The programme was Haydn Symphony No. 103 in E flat major ‘Drumroll’, Mozart Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major, and Beethoven Symphony No. 4 in B flat major. The conductor was Ben Gernon and the soloist Elisabeth Brauss with the BBC Philharmonic. This was my first Prom in just over 2 years and it felt quite emotional to be back in that enormous arena which I have inhabited most years at some point since 1968. Things were very different though, and of course it is a huge achievement to have got 6 weeks of Proms up and running, given the huge challenges involved over the last few months (indeed tickets for some parts of the Hall only went on sale 10 days ago). Inside the Hall, half the arena was taken up with an extended stage. The Hall Stalls and Loggia / Grand Tier areas felt pleasantly full but most of the upper circle was empty – I guess due to both the vagaries of ticket sales, and that there’s still quite a lot of people worried about attending mass events. I was seated at the side stalls which, in the current reshaped context, meant being right behind the double basses – hence the sound I heard was inevitably unbalanced – though it was great to be so near the players.
Both the Haydn and the Mozart works in the first half were performed very well, I thought. In the Haydn, the woodwind playing was beautiful, trumpets, horns and drums weren’t over-bearing, rhythms were springy, and the whole performance radiated a sense of enjoyment in shared music-making – nothing was over-driven. The uncomfortable drum roll and the slightly eerie – dies irae-like – string harmonies at the beginning and end of the work weren’t overdone.The darker harmonies and tones in the Mozart were also well conveyed – again, excellent woodwind playing…..The soloist – but it was difficult to hear how she might have sounded from the front (I was listening to her from the side)….sounded as though she had a small precise tone for Mozart, but that is not inappropriate and she produced some sensitive phrasing, as well as precision.
I was not so convinced by the Beethoven – this might have been again a problem from where I was sitting, but there didn’t seem to be enough energy and bite in the string sound. This could have been a problem with the socially distanced strings, and there simply being not enough of the violins and violas, so that woodwind tended to predominate (something they didn’t do in the Haydn and Mozart – Beethoven’s sound is richer and thicker,), or maybe something to do with the orchestra not using period instruments (I missed the thwack of early 19th c timps) or maybe (looking at his podium posture). There was also some imprecision in the strings at time – e.g. at the beginning of the first movement. Mr Gernon just wasn’t energetic enough in his approach, or not conveying that energy to the audience. Beethoven – unlike Mozart! – does need to be driven, I find
But these are minor qualms – this was a really enjoyable return to the Proms!
John's musical journey 