Classy Brahms ends a fine visit from Yutaka Sado and the Tonkünstler-Orchester

Tonkünstler-Orchester Niederösterreich
© Martina Siebenhandl

Yeol Eum Son (piano)

Tonkünstler-Orchester

Yutaka Sado (conductor)

7.30pm, Thursday 13 March 2025

Cadogan Hall, London

★★★★

Jean Sibelius (1865-1957): Symphony No. 7 in C major, Op. 105

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791): Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 21 in C major, K467

Encore:

Moritz Moszkowski (1854-1925): Huit Morceaux Caractéristiques, Op. 36 No. 6, Étincelles

Johannes Brahms (1833-1897): Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68

Encore:

Johannes Brahms: Ungarische Tänze, WoO 1, No. 5 in F sharp minor, orch. Albert Parlow (1824-1888) (in G minor)

Yutaka Sado & the Tonkünstler-Orchester Niederösterreich
© Nick Boston

'They gave a largely first-class performance, their Brahms bringing the house down'.

Sibelius:

'Sado set the scene with a steady crescendo, bright woodwinds contrasting the rich string sound that quickly enveloped them'.

Mozart:

'South Korean pianist Yeol Eum Son's Mozart was full of delicacy and elegance'.

Yeol Eum Son
© Nick Boston

Brahms:

'In a performance of effortless familiarity, Sado made sure that it never felt workaday'.

'There was no holding back here, the final brass fanfare over emphatic string chords bringing a powerful performance to an end'.

Read my full review on Bachtrack here.

Highly individual Mozart from Buniatishvili

Khatia Buniatishvili
© Esther Haase

Khatia Buniatishvili (piano)

Academy of St Martin in the Fields

Benjamin Marquise Gilmore (director) 

7.30pm, Monday 9 December 2024

Barbican Hall, London

★★★

Khatia Buniatishvili
& the Academy of St Martin in the Fields
© Nick Boston

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791): Don Giovanni, K527, Overture 

                                                                  Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major, K488

Encore:

Claude Debussy (1862-1918): Suite bergamasque, L75, No. 3, Clair de lune

Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847): Overture in B minor, Op. 26, 'The Hebrides'

Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809): Symphony No. 104 in D major, H I:104

Encore:

Jean Sibelius (1865-1957): Belshazzar's Feast Suite, Op. 51, No. 2 Nocturne

Mozart Piano Concerto No. 23:

'Buniatishvili’s Mozart was somewhat mystifying, and certainly very individual'. 

'The sound was not without beauty, with some very quiet playing too, but her soft-focussed over-pedalling in solos was completely at odds with the articulation produced when with the orchestra, almost like there were two different soloists at times'. 

Benjamin Marquise Gilmore
& the Academy of St Martin in the Fields
© Nick Boston

Mendelssohn:

'Barely needing direction, the ASMF performed with a chamber feel, maintaining the pulse instinctively'.

Haydn:

'Dynamic contrasts, energy flowing from Gilmore to the orchestra, and precise, confident solos from all sections injected lively spirit throughout'.

Sibelius:

'The star of the show here was definitely the haunting tone of (Michael) Cox, a delightful end to an evening of strong performances from the ASMF'. 

Read my full review on Bachtrack here. 

Adventurous, virtuosic and highly expressive celebration of 15 years of the Canellakis-Brown Duo

Cellist Nicholas Canellakis and pianist-composer Michael Stephen Brown, met in their early twenties some fifteen years ago and have been performing as the Canellakis-Brown Duo ever since, as well as maintaining their separate solo careers. They clearly have a close friendship which has also stimulated compositions and arrangements  from both, a number of which receive première recordings here. 
 
