BBCSSO, 13/02/2020
Langer : Figaro Gets A Divorce - Suite
Shostakovich : Violin Concerto No. 1 (Karen Gomyo, violin)
Dohnányi : Symphony No. 1
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
Gergely Madaras
Figaro Gets A Divorce is an opera by the Russian-born (now British-based) composer Elena Langer, created by Welsh National Opera in 2016. As its title suggests, it's a 'sequel' to The Barber of Seville and The Marriage of Figaro, and is based partly on Beaumarchais's own conclusion to his Figaro trilogy, and partly on a work of the same title by the Austro-Hungarian playwright Ödön von Horváth. Langer's opera was favourably received, and the Seattle Symphony Orchestra commissioned an orchestral suite from its music which received its world premiere last month. Tonight was the UK premiere.
Based on the orchestral suite, Figaro Gets A Divorce seems definitely worth a listen. The orchestral score is colourful and varied, from ethereal night music to raucous and sly cabaret-style numbers. Orchestral forces required are medium-to-large, with a substantial array of percussion required in particular, and Langer makes good use of varying textures and effects in the six movements of the suite. It begins quietly, with a nocturnal landscape, then there's a gently sentimental love scene for the young couple of Angelika and Serafin. A harum-scarum scherzo is followed by a louche, skewed tango representing The Major (who is the villain of the piece), then followed by another love scene, via reminiscences of Susanna and Cherubino. Curiously, this is subtitled "Less of a love song" yet I found this more evocative and tender than the earlier section. The final section, a kind of rumbustious rondo, is entitled "The Mad Day" which, of course, is a direct reference back to The Marriage of Figaro. Nowhere does Langer reference either Mozart or Rossini, and in the opera the Almavivas and household have been transposed into a modern time and place considerably removed from their original Seville, which gives Langer free rein with her musical references. I don't know what her vocal lines are like but this was an entertaining piece, nicely delivered by Madaras and the orchestra, and promises well for the opera as a whole.
Karen Gomyo was the soloist for Shostakovich's bleak and fiendish 1st Violin Concerto. She's a powerful and incisive player, holding her own against an occasionally overwhelming orchestra, and interpreting the long Cadenza between third and fourth movements magnificently, with breadth and focus. It is still not a piece I can take to my heart, but this was a strong performance, and the final Burlesque was delivered with tremendous, ironic swagger, finishing in a breathtaking display of virtuosity.
This is the third time I've heard Madaras with this orchestra, and each time he has brought a work by Dohnányi to the table. I'm grateful for his advocacy, for this is music that is not often heard, and that surely deserves more exposure. His engagement with this music is clearly whole-hearted, and communicates itself to the orchestra who respond unreservedly. The 1st Symphony is an early work, premiered in 1902. Dohnányi was 24, not long graduated from the Budapest Academy, and notes on the symphony, and on Dohnányi's early orchestral music in general, tend to underline the still-strong influences of Brahms or Liszt. Bruckner is also mentioned - this is certainly true, notably in the climaxes, particularly near the end of the first movement, and in the second - but there's one nobody seems to bring up which, to me, seems particularly obvious. This music has, unmistakably and immediately, a very clear Central European flavour to it, and it's Dvorák who comes instantly to mind, especially in the rich and varied wind writing.
Unusually, it's a five-movement work, two substantial, moderately paced outer movements, two slow movements and a central scherzo. The outer movements are over-long, and I will admit that I'm always a bit suspicious of young Romantic or post-Romantic composers writing orchestral fugues, which occurs in the finale. Unless they keep on writing fugues throughout their careers, it almost always seems like a bit of an academic exercise to me, sort of a "see, I can definitely do this!" moment, seeking validation after years of formal study. The scherzo offers strong contrasts of ferocious energy with a lilting 5/4 rustic waltz, while the second slow movement is a charming, brief romance for the principal viola (Scott Dickinson tonight) and orchestra. However, the most striking section is the central passage of the first slow movement, in which the wind section, particularly the bass clarinet, cor anglais and clarinet, rhapsodise beautifully in melismatic lines that hint at the music of Hungarian gypsy bands. Dohnányi was never the overtly nationalist composer in the way that Bartók and Kodály were, but he valued his Hungarian heritage, and it's there to be heard in his music. Madaras is, I'm sure, welcome back as a conductor for anything he chooses, but letting us hear more Dohnányi is a particularly welcome exercise.
