Stravinsky, Bartók, Tchaikovsky: Piotr Anderszewski (piano); Philharmonia Orchestra/Tugan Sokhiev. QEH, 15.03. 2007 (CC)

 

 

Tugan Sokhiev has been a figure of some controversy at WNO (the dispute centered on casting in a Traviata) but his actual musical talent has never been in doubt. His recording of Tchaikovsky's Fourth Symphony has been well received (I have yet to hear it, alas); no surprise after this account.

But first things first. The Stravinsky was the ever-popular Pulcinella Suite. In truth, it was the only disappointment of the night. Evidence of care in rehearsal was everywhere apparent, especially in the balancing of woodwind chords, so essential to successful Stravinsky. And yet some detail was lost in louder passages. More worrying was Sokhiev's habit of romanticising Stravinsky's neo-classicism at every opportuinity. Witness the distinctly under-tempo Serenata and Scherzino, the latter actually sounding more like a rehearsal speed. If characterful playing only really kicked in at the trombone/solo double-bass antics of the Vivo, it was effectively scuppered by the near-hymnic take on the ensuing Minuetto. The finale, despite a nice spring to its rhythms, began too loud and had little shape. My mind kept returning to an RFH performance I heard many years ago now with the Ensemble Contemporain under Pierre Boulez that was the epitome of neoclassicism – not to mention fizzing virtuosity in the finale. Sokhiev and the Philharmonia sounded like amateurs in comparison.

 

Enter Piotr Anderszewki and, effectively, enter another world of performance standard. This was one of the finest Bartók Third Piano Concertos I have ever heard. The opening was very beautiful (if again slightly under the Allegretto the composer directs), with Anderszewski delivering his line with a simply lovely tone. Autumnal shiftings were given space to breathe in this broad canvas (a link to the Rachmaninov of the Fourth Piano Concerto was made in the piano's big chordal statement, something which had not struck me before), while the translucent calm of the strings of the second movement was a delight. After the nocturnal mutterings of the B section, the return of the opening was marked by an inner stillness contrasted with a postively black-toned piano.The finale blazed with rhythm, with Anderszewski ensuring the element of dance was equally present. Superb.

 

Tchaikovsky's Fourth Symphony was heard recently at the Barbican with Sir Colin Davis conducting the LSO (two concerts, one with the Queen in attendance!). Both performances sounded distinctly un-Russian and, although the second outstripped the first, both failed to take off, an accusation that could hardly be levelled at Sokhiev and the Philharmonia. This was a quite simply stunning reading. Sokhiev – clearly eager to get on with it – brought real heft to the opening horn fanfare. The size of the orchestra was clearly large for the QEH, but this was involving rather thn overwhelming (a difficult balance to achieve). Sokhiev's natural sense of ebb and flow, which underpinned the entire performance, was all the more relishable after Davis' rather artificial rubatos. Sokhiev's baton technique, too, is well-nigh faultless, leading to precision in brass ensemble one only infrequently hears. By emphasising the bass end of the harmonic spectrum, Sokhiev generated much of the intensity from the lower end of the orchestra's range, lending the sound much depth.

 

Solo contributions were superb from all departments – perhaps the solo clarinet and solo oboe merit particular praise. A sense of tenderness underlaid the Andantino while real playfulness was at work in the Scherzo (great peasanty winds!). The finale was of an almost blinding brightness; Sokhiev used his baton like a sword to demand precision from the initial downbeat: there was no let-up here, so that the 'Fate' crashes were almost shocking (and that takes some doing in a work as familiar as this one). Astonishing. I look forward to seeing and hearing Sokhiev in action again soon.

 

Colin Clarke