Friday & Saturday 24-25 March 2000 Victoria Concert Hall |
CELLO ADVENTURE/BEETHOVEN SYMPHONY CYCLE |
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Ludwig van BEETHOVEN Symphony No.8 in F major, op.93 Pyotr Illych TCHAIKOVSKY Variations on a Rococo Theme for Cello and Orchestra, op.33 Richard STRAUSS Don Quixote, op.35
WANG Jian cello |
OVERALL NOISE RATING: 1 (Friday - quiet night, mainly ambient coughing and hour-on-the-hour watch beeping.)
The Noise Rating Index is a partially-objective measurement of pager and handphone blasts, 9pm and 10pm watch beeps, coughing-during-the-pianissimo-bits, intra-audience conversation and other mind-bogglingly inept noises emitted in the concert hall during actual performance of music. It is measured on a scale of 0 to 5, in increasing annoyance.
by The Three Musketeers
Even though this heavyweight programme
begins with Beethoven's Eighth, such is
Wang Jian's mastery of the cello that the symphony, again the
victim of unlucky programming, seemed like a distant memory by the time the concert was over.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. The evening began with the
symphony, unusually enough, but perhaps even that should have hinted
at the promise of the rest of the programme. Lan Shui started off the work with gusto, although it took the
orchestra until about the exposition of the second subject to really
get warmed up.
The woodwind chords of the second movement (the apocryphal
metronomic parody) were more stodgy instead of crisp, but they
redeemed themselves charmingly in the trio. The final movement, a
tour de force for strings, was also pulled off very well -
albeit a more pronounced contrast between the sudden jump from
pianossissimo to fortissimo in the opening would have
injected greater energy into the music. Nonetheless, the drollery of
Beethoven's humour was there. The timpani was excellent (and would
only get better later in Don Quixote.)
Wang Jian then ascended the stage for Tchaikovsky's Rococo
Variations. This was the third time I have heard this work in
performance - and this was the best, from start to finish. The amount
of musicality in Wang's reading is simply superlative and his
warmly nourished cello tone cannot be adequately described in words.
There was sensitive accompaniment from the orchestra (the horn solo
leading into the soloist's entry had too much rubato on it) but this
was Wang's flagship, through and through.
The theme and opening variations were sheer poetry; the latter
variations were breathtaking fireworks, Wang making them all sound
equally effortless. The fifth variation - the one with solo flute
carrying the melody over the cellist's trills - was delightfully
spine-thrilling and I couldn't help but feel that Wang's amazing
ability is to make this work sound like the greatest thing ever
written for cello.
Indeed, it is not difficult to see why a certain big-name European
label has signed him on an exclusive contract. Over the interval, such
was the effect of Wang's performance that audience - a deserving full
house on the night - were seen crowding at the merchandise desk, quite
literally, throwing money on the counter to buy Wang Jian's CDs.
(There was also going to be an autograph session after the concert.)
Richard Strauss's 40-minute cavalier Don Quixote came
after the intermission. Wang Jian took on the solo cello part of
the title character, with Principal Violist Jiri Heger cast as the
sidekick, Sancho Panza. There was some idiomatic characterization by
the two leads, and Lan Shui is definitely exploring new orchestral
territory here with this orchestral panorama.
Good playing from all sections (again, especial kudos to the
percussion) and even more so from the two soloists. The only thing to
be said is - there could have been more braggadocio and swagger, but
these Straussian qualities are perhaps something that can't be rehearsed
as much as intrinsically evolved over repeated and constant exposure
to post-Romantic tone-poetry.
The programme notes were, as usual, inept. The typos - look at all
that "bad language" on page 6! - I shall leave as an exercise to the
interested reader (hint: pages 3 and 11 too). Swapping one academic for
another, the Tchaikovsky notes were recycled from previously written
material by Bernard Tan - right down to the blooper where he mentions
a certain nonexistent "Karl Fitzenhagen" for whom Tchaikovsky wrote
the Variations. (The correct name is "Wilhelm", not "Karl".)
Don Quixote was hardly an improvement. If nothing else, the
unimaginative movement headings were singularly unhelpful in assisting
the listener to distinguish one variation from another: "The Sheep",
"The Duke and the Duchess" and "The Mill" are definitely not as
adventuresome as "The Battle With Sheep", "The Ride Through The Air"
and "Voyage in an Enchanted Boat". We can definitely do much better
than this.
By Derek Lim
Shui Lan's accompaniment fitted Wang Jian's hand like a velvet glove, his Romanticism fitting his soloist's to a T. Wang Jian's technique was never suspect, and in the virtuoso passages he rattled them off with no problem, though I noticed that his bow arm was a little stiff. No matter, his numerous other qualities will carry him through - he will indubitably go far, and the SSO will do well to engage him for many more performances.
Don Quixote is perhaps Strauss' greatest tone-poem, though some would say Ein Heldenleben better worked-out. Tonight's performance was nowhere as polished as the Tchaikovsky, but Shui Lan's understanding of the work shines through despite all else.
