Saturday 2nd September 2000 Victoria Concert Hall	MASTERS SERIES Beethoven Piano Concerto Cycle / Life and Love: The Inextinguishable
	Richard STRAUSS (1864-1949) Don Juan, op.20 Ludwig van BEETHOVEN (1770-1827) Piano Concerto No.2 in B-flat major, op.19 Carl NIELSEN (1865-1931) Symphony No.4, op.29 "The Inextinguishable" Bobby CHEN piano David Alan MILLER conductor

OVERALL NOISE RATING: 2 (A quiet audience, but gosh people still want to cough during the piano pianissimo bits.)

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.

The star of the performance tonight really was the Inextinguishable, such was conductor David Alan Miller's conviction in it. But before that, we were treated to a Romantic rendition of Don Juan, though even for Richard Strauss, I would think a more transparent sound would be suitable. The tutti sections sounded distinctively very thick. There was also a lack of push/drive which also manifested in the performance of the concerto. That extrovert Don Juanian swagger was simply not there. Not that there wasn't enough energy on stage, nor the sheer invocation of sound - but there wasn't enough of a sense of movement. Only in the final sections did the orchestra become clearer, its tones cleaner. To summarise, I would say that the performance emphasised the story painting much more than orchestral clarity - the passion of Don Juan, his aural acts of machoism, his tragic death - these were what I heard. And as such it is not an unsuccessful performance.

Bobby Chen's performance of the concerto raised similarly ambiguous thoughts in the reviewer in me. Like the reading of Don Juan, there were many good points, but still something was missing, though it did not by and large make the performance truly unfavourable.

The introduction to this, Beethoven's first piano concerto (though it is numbered "2"), was very mild-mannered - a mood that infused most of the performance. There was no doubt as to the Mozartian roots of this work. As he demonstrated the last time he was here (5 Dec 1998 ), one of Bobby Chen's greatest gifts must be his amazingly light touch - it is suitably crisp and bright, with little runs clean and pleasant. Perhaps a touch more rubato would make his interpretation more emotional and a little less pedestrian, less formal. In the slow movement, the spirit of Beethoven surfaces; there was a sweetness tinged with a distant sadness, though there remained a certain lack of contrast. Nevertheless, it made beautiful listening.

The third movement could really be more energetic, even with the orchestra. Mr Chen may perhaps want to consider instilling a bit more kick - though having said that his pace did pick up, showcasing much accomplished pianism for the young pianist.

Miller's conducting was completely unobstrusive (though I must add we the audience don't really see much what with that big black piano lid blocking), perhaps slightly too mild. But overall, the direction of the performance was much more interesting than Howard Shelley's performance of the First Concerto, though both lacked "kick".

When David Alan Miller conducted Shostakovich's 10th here in 1997 , he made a much welcomed effort of an introduction to the symphony before its performance. His enthusiasm is something I remember vividly - judging by his introduction to the Nielsen tonight, obviously this guy is a very earnest educator and symphony man.

 

"Music is Life, and as Life it is Inextinguishable". - Carl Nielsen

Miller spoke on how the power that is music is not unlike the Chinese concept of Qi - loosely, energy from the spirit and body. After his spirited talk, it was not surprising to hear the unified sound and closely integrated tone of the orchestra, of Miller's grand vision.

The SSO impressed with their tight ensemble, everything in place with the woodwinds in especially good voice in a well-crafted performance. The strings were no way inferior, clean and together. The timpani, instruments closely associated with the work, produced a glorious din which naturally drowned the orchestra in parts. The conductor himself seemed totally comfortable with the music, directing in an easy, direct and unconfusing manner.

Overall, the performance was very pointed, material well-sustained, with a sense of direction despite the chaotic palette drawn by the Danish composer - there was a sensation of waves breaking throughout the heroic atmosphere of the symphony, of life surging. It was so very bizarre (adjective used by Miller), but uncommonly accessible.

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762: 11.9.2000 ©Chia Han-Leon

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