Prom 70: Wednesday 7th September at 7.00 p.m. (Bridge, Birtwistle, Holst)

[mercia]

the applauders hopefully will be seasoned pros in a couple [of] years

there'll be a new lot by then inter-movement applause doesn't usually bother me much but it did last night, I think because the different Planet movements are relatively short, so it felt more of an interruption. I think I would like Mars to have begun in the tempo it ended up in. Curious to know what it says in the score at this point, is there a big rallentando followed by a new quicker tempo as we heard last night?

[Flay]

No, it changes from 5/2 to 5/4 and from an mf crescendo to fff but no indication on the score of an actual tempo change.

But I'm glad it happened!

http://imslp.info/files/imglnks/usim...PlanetsFS1.pdf

(pages 20/21)

[mercia]

oh thanks for going to the trouble Flay (hope you didn't miss your bus/train/plane/boat)

[Roehre]

Last night I tried to like the Rihm Second Violin Concerto but it did seem stuck in a rut and not getting anywhere though I do sincerely believe we have to be thankful though to Anne Sophie Mutter for continuing to try and plough the field of contemporary music. So until this evening I have only really been impressed by Graham Fitkin's beautiful Cello Concerto for Yo Yo Ma and with a few revisions Colin Matthews's moving No Man's Land as pieces of new music I would go to hear again. Then hey! Tonight has broken the dearth of good new pieces: dear Harry Birtwistle comes up with a super new (to Britain) Violin Concerto. Evocatively atmospheric, full of variety and designed to make good use of the virtuosic skills of soloist and orchestra. I hope that this in an augur that in his later years Sir Harry is finding a delightful and lyrical musical voice in the same way that Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and Sir Michael Tippett have done. I like this new work very much. Congratulations to Sir Harry, Christian Tetzlaff and the BBCSO. It sounds as if it was well received.

On re-listening to the Birtwistle concerto (I had been able to listen to its premiere performance) I have to say that it is an IMO wunderful piece, which -I hope- reaches a CD.
There is one thing however which did escape my attention the first time I heard it: actually it exists nearly completely of music with a slow pulse, despite the quick and fast music played by the soloist or his discussion partners in the orchestra.

Birtwistle realised fully his aim to hear the violinist throughout, which -as he remarked- is unfortunately often not the case in violin concertos (and not only recent ones, I haste to add, try Szymanowski's 2nd concerto to have a brilliant example of what is meant here).

IMO Rihm's Gesungene Zeit is a lasting piece. I haven't listened to its Prom performance, but the recording on DGG (early 1990s) shows that -for me- it keeps being interesting after repeated and intensive listening. (The Berg on that CD is brilliant, btw)
I agree re the Fitkin piece, but No Man's Land IMO suffers a bit of the gadgets used, though certainly at first hearing it appears to be an interesting work. Whether it is after repeated listening, I am doubtful.

[BudgieJane]

an extremely loud noise from somewhere in the back

That was someone fainting.

[EnemyoftheStoat]

That was someone fainting.

Someone? It sounded as if an elephant had keeled over.

[Bryn]

Once the clapping started, David Robertson seemed to encourage it by acknowledging it each time ...

And why should he not? Too much "I am a real classical music lover" bigotry in going on in this thread, and others seeking to tell paying audience members when not to applaud. Apart from anything else, The Planets is a suite from which individual pieces are often played alone. Get a grip, you moaning Minnies, and start concentrating on the music rather than how your fellow audience members show their appreciation for it.

[mercia]

did anyone hear Anthony Payne, before the Holst, citing Stravinsky and Schoenberg as the main influences on it? that had not occured to me though I can't offer anything better.

[prokkyshosty]

Also, Debussy and Ravel, for Venus and Neptune, mostly.

Oh, and Jupiter: The Bringer of Elgar.

[Nachtigall]

And why should he not? Too much "I am a real classical music lover" bigotry in going on in this thread.

Nonsense.