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SEEN
AND HEARD CONCERT REVIEW
Mendelssohn,
Elijah:
Soloists, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment with Jeffrey
Skidmore (Conductor) and the Ex Cathedra XL Anniversary Choir, Town
Hall, Birmingham 18.10.2008 (GR)
Any performance of Mendelssohn’s Elijah in Birmingham is a
bit special, the first performance having been held there in 1846.
This particular rendering was that little bit extra, not only in the
very hall of that première but also the first since the re-opening
of the Birmingham Town Hall following the completion of its
renovation last year. Another first was the edition on offer – a
recreation of the 1846 version. Although much of the credit for this
memorable occasion must go to Derek Acock (as spelt out in the
superb and comprehensive programme) this was a team effort, one in
which native Brummie Jeffrey Skidmore and Anne Elliot of Birmingham
Central Library played a major part. Clearly a huge amount of work
had been undertaken for one evening, most of it I imagine a ‘labour
of love’. Was it all worth it?
The oratorio relates the major events in the life of Elijah through
a series of biblical excerpts from books as diverse as I Kings,
Psalms, Lamentations and Ephesians. Such
formulae can result in a certain lack of continuity in the drama,
but this must be balanced against the sheer quality of the music.
The prophet's
prophecy of the impending drought was delivered from front-centre of
the choir stalls, but the message from heaven sent via James
Rutherford as Elijah did not resound to my seat in the circle.
Following this prologue, the overture from the Orchestra of the Age
of Enlightenment graphically spelt out the misery of the Israelites,
the music employing a fugal subject with a series of interlocking
tritones; their gloom was compounded in the ensuing chorus. However
the message from Obadiah in the form of Mark Padmore gave hope to
the people; his tenor air If with all your hearts so
convincing and was for me the first impressive number of the
evening. The double-quartet, normally a highlight of Part One,
lacked impact possibly due again to the position of the soloists up
top.
The lengthy recitative between Elijah and the Widow was sung in
front of the orchestra. This allowed Rutherford and Julia Doyle a
better engagement with the audience and was all the better for that.
The anguish of the mother and the pleading tones of Elijah came
across well. Doyle’s full release on reviveth evoked a
mellifluous acknowledgement of the miracle by Rutherford and the
scene peaked with the tender union of both voices thanking God.
The strings of the OAE ably whisked Elijah away to visit Ahab, but
the king and his people gave him a stormy reception. The subsequent
through-composed confrontation between Elijah and the Priests of
Baal was particularly effective. Rutherford’s recitative was
taunting and derisory, inciting the priests into a frenzied
succession of brief choruses – Baal, we cry to thee, Hear
our cry, O Baal and Hear and answer; demonstratively
delivered by Ex Cathedra; the benefit of their augmented forces was
clearly apparent from the increasing mass hysteria. At this point
Mendelssohn breaks the continuity somewhat with an aside from Elijah
– the beautiful aria Lord God of Abraham – a prayer to which
a quartet of angels devotedly responded. Rutherford then
authoritatively commanded the heavenly fire to descend. After the
people had forcefully announced the arrival of the flames, they
conceded We will have no other God; maestro Skidmore expertly
handled this change in mood.
Elijah now showed the revengeful side of his character in the
allegro aria Is not his word, taken from Jeremiah;
Rutherford negotiated the succession of quarter notes with ease.
Another contrast followed, the popular aria Woe unto them,
but this time the change in mood blended with the narrative. In most
English text versions the Woe is sung twice corresponding
with the original German of Weh and syllable ih of
ihnen. To my mind this has always been a particularly poignant
moment, but here I only heard a single Woe. If this was the
case and this is how the 1846 version was scored, then I believe the
later versions to be an improvement on the Henscheke score. Another
downside of the original followed immediately – no Obadiah
recitative that forms an effective link to the next miracle, the
bringing of the rains. Nevertheless the close of Part One still
showed how Mendelssohn was able to combine lyricism with drama: in
succession we had the exquisite hymn-like Open the heavens
from both Elijah and choir, Doyle’s realistic creation of the youth
sent as look-out, the concern in Rutherford’s voice when no clouds
appeared and the triumph when they did, and finally the choir, with
the sopranos leading the way, raising the roof in the glorious
Thanks be to God.
Part Two was introduced by a recitative from the gospels, another
difference between the Henscheke and Dover editions; the big soprano
number followed. Doyle clearly delivered her message in the adagio
section, but I was less enamoured by her leaps after the B major
allegro change. I enjoyed the Handelian-style Be not afraid,
the choir’s interweaving conversations and unison sectors equally
appealing, not to mention the resounding support from the OAE horns
and trumpets. The antagonism Jezebel had for Elijah as expressed in
the dialogue between Diana Moore and the choir felt a bit tame, but
the energy imparted in the swinging Do unto them chorus had
enough menace to have Elijah trembling in his shoes. Henscheke did
not allow Obadiah to warn him.
Elijah’s soliloquy Though stricken, they have not grieved
with cello obbligato was in turn both gentle and dramatic as he begs
for God to take his life – Rutherford’s range and dynamic variation
equal to the task in every way – he was the star of the night. In
Henscheke Lift thine eyes was a duet (not a trio as in Dover)
from Grace Davidson and Lucy Ballard. This was a delightful but
brief angelic contribution, certainly one plus for Henscheke; the
colour engendered was carried over to the next chorus. After Elijah
pondered on his future, we had the other big alto air Oh, rest in
the Lord; I thought the tempo of Moore a little fast and lacked
some of the mellowness of one famous rendition from a Lancashire
lass.
Behold! God the Lord passed by
demonstrated how Mendelssohn was able to place the choir as major
protagonist. The tremolo of the OAE strings provided a mighty
wind inviting Ex Cathedra to describe its effect on the
mountains. This they did with great intensity, going on flex their
muscles in turn at the power of the sea and an earthquake. When the
Lord appeared with a still small voice it evoked a
delicate pianissimo response. The evening did Ex Cathedra’s
growing reputation no harm at all. Having built it up from scratch
(next year sees their fortieth anniversary) Skidmore has established
a very close working relationship with his singers; his strong faith
in his troops seemingly had them often responding without cue,
enabling him to effectively control the wider picture.
As Elijah went on his way in the strength of the Lord, his arioso
received some ‘lump in the throat’ accompaniment on the oboe. Nobody
in the orchestra worked harder that Sarah Stuart on timpani and
noticeably so when she heralded the whirlwind that escorted Elijah
to heaven. The full force of choir and OAE were required to move the
fiery chariot. The return of Mark Padmore was worth waiting
for and his reflection Elijah walked with God showed why he
is one of the UK’s top tenors. Mendelssohn gave us one more chorus
and quartet before the grand finale full of harmonious amens.
The instruments used for the première in 1846 included three
ophicleides, one of which was a contrebass ophicleide. So thorough
was the preparation for this concert that the only playable
contrebass ophicleide in the world was obtained on loan from the US
(this oddity was even thought newsworthy enough for BBC TV Midland
News). Was this taking authenticity too far? Was it worth it then?
Although Henscheke did display certain differences, they were not
huge, so I’m not so sure. Given the same set of artists I think I
would have had equal enjoyment whichever version had been performed
– and it was very enjoyable.
Geoff Read
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