SEEN AND HEARD INTERNATIONAL

SEEN AND HEARD UK  CONCERT  REVIEW

Debussy, Ravel, Villa-Lobos: Yuja Wang (piano); London Symphony Chorus & Orchestra/Michael Tilson Thomas. Barbican Hall, 25.6.2009 (CC)

Debussy: Images.

Ravel: Rapsodie espagnole. Piano Concerto in G.

Villa-Lobos: Chôros No. 10.


A change of order of the Images meant that we heard the sequence “Images”; “Rondes de printemps”; “Ibéria”. No explanation was given for the change, and personally I remain unconvinced. It does mean that we end with “Ibéria”’s bright tripartite sequence, an unabashed twenty-minute crowd-pleaser, and this hispanically inspired movement therefore led in to the overt Spanish themes of the second half’s Rapsodie espagnole, but to mind the change robs the piece of its symmetry (in that “Rondes de Printemps” returns to the atmospherics of the initial “Gigues”).

There was much to admire in Tilson Thomas’ reading though. Moments of flightiness, both gentle (“Gigues”) and elusive (“Rondes de printemps”) were noteworthy; balance was well-considered throughout. Tilson Thomas’ “Ibéria”, as well as bringing out the Hispanic elements, also seemed cut from the same cloth as Stravinsky’s Firebird. And yet despite all of these positives, there was the prevalent nagging feeling that Tilson Thomas was not under Debussy’s skin. And it was this that feeling of dissociation that differentiated the concert’s first part from the second.

The two Ravel pieces sat well together. The discipline of the strings in their seemingly simple four-note descending figure at the opening of Rapsodie espagnole’s “Prélude à la nuit” was a marvel, while extroversion and virtuosity filled the “Malageuna” and the final “Feria”. It was the perfect hors d’oeuvres for the Ravel G-major Concerto (a change from the advertised left-hand concerto). Yuja Wang, whose debut DG recording and relatively recent Queen Elizabeth Hall recital have been so impressive, was soloist. Her technique (as the Stravinsky Petrushka pieces at the QEH so memorably demonstrated) is impeccable; she is also intensely musical. Speed was no barrier to delicacy and superb articulation in the opening Allegramente. I did entertain doubts at various points – there was the occasional feeling she was over-projecting the right hand, and the long solo that opens the Adagio assai was not by any means as controlled as I have heard it in other hands (most notably Argerich, many years ago at the RFH with the Washington Orchestra under Rostropovich). The finale, again very fast, was hectic but playful from both soloist and orchestra. Wang is a pianist to watch, of that there is no doubt, and her DG album of “Sonatas and Etudes” remains recommended.

Finally, a curio. Villa-Lobos’ Chôros No. 10, “Rasga o Coração” a hyper-gestural splodge of a piece that begins with folk-song and ends with chorus going full pelt. Villa-Lobos’ scoring is dense and complex with a highly rhythmic basis. Primal is the mot juste here. The choral writing is active and involving, and the LSC was on top form. Good to hear the piece, and all performers clearly had a ball. The choir only sings in the last five minutes though – they had to wait a long time for such a short (albeit memorable) contribution. The piece culminates in a colourful riot, a clear rabble-raiser. After the expertise and subtleties of Debussy and Ravel, it all seemed a bit crass.

Colin Clarke


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