An Alpine Symphony (10 Feb 2012)

Venue: Esplanade Concert Hall

Conductor: Lan Shui

Cellist: Qin Li-Wei

Programme:

Antonín Dvořák - Cello Concerto in B minor, Op. 104

Antonín Dvořák - Silent Woods

Richard Strauss - An Alpine Symphony, Op. 64

It has been a long time since I enjoyed a concert tremendously, and this was thanks to Qin Li-Wei's performance of Dvořák's cello concerto. Qin was totally immersed in the music, and drew me in with his virtuosity and interpretation of the concerto. If I were to compare him to Stephen Hough (in an earlier post) - Qin was lost in the music; Hough was just lost in himself. 

The level of respect that Qin accorded the conductor and the orchestra could be both seen and felt, and it was two-ways. There were times when Qin sped up slightly, especially during his cadenzas, but this was almost immediately held in check as he quickly slowed down to match the orchestra. Occasionally, he would even turn to his right and give the concertmaster Alexander Souptel eye contact, and it was clear that they were both enjoying making music, rather than just performing. The difficult solo portions were played with ease and precision, and Qin displayed a rich emotional musicality which was obviously appreciated by the audience; when the concert ended, they showered him with thunderous applause and cries of 'bravo!'. 

The sound that he coaxed out of the 1780 Joseph Guadagnini cello was both beautiful and soothing, and this was felt in Dvořák's Silent Woods as well. I have not heard this piece before, and it was a very short piece, around only 5 minutes long. Quite a drastic change compared to the powerful cello concerto previously, and this was a rather slow and soft piece, as suggested from its name.

Richard Strauss' An Alpine Symphony was a colossal symphony that demanded an orchestra of over 130 musicians. It took place after the intermission, so during the intermission I was rather surprised to see so many musicians coming into the concert hall.

This was exclusive(!) of the backstage continent. 

To be precise, the orchestra (excluding the string sections) was composed of:

4 x flutes

2 x piccolos

3 x oboes

1 x English horn

1 x bass oboe

1 x E-flat clarinet

2 x B-flat clarinets

1 x C clarinet

1 x bass clarinet

3 x bassoons

1 x contrabassoon

8 x horns

4 x Wagner tubas

4 x trumpets

4 x trombones

2 x bass tubas

2 x harps

1 x organ

1 x wind machine

1 x thunder machine

1 x glockenspiel

1 x cymbals

1 x bass drum

1 x snare drum

1 x triangle

1 x cowbells

1 x tam-tam

1 x celesta

1 x timpani

If this is not all, there is still a backstage contingent of 12 horns, 2 trumpets and 2 trombones used in the third section of the symphony. Such a combination made this performance an eye-opener for any audience, myself included.

This symphony was written to depict nature in sound, and covers the ascent and descent of an Alpine peak over twenty four hours. There were twenty-two episodes in this symphony, namely:

1) Night

2) Sunrise

3) The ascent

4) Entry into the wood

5) Wandering by the side of the brook

6) At the waterfall

7) Apparition

8) On flowering meadows

9) On the Alpine pasture

10) Lost in the thickets and undergrowth

11) On the glacier

12) Dangerous moments

13) On the summit

14) Vision

15) Mists rise

16) The sun gradually becomes obscured

17) Elegy

18) Calm before the storm

19) Thunder and tempest; descent

20) Sunset

21) Waning tones

22) Night

It was a considerate move to set up a small screen above the stage to inform the audience which episode they were listening to currently. While I am not really a fan of Richard Strauss' music, I must say that this is the best (and most interesting) that I have heard so far.