First, let’s get the album title, ‘(b)romance’ out of the way. Now celebrating male friendship is no bad thing, but the term ‘bromance’ is unfortunately problematic for me. The implication is always that such a friendship between two presumably straight men needs a label, however tongue in cheek, lest we ‘misunderstand’. And just in case we are in any doubt, it is confirmed that Canellakis has a girlfriend, whilst Brown’s website informs us that he has two Steinways with female names (really?). Now there’s clearly a play on the term here, with reference to the numerous Romances for cello and piano amongst the eclectic and expressive repertoire, and their friendship and professional partnership of 15 years is worthy of celebration. But still…
 
Anyway, closeness of communication and warmth of connection are immediately evident in the Saint-Saëns Romance opener, with Canellakis in particular producing a glorious cantabile sound. Brown is equally expressive in the Romantic piano solo of the Romanze from Clara Schumann’s Piano Concerto, with Canellakis joining for the expressive, luxurious duet that emerges. Fauré’s Romance has a wonderful flow in the meandering, expressive cello melody, with Brown providing the necessary sense of motion from the piano. The rich, lower register opening from Canellakis is particularly striking here too. This is followed by Romance à GF, composed by Canellakis himself. He doesn’t clarify whether GF is his girlfriend, or the former composer’s initials, but regardless, it is an evocative piece, with the cello on long sustained piano notes of a rising scale emerging from the quiet mysterious piano opening. Once the melody gets going there is definitely a nod to Fauré here. Brown picks up the pace and intensity to support Canellakis’ outbursts, before it all dies away, leaving Canellakis at the heights of the fingerboard. Brown’s compositional offerings here include 35 Chords for Nick (a 35^th birthday present). The score (reproduced in the notes) indicates that the tempo, character and dynamics of the chords is up to the performer, and should be different every time – whilst setting down a recording obviously limits us to one version. But Canellakis’ mixture of spread chords, multiple stoppings, pizzicato and harmonics is engaging, and he again puts that richness of tone to great effect. There is also a Prelude and Dance from Brown, originally written as a solo cello piece for Canellakis, but with Brown adding the piano part later. The Prelude is an expressive, questioning conversation, in which the cello part’s repeated notes in particular get more insistent. The Dance that follows is wild and relentless, with most of the drive coming from the cello, with the piano adding complexity to the rhythms, before they swirl towards its frenzied conclusion.
 
The longest piece here is Sibelius’ dark Malinconia, and at just over 11 minutes in a programme of largely miniatures, it feels epic in proportions. Full of anguish, written in response to the death of the composer’s infant daughter, from the dark mysterious cello opening rising in anguish to the piano cascades, and then the folk-like cello lament over the piano’s rhythmic pulse, this certainly packs an emotional punch. As the intensity rises, Brown’s crashing piano is matched by Canellakis’ heart-wrenching full sound, followed by a quietly raging conclusion, making for a highly moving performance of this astonishing piece. Ginastera’s Pampeana No. 2follows this with the bell-like piano and extended dramatic cello flourish leading into a swirling dance and long passages of extreme expressive outbursts, then just when you think it’s almost over, there is a wild dance to finish, with both Canellakis & Brown showing their virtuosic prowess. 
 
Elsewhere, Canellakis makes the melody of Rachmaninov’s Lied sing alongside the relatively simple piano accompaniment, whilst Copland’s Poème, a contrastingly reflective piece, is given a peaceful, almost sensual reading. Debussy’s song Beau soir, here transcribed by Canellakis, is limpid and warm, with a beautifully controlled high ending from Canellakis. And Lukas Foss’ (1922-2009) Capriccio is full of American folksy melodies, galloping pace and train-like rhythmic energy, once again allowing both players to demonstrate their virtuosity. 
 
They end the disc playfully, first with 3 Preludes by Gershwin, arranged by Canellakis. The first is great fun, and the third is a joyful romp, whilst the central prelude is sultry, with a bluesy (if a little ‘clean’ here) second half. But they finish with a wild, virtuosic and crazy dance, Don Ellis’ (1934-1978) Bulgarian Bulge, originally for big band, in another Canellakis arrangement. Its 33/16 metre is fiendishly infectious, and Canellakis and Brown swirl and spin with sparkling energy to bring their programme to a glorious close. All in all, a great programme, performed with style, virtuosic command and expression – just a shame about that title!

Various. 2024. (b)romance. Nicholas Canellakis, Michael Stephen Brown. Compact Disc. First Hand Records. FHR134.