[Next : 18th February]
Shostakovich : Violin Concerto No. 1 (Karen Gomyo, violin)
Dohnányi : Symphony No. 1
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
Gergely Madaras
Figaro Gets A Divorce is an opera by the Russian-born (now British-based) composer Elena Langer, created by Welsh National Opera in 2016. As its title suggests, it's a 'sequel' to The Barber of Seville and The Marriage of Figaro, and is based partly on Beaumarchais's own conclusion to his Figaro trilogy, and partly on a work of the same title by the Austro-Hungarian playwright Ödön von Horváth. Langer's opera was favourably received, and the Seattle Symphony Orchestra commissioned an orchestral suite from its music which received its world premiere last month. Tonight was the UK premiere.
Based on the orchestral suite, Figaro Gets A Divorce seems definitely worth a listen. The orchestral score is colourful and varied, from ethereal night music to raucous and sly cabaret-style numbers. Orchestral forces required are medium-to-large, with a substantial array of percussion required in particular, and Langer makes good use of varying textures and effects in the six movements of the suite. It begins quietly, with a nocturnal landscape, then there's a gently sentimental love scene for the young couple of Angelika and Serafin. A harum-scarum scherzo is followed by a louche, skewed tango representing The Major (who is the villain of the piece), then followed by another love scene, via reminiscences of Susanna and Cherubino. Curiously, this is subtitled "Less of a love song" yet I found this more evocative and tender than the earlier section. The final section, a kind of rumbustious rondo, is entitled "The Mad Day" which, of course, is a direct reference back to The Marriage of Figaro. Nowhere does Langer reference either Mozart or Rossini, and in the opera the Almavivas and household have been transposed into a modern time and place considerably removed from their original Seville, which gives Langer free rein with her musical references. I don't know what her vocal lines are like but this was an entertaining piece, nicely delivered by Madaras and the orchestra, and promises well for the opera as a whole.
Karen Gomyo was the soloist for Shostakovich's bleak and fiendish 1st Violin Concerto. She's a powerful and incisive player, holding her own against an occasionally overwhelming orchestra, and interpreting the long Cadenza between third and fourth movements magnificently, with breadth and focus. It is still not a piece I can take to my heart, but this was a strong performance, and the final Burlesque was delivered with tremendous, ironic swagger, finishing in a breathtaking display of virtuosity.
This is the third time I've heard Madaras with this orchestra, and each time he has brought a work by Dohnányi to the table. I'm grateful for his advocacy, for this is music that is not often heard, and that surely deserves more exposure. His engagement with this music is clearly whole-hearted, and communicates itself to the orchestra who respond unreservedly. The 1st Symphony is an early work, premiered in 1902. Dohnányi was 24, not long graduated from the Budapest Academy, and notes on the symphony, and on Dohnányi's early orchestral music in general, tend to underline the still-strong influences of Brahms or Liszt. Bruckner is also mentioned - this is certainly true, notably in the climaxes, particularly near the end of the first movement, and in the second - but there's one nobody seems to bring up which, to me, seems particularly obvious. This music has, unmistakably and immediately, a very clear Central European flavour to it, and it's Dvorák who comes instantly to mind, especially in the rich and varied wind writing.
Unusually, it's a five-movement work, two substantial, moderately paced outer movements, two slow movements and a central scherzo. The outer movements are over-long, and I will admit that I'm always a bit suspicious of young Romantic or post-Romantic composers writing orchestral fugues, which occurs in the finale. Unless they keep on writing fugues throughout their careers, it almost always seems like a bit of an academic exercise to me, sort of a "see, I can definitely do this!" moment, seeking validation after years of formal study. The scherzo offers strong contrasts of ferocious energy with a lilting 5/4 rustic waltz, while the second slow movement is a charming, brief romance for the principal viola (Scott Dickinson tonight) and orchestra. However, the most striking section is the central passage of the first slow movement, in which the wind section, particularly the bass clarinet, cor anglais and clarinet, rhapsodise beautifully in melismatic lines that hint at the music of Hungarian gypsy bands. Dohnányi was never the overtly nationalist composer in the way that Bartók and Kodály were, but he valued his Hungarian heritage, and it's there to be heard in his music. Madaras is, I'm sure, welcome back as a conductor for anything he chooses, but letting us hear more Dohnányi is a particularly welcome exercise.
[Next : 18th February]