Prom 49: Saturday 20th August at 7.30 p.m. (Brahms/Haitink 2)

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Bernard Haitink conducts the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and pianist Emanuel Ax in music by Brahms.
In their second concert of Brahms's masterworks at this year's Proms, they open with a work long central to Emanuel Ax's repertoire. Brahms's Second Piano Concerto is on a grand Romantic scale and makes huge technical demands on the soloist.

After the interval, the composer's astonishing final symphony, where the balance between expressiveness and structural control is most perfectly maintained.

Brahms: Piano Concerto No.2 in B flat major
Brahms: Symphony No. 4 in E minor

Emanuel Ax (piano)
Chamber Orchestra of Europe
Bernard Haitink (conductor)

[bluestateprommer]

Some light reading about Bernard Haitink in advance of his 2 Proms next week, c/o Tom Service in The Guardian:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011...nk-masterclass

The FT article by Shirley Apthorp from the Mahler 2/"El Dude" thread is also worth a read, despite some howlers of detail there, including calling BH "Sir Bernard" and saying incorrectly that he was chief conductor of the LSO once.

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

does any one know if this prom [49] and its precursor [47] are going to be on tv? ooops yes 47 is on BBC4 at 730 now that is a date and 49 is on BBC2 at 900pm that too

[Brassbandmaestro]

I think Haitink was made an honorary Knight of the Realm you know?

[David Underdown]

He's an hon KBE, but they are not addressed as Sir

[PaulT]

A lot of people make this mistake. Previn is often referred to as Sir Andre Previn.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

A lot of people make this mistake. Previn is often referred to as Sir Andre Previn.

Both Haitink and Previn deserve such an honour far more than some actual knights.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Was it the Radio 3 sound balance, or was the orchestra underpowered in the Brahms 2nd Piano Concerto?

[Bryn]

Was it the Radio 3 sound balance, or was the orchestra underpowered in the Brahms 2nd Piano Concerto?

Neither. Far too often in Brahms performances the orchestra a heavily overpowered.

[jayne lee wilson]

Came over very well here too on HDs, plenty of power in the Handelian sections of (ii), weighty enough where apt... optimodded FM often sounds all on one dynamic level in the B flat.

Was it the Radio 3 sound balance, or was the orchestra underpowered in the Brahms 2nd Piano Concerto?