sustain the energy and momentum. Blazing brass fanfares that muscular in sound with urgency to drive the music further forward. It made a fiery impression and injected more warmth to the tone colour. A moment of tranquillity returned at the beginning of the second movement when the bassoon played a noble folk tune with pizzicato on the lower strings. Though the peace was broken again by the explosive and emotional strings' parts against the devastating tragical calls from the winds. The image was increasingly bleak and violent til the end, while brass made a strong lead in the midst of the ebbs and flows of emotions. Despite the reappearance of the folk tune, it did not have the meditative stillness but tempestuous instead.

The storm continued into the third movement that reinforced dramatically by the brass again. There was a brief moment of lush sunny passage from the woodwinds but yet quickly restated by violence, which was rather sturm und drang by composition style. The last movement was sentimental and expressive as the strings built up a lush and majestic triumphant theme. It reached a solemn and heavenward climax but the negotiation did not stop. A variations on the theme followed until reaching an emotional outpour of an expressive theme. Lower strings in turn played a mournful chromatic march and developed into a thick textured furore. Even so, the coda was a victory over darkness after a long crescendo and blazing brass for a resounding finale. As a whole the performance managed to paint the picture vividly and one could felt the dramatic surroundings of nordic countryside.

Review - 2016 Hong Kong Arts Festival - Shostakovich's 24 Preludes and Fugues, Hong Kong City Hall Concert Hall, 19 March 2016

24 Preludes and Fugues, Op 87 (Shostakovich)
Alexander Melnikov (Pianist)

Performing the whole set of Shostakovich's preludes and fugues in live was a herculean task both physical and technical wise. Despite in duration the concert lasted nearly three and half hours long, the evening was a revelation of one of the composer's more complex and introvert creation. Melnikov devised the concert into three parts by chronological order. The first group, nos 1-12, tended to be experimental, unexpected and lighthearted. Atmospherically varied from a masculine like thick structured prelude (no 6), dreamlike lullaby in the A major prelude (no 7), rhythmically tricky fugue in B major (no 11) to the scene of tempest of the G-sharp minor fugue (no 12). The theme of the first prelude made an example of the unexpected, which harmonically the C major theme from Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier turned into dissonance passages before gradually returned to the calm and tonal opening.

The following group, nos 13-16, turned more inward and expressive on emotions. It was difficult to imagine the tenderness and lyricism in F-shape prelude and fugue (no 13) would progress into sarcasm, enigma and stormy chaos in the D-flat major fugue (no 15). The humour and progressive stance of the first group, playing with tricky rhythmic patterns and sometimes unusual sound textures like parallel octaves, were no longer there. Instead, it was moody and even strange at times how the music had developed, including the use of twelve tones out of the blue. In the last set, no 17-24, the composer gradually looking back into the orthodox church chants as basis for development. Patterns might be conventional but again turned into something different each time harmonically. The image became dream like and even surreal towards the end. Only the last one in D minor the music became very intense again to push for the ultimate climax in conclusion. It was also a statement that Russian traditional religious chants could become complex and intellectually sophisticated evolved like Bach fugues. The composer had found the voice, expressing his beliefs and discontent at the same time without reservation.

Since I sat in front of the pianist throughout the evening, one was captivated by his facial expression and the focus. Melnikov had a good touch in dynamic and wonderful sense how to phrase the music, not to mention the challenge to remember shaping all 48 sets of music in different forms and evolvements with directions. His concentration in the first group was at best and interestingly I remembered the sheer impact of momentum particularly when he built up the levels of crescendos. He was never aggressive even at loud moments or rhythmically challenged moments. The execution in transitions were always refined and the produced tone was appropriate to reflect the style of the music. Inevitably tiredness sunk in at the later groups and occasionally one could feel the physical demand and concentration fading away. Sometimes the playing was lost in shape for brief moment and even wrong notes happened as the pianist struggled for a fraction to archive what he wanted but the reaction was too late. I did not think pity though as it was an emotional journey and musical revelation of the composer's more intimate work after the symphonic ones. It could still have the depth and body of sound world even on a sole piano, not to mention the amazement how a simple religious chant could turn in sophistication musically.

Review - 2016 Hong Kong Arts Festival - Shostakovich and Prokofiev, Teatro Regio di Torino, Hong Kong Cultural Centre Concert Hall, 4 March 2016

Symphony No 9 (Shostakovich)
Alexander Nevsky (Prokofiev)
Encores:
'Va. pensiero' from Nabucco (Verdi)
Overture from Guillaume Tell (Rossini)

Orchestra & Chorus of Teatro Regio Torino
Daniela Barcellona (Mezzosoprano solo)
Gianandrea Noseda (Conductor)

Pairing two Russian works from before and after the Second World War make an interesting contrast. Alexander Nevsky is a bold statement of patriotism and dense in texture, whereas Shostakovich's ninth symphony being enigmatic and nothing definite. These works neither reflect the trademarks of the composers' compositional styles. Prokofiev turns into formalist and writing masculine angular music based on religious chants, in contrast, Shostakovich bears all the late Prokofiev style for being sarcastic, violent and ironic. Both works also bear a sense of being impersonal and not to stir up the inner emotion too much, but an objective reflection of the time. It is logically then to round off the concert with the two well know Italian pieces pouring out the long awaited sentiment and brilliant triumphal end as encores.

On the podium, Noseda always wanted to push the momentum but his conducting not always accurate with indications. The first movement of the ninth symphony emphasised on robust rhythm bites but with the orchestra rushing through it, the playing lacked structure and some untidy corners among the strings as results. Woodwinds were better in terms of tone quality and responsiveness as a section. They hold everything together even when Noseda was late to indicate entries and more natural in music phrasing, especially for the climatic end of the brutal and dark third movement. A battery of percussion later joined the chorus for Alexander Nevsky. The choir was slightly imbalance with the male parts more able to project the sound of wall than the ladies. Intonation was fine but the diction did not convince me, which I heard the vowels more than identifying each word. Daniela Barcellona had the right timbre for the mournful aria describing the field of the dead, though from where I sat at one side of the orchestra, she was underwhelming in vocal volume and difficult to understand her diction. The Guillaume Tell overture would have been brilliant if the flautist had rehearsed the tricky solo part beforehand than a quick sight reading on site.