 
 

Joyful Glazunov and deeply moving Górecki from the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra and Alpesh Chauhan

Alpesh Chauhan
© Marcello Orselli

Jess Gillam (saxophone)

Ruby Hughes (soprano)

Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra

Alpesh Chauhan (conductor)

2.45pm, Sunday 13 October 2024

Dome Concert Hall, Brighton

★★★★

Jean Sibelius (1865-1957): Finlandia, Op. 26

Alexander Glazunov (1865-1936): Concerto for Alto Saxophone and String Orchestra in E flat major, Op. 109

Encore:

Rune Tonsgaard Sørensen (b.1983): Shine You No More (arr. for saxophone and string orchestra)

Henryk Górecki (1933-2010): Symphony No. 3, Op. 36, 'Symphony of Sorrowful Songs'

After a strong opener to their 100^th season, the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra were back with another imaginative and stimulating programme. Sibelius’ popular Finlandia was perhaps not a huge departure as an opener, but Glazunov’s Saxophone Concerto to follow, with the wonderful Jess Gillam as soloist, was a treat, as was Górecki’s searingly beautiful Symphony of Sorrowful Songs. 

 

Sibelius’ Finlandia was given a rich, expansive reading here, with incisive energy from visiting conductor Alpesh Chauhan. The string sound was full, and Chauhan shaped the music’s sweeping waves with command. Whilst the opening brass onset was a little unsure, the brass then gave us appropriate weight and a broad but bright sound, and the woodwind chorale moments were well-balanced. Chauhan built to a suitably triumphant finish, making for a strong opening statement. 

Jess Gillam
© Robin Clewley

Jess Gillam then gave us a joyous rendition of Glazunov’s short but sweet Concerto for Alto Saxophone, Op. 109, written in 1934 for Sigurd Raschèr. With just strings accompanying the soloist, they opened in secure unison, before Gillam entered with lyrical, smooth lines. Chauhan mostly controlled the dynamic balance well, allowing Gillam leeway for some highly sensitive pianissimos too. Then Gillam picked up the pace with playful rapid runs leading into the faster section. Yet even in the fast, virtuosic sections, Gillam always maintained a pure tone, particularly gentle at the top. Layered string textures built to the cadenza, with again some very sensitive, quiet playing from Gillam. Then she set the fugue off at a healthy pace, followed by tight playing from the strings as each section joined in. Rapid articulation from Gillam built to highly virtuosic finish.

 

For an encore, Gillam returned with the soprano saxophone to play an arrangement with orchestra of Rune Tonsgaard Sørensen’s Shine You No More. Sørensen is a member of the Danish String Quartet, and this piece has become a popular encore piece for a variety of soloists – I last heard it from violinist Thomas Gould at the 2023 Proms. It is great fun with an opening reel for the soloist, throbbing rhythmic strings, and following a quieter, mournful central section, it dances away to a showstopping finish. Gillam dazzled with fluid virtuosity, and the strings, with a sprightly solo from leader Nicky Sweeney, gave spirited support.

 

Ruby Hughes
© Thomas Dashuber

Górecki’s Symphony No. 3, Symphony of Sorrowful Songs, Op. 36, was composed 1976, but really hit the big time in 1992 when the London Sinfonietta’s recording with Dawn Upshaw was championed on newly established Classic FM. After that, it has received steady airplay, and has been used in film and TV, with English National Opera giving a powerful staged production last year, but concert performances are surprisingly relatively rare. Its lengthy first movement is longer than the other two movements combined, with its extensive eight part canon for strings leading to a central 15^th century song, a lament of the Virgin Mary, before the canon then unwinds itself in reverse order. Three of the BPO double basses set the canon in motion, a little muddily to begin with, but confidence built, and Chauhan maintained a steady intensity as each string part was added, bringing out the moments of movement within the slow, steady lines. Then soprano Ruby Hughes stood, her voice slowly rising out of the textures, initially quiet, but increasingly pleading in tone. A real mother’s lament, she and the orchestra built to a climax before the full strings then took over their canon in reverse motion, working their way back to the double basses. Chauhan held a lengthy silence in the air, before commencing the glassy, almost sunlit opening of the second movement. Hughes entered quietly, low in her register, with the rising and falling scales achingly painful – this movement’s text is taken from an inscription on a Nazi prison cell in Zakopane, Poland, including a short prayer signed by an 18 year old girl, Helena Wanda Błażusiakówna, again a lament to her mother and the Virgin Mary. Exquisitely controlled pianissimo from Hughes at the end of the prayer, followed by a darkly intoned Ave Maria brought the movement to its intense conclusion. Undulating strings at the start of the finale were then joined by Hughes with doubled flutes, singing the third text, again a lament, this time a mother over her dead son. One or two of the transitions in this movement, where Górecki suddenly stops and shifts the harmony, could have been cleaner, but Chauhan otherwise shaped the dynamic swells well, and the BPO strings showed great stamina of concentration in the long, pulsing passages. After the almost naïve joy of the Glazunov in the first half, the intense sadness of the Górecki was a striking, almost shocking contrast, and Hughes, Chauhan and the BPO gave us a highly emotional and meditative end to the afternoon’s concert. Once again, the BPO are continuing to surprise us with the increasing depth and variety of their playing and programming – next up, The Madness/Lightness of Being, with cinematic music including Herrmann, Schnittke and Piazolla (Saturday 16 November, Brighton Dome). 