Shui Lan's tendency to launch the violins into lunging attacks, especially with each reprisal of the sixteenth-notes leading up to the heroic theme, was not only refreshing but suited the character of Don Quixote - quixotic and belligerent in manner and action. This was something I felt lacked a little from Wang Jian's interpretation, which was otherwise nuanced and sensitive, with varied tone and a joy to listen to, and heartbreaking in the final pages where Don Quixote's mind clears and he dies.
Other solo contributions from Souptel and Heger revealed rather different approaches to the music, with concertmaster Souptel opting for the more wiry and "quixotic", resulting in the violin even squeaking at times (Strauss' great sense of humour - which Mahler cordially despised - at play here) whereas Heger opted for more beauty of tone, though with certainly no loss of Sanchez's essential character.
Overall Shui Lan conducted sensitively, adding rubato freely where he deemed it helpful (and more often than not he went straight to the heart of the matter) the Rosenkavalier-like (Strauss tone poem is far more Viennese than Spanish) music lifting to great soaring heights. I rather missed portamenti from the orchestra, but that's a loss that probably may never be reinstated in any orchestra. A greatly enjoyable and touching performance, then.
24 March, Friday.
Review by William Beh
Before I continue, let me just say that Wang Jian is the goods. Temperament, intellect, technique - he has all three, and Wang Jian's performance of the Tchaikovsky Rococo Variations - not usually thought of as an intellectual meal - showed these qualities abundantly in a performance that went to the heart of the music in a way flashier interpretations wouldn't have, with phrasing that was continually imaginative and pleasing to listen to, and ultimately moving.
By Adrian Tan
Beethoven's Symphony No.8 has always been the subject of much discourse. To many, this petite work is dwarfed by the two great symphonies it is sandwiched between in Beethoven's output. To others, this work represents one of the composers greatest achievments.
To those who are unfamiliar with this later line of thought, it is worth noting that the argument goes along the line that the genius of a great artist is often manifested when he is not striving to compose a 'big, major or important work' for the world but when he is in his most relaxed (and thus creative). Everything flows from one to the next with an abundance of wit, humour and playful but skillful manipuation of the form he has become a master of. This symphony is indeed such a masterpiece, and music-lovers would indeed be missing a great deal if it is not paid the attention it deserves.
In Saturday's performance, Shui Lan opted for brisk tempos throughout. The impression given seems to be that this entire symphony was being reduced to a quick overture to the concert, thus the rather flashy reading. This comes as a surprise as Shui Lan has often impressed with his light-hearted readings of Mozart and Strauss - an approach which I felt would have been more successful with this music.
The uncertain entrance of the orchestra in the first note tutti already spelt danger, as the hurried pulse took a few bars to settle in. There was no attempt to play at any of the subtle musical 'jokes' that Beethoven seemed to be playing like the violins entering with the theme in the "wrong key", nor the comic bassoon solos.
The second movement Allegro scherzando was delivered in a rather rough fashion, with ensemble tidyness lacking badly. The minuet that followed was characterised by some beautiful, long phrases that was unable to take shape at the quick tempo. Acting Principal Cello Liu Peng must be complimented for managing his solo, made so difficult by this pace. The breakneck fourth movement was as exciting as it gets, with the SSO doing their best to keep up. Once again, no attention was given to the funny subito sforzando that peppers the movement in tongue and cheek manner, nor the hilarious ending Beethoven uses in mockery of the traditional codas of the period.
I was not bored by the performance, but this was a rather unsatisfying reading of what I consider to be a master work by this great composer. If I could issue a speeding ticket to the conductor, I sure would.
The rest of the concert was held together by the virtuosity and artistry of Chinese cellist Wang Jian. At the end of his performance of the Rococo Variations, many of us were sure that we were listening to the next big thing after Yo-yo Ma. I really wouldn't compare the two though. Wang Jian deserves to be appraised in his own right. While I felt that his take on the Tchaikovsky was far too personal and Romantic for a set of variations on a "rococo" theme, Wang was persuasive from start to finish. The accompaniment was really not up to par, always slightly behind with Shui Lan not always sensitive to Wang's nuances.
Don Quixote is always a feast to the ears, with Richard Strauss at his best, featuring three soloists and a massive orchestra to boot. Jiri Heger and Wang Jian were both excellent, displaying a great understanding of this sensual music, an aspect of which Alexander Souptel's contribution seemed lacking. The orchestra's execution was somewhat untidy and more attention could have been given to Strauss' colourful orchestration. Otherwise, there were many moving moments aided by Shui Lan's dramatic reading. However, the pace was rather uneven leading to a rather incohesive reading of the work. Overall, an enjoyable performance but lacking in executional precision, grace and imagination to make it a memorable one.
And the fourth musketeer went to the market to buy fish.
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677: 20.3.2000 ©Chia Han-Leon
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