Prokofiev, Grieg and Beethoven at St David’s Hall
This afternoon found me once again at St David’s Hall, Cardiff, waiting for a concert to start.
This time it was the Orchestra of Welsh National Opera under the direction of Tomáš Hanus. And very enjoyable it was.
The first number was a bit of a taster for the forthcoming WNO season, which includes Prokofiev’s War and Peace and Rossini’s Lá Cenerentola. The latter being the story of Cinderella, it made sense to include Prokofiev’s Cinderella Suite from the ballet he wrote in the 1940s.
After that we had the evergreen Grieg’s Piano Concerto, by Grieg, played by the excellent Peter Donohoe, exactly how I like it: with all the right notes in the right order, and the Orchestra not too heavy on the banjoes.
Following the wine break we had Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7, a work which has to be one of his most uplifting pieces. Beethoven was very good at ‘uplifting’ so that means it is very special indeed.
A lovely concert, warmly received by the audience and a very pleasant way to spend a Sunday afternoon.
In the Dark 
April 30, 2018 at 10:41 am
Beethoven’s 7th did a stint at the top of my personal classical chart a long time ago. Magnificent symphony.
April 30, 2018 at 11:02 am
The 2nd movement really gets me…
April 30, 2018 at 1:46 pm
That’s the funeral movement isn’t it? The 3rd movement is the weakest, but that’s hardly a complaint. Other pieces of classical that have topped my charts since I became an adult have been Beethoven’s last piano sonata; his 3rd symphony; O Welche Lust from Fidelio; Tannhauser overture; Act 3 of Gotterdammerung; slow movement of Mozart’s 24th piano concerto in C minor; the climaxes of each act in Don Giovanni; Bach’s unaccompanied violin music.
April 30, 2018 at 2:05 pm
I don’t think it was intended to be a funeral march, although it is somewhat sorrowful and tender and starts in a minor key (A minor actually), with the change to A Major later. The score is marked Allegretto for this movement, which means it’s a bit slower than the others but not `dead slow’. I think many performances take it far too slowly, funereally slow in fact. The writing for the strings in this movement is exquisite.
April 30, 2018 at 3:13 pm
Phillip, have you a favourite recording of Bach’s unaccompanied violin music? I have one by far; I have taken the trouble to get over the shock of the new when I listen to others, and Josef Suk’s still has it for me. I don’t know if it’s him or his instrument – violin design has changed somewhat – but the combination is superlative.
April 30, 2018 at 4:18 pm
So who is the player on your preferred version?
May 7, 2018 at 8:52 pm
Thank you Phillip!
May 16, 2018 at 12:06 pm
Rameau is an interesting composer, but a bit too heavy on the harpsichords for my tastes.