Jess Gillam, Alpesh Chauhan
& the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra
© Nick Boston

Ruby Hughes, Alpesh Chauhan
& the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra
© Nick Boston

Prom 26: Lyrical virtuosity from Ehnes, with majestic Sibelius from Storgårds and the BBC Philharmonic

John Storgårds & the BBC Philharmonic
© BBC/Mark Allan

James Ehnes (violin)
BBC Philharmonic
John Storgårds (conductor)

7.30pm, Thursday 3 August 2023

BBC Prom 26

Royal Albert Hall, London

★★★★

Gerald Barry (b.1952): Kafka's Earplugs

William Walton (1902-1983): Violin Concerto

Encore:

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750): Sonata No. 3 for solo violin in C major, BWV1005, IV. Allegro assai

Jean Sibelius (1865-1957): Symphony No. 1 in E minor, Op. 39

James Ehnes & the BBC Philharmonic
© BBC/Mark Allan

Barry:

'Storgårds and the BBC Philharmonic managed to effectively keep a lid on things throughout, yet occasionally allowing tantalising glimpses to break through the texture'.

Walton:

'Ehnes was suitably wild in its virtuosic passages, but he also gave us delicate decorative adornments to the horn’s canzonetta theme'.

Bach: 

'Ehnes then treated us to a fleet-of-foot account of the finale to J.S. Bach’s Sonata no. 3 in C major, BWV 1005, with seamlessly smooth string crossing and sensitive use of echo effects'.

Sibelius:

'With a sense of urgency, Storgård steered the orchestra to a sunlit climax'.

'Storgårds’ drive and the tightness of the BBC Philharmonic’s ensemble, as well as strong solo work from many, made for a memorable performance here'. 

Read my full review on Bachtrack here.

Prom 34: atmospheric Thorvaldsdottir and intimate Elgar from BBC Philharmonic

Eva Ollikainen
© Chris Christodoulou

Kian Soltani (cello)

BBC Philharmonic

Eva Ollikainen (conductor)

7.30pm, Thursday 11 August 2022

BBC Prom 34

Royal Albert Hall, London

★★★★

Anna Thorvaldsdottir (b.1977): ARCHORA

 

Edward Elgar (1857-1934): Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85

 

Encore: 

Trad., arr. Kian Soltani (b.1992): ‘Lovely Minka, I must away’

 

Jean Sibelius (1865-1957): Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 43

Anna Thorvaldsdottir & Eva Ollikainen
© Chris Christodoulou

Thorvaldsdottir:
'Ollikainen steered the BBC Philharmonic players through this dark landscape with a clear and expansive beat. Thorvaldsdottir uses the orchestra to create remarkably haunting atmospheres and textures'.

Elgar:

'Soltani's Elgar was strong, with command of the virtuosic demands a given and expressively singing tone in the slower moments'.

'Ollikainen succeeded in bringing each (tutti) back to allow for Soltani’s attention to detail to shine through'.

