As part of their ongoing concert series, “Mozart, Made In
Manchester”, the Manchester Camerata orchestra used their latest performance to
showcase four relatively early works from the canon of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
– an operatic overture and three piano concertos. These four pieces were some
of the earliest compositions Mozart completed upon arriving in Vienna after leaving
Salzburg in the early 1780s: the overture to 'The Abduction From The Seraglio',
followed by Piano Concertos 11-13.
The concert opener was, fittingly, the Overture. This piece allowed the full Camerata orchestra in attendance to contribute to the evening’s performances and was a striking opener. 'The Abduction From The Seraglio' was an early operatic success for Mozart, although perhaps not as enduring in the popular consciousness as his later operas, The Magic Flute, The Marriage of Figaro, or Cosi Fan Tutte, and based on the Overture (as performed by the Camerata, at least), it is easy to see why it became a success. Incorporating some unusual instrumentation for the classical orchestra (as it was in the 18th century), the piece weaves in percussive melodies inspired by the music of Turkey (as the opera is set in that country), the work is propelled by shifting tempos from slow to fast then back to slow, ensuring that the piece does not allow overfamiliarity to weary its impact. Kicking off with a slow introduction by the string section, the varied percussion kicks in as the tempo is taken up a gear and there is an ensuing musical battle between the percussion and strings as the work switches between tempos. As the Overture progresses, there is a delightful flute solo (which was charmingly played by Amina Hussain, in what was the only piece of the night to require her talents) before the seeming peace offered by the flute is shattered by the switch to a fast tempo with frenetic violins as the piece reaches its climax. Janet Fulton’s work on the non-Western percussion was also a highlight (and, again, represented her only contribution to the concert). All in all, it was quite the thrilling opener to the concert.
After a brief pause to allow the Camerata to reconfigure itself into the core members required for the three concertos (strings and horns, but no percussion or flute) – and for the piano to be brought onto the stage – the orchestra was joined onstage by pianist Jean-Efflam Bavouzet and the first of the three concertos. No. 11 in F major commenced with a playful and light opening section from the strings with the horn section bringing in support underneath. Once the strings and horn had established the mood for the work, Bavouzet got to work with some highly impressive runs on the piano (which were designed to be virtuosic by Mozart) and the piece progressed with the piano and strings alternating with one another. The second movement of the concerto showcased the string section’s capability for bringing light and shade into their tonality, in a section which had a pastoral feel to the music. The third movement further allowed Bavouzet to demonstrate his skills with Mozart’s work and provided a very rousing end to the concerto.
The second concerto, No. 12 in A major, began with its opening movement, which this time really allowed the horn section to shine – this was quite an interesting choice as Mozart had attempted to promote the three concertos being performed as being able to be played without a horn section should the performers prefer a more chamber music feel – and, once again, allowed for some truly impressive runs across the piano keyboard by Bavouzet whose skill made playing the instrument look so easy (although as anyone who has tried to learn to play the piano will attest, it is not as easy as one would assume). The concerto’s second movement showcased much tighter segues between the string and horn sequences with the piano sections than had been evident in the first concerto and, indeed, in the opening movement of this piece. Whereas before, the two alternated with a clear demarcation, in this movement the space between the piano and orchestra’s music was compressed. This was no reflection on the performance but clearly an intention on the part of Mozart where the brief pauses in the earlier work were designed to allow the piece to breathe. The final movement for this concerto showcased some quite upbeat, jaunty piano work and rapid stabs of strings and horns within the music, providing an interesting and welcome change of pace to the preceding work within the concerto.
The final piece of the concert, Piano Concerto No. 13 in C major, brought John Melbourne back on the timpani and Tracey Redfern and Peter Mainwaring on trumpet (having only previously been in action during the Overture at the start of the evening) to bolster the orchestra and provide new and exciting textures to the concerto. Melborune’s timpani, in particular, brought some percussive colour to the concerto. When all was said and done, however, the real star of the concerto performances was, somewhat understandably, Bavouzet – his playing skills matched only by the clear enthusiasm and enjoyment he has having playing and listening to the music (and recognition should also be given to the page turner who enabled to ensure Bavouzet was able to keep up with reading the score even when playing!).
As well as Bavouzet, the other “star attraction” of the evening was the Camerata’s conductor: Gábor Takács-Nagy. Throughout, his conducting was full of vigour and enthusiasm, clearly highlight a strong rapport with the orchestra and Bavouzet. Watching Takács-Nagy’s conducting was just as entertaining as hearing the fantastic performance of these Mozart works. The concert was a very strong reminder as to why the Camerata’s Mozart programme has attracted such high praise – future performances as part of their “Mozart, Made In Manchester” project will be well worth seeking out if you are keen to hear the lesser known, as well as the more famous, works of one of the most prodigious composers of the classical music world.
Reviewer - Andrew Marsden
on - 25.3.23
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