Last night’s concert with the de Havilland Philharmonic in Hatfield thoroughly reminded me of the importance of live performance. The works performed were, of course, intended to be heard that way. And one hears differently… different details, different harmonies, instruments I had not noticed on recordings.
The central work was the Violin Concerto by Sibelius, ravishing played by Yuko Uchiyama, a Japanese born, Pittsburg-based violinist. Her playing of this dazzling, icy, yet heartbreakingly expressive work was exceptionally accurate. But I barely noticed the technical skill, for her expressiveness and eloquence quite simply swept me away. The concert was preceeded by a minute of silence as a mark of respect for the people of Japan following the terrible earthquake; there were many Japanese in the audience supporting Yuko. It was a powerfully moving start to the concert and the rapt faces of the orchestra players themselves, completely under Yuko’s spell, were a real testament to her talent.
Robin Browning conducted the concerto with great sensitivity and sometimes thrilling drama. The virtuoso endings of both the first and third movements had me truly on the edge of my seat, barely breathing. Absolutely thrilling stuff. The more I hear of it the more I just love this man’s way with Sibelius.
The biggest work was Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique. It certainly was fantastic, seeing and hearing such a brave mixture of players creating all the epoch making sounds and effects that bring this opium-den of a work to life. My friend Ed Soloman was excited to be playing a rare trombone (don’t ask me what it’s called!) for a fabulous rasping noise in the “March to the Scaffold” and watching Robin and the players almost dance through the famous waltz was absolute enchantment.
Afterwards I gave Robin his picture… he seemed to like it! For me, the other great news is that there WILL be another children’s concert this November. I’m over the moon and although the repertoire isn’t officially confirmed, all I can say is that if the plan stays on course, this concert is going to be something else! Watch this space!
Leave a Reply