Kian Soltani
© Chris Christodoulou

Sibelius:
'Nothing was overplayed or forced, and there was thoughtful attention to detail throughout'.

'There were moments where Ollikainen drove proceedings with greater energy, such as the immediate pulsing energy of the opening, and encouraging intensity of response from the violins in the build to the big tune'.

Read my full review on Bachtrack here.

Defiant celebration and emotional depth from Kanneh-Mason, Gražinytė-Tyla and the CBSO

Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla, Sheku Kanneh-Mason & the CBSO
© CBSO

Sheku Kanneh-Mason (cello)

City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra

Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla (conductor)

Recorded 10 November 2020

(Video streamed online from 19 November 2020, available until 18 December 2020 here)

Symphony Hall, Birmingham

★★★★

Jean Sibelius (1865-1957): Lemminkäinen Suite, Op. 22 No. 4, Lemminkäinen's Return

Sir Edward Elgar (1857-1934): Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85

Jean Sibelius (1865-1957): Lemminkäinen Suite, Op. 22 No. 2, The Swan of Tuonela

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827): Leonore Overture No. 3, Op. 72b

Shake Kanneh-Mason
© CBSO

Sibelius:

'With expectant energy, Gražinytė-Tyla drove the players in rippling runs and the spiky melody, with bright brass pointing the joyful build to its glorious conclusion'.

Elgar:

'Kanneh-Mason ... commanded attention with his emphatic purity of tone from the opening chords'.

'Gražinytė-Tyla kept the orchestra on their toes as Kanneh-Mason skittered through with a deft touch'.

Rachael Pankhurst
© CBSO

Sibelius:

'The cor anglais (beautifully played with warmth and expression by Rachael Pankhurst) was the star here'.

Beethoven:

'Gražinytė-Tyla elicited razor sharp ensemble here in the rapid runs and syncopations, rising to a joyous conclusion'.

Read my full review on Bachtrack here.

Something special in the air: Rattle and the LSO in energetic Sibelius 5

© Mark Allan/Barbican

Janine Jansen (violin)

Sir Simon Rattle (conductor)

London Symphony Orchestra

Wednesday 19 September, 2018

Barbican Hall, London

★★★★★

Janáček: Sinfonietta, Op. 60

Szymanowski: Violin Concerto No.1 Op. 35

Sibelius: Symphony No. 5 in E flat major, Op. 82

'A fine example of live performance in every sense, and it was evident that ... the orchestra was having a ball'. 

'Janine Jansen, from the violin’s first solo entry, was in command of this tricky piece', with 'impressive focus and intensity of tone'.

'Rattle and the LSO ... gave this a freshness and energetic spirit such that one was made to listen anew throughout'.

'A highly exciting whirlwind of a rendition'.

Read my full review on Bachtrack here.

CD Reviews - May 2017

For his second volume of Franz Schubert’s (1797-1828) works for solo piano, pianist Barry Douglas pairs the first set of Four Impromptus, D899, with the Piano Sonata in A major, D959.  The Sonata was the second of a final three sonatas Schubert finished just weeks before his death aged just 31, and the Impromptus come from the year before this.  The four Impromptus come first on the disc, and each have a different character, although they all share Schubert’s use of rapid figuration to decorate his lyrical melodies.  The first is perhaps the most dramatic, and here Douglas’ use of rubato (pulling about of the rhythms from bar to bar) unsettles the momentum.  However, his light fluidity in the second and the smooth melodic line over the rippling accompaniment in the most well-known third are impressive, and the fourth’s delicately cascading arperggios appear effortless.  The Sonata, like its companions from that final set, is a large scale, four-movement work, coming in at over forty minutes.  The opening movement has heft and energy, full of invention, yet despite its relatively conventional structure, Schubert pulls us up short with a surprisingly subdued conclusion.  This sets us up nicely for the darkly lilting slow movement that follows – but once again, just as we’re settling to this, Schubert cuts things short and there follows an incredibly wild and turbulent middle section, before the lilting boatsong returns, adorned to give added pathos.  Douglas combines sensitivity in the outer sections with virtuosic display in the middle, although both are somewhat restrained, giving this a suitably introspective feel. The Scherzo that follows wipes away the tears with a sprightly dance, and here Douglas gives us much-needed brightness and lightness of touch.  For the finale, Schubert reworked a movement from an earlier sonata, but its infectiously lyrical rondo theme proves a perfect fit here, with Schubert supplying almost constantly flowing triplet rhythms throughout.  At the end, Schubert brings proceedings to a halt with brief fragments of the theme, followed by a brief rapid coda, and a final hint of the opening chords from the first movement, and Douglas draws this impressive second volume to a convincing conclusion.  

Schubert, F. 2017. Works for Solo Piano, Volume 2. Barry Douglas. Compact Disc. Chandos CHAN 10933.

Italian-born violinist Augustin Hadelich and Korean pianist Joyce Yang have been playing together since 2010, and clearly have a strong musical partnership, on the evidence of this, their first recital recording together.  They begin with André Previn’s (b. 1929) Tango, Song and Dance, a piece written for violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter in 1997, before her subsequent marriage to (and later divorce from) Previn in 2002.  A sweet, central Song is bookended with a crowd-pleasing Tango and a jazzy Dance, and Hadelich and Lang have great fun with this.  They follow this with Robert Schumann’s (1810-1856) Sonata No. 1, Op.105, a turbulent and emotive work, and both players perform here with passion and drive.  Apparently when performing live, they lead straight from the Schumann into the Tre Pezzi, Op.14e by György Kurtág (b.1926), which come next on this disc, and provide a striking contrast.  The three short pieces are pared down and very stark compared to the flurry of action and intensity of Schumann’s finale, and of course in a completely different soundworld.  Hadelich and Yang deliver these miniatures with an almost claustrophobic intensity, such that the expansive outpouring of the Sonata by César Franck (1822-1890) comes as a great relief.  This is a very cleverly constructed programme, and also demonstrates these performers’ extensive range.  Their Franck is lush and full of depth, with Yang particularly excelling in the demands of the piano writing here, and Hadelich produces a consistently warm and rich tone well suited to this highly passionate work.  Overall, these are highly engaging performances in an imaginative and intelligent recital programme – highly recommended.

Various. 2016. Franck, Kurtág, Previn, Schumann. Augustin Hadelich, Joyce Yang. Compact Disc. Avie AV2347.

Bass-baritone Gerald Finley is joined by the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Edward Gardner for ‘In the Stream of Life’, a disc of songs by Jean Sibelius (1865-1957). Most were orchestrated relatively recently, partly prompted by the 150^th anniversary of his birth in 2015.  The title of the disc comes from Einojuhani Rautavaara’s (1928-2016) orchestrated set of seven of Sibelius’ songs, and the theme of water runs throughout most of the songs on the recording.  Finley himself requested the arrangements from Rautavaara, and is clearly very much at home here.  He sings with precision and great dramatic communication, yet his rich voice also brings a moving melancholy to songs such as På veranden vid havet (On the Veranda by the Sea), one of the few here orchestrated by Sibelius himself.  In Rautavaara’s set, the orchestration captures Sibelius’ spirit, with watery strings in the folksy tale Älven och snigeln (The River and the Snail), and the mysterious, otherworldy and homoerotic Näcken (The Water Spirit).  One of the composer’s few originally composed orchestral songs, Koskenlaskijan mosiamet (The Rapids-rider’s Brides) is another watery tale, with Finley again convincingly communicating another fateful love being overpowered by nature.  In addition, Gardner commands attention with a taut reading of Sibelius’ wonderfully impressionistic sea-picture, The Oceanides, and we are also treated to Sibelius’ beautifully orchestrated tone poem, Pohjola’s Daughter, drawing on one of his favourite inspirations in a tale from the epic Kalevala.  A short but pleasing Romance for string orchestra is the other orchestral piece on offer here.  Gardner elicits great depth of tone combined with subtle agility from the Bergen players, making this a striking recording all round.

Sibelius, J. 2017. In the Stream of Life: Songs by Sibelius. Gerald Finley, Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, Edward Gardner. Hybrid Super Audio Compact Disc. Chandos CHSA 5178.

(Edited versions of these reviews first appeared in GScene, May 2017)